Happy Halloween

On our weekend in Washington, one of my requests was to visit the zoo. We not only got to see the wonderful animals that are there, but we also enjoyed the seasonal decorations.

Clever ghosts and goblins could be found all through the park.

Our walk through the park ended up seeing the big cats, my favorites. Happy Halloween! I'm sure I'll have pictures of Miss Ella to post tomorrow night.

World War II Memorial

Perhaps the most moving moments for me were at the World War II Memorial. Many veterans of the war were there. I know it has been the goal of many to visit there before they die. There were many in wheelchairs; many walking around using oxygen. A very dear friend who is a missionary in the Dominican Republic was home on assignment a couple of years ago, and one of the first things he did was to take his dad, a veteran of WWII to the memorial so that he could witness it.

I took many photos of the towers, the fountain, the quotes in stone, but the most moving were the photos of the veterans. I talked with a couple of them as I stood by the pool. I shared with them that my father had volunteered or been drafted, I'm not sure which, but when he arrived at Camp Blanding in Florida, he was 4-F, so he returned to Lacoochee. There he worked as a foreman in the lumber mill and guarded German war prisoners who were brought to the States to work in places like Lacoochee who had sent their young men to war.

I was born in September of 1941, just four months before Pearl Harbor. Being that young, I remember very little, but I do remember the day the war was declared over. In that little sawmill town, there was the honking of horns and people on the wooden sidewalks, crying "The war is over!"

WWII Memorial

The memorial honors the 16 million who served in the armed forces of the U.S. during World War II, the more than 400,000 who died, and the millions who supported the war effort from home. Symbolic of the defining event of the 20th Century, the memorial is a monument to the spirit, sacrifice, and commitment of the American people to the common defense of the nation and to the broader causes of peace and freedom from tyranny throughout the world. It will inspire future generations of Americans, deepening their appreciation of what the World War II generation accomplished in securing freedom and democracy. Above all, the memorial stands as an important symbol of American national unity, a timeless reminder of the moral strength and awesome power that can flow when a free people are at once united and bonded together in a common and just cause.

This is just a part of one of the many bas-relief sculptures depicting scenes from the war.

Be sure to click on the photos to see the detail.

WWII Photos

This field of 4,000 stars represents the more than 400,000 lives that were lost during the war.

Two of the many veterans who were visiting the memorial were gracious to talk to me and let me take their photo.

We were all in the war. Our parents and our brothers and sisters all did their part for the troops who fought so valiantly.

WWII Photos

Carmi's Theme - Happy

Happy is the theme that Carmi chose for this week. He said to me, "I'm sure you have lots of photos for this." Indeed I do. This little girl brings so much joy wherever she is. I know I sound like a doting grandmother, but I can't help it. It's hard not to be just plain foolish over her. She's witty, she's a charmer, and can she ever talk. Happy? Yes, I am happy when I look at this little girl. My heart swells with love for her.

Saturday in Washington

A week has passed since we were in Washington. As I stated before we spent the night in Fairfax, took the Metro into the city, got off at the Smithsonian stop, and as we exited and looked around, there it all was...looking to the right was the Capitol building, and

to the left was the Washington monument. What an imposing structure. I remember seeing it on my trip to DC before, but I had forgotten just how tall it is.

Surrounding the monument are US flags. I didn't count them, but I assume there are fifty, one for each state. Then I read somewhere that there are fifty-six, one for each state and the territories. What about the District of Columbia. Does anyone know?

Looking down the mall from the Washington Monument is the Lincoln Memorial. We walked down there, and on the way visited the World War II Memorial and the Vietnam Wall. I must say this was a memorable day for me. Seeing the World War II Memorial was perhaps the most moving...more to come.

My birthday present

Before I came up to Virginia, David told me that my birthday present was a trip to Washington D.C. Nothing could have pleased me more. I have only been there one other time, and that was in June about sixteen years ago. It was so hot, yes, hotter than Florida, that I became ill from the heat. But what a wonderful trip it was. I'm sure that he must have heard me say, somewhere in time, that I would love to go back when the weather was cooler.

We left on Friday evening after they got home from work, stayed in a hotel in Fairf*x, traveled by Metro into the city. What a wonderful way to get around. On Saturday we spent time at the monuments and memorials on the mall and then came back to the hotel in time to see Penn State beat Michigan, and then I watched the sixth game of the ALCS series. Photos and thoughts about all this in another post.

I had mentioned that I wanted to go to the zoo, and so that was our destination on Sunday The weather could not have been better...clear and crisp. Sabrina had warned me that starting at the top, it was a downhill trip. That wasn't so bad, but then we had to come back up, but again, the zoo will be another post.

Before our trek to the zoo, we stopped for lunch at Californ*a Tortilla for lunch. Their specials right now are the O-Chili-Bam* Burrito and the McCain-chil*da Burrito. The restaurant is guaranteeing that whichever Presidential Burrito is ordered the most wins the election...not too scientific, like a lot of the other polls we read.

I receive e-mails regularly from Pastor Tim at Cybersalt, and he had a little political humor and a quote in his post the other day. Here are some of the quotes that he listed:

"I resent your insinuendoes."
"If we don't make some changes, the status quo will remain the same."
"If Lincoln were alive today, he'd roll over in his grave."
"We do not have censorship. What we have is a limitation on what newspapers can report."
"Candidly, I cannot answer that. The question is too suppository."
"Let's jump off that bridge when we come to it."
"To be demeanered like that is an exercise in fertility."
"I deny the allegations, and I defy the allegators."
"If somebody's gonna stab me in the back, I want to be there."
"When you're talking to me, keep your mouth shut."
"Let's do this in one foul swoop."
"I want to thank each and every one of you for having extinguished yourselves in this session."
"We'll run it up the flagpole and see who salutes that booger."
"I would like to take this time to reirritate my remarks."
"The average age of a 7 year old in this state is 13."
"I hate to confuse myself with the facts."
"We have a permanent plan for the time being."
"Family planning has many misconceptions."
"The people in my district do not want this highway bypass, no matter if it goes through or around the city."
"My knowledge is no match for his ignorance."
"As long as I am in the Senate, there will not be a nuclear suppository in our state."
"These numbers are not my own; they are from someone who knows what he's talking about."
"People planning on getting into serious accidents should have their seat belts on."
"In 1994, Americans stand on the horns of an enema."

And then this quote: "An election is coming. Universal peace is declared and the foxes have a sincere interest in prolonging the lives of the poultry."- T.S. Eliot

I read this statement in a blog post, and it is the conclusion that I had come to a few days earlier.

"No matter what the results of this election, life will go on. We will still get out of bed each day to work, to love our families, and to serve and love others, helping this country continue to be the great country that it is." May it be so.

Carmi's theme - losing focus

I took my new camera with me to the county fair, determined to get some good shots. As Carmi said, these are the kinds of photos our parents would have thrown out, and I almost deleted it, but here it is. Visit Carmi's site to see others' offerings of this week's photographic theme - blur.

Today in Virginia

One of the things I enjoy about being in Virginia now is that it is October. The mornings are crisp and cool, and the days have been just wonderful. Being outside is one of Ella's favorite things to do is to be outside. My son and his wife have a nice neighborhood with a couple three doors down who have a little girl just a couple of weeks younger than Ella.

At lunch we enjoyed our lunch with Ella's daddy. He works close by so he gets home for lunch. I mentioned that on my way to Virginia I stopped by Mount Olive, North Carolina. Sarah graduated from Mount Olive College, Mount Olive also happens to be the home of Mount Olive Pickles. The company supports the college, and so every year in November at Homecoming, the college has a Pickle Classic, a tournament of basketball games between nearby colleges.

During this weekend there is also a walk for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. That makes me happy to know that the life of a former student with CF made an impact on those at the school and they honor her in this way.

Mount Olive College is proud of the fact that their baseball team was the NCAA Division II baseball champs this year. That was a wonderful accomplishment for them.

The college is a Baptist school, which is supported also by the Free Will Baptists in North Carolina. On Monday night I went to a dinner with my friend, who heads up alumni activities for the school. The churches in the different counties raise money for the school, and at these dinners, they bring their gifts. At each table was a jar of pickles, given by the pickle company. Since our jar was opened, I brought them along to Virginia, and Ella and I have finished them rather quickly.

By the way, if you ever pass through Mount Olive, you can visit Mount Olive Pickles at the corner of Cucumber and Vine.

Bella

I arrived in Virginia on Tuesday this past week. Leaving home on Sunday, I stopped in South Carolina in time to watch most of the Rays game, drove on to Mount Olive, North Carolina where I spent the night with a friend. On Tuesday morning I met with a lady, who with her husband, went as missionaries to Haiti just after I returned home from there. Their son was born in 1970, diagnosed with CF when he was around four. Doctors told them he might live until he was twelve. He's 38 now, and he is an almost ten-year survivor of a double lung transplant. His path has not been an easy one, but he has an interesting story to tell. Perhaps at some time I will share it with you.

I left Mount Olive just before noon on Tuesday and drove on up to Waynesboro, where I'll be for the rest of the month. The leaves are changing. Mornings and evenings are cool, and during the day it is perfect. This is a wonderful time for me to be able to come.

I last saw Ella in August, when Sarah and I came up for her second birthday. What a difference a couple of months makes. At her two-year pediatric checkup, the doctor asked Sabrina if she was putting two word sentences together. Does she ever...more like paragraphs. The other day she watched an episode of D*ra, and when her daddy came home at lunch, she told him in about four sentences what had happened to the little fish who got swallowed by the big fish. I told Sarah about that, and she said, "She has my genes." Sarah can see a movie one time and remember in great detail dialog and scenes. She didn't get that from me.

So I've been watching the lovely one for three days. She is a busy girl, and I love every minute of it. (By the way, the photo above was taken by Ginny, one of Ella's caregivers.
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I receive on occasion e-mails from Steve Goodier, at Life Support System. He shared a story this week that I thought I'd pass along. As you read blogs, you find those who share their heartaches and burdens, and I thought of some of them as I read this.

GOOD FRIENDS ARE GOOD MEDICINE

Our news is constantly filled with the reality of death and dying. And each of us, if we live long enough, experiences the loss of persons we loved.

Children ages eight through ten were asked what they thought about death, and these are some of their answers:

"When you die, God takes care of you like your mother did when you were alive - only God doesn't yell at you all the time." (Beth, 9)

"When you die, they bury you in the ground and your soul goes to heaven, but your body can't go to heaven because it's too crowded up there already." (Jimmy, 8)

"Only the good people go to heaven. The other people go where it's hot all the time like in Florida." (Judy, 9)

"Maybe I'll die someday, but I hope I don't die on my birthday because it's no fun to celebrate your birthday if you're dead." (Jon, 9)

"I'm not afraid to die because I'm a Boy Scout." (Kevin, 10)

"Doctors help you so you won't die until you pay their bills." (Stephanie, 9)

I've observed that the loss of a loved one can be one of the most difficult things we humans can face. And one of our greatest needs as we experience such a loss is for simple, human comfort. I've known friends of sick and dying people to sit by a bedside or in a hospital room for hours, even days, at a time. I've sometimes heard them offer words of prayer. I've seen food in homes of people who are dying overflow from kitchen to dining room - food brought by comforting friends from church and concerned neighbors. And I've observed friends to just listen for as long as it takes. Caring friends are needed medicine in such times.

When U.S. Congressman Sam Rayburn (1882-1961) discovered that he was ill, he announced to the House of Representatives he was going back home to Bonham, Texas for medical tests. Some wondered why he did not stay in Washington D. C. where there were excellent medical facilities -- probably some of the best in the world. His answer was a beautiful tribute to friendship: "Bonham is a place where people know it when you're sick, and where they care when you die."No one wants to go through difficult times alone. So Rayburn traded the best of medical technology for the closeness of loving friends. He knew that good friends are good medicine. Sometimes the best medicine there is.-- Steve Goodier

Kids - Carmi's theme

Our church has a program called Upwards. In the fall, flag football is the sport, along with cheer leading. After football comes basketball and then soccer. I arrived on a Saturday morning when the little guys were playing. Family gathers to watch and cheer on the team to victory.

Well, what is a football game without cheerleaders! Go, team, go!

Too much cheering makes one tired. Go visit Carmi's blog to get his take on kids. You'll be glad you did.

Meet my cousin

My weekend turned out to be different what what I had planned. Sometime ago I received a postcard reminding me that this past weekend there was a Lacoochee Reunion. This takes place every year on the last Saturday in September. My mother used to go to it all the time and come home and tell me about all the people she had seen. For some reason she never mentioned my going along, and I never pushed the point.

A few years ago, I realized I needed to reconnect, and so I asked my friend, Lorette, to go along with me and we went. I walked around, asking people if they knew my parents. Some did. They asked if my daddy was the man who rode his bicycle from Trilby to the lumber mill on his bicycle. I wasn't sure about that, but it was a logical assumption.

I went again a couple of years ago as I was on my way to Virginia for October. My cousin was there, as she was when I went before. And she was there on Saturday. When I first had gotten the invitation, I laid it aside because I had made plans to go to a Saturday with Sweet Adelines in Brandon. When I woke up Saturday morning, I had overslept, and when I woke up, something said to me, "Beverly, go to the reunion and see your cousin."

So I did. We had a good visit. My cousin turned 80 in February. When I was a girl, my mother worked in a drug store in Bradenton where the owner never closed. Mother had to work on holidays, yes, Thanksgiving and Christmas, New Years, and on and on. She got one day off during the week, but rarely had those holidays off, and so I often spent time at my cousin's house during the holidays. She had married right out of high school and had a son just six years younger than me.

I was always welcome in her home. She bears my mother's name, and my mother often helped her when when she was in need. Over the years she had a difficult life, worked so hard, and never failed to help her neighbor when in need.

My cousin is a wonderful cook. Her father was the brother of the gentleman who is in the photo at top of my blog. They were immigrants from Syria who came to the States and made a new life. Her daddy died when she was young, but my aunt learned to cook some wonderful Syrian dishes, and my cousin did as well. After she retired from the business world, she began cleaning houses and doing some catering.

While we were talking, I asked her if she still cooked a lot. She looked at me and sort of smiled. "Oh, yes," she said. "I cook for some older people because they get tired of eating out." Then I asked her if she still cleaned. "Oh, yes," she said, "but not as much as I used to." I got tired just listening to her activities.

My time spent with her was wonderful. I love her so much, and I'm so glad we had the chance to get together. I have so much more to write about this past weekend, but that will have to wait for another day. I'm in the process of getting ready to leave for Virginia. I have about 10 people coming for a lunch on Thursday and a couple of appointments before I leave on Sunday. I'm also attending a 50th high school class reunion with my friend and going to a play at the Manatee Players on Friday night. So I may not post again until I get to Virginia next week.

Angles and Nature

I was out one evening after church with some friends at a local frozen custard place. Out back is a patio which has open latticework around it. Since I've learned to always have my camera with me, I couldn't resist this lizard. Florida is full of them. When my son was at Pe*n State, the first year he called to ask if some of his friends could come over spring break and sleep here while they went around the area. I was happy to have them. One morning when they walked outside, they were thrilled with sunshine and amazed at all the lizards. I was amused.

For a long time there was a chameleon who lived on my front porch. My mailbox is on the wall, and he stayed behind it much of the time. However, if I went out at night and turned on the porch light, he would be out, looking for food. What always interested me was that with the white walls, he was almost transparent. You could see his insides as he was on the wall. I haven't seen him in a long time.

We had a cat for eighteen years. When we caged in our pool, it became a playpen for the cat. She loved to be out by the pool, and she loved to chase lizards. One day, in a chase, however, the lizard caught her, latched on to her paw, and when we looked out, we saw our cat shaking her paw, trying to free herself of the lizard.

Carmi's theme this week is angles; last week was nature, so I've combined the two. To see more angles, visit his site.

Come on over!

My doorbell rang a few minutes ago, and when I answered it, a very nice gentleman was there with a cooler. He asked me if I was indeed Beverly, and when I said yes, he said that he had something very nice for me. He came in, took it out of the cooler, and here is the lovely edible arrangement that was in the box.

Friday was my birthday. My son forgot. He called last night, horrified that he had forgotten and all apologetic. I told him not to worry, that I hadn't been sitting by the phone waiting for his call. I knew he would remember sooner or later. He told me that he had talked to Sarah yesterday, and while they were talking, it struck him that he had forgotten. When we finally did connect by phone, we had a nice conversation. Ella even said, "Happy birthday, Grammy!" He tried to get her to sing "Happy birthday," but after a while she ended up singing "Baa-baa, black sheep."

Then this morning I was out and about, and my phone rang. It was my friend Peg, calling. She, too, had forgotten. She said she was trying so hard not to forget her new daughter-in-law's birthday that she overlooked mine.

We had a long chat about this and that. I came on home and started doing stuff. Power went off for about an hour. I was sitting here like a trapped animal...no lights, no internet. My car is in the garage, and I don't think I have the strength to raise it up manually. Anyway, after about an hour, the lights came on and then the doorbell rang.

I first of all thought that David had sent the arrangement, but he told me last night that they have my present in Virginia, and if this had been from them, it would have been way too much. They're going to take me to Washington D.C. for a weekend when I go up in October. I am so excited about that. I've only been once, and it was in the summer when I thought I would perish in the heat. So I can hardly wait to go in cooler weather.

When I turned the card over and saw it was from Peg, I was so pleased. She really shouldn't have, but it's so nice that she did. So now I have all this luscious fruit. It's much too much for me. I wish you all could come over and help me eat it.

Carmi's New Theme - Nature

Carmi has a new theme this week - nature. I love this one. I particularly love our Florida birds, and one can see them almost anywhere. This morning as I parked at a local restaurant for breakfast, there sitting on top of a car with this little guy. A street cleaner was going around the parking lot, making all kinds of noise, and he placidly sat there while the sweeper passed by and as people came and went to and from their cars.

Another day I stopped to get gas. Across the street is a Catholic church that has a pond in front. In the pond are beautiful water lilies, and this particular day this egret was carefully guarding this spot...looking for lunch, I guess. Sometimes people have fake ones in their yards, and it is often hard to tell which ones are real and which ones aren't.

Finally, on the way to a friend's home in a mobile home park were these ibis. They seem to be ubiquitous. Often seen in groups of eight or ten, they can be found looking for their lunch as well.

If you want to see some beautiful photos of nature, go to this blog, Kayak Paddle Tales. The blog author kayaks regular on the Wacissa River in north Florida, and she captures a Florida that most people don't truly think of. Go there and you will so marvelous photos of birds, turtles, and alligators. Her bird photos are exquisite.