Our Freedom – Dakota Vacation blog post #18

If an army surrounds me, I will not be afraid. If war breaks out, I will trust the Lord. (Psalm 27:3, New Century Version)

     I did some research online for this one, but I decided to go with the memories my dad shared when I was a kid, the things I learned in German class in high school, and news that happened in my lifetime. If you know for a fact that what I write here is completely out in left field, please feel free to correct me.

My dad, who was born in Germany just as World War I was breaking out, told me that when the Allied Forces won that war, they really stuck it to the German people, expecting them to pay millions in reparations. This helped to win the people over to Hitler, as he started out by filling them with promises of making Germany great again (Have I heard that somewhere else recently?).

Anyway, I know a lot of things go into declaration of any war, but those were just some of the things I grew up hearing. 

And then, Germany lost the second World War. This time the Allied countries of Russia, Great Britain, France, and the United States each claimed part of the country of Germany as its own – in a way. They also divided the capital city of Berlin into four sectors, one for each of those countries.

The idea was to temporarily take power away from Germany, so that it wouldn’t retaliate again and also so that it would be forced to pay those reparations this time while still repairing damages made throughout the beautiful country during the war.

After four years, Great Britain, France and the United States turned their segments of the country and the city of Berlin back over to Germany. But communist Russia said, “no, we’re keeping our parts of Germany so they can become wonderful communists like us.”

By 1961, the East Germans were leaving East Berlin in such droves, that the Russians built a wall around West Berlin, not to keep them in, but to keep those wanting freedom from the communist regime from escaping.

Finally, in the fall of 1989, the Berlin Wall came down in a changing political climate and nearly a year later, East and West Germany were unified into one country again.   

There are segments of the Berlin Wall all over the world, over fifty pieces alone are in the United States, spread out over half of the states.

We got to see this section when we were in Rapid City, South Dakota in June.

It’s a solemn reminder of what war can do and how much we need to preserve our freedom. 

Ok, so some are dead in Deadwood – Dakota Vacation blog post #17

 

After driving up and down Deadwood’s main street, we drove up to Mount Moriah Cemetery to see what was happening there. 

I was floored that they charge a $2 admission. To a cemetery! Who ever heard of such a thing, but it was only two bucks, and I suppose they get a lot of people wandering through just for the famous residents of the graveyard. 

It was a steep hike up to those graves – Wild Bill Hickock and Calamity Jane. 

Hubby made it that far, then took up residence on a bench, while I continued to wander. 

I explored about half of the cemetery, not hiking any further up the steep side.

Not Dead in Deadwood – Dakota Vacation blog post #16

 
During the summer of 1874, General George Armstrong Custer led an expedition to the Black Hills, planning to find a location to build a fort. Two prospectors joined the group, and on August 2, they discovered gold near what is now the city of Custer, South Dakota.

Soon, prospectors came in droves to the southern hills. Then, in the fall of 1875, a gold deposit was discovered in the northern Black Hills. Miners staked their claims and set up camp in a gulch full of dead trees, and the town of Deadwood was born. 

In April 1876, the city of Deadwood was officially laid out.

Dance halls, gambling establishments, saloons, and brothels were constructed on both sides of Main Street, causing this area to be known as the “Bad Lands” of Deadwood.

Over the following few years, Deadwood was hit with three major fires, a flood, and other hardships, pushing it to the verge of becoming another Old West ghost town.

Somehow, the town managed to survive. Today, Deadwood could be your tourist destination for all the Black Hills offers. Or, if you’re more like my husband and me, it’s an interesting town to drive through.

A Few Proverbs

        Proverbs 14, Verse 34 - Doing what is right makes a nation great, but sin will bring disgrace to many people. (New Century Version)

In my Friday morning Bible group, we studied chapter 14 of Proverbs this week. Lots of good verses in there, and I thought I would just share a few today.

        Verse 21 - It’s criminal to ignore a neighbor in need, but compassion for the poor—what a blessing! (The Message)

        Verse 22 - Those who make evil plans will be ruined, but those who plan to do good will be loved and trusted. (NCV)

        Verse 11 - The work of the wicked will perish; the work of the godly will flourish. (Living Bible)

        Verse 31 - Anyone who oppresses the poor is insulting God who made them. To help the poor is to honor God. (LB)

There are thirty more chapters in the book of Proverbs, all containing verses just as applicable to all of us today.

(Oh, and the picture above is of Bridal Veil Falls in the Black Hills. I still had to slip in our trip to South Dakota here.)

Not Rough At All – Dakota Vacation blog post #15

One day we finally saw something new in South Dakota. And it was worth the seventy pictures I snapped. I wish we would have stayed there longer than an hour and explored more.

 Roughlock Falls is an absolutely beautiful place along the Little Spearfish Creek, about fifteen miles south of Spearfish.

There is a developed walking trail along the water, but it didn’t feel too developed. There were also a fair number of people, but not so many to be intrusive.

Many gentle rapids and small waterfalls until you get farther downstream where the main falls is – called the Upper Falls. I couldn’t find anywhere just how tall it was, but Hubby and I guessed around thirty or forty feet.

But that wasn’t all. Just a little further downstream, the water veers all over a twenty-foot-wide swath, tumbling down in little rivulets. Like something out of Middle Earth.

With all that beauty, don't forget to still look up. Amazing place. 

Been there, Done that – Dakota Vacation blog post #14

If you’ve been to the Black Hills of South Dakota, you’ve surely driven along the Needles Highway. 

 It’s cool, but another one of those once and done deals. How many times have I ridden this windy road? 

The tunnels scare me to death, 

even the one where a Storm Trooper was standing guard.

And way out there, past this tunnel, what is that in the distance.

Oh, but first we stopped at Norbeck Overlook, named for Peter Norbeck. He was a governor and US senator of South Dakota, who lived from 1870 to 1936. He was instrumental in development of Needles Highway, Badlands National Park, Custer State Park, Mount Rushmore, and more.

I guess that gives it away.

Yet another – “been there, done that”. 

Never Give Up, Never Quit – Dakota Vacation blog post #13

Now you should finish what you started. Let the eagerness you showed in the beginning be matched now by your giving. Give in proportion to what you have. (2 Corinthians 8:11, New Living Translation)

1969 was the first year I traveled through South Dakota. My sister Pat and I were camping with our parents, heading to Yellowstone, but they took the time to drive through the Black Hills.

I can’t remember much – I was seven years old for heaven sakes! But I have some of the black and white photos and the home movies from the 8mm camera. The most prized possession, though, is Dad’s Camping Log.

Anyway, that was the first time I saw Crazy Horse, and it didn’t look much different than the picture above, which I took further down the road on the Needles highway this June. And they’d started work on it in 1947!

The huge mountain carving still has a way to go. I don’t think it will be finished in my lifetime.

But it is still a reminder to finish what we start, no matter how long it takes. Whatever you do, put your trust in the Lord and never give up.

So we do not give up. Our physical body is becoming older and weaker, but our spirit inside us is made new every day. (2 Corinthians 4:16, New Century Version)