DESSERT TO DESERT (February 15-March 8, 2025)

 

We left tropical Hawaii with her 90% humidity and traveled to desert like Phoenix, Arizona with a humidity of 15%. We would stay at the Legacy Golf Resort for three wonderful weeks of gathering ourselves and getting ready for an upcoming Carribean cruise.

The weather was sunny and warm, and the resort provided a variety of things to do. I managed to find my way to the hot tub, the gym, and the onsite restaurant. Our room was just a studio but was plenty big and well equipped.

                                       REFLECTIONS

About a mile journey from the WYNDHAM LEGASY GOLF RESORT are the South Mountains. The rugged landscape presents a stark contrast to the lush golf community where we stayed.  The level paved sidewalk to get there is bordered by tall palm trees, amazing flowering bushes, rapidly flowing canals, and the perfectly manicured fairways of two outstanding golf clubs.

However, at the end of the walk, one is faced with a stark contrast. 

The paved sidewalk turns to a rock and dirt trail. Uneven and winding upward, it is definitely not an easy go! No more verdant green landscaping. It becomes a desert-like terrain that challenges the sojourner.

As I made the trek back and forth, I was reminded that as we walk through life it is pretty much the same. There are times when everything goes smoothly, and the journey is easy, beautiful, and refreshing. There are also times when our life's journey becomes uneven, sparse, and much more cumbersome.

Those two drastically different places were not that far apart. The colorful and the drab literally bumped up against each other! There was no buffer just a complete change.

How many times in our lives do we suddenly go from the dessert to the desert with little or no warning. It happens! We're walking along with ease, enjoying the scenery, and suddenly we are confronted with a dry, prickly environment.

The good news is that the opposite is likewise true. We find ourselves in a sparse place and suddenly we emerge into a place of plenty. No buffer, just a complete change.

It is important to remember that in these transitional times, there is worth in both. There is the rugged beauty of the desert and the flowerful, fragrant beauty of the "norm".

Also, remember that when in one place or the other, the other is not far away. Learn to enjoy and to be prepared. BE BLESSED.

BREATH OF LIFE (January 18-February 14, 2025)

Wyndham Shearwater Resort

After landing on Kauai, we made our way to the northside and our

resort. While in Hawaii we stayed at three different WYNDHAM Resorts. Our first two weeks were at the WYNDHAM Bali Hai. Our third week was at the WYNDHAM Ka'Eo Kai. Our final week was at WYNDHAM Shearwater. Each resort had its strong points but, we loved Shearwater. This resort sat on a cliff above the Pacific. We could watch the whales and enjoy the sunrise. What a wonderful blessing it was to spend a full month in the Aloha state!

Having been to this Island several times, we primarily just relaxed and stayed around the resorts. 

Wyndham Bali Hai Resort

                                                                                      REFLECTIONS

 

   "Aloha"! You hear it every time you interact with the Hawaiian locals. It's expected. I always thought that it meant "Hello" or "Goodbye" but, I have learned differently.  According to several sources, when translated from the native language, means "breath of life".

    It has come to express more than just "hello" or "goodbye". It has become an expression of mercy, love, affection, peace, and respect. It has grown to identify a way of life. 

    "Aloha" has become a simple way of "breathing life" into others.         In its concise way it says, "I offer you mercy, affection, peace, and respect with nothing expected in return."

    Not a bad way to treat our fellowman! So, to all who read my blogs, "Aloha" from the bottom of my heart.

    

OF PATRIOTS AND PASTRIES (January 4-February 17, 2025)

 

We left our son's home in Missouri and traveled to the great state of Texas. While there we stayed at the WYNDHAM Riverside Suites in San Antonio. This has become a "go to" place just after Christmas. The weather is decent and the Christmas Lights along the Riverwalk don't get turned off until the middle of January.  Our three weeks there were spent relaxing and visiting the places we had come to enjoy. Those spots would include, the Alamo, the Riverwalk, the Tower of the America's, Mi Tierra Cafe, and the Guenther Pioneer Flour Mill Restaurant.

As always, we enjoyed watching and listening to the horse drawn carriages as they paraded past our room nightly. It was a time of getting organized for our winter/spring adventures that lay ahead.

We left San Antonio and flew to Hawaii through Los Angles. The flights were long but, stepping off the plane in the Aloha State, smelling the flowers, and feeling the tropical warmth was worth it.

  

                                                                                       REFLECTIONS

Our times in San Antonio always seem to be a blend of the old and the new. It is a place with great history and a bright future. The resort we stay at used to be, in the early 1900s, a Salvation Army housing unit, then it was a standard hotel, and now a Wyndham Timeshare Resort. It is the perfect blend of the old and new. The rooms are small and have maintained the architectural features of the original building with the niceties of the 21st century. We love it.

The Guenther House Restaurant is in the original Guenther Home and overflows with history. It is an unassuming eatery in the old home but, it has the best pastries and signature waffles. The upstairs is a sort of Museum with the original period furnishings. We love it!

And, of course, there is the Alamo. Smack dab in the center of the busy city.  A small but important reminder of days gone by and our history as Americans. We love it.

That's pretty much the way it is with life. We are, for the most part, what our past has made us. Yet, throughout the years, we have changed. We need to be a bland of the old and the new. We need to always remember our heritage and how we have arrived at this point in life. As much as our history has shaped us, we must learn to adapt to the new day in which we live and reach forward to the days ahead.

Like the Alamo, the Guenther House, and the Wyndham Riverside Suites, we should cherish our past and live in the present. Repurposed as it were. For those of us who have lived many decades we must find a way to be relevant in our later days.

We cannot do or be what we once were but, we can certainly find an avenue to be of value in our golden years.  Be blessed and remember.... THE BEST IS YET TO COME!   

  

THOSE WERE THE DAYS (November 24 -January 3, 2025)

 

Lake of the Ozarks, Missouri

After our friends departed from our annual "Celebration of Friends" Outing, our family arrived to spend Thanksgiving together. For several days we enjoyed WYNDHAM LAKE OF THE OZARKS and being together. When Sherry and I left on December 1st we had been at this lovely resort for a full month. 

Our next stop was in the Springfield, Missouri area where we stayed with Aaron and his family, enjoyed Christmas activities, and stayed until the New Year arrived. 

As I write this, we have left Missouri for Texas and are staying at the WYNDHAM RIVERWALK SUITES in San Antonio. We are here for just weeks before heading to Hawaii for a month.

                                                                            REFLECTIONS

One of the downsides of our transient lifestyle is that we are, many times, separated from family and friends. This is somewhat muted by the ease of communication these days. You can actually do video calls (I remember when the thought of that was just a wild dream). Social media helps a great deal during those "away times". Yet being with them physically is so much nicer!

That's why times like the last two months were so wonderful. 

The entire clan, sixteen, were an integral part of our lives over the thanksgiving and Christmas holidays! It was time well spent with people we deeply love. They were days we will never forget.

Many of you who will read these comments have your family close by. You get to see them often. Please don't take that for granted. It is a blessing. Treasure those times when you get together. Pass out kind words and hugs. Don't let the stress of closeness ruin your relationships.

CELEBRATE GOOD TIMES...COME ON! (October 28-November 24, 2024)

Juvenile Bald Eagle at Lake of the Ozarks

We left Indiana and headed west ending up at Osage Beach, Missouri, on the shore of the Lake of the Ozarks. The WYNDHAM RESORT would be our home for the next month.

During this time, we completed our 7th year of retirement living. Our nomadic lifestyle found as spending 46% of our time in various timeshare resorts. That would mean that we spent 1346 nights in mostly WYNDHAM RESORTS. We definitely have taken advantage of our purchases across the years since we became owners in 1982.

It was there that we were joined by five couples with whom we have shared lives since college days in the late 1960s. This would be the eighth consecutive year that we have met for a five day "Celebration of Friends". This year, aside from the general times of reunion, we enjoyed a luncheon cruise on the lake and an outing to Bridal Cave. We had two couples who couldn't join us this year and they were missed greatly. Maybe next year.

Now we await our family to arrive for the Thanksgiving season. The memories we have made throughout the years with family are cherished and have left an awesome impact on all of us.

Thank you, WYNDHAM!

A Foggy Lake of the Ozarks Sunrise

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             REFLECTIONS

These resort times with friends and family are always cause to reflect on days gone by. They are times to remember many of the amazing things that we have experienced together. They are times of laughter and, sometimes, tears. They are always special times.

Yet as much as I enjoy these times with those I love, I never want to get stuck in the past. There's too much to be treasured in the present and looked forward to in the future. I know that, as a 76-year-old, my days are numbered but, my intention is to find something to enjoy in each of them. It could be a foggy sunrise or a sky full of birds at sunset. Most of these things will be simple but I plan to simply enjoy them. How about you?

"Into the Sunset" (Lake of the Ozarks)

 

GIVING THANKS SHOULD BE A LIFESTYLE (August 30-October 27, 2024)

 

After leaving North Carolina we headed to Indiana where we split time between our cabin near Bloomington and our daughter's home in Avon. We called Indiana home for almost all of September and October. We did take a brief trip to Michigan to visit friends but, most of our time was spent going to Volleyball game and just enjoying time with family. Both locations provide opportunities to view the native wildlife. They were pleasant days.

                                                        REFLECTIONS

What was supposed to be a time of relaxing and recreation (fishing and golfing) turned into a rather steady run of medical issues. A splitting toothache resulted in a root canal and crown. A Baker's Cyst behind my right arthritic knee demanded a Cortisone injection. Discovery of some skin cancer on my neck necessitated a Mohs surgery. A problem with my pacemaker caused much discomfort.

So, instead of a peaceful time of R&R it turned into a painful, limping, slit throat, heart pounding time of inactivity and stress.  Someone indicated that after all these years the dreaded A.G.E. disease had caught up with me. Before someone asks, "what is A.G.E. disease." I will tell you that it is more commonly known as "aging"! If we live long enough it will surely get us and, I guess we could say it is fatal! I remember my aging mother once stating, "This growing old isn't what it's cracked up to be!" 

The suddenness of the onset of all of the above reminded me once again that one needs to treat each day with the respect it deserves. They are a 24-hour opportunity to explore so many things. They each offer the chance to spend time with family and friends and create memories for yourself and others. They should not be taken for granted!

Now, tomorrow, we head out to the WYNDHAM LAKE OF THE OZARKS resort in Missouri. We'll be there a month, including a few days around Thanksgiving with our family. You'd better believe that I'll treasure every moment!

   

Sunset, Indian Lake, Michigan

"INCH BY INCH ANYTHING'S A CINCH" (July 31-August 29, 2024)

Sunset in New Bern, North Carolina

We began the last thirty -day stretch with a brief fifteen-day excursion to visit with friends in Michigan and Ohio. This stretch also included a weeklong stay at Wyndham Harbour Resort in New Bern, North Carolina. We were joined there by long-time friends, Mike and Lois Crawford, from Tipp City, Ohio. I was their pastor in the 1980s! 

Next, it's back off to Michigan for five days before returning to the Hoosier state for most of September and October. Looking forward to watching several of our youngest granddaughter's volleyball games as she plays out her Senior High School season.

                                    REFLECTIONS

While in North Carolina, I was able to observe a rather large alligator every day from the deck of our condo. He would cruise across the lake and come over our way. Most of the time he would just hang around with only his head above the surface. Hardly moving, it was as if he were waiting for someone to provide him his breakfast, lunch, or dinner. It was interesting, but boring!

Then, one morning, he showed up with a pre-packaged meal in his mouth. He had, somehow, secured a large Snapping Turtle as his breakfast! Problem was that he couldn't eat it before removing the hard outside packaging!

I watched intently from about ten yards away as he proceeded to, every five minutes, raise himself as high above the water as he could and with a tremendous twist of his huge scaley head smash his dish on the surface with such force that the shell began to crack. Finally, after six such tries, he was able to throw his head back and consume his meal. 

After seeing this and taking some time to think about it, I started to remember something that my parents used to say. They would say, "don't bite off more than you can chew".

I think that in my retirement life I spend a great deal of time just hanging around. Then I get "inspired" and decide to do something big. All too often the enormity of the project causes me to eventually give up the idea and retreat to just being happy to keep my head above water.

I need to be better at devouring things in smaller pieces. I need to break them down into smaller bites and keep working at them every five minutes, five days, or five months! I need to remind myself that this type of patient, consistent effort could ultimately result in being able to throw my head back and enjoy the result.

During WW2 the Seabees, who cleared the jungle islands for runways, had a motto; "Inch by Inch anything's a cinch!"

That's still true today! Keep living your life in bite-size pieces and you will surely partake of many enjoyable meals!

Sunset in Howell, Michigan