Wednesday, August 31, 2011

Grandson Oliver Roy born this afternoon

Julie gave birth to a boy about 2:30 eastern daylight time today. Mark and Julie have named their son and our grandson,  Oliver Roy. We will leave tomorrow morning for North Carolina to visit with the new baby and Lily, oh, and Mark and Julie, also.  Making the trip will be Jen and I, Josh and Jessica.  Three of us will return Monday while Jen will stay another week.

Tuesday, August 30, 2011

How many calendars is more than enough?

I remember when mailing labels were the item included in the letters sent out by charities and other fund raising groups.  You still get labels but more and more groups are sending out calendars.  Bringing this to mind was the calendar I recently received from Reagan's Ranch featuring pictures of  President Ronald Reagan.  That led me to check the calendars I have received and  I found 11 for 2012.  The first to arrive featured beautiful backyard birds and was from the National Children's Cancer Society. Two are from Indian groups, one featuring western scenes and the other paintings of Indians by Indians.

Others include one of vintage planes from Paralyzed Veterans, a Salute to  Old Glory with patriotic scenes from Americans Helping Americans;  pictures of landmarks from Wounded Warriors.  There is even one from the World War II Museum with familiar pictures from that war.

Of course, calendars are not the only "gifts"  sent out to encourage the recipient to donate.  A partial list of items I have received in the last two are three months are tote bags, T-shirts, necklaces, cards for all occasions, blankets, towels, flags, banners, pins, pens, pads, jackets, socks, caps, coins and checks.  I have already receive Christmas cards from the American Lung Association and I can expect more from other groups.  Why don't more do like Feed the Children, just send a letter and ask for a donation.

What's a haircut without conversation?

Got my hair cut today ( and boy, did I need it) with a nice, pleasant girl doing the job, but our conversation consisted of her asking if that was okay and me responding   "cut more off."  No politics, no current events, and above all no history.  The last time Joe cut my hair, a week or so before his final illness, he did more talking than barbering.  He had recently located an old Byrd High School yearbook.

A barber shop is supposed to be a place of socializing.  Can you see Floyd's barbershop on the Andy Griffith show without conversation?  It was the center of town business and politics.  Yes, I still miss Joe and I haven't found a barber like him yet.




Sunday, August 28, 2011

A word about hymns and mission work

                    I love to tell the story,
                    'twill be my theme in glory,
                    to tell the old, old story
                    of Jesus and his love.

I liked the selection of songs at church this morning, which was observed as promotion Sunday for children. Maybe I am childish in my choice of music; maybe I like the songs because they are easy to sing, or maybe I enjoyed them and don't care why.

If you are going to recognize children you have to lead off with "Jesus Loves Me."  We also sang " I Love to Tell the Story," and "God  Will Take Care of  You."  The choir sang "Oh, How He Loves You and Me."

For one of our community sings I wish we could devote an hour to singing nothing but songs by that famous blind lady, Fanny Crosby.  After all, there are plenty to choose from since she wrote more than 8,000. Some that would be included would have to be "Blessed Assurance," also "Rescue the Perishing,"  "All the Way My
Savior Leads Me," "I Am Thine, Oh Lord," and  "Pass Me Not, Oh Gentle Savior."

In Sunday School today I told the story of the conversion of E. Stanley Jones, the famous missionary who devoted years to service in India.  My wife then handed me  a letter from the son of Larry Smith, her co-worker.  Smith and his family have served as missionaries in India for years.  He told of a visit to a community of eunuchs, taking to this miserable group the salvation offered by Jesus Christ.

Friday, August 26, 2011

I wasn't expecting a test for dementia

Went to family doctor Thursday on appointment made by cardiologist.  The nurse took my vitals then took a pad and said she was going to ask me some questions.  expected health questions but as she began I was puzzled at what she was asking and questioned the reason.  She said it was a test for dementia.  I was angry but I  went along with it. Some questions were for  a baby, like identifying drawings of a lion, hippo and camel.  I had to count downward from a hundred by sevens, repeat word for word long statements, draw a cube, name as many words starting with F as possible in two minutes, for example.  I wondered what the hell was going on and even called my wife to ask if she was responsible for this.  When the doctor came in I asked for an explanation.  H said they are giving these tests once a year to people 65 and older.  Plus, he said I passed with flying colors, no evidence of the onset of dementia.

Look, I know dementia is no laughing matter; it is an awful condition and can afflict anyone at any time.  Pat Summitt, the famous coach of the Tennessee women's basketball team recently announced she has dementia but will keep on coaching,  I don't mind being tested; the way it was done was such a shock to me.  As I said, the cardiologist had sent me to the doctor after the heart cath did not show blockage in the three bypasses.

Wednesday, August 24, 2011

Hey -- it rained; it really did

Thunder and lightning are getting louder and more frequent; could we possibly get a summer shower-- or has it forgotten how to rain?  Yesterday afternoon we had similar threats but not a drop fell.  Wait, it is really raining and this more than a shower; it is pouring.  For more than 30 minutes it rained hard. The drainage ditch overflowed and our backyard was  like a lake.

When the rain began it brought to mind when we were children working in the fields and a summer shower caught us.  If we were near enough to the house we went there to wait out the shower before returning to the field. Sometimes we were near enough to a fence row where we could shelter under persimmon and sassafras bushes.  We did not mind getting wet but we feared the lightning. 

One time when we were working at the place on the Cotton Valley road a storm came up, sending us to the trees along the field.   We saw lightning strike in the middle of the open field.  I had always understood that lightning was more likely to hit the tallest tree or structure in an area.

The rain came too late to save the St. Augustine lawns in the neighborhood but the cooler temperatures are very welcome; surely it won't get up to the 104 predicted for this afternoon.  Some years we have  a cool snap in late August even if the heat holds on in the afternoon.  Whatever happens, we can look forward to October, which, along with May, gives us the best weather of the year.

(Note. This is my second writing of this report on the rain.  Electricity has gone off briefly three times and I lost my blog, all except the title.)

Tuesday, August 23, 2011

Thanks for Best Wishes on my birthday

I turn to face book only when my g-mail tells me I have a message, but I can testify that many people do makes  use of it.  Twelve people sent me happy birthday wishes on face book, and several others at church and a 4-H meeting last night who commented on my birthday had to have known about if from face book.  I am taking this as one way to thank everyone for thinking of me.

Sunday, August 21, 2011

Will you stll love obama when he shuts off your electrictiy?

Obama lies a lot but sometimes his threats to take actions with dreadful consequences unfortunately come true. He said he would not outlaw coal  fired generating plants but with regulations and taxes he would make it so costly to operate that plants would have to shut down.  Now  the EPA is scheduled to  add more regulations of coal plants that are estimated to cost the industry 129 billion dollars and shut down at least one of every five plants.  Since coal provides almost half of all the electricity used in this country, millions of consumers will pay more and other  millions will be without power. This comes at a time of  a sick economy and high unemployment.  

We all want clean water and air that we can breathe, but there is such a thing as common sense, something that Obama and the EPA seem to  lack.  Some actions of the EPA are so far out they are unbelievable, such as regulating the amount of dust a farmer can stir up when plowing.  Yes, that's a fact. Will a farmer have to get a permit to plow a row of cotton and will there be a team of government officials to measure the dust  as he plows?

An occasional reader of this blog told me I seem to be angry much of the time.  How  can I not be angry as I see what Obama and his people are doing to our nation?  The question should not be why am I angry but whether,  why aren't you angry?  Why isn't there one congressman with the guts to point his finger at Obama and tell him to stop this insanity?

Today is my birthday


Today is my birthday, and  I must admit that I feel my 85 years.  If you were reading this blog last year you may remember that I lost my 19th birthday.  I've told about arriving in San Francisco August 3 to load on the Blackhawk Division to invade Japan.  Atom bombs were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, bringing Japan to surrender August 14.   A little over a week later, August 23,  we left to take troops to occupy Japan. We stopped in the Philippines to let the Blackhawk group off and take on the troops that had occupied those islands and then  proceed to Japan.  With all that was going on, I forgot I had  a birthday until weeks later. I used to say I could be 19 any time I wished, but my kids put an end to that by recognizing me as 19 before the church congregation.   Just too late to celebrate.

I have been enjoying for several days a copy of a photo album sent to me by John White, son of  Mark White, a former shipmate on the USS Pickens.  I never knew Mark, who served as a pharmacist mate as well as a photographer,  but I feel that I have come to know him through much material John has sent to me. If living, Mark would celebrate his 98th birthday tomorrow.

Happy birthday tomorrow, also, to my brother in law Frank  Cascio.  Thanks again to him and Carol for hosting the recent Lowe reunion.

Friday, August 19, 2011

Elimnate the negatives and create jobs

          You've got to accentuate the positive
          Eliminate the negative
          Latch on to the affirmative
         Don't mess with Mister in-between

So goes the words of the old song made popular by Bing Crosby.   

The president claims that when his vacation is over he is going to reveal a plan to create jobs and if the Republicans do not go along with his plan he will campaign against Congress while seeking re-election.
If he has a plan, why wait? Come out with it now. More and more people are losing their jobs. Part of his plan is likely to be another stimulus,  larger and more costly than the first one that was such a failure.

Why not eliminate the negatives first?  They won't cost a cent.  Get the EPA and its unnecessary regulations off the backs of industry.  Do the same for the Interior and Energy departments.  Lower taxes on corporations  -- 10 per cent of something is more than 35 per cent of nothing.  Allow corporations to bring money back to this country free of taxation.  Do away with Obamacare.  I can add other actions that will help bring jobs back, including developing our energy, but why not immediately do away with the negatives?

I won't forget that Sunday is my birthday

I've mentioned before that birthdays were never big events in my family; certainly, we did not exchange birthday cards. Therefore,  you can understand my surprise when Wednesday I got a card from my 90-year-old cousin, Margaret Lowe Dodez, who is sometimes still called by her nickname of "Mag Baby." She added this note,  '' I   still say you helped tear down our play house.  But I forgive you."

I'm happy to be forgiven for a crime I did not commit and have argued my innocence every year at our reunions. Now if my older sister  will either admit I have been falsely accused or at the least forgive me.

Thursday, August 18, 2011

Cake for angels and the devil

A lady from our Sunday School class just brought by an angel food cake.  More appropriate for me would probably been a devils food cake, which reminded me of a story my Grandma Lowe told.  She said when she was a child she saw an aunt making a cake.  Grandma asked what kind of cake and the answer she got was devils food.   She mulled over this awhile then asked, "Who's gonna take it to him?"

Good news, bad news or neither on heart cath

The doctor did not show us the x-ray but illustrated with a drawing that there is no blockage in the three
bypasses installed five years ago.  That is good but I was looking for the reason I have chest pain,  dizzy spells
and shortness of  breath, and hoping that the problem could be corrected.

It was the doctor's insistence on the heart cath at our first meeting.  The EKG done then showed there was some problem and he said a heart cath was needed to find out what the problem is.  We do not have that answer, although it is good to know the bypasses are open and my cholesterol level is fine.





Tuesday, August 16, 2011

My Long Relationship with Nell

This wasn't a love-hate relationship; it was hate on her side and on my side from the beginning to the end.  It only ended when I graduated from high school.  You see, when I was no more than eight or nine, I built this plow. Daddy let me plow with it, giving me Nell to pull it. Yes, Nell was a mule, a one-eyed mule but she cast that one eye on me, noting I was just a kid. She refused to walk right, in fact turning around to face me. Thus my relationship with Snip began. He replaced Nell and we got along except he was a very fast walker and I had to trot to keep up, even though he might have been 20 at the time

As I got larger and  more experienced , I  won more battles with Nell than I lost, but she never ceased to fight me  every way she could. The  day came when I was the only one working in the field. I was plowing peanuts and Nell was hitched to the plow.  Next to sweet potatoes and water melons, peanuts are the most difficult to hoe and plow.  Nell refused to walk adjacent to the peanuts, preferring to walk  on them.  I finally lost it, faced Nell and hit her on the nose with my fist as hard as I could.  You know what happened; I almost broke my hand, something others done when losing their patience.  Nell finally agreed to act right and we finished plowing the peanuts.  That was not the last of our disagreement but we never came to blows again..

Monday, August 15, 2011

Straw polls should have no credibility

The straw poll in Iowa which gave the majority of votes to Michelle Bachman and Ron Paul  should not have any relevance, but it does because of the perception that it has meaning.   Voters had only to be 16 1/2  years old. They did not have to be registered voters nor Republicans.  Obama supporters could vote and did, with estimates that 20 per cent of the voters were Obama people.  Few people consider Ron Paul a legitimate candidate but he has been the darling of several straw polls.  I takes relatively few rabid supporters or/and paid voters to rate high in a straw poll.

It is early and the winning candidate may not have entered the race yet.






"Truman saved my life"

That was the remark by Jack Foster, 89-year-old navy veteran, when I mentioned at the beginning of the Sunday School class that it was VJ Day.  I've heard Jack  say that before, and you wouldn't get any dispute from Okinawa veterans about the dropping of atom bombs. That saved us from invading Japan and suffering huge numbers of casualties. He was at Okinawa when Japan surrendered.  Our ship was in San Francisco taking on troops for the first invasion of Japan.

Jack comes to church in a motorized wheel chair.  He stays busy making bird houses and other small wooden objects.

Sunday, August 14, 2011

Remembering VJ Day 66 years ago

I was standing double watches because some radarmen were on leave, but I finally had a liberty.  I went to a restaurant and was seated at a table with people I did not know.  There was tension, everyone expecting something to happen,  when the news came that Japan had surrendered.  I went out in the streets and saw people getting drunk and acting crazy.  To me, it should be a time for prayerful thanks.  I was disgusted with the celebration and went back to the ship,

Of course, it meant a welcome change for me.  We were taking on troops to invade Japan and I had little hope of coming back alive.  We took those troops to the Philippines, exchanged them for the experienced troops who were occupying those islands, and took those soldiers to Japan. Who knew what type of reception the Japanese people would give us?  They had been prepared to commit suicide rather than surrender.

Thursday, August 11, 2011

Just some news of family affairs

Jessica and River arrived in Sacremento California at 3 a.m. Wednesday after spending six hours in the New Orleans airport.  They are visiting River's parents at a lodge where electricity is available only from 6 p.m.. to 10 p.m. Jessica will spend some time in Colorado checking out a Methodist seminary.  She is impressed that the seminary has provided two hotel rooms and food.

She has arranged for the youth of Trinity Methodist Church to come to Shreveport to visit Centenary and to attend Christ United Methodist Church.  We look forward to that.

I am not  looking forward to Wednesday, August 17, when I will have a heart cath, as recommended by my cardiologist.  Results will determine what action, if any, will follow.

Sunday is 66th anniversary of VJ Day

Sixty-six years ago this Sunday Japan surrendered unconditionally after  we had dropped atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki.  The United States was left as the world's only super power and overcame the costs of the war to build a robust economy.  Japan, with American help, recovered and in a few years had one  one of the world's greatest economies.    Today, 66 years later, the United States is running a deficit, our debt is in excess of 16 trillion and the future appears to hold astronomical debt, and millions are jobless.  Japan has been through an economic crisis and is no longer the nation to emulate.  Where will we be 66 years from now?


Wednesday, August 10, 2011

I agree with Obama --

Our immediate and urgent need is jobs, jobs, jobs. We must have programs that grow the economy, but Obama has been and still is philosophically  unable to take  actions that encourage private industry to expand and add jobs.   Instead, the president actually believes the way to provide jobs is for the federal government to spend money, but the failure of the stimulus and the deficit take away this option.

Definitely, government has a major role, mostly undoing some of  the actions it has taken, including repealing  Obamacare. Every time we look at this we find it more costly; now it is estimated to cost 50 billion dollars more a year than first projected. How can business deal with this?

Government musrt do away with EPA regulations which are unnecessary and restrict business, making it more difficult to add workers.

Let's lower the corporate tax rate.  It is better to collect 10 per cent than collect not one cent of the 35 per cent rate ( .i.e. GE).  Also get corporations to bring some two trillion dollars home without tax if they will use at least one-fourth to create jobs.

Yes, I agree with Obama that government has a part to play, but that is mostly to get out of the way.

Much more can and must be considered. How about bringing our trade with China into balance?  We do the research to develop new products then turn to China to manufacture them.  This country must bring manufacturing jobs back home.  Corporations want profits and they want to pay little or no taxes.  Let's re-structure our taxes to encourage growth and jobs in the United States.  We  might need to resort to some new policies to encourage retailers like Walmart and Target, for example,  to buy from American manufacturers.  Perhaps we could levy a tax of a percentage of the price on every item sold that is made outside of America.  An unusual idea, yes, but we need ideas.  We need to bring manufacturing back and provide jobs for our people.

Monday, August 8, 2011

Deadeye mom gets her rabbit

Rabbits in the field and the woods are common but you don't expect them to visit you.  It must have been a time when we did not have a dog (we always had cats) that a rabbit became a regular visitor, sitting on a woodpile and chattering at us.  The woodpile was only about 15 feet from the path that left our back door, passed the chicken yard and went on into the cow pen. Mama had complained about the rabbit, saying she didn't like it being so bold and "sassy."

One evening Mama was coming back from milking (this is the way I remember it) and the rabbit was sitting on a log.  Mama bent over, picked up a pine knot, and tossed it toward the rabbit.  To mom's consternation and everyone's surprise, the pine knot hit the rabbit on the head, killing it instantly.  Mom said she didn't believe she could have hit the rabbit in a hundred years if she had been really trying to hit it.  She only wanted to scare it away because it was so "sassy sitting on that log and looking at her."

          While I am talking about rabbits

The mama cat we had at this particular time had a litter of kittens.  She also  had a half grown son from a previous litter, and the son got to the new kittens and cut their throats.  The mama cat grieved for days, but relief was coming.  Daddy plowed into a nest of baby rabbits and brought them to the house when the mother rabbit abandoned the nest.  We gave the little rabbits to the cat and she accepted them, nursing them, and bathing them with her tongue.  Everything was great for several days, but her outlaw son got to the baby rabbits when his mama was away, and he killed them all.  Mama cat began crying and grieving all over again.

Lowe Reunion Bitter Sweet Saturday

Descendants of T. T. Lowe met for their annual reunion Saturday at Lakeview Methodist Church in Minden.
We visited, we remembered, we ate, and we sang hymns for about an hour.  We enjoyed visiting with everyone, but there was, as always, a sadness as we thought of those who had died since the reunion last year.  A very noticeable difference this year was the absence of children, including teenagers.  Last year there seemed to be dozens of young children, who, of course, don't get the same enjoyment the adults do.

More than 20 years have past since mama died a few days before a scheduled reunion. She, as the wife of Jesse Lowe, was the last representative of children of T. T. Lowe.  When these reunions began, nearly everyone of the grandchildren of  Lowe, a civil war veteran, was living and most attended.  Many have passed away and few were left to attend. Illness prevented some people from attending.  Most of those present were great and great, great  grandchildren.  Yes, I enjoyed being there, though saddened with the knowledge that some of us may not be available to attend next year.  I hope the reunions will continue, that when Peggy Merritt can no longer serve as the primary sponsor,  someone will take over that responsibility.

Saturday, August 6, 2011

66 years ago today atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima

We had been in San Francisco three days, loading on troops and preparing to invade Japan. We had been told  that the navy expected 50 per cent casualties, and we could believe it after seeing how effective the kamikaze attacks were at Okinawa.  I don't remember that we gave much thought to the atomic bomb at the time; after all bombing was going on nightly over Japan, killing thousands.

Some people were getting leaves but I was not, and I was despondent.  I could face the strong probability I might not survive the invasion, but I wanted so badly to see my family first.  This was one of the lowest points in my life.

Nakasaki was hit by an atomic bomb  on August ll and Japan surrendered August 15.

Friday, August 5, 2011

Obama's Philosophy won't let him do what's right

Obama wants to change America to a socialist state like those in Europe rather than allow the private sector have the freedom to operate, make profits, and create jobs.  He refuses to take action to help the economy, devoting his efforts to fund raising and campaigning for re-election. I don't know if anyone has the "bullet" answer to the economy, but some actions could be taken right now that would help.  These include:

Repeal Obamacare right now. This would take  a weight off the back of  all employers, especially small companies.  It would also relieve the fears of the elderly who know that under the Obama plan they face rationing of health services.

Repeal regulations that stifle small business and do not put in place others that are proposed.  Doing this would alone lead to more hiring.

Issue permits to allow drilling to go forward in the Gulf.  This can be done today.  We must look forward to opening other areas for development.

Finally, get American corporations to bring two trillion dollars back home.  Do this by excusing the taxes due if they use at least one fourth of that money to hire people in the United States.

Thursday, August 4, 2011

United States has an abundance of energy -- develop it

I am not a great admirer of  Donald Trump, but he was right and specific on Fox Wednesday night as he discussed the economic disaster inflicted on us by the Obama administration. He did not find one thing Obama has done that has helped but named several that have harmed. I agreed with his declaration that the United States has an abundance of energy but the energy department and the EPA keep us from developing it and enjoying the benefits of  being sufficient in energy.  I have been ranting about this for more than a year.

We have some 2,000 trillion cubit feet of natural gas  -- that's trillion not billion, according to the June issue of Popular Mechanic.  The magazine  has the most comprehensive article on energy that I have seen, covering the energy situation from  ethanol subsidies (bad) to fusion, perhaps the energy source of the future.

This country is sending over seas some 500 billion dollars a year for oil and oil products. Why not spend that money here and reduce our debt while providing hundreds of thousand, more like millions, of jobs?  Why can't our so-called leaders see that?  The country is desperate for a solution to our high unemployment and the economy that keeps getting worse.  Taking advantage of our abundant energy will at least help.

Wednesday, August 3, 2011

USS Pickens Returns to San Francisco

Dawn was minutes away and fog was so dense that visibility  was near zero as the USS Pickens entered San Francisco bay August 3, 1945.  I was on the radar, my guts in a knot, and the navigator rushed in every minute to ask for the range and bearing on landmarks so he could fix the ship's position.  I strained to watch the radar s closely as little blips appeared on the screen.  Another radarman was trying to plot the blips to see if they were moving or stationary.  Each blip was  a buoy or a fishing vessel heading out to sea and I had seconds to determine which was which.

We had left San Francisco 10 months ago, heading first to Hawaii and then to places like the Solomons, New Calidonia, Saipan, Guam, Tinian  and Iwo Jima and Okinawa.  We had been told  that we would leave in a few days after loading on troops and equipment to be a part of the first  invasion of Japan.

We made it in to our designated anchorage spot without hitting a fishing boat.  We would make many more visits to San Francisco after the war, being part of the Magic Carpet, bringing troops home from the South Pacific. That was in the future; now we wanted to make the most of this visit, perhaps the last time we would see our country.

Tuesday, August 2, 2011

Remembering summer on the farm

Hot, hot and very dry July ended Sunday but August hasn't offered any relief, with the official temperature in Shreveport reaching 107 degrees Monday.  Usually we can expect hot weather to continue in August until late, when some cooling often gives us a break.

My dad claimed July was the best month of the 12.   Of course, part of his reason was his birthday was July 16.  His favorite fruits -- watermelons. cantelopes, and figs were at their most plentiful and the garden would have a bountiful and varied supply of vegetables.  We were not vegetarians but we ate very little meat in the summer and did not miss it.

Our cash crops, cotton and corn, were  "laid by" (no longer cultivated) by early August, potato vines covered the rows, and harvesting, except for haying, was days or weeks away.  Some people took it easy for a couple of weeks in August.  Our cousins who worked in adjacent fields would spend a week with their relatives in Arkansas.  Other people might rest but Daddy always had jobs lined up for us -- putting metal roofing on the old barn, building a new chicken house, or some similar project.  You haven't lived until you've  handled metal roofing in 100 degree weather.

August was the month for revivals at the Methodist and Baptist churches. If our parents didn't go to  the Baptist church some night, we boys  would walk. Sometimes the services would go on so long we would be exhausted, needing our sleep. One night at Antioch Baptist Church, a call for converts was made. After this, people were asked to rededicate themselves. The choir and the congregation were singing --"Just as I am, without  one plea, but that thy blood was shed for me, and that thou bidst me come  to thee, O Lamb of God, I come, I come."  The minister announced that we would keep singing and the service would not be dismissed a long as anyone came.  Just as a verse was almost over and we were sighing with relief, someone would get up and go to the front.  It was a late night  for three boys who had to start work before dawn the next morning.   ( Note.  We sang this song Sunday night and it brought back this memory.)

Monday, August 1, 2011

Shades of McIntire Methodist Church

The first song Sunday night at our  gospel sing was "The Little Brown Church in the Wildwood."  Monthly community singings at McIntire opened with  that song and closed with "How Great Thou Art."  We did not sing that last night.

All of the songs came from the Cokesbury Hymnal and  were old and well known to the people attending. No hymnal has every favorite  hymn.  We pretty well exhausted that book in an hour.  I would like us to add some more favorites next time.   I would like more joyous and uplifting songs like "Jesus Keeps Me Singing As I Go."

My choice of the song with the best message was "He Lives."

          He lives, He lives; Christ Jesus lives today;    
          You ask me how I know He lives,
           He lives within my heart.