SHARING ALASKA (August 17-20, 2017)

Our stand by flight from Cincinnati through Minneapolis to Anchorage, Alaska, went without a hitch and we landed in "The Last Frontier" at about 1 a.m.!  We thought we'd be able to catch some sleep in the gate area while waiting on friends to arrive but a greatly delayed flight left us with about 200 suite mates and no peace and quiet.  Thus, it was a tired Sherry and Al who greeted Wes and Marcia Bittenbender when they landed at noon.

We picked up the rental car and headed to Homer with a stop at the Summit Lake Lodge for dinner.  After spending the night in the guest rooms at the Homer Church of the Nazarene, we visited the Spit in Homer, drove through the Kenai Peninsula (saw a Grizzly Bear),                

ate donuts at "The Moose Is Loose Bakery" in Soldotna, had lunch at "Red's" in Seward, and visited the Exit Glacier.  We arrived in Big Lake at the Nazarene Campgrounds where we would spend the next three nights together in the Langley Lodge.

From Big Lake we made the journey to the Hatcher Pass and the Independence Gold Mine, ate pizza at Humdinger's in Palmer, and just enjoyed the peace and quiet of the Lodge.  The cry of the loons welcomed the nights.  What a great time with good friends.



REFLECTIONS

Sherry and I have grown to love Alaska and her people.  We have now returned for the 4th time.  There is something about the times of absolute silence in the wilderness, about the roar of a waterfall, and about the cry of the loon.  There is something about the splashing in a creek filled with salmon, about the sight of a huge moose beside the road, and about the sight of a Grisly bear snaring salmon as they struggle to swim upstream.  There is just something special about Alaska.  That's why it was so special to share this "last frontier" with long time friends; to let them discover for themselves the sights and sounds of our 49th State.

Yet, as much as we love Alaska, there is a Kingdom not made by hands that we love even more.  So it begs the question; why aren't we as excited to share the good news about the Kingdom of God as we are about other temporal places?  Why would we not want our friends to experience first hand that which has brought us so much joy throughout the years?  Just sayin'.

AT THE POINT: RESTING AND RE-PACKING (August 7-16, 2017)

Arriving back Indiana from Australia we found ourselves exhausted and ready for a long sleep.  The problem was that we needed to hurry to the cabin, deal with some issues with Sherry's mom, and repack for Alaska.

The week at Pair-A-Dice Point at Camp Clifford was a reminder of how much we love this place in the woods.  Once again we were visited by all kinds of birds and wildlife.  The most enjoyable were the daily visits by twin fawns.  They loved our apples that fell from our apple tree and could be seen all throughout the day just kinda hanging around.  They were there when we got up in the morning and there when we went to bed.  

Packing for Alaska was a chore as we tried to figure out what clothes we might need for the last frontier.  Plans are to be up there for up to 11 weeks.  Finally the bags were packed and we were ready go (that might sound like a song to some).

REFLECTIONS

Retired life is full of ebbs and flows, full of stop and goes.  It consists of beats and rhythms.  It seems to me that there must be a balance of the rushed and the relaxed.  A blend of the going and the staying.  Too much of one or the other can ruin the whole mix.  The secret is finding the recipe that fits.  The problem is that everyone is different and that, when retired and married, this recipe becomes more difficult to find.  It takes some give and take to come up with a mix that works for both parties.  Sherry and I are discovering our blend and trusting that the Lord will help us to always remember that "the best is yet to come" and that "together is a wonderful place to be".

So far....so good.  We'll have to see what an extended stay in Alaska will bring to the table.

DOWN UNDER IS OVER THE TOP (July 17 - August 6, 2017)

After a good month in Indiana we found ourselves stepping off a Delta jet in Sydney, Australia.  This was the beginning of a long anticipated "bucket list" adventure.  The Wyndham Resort was right in the center of town and made for a great place to start our exploration of a lovely city.  Sydney has done a great job of blending the old with the new and of maintaining many manicured parks.  We walked through Hyde Park on our way to the Circular Quay and saw the famous Sydney Opera House and the Sydney Harbour Bridge.  We learned the history of "old Sydney" and walked on Bondi Beach.  It was winter in Australia but the weather in Sydney was sunny and 60ish.

After four days we caught a flight north to the Gold Coast and Coolangotta.  Coolangotta is a friendly beach town on the Pacific Ocean.  Here we spent a full week enjoying the warm (75 degree), sunny weather, the sandy beach, and the walkways with outstanding ocean views around every corner.  We admired the surfers, petted kangaroos, watched whales, and hugged a Koala.  Like everywhere we went the people were friendly and helpful.  The week was a perfect mix of relaxing and touring.

After a twenty four hour train ride we, next, found ourselves even further north in the town of Cairns. Cairns is the gateway to the Great Barrier Reef and one of the world's most pristine rain forests.  The Wyndham Resort was tropical and well kept and the room was a huge two bedroom with a spacious deck.  Temperatures now ranged into the eighties as we explored both the reef and the forest.  We only had three days to enjoy this port city but enjoyed every minute.

Finally, it was back to Sydney for a couple of more days before stepping back on a plane for the 24 hour trip back to Indianapolis.

REFLECTIONS

Half way around the world is Australia.  It is a 16 hour flight from L.A. to Sydney.  I really wasn't excited about going.  As a matter of fact I had fought going for a long time.  What could be worth the agony of a plane ride that long?  What could be worth a fourteen hour time swing?  I won't say that I went kicking and screaming but I will say that I went primarily because someone I love very much wanted to go.

Surprise!  It was worth it all!  Sometimes it is when we fight through all the difficulties that we discover a beauty and adventure that we really weren't expecting.  Sometimes you have to go through painful places and change to get to the blessing out there on the other side.  Many times it takes a long, hard journey to get to a place where you are amazed by how beautiful it is where you have landed.  The problem is that too many times we refuse to accept the challenges to get to where the blessings are.  We refuse to endure the difficult circumstances and chose to just remain where we are ; where we are comfortable.

Sometimes your "Down Under" can become your "Over The Top"!

BACK HOME AGAIN IN INDIANA AND A BIG SURPRISE (June 12 - July 16, 2017)

Gil Dingman dropped us off early in the morning at the Traverse City (MI) airport in the midst of a thunder storm.  The flight got off on time and we got on the flight!  Traverse City to Detroit to Orlando, Florida without a hitch.  (I had a doctor appointment).  Three days later it was on to Indiana.

This would be about a month in the Hoosier state with time split between our cabin outside of Bloomington and at our daughter's house, in Avon, just outside of Indianapolis.  It would include family activities, Church of the Nazarene General Assembly, house and dog sitting, visits with Sherry's mom, and getting ready for our, three week, upcoming trip to Australia.

The cabin at Pair-a-dice Point at Camp Clifford was waiting to be opened up for the season.  We set this dry cabin up back in 2013.  It is just 12 by 20 feet but gives us a "home" when we need somewhere to go.  It sits on about 3 acres of wooded property next door Sherry's brother, Curt, who has an additional 3 acres.  It is a get away that I have grown to love.  Simplicity has become a major tenant in our life style in these later years.  The freedom of not having to worry about things is amazing.  What a blessing to be able to have the girls (granddaughters) come for an over-nighter.




General Assembly and our time in Avon was enjoyable and quite relaxing.  It was good to see a lot of folks we hadn't seen in awhile and to see our four grandsons who were there because one was an International Bible quizzer.



However, the most amazing thing that happened during this time in Indiana was a message from the District Superintendent in Alaska asking me to fill in at the Soldotna, Alaska, Nazarene Church while they look for a pastor.  So it looks like I'll be an Alaskan during September and October.  We are excited for this adventure.  I held a Revival at  this church in 2013 and they still wanted me to come back.  It's a change of plans but that's kinda what our life is about right now.

                                                                (Soldotna, Alaska)

MICHIGAN WANDERINGS (May 26- June 11, 2017)

This seventeen day period was the continuation of our spring visit to Michigan.  The time was spent with four different couples.

First, Mike and Lois Crawford drove up from Tipp City, Ohio to finish our time at the Boyne Falls resort.  Mike and Lois were members of a church I pastored throughout the 1980s.  Our time was spent traveling across the north land with stops at places like Petoskey, Charlevois, Ironton, Cross Village, and Mackinac Island.  The weather was almost perfect and the fellowship outstanding.  This is the second time they have visited us since we have begun traveling, and I trust it won't be the last.

Next, we drove about an hour south to Fife Lake, Michigan where we stayed with Pastor Bryan McInerny and his wife, Valerie.  I first met the McInernys when I held a revival at the Nazarene Church in Kalkaska, where he pastors.  They live right on Fife Lake.  They were gracious hosts who took us to a VFW fish fry, breakfast on the lake (well, actually on their pontoon boat), special scenic points (where tourists don't usually get to go), and we joined them in Worship on Sunday.  New friends who have become good friends.

Another stop was in East Tawas, Michigan, where we were hosted by Daryl Burt and wife wife, Gwen.  Daryl went to Olivet with us and is a retired Nazarene pastor.  They have a lovely log home, inside the town limits, where there were deer and turkeys in the back yard every day.  I re-connected with Daryl when he asked me to speak at the Northern Michigan Nazarene District's Men Retreat.  They made certain to represent the eastern side of the state well.  Visits to Lumberman's Monument and a wonderful State Park on Lake Huron were absolute highlights of our time in Michigan.

We also visited in Kalkaska where we stayed with Gil and Dottie Dingman.  Gil and Dottie were a part of the first church I pastored back in 1970.  Such awesome laymen then, such awesome laymen now.  Sherry had not seen them in nearly 50 years.  Lots of catching up plus visits to Lake Michigan, golf with Gil, and worshiping together at the Northern Michigan Holiness Campmeeting in Boyne City, Michigan.  My thanks to them, also, for loaning us one of their cars while we were in northern Michigan.  They dropped us off at the Traverse City airport and we flew back to Indiana.

REFLECTIONS

I guess I will always be a Michigander, or is it, Michiganian? Either way, the Great Lake State will hold a special place in my heart; always. During recent days I revisited spots that I remember visiting with my parents many decades ago.  Memories rushed through my mind of days spent in the North woods looking for deer, golf outings, pontoon boat rides, car ferry rides across the "straights", Mackinac Island, and Lumberman's Monument.  Even though right now, technically, I call Indiana home, it is just a place I hang my blue and gold MICHIGAN hat. 

Come to think of it.....right now, I call this planet "earth" home but it is just the place I hang my hat.  The memories I have from every

decade of my life are surrounded by His Church.  Memories of the little Goodells Gospel Church, worshiping in the old Coast Guard Station down by the St. Clair River, church camps, Youth for Christ, Olivet, 6 churches pastored, and 7 years traveling the country and preaching His Word.  It's been quite a journey and I am thankful for all the friends I've made and the blessings I've experienced.  But I know that "the Best Is Yet To Come".

"This world (Michigan, Indiana) is not my home, I'm just passing through, my treasures are laid up somewhere beyond the blue.

The angels beckon me from Heaven's open door and I can't feel at home in this world anymore."

  

WALKING THROUGH LIFE TOGETHER (May 19 - May 26, 2017)

Once again, we took to the air and our standby status posed no problems.  We flew out of
Indianapolis, Indiana, between early morning thunderstorms and landed in Saginaw, Michigan, where the temperature was a "balmy" 43 degrees.  This would be a week of reunion with four other couples with whom we had shared college life over 50 years ago at Olivet Nazarene College in Kankakee, Illinois.
Gene and Judy Smith met us at the airport, and we drove north to Boyne Falls, Michigan, and the Boyne Mountain Resort.  Before the week was over we were joined by Fred and Linda Hall, Bryan and Rosie Solomon, and Ken and Linda Moore.

Day trips were spent visiting places with names like Petoskey, Boyne City, Charlevoix, Ironton, and Kalkaska.  Venues included places like Dead Man's Overlook, Castle Farms, Kilwin's Chocolate Factory, the Bay View Retreat Center, and the Ironton Car Ferry.  Much food was consumed and many table games played,

There were both times of "laugh so hard you cry moments" and "pause while choking back tears moments".

It was a time for remembering and a time sharing what the Lord has done in your life.  It was a time to talk about what it means to be "older" and a time to talk about the grandchildren.  It was a time to "rejoice with those who rejoice" and to "weep with those who weep."

It was a time to cherish.


REFLECTIONS

As we travel through our lives, we develop relationships with various people.  Some become acquaintances, some become friends, and a few become lifetime friends.  It is hard to tell what makes some move from one level to the next, they just do.  Those lifetime friends become a vital part of our living, of our journey.  They are there in the victories with their cheers, and they are there in our defeats with their tears.  They are there!  Even when you don't see them for years, or don't talk to them for weeks, you know they are there.  They are your support, your rocks.

I value the relationships with my family, don't misunderstand me. Those who share my blood are special,, and my love for them undeniable.  But the fact is that they have no choice.  They are my family, like it or not.  That is one of the big differences with life- long friends....they have chosen to stick with me, to support me with actions and prayers, to be there should I need their support.  They are a part of my life because they chose to be.

I trust that you are blessed with such folks in your life, people who have chosen to be your friends.  Love them, pray for them, cherish them while you can, for someday they will, like us all, pass from this life to the next,, and our earthly visits will cease.

I am thankful that I had this week and trust that there will be several more to come.  Maybe there's someone you need to call today.  Maybe there's someone who just needs to know that you call them friend.  Be blessed and remember that, for the Christ-follower, the BEST IS YET TO COME.

SPRING FAMILY MERRY GO ROUND ( APRIL 29 - MAY 18, 2017)

We left South Carolina for Indiana and made every flight with no difficulty.  So far, flying standby has not been a problem.  We left behind the ocean and beach for the warmth of family in both Indiana and Missouri.  It was a little bit like being on a merry-go-round!

First, in Indiana, we enjoyed soccer matches (Adelyn) in Westfield, Indiana, where she even managed to score a smooth goal off a corner kick and a Volleyball Tournament in Indianapolis (Abigail) where her team won its division, and she made some outstanding plays.  Oh yes, did I mention that the Soccer game and the Volleyball Tournament were on the same Saturday about 40 miles apart?

Next, after a few days at the cabin and visiting Sherry's mom, it was jump a couple of planes (no problems) and end up in Battlefield, Missouri with Aaron's family.  Austin was graduating from High School, so it was getting things ready for an Open House.  Christian had his 14th birthday so a trip to Orange Leaf in Springfield was in order.  Also, Justin and Austin had a band concert the night before all but one of the four grandsons left with Aaron and Jennifer for Olivet Nazarene University.
 .

Now, with all but Ethan gone, it meant early morning, 15 mile trips taking him to his school in Republic, as well as making sure he was good to go for his sixth grade band concert.  Attending the concert was an awesome experience.

That just left church on Sunday morning, an afternoon High School graduation service at Missouri State University, and a 4 hour Open House back in Battlefield.  We are so proud of Austin!  He has grown into a wonderful young man of faith.  Talented and humble, I believe that our Lord has some great plans for him.  He will mark the third generation of Dicers at Olivet Nazarene University, and I know he'll make us proud.

Up at 3 a.m. the next morning, we retraced our flight path and arrived back in Indiana in time for Abigail's Orchestra Concert.  As I write this blog I must confess that I am ready for a long nap but now it's down to Bloomington, Indiana to see Sherry's mom for the day, pack up for our three week adventure in Michigan with friends, and catch a 5:30 a.m. flight to somewhere.

REFLECTIONS

Whew....I got warn out just writing this piece!  Round and round we went from place to place, from activity to activity, from game to game, from concert to concert.

It reminded me of several things.  It reminded me that I am perhaps too old for all of this, and that parents have a real challenge to juggle schedules and plans to make it all happen for the benefit of their children.  I really don't know how they do it!  I thought that it was hectic when we had kids at home but, somehow, it seems more frantic now.  I applaud all you who make it happen for your families these days.  You are special.

It reminded me that, although it is a "go round", it is a "Merry" one. Don't get so wrapped up in the logistics and craziness that you miss out on the merriness! Enjoy these days as parents and grandparents.  Be merry, and let the kids by merry.  Don't push too hard, don't demand too much.  Just have fun with them while they have fun playing the game or the instrument.  Enjoy every moment.  Be Blessed.