You had the right idea, Tina.

 My friend and I visited Weston Bend State Park, over the weekend. Both of us had been there before,  but certainly not recently. It's a beautiful woodsy spot, with overnight camping, meandering trails (some of them conveniently paved), an ancient tobacco barn, and a beautiful, high viewing spot, overlooking the fertile river valley. 

This overlook gives the viewer a panorama of golden, Autumn corn fields, roads, farm houses and a distant view of a long stretch of the Missouri River. Now, as you all know, or maybe don't know, the song lyric, "across the wide Missouri", is pretty darn accurate. The river is wide, but it is pretty long, too. The headwaters of the Missouri, are near Three Forks, Montana, and, I think I remember it as a bunch of little rivulets. It's possible to very easily walk across the entire river, hoping from rock to rock, across a very shallow, very cold series of streams. Then, after traveling down through Nebraska, the river chews a chunk off the Kansas rectangle and slips across the middle of Missouri, dumping into the mighty, muddy Mississippi River.

But, the most interesting fact about Weston Bend State Park, is the realization that this beautiful view was once very different. In fact, had that viewing spot been erected in 1804, you might have observed Lewis and Clark, poling and rowing up the fast flowing Missouri, toward the West Coast of the  Washington/Oregon Territory. But, the river isn't where it was, in 1804. The State of Missouri has conveniently provided park visitors, with a Missouri River Map, and its ever-changing course. One line on the map looks like a snake, then another line changes into a different snake and again and again. Before the U.S. Corps of Engineers got their hands and machines on the river, it changed course with every major flood. 

The Missouri River that once made Weston, Missouri a thriving river port, and a haven for commerce and the budding Tobacco industry, is now many miles from the edge of the town. Today, you can't even tell that this cute little tourist attraction was ever located on the wide Missouri River.

Talk about metaphors! The Missouri River and Weston Bend State Park are about life.  Are you able to change course, survive and keep rolling?

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Lord of all Creation: Life is a "Journey of Discovery". Life is a meandering, ever changing river. It's full of floods and soft flowing moments. Sometimes we have torrents, waterfalls, eddys and swift currents. Keep us "Rolling on the River".You are our constant. You never change.

 

Benedict, What's His Name?

I've got loyalties folks! Real loyalties. Some of them may not be terribly reasonable, but honestly, you can call me "loyal to the core"!

Sometimes in my volunteer position, I get paired with someone I haven't met before, and that happened just the other day. Within 5 minutes of making this gentleman's acquaintance, I belted out the Jayhawk fight song, complete with long and confusing mascot-listing introduction. The reason I did this??? Well, he said he lived in Lawrence, Kansas, home of the University of Kansas (my alma mater) and the fighting Jayhawks!!!. Obviously stunned at my performance, he added that he knew nothing about Lawrence, as they had just moved there, only six months ago. Oh, I replied, sheepishly keeping my mouth shut for the rest of our hour together. 

I'm loyal to Kansas City, too. Just mention that there's nothing to do in such a flat, dull, minor city, and I'll be all over you. "Everything's up to date in Kansas City" with our marvelous museums, jazz and Barbeque. I'll talk about the two states, our vast metro area, 12th Street and Vine and the fountains! It's hard to stop me, once I get started.

And, I'm loyal to my Southeast Kansas roots. I'll praise that place and its surrounding strip pits, until the day I die. I'll tell you about Lakeside Park, the Band Dome and dragging the gut. I can expound for hours, on my lifelong friends and what a fantastic childhood we all had. It's my hometown. I'm proud of it. 

Now, what's wrong with being loyal? Not a darn thing. A lot of great people have been called loyal. No one is ever praised or remembered, for being disloyal. 

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Great Lord. You are ever present and ever loyal to Your children and Your creation. Our loyalty, to You, should be constant, in all of our endeavors.  Your steadfast love endures forever.

"Fly Me To The Moon"

Been anywhere by plane lately? Recently, I posted about my first experience as an airplane traveler. I remembered being so excited, almost nauseous, in fact. The experience was amazing and one I will remember for a lifetime.

Okay, so plane travel today, is not what it used to be. Tax money can build all of the eye-popping terminals, flashy art work and automatic flushing toilets, we can afford, but plane travel is totally uncomfortable and increasingly annoying.  I can safely say that I hate traveling by air.

Let me list a few of my complaints. 

• I am only 5'2' and I don't have enough leg room to cross my legs, once seated. Seriously, wiggle room is non-existent. What about folks over 6 feet tall and weighing over 200 pounds??????
• Four armrests, divided by three people, really. That just doesn't compute
• Sardines are more comfortable in a can, than airline passengers are, entering, exiting and seated in the cabin. And, we willing pay thousands of dollars, for such abhorrent treatment.
• Only one employee, out of the several dozen, said anything pleasant to me. That's not a good percentage. What ever happened to "Fly the Friendly Skies of United."??????
• Who teaches airline employees to use their voice amplification systems?  Or maybe their equipment is just way too cheap to amplify without distortion? I might as well have been listening to Jimi Hendrix!!!!!

Bottom line, I got there and back. I did not have to walk or drive myself. I have written that we should be thankful for the small things in life. I am certainly thankful to be back home.

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Dearest Lord. Thank you for safe travels. We are blessed.

I Did It!!!!!

 My six year old grandson has recently acquired his life-long wish. He can now snap his fingers....both hands. He has been trying to acquire this skill for at least 5 of  his 6 years! His desire to make finger noise has rivaled that of NASA trying to reach the surface of the Moon, or Lewis and Clark attempting to reach the Pacific Ocean. Snapping, for the present, is clearly his crowning achievement. He is so pleased with himself and he now wakes up snapping, and does it, constantly, all day long. 

Wouldn't it be wonderful, if we jaded adults could feel just a teeny bit of this type of  pride, at some new accomplishment? Or, for that matter any accomplishment. After all, some of us have reached an age when we should be thrilled with almost anything we succeed at doing!

Like, how about WOW! I woke up this morning! I am going to have a great day and do something meaningful for myself and others. I will try to live this day, to its fullest.

Oh Yeah. Celebrate the little things. Quit complaining.

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All powerful God. We are thankful for fingers that can still snap, at least sometimes. We are blessed every minute, with the breath that you give us. You are our refuge and our strength. 

Learned Lessons

 I"ve been away from my home base for a couple of weeks. My "in-town son" and his girls kept an eye on the house and yard for me, while I was gone. They even stepped up and mowed the front yard. When I arrived yesterday, the house did not look, as I had feared, like it had been abandoned and neglected. Allowing your children to reach adulthood, is rewarding, most of the time.

That acknowledged, Nanners, the yard girl, around 5 o'clock, changed out of her traveling duds and put on her mowing attire (everything she does requires an appropriate outfit) and fired up John Deere. She was feeling adventurous, so she threw him into fourth gear (gear #3 is safe and slow) and began mowing. It didn't take long, because Nanners and John were speeding along. Only scared themselves, by getting a bit too close to the drop-offs, a couple of times. But, that's par for the course. 

Today, Nanners will finish the job by trimming with the weed-whacker. For that job, she will don yet another outfit. This job requires long pants and closed toe shoes and socks. A year or so ago, the yard girl managed to mangle her naked left leg pretty good. She tripped and on the way to the ground, failed to let go of the trigger. Not doing that again!!!!! Shred the pants, girl, not your body.

Up until a year and a half ago, I had never ridden the Deere, or weed wacked. I've tackled  these jobs, along with a few others, because I'm the only one here to do them. And, in spite of my complaining nature, I'm sort of enjoying it. If taken at a leisurely pace (and I am not one to do anything, at a leisurely pace), yard work is satisfying. Once done, I can stand by and admire my work. It's finished until the next time! 

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Lord: Change is enlightening. You have given us the ability to adapt and although we sometimes struggle with making changes, with Your all-powerful help, we can do many things. Remind us to listen to Your guidance and give us strength. We praise Your Holy Name.