Late April snow!

Yesterday as Paul and I drove back from Missoula to Havre, I thought about how beautiful Montana is in the spring,especially after a drenching rain. I was grateful to see another spring, hoped to see summer and fall, but felt another winter would be too hard. I countered that with thinking seeing another beautiful snowfall would be nice. Maybe I could in October or early November.

Well, God must've been listening. We've had a long, beautiful snow since last night but the soil is too warm to allow much accumulation. So it's darn near perfect. A snowfall for beauty, moisture for the fields and gardens. Thank you!

The photo is by Marian Miller of her Havre yard.

I've spent the better part of today chronologically rereading correspondence from two college friends, Helen Hurley and Melanie Cecil. Such a joy to go back in time. I have two thoughts: one, I have been blessed with such good friendships, and two, we have lost correspondence as a form of communication and a resource for historians. Sure, I am limited in my ability to write, so thankfully we have texting, email, FB, and more. Still, what will historians of the future do without back and forth written records?

I have many more letters to read. I saved all correspondence. I will either return them to their originator, or recycle or burn them. This is not to thwart historians; I just can't imagine any interest in them from anyone else.

I've had such a good life all in all.

Some days are diamonds...

"You draw a line in the sand with this kind of a disease, a line you feel you won't cross. Then something changes, and the line moves. Something happens and you want to live even longer. On the other hand, some changes bring the line closer, forcing you to contemplate that which you do not want to see. The end of my life is a moving target, just at a closer range than most, and with a higher degree of certainty. Today that line looks distant. Yesterday it looked a lot closer. Pillar to post."
Richard McBride: Richard is Living with ALS

Well said, Richard! What I especially like about ALS bloggers is we often give words to others' feelings...we articulate what they're thinking. At least, I know they (Vivian Connell, Richard, Sarah Coglianese , Shelly Austin Hoover, Patty Blake, Rick Raker and others) speak for me. I can only hope I speak for or give comfort to others with ALS, or those who are going through hard times with other issues.

I attended a retirement reception for five MSU-Northern staff, including myself, yesterday. Also retiring was my beloved supervisor John Donaldson. He lost his wife, Kathy, to cancer earlier this year. So between his speech and mine (delivered admirably by Dolan in my stead), it was pretty tearful. We both love Northern so much. We received beautiful clocks as thanks from Northern, but the best gift was the opportunity to work with students.

My retirement clock

The SSS Gang plus Dolan and LV

On Heaven and Hell

Paul attended a funeral yesterday. We discussed Heaven and Hell afterward and how atheists deal with the life-after-death questions.

We are not atheists, if only because of our life-long participation in the Catholic Church. I know I have questioned the Church at different periods in my life, but I always believe there is a greater power than us. I have come to a place of peace with my relationship with the Church.

With that said, I am unsure what awaits me sooner rather than later. Paul and I discussed whether there actually could be a Hell. As he said, it's hard to believe God would throw us down to burn in a fiery furnace for eternity. And if God would, how does He chose? I cannot believe I am so pure that I get a free pass to Heaven, but even so, a direct flight to Hell seems a bit unfair. If Hell exists, then I assume some really bad players are in there: Pol Pot, Stalin, Hitler, Himmler....people who chose to do evil things. Do I belong there alongside them? I think not! Are there circles of Hell, like Dante postulated? Then you could envision sorting.

So then, if not Hell, Heaven. Okay, that's a pleasant option. I really can't see it, though, not as I can see reincarnation, or simply nothingness. Uncounted billions of humans have tread this path before me. As an environmentalist, I cannot imagine God not recycling souls through reincarnation. That seems most likely. Nothingness doesn't scare me, but it's kind of sad nonetheless. If we spend time trying to determine the meaning of life, to simply cease to exist seems a cruel trick.

So Paul and I think Heaven, or someplace, exists where all of us go. Even the bad players go there. It's like my former pastor said: No sin is too great for God to forgive. That should comfort us all.

Theatrics

I have been fortunate to enjoy several good plays put on locally in the last month. We started with Mary Poppins, in which Caroline was a bank clerk, tin soldier, manic daughter of Mrs. Cory, and a chimney sweep. Then we were treated to The Crucible. Caroline played Mary Warren. One felt transported to 17th-century Massachusetts. These high school kids were amazing!! Truly, they did a superb job bring a difficult subject to the stage.

To complete the trifecta, last night we saw To Kill a Mockingbird. Wow. The three children actors carried the show, and were amazing. Yet, there were no weak characters. Perhaps my expectations were lowered: I had inside info about who was prepared or not from Dolan, who played Bob Ewell, the mean racist father who accused Tom Robinson of rape. All the cast was prepared, had their lines, and stayed in character. That is the least one can want: They went far above that minimum. I was so impressed, and if I could jump up, would give them a standing ovation.

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What incredible talent we have in our two-county area. I would have just said in our small city of less than 10,000, but some actors were from the next county.

So, that's three items from my list posted earlier. Those plays, and seeing spring rise on the high plains, give me pleasure that I can relive in my thoughts and dreams (last night I dreamed about TKaM!). No matter when I leave, I have such grand memories.

My life goes on in endless song, above Earth's lamentation. Opening lines to a favorite hymn. Really, how can I keep from singing? What a good life I have been given.