The UNcooperative Telephone Company

My hometown of Wallace was blessed with a locally-owned and operated "Cooperative Telephone Company." In the 1930's and early 1940's, of course, the equipment was not high-tech, compared to today, and most of the communication was via "party line," which allowed for the widest distribution of the town news! And every household or business had its own special ring; I think Grimes Store was "2 longs and 1 short" and my Dad the storekeeper answered with a cheery "Jot-em-down Store" (taken from the radio comedy show "Lum and Abner"). And, if you were on a party line, it was not necessary to call central first ... just crank out the appropriate "longs" and "shorts" if the line was free. One summer my teen buddies, Dick Fine and Kenny Davidson, and I somehow got hold of some obsolete old wall phones and planned our own private "tele-com" company, not to compete but to experiment, like boys do! We took the wire from the magneto off one machine, not reckoning on its durability, and strung it on make-shift posts from my upstairs room at least a 100 yards to the Fine residence; then, from there another 100 feet or so across the street to the Davidsons. Believe it or not, when the old wall phones were connected the system worked, and the "Wallace UNcooperative Telephone Company" was born! I use the "UN" prefix because the grand experiment succeeded only a few days at most ... until the next summer storm blew that thin copper wire line all to pieces! Now there is a lesson for us in that experience. Our most modern high-tech systems of communication fail, too. But there is one system that never fails ... for the believing soul... and that is PRAYER, actually reaching Heaven on our knees, and with a personal, direct line! And in God's Word we are encouraged: "Let us therefore COME boldly (with confidence in Christ Who died for our sins) to the Throne of Grace (Heaven's 'central'), that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need!" (Hebrews 4:16) And we don't need to worry about the storms of life interfering with or disrupting this connection. In fact, we should call when we are IN a storm!!! Have YOU tried this system, yet?

The Great Lakes Shuffle

As Mamaw/Mary K. and I finished up washing dishes in our small apartment kitchen recently we discussed my tendency to dribble water on the old-hard-to-maintain vinyl tile floor when drying things! I was reminded of how difficult it was to keep a reasonable "shine" on the tile, and that she had just a short time ago found a liquid polish that made the task somewhat easier. Then I suggested that maybe we should try the "Great Lakes Shuffle" as a solution, but, of course, as a landlubber she had never heard of this. Well, this was the U.S. Navy way of keeping barracks floors spotless (?) at the Great Lakes Training Center/Boot Camp north of Chicago during World War II, where I was a "guest" for 8 weeks or so early in 1943. When reporting for duty the "boot" was issued clothing and shoes, but the shoes were then altered by adding a thick layer of black rubber to make drilling more "pleasant"! Now 150 pairs of thus-altered shoes do a

real number on un-varnished wooden floors in the barracks, so what's the simple solution? -- Each evening before taps every recruit was given a piece of steel-wool, then placing it under his shoe he did the "Shuffle," thereby removing the black marks and maintaining the U.S. Navy reputation for cleanliness! After sharing this with Mamaw I thought about the spiritual black marks that we all have made in our relationship with God. You see we don't need a "shuffle" of some kind, like good works or human wisdom, to know and to please the Lord, "But if we walk in the light, as He is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanseth us from all sin!" (I John 1:7) Have YOU tried this solution yet?

The Jungles of Jackson Township in July

Wallace was the "hub" of Jackson Township and had lots of rustic stuff to offer a curious boy. My paternal grandmother, "MaZada" Grimes, lived on the north edge of town and it was a treat for me to hike from there east through the woods and over the hill to (Sugar) Mill Creek. I recall camping out in summer in the woods with a local buddy one rainy, scary night! But another time scouting west out of town along the creek as far as the swinging (foot) bridge my companion played on my young nerves with stories of Indians, even cavemen heard of lurking in that area! After all, not more than 10 years before, the "Scopes Trial" in Tennessee had "proved" the theory of evolution, so that the erosion of sandstone cliffs and gullies along the creek surely took millions of years ... and, what was that???? The roar of some prehistoric creature, maybe? "I'm going home!" Well, my chums and I didn't meet any "missing links" in those explorations, but we did occasionally find some Indian arrowheads, "beads" and even a stone axehead! The "beads," of course, were fossilized plant-stem sections from a by-gone time period and most folks, like many today, believed they were the products of evolution! Not until I came to really know the Lord Jesus and to read His Word, the Bible, did I understand the implications of God's Creation, the Fall of Man and the terrible catastrophe of the worldwide Flood that devastated the earth as recorded in Genesis, chapters 6-8. Yes, those "Indian beads" were survivors of, and testimonies to, the Flood! The Apostle Peter predicted later that "there shall come in the last days scoffers" who would deny the Flood and the certainty of a yet future judgment (II Peter 3:3-9). If it could talk, that little Indian "bead" would agree with him that "the Lord is not willing that any should perish, but that ALL should come to repentance." Have YOU?

"Vuvuzela"?

Our granddaughter Rachel Taylor, who teaches in a Christian day school in Memphis, TN, visited with us last weekend and we had a great time together. After attending morning service at Yeddo Baptist Church, we had a buffet dinner at the Old Town Chinese restaurant here in Crawfordsville. And then we watched Brazil defeat Ghana in the World Soccer Cup TV broadcast from South Africa. Our apartment building will never be the same after the victory yells from #54! The Taylors are life-long soccer players and FANS and this year we were tickled to see on their blogspot Rachel's dad Phil and brothers James and David (all missionaries in south Brazil), blowing those infernal plastic "vuvuzela" horns in celebration! Her mom, Mary Ruth, reported that while she was holding our newest great-granddaughter Julianna during the game, every "vuvuzela" blast the baby just about jumped out of her arms! While with us, Rachel helped us nail down a "Facebook" account, as David did with "Skype" and this blogspot over two years ago. The hi-tech savvy of these "kids" astounds us and we are grateful for the help they give us ... except that we often forget the procedures about 2 hours after they leave! Just think ... as a teen I really thought that the little 5-tube Emerson radio that brought in big-band music from New York and Chicago on Saturday nights was the ultimate in modern science! Like the "Waltons," each evening our family was riveted to the radio in the livingroom as we laughed at Jack Benny (sponsored by J-e-l-l-o) and Bob Hope (promoting Pepsodent tooth paste), or even a "Fireside chat" by President Roosevelt. But at the same time we weren't worried by news of "global warming," Gulf oil spills or Iran's nuclear bombs -- just Hirohito and Hitler!!! Some day very soon, we believe, "the Lord Himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God (not a plastic "vuvuzela"); and the dead in Christ shall rise first; Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air; and so shall we ever be with the Lord!" - I Thessalonians 4:16,17. We cherish the moments with loved ones and friends now, but we'll sure celebrate then! Are you ready for that event?

Remember?

The big event on Memorial Day in Indiana is, of course, the Indianapolis 500 Race! I recall as a kid lounging in or around Dad's car and with doors open and the radio blaring we listened to the exciting race. In the 30's and 40's it lasted over 4 hours because top speed was about half what it is today! And who ever imagined a young lady piloting one of those machines, like now! At home you might listen to a radio wrap-up or re-play later that day, but forget about seeing it in film until the newsreel showed at the nearest theater! However, most families took some time to visit cemeteries and remember departed loved ones, especially those who served in a war. The Grimes's, including Great-grandpa William Lewis Grimes who served in the cavalry in the Civil War, were mostly buried in the Lutheran Cemetery east of Wallace. But later my parents were interred near Mother's Pyle family plots at the Masonic Cemetery just west of Waynetown.

We presently have plots there also right close to our son Jim, and left a floral remembrance there recently. Mamaw/Mary K.'s Carmack family way back had a family cemetery near their farm on what was the Newport Ordinance Plant in WWII. One of her ancestors served in the Revolutionary War and we're not sure of his restingplace, but her parents and other family members are buried at the Methodist Memorial Cemetery on Plant property perhaps a mile or two away. Her father's family (Jackson) is buried close to the Wabash River to the east at the Cemetery near the old "O.P.D." train stop south of Newport. It's more difficult now to visit that area, but we try to remember our departed loved ones as often as we can. Some might think that visiting graveyards is depressing, but it's honoring to the dead and humbling to the living. Folks, believe it or not, "it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment" (Hebrews 9:27), so BE READY! And be thankful, too, for those brave servicemen who served and died to keep our nation free. Even Jesus wept at the grave of a dear friend, but He (and only He) could promise (John 11:25,26): "I am the Resurrection and the Life: he that believeth in Me, though he were dead, yet shall he live; And whosoever liveth and believeth in Me shall never die. BELIEVEST THOU THIS?" We do pray that you do or will do so soon!

On being a "town farmer"

Almost all of my buddies at the Wallace school lived on the farm, and I envied their acqaintance with livestock, farm machinery and crop-growing ... oh, to drive a tractor! But, as a smalltown boy in my teens I joined the local 4-H Club (heart, hands, head and health) and chose as my spring and summer project GARDENING. We had a nice garden plot north of our home, and Dad hired a local horse owner to plow it up for planting. I enjoyed laying off the rows with a hand plow and then putting the seeds and plants in due order. As things grew it was special joy to cultivate the rows and at last to start reaping fresh green onions, tomatoes, radishes, corn, etc., for Mom's table. Since we then had no power tools, all that manual labor was good for developing my muscles, which then made moving 100-lb. bags of "taters" around at Dad's store a little more bearable...maybe even impress the local girls(?)! Speaking of "taters," later on the folks added a bigger garden plot on the northwest corner of our property which we called "the truck patch," especially to grow potatoes. Yes, I learned to place the seed spuds with the sprouts UP, to facilitate early growth. Looking back, I lacked a truly Biblical understanding of God's creation and the wisdom He put into every facet, but I am glad now for the experience of being a "town farmer" and realizing that gardens and farms and people are all totally dependent upon our loving Creator/Savior! Being a child of God these many years now I can only agree with good King David: "Praise waiteth for Thee, O God, in Zion ... Thou visitest the earth, and waterest it: Thou greatly enrichest it with the river of God..." (Psalm 65:1,9) And the Apostle John completes the record of God's creative and saving power in Revelation 22:1 - "And He shewed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal out of the throne of God and of the Lamb." For the believer there's not only present, but eternal refreshment from above!

"Now, this won't hurt...!"

The recent health care debate and subsequent passage of the new law brought back memories of doctoring as it once was in Wallace. Dr. H.M. Rusk, a graduate of Northwestern U. and their medical school, had his office in the old bank building on "Main Street" and the bank vault always impressed me as the safest storage place for drugs, even back then. The office smelled like a pharmacy and, since the nearest drugstore was miles away, the doctor supplied patients with just the right prescription out of the office or out of his bag, just like "Doc" on Gunsmoke! His wife Vivian was also his receptionist and nurse, making folks comfortable as possible in the waitingroom or assisting him in the examining room, with no long waiting time or paper work! Doc always made house calls anytime and anywhere he was called, but his wife told how he was sure hard to live with when his patient was terminal. As I recounted earlier, as a 10-12-year-old I went through several health "crises" but the two surgeries stand out. Doc was there at the hospital to stand by me and assist the surgeon. To this day, I don't know how my father paid for all the medical care to our family ... besides borrowed cash, I think Dad would allow Doc and Vivian (as well as plumber, electrician, etc.) to "take it out in trade." Every bill was paid, sooner or later, without credit cards or government assistance! His favorite pastime was hunting with some of the prettiest bird dogs you could imagine, but I don't ever recall his taking a vacation. Now in our senior years Mamaw and I have enjoyed good health care, thanks to many good family doctors, specialists and surgeons, WalMart pharmacy, supplemental insurance AND Medicare with "Part D" Drug program. The Lord has provided the premiums and out-of-the-pocket expenses and we are very grateful to Him. We are very concerned about the new law and changes involved, but, at age 85 we realize that time ahead will continue to be a "bonus". We just don't want our children, grandchildren and great-grand children, etc., to be burdened with a ever-more-expensive healthcare system. So we have prayed and are praying that the best system will finally be adopted. Meantime, we look forward to the time and place when, for Christians, "God will wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain; for the former things are passed away!" - Revelation 21:4.