THE "TIDES" OF OUR LIVES (April 2 - 15, 2019)

South Carolina Sunrise

As we watched our daughter's family drive out of the resort and head back to Indiana, we understood that for the next two weeks we would be by ourselves in our quiet place.  Edisto Island has been labeled as the Mayberry of beaches in the Carolinas and that's exactly why we like it!

These last 14 days we have enjoyed doing absolutely nothing and doing it quite well if I must say so myself.  It was hours of  walking the beach and trails.  It was hours of sitting in the sunshine and feeling the warmth of its' rays as they kissed your skin.  It was hours of.....well I am sure that you get the idea.

Now, I sit here at the dining room table and await the arrival of our next guests.  A High School friend of my wife and her husband come in this afternoon for their first "Edisto" experience.  Next week it will be Sherry's brother and sister in law who will be our guests for two weeks before our Island Time comes to an end.

REFLECTIONS

Life is always changing, like the tides.  Sometimes the tides are up and things are happening right and left. Life is beating our your shore and it is exhilarating.  Other times the tides are heading out and the emptying leaves behind so much.  It is a quieter time.

We have learned these last two plus years of retirement to ride the tides.  We thoroughly enjoy the high tides with friends and family.  These are the busy times; times of waiting to see what will be deposited in our lives.  They are wonderful times of discovery and fun.  These "high tides" are blessed times.

We, also, enjoy the "low tides" of retreating from the crashing of life.  They are times of renewal and
being able to listen to His still small voice.  They are needed times.

I know that our "transient" life style is different from almost everyone else, but I know that life, for all of us, has its' ebbs and flows.  The difference is that ocean tides are predictable and the tides of our lives are random.  The ups and downs can last for a long time or they can come and go in an instant.

The secret is to not allow them to overwhelm us; to drown us!  Learn to enjoy them both and to treasure whatever they bring.  In the ocean, the low tides bring more beach and deposit shell treasures to be discovered, while the high tides provide those treasures as they crash to the shore.

But here's the deal!  Without the low tides you'd never see the treasures hidden beneath the blue water.  There will be "low tides" in our lives and we must learn to use them to find the beauty underneath it all.  Be blessed in all the "tides of your life".

South Carolina Sunset

DOING LITTLE, MAKING BIG MEMORIES (March 23 - April 1 2019)

Edisto Island, South Carolina Sunset

 

Edisto Pelican

Edisto Island has become a spring stop for our nomadic life style.  The drive from Indiana to coastal Carolina was long and tiring but yet enjoyable as the 12 hour road trip was shared with my daughter and her family.  The first ten days of our seven week stay at WYNDHAM OCEAN RIDGE RESORT would be spent with her, her husband, and my two young granddaughters.

Edisto is one of those places that you either love or hate.  It is a slice of the South Carolina low country coast that time has passed by.

It has no national restaurant chains, unless you count the Subway in the Gas Station.  Good local family owned eateries dot the Island with wonderful sea food and BiLo meets your grocery needs.  

Entertainment?  Pretty much just make your own with beautiful beaches, biking/walking trails, playing mini golf.

If you are looking for the Myrtle Beach/Hilton Head experience it is not here.

Edisto Dolphins

REFLECTIONS

For me, the ten days with family was a great time of just enjoying life and one another.  Enjoying one another away from the busyness of life.  Enjoying the simpler things like; watching a dazzling sunset, playing mini-golf, riding bikes, playing table games, eating chocolate chip cookies, being awed by the dolphins in the bay beneath our deck, telling stories of events from long ago.  So many simple things that combine to make a wonderful tapestry to, itself, be remembered for years to come.

I believe that we all want to be remembered.  When this life's day comes to an end, we want to be remembered.  Therefore, my challenge, and yours, is to make sure that those closest to us have reason to recall times together.  We must, with purpose, take time to "make memories".  We must not be so wrapped up in everything else that we miss what is most important.  We must not be running the race of life so long and fast that we fail to touch the lives of those who we call family.  Find an Edisto somewhere.  A place where you can strip off all the complexities of your life and find peace.  Find a place where you can reconnect with those nearest to you.

BRIDGES TO THE PAST (March 2 - 22, 2019)

Indiana Cabin

Male Cardinal

Returning from warm Florida to chilly Indiana proved to be a difficult adjustment.

Temperatures in the single digits and snow on the ground and in the air were not what we had hoped for in the middle of March.  Yet even with all the climatic discomfort, we found it good to be back in the Hoosier state with family.  Technically, we call Indiana, "home".  We pay state taxes and drive with an Indiana license on our person.  Truth is that we spend only about three months there each year.

Eventually, the snow and cold turned into birds singing and flowers beginning to force their way through the warming soil.  The area around our little cabin in the woods began to come alive.  It was wonderful to see the signs of spring starting to emerge from the frosty winter.

Our next stop will be Edisto Island, South Carolina, where we plan to spend time relaxing and enjoying the low country until the beginning of May.  The Wyndham Resort at Ocean Ridge has been a regular stop for the Dicers since the 1980s.  This out of the way, slow paced, beautiful place is exactly what we enjoy.

REFLECTIONS

One of the primary reasons for the visit this time was to say "Happy Birthday" to my wife's mom, Lois.  She has navigated this realm for 90 years now.  Now, in an Alzheimer's Care Facility, she spends her days in the present with few memories of the past.  Here, with us one minute, and then gone; gone away to a place that we have yet to experience.

There is an old railroad bridge, built in the late 1800s, that looms above a trail I walk here in Indiana.  It is known as "The Haunted Bridge" and stories are told of bridge builders dying tragically during construction, returning to haunt the structure.  Every time that I walk beneath it, I think about its' history.  I think about those who planned it; those who dreamed of a day when the big steam powered locomotives would cross the flowing waters of White Lick Creek as they puffed their way westward.  I think about what this, now suburban, neighborhood might have looked like in those long ago days.  For me, it is a bridge to the past.  It is a reminder of how things change.

Memory is an amazing aspect of our humanity.  The ability to remember times past and to reflect in the importance of the memory is something that we should cherish.  I am not an expert in how the mind functions.  I don't understand all the intricate wiring; the electronic bridges, that come into play for us to be able to remember.  I do know, from personal experience, that as we grow older those connections begin to fail; memories fade.

Our "bridges to the past" are fragile.  Just as the haunted railroad bridge has become scared and damaged by years of use, so too our bridge to the past.  Constant rumblings back to forth will take their toll and our trains of thought will be derailed.  Try as we might to prevent it, our memories will fade into a fog that encompasses all of our living.  I am not trying to be morbid, just saying that, for many of us, this is what's ahead.

Therefore, I chose to do all I can to keep the memories flowing.  I will simply reflect from time to time about my childhood on the chicken farm in Goodells, Michigan and at the lake house on Lake Huron.  I will look back on photos and yearbooks from the years at Port Huron (MI) Northern High School and Olivet Nazarene University.  I will review my ministries.  I will treasure memories of family and friends.  I will, until I can no longer.  Simply put......cherish your past, live your present, and, as best as you can, imagine your future.

Haunted Railroad Bridge, Avon, Indiana

GATORS IN LIFE (February 6 - March 1, 2019)

Wyndham Cypress Palms

The winter part of our Wyndham Resort Wanderings came to a close as we boarded the Delta flight back to Indiana.  It had been a three month journey spent on Grand Cayman Island and at the Wyndham Cypress Palms Resort in Kissimmee, Florida.  The final three week segment in Florida was spent with temperatures in the mid 80s (10 degrees above normal) while our midwest friends suffered through snow, ice, and sub zero temperatures.

Joyce and Gary Miller

Once again, we were blessed with a visit by some long time friends that we hadn't seen in over 30 years.  Joyce and Gary Miller were members at the church I pastored in Tipp City, Ohio back in the 1980s.  They now live in Virginia.  It was as if we had never been apart.

I will return to Indiana having lost about 12 pounds!  Lots of walking in the morning quiet and coolness and being a little more careful about what I ate made the difference.  I'd like to lose another dozen pounds before embarking on our Alaskan cruise at the end of May.  We all know that cruises add pounds.



REFLECTIONS


During my morning walks, I found myself thinking about how wonderfully blessed I am.  I spent considerable time in prayer just thanking the Lord for all the goodness that has been a part of my life.  Oh, there have been some gators cross my path from time to time but for the most part I managed to come out of those confrontations uninjured and able to continue my journey.  Gators tend to be pretty unmovable.  They find a place in the sun and just lay there.They are not afraid to let you know they are there.  I think they enjoy knowing that you know that they are there and that they are the alpha predator.  Problem is that from time to time they get hungry and lay in wait for the unsuspecting critter to wander by.  That's when they are dangerous.  They let their presence be known until it's time to feed.  Then they head to the dark, shaded places and bide their time.

Your best bet is to give them space, walk around them, and stay out of their dark hiding places.  Just continue your trek, knowing that you are wiser than they are and are able to avoid a confrontation that could prove to be fatal.  Fatal.....to the gator that is.

WHERE DOES THE TIME GO? A SENIOR LAMENT (January 12 - February 5, 2019)

Wyndham Cypress Palms

We continue to enjoy our 11 week stay in Kissimmee, Florida.  this middle section was spent enjoying the Florida sunshine and living our nomadic retirement lifestyle.

We were blessed these last three weeks to have had visits with some of Sherry's High School friends, my brother (Gary), long time friends (Fred and Linda Hall/ Mike and Elisabeth Adams/ Sandi Comfort) and a former staff member and wife (now pastoring in Oregon).

                            REFLECTIONS

Shingle Creek

For the past seven weeks we have been living our nomadic lifestyle in one place.  We have bunkered in at the Wyndham Cypress Palms Resort near Orlando, Florida.  Being in the warmth of the Sunshine State has its' advantages but, frankly, the day by day routine of the retired life in one place is starting to drive me crazy!  You see, I am an extrovert; a people person.  After nearly 50 years of ministry and dealing with issues and people every day, it is difficult for me to be somewhat isolated.  

My "Day Timer" would look like this:  

7:00 a.m. -Get Up/Get ready, 
7:30 a.m. - Computer work, 
9:00 a.m. - Morning Walk, 
10:30 a.m. - Morning Snack, 
Noon - Lunch,  
1:30 p.m.- Pool/Hot Tub, 
3:00 p.m. - nap, 
4:30 p.m. - Afternoon Snack, 
6:00 p.m. - Dinner,  
7:00 p.m. - TV (sports),
8:00 p.m. - Evening Snack 
11:00 p.m. - Lights Out!

About the only time I am with people (other than Sherry) is in the Hot Tub.  And, the other day, after declaring that I voted for Trump, I was asked to leave there.  

This blog, facebook, shutterfly, and photography help to keep my creative juices flowing and for that I am thankful.  Thanks for reading and, every once in awhile, connecting.

Please remember that those of us who have retired are facing changes and issues that you might, as of yet, know nothing about.  Be patient, be kind, be there.

That's my brief lament!  Now, I see, it's time for the Pool/Hot Tub!

OLD FOLKS, HOT TUBS, AND CELL PHONES (December 16 - January 11, 2019)

From Grand Cayman to Atlanta, to Orlando, all the stand by flights went without incident.  Our ten day stay on our favorite Island had come to an end and now we would begin an 11 week stay at the Wyndham Cypress Palms Resort in Kissimmee, Florida.  Looking forward to continued warm weather and the comfort of a familiar place, we settled into a lovely two bedroom condo.

Cypress Palms had been our home for six years (2010-2016) so it was in some measure a homecoming.  Thus, for the last 4 weeks we have been simply enjoying being together and not having any particular thing to do or place to go.  We were blessed to spend Christmas day with long time friends, Mike and Elisabeth Adams, who live in Orlando.  Elisabeth and Mike provided a wonderful Christmas dinner of Turkey and dressing and all the sides of a holiday feast.  We were blessed.

                         REFLECTIONS

The night before we left Grand Cayman I was up all night with a never ending, tremendous pain in my lower back.  All signs pointed toward a possible kidney stone and they were right.  The day after Christmas the little brute was passed and I was pleased.  The episode reminded me that I was getting older (70) and that things would most likely start to fall apart.  Being "old" is no picnic!  It is an adventure and a journey into the unknown.

That brings me to cell phones and hot tubs.  They are not friends!

The emotion that you feel when you realize, as you settle into the hot tub, that you forgot to take your cell phone out of your swim suit pocket is inexplicable.  The sinking feeling in your gut as you jump to your feet, climb out of the swirling water, and head for the pool towel, is not a feeling you enjoy.

I guess I could blame it on the Resort.  After all, they know they have a bunch of us old folks here with "diminished capacity".  There should have been a sign by the ladder warning us to check our pockets.  I guess I could blame the phone manufacturer.  After all, they should make their phones totally water resistant.  I mean, it is 2019!

But, in reality, the blame lies solely with me.  I thought I could take my phone to the pool, in my suit pocket (so it could track my steps), and remember to take it out before depositing myself in the relaxing warmth of the moving water.  If I'm honest (and I am), I knew it was an accident waiting to happen.  I knew that it was foolish every time I did it .  The problem was that I thought I would always remember.  I didn't.

Remember, you don't have to be old to do foolish things!  Remember, don't think about yourself more highly than you ought!  Remember, we are all fallible and will all make some bad choices.  Remember, life goes on and stuff is just stuff.

And for us older folks, remember that remembering is not our strong point.

  

ISLANDS IN TIME: CHERISH THE MOMENTS (December 5 - 15, 2018)

Wyndham Reef Resort

Grand Cayman Island has been a regular destination of ours since we visited in 1994 for our 25th wedding anniversary.  We always look forward to a stop on our favorite island.  This year, after no problem with "stand-by" flights, we landed in Georgetown and headed for East End.  East End is on the far side of the island and is less commercial than the 7 mile beach area near Georgetown.  We enjoyed the relative quiet of two resorts there.  Our first 3 nights we stayed at the WYNDHAM REEF HOTEL AND RESORT thanks to our Wyndham Reward miles and the next week was spent at the neighboring, MORRITT'S TORTUGA CLUB RESORT.







Let's just say that, once again, we were not disappointed.  Both resorts were decked out for Christmas
and one of the schools on the island sent their children over for a Christmas concert.  Even though the 85 degree temperatures didn't lend themselves to it feeling like Christmas, it was apparent that the blessed holiday would soon be upon us.

WRECK OF THE 10 SAIL

We enjoyed visits to RUM POINT, WRECK OF THE TEN SAIL PARK, STARFISH POINT, the BLOW HOLES and our favorite island restaurant, OVER THE EDGE.  The remainder of the time was spent just laying on the beach soaking in the warmth of the Caribbean sunshine.  The ten day respite ended way too soon and we found ourselves back in the air headed to Kissimmee, Florida where we will, Lord willing, spend the next 11 weeks at the WYNDHAM CYPRESS PALMS RESORT.

REFLECTIONS

Every time we leave Grand Cayman we say that it might be the last.  Thus, we try to cherish every fleeting moment.  The final morning's sunrise is treasured and the early sun illuminating the sand is amazing.  The gentle waves licking the shore while the ocean waves crash on the not to distant reef are etched in my mind.  One last look before closing the door behind us and heading to the Owen Robert's airport and it is finished.  Another wonderful time in paradise.

As I sat in the back of the Delta Flight (Row 30, Seat F) I was reminded that that is really the way it should be with all of life.  Especially as we grow older, we should cherish each parting; each change.  Every time we are with family or friends we should drink in all the wonder and joy of the occasion.  We never know if it will be our last visit.  We should pause and drink in the moments that we have been afforded.  Life is too short to just rush past the places and people we love.

We must be careful not take our "islands" of time and relationships for granted.  We must determine to pause and take one more look around us and understand how blessed we are.

BLOW HOLES