Of all the places we visited on our recent cruise of the Baltics on Royal Caribbean, I think Estonia was my favorite. With great trials come great anointing. On the way to the town square we happened upon a sign at the basement of a lovely-looking house which read, “One of the most notorious and feared prisons during the Soviet occupation. Open for visitors.” We wandered in, unaware of the history of Pagari Prison. We learned in the years 1944-1989,…
July 10 found us in Copenhagen, Denmark in lovely sunshine and mild temperatures . This is the Gefion Fountain found in front of St. Alban Anglican Episcopal Church. These sites are not far from the Little Mermaid Statue on Langelinie Pier. When we returned to our room that evening we were greeted by a little frog made of towels by our room attendant, Bambamg from Sri Lanka. Most ports were close enough to walk to the sights….
July 8th we spent at sea from Southampton, England headed for Oslo, Norway. Our ship had an ice rink so our first order of business–the ice show. We had sunny weather and 60 degrees, but on the water it felt too cool to stay pool-side for very long, so indoor activities were the choice for the day. Four thousand passengers and twelve hundred crew members from fifty-five countries cruised until about 10 a.m. on July 9th aboard the Royal Caribbean’s…
My son, Josh, and my sister-in-law and brother-in-law have just returned from a three-week cruise on Royal Caribbean’s Explorer of the Seas to the Baltic Sea. We began our tour with three days in London before boarding the ship in Southampton, England. From there we visited Oslo Norway, Copenhagen Denmark, Tallinn Estonia, St. Petersburg Russia, Helsinki Finland, Stockholm Sweden, Skagen Denmark, and Stavanger Norway before returning to Southampton. Our ship carried 5,200 people including over 1,000 crew members. I gained…
I dearly love cherry pie. This year a dear new friend invited me to pick cherries at her place. I wish I’d taken a picture of her tree. With the copious rains we’ve had this season, the tree produced a bumper crop. There is nothing like fresh cherries. If you haven’t been blessed to be able to pick from someone’s tree, canned cherries are the next best thing. Here is my recipe if your mouth is watering for this delicious…
I look forward to this time of the year when you can go out and pick some basil for a yummy meal. This is delicious smeared on french bread slices also. Since pine nuts are so expensive I sometimes substitute sunflower seeds. Basil Pesto Hands-on Time 10 Mins Total Time 10 Mins Yield Makes 2 cups June 2011 RECIPE BY SOUTHERN LIVING Use this pesto recipes to stir some summertime goodness into hot cooked pasta, rice, or grits for a…
Twenty-one years ago our church installed a new flag pole. They asked Dan Quisenberry, pitcher for the Kansas City Royals, to write a poem for the occasion. Dan was my mentor and an excellent poet. When asked, Dan turned to me and said, “I don’t have time, but Sally can do it.” My heart leaped into my mouth. I had never written a commissioned poem before. Writing a poem in my journal that no one saw was entirely different thing…
Yesterday would have been our 57th wedding anniversary. I don’t know how so many years have flown so quickly. I wrote this poem on the occasion of our 49th anniversary to my husband. Love Poem Over the years, my love, we’ve fallen in ditches, trudged a few fields, and picked our way along some difficult paths. Those treks have been bearable because you were by my side. He died fourteen months ago. Oh, would that he were still here!…
With June being the most popular for weddings I thought I’d share with you a recent event. As an ordained chaplain, it’s my pleasure to officiate at weddings. This particular bride wanted “unconventional vows.” I looked high and low online. Every one didn’t fit the bill. Some were downright ridiculous. I finally gave up and said, “I can write something better than these.” And I did. They are scriptural, yet simple. This is what a wrote. I (groom’s name), take…
This past Friday Channel 4 set up broadcasting in Overland Park downtown under the clock tower. I had seen Mark Alford speaking about D-Day the day before. I got the notion to take him my Hard Times in the Heartland book that includes stories about my dad during WW II in France and Germany. When I arrived a crowd gathered behind Mark and Abby Eden. Did I dare approach them? Would someone stop me? I observed one man walk up to…