dual personalities

Month: July, 2024

July 3, 2024

Come and see, look on this mystery

by chuckofish

It is a sultry day; the sun has drunk

The dew that lay upon the morning grass;

There is no rustling in the lofty elm

That canopies my dwelling, and its shade

Scarce cools me. All is silent, save the faint

And interrupted murmur of the bee,

Settling on the sick flowers, and then again

Instantly on the wing.

–William Cullen Bryant, “Summer Wind”–read it here.

Yesterday I had lunch with two old (and much older than I) friends at the fancy retirement home where they live. It is always a delight to meet with them and talk about what we are reading, re-reading and what we are finding to watch on TV/streaming. One of them walks on the treadmill every morning and recites the Gettysburg Address from memory. I told him about the guy I used to know who recited the lyrics to Abide With Me while maintaining a plank position every morning. We avoid discussing politics but one of them said that the (very liberal) interfaith group he was in fell apart this year following the events of October 7. This is troubling, but no surprise to me I said. It is not the evangelicals the Jews have to worry about. I have no doubt that I am somewhat of a mystery to them, but we respect each other, and yes, even love each other. And that is the way it should be.

So meet an old friend for lunch, read some poetry out loud, memorize something! And here’s a hymn that we heard in church on Sunday that the boy really liked:



Sing to Jesus, Lord of our shame
Lord of our sinful hearts
He is our great redeemer
Sing to Jesus, honor His name

(The painting above is by Winslow Homer, 1878)

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July 2, 2024

“The vast space of the sky overhead so clear, and the buzzard up there sailing his slow whirl in majestic spirals and discs”*

by chuckofish

We enjoyed another beautiful summer day yesterday with low humidity and a high of 81 degrees. Zut alors! Practically unheard of for our part of flyover country in July!

I ran errands and busied myself getting ready for the 4th of July. By then it will have warmed up considerably and will do doubt be raining. But c’est la vie.

I thought this video about vultures was great. They are indeed one of God’s ugliest creations, but also one of the most amazing. (There is a lesson there.) We see them frequently around here, sailing their slow majestic spirals, but I have never seen one up close (except at the zoo). Once when crossing the Missouri River we saw a tree filled with them on the riverside.

Never stoops the soaring vulture
On his quarry in the desert,
On the sick or wounded bison,
But another vulture, watching
From his high aerial look-out
Sees the downward plunge, and follows;
And a third pursues the second,
Coming from invisible ether,
First a speck, and then a vulture ,
Till the air is dark with pinions.

–Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, from “Hiawatha”

Sometimes vultures make for a scene of horror, such as in the movie The Four Feathers (1939). And sometimes they save the day as in the book The Searchers by Alan LeMay.

Meanwhile, Idabelle learns how to water the porch…

…and the Hibiscus is ready to pop!

Enjoy the day!

*Walt Whitman, from “A July Afternoon by the Pond”

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July 1, 2024

Abide with me

by chuckofish

Happy first day of July!

Another weekend has come and gone. Did you have a fun one? Daughter #1 and I had our usual happy hour on Friday, followed by the OM bringing us Chick-fil-a and watching a movie–this time we watched Wayne’s World (1992). I had not seen it since the 1990s and it was surprisingly harmless and amusing. I enjoyed bringing daughter #1 up to speed with the cultural references.

Saturday night I finally got to watch The Longest Day (1962) which I enjoyed very much. I know my father must have enjoyed seeing it when it came out. He was 40 years old and only ten years out of the army. He had a desk job during WWII, but he was proud to have served. In the Korean Conflict he was in England in the Strategic Air Command. My brother told me when we were together in Michigan a few weeks ago that when ANC III flew home from England when my mother was giving birth in Savannah, GA, his plane crash landed. I never knew that. Wow.

The other highlight of the weekend was going to church with the boy and the twins. We had a good adult Sunday School class followed by a sermon on Psalm 4. (We are working our way through the Psalms.) Once again the twins were minimally depraved. Their father said, “They could have been better,” but I gave them an A for sitting through a 30-minute PCA sermon like good Calvinists. We went home afterwards and frolicked with Mr. Smith…

…and enjoyed some driveway sittin’.

We ate leftovers from the OM’s casserole which he made for the men’s breakfast on Saturday. Daughter #1 brought fruit salad. Of course, there was Prosecco. Life is good.

You have put more joy in my heart

than they have when their grain and wine abounded.

–Psalm 4:7

And a happy, happy 7th anniversary to daughter #2 and DN!

A toast to you both and that happy day! Time sure flies!

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