A Light Behind the Cloud ~ Hymn

A Light Behind the Cloud

Keep in heart, be ever patient,
There’s a light behind the cloud;
Be not gloomy or discouraged,
Let not mists your soul enshroud.

Refrain

Oh, be patient, ever patient,
When life’s cares around you crowd;
Oh, be patient, ever patient:
There’s a light behind the cloud.

You remember Christ had trials
That were many and were sore;
And you may be only passing
O’er the ground He trod before.

Refrain

You can rift the cloud with sunshine
If your heart is glad within,
And make brighter paths to travel
If you prayerfully begin.

Refrain

All the light of life eternal,
That has shone the ages through,
Still exists, and is but waiting
To illuminate the true.

Refrain

Words: Alfred Barratt

Flashback to September 2016

From the Other Side…

…of the Great Divide. The only side of Washington that is predominately red in their politics. The line between the blue and red counties cuts along the Cascade Mountain range. The blue side has the highest population, largest cities, with Seattle (652,405) being the largest. The red side has the most farmers and ranchers and many small cities. The largest city on the red side of our state is Spokane (210,721), then Spokane Valley (91,113) and Kennewick (76,762). All the population numbers I’m sharing are from 2013. The city I live in on the blue side of the state has a population of 21,611.

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Dear and I travel across the great divide when we visit our son and daughter-in-law. We enjoy our time on that side. We find it refreshing. There are lots of great fences and barns to photograph. Here are some of those fences and barns all taken in Stevens County.

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Happy First day of September to all of you! I started the morning off with fresh strong coffee in a new cup to me that I bought at the Habitat for Humanity Shop in Colville, Washington (population 4,668). It was half off and I only paid 40 cents for it. It’s Churchill made in England with a population of 53.01 million.

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May September bring good things to us all.

“The breezes taste
Of apple peel.
The air is full
Of smells to feel-
Ripe fruit, old footballs,
Burning brush,
New books, erasers,
Chalk, and such.
The bee, his hive,
Well-honeyed hum,
And Mother cuts
Chrysanthemums.
Like plates washed clean
With suds, the days
Are polished with
A morning haze.”
–   John Updike, September

Here is it September 1, 2017 and we are off again to the other side and I hope to share many photos with you as we travel a different road across the mountains to a wedding reception and then on to our kids home in Colville. Our little Addy May started crawling and I’m excited to see that new milestone and I’ll be getting lots more steps keeping her out of trouble. May September find new joy and fullness for y’all.

Apple Walnut Crisp

Click over to Mennonite Girls Can Cook for Flashback Friday featuring my Apple Walnut Crisp.

I think I’ll use the same recipe using some of our ripe pears. It’s a recipe we enjoy.

Yesterday Dear and I worked hard for several hours moving things around at this old house and taking some things out to the garage to store. Before I could take photos Dear had things moved about. I’ll share some before and after photos soon.

Hello September! We’ll soon be singing that great Beatles tune with these words in the lyrics, “Will you still need me, will you still feed me”.

Rolling On Hodgepodge

1. Can you believe we’re rolling in to the Labor Day weekend? What’s a project you’ll labor over this fall?

Our fall projects will include continuing sorting through and getting rid of stuff we really don’t need. We will also prune trees and clean out planters. Baking in the Fall is always a great project, too.

2. Tell us about the best perks you ever had in a job?

I really never worked at a job with perks except for when I was an elementary school teacher and enjoyed summer vacation and other holidays even though I wasn’t  paid extra. I enjoyed traveling with my husband with his job responsibilities but had to pay my way. I thought that was a great perk regardless. I traveled to places I’d never have planned on like Milan, Chicago, Washington D.C., Orlando, Atlanta and San Antonio.

Then with the Mennonite Girls for book launches and signings and play openings we traveled to Winnipeg, Steinbach, Abbotsford, Chilliwack, Vancouver, Fresno, Indiana Amish Country and Ohio Amish Country. We had to pay our way for the most part but the perks were meeting lots of great people, funding our missions, and being with the “girls”.

3. August 31st is National South Carolina Day. Have you ever been to SC?

I have been to SC to go to our son-in-law’s graduation from MCRD and his successful entry into the Marine Corps. Our daughter and I stayed in Beaufort. The Marine Corps graduation was an amazing experience. We did enjoy our time there although my hair does not agree with the weather. Beaufort is a small southern town with great architecture and other southern charm to enjoy. All my photos from Beaufort are being held hostage at Photobucket. I do have the photos saved on CD’s and Memory cards that I’ll need to upload onto this computer.

Any desire to go? According to Southern Living, these are the top ten things to do in South Carolina…

Explore Charleston, bike, golf or relax on Hilton Head Island, see the beach and the boardwalk at Myrtle Beach, visit the state museum in the capital city Columbia, observe the wildlife and natural beauty of the Ace Basin, take a walk or hop on a trolley and check out Greenville’s charming main street, visit Fort Sumter where the Civil War began, stroll through Pearl Fryar’s Topiary Garden in Bishopville leaving time to check out The Button Museum, also in Bishopville, see Morgan Island (also known as Monkey Island)-home to nearly 4000 Rhesus monkeys. 

Which is most appealing to you today? If you’re a SC native, resident, or frequent visitor what would you add to the list?

Charleston is the most appealing to me but not in the summer!

4. Beef, pork, country-style, barbecued, baby back, spare or short…your favorite kind of rib? What’s a dish you enjoy that really ‘sticks to your ribs‘?

Barbecued Ribs please.

I love food and unfortunately it sticks to my mid section. But to answer your question I enjoy dishes like Stroganoff or Prime Rib with potatoes and Yorkshire Pudding. So I’m more of a beefy girl. Fish is rarely my choice unless it’s Fish and Chips or fish tacos.

5. What’s one important skill you think every person should have? Why?

I think everyone should be able to cook meals for themselves, that includes men and women. My dear old pop almost starved himself to death after my mom passed away. Dear and all of our sons and daughters can cook and I’m grateful for that. I’m sorry Home Economics is dwindling out in schools or completely eliminated. And Dear says if you drive a car you need to know how to change a tire!

6.  Insert your own random thought here.

This little one is always in our thoughts. Our Labor Day weekend will be filled with extended time with Addy and her parents. We are also going to be able to enjoy a wedding reception barbecue half way to our kids home. Our hairdresser was married last weekend in Seattle and she and her new husband will host a country barbecue reception on their 270 acres in the Okanagon area of Washington State.

Linking up with Joyce From This Side of the Pond for Wednesday Hodgepodge. She asks the questions and the answers are up to us. Do you have Labor Day plans.

We continue to follow what’s happening in Texas and we pray for all the displaced people and for relief of the suffering that everyone is enduring.

Doors

Our prayers are with all the people affected by Hurricane Harvey and the rains that continue to cause flooding in so many coastal areas in Texas. So many people are in crisis. Praying for strength for all the First Responders and all the good Samaritans that are helping out, too!

I promised to show our new closet doors and the improved inner part of my closet, too. We used to have sliding mirrored doors on these closets but are enjoying being able to throw both doors open and see the whole closet all at once. Too bad I failed to take a before photo.

I’m brave enough to share the interior of the closet since it’s nice and tidy and just got refilled this weekend.

Dear installed a new shelf and new clothes bar. We had wire shelves and bars before with a smaller shelf with little depth. It’s interesting how few dresses I own but that gives me more storage options below my blouses, tops, and sweaters.

This last week I found this swiveling organizer at Goodwill and I put my necklaces on it. I was surprised at the necklaces I had totally forgotten about while they were tucked away in drawers. I don’t wear jewelry every day but when I want to it’s nice to see all there is to choose from in one spot.

Very soon we’ll be spending a few days with this little sweetie in her neck of the woods. Her mommy and daddy sent us the cutest video of Addy trying to get a hold of a cheerio and put it in her mouth. So much growth and fun in the first year of life!

We are entering the last week of August and Labor Day Weekend is coming up already. Do you have any plans?

O Church of God, Arise ~ Hymn

O Church of God, Arise!

O Church of God, arise!
Reach out thy helping hand,
And like a trumpet let thy voice
Go forth to ev’ry land;
Lay not thine armor down,
Nor cease by day or night,
To lift the sword of Gospel truth,
And wield it for the right.

Refrain

Then arise in thy glory, O Church of God, arise!
’Tis the dawn of the morrow that greets thy waiting eyes
But cloud and mist and shadow must all be rolled away.
But cloud and mist and shadow must all be rolled away.
Before the world will usher in the long expected day.

O Church of God, arise!
Thy borders wide extend,
And o’er the earth’s remotest bounds
Thy heralds quickly send;
Thine armies now are great,
But greater they must be,
For ev’ry nation, ev’ry clime
Shall yet rejoice in thee.

Refrain

O Church of God, arise!
The grand old choral strain
Of peace on earth, good will to man,
That rang on Judah’s plain,
O’er all the world shall ring,
And echo far and wide,
And then the King, thy Lord, shall come,
And claim His faithful bride.

Refrain

Words: Fanny Crosby (1820-1915).

Barns Along Hwy 9

Driving home on highway 9 on our August 15th day out to the Mt. Baker Scenic highway I spotted several barns. The problem with barns along a highway is that when you are driving at over 50 miles an hour and you aren’t the only car on the road you can’t just stop on the highway to take a photo. As the passenger I had to snap away and hope the photos came out okay.

This particular barn had it’s own parking lot because it happened to be the North Trailhead of the Centennial Trail.

Tracy Tallman contributed this People’s History account of the family of Kamezo (1883-1975) and Miye Nakashima and their Snohomish County farm. Kamezo and Miye Nakashima were among the earliest Japanese families to farm within Snohomish County. They purchased their farm, located near Arlington, on July 31, 1937, from Sophie Frye Bass (1866-1947). They operated it as a dairy farm until 1942, when, during World War II, Executive Order 9066 forced the Nakashimas into internment camps along with nearly 120,000 first-generation Japanese immigrants and their American-born citizen children. On April 15, 1942, the Nakashimas were forced to sell the farm, and members of the large family were sent to different internment camps. Upon their release, Kamezo and Miye relocated to Seattle, where they managed the Marion Hotel.

The rest of the essay with some historical photos on the Nakashima Family and their farm can be found here.

I’ll be linking up to The Barn Collective hosted by Tom The Backroads Traveller.

We are having a mostly quiet weekend here. We’ve got a cut of pork on the Traeger that will cook low and slow for dinner. Dear finished upgrading our closets in our master bedroom suite with new doors and new shelves and hanger bars. I forgot to take a before photo, oops. I’ll share a couple after shots soon while things are still nice and tidy.

The End of the Highway

Artist Point is located at the very end of Mount Baker Highway, State Route 542 and boasts 360-degree views of Mount Shuksan and Mount Baker, as well as access to a variety of trails. The road to Artist Point, 2.7 miles long (milepost 54.55 to 57.26) and more than 5,000 feet above sea level, is typically buried under snow and closed October through June. Artist Point typically opens in July and remains open until the first substantial snowfall of the year, which usually comes in late September or early October.

We had our road trip here on Tuesday August 15th.

This is a zoom in shot of Mt. Baker.

My other posts from this day and the Mt. Baker Highway are here and here.

On the way home from our day in the Mt. Baker/Snoqualmie National Forest we stopped for dinner in Snohomish where we had enjoyed breakfast at the beginning of this day. For dinner we decided on Andy’s Fish House since we had a hankering for Fish and Chips and we were not disappointed. We will return.

Today I had a followup with my hand surgeon and I’m on to the next leg of my journey with a nerve conduction test ordered. I’m glad he isn’t quick to decide to cut my wrist open but wants to be sure about what is going on. So I continue with my brace and taking it easy with my left hand. Tonight we are going to a cookie social to meet our new senior pastor candidate. We’re excited. Hope you are having a nice Thursday!

Heavenly Hodgepodge

1. Did you watch the solar eclipse? Your thoughts? Sun Chips, Moon Pies, Starburst candies, a Blue Moon beer, a Sunkist orange, or a Milky Way candy bar…what’s your favorite eclipse related snack on this list?

Yes we did watch the solar eclipse. We did not have the full deal but it was cool. I had a post up yesterday on the great eclipse shadows we enjoyed. A Sunkist orange is the favorite from that list.

2. What are you ‘over the moon‘ about these days? What’s something you enjoy doing every ‘once in a blue moon‘?

This little one is what I’m over the moon about these days, sweet little Addy May!

Once in a blue moon I will try a craft project. I find crafts and sewing frustrating and generally I don’t get a great result.

See these cute little Matryoshka dolls my sister Lana, daughters Katie, Laura and I created in 2011. Mine is the angry one on the right side. Just wanted to show y’all proof that crafting isn’t my gift.

3. Tell us about something in the realm of science that interests you. How do you feed that interest?

Tides and the ebb and flow of water. Whenever I’m close to the ocean I’ll make sure to have a walk along the water or to the end of the pier.

4. What are a few things you remember about going back to school as a child?

I was always very excited to go back to school. My mom made sure I had a new dress which I was proud to wear. I’m olden and girls were required to wear dresses or skirts and blouses to school all my schooling years from K-12 except for physical education in junior high and high school where we had gym uniforms issued to us.

The photo above is of my niece Hope walking to school a few years ago with the Matryoshka back pack I bought her in Poulsbo where I was visiting and shopping with my friend Beth. (Hi Beth!)

I’m on the top row on the left. Looks like I’m the happiest kid in kindergarten!

5. I’ve seen several versions of this around the net so let’s make one of our own…share with us five words that touch your soul and briefly tell us why.

Grace: Greater than all my sin.

Forgiveness: Undeserved but so grateful for it.

Peace: With God through Jesus.

Joy: Down in my heart.

Family: Accepted, loved and appreciated.

6.  Insert your own random thought here.

Addy’s mommy and daddy surprised us with a special overnight stop at our house last Friday even though it took them well out of their way on their way home from vacation on the Oregon Coast. We were so surprised and overjoyed to enjoy them and our other kids who live close by. They made sure to hang out for as many hours as they could. We ate meals together, took a walk and had turns holding and entertaining Addy. It was Christmas in August for all of us!

Linking up with Joyce From This Side of the Pond for Hodgepodge Wednesday. Joyce provides the questions and we answer them.