dual personalities

Tag: Weekend

May 4, 2026

There, but for the Grace of God, go we

by chuckofish

How was your weekend? Our flyover weather was gloriously beautiful, but my weekend was pretty quiet. I finished reading The Little Ark by Jan de Hartog and I was genuinely moved by it, especially the way the Dutch people step up to help in a catastrophe…

On Saturday I got up and went to Trader Joe’s to buy flowers for Sunday. The flower corner was mobbed–mostly with teenage girls. Is it prom season or something? I could hardly fight my way through to see the flowers and I just grabbed some blue hydrangeas, some lilies and a little baby’s breath and hightailed it out of there. I went to church and arranged them and I think they looked pretty.

While I waited around for the Women’s Spring Luncheon at 11:00, I stapled some handouts for the young ladies organizing the event. We had soup and salad and breadsticks and my friend Mary Beth gave the talk on spiritual gifts. Afterwards I went to an estate sale at a nice house, but I didn’t find anything to buy/rescue. C’est la vie.

Meanwhile daughter#1 kept me in the prairie loop!

On Sunday, I went to church with the boy and the twins where we sang two of Lottie’s favorite hymns, including Ida’s favorite:

We sang with vigor!

The sermon was on Joshua 14:1-19:51 which covered a lot of territory, but it was excellent. Then I went to adult ed and then to the grocery store to pick up my staples (egg salad, bread, Chex Mix, and carrot sticks). Then on to the bud’s lacrosse game. He took some face-offs!

After catching up with the boy and daughter #3 I was off to the kennel to pick up Mr. Smith! We came home and collapsed and waited for daughter #1 to return.

She is home now and picked up Mr. Smith. We had a glass of wine in the Florida Room. All is well–today I have nothing on my agenda but some “desk work”.

P.S. We have a member of our church who is a neurosurgeon and he also plays the violin. On Sunday, as the prelude to our Call to Worship he played Elgar’s “Nimrod” of the Enigma Variations. It is pretty great, and always worth a listen:

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April 27, 2026

As I dwell in the land of the living

by chuckofish

How was your weekend? Our weather was perfect! The Iris continued to wow…

And even the Japanese Iris (my favorite) is blooming!

Praise the Lord!

I met with two old friends for a Diet Coke date at McD’s on Friday afternoon–until it was overrun with Middle Schoolers after school–some things never change. As daughter #2 commented, “That was such a part of my life back in the day!” Mr. Smith came over a little later and daughter #1 played Bluetooth DJ…

We had Chik-fil-a for dinner–perfect!

On Saturday I went to a gathering celebrating the Saint Louis Watercolor Society’s 30th anniversary. My friend Mirka had a painting there and we had fun catching up. Then we went to the Annex in Webster Groves to hear our friend Gary play with his Bluegrass band.

Always a good time! Live music! Wine on the patio!

On Sunday I went to church by myself and heard a good sermon on Joshua 12:1, 6-7, 24; 13:1-7. Later I was able to go to the bud’s lacrosse game in the afternoon and catch up with the boy on the sidelines.

It was a busy weekend, indeed, with more social activities than usual! Now onward to the week ahead.

Thank God for his faithfulness! Thank God the President of the U.S. is unharmed. (As Anne wrote: “I am not inclined to think of the violent deaths of public figures as some sort of mere cultural spectacle, sometimes justifiable if enough people are angry about “social” justice. As rosy fingered—more like cloudy and gray—dawn is creeping up over the horizon, it seems the first post lamenting the fact that the gunman did not succeed has already appeared.”) So put down your phone and go outside. Pull some weeds. Talk to your neighbor. Pet a nice dog. Watch an old movie all the way through. Read a book! Better yet, open your Bible!

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April 20, 2026

A perfect weekend

by chuckofish

How was your weekend? Mine was, as anticipated, super special. The prairie fam rolled into town on Friday and DN barbecued hamburgers. It was great to have the house filled to the brim and chaotic.

We had so much fun at my birthday luncheon on Saturday!

My cup runneth over.

I made it to church on Sunday morning and so did the boy and the twins. We heard a good sermon on Joshua 10:40-43, 11:16-23–for the Lord God of Israel fought for Israel!–and sang good hymns. In the afternoon daughter #1 and I drove to our favorite winery in Hillsboro and drank wine in the beautiful sunshine and listened to live music–our favorite ’70s playlist. Is there anything better than that? The answer is not much.

Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good;
his love endures forever.

–I Chronicles 16:34

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April 13, 2026

Then sings my soul

by chuckofish

How was your weekend? Daughter #1 and I went to a couple of good estate sales on Saturday and got a random selection of items–an X-acto knife, a Christmas wreath holder, an extension cord–you know, the usual. We had to walk a mile to the first house in Grantwood Village, the nice neighborhood bordering Grant’s Farm. The other house was around the corner from my house, but we still had to do some walking to get there. Got my steps in on Saturday! I went home and rested, knowing that I had a big night ahead of me.

For Christmas daughter #1 gave everyone tickets to see…

We headed down to Chaifetz (on the campus of St. Louis University) and got there a good 45 minutes early–there was a lot of traffic or we would have been there an hour early. The boy and the twins, like good Presbyterians, arrived right as the concert started.

It had been a long time since I had been to a concert in such a large venue! (Springsteen in ’87?) It was pretty exciting!

Zach Williams was wonderful–I got really choked up when he started his first song–Jesus Loves–but that is who I am now. It was great to see Mac Powell and Third Day who were also in fine form. We were great fans in the late ’90s/early aughts.

The twins, I think, had a really good time at their first Christian rock concert, especially the bud who is a rock fan–Free Bird is his fave.

Lottie had played in two lacrosse games that day and was a bit tired, but she was eventually singing along with everyone else.

Anyway, I had a really fun time out of my comfort zone and that is a lesson for us all.

We were out late, but I made it to church at the regular time and heard an excellent sermon on Joshua 10:1-27: The Lord fights for his people! I really love Joshua a lot–one of those truly great “mighty men of valor”. Speaking of mighty men of valor, Mike Matheny‘s grandchild was getting baptized–but at the 11:00 service! I looked around before I left after Adult Ed, but I didn’t see him. 😭 C’est la vie.

We started a new 5-week Adult Ed term. It was hard to choose a class, but I went with “Amusing Ourselves to Death” about social media, mostly because I like the man leading the class. It should be interesting.

After church I headed out to the bud’s lacrosse game…

(And here’s Lottie at her game on Saturday)

She is small, but mighty! You go, girl!

Have a good week!

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April 6, 2026

Sons of men and angels say

by chuckofish

I hope you had a wonderful Easter weekend. Mine was lovely. I went to the Friday night Good Friday service at church which was appropriately solemn. On Saturday daughter #1 and I finished watching Ben Hur (1959) which never disappoints.

(With a wineglass and a Westie in hand)

On Sunday I went to church with the boy and the twins, plus daughter #3 and her mother who is in town. It was nice to hear her Mom comment on how bright and sunny our church is, how the music is not all doom and gloom and no one looked askance or batted an eye at the children in the pews acting like children. Well, yes.

After church we all went over to the boy’s house where we ate a lovely brunch, drank Mimosas and then sat around talking. What could be better? Not much. I didn’t take any actual pictures, but you get the picture.

Meanwhile on the prairie daughter #2 and her famille celebrated in like fashion.

…in vintage smocked dresses of course.

There were Easter egg hunts on both ends…

Good times.

Sorry to hear that the Illini lost to UConn, but c’est la vie. And, hey, it’s lacrosse season!

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March 30, 2026

Through cloud and sunshine, abide with me

by chuckofish

How was your weekend? Here in flyover country the temperatures plummeted on Friday from a high of 92 on Thursday to the low forties! But we still had a nice weekend. The sun was shining and it wasn’t super windy.

On Friday night daughter #1 and I watched the first half of Ben Hur (1959) which marks the official start of Holy Week. We made it to end of the sea battle…

We can no longer do the whole 3.5 hours at one time. We’ll watch the rest on Easter Saturday. Such a great pre-CGI movie!

The twins were excited to participate in the Palm Sunday service–the children sang a special song, “Hail Jesus You’re My King”…

…and then processed around the sanctuary waving palms. They were really into it. But as the bud admitted, “Benjamin is the best singer; he really belts it out!” I agreed. “Yes, he closes his eyes when he sings!”

We heard a good sermon on Luke 19:28-40 and we finished our class on the Westminster Shorter Catechism. I was never good at memorizing and now it is a lost cause, but I wish I could memorize all 107 Q&A’s. Well, I do know #1:

Q. 1. What is the chief end of man?
A. Man’s chief end is to glorify God, and to enjoy him for ever.

I also went back to church for the evening Service of Lament, which was something new. It was quite moving, especially when our music director sang this song:

In other news, I went to the Queeny Park Art Fair on Saturday because my friend Becky @rhworkshandmade was exhibiting her amazing punch designs.

Daughter #1 and I had lunch afterwards at the Village Bar for my weekly hamburger. It’s the simple pleasures, am I right?

O Lord, how happy should we be
If we would cast our care on Thee,
If we from self would rest;
And feel at heart that One above,
In perfect wisdom, perfect love,
Is working for the best!

–Hudson Taylor

And from 1987:

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March 23, 2026

Postcards from the weekend

by chuckofish

Spring is officially here–how did that happen? The year is zooming by per usual. I moved some of my plants into the Florida Room over the weekend. Some of them have gotten really big! I exhausted myself.

I got through my hospital visits and a list of other pressing to-do list items. The terrible week ended and I survived. Also, the twins came over to spend the night and we all survived that. I didn’t sleep much, but c’est la vie. We went through some boxes full of their Dad’s old stuff and that is always fascinating to them. Our Dad had baseball cards?! We found some cool matchbox cars for the bud to take home and some 30-year old candy which we threw away. I got permission to throw away some old Lego kit boxes (empty). I am making progress.

The bud was up to his old tricks…

Those bags of Beanie Babies never cease to amuse.

On Saturday I caught up on things at home and then daughter #1 came over and helped with some lingering computer issues. Then we went to Glen Echo and sat on the patio and drank a bottle of wine. (I deserved it.)

At church we heard a sermon on the “Crumbly Bread Covenant” in Joshua 9:1-27–rich ground for reflection on the nature of truth, discernment, and the dangers of falling prey to deception. We sang good hymns. Our adult ed class continued on the Westminster Catechism–#s 39-82, basically breaking down the 10 Commandments. The boy and twins came over to my house after church and Sunday School and we had bagels and fruit salad. I enjoyed our mealtime conversation about Calvinist doctrine and the fact that God is both a just God and a merciful God, but that we all deserve his wrath.

Then we sat outside for awhile…

…but they were very disappointed because the Raptor wasn’t sufficiently charged for them to drive. They fooled around with some old favorites, but…

Heavy sigh. Well, hopefully the next time they come over I’ll be better prepared. We went inside and they spent an eventful hour playing with Lego while I talked to the boy.

Well, I am sorry to see old Chuck Norris go, but the memes and tweets have been (not surprisingly) hilarious.

And I really liked this.

This morning I have one more trip to the hospital for semi-annual tests. Onward and upward.

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March 16, 2026

Sometimes a light surprises

by chuckofish

How was your weekend? Mine was springlike until it was not. The magnolia trees are in full bloom and everyone is worried that the cold snap will kill/damage everything. But this literally happens every year. At least it didn’t snow as initially predicted! (But we did have a tornado watch!)

Daughter #1 came over on Friday afternoon and set up my new printer for me. I am good to go after months of frustration with my old printer. We celebrated with wine time and Chik-fil-a for dinner.

Our DAR meeting on Saturday was skillfully run, as usual, by daughter #1. We had a wonderful lecture by our friend Esley Hamilton about all the architectural jewels of St. Louis that were torn down before 1904.

For instance, this house–the “Cracker Castle”–built in 1868 for Jonathan Pierce who produced hardtack during the Civil War, was heavily damaged by a tornado in 1896 and as a result was demolished soon afterwards. It is sad that so little actually remains from the nineteenth century (although the above monstrosity was no great loss).

Saturday night I watched The Quiet Man (1952) in honor of St. Patrick’s Day.

Mr. Smith harumphed a bit at the Irish accents, but he still thought it was pretty great.

Sunday I went to church and heard a fine sermon on Joshua 8:1-35–I have really enjoyed Joshua. It seems very timely. Our final hymn was…

…and I cried…and my mascara ran.

Is this what William Cowper meant when he wrote:

Sometimes a light surprises
The Christian while he sings;
It is the Lord, who rises
With healing in His wings:
When comforts are declining,
He grants the soul again
A season of clear shining,
to cheer it after rain.

I went to the Westminster Catechism class afterwards and it was terrific. We went through #22-38, led by a ruling elder (who is also an attorney). It all makes so much sense! I think I finally understand what effectual calling is!

Effectual calling is the work of God’s Spirit, whereby convincing us of our sin and misery, enlightening our minds in the knowledge of Christ, and renewing our wills, he doth persuade and enable us to embrace Jesus Christ, freely offered to us in the gospel.

This morning I go in for my annual bone density exam, kicking off two weeks of doctor visits and tests. “Now may the God of peace himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. 24 He who calls you is faithful; he will surely do it. 25 Brothers, pray for us.” (I Thess. 5:23-25)

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March 10, 2026

We shall gather at the river

by chuckofish

We made it back from the prairie–a very blustery drive! (Par for the course.) The speedwagon did great though.

The weekend was delightful. The grandkids are so entertaining and DN served up gourmet meals–a real step up from my usual egg salad sandwiches! And at dinner Saturday night three-year old Ida, unprompted, broke into shout singing this song (She knows all the words.)

Devil get behind me, run on home
Back to the grave where you belong
In case you forgot, let me tell you the truth
You’re stuck under my blood bought boots
Devil get behind me, you got no hold
I’ve been changed by the Holy Ghost
Try all you want, but it ain’t no use
You’re stuck under my blood bought boots

Get behind me (oh-oh)
Get behind me (oh-oh)
Devil get behind me (oh-oh)

It was one of the greatest things ever. Can you even?

The triple baptisms went off without a hitch on Sunday. Pastor Luke gave a very nice introduction to covenant baptism and why it is entirely appropriate and biblical to baptize a household.

We also heard a fine sermon on revelation 1:9-20 about how God reigns now even as we wait until He comes again–the already and the not yet overlap in the present. So let your light shine, even as we long for the fullness of the kingdom to come!

Afterwards we drove to Bloomington for a lovely lunch at the home of DN’s parents, who have moved there from Maryland.

Mr. Smith was a good boy, although he had to stay home and miss the festivities. He got along great with the baby.

Praise the Lord!

And I love this so much.  It takes a minute and a half.

Now Go out there and kick it!

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March 6, 2026

Let the children come

by chuckofish

It’s Friday again–another week has skied by and once again I did not accomplish everything on my To Do List. Some things, but not everything. As Grant famously said to Sherman after the first day of fighting at Shiloh did not go well, “Lick ’em tomorrow though.”

Daughter #1 and I (and Mr. Smith) are planning to drive up to the prairie tomorrow morning so that we can go to church with daughter #2 where the three kiddos are being baptized on Sunday–praise the Lord! (You will recall that we had planned to do this last weekend, but the flu delayed us.)

This is our first Presbyterian baptism! According to the Westminster Shorter Catechism:

Q. 94. What is Baptism?
A. Baptism is a Sacrament, wherein the washing with water, in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost, doth signify and seal our ingrafting into Christ, and partaking of the benefits of the covenant of grace, and our engagement to be the Lord’s.

“Consider the Apostle Peter’s striking admonition to his fellow Jews on the day of Pentecost, ‘For the promise is for you and for your children and for all who are far off, everyone whom the Lord our God calls to himself’ (Acts 2:39). In other words, those who follow Jesus Christ as His disciples are responsible by faith to entrust the spiritual awakening of their own children to God’s gracious work (John 3:3-5; Titus 3:5-7). We do this by presenting our “Covenant Children” for baptism and by instructing them in the truths of the Gospel as they mature.” (The Genevan Foundation)

So please pray that our travel is smooth and easy and rain-free!

Soli Deo Gloria!

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