Halloween Fun

The October Game by Ray Bradbury

"Nothing on Earth so beautiful as the final haul on Halloween night."

-Steve Almond

Halloween is upon us and little kids in costumes of ghosts, witches, princess' and Spiderman will be filling the streets. The origination of this holiday is rooted in the (from Wikipedia) ancient Celtic festival known as Samhain. The festival of Samhain is a celebration of the end of the harvest season in Gaelic culture and is sometimes regarded as the "Celtic New Year."

Traditionally, the festival was a time used by the ancient Celtic pagans to take stock of supplies and slaughter livestock for winter stores. The ancient Gaels believed that on October 31, now known as Halloween, the boundary between the alive and the deceased dissolved, and the dead become dangerous for the living by causing problems such as sickness or damaged crops.

The festivals would frequently involve bonfires, into which bones of slaughtered livestock were thrown. Costumes and masks were also worn at the festivals in an attempt to mimic the evil spirits or placate them.

In modern terms, it has evolved into a a fun and spirited time to simply enjoy the fall weather and gather candy; lots of candy. So the bags will be filled, tummies will be bursting from chocolate and bubble gum. Little feet will be tired and the morning will come all too soon.

But this year it falls on a Friday night so it is likely many will be out much later. Heck, the kids can sleep in on Saturday morning and miss some of the cartoons. Parents can rest and possibly sift through the candy finding the good stuff before the little ones wake up.

With all of the fun and good cheer, drive careful, walk careful and above all - have fun!

Boo!!
_

Oh Happy Day

"Have courage for the great sorrows of life and patience for the small ones; and when you have laboriously accomplished your daily task, go to sleep in peace. God is awake." -Victor Hugo

My wife has such great patience with me as I struggle to come out of my 'man cave'. It is a term that relates to how men will retreat into a quiet area internally to work through things. I have been working through the death of a loved one and it is not as if I'm depressed.

What I have found is that I am struggling at getting back to an ability to 'multi-task' in my daily life. Each of us in our lives have many things going on in our worlds. You juggle each of them in some manner, handling them as best one can. The work of 'living' must go on and we must enjoy the act of 'living'.

So just keep telling yourself that these are happy days for all of us. The problems and issues that arise around us will pass.



We played this song along with images of her life during a tribute to my Mother during a memorial service. I smile every time I hear it and think of her. These are happy days.
_

Open Road Missions in Peru

I wanted to pass along an update from my friend Paul O'Connell and his Open Road Missions work being done in Peru.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Ho la from Peru,

Trying to stay connected with everyone is always a challenge but this certainly makes it easier..if you're interested, here is the latest from Peru.

Hot off the press..we had an earthquake last night..well technically the epicentre was in Bolivia. It was a 5 point something, but never-the-less a nervous experience. I don't believe things were meant to move like that. I am up on the 4th floor so not much chance of making it out if it was a big one, but it wasn't my time.

I have just returned from working at an orphanage high up in the Andes. There are about 100 orphans and they have a school along with a small medical clinic. I taught English classes and worked in the bakery. No machines here so all is done by hand. There was about 60lbs of dough to mix, a good workout to say the least.

The kids were great and teaching them was a highlight. The school also accepts kids from the surrounding area. One of the boys in my class walks 1.5 hours each way to get to school..unbelievable.

The altitude also takes a few days to adjust to. You feel short of breath and tend to have headaches for the first few days. A few minutes on the soccer field had me thinking I was having a heart attack. Yes, when you come to Peru, every day you get to experience near death emotions (just kidding). Not really, but it just reminds one of just how awesome life is and to enjoy the most of it.

If you would like to help out down here, you can donate by visiting my website at: http://www.openroadmissions.com/ or send a check to ORM P.O. Box 491985, Lawrenceville, Georgia 30049, USA, which is my home base. It is real easy and it would help me out big time.

Talk to you later! Paul
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

If you have the chance, check out his website, pass along some of the information for others. He could really use your support in his efforts.
_

Lessons Learned

Bear with me as I bring myself back around to writing again. I arrived on Tuesday, October 7th to be with my family as we helped our mother in her final days. They are days I will write about and days that will not soon be forgotten

The stories she told us and lessons learned in those days will become clear. My writing will be a release for me and also a way to impart some of her wisdom into your lives. I have learned to be content with my circumstances through out the years. Much of that I owe to my mother.

As I complete these last few days helping my father start to rearrange his life, I know that my sister and brothers will all be there to brighten his days. Each of us will cherish his remaining days and in knowing that our mother rests with angels.

_

Gone From Our Sight

Gone From My Sight
by Henry Van Dyke

I am standing upon the seashore. A ship, at my side,
spreads her white sails to the moving breeze and starts
for the blue ocean. She is an object of beauty and strength.
I stand and watch her until, at length, she hangs like a speck
of white cloud just where the sea and sky come to mingle with each other.

Then, someone at my side says, "There, she is gone"

Gone where?

Gone from my sight. That is all. She is just as large in mast,
hull and spar as she was when she left my side.
And, she is just as able to bear her load of living freight to her destined port.

Her diminished size is in me -- not in her.
And, just at the moment when someone says, "There, she is gone,"
there are other eyes watching her coming, and other voices
ready to take up the glad shout, "Here she comes!"

And that is dying...

_

Passing Of A Loved One

Rose Marie Primm
(January 27, 1931 - October 14, 2008)

Rose Marie Primm, 77, of Fremont died Tuesday, Oct. 14, 2008, in Fremont, Nebraska.

Rose Marie Gale was born Jan. 27, 1931, in Hawarden, Plymouth County, Iowa, to Ralph F. and Josephine R. (Boden) Gale. She was schooled in Akron, Iowa, and Sioux City, Iowa, graduating from Sioux City Central in 1948. She married William L. “Bill” Primm of Elk Point, S.D., on Sept. 26, 1949, at St. Patrick’s Catholic Church in Akron, Iowa. They moved to the Fremont and Cedar Bluffs area in 1951.

She was credit manager and store manager during 19 years of employment at Philips Department Store at Fremont Mall from 1967 to 1986. She was also an active member of Credit Women’s International, Altrusa, Crimestoppers and the Personnel Managers Association. She also lived in Elk Point for 15 years, working as a county social worker, a charter member of the Union County Historical Society and was a 30-year genealogist.

Surviving her is her husband of 59 years, Bill; daughter, Pam; sons, Jeff, Jim (and wife, Jeanine Helen) of Fremont, Jerry (and wife, Linda) of Omaha, John (and wife, Karin) of Gillette, Wyo., and Joe (and wife, Laura) of Buford, Ga. She is the proud and loving grandmother of 19 grandchildren and 12 great-grandchildren. She also has several nieces, nephews, sisters-in-law, dear cousins, Aunt Sylvia and many friends.

Preceding her in death were daughter, Patricia (Primm) Goeschel; parents, Ralph and Josephine Gale; and brothers, Gerald, Arnold and Arthur.

A memorial service was held at 10:30 a.m. Friday, October 17 at Moser Memorial Chapel in Fremont. The Rev. Ron Battiato of St. Patrick’s Catholic Church in Fremont officiated. Burial took place on Saturday, October 18 in Elk Point, SD. Her wishes were for her cremains to be buried in the Elk Point cemetery family plot and at her favorite ancestral area of Cobh, Ireland, near the Celtic Sea.

Memorials may be donated to Pancreatic Cancer Research or Diabetes Research funds.

What is life?

As I sit here with my father, brothers and sister comforting my dying mother, she continues to teach us as she continues her final steps to God's eternal love. I felt a powerful urge to share two thoughts that she spoke last night. The words speak deeply on their own. It is my mother's gift to all of you for you to share with others.

What is life? Life is prayer.

Prayer was for us before we knew what it was about.
_

Creating Memories

"One day at a time - this is enough. Do not look back and grieve over the past, for it is gone; and do not be troubled about the future, for it has not yet come. Live in the present, and make it so beautiful that it will be worth remembering." -Ida Scott Taylor

I am spending these days with my dying mother, Rose Marie Gale-Primm. Along with my father, sister and brothers, it is a time that we have known would come and we are experiencing so many emotions. There are many that have gone through this before us and many that will do so after we have grieved.

But for now, we are reminiscing with her as she prepares to take her final breath. The Lord is giving us these final days after having blessed us with so many. You see, back in March of this year (2008) she was diagnosed with Pancreatic Cancer. It was already advanced and most Pancreatic cancers are once found will result in a rapid decline.

The average life span is less then 6 months so we feel fortunate that Dr. Solomon Haroon in Fremont, Nebraska has done an excellent job in treating her. We are so thankful for the absolutely wonderful work he has done. Yet now we are in our time of hospice, in giving Mom a comfortable place to find the peace she so deserves.

We don't grieve of past pain or issues, we live to make life worth remembering. That in the end, we can truly say what a great time we have had with each other. This week we are creating wonderful memories even in the saddest of times.

When our mother finally passes, it will be with the full knowledge of the love she has given to so many people. It will also be with the full knowledge of the love that so many of you have shown her. Take a few moments to tell those you know that you love them, create a moment worth remembering.
_

Helping Hand

Peyton Conway March said, "There is a wonderful mythical law of nature that the three things we crave most in life -- happiness, freedom, and peace of mind -- are always attained by giving them to someone else." This past weekend I tried to impart some of that to roughly 85 men that attended a Men's Conference.

This conference was three nights, two days of teaching, learning and general brotherhood of guys looking to experience something greater in their lives. Some were impacted in huge ways and others found small things to take away. In all cases, lives were moved in ways only they will know.

But it does not require a conference for you to impact the lives of another. It only takes a caring heart for others. If you simply give a small piece of yourself to help someone else, it can have a huge change in their life.