After our
last battle with fire ants and the yellow jackets, I wanted some cold weather
to help eradicate the problem. Shortly
afterwards, the problem dissipated and we did not have to wait on cold
weather. It is now cold (32 degrees and
colder) from time to time with snow falling today as I type this blog update. We were supposed to be in Phoenix, AZ last
Sunday (55 degrees plus and the sun shining) but God had other plans.
Our
traveling companions had a small interruption to normal health. This interruption took the form of major
surgery for heart bypass. Now we are
undergoing physical therapy and education to improve overall health and restore
strength lost from the surgery. When the
surgery came up, we decided to create alternative plans for the next
adventure. More on those plans later. The great news in all this is there are some
bonuses from finding the health problem.
A by-product of the surgery was the chance to correct another condition
that has been around since the teenage years.
God is good and his timing is perfect.
David says number one thing he has learned from this experience is to
know your own body and listen to it when it is telling you something is not
right. Good advice for all of us! He is doing great and ready to get started adventuring again.
We have
taken the extra time to make a few repairs and perform some cleaning and
maintenance. It is good to get out of
the house and exercise my muscles after a long winter’s nap. But that first week is a killer with all the
soreness and whining about hurting that comes with each move. We are now ready to make our next move. Speaking of which will be to the Hill Country
of Texas this spring to track down some fields of wildflowers. We are looking forward to this shorter and
closer to the home base as a test of our new plumbing fixes for the
heart. We will put Arizona and the
canyon tour back in the bucket for the time being.
People make
fun of me all the time for putting more into the bucket than taking out of the
bucket. I realize there will not be
enough time to completely empty the bucket but that does not deter me from
doing the best I can to experience what I can with what time I have
available. The only thing slows me down
is energy and health. I am blessed to
have a pretty good supply of both for the time being and will keep pressing
until I need a rest break or cannot go any further. Retirement is not boring for me and will not
be for the foreseeable future. One of
these days, I will make my way to Disney World to work.
God’s
intervention kept us here for the beautiful display he is providing in the form
of snow falling. It has blanketed
everything (see pictures) and is spectacular.
I am thankful we got to see and experience this today. It reminded me of my first trip to Colorado
during winter. When we arrived it snowed
this hard all day and all night long. We
woke up to 18 to 24 inches of fresh snow on the ground the next day. I had never seen that much snow before in my
life and it was as dry as powder. I love
the quietness and beauty the snow provides.
It smooths out the sharp edges, covers imperfections and relaxes the
spirit. Sounds like what Jesus does for
the believer. It is truly a spiritual
experience today.
 |
| Bibi says it is cold but beautiful out here! |
 |
| Accumulating everywhere, even on the fence. |
 |
| Covers the trees, the houses and the yards |
 |
| Lovely, quiet and peaceful |
