I can not believe that I was outside at 8:00 this morning! The first thing we saw was this.
We visited for a bit with Jim and Toma after setting out a few items for the monthly park-wide yard sale. Our stuff: “free to a good home.” And now it’s all gone and won’t be a problem for us as we get ready to roll.
Toma, the walking desert cactus and wildflower encyclopedia, told me what this tiny flower is": Owl’s Clover
Next stop, Bruce and Rosemarie Chapman’s to check on our table. Yep, the last coat is dry and it’s ready to be installed. We are sure going to miss this sweet couple. Aren’t they cute?!!
Next stop: G.H. and Pat Sublett’s, who have just returned from their trip to Australia, New Zealand and the Fiji Islands. On their porch was this:
Mama dove.
Their cat, Pepe, greets mama dove; mama dove takes flight. (Probably a good thing Pepe is on a short leash, huh?)
My favorite picture of the day:
Does this Gambrel quail remind you of a high-stepping drum-major or is that just me?
We caught up with Bob and Linda Olson out checking out the yard sales and decided that today would be a great day to go watch the sky-divers.
One of the diver planes is getting refueled.
Divers waiting for their turn to board the plane.
There they go out to the plane waiting on the runway.
There was a group of Army divers out today.
Talk about a rush!
She was happy to be on the ground, but thoroughly enjoyed her dive.
We also showed Bob and Linda the wind tunnel.
Want to see what takes place in a wind tunnel? Dives simulate free-falling out of the airplane. With the amount of air being pushed through the tunnel, it’s quite loud, but very interesting to watch. They are in a safety glass enclosed tunnel.
After watching the divers for a while, we went to Eloy, just a few miles away, for a sandwich and then back to the park.
It was another beautiful day in the desert valley.
This very colorful bunny is adorable and I choose to think that he wishes you a Glorious Easter as he celebrates the resurrection of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Truly, a day to rejoice and be glad in.
After a search, I remember that the bunny has long been a symbol of fertility and the egg, a symbol of new life. With a slight stretch of the imagination, these two symbols could be related to the resurrection of the Messiah (Creator of all life), and our New Life that is given to us who believe Jesus Christ is, indeed the Messiah of the world. And we choose to follow Him and receive, by faith, His gracious gift of New Life. Fertility=born again. Get it?
This devotional explains more:
A New Normal
READ: Romans 6:1-11
Just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. —Romans 6:4
After my doctor announced that I had cancer, I tried to listen to what he said, but I couldn’t. I went home, pulled a blanket over my head, and fell asleep on the couch, as if sleeping could change the diagnosis.
When I finally gained enough strength to tell my loved ones, my friend Judy Schreur said something especially memorable. After expressing her sympathy, she said, “This is what will happen. You will feel really bad for 3 days. Then you will get up, figure out what you have to do, and get on with your life.” Then she added, “I think it has to do with death, burial, and resurrection.”
At the time, I didn’t believe it. I was sure that life as I knew it was over. Nothing would ever be the same. I couldn’t imagine feeling normal again. But she was right. Three days later I woke up and realized I didn’t feel quite so bad. And little by little, despite the physical misery of chemotherapy treatments, my emotional and spiritual condition improved significantly. I “died” to my old reality and was “raised” to a new normal.
Thankfully, God is in the business of resurrection. For those who have died in Christ, the death of one reality means resurrection to a new, glorious normal so that we can “walk in newness of life” (Rom. 6:4). —Julie Ackerman Link
Jesus redeemed us and died in our stead;
In Him we died and rose from the dead.
No longer is death a thing that we dread;
The old is behind us, the new is ahead. —D. De Haan
To be “in Christ” is to share in His life, in His death, and in His resurrection.
