Cactus Flower

This afternoon my babe will leave on a jet plane and fly off to the U.S.A. with no mama and no papa to accompany him, with no one to hold his hand, with no one to say "go here" and "get in that line over there" or "get your passports out." He's had his share of traveling experiences with family and without, by bus and by plane, so his mama and papa won't worry -  not too much.   on our way to Belem in 2010 Fortaleza Airport, 2007 But as a mama, I reserve the right to be slightly concerned as he charts his own way through major hubs, immigration, and customs along the way.  Yes, he's been well versed and has a packet full of all the right documents, but I'll be relieved to know that he's made it through just fine on Tuesday morning. As the last to leave the nest, we've had some good times and enjoyed some grand travels in the USA and all around Brazil.  We have had a good relationship and hopeful...

   Happy Father's Day 2017 to the father of our three sons.   You deserve all honor and respect as a good father, a fine Christian example and an incredible mentor.  

Piedmont Bible College, 1985 Do you know what attracted me to you when I found myself sitting near you in chapel at Piedmont Bible College all those years ago?  You had a certain style all your own and that quirky, pun filled humor.  I thought you were a good-looking guy especially riding on that motorcycle you had.  I thought you had cute hair, and your ideas for dates were always so cool - circuses and picnics in the mountains.  And you were going where I wanted to go - the mission field. We weren't really all that much alike in some ways.  You were Southern Gospel and I was more like Christian Rock.  You had high standards and I was always pushing the rules to the limit.  Opposites might attract, but something called love drew me to start listening to your music and try to live within the scheme of things.   I guess you grew on me. May 30, 1987 We didn't always see eye to eye and still don't, but we learned, often by the hard ...

August 1994, Fortaleza, Ceará, Brazil In 1994 I arrived in the tropical beach city of Fortaleza to teach short term at a school for missionary children.  I'll never forget the first Sunday I went to church with my husband.  We didn't have a car, so we chose to walk to the nearest church we knew of.  It was a walk of about 5 or 6 city blocks.  I had on white, high-heel, summer sandals, a pair of Summer L'eggs pantyhose, and my best Lanz summer dress with a pink floral design.  I was in-style, if I'd have been in American, that is!  By the time we got to the church, my feet had blisters, my legs had heat rash, and my pink floral dress was the only one like it in the church that morning.   I quickly adapted on future walks to church to flat sandals, no hose, and simpler outfits.  I learned that women didn't wear their bathing suits on buses even if they were on their way to the beach and dressing up was a fancy blouse with jeans and high h...

Don't we look cute!  This was taken on Easter Sunday.  Just me and the last peep in the nest.  My little chick-a-dee is getting a little too big for the coop.  But, I decided to enjoy a photo with the handsome bird for good old times.  All too soon he'll be flying off for blue skies in other necks of the woods.   Being overseas and away from two of our boy and now two of our grandbabes and our own mothers can be hard on any holiday, but it's especially bittersweet on Mother's Day.   People around me seem to have the "oh-you-must-be-used-to-this-by-now" attitude while they talk about not seeing their own mother since last month or last week or gabbing on and on about their cute little grandchildren who will be coming to visit them on Sunday.  Well, I ask, how can anyone just "be used to it" when it comes to being far from loved ones on special days.  Nonetheless I usually keep my culturally and friendly respectful trap closed and jus...

Madeline - a teen-aged girl I met at a waterfall in Minas Gerais who told me about all the places she'd ever lived including several I had visited on our big Brazil trip. Maria Alice - a lady her 30's - 40's who was a rather out of place student at a Bible college who told me how she had heard the call of God as a teen and not answered but now she was. The lady from Rattlesnake - yes, that was the name of her city, Cascavel.  We met in the waiting line for the bus at the Iguassu Falls.  She told me how she had come there on her honeymoon and had always wanted to return.  Her husband had passed away but she was there with her daughter. Carmen - the owner of a bed and breakfast where we stayed in Brasilia who told us all about how she came to be the host of an inn and all about her daughters' lives. Ed - an old German immigrant we met at a Lutheran church we attended on our trip who told us about his life and farming in the state of Paraná. Little campground cle...

We arrived home from our big trip this past Thursday, April 13 around 8 o'clock in the evening.  We left happy and arrived the same.  All in all it was an incredible experience and I'm so glad that we did it.... You can read all about each place we visited at our travel log @ athabrazilroadtrip.blogspot.com   Trip Stats: slept in the back of Pajero 4 times at truck stops stayed with friends 4 times slept at a bed and breakfast once stayed at one cheap hotel spent one night at a hostel stayed two nights at a campground stayed in guest accomodations at two Bible colleges visited three museums  visited three national parks, three state parks, and one city park took around 4500 photos between the three of us visited three Bible colleges saw 5 different waterfalls including the largest of Brazil visited one cave took paid tours of three cities ate at three different Burger King restaurants  one Subway one McDonalds one self-service ...