Thanks for a wonderful party. But I have a "beef". I drove 700 miles to see a bunch of High School classmates, and all these old farts showed up! (I myself use hair spray to add the white streaks - you know, for effect)
In keeping with my age, I forgot to bring the two children's gifts in from my car.
Note: Clare, I wish you would have published the new dress code in advance. Please inform Messers Groff, Boulware, Cody, Barber, Clem, Curtain, Maxwell, et al, thatbeards will be required henceforth.
Thanks for your prayers. Steve pulled through surgery and all his vitals have stabalized. He has to go through a ton of therapy to return to a normal life, but I think he is going to make it.
Many thanks to Clare and Janie. Great gathering good times. Now all I want for Christmas is one chin. Merry Christmas to all it was great to see you all!
I know we all want to stay away from politics but an article was just published tonight that needs to be read by all Amerians, Conservative, or Liberal - Christian or not. The flagship magazine of American Christian Evengelicals just dropped a bomb!
Christianity Today just called for Trump's removal.
By now, you all know I happen to agree, but wow, is it ever gonna get interesting at my ("semi-Evangelical") church - quite divided on this matter. And I meet every week in a sort of Bible study/discussion group with a group of old Trump-loving, very conservative guys (early Hilton Head Real Estate pioneers) who have mixed their faith with their politics in a way that I find totally inappropriate, and it really bothers me. Is that ever gonna get interesting!
I was just commenting to another classmate about a matter related to this and wish to add a thought.
American Evangelicals come in more varieties and opinions than most of you (and all of the media) seem to realize. Yes, there is a tendency among them to be more "traditional" thinkers, but many more than you might expect, are also concerened about this "marriage" of politics adn religion.
To put it in my own words; none of these people in Washingon are ever going to be my Savior.
We tend to forget that Jesus never ran in a primary, attended a fund raiser, or even made it on to talk radio - ever!
(and if I recall correctly, his wound was a bit more serious than a "bone spur")
added later: For those of you who don't know, Christianity Today is sort of theeEvangelicalChristianIntellectual magazine of America - if that term makes sense. I am not a regular reader, but I do see it now and then. It can be quite good.
I didn't want to take away from the excitement of Clare's party so I saved this from last week.
I just have to share this. On my trip to Columbus last week, I stopped in Harrodsburg Kentucky (south of Lexington) for a few hours. With the help of a friend, I had located someone that I have spoken of in earlier posts as my favorite "Observer" in my Loach cockpit - a guy named Clint Hunt ("Cleeint Huuunt") - who's teamwork in the cockpit I not only enjoyed, but depended on, and who's memory I treaured. He was with me most days, sitting in my left seat, with his head leaned out the door with his C.A.R. -15 in his hands (locked and loaded), and various grenades taped to the door panel (at his quick reach), searching everything to our front and left as we flew over the terrain. After 50 years, we would be together again for a few hours. As I wound my way back into the "holler" that his beautiful little cattle farm rests in, I was really nervous. We had talked by phone, and he knew I was comming, but I wondered - what would it be like to see him again?
You may recall, I posted this first shot about a year ago - standing together by our ship, on some remote airfield refueling site.
50 years!
He had barely changed a bit. It was wonderful !
He and his sweet wife and I shared about 4 hours before I got back on the road to Columbus. That was one sweet "Christmas" gift.
p.s. I wish I knew how to post my own videos. You should hear their accents! LOL. (Oh, and that "kid" in my cockpit was 2 years older than me.)
Jack, I can’t resist this but you’re a poet, and you don’t know it…
And, Dave, thanks for your post about Christianity Today calling for Trump’s impeachment - I’ll take a pass from my usual preoccupations and, in view of the season, instead talk about “Dickens' Dublin”, one of my favorite Christmas songs by (who else?) Loreena McKennitt. It’s not really a Christmas song per se, but is instead about homelessness. It’s in two parts – with LM‘s song lyrics about a homeless child in Dublin in the 1840's trying to keep it together, interspersed with a young Irish girl’s retelling of the Christmas story from a series of recordings of inner city Dublin children broadcast on Radio Eireann, the Irish national radio station, in the 1960's (when Ireland was still REALLY poor).
I never fail to be charmed by this song and especially by the fractured fairy tale nature of the little girl’s version of the nativity story:
Joyful mystery the birth of our lord, this night Our Lady and Saint Joseph was going up to get registered, and they were going down the road and they met this man, and he said "have you any room?", and he said "no but there's an old stable over there that I owned if yous want to go into it." and they went over and the lord came down from heaven at twelve o'clock and loads of beautiful angels was with them, and when they were walking...
These three wise kings and they were all from different countries. and they always used to look up in the sky, and they looked up in this night and saw the beautiful star up in the sky, and when they were all going they all meeted together, and they had to pass King Herod's not that we much care for him, and they went in and he said "where ye going with your best stitches on ye?"
And they said "did ye not hear the news?" and says he says "what news?" he says "this day the saviour is born." and he said to them "when you find him come back and tell me 'cause i want to go and adore him too." and he was only codding them he wanted to kill him. and they when they were going they stopped and they said "surely not this old stable that the king is born in? we was expecting a palace."
And there was these shepherds and shepherds are fellows that mind the foals and cows and sheeps and little lambs and all. and they hears this beautiful music up in the sky, and they were wondering what was so fun, an angel dissipated them and he said "i was wondering what was so fun." and he said yeah and he said "the saviour is born. if yous want to go see him follow that star up in the sky." and it was a beautiful star.
John, thanks for sharing Dickens´ Dublin and for introducing me to Loreena McKennitt. She has an incredible voice and the tale is moving. It's a stunning combination of photography, singing and reciting. Ireland--truly an enchanted land.
The situation of the homelessness is so prevalent in cities around the world. We collaborate with two small ground root groups who do a lot to help the homeless here in Barcelona but there is so much to be done. I would really appreciate any ideas of initiatives that you know of in your areas. Maybe we can learn from each other different ways to help others.
Clare, sorry I couldn't make it in time for your Xmas party. I would have loved to join all of you in a holiday toast.. Merry Christmas to all of you reading this and may your New Year be full of peace and joy!!
Merry Christmas to our Watterson 1966 classmates! All the best to each of you for a wonderful holiday, and a happy and healthy New Year filled with blessings!
This is a painting I made of a Christmas ornament that I have had for a few years. Christmas traditions, Christmas music, Christmas services make me mindful of all those good fortunes and blessings and friends and memories I have from childhood on up through all my life. I also remember the hard work I and others have done over the years to bring those blessing into the lives of my family and friends. They weren’t all just free gifts.
There is a wonderful story book that starts off about a little boy at Christmas time and a rocking horse called Rocking Horse Christmasby Mary Pope Osborne with beautiful art by Ned Bittinger, published in 1997. It was one of the books I bought over the years to read to my children on Christmas Eve.
As a child I began my strong attraction to horses and to stories of cowboys and their horses and the old American west. Sometimes cowboys would ride their horses and do hard work on the ranches and plains. And sometimes they would feel the need to just go ride off and explore and have an adventure. Horses still hold a fascination for me. And in more recent years there are stories of the healing effects that horses can have for people.
The boy in the Rocking Horse Christmas book has wild, imaginative adventures as he rides his rocking horse. I, too, as a child had those kinds of adventures. And still now as an adult, sometimes I go off on wonderful dream like adventures. Nowadays I don’t have a rocking horse, but I do have a rocking chair! Sometimes the wonderful adventures and things I dream of I actually end up doing in real life and sometimes they are just done in my heart and imagination.
Hmm ... all this remembering, dreaming and wondering has given me urge to saddle up and head out on an adventure so I’m going to wrap this up now. Merry Christmas to you all! Hope you have a wonderful time with family and friends. See ya ‘round pardner!
I just saw a fascinating film suggested by Mary Ann Nolan; "The Two Popes" - staring Anthony Hopkins and Jonathan Pryce. It is a fictional account of a visit between then Cardinal Bergoglio of Argentina (now Pope Francis), and Pope Benedict before he retired. It hits on a number of interesitng talking points about the Catholic church - but it is fiction. You might enjoy it.
(IMHO, Pryce seems like a clone of Cardinal Bergoglio)
-------
And speaking of films you might find interesting, I have posted the trailor of a favorite Christmas film of mine; "JOYEUX NOEL" (2005), a film about a true story (or collection of stories, as I have learned) that occured somehwere in the trenches of France in WWI between French & Scottish on one side, and German troops on the other - about 1914 or '15. It depicts a Christmas truce that lasted for a few days between opposing troops, including, Christmas carols, exchanging wine and food, a "football" (soccor) game, some burials, and other common activities. Actual historic documents include a diary that verifies the soccor match, including the score and the fact that Germany won.
It seems that something of this nature may have occurred several times, and also later in the War at Easter on the Eastern Front with Russian troops.
NOTE: the film begins with subtitlles, but merges into all English about 1/3 of the way into the story.
(Spoiler alert - I can find no evidence of a female in any of the "real" accounts.)
Froeliche Weihnachten! (wish I knew how to type an "umlaut" on the keyboard)
Opinion - - - For anyone harboring regrets about the futility of our Middle-East involvements, or Vietnam, This "Great War" takes the cake for ignorant politicians and arrogant military officers sending millions of healthy young lives to their slaughter. It devastated the ranks of healty young men in Great Britan, Germany, France, Belgium, Russia, and others - as well as wrecking the economies and infrastructure of Europe, putting most of Germany and Russia on the brink of mass starvation. It is remarkable that we passed the 100th anniversary without hearing MUCH more about it. It is known for introducing many new lows in evil warfare technology!, yet seems to be the least known of all of our major wars.
Columbus' own Eddie Rickenbacher was one of the heroes of this war - and was allmost refused by the military, due to his German last name and accent. He later became a race car driver, and I beleive, the owner of the Indianapolis Speedway. He also went of to be the long time head of Eastern Airlines.
"Where there is faith, forgiveness is possible. Where there ia forgiveness, reconciliation is possible. Where there is reconciliation, healing is possible. Where there is healing, belief is possible. Where there is belief, change is possible. Where there is change, hope is possible. Where there is hope, PEACE is possible."
Merry Christmas, and may this holy season bring about "peace on earth, good will toward men".
Amen, Mary Margaret! Peace on Earth has been the goal for such a long time. Have a wonderful Xmas and New Year. The weather here is amazing for Chicago. It is like early spring! Kathy W. 2019
Baby Rowan update. He's still in the NICU, hanging in there. He's stable and the Doctors are still planning to connect his esophagus to his stomach as soon as possible. His parents have yet to hold him in their arms. But he is beng held in everyone's heart. Keep up those positive, loving thoughts and high energy prayers. It is working.
. Merry Christmas to all of you reading this and may your New Year be full of peace and joy!! 
