Musings...9:50 p.m.

Dark clouds are gathering and I'm hoping for a heavy downpour. Maybe a good rain would cool things off here in Idaho's Treasure Valley. Yesterday's nearly 100 degrees and heavy humidity reminded me of Mississippi, but it didn't last. Hot again today, but cooler tonight. We haven't had a sand storm as yet. Those are no fun. (It's beginning to lightning and thunder, and it's beginning to rain. Good.)

Yesterday afternoon we visited the Warhawk Air Museum. The museum is packed with countless WWI, WWII, Korean and Vietnam displays, including a number of aircraft including two P51s. Quite a place and some of the artifacts are very personal -- letters from airmen, first hand accounts of battles, etc.

Today we visted the Koenig Winery. This is Idaho Wine country and there are many wineries in the Nampa/Caldwell area. We tasted some superb Riesling and bought a bottle as well as a bottle of Idaho Potatoe Vodka. (Photos soon of the endless acres of vineyards.)

Like many of you, we concluded the day watching the Kennedy final graveside service. I've never been a Kennedy fan, but I have to say I was impressed with (1) the senator's love of family and his attention to the children; and (2) his effort to redeem himself from some sordid periods of his past. "Let him who has no sin cast the first stone." As the graveside service concluded in the dark, Helen wondered out loud if the darkness was a sign that the light has gone out in Camelot. ??

Kennedy's stated love of the Roman Catholic church and its doctrines caused me to think of my 'church' -- the Presbyterian Church, USA -- the church that birthed me, nurtured me in the faith, educated me and ordained me, and called me to serve seven pastorates in three states, and how I have grieved at the PCUSA's inability to be faithful to Jesus' last instructions: "Go, make disciples." Sadly, my church has lost more than a million members in the last decades. Is that because, like Jesus, we have been faithful at all costs, or because we have jettisoned our core beliefs? I have been thinking a lot about that in this first year of my retirement. I'll share some thoughts re same in the near future.

Blessings, Larry

Why All the Shouting at Town Hall Meetings?

ANSWER: Because just speaking civilly, nicely, to your congressperson or senator, just writing kind, respectful letters to them, does NOT get their attention. People have been writing, speaking and conversing 'civilly' with their reps for years on end, and the reps don't listen. Indeed, ignore them, and laugh behind the backs of their constituents. Yes, some are shouting now and they are being heard. Hummm.

106 degrees yesterday

47 YEARS!

Last evening Helen and I celebrated our 47th wedding anniversary with drinks and a fine meal at Orphan Annie's restaurant here in Caldwell, ID. Helen remarked last evening, "Who would have thought we'd be here in Idaho at this time of our lives?"

It's been a 'ride' since that evening at Decatur Presbyterian Church on August 25, 1962, when Dr. Wade Huie, my homiletics professor and mentor, and my seminary roommate, Alan Johnson, sent us off on our life journey that included Saltillo, MS, in the racially torn sixties, Greenville, MS, in the day of Martin Luther King's 'Mule Train' to DC, LaGrange, GA, Savannah, GA, Pine Bluff, AR and, finally where we ended our pastorates at The Church of the Hills in Johns Creek, GA.

We decided not to try for another 47 years, but just to take it one year at a time to see if we could reach 50 years. How she has put up with me for almost 5 decades is beyond me. I guess you could call her a survivor!

What Have We Done?

If you were hired to run a major corporation and you did not know how to run such a company, if you were seriously inexperienced at such a challenge, if you were not competent to manage that company, what would you do? Of course, you would surround yourself with advisors with the experience you do not have and depend on them, following their suggestions, letting them manage most of the daily 'stuff' of the corporation while you 'fronted' the corporation with the public.

That's an analogy of Obama's circumstances.

The disturbing part of Obama's presidency is that the 'advisors' with which he has surrounded himself are, in almost every instance, radical left liberals.

In the fall of '08 I wrote that within a year of electing Obama we would be asking ourselves, "What have we done?" In nine months of his tenure, many citizens are asking exactly that question.

Changing Our Email Addresses

Family and Friends:

On September 1, our email addresses will change.

Our present addesses are:
Larry – lawrenceawood@bellsouth.net
Helen – hew1083@bellsouth.net

Our new email addresses are:
Larry – Law10838@aol.com
Helen – Hew10838@aol.com

The new email addresses are active now, so you can use our old or new addresses until September 1, then only the AOL addresses will work.

Please make the changes in your email address book. Thanks, Larry & Helen

_____________________________________

"God Bless America" by Irving Berlin

Beautiful cool but sunny Saturday in Idaho. Cowboys and cowgirls jammin' tonight at the Ambassador Resort RV Park.
The best was an "old" cowboy with a great voice and great guitar singing "God Bless America".

"God Bless America" by Irving Berlin

While the storm clouds gather far across the sea.

Let us swear allegiance to a land that's free.

Let us all be grateful for a land so fair.

As we raise our voices in a solemn prayer.

God Bless America.
Land that I love
Stand beside her, and guide her
Thru the night with a light from above.
From the mountains to the prairies,
To the oceans, white with foam
God bless America
My home sweet home.
God bless America
My home sweet home.

Scenes from Our Present RV Park in Idaho

TEXAS MOLLY II SITS AMONG OTHER RVS

JUST OUTSIDE OUR FRONT DOOR...OUR 'PORCH'

POOL AND PUZZLE ROOM

A VIEW OUT OF THE REC ROOM

OFFICE, POST OFFICE AND A COUPLE STAFF PERSONS

SITTING AREA IN REC ROOM

RECREATION/DINING ROOM & KITCHEN

HELEN ENJOYS THE POOL (SAUNA, TOO)

RAIN!

Praise the Lord! It is raining in Idaho! Temperature has dropped literally 50 degrees in 24 hours. Right now it is 56 degrees. We sure need the moisture. Helen

Wow! Hot as Hades in Idaho, but Relief is Coming!

It's been hot as Hades here in Idaho and even this Mississippi bayou boy has often wilted in the 100-110 degree heat. Not humid, like the bayou, but boy is it hot! Word is from the WC that that's all about the change with severe storms coming in Thursday night, driving rain, lightning and high winds. Bring it on! Here's a photo of the tree last night next to Texas Molly II in a brief storm.

Finally Home!

We arrived "home" yesterday at Ambassador RV Resort in Caldwell, Idaho, after 9,000 miles on the road since leaving here last January 1.

It feels really good to be what feels 'home' for us.

I (and maybe Helen) will fly to Oxford, MS for an Ole Miss game this fall. We look forward to fishing the Idaho & Oregon trout streams, attending a Boise State Broncos game and meeting new friends here at Ambassador.

We are having some A/C problems and will take Molly II to the service center this coming week to have the necessary work done, have regular maintenance done, as well as having the Corian countertop replaced (which has a crack and is under warrenty, thank goodness.)

We now have strong cell phone service and internet again. We get once a week snail mail via our mailing service in Livingston, TX. Let us hear from you via phone, email, facebook, etc.

Beautiful Sunday morning here. Yesterday it reached 107 F here. Probably be that hot again today.

We've RV-ed in all these states, except Alaska (we flew there).

Larry