How We Live

Yes, this is one activity that still makes us smile and we can still enjoy. We were in Hot Springs last weekend when we found this busy little pancake house. We walked most of the Historical District and found this one to be the busiest so that was all we needed to walk in. Actually we had to wait for a table. Not knowing what they served outside of what we saw on other peoples plates I asked a "local" what the specialty was here. She said no one goes away hungry because they serve large portions but she mentioned the pancakes that were as large as dinner plates very good. We ordered just one apiece with fruit inside and they were big and adequate for our meal. Reminded us a little bit of the Original Pancake House in California that we have gone to on occasion. That explains the smile on the Dutchman's face - food.

The main reason for going to Hot Springs was to actually see and feel the water coming out of the rock steaming because it is so hot. We didn't think it was worth close to $100.00 to get the real feel but we did experience it in a small way. I have no problem believing that there is healing in those waters. This spring to the left was located right behind a hotel that "catered" to real patients but allowed us to "touch. The whole east side of the street is filled with hotel/motels which must have access to the springs inside the building. They are rather old buildings but they still seemed to have lots of people come for health or pleasure reasons.

Friday our tour took us to Little Rock for the Arkansas State Fair. It was interesting how different cultural parts of the fair featured Arkansas projects and that is what makes such fairs, etc. so interesting. Of course, we had to eat there and the attraction for us was a huge grill with humongous pork chops on it. Sharing was definitely a must, it was very good.

Our day wouldn't be complete without a trek up this hill to make phone calls. Wilmer is the blue speck in the corner of the picture in case you didn't notice. Weekends are usually easier but still with the dense growth of trees and the winding and curvy terrain that isn't always so good either. I am so thankful that our internet usually works. Sitting beside the road in this position guarantees we have gotten through to someone. So glad the hill is doable for us to access a signal.

We have been attending a Baptist Church that we think is very good for us. The preaching
has a lot of theology for us to discuss later, the choir is very good and we like the S.S. Last Sunday we even stayed for a dinner that had the purpose of raising money for Glenhaven. One ethnic food item was corn bread with actual corn in it. Some of you may have that all the time but it was new to us. Very moist and delicious. So good to learn from others.

Dad has been continuing with maintenance work. He does plumbing, electrical, wood working, etc. He always says he is a shade tree expert of every line of work. I think he has some of those down fairly good by now. The weather here has been terrific for working. It really cools off at night but days can't be beat. And yesterday was the first rainy day we have had here. After a week of painting for another gal and myself we finally got into the school however it was to organize a teacher/Principal's storeroom. Our first job was to organize the things on the floor. That was about half the work. Actually she came into the job quite suddenly and the former teacher hadn't been as organized as she could have been. We sorted, carried, marked, packed for a couple of days and today we started giving it a good housecleaning. It is fun to see what a difference we can make by helping someone who has such a huge work load.

Another one of the horses and small lake. It has a purpose, the young people/residents who are here have various hobbies or crafts but probably don't get to display them for some time and the Ranch tries to match them up with some activity that can be worked on at the Ranch.. One girl took on a wild horse. She worked for many months and now is able to walk beside it, give it commands, do some fancy work with the horse. She is going to a show this weekend so the staff person helping her wanted her to perform for us before the show so the horse would get use to noise, lights. etc and Jess could get some experience. She did a nice performance for us. At one point the horse got a stubborn streak in its head but she kept her mind on the rules under such circumstances and went on to complete the drill. It is beyond imagining what all the staff does for the residents here. They house them, feed them, school them, work them, play with them and most of all they love them. Such a job is not about instant success but about changing lives and changed they will be when they leave here. One staff member got a letter recently from a resident who had been here 20 years ago. His life is now on track and he wanted to thank the staff that was here 20 years ago. He said he did not remember much of the Ranch except for the love he was shown. Those letters make it all worthwhile.

Done rambling about our life style at the moment. Its good for us and we pray we make a difference in someone else's life as well.

Love to you all,

Mom and Dad Marilyn and Wilmer