Have I ever mentioned that I love Alaska?

This trip has already been pretty epic, and we've been here for less than a week! The first 5 days were spent in Anchorage with Nate, who's a bush pilot and flight instructor there. Five days weren't enough. We packed a ton into that time but you always wish for another evening to chat, another day to bum around A-town or hike the woods.

And it's amazing...My 88 yr. old Grandpa joined mom, dad and I on this trip! Is he a trooper or what? He's having the time of his life. Having him along on this trip is so meaningful to all of us.

When we stepped off the plane in Anchorage, and were plunged into fall. (Is it really still summer back home?) In Alaska the tundra is changing to a thousand shades of gold, red orange and yellow.... and some of the highest mountaintops already have a dusting of snow.

Okay: I'll quit talking now.

Pictures do more justice. :)

We loved visiting Alyeska Resort and taking the tram to the top of the mountain.

Gorgeous scenery.

We stopped for lunch before heading out to visit Portage Glacier.

It's hard to describe the massive size of what you're looking at here... so incredible!

Nate saved me from being eaten by a bear.

What a brother!

And speaking of "What a brother," not everyone has a bro who can take them on a flight over glaciers and mountains! How fun!

This is the airport at which Nate teaches, Merrill Field.

Refueling the plane

Mom hates to fly, so she was pretty brave to go up. Go mom!

(I did notice that she kept clutching at the door of the plane though... I wondered if she planned on jumping in case of emergency?)

(Of COURSE Gramps and I weren't nervous!)

We flew over the Knik Glacier. Over 5 miles wide!!

It was cool to see bear, moose, and beluga whales from the air.

The 6 hr. cruise out of Seward was also a highlight of our time. What a spectacular harbor!

The first half of our cruise was super rainy but Nate and I loved the rough seas. :) The second half was beautiful and we saw a ton of wildlife!

A fleeting glimpse of a humpback whale
Two seals... can you believe how they blend in? :)
A rock full of lazy sea lions

Driving along the Seward Highway we saw a bear.... MY FIRST BEAR!!!

How fun is THAT!? We were pretty much ecstatic.

Nate was ashamed of his touristy family. (Snobby sourdough!)

A parting shot...

Well golly, whoda' thought I'd see my good pal Sarah Palin while shopping?

She said she's heard of my famous Sarah Palin Imitation and begged me to do it for her.

She loved it.

She actually endorsed it.

A little diddy

This morning I was thinking about my brother and sister Carlee and Nate on their birthday today, and I was missing them.

At times like this it is the deep, raw emotion of the moment that births a song within my inmost being and thus, I found that the words poured from my heart onto paper. The tune was not long in coming (a very complex tune, as you will see) and now, I present to you, Carleen and Nathan,

An Ode To August 9th

...Sorta' in the style of Johnny Cash (deepest apologies to him).

Happy birthday, sibs!

In Which I Wax Eloquent About My Happy Place...

Ah, yes.

My happy place. Blossom!

The place that never seems to change, and when I'm there it seems as if nothing else has changed either. I've gone there with my family nearly every Summer since I was young enough to remember. we sit on the massive grassy slope and listen to the Cleveland Orchestra playing in the ampatheater below while gradually, as dusk sets in, a thousand crickets and cicadas tune up for an orchestra of their own-- my favorite sound in all the world, other than the voices of people I love.

And then, as if the two blending orchestras weren't enough, God sets his stars blazing one by one overhead while we lay on the blanket and gaze up at the sky.

There are always lovers sitting together and sipping wine and nibbling on cheese from the dainty basket they brought along (it's the most romantic spot EVER), and more than one family passing around munchies from their clunky coolers. Elegant couples light candles on the grass around their chairs and groups of young people in jeans and T-shirts pass around sodas. It's the quintessential meld of young and old, fun and formal, elegant and casual. It's a place of culture, which I always find reassuring in a society that has, I believe, lost much of its enjoyment of the finer arts and music. It's a place where TV and computer are absent and people are present; together; enjoying each other. (Except for the few folks I saw whipping around ipods. Come on people. Fer real?? That's just bad. It's a free country but not THAT free...The Blossom Police should ban it. In fact since it's so important to me they should make ME the Blossom Police.) Anyhow.

So Blossom is one of my favorite places in the world, because it's a mix of all my favorite things: my favorite people (family), my favorite sounds (crickets and the Cleveland orchestra), my favorite site (stars) and the nostalgia of tradition....which has become very precious to me. Yep, like Tevye from Fiddler on the Roof I'm all about traditions. :)

And one other cool thing about Blossom this year: I had a hot date.

...Yessirree! :)

Mom, Dad, Grandpa and I at Blossom

Now I know you must be DYING to visit Blossom, but perhaps you live too far away. If so, I've gone to all the trouble of recording a bit of last night's performance so you can catch a bit of the feel of my Happy Place. You can even hear the crickets too. :)

For anyone else who's reading this and lives in Ohio, you really ought to attend and take me along. I'd be a first-rate tour guide.

As long as you feed me.

'Cuz part of the tradition involves snacks.

(Cherries, among other things.)

A week ago I was driving to the Omaha, Nebraska airport and said the prayer I normally pray when about to board a plane.

(...No, not "God please keep this thing in the air because I don't comprehend how it will get there in the first place;" I normally pray that while ON the plane.)

I simply told God that I was available, if anyone on my flight might need to chat about Him. I figure that on a plane where over a hundred people are sitting there is most likely a needy soul on board, and if God so chooses to put us together maybe I could point that person to Jesus.

So, I board my flight and sit down.

"Isle seat," I think.

"Bummer. I prefer the window."

Next to me is a man--by no means petite--who will probably overlap onto my arm rest. Next to him, enjoying my coveted window seat, is a portly woman "Who," (whispers my neighbor man to me confidentially) "Really ought to have purchased two seats because I'm gonna be cramped this whole flight."

I thought, "Dani, you ought to offer to sit in the middle since he's bigger so he doesn't have to be cramped,"

I retorted, "Danielle! You don't want to be squished between a portly woman and a large man the whole flight!"

I'm sorry if you're grieved to hear it, but that retort quickly won the argument and I stayed firmly planted in my isle seat. However, perhaps in a guilty attempt to make my squashed neighbor's flight more enjoyable, I struck up a conversation with him.

The usual questions. I discovered that he was traveling to Cleveland on business, and that he was a geophysicist.

"Hmmm.... 'geo?' Something to do with rocks. Sounds smart. I feel intimidated."

I could have impressed him greatly by telling him that I was a Nutrix Humilitas Adiuvat (NHA for short) ...but I just made it up and it's merely Latin for "Lowly Nurse Aid..." So I just told him I was a caregiver.

We started to discuss his job, which led us to a discussion about fossils (most of which I didn't understand but nodded politely nevertheless) and then on to a talk about dinosaurs. The entire time we were talking, I was having an inward battle (I have those frequently). I wanted to discuss the topic of evolution vs. creation with him. But I knew that this fellow was a geophysicist, whatever that exactly means, and that made me feel very shy about discussing a scientific topic such as this with him. And yet, I remembered that prayer I had prayed. Maybe this fellow needed to have a talk about God with me. And perhaps a good way to get that talk started would be to broach the topic of the origin of the world. Was I willing to look like a fool? Was I willing to trust God to give me words to say if I got in a discussion with a geophysicist?

I took a deep breath.

"So...What do you think? Did dinosaurs and men walk the earth together?"

There. I had taken the plunge. That ought to start a doozy of a discussion.

And it did!

My new friend, whose name turned out to be William, gave me a knowing look and a patient chuckle. He already knew that I was "religious" and had guessed that I believed in the "fable" of Adam and Eve. Since I believe that God created the world, I believe that men and dinosaurs were created in the same week and they lived together. (I also believe that science backs this up.) But to him, as an evolutionist, my views seemed as preposterous as believing in fairies or Santa Claus. Thus began an amazing discussion which ended up lasting nearly two hours. William was a highly intelligent and scientific man, yet he respected the fact that I have obviously studied what I believe and don't simply believe it because it's what I've been told. We listened politely to each other and had a few good laughs over the incredibly wide chasm between our two beliefs. What's more, as we talked the conversation drifted further from evolution and closer to the real crux of the issue: is there a God, and if so, why has He created us and what will happen to us after we die? William realized that I was truly interested in his point of view and not just eager to share my own, and he opened up about WHY he believes what he believes.

"Dani, there's one big difference between you and me. And that difference is impossible to overcome. You see, I'm a scientist, and I only believe what I can SEE. What you believe requires faith. And I have no faith. I will never have faith. And so I can't believe."

I smiled. "You're right: it does take faith. And yet, you'd be surprised at how very much of what I believe CAN be backed up by science, William. I don't think that as a Christian I just have to accept everything on blind faith. I think there's a lot of proof and a lot of evidence to back up the Bible. And not only that, but I think that if you just look around you at the world, you can see that there MUST have been a Creator." I picked up a Coke can from the tray table and held it out. "When you see this can, you know that it must have been manufactured somewhere. Someone thought to put the handy pull-tab on the top and put the lettering on the sides. It would be ludicrous to say that the can just happened to fall together by chance, because it obviously has a design and a designer! So how can you say that something so intricate as this incredibly magnificent world---from the leaves to the birds to humans to rocks--just happened to appear out of thin air?"

William laughed. "Well, I don't believe it appeared out of thin air, Dani. I believe in the Big Bang. The world came to be from a super hot fireball of energetic radiation."

"I see.... Where did the fireball come from?"

"Atoms."

"And where did the atoms come from?"

"Photons and particles, all mixing together..."

"What was the origin of the photons and particles?"

William paused. "Well I don't really know..." Here, I laughed. "Aha!! You see? You just told me that you are not a man of faith, and yet when you analyze your theory, you're eventually left with something that you must have faith in. You never saw the Big Bang occur, and you don't know how the first little particle got there in the first place. The fact is, William, you ARE a man of faith."

This thought rather horrified my friend, but he couldn't quite deny that the end of the matter required a bit of faith on his part, too. I encouraged him to ponder the evidence of a Creator and think of the implications if there truly IS an all-wise, powerful God who created us.

Our discussion wasn't a stressful, argumentative one. We were both stimulated and intrigued by each other's points of view. William even thanked me for the conversation in parting, and said that it was a rare conversation; one he'd only have perhaps every five years or so. I gave him a few things to think about, and he certainly gave me a few things to think about.

Why is it that faith in a theory seems so much less threatening to William than faith in a Creator? Logically, the chances of the Big Bang occurring are infinitesimal.... impossible, really. (If a printing press explodes do you end up with a dictionary!? You don't get order out of chaos.) And yet William would rather believe that butterflies, babies, and beaches occurred from a cosmic accident rather than that a loving Hand designed it all. Why? Because

IF THERE IS A GOD, WE WILL ANSWER TO HIM.

This, then is the end of the matter. To my new friend, it wasn't about what seemed to be the most logical theory. It was about the theory that he was least threatened by; most comfortable with. Eradicate God, and you have eradicated the need to be morally responsible to Anyone for anything. It's a bleakly comforting thought to some people, and yet it leaves them without any moral compass. (William couldn't even give me a reason for why Hitler was wrong in killing millions of Jews, or why a rapist or murderer should be punished. All he could say was "Those wrong deeds are against my personal code of ethics.") Oh, how SAD!

The truth of the matter? God has not made us to be so aimless and confused. He has put the knowledge of Himself into every man, and whether or not they admit it, they have to suppress the truth they are born with on order to claim that He does not exist. God is not a fool. He created us and has given us ample proof of His power. When we stand before Him some day, what will we say if we've refused to acknowledge Him in our lifetime? Will we pretend that we didn't know He existed?

A better way would be to ask Him to reveal Himself to us now.

If you doubt Him, then ask Him to show Himself to you.

He will.

He promises to do it, in James 4:8- "Come close to God, and God will come close to you. Wash your hands, you sinners; purify your hearts, for your loyalty is divided between God and the world."

I pray for William when I think about it. He seemed pretty set in his thinking, but who knows: the God who created the universe can surely create a tiny atom of faith in William's heart. Do you need faith? Then I pray the same for you.

So if you'd enjoy a bit of dialogue with me regarding this topic, write me. I'd love it. (My address can be found if you click on my profile.)

...And I make you a promise I didn't make to William: I won't make you the topic of my next blog post. :)

Are you good enough?

GRACE. How I thank God for it.

A Quick Post

I'm in the middle of a two-week trip with the Bright Lights ministry. We're putting on conferences for young ladies in Wisconsin and Nebraska. Right now we're in Omaha and the conference will begin in a few hours... but I thought I'd put a link to Grace's web site so you could see a few pictures of what the past week's conferences looked like (Click here)!

The Bright Lights conferences will be coming to Ohio (Willoughby Hills) in August, and if you're close to the area and are interested stop by the web site here. The Strong In The Lord conference is geared towards girls around the ages of 8-14 and the Purity Conference is for young ladies 12-22+ yrs. Older and younger girls can attend as well, with permission. Mothers and fathers are strongly urged to attend as well.

Any other questions? Leave a comment. :)

Missing them...

It's hard to believe that my year in the Cove with "Doc and the Little Lady" has really passed. Two people whom I had never met 12 months ago made me cry a few days ago as I said goodbye. I suppose the only thing that makes goodbyes bearable is when I convince myself that they really aren't final goodbyes; I'll see the people I love again. And maybe even soon.

Isn't it amazing, that--at least I've found it so-- when an experience passes and the memory of it becomes a snapshot of sorts in one's mind, the beauty of it seems to come into sharper, clearer focus while any part of it that's not so pleasant to remember melts into an intangible haze on the fringe of your mind? So it is with this life experience that God gifted to me. I think back in wonder to the many ways I've been blessed, trained, equipped, and enriched through my time with the Grens... and my heart wells up with thanks to the Giver of all such good things.

I cant' shake the feeling that the "end of an era" for me ought to be given some more eloquent musing (and it will be--in my mind and heart where it belongs!)...but in the meantime, I will leave you, my patient reader, with the same words with which I left Mr. Gren:

PSA--

My email address has changed. If you didn't get a note about it and should have, you can click "contact me" on my profile.

Friends, laughter, and words I can't spell

My friend Chelsea introduced me to Rachel who lives not too terribly far from my "home" in Massachusetts. (Note! I am incapable of learning how to spell "Massachusetts"! Without fail I misspell it every time even after careful and concerted study of the word.) Mr. Gren kindly drove me part of the way so I could spend four days with Rachel, her brother Daniel, and Chelsea (who flew from FLORIDA to join us!). It was a blast. The backdrop was a picturesque New Hampshire farm, on which Rachel lives and is the main caregiver for her grandparents.

• We laughed a lot. The kind of laughing that gives your stomach muscles that happy, tired feeling.

• We took ridiculously goofy (bordering on bizarre) pictures, and then laughed hysterically over them. More happy tummy muscles.

• We hiked until I thought we might keel over and die (9 miles isn't THAT far, but half of it was up a mountain and the other half was shoe-less!)
  

• We ate copious amounts of ice cream from a dreamy ice cream place called Wade's.

• We had a terrific photo session. :)

• We spent an afternoon shooting a pistol, rifle, paintball gun, and even a potato gun. Rachel was an unbelievable shot... Annie Oakley type of unbelievable! I was a horrid shot, but I did leave some well-placed marks with the paintball gun on Daniel's car. Teehee!

• I think that by far, the best parts of our time together were the conversations we had. Talking with a friend who really understands you is precious. Talking with a friend who helps you to understand GOD more is priceless.

So thanks guys. :)

Texas Doings

Elisabeth enjoys a moment with Margaret Ashmore, one of the dear Texan friends she and Lars have made over the years. It's been a huge gift for me to get to know Margaret. She's an amazing woman with a heart as vast as the state she calls home. Click here to check out her web site and read her testimony.

On Tuesday some friends of the Grens put on a beautiful tea and invited folks who either know and love Elisabeth and Lars or have wanted to meet them. We stayed up until after 2:00 am baking cheesecakes, cinnamon rolls, and other goodies and it was worth it; the tea was a beautiful time. Lars spoke for a few minutes and, as usual, had the crowd laughing with his engaging stories of life as Elisabeth Elliot's husband. :)

Laura and her husband Trent are another couple I've been privileged to meet through L&E. They've got darling kids, who Laura brought to the tea, and as you see Elisabeth always enjoys a moment with little ones.

Last Saturday I was a bridesmaid in Kendalyn's Houston, TX wedding. :)

Here we are the day before she ties the knot with Robert.

WOW, Kendalyn is married!?!?!? What a beautiful bride my friend was. (Is!)Her mother had handmade this dress for her own wedding over 20 yrs. ago and it is still gorgeous.

We bridesmades had a few dress malfunctions. (B-I-G understatement.)

One of which was the buttons. The little beasties kept popping off. Here we are about 5 minutes before the wedding sewing away. By the end of the evening little blue buttons were littering the ground where we walked and we had ceased to care.

It was pretty funny.

Amy, Kenalyn and I...three friends from the good old days. :)

Amy and I were kinda' crazy bridesmaids, I'm afraid.

Probably had more fun together than should be legal.