A Trip and a Story

It's been a month of travel. Firstly, we drove to Sacramento and were gone for six days. Then we flew to Chicago and were gone three days. Most recently, we flew to New Orleans and were gone another six days. Hubby was invited to speak at a religious convention each time. The third convention was actually in Gulfport, Mississippi, so we rented a car and drove the 80 miles to Gulfport after spending some time in New Orleans.

We hadn't been to New Orleans since the mid-90's. The French Quarter and the French Market hadn't changed much at all--maybe a little older and in need of some tidying up--fresh paint, cleaning.

Lake Pontchartrain Causeway, 24-miles long. The lake is only 10' deep.

We didn't want to spend too much time retracing our steps, so we decided to drive over the 24-mile bridge over Lake Pontchartrain and then tour around the Louisiana bayou.

Mike and Cathy in Gulfport, Mississippi

Water! How I love to see water ...

When in Gulfport, we spent some time with a friend who lost everything during Katrina. He was telling us that the water near his home, which was only a couple blocks from the Gulf, was 25' deep after the storm.

After the floodwaters receded, they discovered their neighborhood was still intact ... except for their house, which was nowhere to be found.

Apparently, besides the hurricane, a tornado had swept through and demolished their house. Our friend found only a few of his belongings, including the tie he'd worn at his wedding.

The natural response: "God, why me?"
The Christian's response (and our friend's): "God, why not me?"

It was a horribly traumatic event, and our friend and his family suffered enormously. But God is good. Our friend's family all survived. Since Katrina, God has amply recompensed them for all that they lost.

So I'm celebrating our opportunity to see New Orleans again and to visit Gulfport for the first time, and especially to hear about this story of faith.


What are you celebrating today?

Celebrating a visit to Chicago

Hubby and I had the opportunity to spend a day in Chicago this past Monday. For us, it's not a small thing at all, considering that we live just under 1800 miles away from the city. Here are some memories:

View of Lake Michigan from Brother Tom's brother, Joe's 17th floor condo. 

Another picture of Lake Michigan and Lakeshore Drive.

Chicago Skyline with park below.

This is us in front of the Bean with Sister Cheryl and Brother Tom.

Mike and I in front of the Bean.

This was one of my favorite pictures from the Chicago Art Museum.  

Chicago Art Museum from the outside. 

After visiting the art museum, it was dusk. We crossed the street and had coffee at Starbucks. Then, our friends took us to Midway Airport and we flew home. 

Many thanks to Sr. Cheryl and Bro. Tom for a great day. 

What are you celebrating today?