FOUNDATION OF HOLY FAITH

IN MAY, '06, TWO OF MY SPIRITUAL BROTHERS CAME UP TO THE NORTHERN MINNESOTA AREA, STAYING WITH MY BEST FRIEND, SUSAN, AND I, WHO HAD ARRIVED DAYS EARLIER, PLANNING FOR THEM TO COME, TOOK THEM AROUND AND ABOUT UP THERE.  WE HAD BEEN SPIRITUALLY INVOLVED IN MANY PORTIONS OF OUR LOCAL STATES WHERE WE LIVED  [NEBRASKA, KANSAS, MISSOURI], AND I WANTED TO HAVE THEIR SPIRITUAL DOORS OPEN WIDER, IF POSSIBLE.

MY FRIEND FROM KANSAS CITY, JOHN GROSS, BROUGHT ONE OF THE BOYS FROM HIS CHURCH.  A FEW YEARS EARLIER, JOHN HAD BEEN DROPPED INTO MY LIFE  IN THE K.C. AREA.  MY HUSBAND AND I HAD MET THE BOY'S PARENTS  WHEN  DOWN THERE AND VISITED THEIR CHURCH.  THAT WAS A BLESSING THEN, AND A BLESSING TO HAVE HIM IN MY LIFE AGAIN WHEN HE ARRIVED WITH JOHN.

THE OTHER GUY, GARY NEVE, FROM OMAHA, WHO AT THE PICTURE IS AGAINST THE TREE, HAS BEEN A STRONG SPIRITUAL BROTHER FOR ME FOR ABOUT TEN YEARS.

WE HAVE STUDIED AND DEALT WITH THE DIFFICULTY AND SINFULNESS OF OUR WORLD.

ANYHOW, IT WAS A TREAT TO HAVE  THEM COME UP THERE, AND A TREAT TO DRIVE THEM AROUND AND ABOUT IN THAT PORTION OF MINNESOTA.  AND THEY SPENT SOME WONDERFUL TIME AT SUSAN'S, WORSHIPING, PRAYING, GLORIFYING AROUND AND ABOUT HER HOUSE AND PROPERTY.

AND THIS WORD IS FOR MANY, MANY PEOPLE:

BUILD YOUR LIVES UPON THE FOUNDATION.

THAT COUNTS FOREVER AND EVER. 

OUR ANNIVERSARY... #29

I'm rejoicing today.  It has been a huge blessing to be married to Dave.  He's been a wonderful, caring, giving, encouraging husband.  Have we ever fussed?  Maybe, but I can't really keep track of that, because the love breaks through over and over again.  So, gotta put a photo from the wedding and share a bit.  




AND something that will be a surprise to him, is that I am wearing the same purple leather skirt.  First time in about

15 years, because it didn't fit on me for quite a while.  Now I've lost enough pounds that I'm able to do it again.  He won't see it for a couple hours after this hits the blog, but he'll be grinning when I am in the Baptist church where he will be playing the piano/organ.  I'll pop in when he's practicing and I expect to see a grin and rolling eyes...a hug as he comes to the pew area to sit with me.

Anyhow, our day is going to be filled with much.  I'll be at our church, then his pianoing church time across town, then back to our church for a lunch time event there, then he'll be working at the church and I'll be going to the Bhutanese church this afternoon.  When it's all over, we're going down and around and about in Omaha, wherever he wants to go.  And we'll have a nice dinner time, a nice movie time [home or otherwise], a nice popping into kids and grandkids time if possible.

Next week, the 29th, from Monday to Friday we will be up in the Twin Cities area so we can spend time with his brothers and sister, see friends, go around and about -- maybe slipping to Duluth for one day so we can see friends and the Superior and go around and about to see what we loved there.  It will be a lot of fun to be with Dave, no matter where he wants to be.

OH, and as we went on our wedding trip in 1985, we stayed at my long-time friend Susan's in the NW

portion of Minnesota not far from Itasca State Park ... being at Susan's from Sunday evening until Saturday morning.  Then he took me to the Lake Superior area in northeastern area of Minnesota as a surprise so I would see "ocean, mountains, falls".  He knew I loved those in the northwest of Washington and Oregon and, living in the Omaha area for several years, couldn't see any of what I loved so much.  He wanted me to see those wonderful pieces.  It was a huge blessing. [And for an hour or so, we were in Canada. That was a treat, too.]

LAKE SUPERIOR

THUNDER BAY, ONTARIO

Anyhow, just sharing again about our marriage.  As I said, he's a wonderful treat.  A good guy.  And he WILL be smiling today when he sees that purple skirt that he bought for me right before our wedding from a special shop downtown.  It truly was a blessing to me then, and I hope it will be a blessing to him today.


[And next year it would be 30th anniversary and I'd be 70 years old.  So I hope I'm still alive, still brainy, to have that special rejoicing time and, hopefully, North Shoring again.  We've been there many times to laugh, walk on the paths, climb the variety of falls areas, walk on the beach many times, and be filled with joyfulness--and bring hundreds of rocks home.]

THE "BUFFALO" STORY

OK.  Been grinning about this for ages and never written the story.  So, gotta do it.  Hopefully, you'll grin, too! And even though it's not focusing on the Lord's wonder, it sure is filled with the wonder of our wedding and honeymoon and how life entered in a fun and blessed way.  So here goes...

On September 21st, we will have our 28th anniversary.  On September 22nd, 1985, we reached my dear friend, Susan's for our honeymoon.  It was great.  We slept on a mattress in the living room, the head of it up against the large window area so we could look up at the skies and the trees and moon.  It was almost like camping outside, but blessed by none of the cold or wind or bugs [or bears].  It was a real treat.

We spent some time going out and about.  It was Dave's first time to be at Itasca State Park where Mississippi River begins.  Then to Clearbrook or Bemidji.  Around and about so Dave would see her family, meet her pastor.  It was just a wonderful few days. 

[Dave also was cooking, which was one of his favorite things to do.  Did then, does now. He's great!] 




One day, Dave and I went on a drive and took her son, Jay, with us.  We were probably heading to a nearby town.  We followed a large truck that was filled with piles of bales of hay.  Suddenly, one of the bales flew off the truck and hit the road in front of us.

"Oh, that poor buffalo!"  [I don't remember if it was Dave or Jay; we just laughed so hard, so suddenly.]

WELL, life changed for us a bit.

Eventually, on Friday, after 4 full days at Susan's, we were heading to Lake Superior.  I'd never been there.  It was chosen by Dave, because, since he knew I was very "mountain and ocean" oriented, having been raised in the Northwest,and, now living in Nebraska for several years, and knew I couldn't trot round and about and see them any more, he knew I'd love the Lake, I'd love the high hills, the forest, the falls. [And I DID fall in love with them!  Still am in love with them.]

We were about an hour from Susan's, on a side highway, heading further north first, when suddenly we saw a field of bales of hay.  Dave hit the brake and pulled to the side of the road.  Crazy as we were, we climbed over the fence and Dave climbed onto a "bale" and I stood next to it, just showed how I loved it. What a hoot!

We, BTW, had a wonderful long, long day drive on Saturday, having arrived in the north end of the North Shore, going up into Thunder Bay,Ontario, Canada, and then, while stopping here and there on the Shore or at the State Parks, we went all the way down to St. Paul, MN, to be with his family.  We got there really late at night.  We had a reception the next day, which was a lovely treat.

WELL, the bales of hay entered my mind and my heart.  So, occasionally, if I was driving past them, and had a funny thought, I would pull over and take a photo.  Gained several, over time.

A few years ago, to give my husband a very special anniversary gift, I dug out those photos, wrote the titles on them, and put them in a photo frame that showed 8 of them.  

It was funny!  Dave loved it.  It has been hanging on his office or studio wall all this time.  And filled with laughter.  His piano students, our "office" visitors, and family and friends always roll their eyes and chuckle.

Hope you'll chuckle, too.

[Oh, and people think I'm so serious about so much.  And, in a way, that's quite true.  However, I also have a funny side...and what happened with this is one of them.]