rolling out of harm’s way

There are no fires directly threatening my home or property.  There are 4 large fires within 50 miles – all in different directions.  The Flathead Valley is full of smoke – sometimes it is up against the mountains, sometimes it drops down like a thick fog, sometimes there is falling ash – it is disconcerting to say the least.  From my house there are a handful of routes out of the valley – I have decided to take one – at least most probably…the motorhome is “down” the driveway, Jeep is hooked up, all I need is loaded and we (Karl, Bob and I) are “moved in”.  My thought is to go to Missoula – 110 miles south and just off the interstate: I-90.  It is a relatively inexpensive move in terms of time, fuel and park expenses – a park I know and like with good walking for Karl, good Wi-Fi for working – it is a low risk move to a spot that enables us to “jump” on the Interstate and head for the coast or east if MT conditions worsen.  While it is unlikely that the valley would burn, it is a bit scary to me to be surrounded by fire and potentially have the routes out closed – even momentarily closed.  And as an ORS friend said – “any excuse to go!” – well, yes !  I am not unopposed to a brief “trip” to the “big city” – the owner’s of Jim n Mary’s RV park in Missoula where I stay always laugh when I call Missoula the “big city” – all is relative…

Hooked up 

Garage The garage corner with snowblower, mower, blower, weed whacker, snowshoes….stuff – very odd – although it is VERY unlikely that a fire will wipe out my house, it is at least a possibility in my mind or I wouldn’t be “running”.  I have everything I need in the motorhome and I did pack some photo albums that have photos of my dad, grandparents, some child-hood stuff – “in case” but nothing else.  A funny feeling to look around and really be aware that there was a possibility – no matter how slight – that all might be destroyed.  What to take, what to leave – I stuck with what I normally take plus the albums (3)…

Some of the party are not affected…. Karl relaxing, Bob on the hunt!

Karl Bob

Oh deer!

I KNOW better!

Mea culpa to my step-Dad, Bill!

Bill gave me Egyptian Onions, Pimento plant, Pepper Plant – from seed starts that I think he starts in the dead of winter.  I babied them from CO,  putting them in the shower before I rolled each morning and on the dash to have a bit of sun when I parked each night…

Plants in MotorhomeI spritzed and talked and loved these plants up all the way home… and then in Montana they had a spot in the sunroom for 4 days – a bit of natural light but not too much as they were in transition – and probably shock!

 After 4 days I started putting them on the front porch – just a little bit at first and gradually more until they were on the front porch all of the time.

Next step – transfer to pretty new pots.. nice roomy pots from my favorite nursery and they just looked beautiful – I’m SOOOOO sorry that I did not get a photo of them looking beautiful in their new pots…

Because – today – Aug 1 – I left Karl and Bob in the house and was gone about 3 hours to gather groceries and other house stuff, plus pick up the motorhome and while I was gone – the  @#$&%$!!!! DEER had a small feast…

Plant stubs

BUT, I am not giving up – I was especially looking forward to making pimento cheese – SO, all the pots are now in the garden which has a deer-proof fence – where they should have been to begin with – I can NOT believe I was so STUPID!

Ok, well, in the midst of deer distruction, fires-smoke, heat – several pieces of GOOD news.  Sam, my folks cat, is doing VERY well, my motorhome’s hydraulics are fixed and it is home and stocked/loaded in case we need it for a fire escape, AND temps are cooler and kind of pleasant baring the smoke/fire stuff.  We are counting our blessings!

To close – Bob, the cat – a “legend in his own mind”…photos especially for ORS friend 2oldman:

Bob 

Bob B

Smoke gets in your eyes

For friends and family seeing the Montana Fires on the news….while it is shaping up to be a very nasty fire year, there are no fires near enough to me to be of concern.  There is a lot of smoke – particulary afternoons – yesterday was the worst as lots of plumes went up late afternoon with normal thermal conditions and then a bit of breeze blew the smoke into the valley.  This will probably continue and the high temps make it hard for them to get a handle on the fires.  There is some rain forecast later in the week – although with thunder/lightning. 

There are structures and homes threatened in a number of locations which is unfortunate.  In the years I’ve been here and seen 3 other bad fire years, the fire teams have kept structure damage to a minimum – boy, tough and dangerous job!

The sun is rising a hazy red – we will not be seeing blue sky today.

Sunrise

Karl

In His Hand

I read a daily entry from Oswald Chambers’ “My Utmost for His Hightest” every morning with my first cup of coffee and most usually from my wingback chair….these days it is in the corner of my sunroom.  When I’m travelling, I read from the recliner in the motorhome.  It has been part of the start of my day for nearly 12 years now and is that time of quiet – of settling my mind and thoughts at the start of the day.  I use the reading to quiet my head to “Be Still” (Psalm 46:10) and know that God is present and with me.  It is a time of thanksgiving, of worship, of peace and reflection.  I have been through all of the entries 12 times and still there are many days when I read something as if I’ve never read it before.  It is astonishing to me in it’s revelation and wisdom!  And the timing – it is sometimes SO timely as to feel like an angelic hand has rewritten an entry specifically to me to correspond with what is happening at that precise moment in my life.  Last week, these words were in the reading:

God is not working towards a particular finish; His end is the process – that I see Him walking on the waves, no shore in sight, no success, no goal, just the absolute certainty that it is all right because I see Him walking on the sea.  It is the process, not the end which is glorifying to God.

God’s end is to enable me to see that He can walk on the chaos of my life just now.  If we have a further end in view, we do not pay sufficient attention to the immediate present: if we realize that obedience is the end, then each moment as it comes is precious.

The journey – not the destination…  The time of NOW not the future or the past.  NOW is the blessed time whether it is a joyous time or in the most difficult and painful of circumstances.

A beloved cat, Sam, who belongs to my folks has been very ill.  Sam is special to me as well as to them.  He was the inspiration for me adopting my first cat, Gus.  Gus was my “angel cat” – a fierce and dedicated hunter but also a neck hugger and lover – with me for 9 years.  When Gus was a year old we visited my mother and Sam – Sam, who never liked another cat, took Gus under wing and taught him to hunt.  It was an incredible bonding between 2 male cats.  I lost Gus nearly 2 years ago – as far as I know to another predator.  It is still an incredibly painful loss and to this day I would gladly sell everything but my soul to have him back.

 Sam is approximately 15 years old – senior for a cat, but still an active hunter – also an affectionate cat who loves to nap on my step-Dad’s lap and have his whiskers rubbed.  Now, some mysterious infection – but as of yesterday he was eating and regaining strength – hopefully on the mend.  And it is not just concern for Sam, but also for my folks who love him dearly and have shared his life.  They and I are all well aware of the life span of dogs and cats and of the greater cycle of life that we are all part of.   That knowledge does not make a loss or the endurance of pain any more endurable – it is always just hard and exhausting.  And for me, a reminder that loss is part of life and there will be more loss in my own life – times of despair and sadness.  What brings hope is the sure knowledge that “He can walk on the chaos of my life”…

Job 12: 7-10

But ask the animals and they will teach you or the birds of the air and they will tell you

Or speak to the earth and it will teach you or let the fish of the sea inform you.

Which of all these does not know that the hand of God has done this.

In His Hand is the life of every creature and the breath of all mankind.