Our daughter, DeAna, sent us this video this morning of her duet with Sylviane, her “Swisster.” It warms my heart to see and hear them singing together. De is the one in red.
“Syli” (as we nicknamed her) lived in our home/became our daughter and De’s “Swisster” in Modesto, CA when De was a senior in high school. DeAna then lived with Syli’s family in Sierre, Switzerland the next year. When she came home, she brought Syli’s first cousin, Andre’, home with her! They were married a year later.
Seeing and hearing these two sing together is such a joy! (Sit back a couple minutes and enjoy)
De & her “Swisster”
Our grandson, Chris, was named after Syli’s brother, Christian. Christian was our AFS exchange student in 1980-81. That’s how this whole Swiss connection got started.
If you have followed my blog for awhile, you met our grandson, Chrissy, when he came to Montana last year and attended the Job Corps program.
And you saw Chris with his girlfriend, Natalia from Colombia, in this related post:
In this next video, De and Chrissy are singing a duet to Natalia.
It’s a beautiful day here in Montana – and a wonderful way to start the day with these videos from my DeDe. I hope you enjoy them, too.
Here’s my view yesterday afternoon. Today the clouds are gone and the sky is blue blue blue:
Those antelope babies I showed you a couple days ago were back yesterday afternoon, crossing that field between us and the “next door” neighbors. We call that path “The Antelope Highway.”
Look carefully. There are four little ones with a yearling. That one trailing is not old enough to be the mama. Must be a babysitter!
One of the little ones ran on ahead. They are so cute! OK, enough cuteness for this morning… I gotta get busy.
Bob just left to go fishing, and… my Writers’ Group is coming to the house this morning. It’ll be our first meeting since all this COVID-19 stuff. We can socially distance in my living room.
I’ll tell you all about it this afternoon. Come on back!
We spent the day in Bozeman, Montana. Bob & I had much-overdue dental appointments to get our teeth cleaned. Then we did our grocery shopping, bought a tree to plant at our church where a tree died and needs to be replaced, and then had “linner” (lunch + dinner) before heading home.
It was a rainy drive home.
Got rainier as time went by.
When we arrived home, our neighborhood antelope were there to greet us.
Look carefully – there’s mama antelope followed by her two babies in the field.
Yesterday I watched them out my living room window.
A second antelope joined them. She has little ones, too, but they weren’t with her. Probably hiding in the grasses – not too far off.
It is such fun to watch them.
A Fun Place to Live
In the picture below, our house is behind those trees… a wonderland for birds – and a haven for us. That field on the left is where the antelope were today.
Isn’t it fun to live in a neighborhood where the deer and the antelope play? You know that song, right? Home on the Range, a favorite from my childhood.
“Home, home on the range, Where the deer and the antelope play, Where seldom is heard a discouraging word, And the skies are not cloudy all day.”
Sing it with Roy and me:
Do You Remember Roy Rogers?
You may be too young to remember this cowboy – or you’re living in a different part of the world. Roy Rogers was my favorite when I was a child back in the 1940s. As a real treat, my sister and I would go to the Saturday matinee at the little theater in Newman, California. I loved Roy Rogers even more than the Micky Mouse, Bugs Bunny, and Popeye cartoons! That’s really saying something.
Roy’s sidekick was Trigger, his beautiful palomino. His wife, Dale Evans, was his singing partner. As a child, I was sure Dale Evans would grow old and die – but Roy Rogers would never grow old. And after is wife died, then I intended to marry him!
Did you dress up and pretend to be a princess when you were a child? Or did you imagine yourself to be Roy Rogers’ wife and ride away into the wild blue yonder?
Well, if you dreamed of being a princess on a horse riding off into the wild, blue yonder, come to Montana. This is the place where such dreams come true!
Join us where the deer and the antelope play!
Hope you had a good day. Tell me about it... or share a childhood fantasy.
Doesn’t that look like a fascinating job? I love it that we personally know this great guy!! Job security during the COVID-19 pandemic: The tigers must be fed and cared for. Not just ANYBODY can do that!
Heck, you just throw the meat in his mouth, right? Ah, there’s more to it than that? Uh… ya!! It’s not a job I could handle. How about YOU?
Coronavirus Springtime at DreamWorld Australia Social Distancing!
What’s the most fascinating job you’ve ever had?
Mine was teaching K-8 in a juvenile hall near San Francisco, It was back in the days when kids waiting for foster care placement were incarcerated along with older kids who were jailed because of violent behavior.
But that’s a fascinating story for another day.
Tell me the story of your fascinating job… or one you know about because a friend or family member had it.
I’d love to hear from you. Have a Fabulous Friday. See ya later.
Lucille is our ATV. We named our “all-terrain vehicle” after the popular 1950’s to ’70’s comedian, Lucille Ball, because she has a red head and she’s a “ball!” Look carefully at that photo and you can see Bob, TazE (our Boston Terrier), and me… ready to have a Montana springtime ball!
There I am!!
Just as a ship is launched to the sea, Bob & I launched Lucille on the mountains today. It’s not her maiden voyage; she’s a veteran for sure. But it was her first 2020 opportunity to play.
On our way to North Meadowcreek in the Tobacco Root Mountains
We went with two other couples; It’s a good thing we had them along Because when Bob got stuck in the snow, Rex was prepared for what went wrong
He had a long rope, and equipment galore- So he pulled old Lucille out in a flash. Us gals kept our 6 feet distance and watched. We didn’t want to intrude or do something brash.
CG Feldman helped pull our ATV back to safety after Rex Hocking used his four-wheeler and a lot of rope to pull our "Lucille" out… she had high-centered in the snow! pic.twitter.com/MMLIIarvGl
This video shows the end of the trial… CG pulled the rope by hand at the end, But Rex used it connected to his ATV To pull Lucille out – way beyond the bend!
We had a wonderful ATV day on top of the Tobacco Root Mountains with this spectacular view. pic.twitter.com/WoVLbvSQo7
We went to the very top of the mountain Where the sky was unbelievably blue – And there we had lunch – a spectacular view – Wish we could share this four-wheeling ride with you!
Caroline & CG Feldman
Bob and TazE
That snow-covered peak is gorgeous Mt. Baldy. From here, it’s a much different sight Than the way it looks from our house Where it seems rounded and shines ever bright.
Looking east toward the Madison Range
Headed back down the mountain
Beautiful ranch tucked into the hillside
I love seeing the cattle in the field
Newborn lambs with freshly shorn ewes
The weather could not have been More perfect for this ATV outing. Life in the Montana mountains is grand! Keeps me from sitting home – pouting!
TazE hangs out the side, enjoying the views
Back in McAllister Lucille rides the trailer home
TazE loves taking rides on Lucille, but now she’s ready to head home now!
Home again… See Mt. Baldy out there? I told you it looks rounded from our home. Strange, huh?
I’m so glad you came to JanBeek today To join our 2020 launch of Lucille. Now it’s time to get in the kitchen; Bob needs a hearty dinner meal.
Holy Saturday: The Bible says we should rest. Some call it “Sabbath.”
Luke 23:56 “The women who had been companions of Jesus from Galilee followed along. They saw the tomb where Jesus’ body was placed. Then, they went back to prepare burial spices and perfumes. They rested quietly on the Sabbath as commanded.”
Montana is home It’s a most beautiful state Photographer’s Dream!
Larry Stolte
Mike Flaherty
Urs Keller
Tom Hartley
Tom Hartley
Shelia Shaw
Jesse Vargas
Curtis Wallace
Ed Coyle
Danette Woods
Montana’s my home Coming here was our best move Come and visit us!
The snow is meltng. I know spring is on its way. Yes, green is coming!
When COVID-19 Allows us to travel again Come to Montana!
Thanks for taking a virtual visit with me today via all these wonderful photographers’ lenses. I pray for you and your health and safety. Bee well, my friends, and have a Wonderful Weekend.
For God did not give us A spirit of cowardice, But rather a spirit of power and of love and self-discipline.
2 Timothy 1:7
Do we have enough self-discipline To take advantage of this time – This time to just BE and just LOVE And make the world a better place?
Ann Weems, in Putting the Amazing Back in Grace, wrote: “Remember, you’re in charge of remembering that God is in charge, and that’s a big job that will last a lifetime.”
Just Love!
God’s got this!! Have a peace-filled Sunday, my friends.
Oh, and in case you, like us, missed church today, here is the sermon for today that our pastor, Rev. Steve Hundley sent out via e-mail.
Find a comfortable chair, grab a cup o’ tea or coffee, and augment your Sunday with a worshipful, inspiring message:
INSTRUCTIONS FOR LIFE
Read Psalm 23
Not long after becoming the pastor of three small churches in the mountains of Virginia, I was asked to give the Baccalaureate Address to the graduating class of Bath County High School. It used to be, at least in the Bible Belt where I grew up, that local high schools have both a Baccalaureate and Graduation ceremony. The Baccalaureate was held one evening, a day or two before the actual Graduation Commencement. And it was tradition to invite a religious leader in the community to speak. However, I’m not sure that the message I delivered was what the school administration, or even the students, had in mind.
In most cases, the message given would be a positive one meant to motivate the students to go out and change the world, such as: “You are God’s ambassadors, the hope for a broken world!” Or: If you can imagine it, you can achieve it; if you can dream it, you can become it.” Or, perhaps: “Shoot for the Moon, for even if you miss, you’ll find yourself among the stars!” Most Baccalaureate, as well as, Commencement speakers would have them believe that they can be and do anything they set their minds to, (but with God’s help, of course).
I, however, felt that it was my duty to inform them that they were nothing but a bunch of “harebrained” sheep. I saw that! You raised your eyebrows, didn’t you? (Note from JanBeek, see the picture of sheep I put at the end of this sermon!)
Yet, that is what the Bible says. Yes, as much as we would like to think of ourselves as having the heart of a lion, we share more in common with sheep.
You see, like sheep, we tend to stray easily and lose our way. I’ve have been told that if one sheep spooks and tears off in one direction, all the others will follow. Imagine a bunch of sheep running up a hill. Suddenly the one in front makes a sudden left turn, and all the others, with no questions asked, mindlessly follow. If the one leading heads right off a cliff, tumbling to its death, all the others follow right off the cliff as well. But, you say, “We’re not like that!”
I heard recently about a young married couple. The wife bought a country ham to cook for her husband’s family who were coming over for dinner. Before putting it in a pot to bake it, she cut both ends off. “Why did you do that,” her husband asked. “I did it because that is the waymy mother always did it,” she said. Calling her mother on the phone, she asked: “Mom, why do we cut the ends off a ham before cooking it?” “I don’t know. I do it because it is the way my mother always did it.” Calling up her grandmother, she asked, “Grandmother, why do we cut the ends off a ham before baking it?” “I don’t know why you and your mother do it, but I always did it because it wouldn’t fit in my small baking pan.”
Yes, if one sheep spooks and tears off, all the others will follow. Still, you say, “We are smarter than that!” (Try to find a roll of toilet paper, or a bottle of hand sanitizer these days. Just saying.)
Attending a Montana State University lecture not long ago, the speaker, a journalist professor, pointed out just how partisan our country has become. He said that we have lost the will, and therefore, the ability to listen and dialogue with those who disagree with us. “We only listen to those news networks that confirm what we believe to be true,” he said. “We socialize with those who believe like us. In other words, we are like sheep who follow blindly our own flock.” Oh, by the way, did you know that a flock of sheep are called a “MOB?” Google it.
Secondly, sheep not only tend to follow their “mob”, they are also fragile creatures. Ken Davis, a comedian, tells of growing up on a sheep farm. He said there was an old ram on their farm that loved to sneak up behind him and butt him when he wasn’t looking. He hated that old ram. One day he spotted the old bruiser coming around the back of the barn. Determined to get back at that old ram, he looked around for something to hit him with. With nothing in sight and ram rounding the corner, Ken jumped out and hollered: “BOO!” It was all he could think to do.
“Startled,” Ken said, “that old ram just keeled over AND DIED!”
Later, his father confronted him, “Son, you hit that sheep, didn’t you?”
“No dad, I said, BOO! and it just died!”
A crack of thunder is all it takes to scare a sheep literally to death. As much as we like to think of ourselves as indestructible, this present pandemic and the fact you are reading this sermon in your own home, shows just how fragile we are. Our Lord Jesus said: “When you pray, say, ‘Our Father, who art in heaven…give us this day our daily bread…and, deliver us from evil’.”
Yes, we are like sheep who are in need of a Shepherd. We need help. Going it alone, depending on our own wiles, spells certain disaster. I remember one sheep herder/shepherd telling of turning his flock loose one night in the mountains to graze alone on their own. He knew it was a risk, because sheep cannot defend themselves, much less outrun, even the slowest predators. Sheep tend to go astray, grazing along without looking where they are going.
He did, however, leave them in the care of his trusty sheep dog. Locating them the next morning, he discovered that they had wandered into a rather rugged mountain park. Being the rather clumsy animals that they are, more than a few of them had managed to fall over while feeding on the uneven ground. He found sheep scattered around the meadow upside down on their backs unable to get up. He said: “I had to go around picking up sheep and placing them back on their feet.
The Prophet Isaiah warns the Israelites of the danger of going it alone. “See, the Lord’s arm is not too short to save … to pick you up when you have fallen.” (Isaiah 59:1)
While I doubt that anyone was prepared for me to compare the graduating class of Bath County High School to a “flock”, or should I say “mob” of sheep…the foolish notion that the future of the world rested on their shoulders is categorically untrue! The longer I live, the more I am convinced that what we need to make it in this world is not popularity and success, not financial wealth or even personal happiness.
What we need is Christ, the Good Shepherd, to do for us what we cannot do for ourselves and instruct us in the proper order of our lives. For, “The Lord is our Shepherd, we shall not want. He makes us lie down in green pastures; he leads us beside still waters; it is our Shepherd who restores our souls, who leads us in right paths. Even though we walk through the valley of the shadow of death, we fear not evil…”
Notice how Psalm 23 reverses the order of how we tend to live our lives. It is our tendency to approach life head on, burning ourselves out. And then, turn back to God in search of rest and soul-restoration after a week of chasing the illusive American dream. Yet, notice that this Psalm reverses the order. First, there is the Shepherd who provides what we need most, rest and soul restoration. Only then is it possible to find meaning and purpose in God’s emerging kingdom or face dark valleys.
This is the blessing Jesus wanted Martha to see when she was burning herself out by busying herself in the kitchen. Jesus said to her: “Martha, Martha, you are worried and distracted by many things; there is need of only one thing. Mary has chosen the better part…” (Luke 10:41-42).
Notice how the New Testament church began in Acts 2:46-47: “They followed a daily discipline of busying themselves with programs and activities, burning themselves out, so that people liked what they saw and everyday their numbers grew…” ??? NO! NO! NO!
It says: “They followed a daily discipline of worship in the temple, followed by meals together in their homes, every meal a celebration, exuberant and joyful, as they praised God. People in general liked what they saw. Everyday their numbers grew as God added those who were saved.”
Yes, Genesis tells us that “God created the world and on the seventh day, and then He rested.” That’s true, but WE ARE NOT GOD! Christ died for our sins, our weaknesses, and on the first day of the week He arose from the dead! So, we begin with rest, worship, and spiritual recreation before facing the challenges of daily living and serving our God.
We are His sheep, who find our rest in the arms of the Good Shepherd, so that He might equip us for the facing of this hour even as we face this dark valley of the shadow of death. For we are not alone, for God in Christ is with us. Amen.
Hah! Sheep indeed… But unique indeed, too. Show your uniqueness today!!
Read Psalm 23 again.
In what new and unique way have you felt God’s comforting presence?
See ya tomorrow. Thanks for visiting JanBeek and for hangin’ in there together. Have a beautiful Sunday. Together, in FAITH, we shall overcome!!
This morning was the first of six community Lenten breakfasts. We held it at our church. The next five will be at five other churches in Ennis and Jeffers, Montana. Our topic today was HOPE. About 40 friends from around the community gathered to kick off this Lenten season with food and music, and a message of Hope, delivered by our Rev. Steve Hundley.
Breakfast was in our Fellowship Hall.
Our faithful friend, George and his wife, Lucy, arrived about 5:30 AM to set up the food, make the coffee and get ready for the 7:00 AM crowd.
After breakfast, in preparation for Steve’s message of HOPE, we sang this wonderful hymn. It lends direction to our hopes for this Lenten season and everyday… especially in this world of hatred, injury, doubt, despair, darkness, and sadness. Let us determine to be the peace we seek to find.
So that’s the food and friends and music. What about the feathers? Yesterday I told you about my friend, Bernie, who is in the hospital and has set up quite an artistic “mess” on his tray table. Let me show you:
He has quite a menagerie of feathers there. Look at the flies he is able to create with them:
Yes, WOW!! That’s the feathers… and their creative use for catching some mighty big trout!
But what about the mustangs? Well, our Ennis High School mascot is the Mustang. When I drove by the school this morning, I had to top and take a picture for you of these MAGNIFICENT bronze mustangs. They were created by a local artist (Ennis is an art town with 6 art galleries in a place with a population of less than 1,000).
Aren’t they something?!!
I’ll try to find out the sculptor’s name and let you know later. It’s important to give him/her credit!
But for now, I am headed to my TOPS (Take Off Pounds Sensibly) group. I hope I didn’t gain too much with those scrumptious egg casseroles this morning. I had to try a little of each!
Look for that trophy again… I want to be the biggest loser. I have 6 more pounds to take off to get back to my goal weight.
