In our continuing exploration of Michigan, today my husband and I visited Old Town in Lansing, Michigan. In 1825 a surveying crew stopped along the Grand River next to what is now Lansing and plotted land that would someday be called Old Town.  James Seymour and Jacob Cooley from New York purchased the land from […]

When I first started my blog I said I was going to share some funny stories about the joys (and trials) of being a pastor’s wife.  I shared a few stories but then thought perhaps I should just keep my funny tales to myself.  Here are the few I shared if you want a good […]

Merry Christmas from St Johns Michigan. This is a view of our main street downtown all decorated for Christmas. This small town has so much to offer year round but it is especially beautiful this time of year. The stores down town have a decorating contest. So many unique shops. There is the Adorn Mint […]

We talk a lot about the cross and how terrible the death of Jesus was.  The story of Peter’s denial of Jesus and the rest of the disciples fleeing from the garden where he was arrested are familiar to us.  It is good that we take time to reflect on the agony, the pain, the […]

As another new year comes around, my mind races back to other new years and other times. Recently I was thinking about the life of a pastor and his family and the frustrations, the laughter and the joy that life brings.  Three different stories came to mind that illustrate all three scenarios. One Sunday morning […]

Life is good for me.  Retired with time to do what I want to do.  Good husband who is my best friend.  Children, grandchildren and even great grandchildren to love. Still, like all of us, difficult times do come. Right now I am facing health issues.  I see the doctor tomorrow to review MRI results […]

Getting off the beaten path on a recent trip north led us to another special attraction. In the unincorporated area known as Indian River we found the Cross in the Woods Shrine. This wooden cross was made from a 2,000-year-old California Redwood tree. The tree was found in the state of Oregon and the timber […]

Yesterday it was 37 years since my first husband was killed in an accident.  He died when the car he was working on fell on top of him and crushed him.  My two young daughters came home from school and found him there.  Needless to say, it was quite a traumatic experience for them. All […]

My husband and I recently visited Holland Michigan on our first trip checking out the lighthouses in Michigan. While we enjoyed seeing “Big Red” the real treat was enjoying all the beautiful tulips around town.  The weekend before had been their annual Tulip Time Festival.  For almost 90 years this annual event has featured over […]

Edgewood, Illinois. Just the mention of that town brings back bad memories.  About three months into my sixth grade school year, we moved from Mason to Edgewood (both small towns about 10 miles apart).  For me, they were opposite sides of the universe.  Mason Grade School was one of my happiest times in school.  I […]

This Sunday I had to miss church. It is the second Sunday I have missed because I have been sick. Recovering now, but I so hate to miss church. Somehow the week is just not the same when I have not been able to meet with my church family and join in praise of God […]

In our road trip today we visited one of only two covered bridges open to traffic in Michigan. The bridge leads to a village that time has forgotten.  John Wesley Fallas and his brother, Silas, came to the area in 1837.  Built alongside the Flat River they used the power from the river to construct […]

One of the earliest carols written in North America is a song we never sing. Most of us have probably never even heard of it. It was written by John de Brebeuf, a Jesuit missionary to the Huron Indians. Brebeuf, along with a group of Jesuits, lived with the Hurons in what is now modern-day […]

In the Old Testament we are told of a prophet, Elijah, who told the wicked king Ahab that God was going to send a drought on the land because of the sinful leadership of Ahab and his wife, Jezebel. For three years Elijah said there would be no rain. Elijah then made camp at the […]