Today is the birthday of Syd Hoff (September 4, 1912 – May 12, 2004)–American cartoonist and children’s book author. Hoff was known for his cartoons in The New Yorker depicting tenements and lower-middle class life in the city. He was a Communist, although he was never blacklisted.
Today is also the anniversary of the day American actress Irene Dunne died in 1990. She was nominated five times for a Best Actress Oscar, but never won. She was no Communist, but a lifelong Republican. She starred with Skippy, the Wire Fox Terrier, in several movies, including The Awful Truth (1937) which features Skippy as Mr. Smith, after whom you-know-who was named.
So a toast to Syd Hoff, Irene Dunne and Skippy…watch an Irene Dunne movie, pet a nice dog, laugh at a cartoon!
The Madcaps are grieving the death of one of their beloved Pugs. They are so right about “working” through it. Personally, I have been wearing out the shredder every day, since the OM never threw out a piece of paper in his life. Slowly but surely I am making progress. Bringing some measure of order to the chaos is bringing me joy.
This is a really good article about God’s mercies “even to your old age”.
“The manna in the wilderness was given one day at a time. There was no storing up. God wants us to depend on him every single day. We do not receive today the strength to bear tomorrow’s burdens. We are given mercy and strength to match the needs of today.”
What a great analogy from Exodus!
The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; 23 they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.
Today is Victory over Japan Day, the day on which Imperial Japan surrendered in WWII, bringing an end to the war. The formal signing of the Japanese Instrument of Surrender took place on board the battleship USS Missouri in Tokyo Bay on September 2, 1945, and at that time President Truman declared September 2 to be the official V-J Day.
General Douglas MacArthur signing the Instrument of Surrender on behalf of th e Allied Powers. Generals Wainwright and Percival, both former prisoners of the Japanese, stand behind him.
Missouri was the third ship of the United States Navy to be named after the US state of Missouri. The ship was authorized by Congress in 1938. The ship was launched on 29 January 1944 before a crowd of 20,000 to 30,000 spectators. At the launching ceremony, the ship was christened by Margaret Truman, the ship sponsor and daughter of Harry S. Truman, then one of the senators from the ship’s namesake state.
USS Missouri underway in August 1944.
Missouri earned three battle stars for World War II service, five for Korean War service and a further three for Gulf War service.
How was your holiday weekend? Mine was delightful. We sat outside and enjoyed the lovely flyover weather and good company.
On Saturday we went to an estate sale where daughter #1 scored a Lane cedar chest for a very reasonable price. Then we went to Meijers in Champaign, which actually blew our minds. So big, so clean. There were even tropical fish.
But then, it doesn’t take much to please us.
We went to church on Sunday at daughter #2’s church in Urbana and heard a good sermon on Genesis 38–God works through what is sinful and shameful to accomplish his glorious redemptive purpose.
And Mr. Smith was a good boy.
I never took a picture of our hosts, but c’est la vie. Mea culpa. Everything was wonderful.
“Lord, help me to glorify Thee; I am poor, help me to trust Thee; I am weak, help me to lean on Thee; I am foolish, help me to learn of Thee.” (Charles Spurgeon – 1834-1892)
Daughter #1, Mr. Smith and I are off to the Prairie this morning. Hopefully the traffic will not be too bad on this Labor Day weekend. Prayers for travel mercies are much appreciated!
Ready to hit the road!
Happy Labor Day–the day I salute the men who do the work that women do not want–the men who pick up your trash, and fix the roads, who are plumbers and electricians, who mine the coal and fix our cars and fight the wars and protect the streets. The ones who stop on the highway and pull people out of burning cars. I thank you.
“I have friends in overalls whose friendship I would not swap for the favor of the kings of the world.” ― Thomas A. Edison
Come, labor on. Who dares stand idle on the harvest plain while all around us waves the golden grain? And to each servant does the Master say, “Go work today.”
And today I am packing a bag to travel up to see the prairie girls and DN tomorrow. Here’s a poem by William Cullen Bryant to get us all in the mood…”The Prairies”:
These are the gardens of the Desert, these
The unshorn fields, boundless and beautiful,
For which the speech of England has no name—
The Prairies. I behold them for the first,
And my heart swells, while the dilated sight
Takes in the encircling vastness. Lo! they stretch,
In airy undulations, far away,
As if the ocean, in his gentlest swell,
Stood still, with all his rounded billows fixed,
And motionless forever. —Motionless?—
No—they are all unchained again. The clouds
Sweep over with their shadows, and, beneath,
The surface rolls and fluctuates to the eye;
Dark hollows seem to glide along and chase
The sunny ridges. Breezes of the South!
Who toss the golden and the flame-like flowers,
And pass the prairie-hawk that, poised on high,
Flaps his broad wings, yet moves not—ye have played
I forgot to mention that Sunday was the birthday of Jorge Luis Borges, the great Argentine essayist, poet and translator. As you know, he is a favorite of mine.
I will toast him tonight and read some poetry.
I watched a good movie the other night, one recommended by my DP several years ago. The Professorand the Madman (2019) is the true story of professor James Murray, who in 1879 became director of an Oxford University Press project, The New English Dictionary on Historical Principles, and the man who became his friend and colleague, W.C. Minor, an American doctor who submitted more than 10,000 entries while he was confined at Broadmoor Criminal Lunatic Asylum at Crowthorne after being found not guilty of murder due to insanity.
Mel Gibson plays the Professor and Sean Penn is the Madman. They are both excellent.
This is not a film that would appeal to a large audience, but I liked it. Despite the fact that it takes place in large part in an insane asylum and a university, it is full of interesting, intelligent and kindly people. The only real cruelty is perpetrated by well-meaning doctors trying to advance medical understanding. There is even a Christian message.
I also re-watched Seven Days in Utopia (2011) starring Robert Duval and Lucas Black, two more favorites of mine. It tells the story of Luke Chisholm, a young professional golfer, who, after melting down during a tournament and shooting 80 in the final round, crashes his car into a fence and finds himself stuck in Utopia, Texas while his car is repaired. He meets retired golfer Johnny Crawford and learns from him how to move on with his life and career. It also has a Christian message.
This movie is actually rated G!
I am currently re-reading Death Comes for the Archbishop by Willa Cather. It is a great book, so beautifully written.
“Under his buckskin riding-coat he wore a black vest and the cravat and collar of a churchman. A young priest, at his devotions; and a priest in a thousand, one knew at a glance. His bowed head was not that of an ordinary man,—it was built for the seat of a fine intelligence. His brow was open, generous, reflective, his features handsome and somewhat severe. There was a singular elegance about the hands below the fringed cuffs of the buckskin jacket. Everything showed him to be a man of gentle birth—brave, sensitive, courteous. His manners, even when he was alone in the desert, were distinguished. He had a kind of courtesy toward himself, toward his beasts, toward the juniper tree before which he knelt, and the God whom he was addressing.”
So read a poem, watch a good movie, re-read a favorite book, and praise God from whom all blessings flow.
The nice weather continues. I know it will get hot again, but fall is in the air!
I watched the video of John MacArthur’s memorial service which was held last Saturday. (Most of it–it was over two hours long.) Alistair Begg, John Piper, Joni Eareckson Tada, Sinclair Ferguson all spoke movingly of their friend. Sinclair Ferguson, though, is really wonderful. (He starts at 1:51:00.) Interestingly, the Bible readings were the same ones read at the OM’s memorial service! John 14:1-6 and I Corinthians 15.
I tell you this, brothers: flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable. 51 Behold! I tell you a mystery. We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, 52 in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed. 53 For this perishable body must put on the imperishable, and this mortal body must put on immortality. (I Corinthians 15:50-53)
As Albert Mohler wrote: “John MacArthur will be greatly missed and deeply mourned. He demonstrated faithfulness over a long lifetime of honorable ministry—a remarkable gift to Christ’s church. His race is now complete—and what a remarkable race it was. But, remember this: Pastor John MacArthur would be the first to say that the priority above all other priorities is that the faithful exposition of Holy Scripture continue until Jesus comes. Soli Deo Gloria.”
August continues to wind down. I have been thinking more about small joys and I ran across this quote from Pilgrim’s Inn, which I have quoted before:
“…Hilary enjoyed himself, just as he had enjoyed himself drinking the port. Increasingly, as he got older, he enjoyed things. As his personal humility deepened, so did his awareness of the amazing bounty of God…so many things…The mellow warmth of the port, the pleasure of the game, the sight of Lucilla’s lovely old face in the firelight, and David’s fine hands holding the cards, his awareness of Margaret’s endearing simplicity, and the contentment of the two old dogs dozing on the hearth…One by one the small joys fell. Only to Hilary no joy was small; each had its own mystery, aflame with the glory of God.”
I can really relate to this, can’t you? Coffee with a friend, a glass of wine with my daughters and joking about New Jersey “Charbonnay”. The satisfaction of filling in a hole in the driveway with Quik-crete (just add water!) with the boy.
Along those lines, daughter #1 and I went to a good estate sale on Saturday. It was at a big old, well-maintained three-story house in the old neighborhood where I grew up. We got a few books and some pretty blue juice glasses and Lamar gave us our usual discount. We drove by the old manse on Westgate and it was good to see it totally renovated and looking good. Interestingly, it is owned now by a law professor who is also a faculty fellow with the Carver Project. The world is more than we know.
Meanwhile the twins went to the farmers’ market out in their neck of the woods. And the prairie girls got ice cream.
After church on Sunday, daughter #1 and I went to our favorite winery in Hillsboro for the first time this year!
We had a lovely time sitting outside listening to live music on a really lovely day.
So remember, no joy is really small, after all, and all are aflame with God’s glory.
It finally cooled off in flyover country and it is quite a relief. We’ve had a “too darn hot” run here in August. Soccer practice was even called off! But it is bearable to go outside again, thankfully.
Kindergarten is going well.
And third grade, so I hear, as well.
Meanwhile, I have been keeping busy and my shredder has been a-buzzing. I am making progress.
Also, as you know, John Wayne movies are my comfort food for the soul. This week I watched The Alamo (1960) and I was impressed. It is a fine, moving film, with excellent performances from all three leads and the supporting actors, including Frankie Avalon. And the last 45 minutes or so brought me to tears several times. Really. I could not find any good clips on YouTube, so you’ll just have to take my word for it.
Well, I am looking forward to a visit from Mr. Smith this afternoon and dinner at the boy’s house tonight. Tomorrow there is a good estate sale to check out and a chance to say ‘hey’ to Lamar. It’s the little things, right? Never overlook those everyday joys!
“And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.” (Hebrews 10:24-25)
dual personalities 