Where the Clear Streamlets Flow

An hour or two outside in the beauties of nature can do wonders for the soul.  On Monday, I thought I'd go up Logan Canyon and go fishing for a little while.  When I arrived and got out of the car I was so taken by the beauty and peacefulness of my surroundings I forget to take my fishing rod out of the trunk of the car and decided on a peaceful stroll along the river trail.  The temperature was in the low sixties, just perfect, the sky clear, and the river energized somewhat by recent rains flowed clear and free toward the valley below.  The fish were rising, even jumping right up out of the water, but what I got from these few hours was much more valuable than a fish, or even the thrill of catching  a big one.  A sweet communion with One much greater than I left me filled with awe, peace, and gratitude for the privilege of having been able to spend so much of my life in the Rockies.  The words of  this song coursed through my mind and raised me up to a better day.



Along the Logan River Trail

"O ye mountains high, where the clear blue sky

Arches over the vales of the free,

Where the pure breezes blow and the clear streamlets flow,

How I've longed to your bosom to flee...

Now my own mountain home, unto thee I have come;

All my fond hopes are centered in thee."

Storm Memories

Tonight, as we have been watching the events associated with Hurricane Sandy as it impacts large areas of the Northeast United States, my thoughts have turned back to 1962 as I was serving as a missionary in Germany. Well do I remember this storm. I was serving in a small branch in Brake on the Weser River in North Germany. The city of Brake is about forty miles upstream from the North Sea. The area is low lying and has been protected by dikes for centuries. The Weser River at Brake is still affected by the tides. As missionaries we would often go to a small park on the banks of the Weser River and eat a sandwich during our noon time break from tracting and teaching. It was in February and on this particular day as we visited this small park. The weather was eerily calm, but we were surprised to find the water level as it would be at high tide. But it was in reality the time for the low tide. As we found out later there was a great storm brewing off the coast in the North Sea. Within a few hours the storm made landfall flooding large areas all along the North German Coast and into Holland. We lived in a small upstairs room on a street called Dungendeich's Weg. The building we lived in was right next to one of the dikes. We were protected from the storm by this dike which didn't break in our area, but it did break in areas not to far distant. Once the storm was over there were over 300 dead. More than 60,000 people had their homes and apartments destroyed by the raging flood water and winds. Most of the damage was done in Hamburg, a large city in our mission on the Elbe River about 75 miles north and east of Brake, where we lived, but as we got out and about the next several days it was very obvious how much devastation the storm caused. I have never been in a storm even remotely like this one, but Hurricane Sandy appears to be a similar weather event.

Our heart goes out to those affected, I couldn't help but count our blessings this after noon as I took advantage of the beautiful fall weather on a hike along the Logan River Trail. I remembered the childhood story about the brave little Dutch boy who saved his town by putting his thumb in the dike that protected it. If only it were that simple. Mother Nature is one powerful lady. Below are a few pictures I found on the web about this event.  Times have changed some.  People are now better prepared, but that takes nothing away from the awesome power of nature.

Houses in the North German Flood of 1962.

　
　

　

A dike beak. The Ocean floods in.

German workers trying to protect their homes from the flood.

A typical row house in Hamburg during the flood.

Following is a Wikipedia report of the the great German Sturmflut of 1962.

On Thursday 15 February, German authorities published the first storm warning for the North Sea with wind speeds up to 9 Beaufort. A severe storm warning followed the next day, with a predicted gauge of 3 Metres above normal, which was a level the dikes could withstand.

The severe storm and the flood it caused in the last hours of 16 February affected the dikes more than predicted and led to some 50 breaches before officials raised alarm for Hamburg. At this time of the day, most city offices were closed, which retarded the notification of the population. Civil protection plans were not implemented yet.

Due to telephone land line breakups, warnings could not be forwarded from coastal to hinterland emergency offices. Breakups at alarm siren lines and electricity lines affected the warning system severely. Radio amateurs had to establish emergency operations to support emergency services in means of communication.

Around midnight, the peaks were too high for some dikes to withstand. The back of the dikes was not yet fortified, so the first waters destroyed the dikes from behind and cleared the way for the flood.

Helmut Schmidt, police senator of Hamburg, coordinated the rescue operations, and requested for emergency help throughout Europe. He requested parts of the Bundeswehr for emergency purposes, especially engineers. That meant overstepping his legal authority, ignoring the German constitution's prohibition on using the army for "internal affairs" - a clause excluding disasters was not added until 1968. Also he got help by helicopters from other NATO states. The latter were called Fliegende Engel (Flying Angels) by the people.

120 square kilometres or a mere sixth of the city of Hamburg were flooded, destroying 6000 buildings. Streets were unusable and railway operation was suspended, leaving Hamburg unsupplied for a lengthy period of time.

Afterwards, emergency plans were implemented, and dikes were shortened and strengthened, leaving some river arms and bays unattached from the sea. 

Some of the Blessings We Cherish Here

Today was kind of  a down day for me.  I didn't sleep well last night and the change in the weather has brought on a few additional aches and pains.  We did go down and vote this morning.  We decided to take advantage of the opportunity for early voting this year and avoid the crowds on election day when our time is going to be pressing as it is.  I am always grateful for the opportunity to vote and thus be a part in the great constitutional system we have been blessed with in this country.  This year the urgency and need to vote seemed even more pronounced than it has done in the past.  We have a great country which provides us with abundant blessing for which we should be ever grateful.  I spent part of the day working on family history and a good while trying to catch up on my rest.  Finally the clouds began to lift some and I decided to go out and see if I could find something to take a picture of.  Living where we do I am able to see the Logan Temple in so many different lights and moods.  I ended up at the parking lot across the street from the lower USU campus.  There is a good view of the temple from there.  The leaves have changed colors for the most part and were able to withstand the snowfall of the past few days, at least for now. The sun was beginning to set in the west over the Wellsvilles and this is how it looked.  The Logan Temple is always beautiful to me.  We are blessed that it has become such a great part of our lives as we have gotten older.

The Logan Temple in the splendor of an October sunset.

We hope everyone has studied the issues, and candidates and will vote for those who stand closest to what is best for the nation and a peaceful world.

Micah's Poem Rendition

Yesterday we went down to Ryan and Sam's for a little while.  When we got there, they were all busy in the yard.  Those large, shady trees which made their large yard delightfully cool on the hot summer days are now shedding their leaves.  If they could get a cent for every one that drops to the ground on their acre and a half they could pay off their mortgage and with plenty to spare.  Fortunately, no one who lives down there is even a little bit lazy, so the hard work and great effort while tending to the watering and grass cutting tasks will now simply be turned to other things, first raking leaves, second cutting firewood, and third shoveling snow.  We have all heard the phrase "one eternal round."  Well I think no one will argue about that, given the evidence of the seasons.

While we were there Micah came to me and wanted me to go into the house with him.  When we were alone inside he said he wanted to show me what he had learned.  Accordingly, he went into a recital of some of the British poet, William Wordsworth's, better known lines.  I was just astounded and happy to hear him do this.  He never hesitated or stumbled.  Now remember, he is just six years old and has now barely two months of First Grade behind him.  It will be fun to see where he goes and what he does with his life,

Later that evening Ryan called and said the boys wanted to come over to our place and spend the night.  We love all of our grandchildren and so we were very happy to have them here.

Micah left me this little note when his dad came over to pick them up the next morning.  Needless to say, I was impressed by his Halloween artwork, his penmanship, and it's always good to hear someone expressing gratitude and love to others.

One More Strain of Paise

This little morning glory blossom in our backyard is refusing to give in to the harsh realities of autumn.  Maybe we should all put our best side forward for as long as we possibly can.

The Rut is on at Reed's Place

Reed sent me this short video taken from the activities in his back yard at Bear Lake West.

He used to go to bed and hear those noises.  Now he just gets up in the morning and looks out the window. Well, maybe not.

Such is life.
Some people dream of dieing and going to heaven.  Reed and Lorraine just wake up and they are already there.
What a great place to live-Bear Lake.  It doesn't get much better than that in my opinion.

Val-da-ree Val-da-rah

The fall weather has been just so beautiful I have had a hard time retraining myself.  This afternoon I decided to take another hike.  I went up Logan Canyon to  the Spring Hollow Campground and hiked from there up the switchbacks to the top of the China Wall, probably 1500 feet elevation gain, and then along the cliffs for about three miles before descending down the steep mountain trail to the Logan River and then on back to the car which was parked at the campground.  It was  wonderful to be out in nature and even though the autumn leaves have begun to fade in most places, it was still very beautiful.  It seems like we have been especially blessed this year with the beauties of the autumn season.  I was also grateful in my advanced years to be able to make such a hike.  I hope to be able to do this for a few more years and count each hike and each year as an added blessing.  I arrived home just about sunset, feeling tired, dusty and very, very blessed.  Iris had a wonderful supper waiting for me for which I am also grateful.

Below are just a few of the pictures I was able to take.  You know me.  I don't go anywhere without my camera.  I'm no pro, but I do enjoy taking pictures and like I always say: If you take enough you are bound to get a good one once in a while.

On the trail leading up the mountain. 

Looking down Logan Canyon from the China Wall. 

 Looking down on the sunlit pines from above without taking a foot off good earth.

 

 Part of the China Wall cliffs looking down on Third Dam in Logan Canyon.

 A happy wanderer on the trail.

Fall colors in the half light of the canyon.  And yes, the fish were rising.

I need to come back soon with my fly rod.