Trust During Travel

  May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. (Romans 15:13, New International Version)

I wasn’t sure if I was going to post here today as I am out of town. I took a road trip to Minnesota to visit a friend and didn't know if I would have time or internet.

I’ve been planning this trip for about a month, but thanks to the pandemic and the weather forecast, I wasn’t positive I was going to go until I woke up Friday morning. It’s so hard knowing how safe it is to travel with COVID in the air everywhere, but the friend I was going to visit as well as another friend I was traveling with were both healthy and have both been cautious when they do leave their houses.

Then the weather. One never knows, including the meteorologists, what sort of weather the winter will send us on any given day. The forecast was for freezing rain last yesterday afternoon, turning to snow overnight, with up to three inches possible.

I’m a northern Wisconsin girl, though, so a little ice and snow might keep me vigilant, but usually won’t cause me to cancel my plans. But above all I trust that the Lord will get me from one place to another and that if He doesn’t want me going then He will send me a sure sign to cancel.

And while I’ve been here in Minnesota since Friday afternoon, He has filled me with joy and peace as I visit with old friends.

Thank You Lord, God, for giving me friends I can connect with after many years and for giving me a dependable car which will safely get me home later today. Amen. 

Picture hanging in the hallway outside the AirBnb where we are staying. And if you know me, you know stories and pictures from this road trip will be posted here in the coming weeks. 

Hi from Emma

Hi. My name is Emma. I am seven months old. I think. I don’t know too much. So, I don’t really know how old I am.

Mom and Dad say I am not too smart. But I like to eat, even though, when Mom puts food on the floor, I can’t find it even when she keeps pointing at it.

And sometimes I don’t know what to do with my toys. And you don’t even want to watch me go down the stairs. They kind of freak me out, so I have to stay only one on side going down and the other side coming back up. Mom likes to mess with me and pick me up and put me on the wrong side and I don’t know what to do and I almost fell off the steps the other day and Mom felt really bad.

I also spin in circles. A lot. Which I think sometimes makes Mom mad. I don’t know why. I think it’s because she thinks I’m crazy. Or like she says a lot, “that cat is not right in the head”.. 

I do know some stuff, though, like the best places to sleep.

Mom says I have Neapolitan toes. I have no idea what that means. She said it means my toes are the color of some kind of ice cream. But I still don’t know what that means. But I think some of it means that she loves me.

I love my brother Gizmo, even though he is a trouble maker.

And I like my step brother Ches. He is so big, but both me and Gizmo are catching up to him.

Finally, I like boxes. I guess that proves I am a real cat, even though I don’t know how to jump into them.

Unless Mom helps me and puts me in one. But then stupid Gizmo chases me out. 

I gotta go now. It must be time to eat. 

Chances

Last chance to blog about my quick trip to southeast Wisconsin back in November. 

Actually, when Hubby and I were there last February, our son took us out to eat at Chances restaurant in the quaint village of Rochester.

The building, built in 1843, was originally known as The Union House and had been a stop on the Underground Railroad. The building is reportedly haunted by seven ghosts, including one referred to as a lady in a green ball gown waiting for her Civil War soldier to return.

When we ate there last year, we didn’t see any apparitions, but the food was good so it was still worth the trip. I always did want to return, though, to get a look at it in the daylight.

You know me and my love of old buildings.

I think most of us have heard of other towns named Rochester, mainly in New York and Minnesota. Straddling the Fox River and located in the shadow of the town of Hartford, this Rochester was settled by settlers from Rochester, Vermont. Interesting, huh?

Or maybe not.

But only a couple miles down the road near Army Lake – well, you have to admit this collection of gigantic candy corn does catch your eye

Keep It Simple

   Do not fret because of those who are evil or be envious of those who do wrong; for like the grass they will soon wither, like green plants they will soon die away. Trust in the Lord and do good; dwell in the land and enjoy safe pasture.

   Take delight in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart. Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him and he will do this: He will make your righteous reward shine like the dawn, your vindication like the noonday sun. 

I’m still focusing on my word of the year: Trust. Which I am supposed to focus on for the entire year – that’s the point of this word. But I won’t continue to post about it here every week. I was kind of still looking for just a single verse to memorize and tack up on my wall and recite every day. You know – that sort of thing. Or keep it simple – “Trust in the Lord.”

[Today’s verses are brought to you from Psalm 37:1-7 in the New International Version of the Bible. Today’s pictures are brought to you by my old Yashica 35 mm camera taken in 1981. They scanned up pretty good.]

Just Say Yes

 {Disclaimer: I did very little actual research for this post. If you want the real facts, and not just my opinions, do your own web search or ask your own health care provider 😊}

 If you read my post here on Sunday, you may remember that I received my first COVID vaccine last Friday. First of all, in case you are wondering, I have not had any side effects. Most people who I know who have gotten it said their arm was pretty sore for the first couple of days. Mine hurt way less than it does from my yearly flu vaccine.

From the people I’ve talked to, for any who have been infected with the virus already, they are prone to more side effects from the vaccine – fever, body aches, fatigue. I guess that’s because the body is already geared up to defend itself from the virus and now the vaccine is messing with those antibodies. When the health care providers I work with explain it to me it makes so much sense, but then I can never remember enough of their exact words to have it make sense when I write it.

Also, after people get the second vaccine, they tend to get a lot more of those side effects. Again, I suppose, because the body is now immediately ready to fight it off. Which is a good thing coz that means it’s ready if the real virus sneaks into you.

The other thing I can never explain coherently is how this vaccine is different than any other we’ve had before. Our flu vaccine, as well as the ones for polio, measles, etc, all introduce a weakened or inactivated form of the virus into our bodies. This causes our bodies to make its own antibodies against those bugs, so that when those bugs invade the body, our defense system is already ready to eradicate it.

The COVID vaccine, on the other hand, doesn’t infect us with anything at all like the actual virus. Instead, through some process way more complicated than I will ever understand, the shot contains a teeny tiny textbook which teaches our cells how to make a protein which triggers an immune response inside our bodies which produces the antibodies which now will stand guard ready to kick the butts of any COVID-19 bugs that try to get in.

Or something like that. Science may be fascinating, but understanding it? There’s already something standing guard outside my brain saying, “Uh-uh, you’ll never get this.”

Ok, but the bottom line – is it effective?

It’s reported to be around 50% effective two weeks after the first dose, and up to 95% effective after the second dose. They do say that you still have a chance (no idea how great that is) of contracting the virus, but you will have few, if any symptoms.

The problem is (and my pea brain thinks this is a huge problem) that if you do contract COVID, you can still pass it on to someone else. Which makes me want to ask, then what is the point of even getting the shot? To which, of course, the answer is: if everyone gets the vaccine and everyone gets a very mild illness or no illness at all when exposed to the COVID virus, then it is less of an issue than even the common cold. Right? Don’t you think?

The second bottom line – is it safe? If it can cause all these side effects, and we don’t know if there could be long-term side effects, is it worth getting?

Of course it is. At this point, of all the people who have gotten the vaccine, the number who have had serious life-threatening side effects or have even died from it is still way, way, way lower than the number of people who have had those same bad outcomes from contracting the virus.

And any possible long-term problems from the vaccine? The medical community already suspects there could be long-term health issues from having the virus, but there have been no such findings from the vaccine. Yes, both the virus and vaccine are still too new to really know enough.

Whatever the case, we gotta just get through this. As I already mentioned, someday this particular coronavirus could come and go through our bodies without us even noticing. We’re not there yet, so in the meantime, wear your masks, greet others with air-hugs, stay home as much as you can, and get the vaccine if you get a chance.

Stay safe, stay healthy, stay sane – Chris

Some day, we'll all get together again. 

Small-town America

Sometimes, with all the chaos in the world right now and especially in this country, we need to step back and return to our roots. Such as in small-town America. The historic buildings and the village square. Such as in East Troy.

It’s such an adorable town. I can see why my son wants to stay in the area. 

Situated in Walworth County, Wisconsin, East Troy had a population of 4,281 in the 2010 census. It’s 65 miles from the state capital of Madison and 40 miles from Milwaukee. Or a straight shot east will get you to Lake Michigan in 35 miles.

But I wasn’t going nearly that far, that weekend in November, when my daughter and I visited her brother, who lives just west of East Troy.

And there’s always something to make you dream. What could I do with this cool building?

Three stories, 8,276 square feet and built in 1837! All for only $749,000! My imagination could do a lot with that. 

Or this simple farm on the west edge of town.

Only not for sale and not quite a farm.

But, again, how cool is that?

Then again, I find pretty much anything fascinating. 

Trust in Modern Medicine

    The Lord is my strength and my shield; My heart trusted in Him, and I am helped; Therefore, my heart greatly rejoices, and with my song I will praise Him. (Psalm 28:7, New King James Version).    

This past Friday, I received my first COVID vaccine. I’m not gonna lie, I feel somewhat guilty about it. As a healthcare worker – who maybe doesn’t treat COVID patients directly, but crosses paths with them on nearly a daily basis – I made the cut, I’m on the first-tier list.

I’m also not gonna lie about the amount of anxiety I had over this. We’ve been told that two vaccines – one from Pfizer and one from Moderna – have been approved for use against the COVID virus. Yet, the fine print I received on Friday said that the shot I was receiving (from Moderna) is an unapproved vaccine that may prevent COVID-19 and that there is no FDA-approved vaccine to prevent it. The FDA has authorized the emergency use of this vaccine under an Emergency Use Authorization. Did you all know that?

But I really want to save that discussion for another time – there is just too much. And I always rather spread inspiration instead of science on my Sunday blog posts.

So, here’s the thing. I trust in my Lord and God. I trust Him to keep me safe and healthy and I also trust Him to guide the scientists and doctors who are making these vaccines. For people who don’t believe in modern medicine because they fully believe that God is the Great Physician – well, I can’t deny that is who He is. But I also believe that He had His hand in the discoveries which modern medicine has made.

Which is why I placed my trust in God, took the plunge, and got my shot.

Lord, God, Heavenly Father, thank You for guiding our medical community in fighting this pandemic. Continue to support them in their efforts and allow this vaccine to truly be safe and effective. Amen.  

Camp More, Worry Less

   I had a few other ideas to write about today, but they all required more research and more writing than I felt up to after this – yet another – stressful week.

The one positive thing that happened this week is that I put in for a week’s vacation this summer, it was approved and I immediately made reservations at one of our favorite state parks. And the very best part of that is  . . . that we’ll be taking the new travel trailer.

Yes, I mentioned it here before, but thought I should finally properly introduce her.

Full kitchen and dining room

Sink, frig, stove and microwave. No oven, but like I'm not planning on baking anything anyway. 

Living room couch and bedroom

Shower and toilet, which we say we aren't going to use, but we'll see. I think the day will come. 

Nice to have a separate bathroom sink. That has me pretty excited. No more brushing my teeth outside on the edge of the woods. 

The bunk beds we really don't plan on using, at least not for sleeping. I think a tote on each one for our clothes will work out well.                                                       

She's about three feet longer than we had planned on, but the price was right and Hubby will get used to towing the longer rig. 

We bought the camper the first part of December, an early Christmas present to ourselves. Then my friend, Jo, made me the very best Christmas present. 

Even though there is snow in the forecast today, I absolutely, positively can not wait!                                       

Paradise in South-eastern Wisconsin

 “Nature always wears the color of the spirit.” How wonderfully true. And how wonderful that one unseasonably warm, early November day last year, I was able to visit a magical place with my kids and one of our friends. Oh, and number one Grandpuppy as well.

Paradise Springs, near Eagle, Wisconsin, is aptly named. I would have liked to rewrite its story here, but decided you could just as easily read about it by clicking this link. If you do so, you can follow along as we visit some of the places mentioned in the brochure you'll find there. 

Our crew on the steps of the ruins of the bottling plant. 

The trout pond,

My first view of the Fieldstone Spring House. 

Megan meditating.

The trout weren't quite as photogenic. 

Who's that peaking out the window? 

Grandpuppy Wesley of course!

Where the water-driven turbine once was. 

The trout pond from the other end. 

The wading pool. Umm, no, not wading there today. 

Where the horse race track once was, if you can believe it!

What a fun adventure for all. 

It was late in the day when we were there, and even though every article I’ve found on it says that hardly anyone ever visits, the area was crowded that day, which cut down on some of my picture taking. I only snapped 134 of them! 

You can read some more about Paradise Springs by clicking this link or this one. Enjoy and visit sometime if you can.