Memory Lane

Paris Bound
Today Dad and I are going to Paris. And this Paris is in Tennessee, not France. But where we are going will be much better than going to Paris, France, because we are going to our church convention. Two weeks ago we had our convention in Knoxville.

We look forward to going because we will receive much needed spiritual help. Beverly's going to hold down the fort in Kingsport, and Mary will do the same in Knoxville, while Dad and I head west. We'll try to keep you posted on what happening when we have the time.

Memory Lane
Take a stroll down memory lane with this video clip. If you're my age or even younger you will enjoy seeing this clip of pictures that show lots of stuff from the past. The past, that's when life was simpler. We miss the good old days for sure. Enjoy!

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Tennessee Granddaddy Says:

Half the people you know are below average.

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Quote of the Day

Wisdom is the reward you get for a lifetime of listening when you'd have preferred to talk.
~Doug Larson

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Joke of the Day

A radical feminist is getting on a bus when, just in front of her, a man gets up from his seat.

She thinks to herself, "Here's another man trying to keep up the customs of a patriarchal society by offering a poor, defenseless woman his seat," and she pushes him back onto the seat.

A few minutes later, the man tries to get up again. She is insulted again and refuses to let him up.

Finally, the man says, "Look, lady, you've got to let me get up. I'm two miles past my stop already."

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Survive an Elephant Charge

How do you survive an elephant attack? (As if you would ever need to know this.) Well, this video might surprise you. Go here to see other National Geographic Videos.

Watch the video below to survive the elephant charge:

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Tennessee Granddaddy Says:

If that person you love was gone tomorrow, what would you tell them today? Tell those you love that you love them. Don't have regrets.

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Quote of the Day

Obstacles are those frightful things you see when you take your eyes off your goal.
~Henry Ford

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Joke of the Day

One morning a mother was trying to wake up her son. "Wake up now! It's time to go to school."

"I don't want to go to school," the son replied.

His mother said, "Give me two reasons why you don't want to go to school."

"Okay. One, all the children hate me. Two, all the teachers hate me."

"Not good enough," the mother replied.

"Fine," the son said. "Then you give me two good reasons why I SHOULD go to school."

The mother declared, "One, you're 50 years old. Two, you're the principal of the school."

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The Seed - A Good Story

This was sent to me some time ago, and it is definitely worth reading. Enjoy...

A successful businessman was growing old and knew it was time to choose a successor to take over the business. Instead of choosing one of his directors or his children, he decided to do something different.

He called all the young executives in his company together. He said, "It is time for me to step down and choose the next CEO. I have decided to choose one of you. "The young executives were shocked, but the boss continued."I am going to give each one of you a SEED today - one very special SEED. I want you to plant the seed, water it, and come back here one year from today with what you have grown from the seed I have given you. I will then judge the plants that you bring, and the one I choose will be the next CEO"

One man, named Jim, was there that day and he, like the others received a seed. He went home and excitedly told his wife the story. She helped him get a pot, soil and compost and he planted the seed. Everyday, he would water it and watch to see if it had grown. After about three weeks, some of the other executives began to talk about their seeds and the plants that were beginning to grow.

Jim kept checking his seed, but nothing ever grew. Three weeks, four weeks, five weeks went by, still nothing. By now, others were talking about their plants, but Jim didn't have a plant and he felt like a failure. Six months went by--still nothing in Jim's pot. He just knew he had killed his seed. Everyone else had trees and tall plants, but he had nothing. Jim didn't say anything to his colleagues, however. He just kept watering and fertilizing the soil - He so wanted the seed to grow.

A year finally went by and all the young executives of the company brought their plants to the CEO for inspection. Jim told his wife that he wasn't going to take an empty pot. But she asked him to be honest about what happened. Jim felt sick at his stomach, it was going to be the most embarrassing moment of his life, but he knew his wife was right. He took his empty pot to the board room.

When Jim arrived, he was amazed at the variety of plants grown by the other executives. They were beautiful--in all shapes and sizes. Jim put his empty pot on the floor and many of his colleagues laughed, a few felt sorry for him! When the CEO arrived, he surveyed the room and greeted his young executives. Jim just tried to hide in the back.

"My, what great plants, trees, and flowers you have grown," said the CEO. "Today one of you will be appointed the next CEO!" All of a sudden, the CEO spotted Jim at the back of the room with his empty pot. He ordered the financial director to bring him to the front.

Jim was terrified. He thought, "The CEO knows I'm a failure! Maybe he will have me fired!" When Jim got to the front, the CEO asked him what had happened to his seed - Jim told him the story.

The CEO asked everyone to sit down except Jim. He looked at Jim, and then announced to the young executives, "Behold your next Chief Executive! His name is Jim!" Jim couldn't believe it. Jim couldn't even grow his seed. How could he be the new CEO the others said?

Then the CEO said, "One year ago today, I gave everyone in this room a seed. I told you to take the seed, plant it, water it, and bring it back to me today. But I gave you all boiled seeds; they were dead - it was not possible for them to grow. All of you, except Jim, have brought me trees and plants and flowers. When you found that the seed would not grow, you substituted another seed for the one I gave you. Jim was the only one with the courage and honesty to bring me a pot with my seed in it. Therefore, he is the one who will be the new Chief Executive!"

Convention GEMS
I finished reviewing my notes yesterday and putting together my "Gems" for the 2008 Knoxville Church Convention. If you have an interest, you can download them in pdf format here:

Convention Gems

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Tennessee Granddaddy Says:

Honesty is always the best policy.
We heard at convention that we need to be honest to God, not just honest to men.

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Quote of the Day

What you don't see with your eyes, don't witness with your mouth.
~Jewish Proverb

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Joke of the Day

A couple from Minneapolis decided to go to Florida for a long weekend to thaw out during one particularly icy winter. Because both had jobs, they had difficulty coordinating their travel schedules. It was decided that the husband would fly to Florida on a Thursday, and his wife would follow him the next day. Upon arriving as planned, the husband checked into the hotel. There he decided to open his laptop and send his wife an e-mail back in Minneapolis. However, he accidentally left off one letter in her address, and sent the e-mail without realizing his error.

In Houston, a widow had just returned from her husband's funeral. He was a minister of many years who had been 'called home to glory' following a heart attack. The widow checked her e-mail, expecting messages from relatives and friends. Upon reading the first message, she fainted and fell to the floor. The widow's son rushed into the room, found his mother on the floor, and saw the computer screen which read:

To: My Loving Wife
From: Your Departed Husband
Subject: I've Arrived!
I've just arrived and have checked in. I see that everything has been prepared for your arrival tomorrow. Looking forward to seeing you then! Hope your journey is as uneventful as mine was.

(P.S. Sure is hot down here!)

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Dive into shallow water

People used to say I was "good looking"... now they say I'm "looking good". There a big difference in those two statements. I thing the difference is 20-30 years!

Make a Splash
this guy has the world record for diving into shallow water. He dives from 35 feet into only 12 inches of water.

Comment: I'll bet he would not do that if that wadding pool was on concrete, and it did not have those thick pads underneath it.

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Tennessee Granddaddy Says:

A smile is an inexpensive way to improve our looks.

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Quote of the Day

The best way to succeed in life is to act on the advice we give to others.
~Author Unknown

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Joke of the Day

My first job was working in an orange juice factory, but I got canned...couldn't concentrate.

After that I tried to be a tailor, but I just wasn't suited for it...mainly because it was a so-so job.

Then I tried to be a chef -- figured it would add a little spice to my life, but I just didn't have the thyme.

Next I tried working in a muffler factory but that was too exhausting.

I managed to get a good job working for a pool maintenance company, but the work was just too draining.

I attempted to be a deli worker, but any way I sliced it, I couldn't cut the mustard.

Then I worked in the woods as a lumberjack, but I just couldn't hack it, so they gave me the ax.

Next was a job in a shoe factory; I tried but I just didn't fit in.

So then I got a job in a workout center, but they said I wasn't fit for the job.

After many years of trying to find steady work I finally got a job as a historian until I realized there was no future in it.

I studied a long time to become a doctor, but I didn't have any patience.

My best job was being a musician, but eventually I found I wasn't noteworthy.

I became a professional fisherman, but discovered that I couldn't live on my net income.

My last job was working at Starbucks, but I had to quit because it was always the same old grind.

SO I RETIRED AND FOUND I'M PERFECT FOR THE JOB!

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Happy Birthday Mandy!

Today is Mandy's birthday!
She turned 25 today.

Beverly and I called her a few minutes ago to talk to her. She was doing good. She and Alex were re-potting some of the plants they received at the funeral.

I know this will not be the happiest of birthday's for Mandy, but time will heal our loss and we hope for brighter days to come. We know that life is made up of joys and sorrows all interwoven.

Amazing Chalk Drawing

Back Home
The funeral for Kevin Massey was so sad and tearful. Kevin was a good and kind man: A loving husband to Sylvia, and a wonderful father to our dear Mandy.

Death reminds of the shortness of our life. I saw this quote: "There's nothing certain in a man's life except this: That he must lose it." by Aeschylus. May we live our lives mindful of eternity. Eternity is the hereafter. And the "after" depends on what we do "here".

Amazing Chalk Drawing
The following YouTube video is a time lapse video of Julian Beever creating the Aveeno Fountain of Youth chalk drawing in Union Square, NYC on 01/15/07. His work is amazing and you can see more of his work at his web page gallery at: http://www.flickr.com/photos/pavementpicasso/sets/

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Tennessee Granddaddy Says:

Kindness can result in not saying, "I'm sorry."

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Quote of the Day

He who angers you conquers you.
~Elizabeth Kenny

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Joke of the Day

The computer company, where my wife works, distributed a corporate-clothing catalogue that included a pair of cuff links. One was inscribed Ctrl (Control) and the other Esc (Escape), just as they look on a computer keyboard.

"They would make a good present for any man," my wife commented to a colleague, "if only to remind him of the two things he can never have."

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Family Sorrow

It is a sad time for all of our family today. We learned early yesterday morning that Mandy's stepfather had a fatal heart attack. His name is Kevin Massey and he is Sylvia's husband. Our hearts are filled with sorrow today as we drive to Lebanon, Tennessee to be with Sylvia, Mandy, and Alex. Click here to view the Obituary: Kevin Massey Obituary

This picture below shows the family in happier times over two years ago at Mandy and Alex's wedding. (From left to right, Kevin Massey, Mandy & Alex Rogers, and Sylvia Massey.)

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Hal, Get Well Soon

We also have sorrow because of the illness of Hal Ketron who is Lesley's Dad, that's Kevin White's father-in-law. Hal had surgery for a brain tumor Monday morning and remains in intensive care. This too gives us a heavy heart.

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We know that through life times like this come. It is part of life. We know that God does not make life easy, but He always provides the strength for the hard times.

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I hope to get back to my regular postings later this week.

Remember...
Live simply.
Love generously.
Care deeply.
Speak kindly.

Leave the rest to God!