Next door I was able to help clean our the swamp cooler and replace filters. Because Colorado has such low humidity, they use swamp coolers like we use air-conditioners. Here you see me on the ladder cleaning out the bottom of the swamp cooler.
Tim came over and got in on the action. Here I am handing him one of the panels with a new replacement filter in it.
My nephew Michael got this candid shot of Danette supervising the work :-). We all had a good time on this project and it was nice to help get this needed work done.
Both because of budget issues [like gasoline!] and the need to have a little more dedicated time this week for some of the sabbatical goals, I elected to stay in Colorado Springs. I found a hotel that came in under the budget range near the Garden of the Gods, where I spent my mornings and evenings. The Garden of the Gods has some amazing rock formations and is one more place to get an overwhelming sense of the greatness and majesty of God.
Below you see the famous "kissing camels." Then one of my favorite spots is the drive into the Garden of the Gods. There is one spot where Pikes Peak comes into full view between two of the vast rock formations. I always see the creative and artistic hand of God in a special way there.
Of course, Sunday mornings with the Deaf Church is one of the important learning times for me, as well as a time to feed by own soul in worship. Because this was Memorial Day weekend, the Deaf Church took time to say the pledge of allegiance to the Christian flag (not pictured), to the Bible (seen on the communion table) and to the American flag.
On Memorial Day four of us participated in the 30th annual Bolder Boulder 10k race (run and/or walk). It is the largest timed event of its kind in the world attracting well over 50,000 participants! It ended up being a great day. We saw my nephew Taylor, who had planned to participate but turned his ankle a couple of days earlier (bummer!). Tim and Tami, and Dani and Hayden drove up to Boulder to watch, and then we met them for lunch in Denver on the way home. Me, my nephew Michael, Donna and Danette participated. It was a very dreary day with dark clouds and intermittent rain, but you couldn't dampen out spirits. In the picture below you can see that Michael wasn't taking any chances with the rain, sporting one of the lovely trash bags Donna brought for us. And you can see it didn't take much for Danette to catch the spirit of the "trash bag look" herself!
The Bolder Boulder is not just a huge event, but it is truly a Memorial Day celebration. Many participants wore pin-on bibs in honor of a deceased loved one who served our country in the military, or as we did, to proudly honor family members who are currently in the service. This picture caught Donna and I wearing our bibs to honor our nephews, Andy Lembke who is a graduate of West Point and who has served several tours in Afganistan and Iraq, and Eric who has also served in the Middle East and will soon complete his service in the Navy.
I used my time in the Garden of the Gods this week for Bible reading, meditation, and working on my sign language studies. Below you can see me seated at a picnic table, book open, and practicing my signs. What a classroom!
Of course, Sunday mornings with the Deaf Church is one of the important learning times for me, as well as a time to feed by own soul in worship. Because this was Memorial Day weekend, the Deaf Church took time to say the pledge of allegiance to the Christian flag (not pictured), to the Bible (seen on the communion table) and to the American flag.
On Memorial Day four of us participated in the 30th annual Bolder Boulder 10k race (run and/or walk). It is the largest timed event of its kind in the world attracting well over 50,000 participants! It ended up being a great day. We saw my nephew Taylor, who had planned to participate but turned his ankle a couple of days earlier (bummer!). Tim and Tami, and Dani and Hayden drove up to Boulder to watch, and then we met them for lunch in Denver on the way home. Me, my nephew Michael, Donna and Danette participated. It was a very dreary day with dark clouds and intermittent rain, but you couldn't dampen out spirits. In the picture below you can see that Michael wasn't taking any chances with the rain, sporting one of the lovely trash bags Donna brought for us. And you can see it didn't take much for Danette to catch the spirit of the "trash bag look" herself!
The Bolder Boulder is not just a huge event, but it is truly a Memorial Day celebration. Many participants wore pin-on bibs in honor of a deceased loved one who served our country in the military, or as we did, to proudly honor family members who are currently in the service. This picture caught Donna and I wearing our bibs to honor our nephews, Andy Lembke who is a graduate of West Point and who has served several tours in Afganistan and Iraq, and Eric who has also served in the Middle East and will soon complete his service in the Navy.
My walking/jogging buddies were very patient with me because I was nursing a strained left calf muscle that would not allow me to jog at all, and instead of leaving me in the dust, they stayed back with me. But I was able to complete the race without incident. It was awesome. The race finish line is in the stadium where the University of Colorado plays football, and you can see the large crowds even for a dark and sometimes rainy day.
Although it was sprinkling, we stayed for the Memorial Day festivities. There was a military color guard, large stadium screen video honoring all branches of the service with "I Am Proud to Be An American" playing, even with the low cloud cover there was a fly over by the air force, we sang the National Anthem, taps were played and a twenty-one gun salute was given to our fallen heroes.
Although it was sprinkling, we stayed for the Memorial Day festivities. There was a military color guard, large stadium screen video honoring all branches of the service with "I Am Proud to Be An American" playing, even with the low cloud cover there was a fly over by the air force, we sang the National Anthem, taps were played and a twenty-one gun salute was given to our fallen heroes. The congressional medal of honor was awarded to General Patrick Brady who fought in Vietnam. The medal was given for bravery above and beyond the call of duty. His most heroic mission was a day in which he rescued 51 comrades as a chopper pilot, doing so in four different flights, with three badly damaged helicopters while coming under repeated and heavy fire. His speech opened by him saying, "I didn't do America any favors by my service. God did me a great favor by allowing me to be born here." He then went on to challenge us to live out the great virtues of Courage and Sacrifice. It was a moving reminder that we must always trust God's hand of protection in our lives, and that He calls us in Christ to manifest both courage and sacrifice in our duty to the kingdom of God and our Commander in Chief, Jesus Christ!
Until next week, with love and counting the days, Gary.
