Never Too Early/ Right Anytime

Although it is a National Holiday that is five weeks away, it is always the right time to give thanks. Actually it would be called a holy day. If you read the first Proclamation made by President Abraham Lincoln making the fourth Thursday of November a day to give thanks to Almighty God for His blessings upon America you will see this.

I began my thanksgiving celebration a few days ago. It takes that much time for me to give thanks for my blessings. I live in the United States, was educated in Public School system of Bellmore, Long Island. The people God has brought into my life have been an incredible blessing. For the past 27 years it has been my privilege to pastor a church which loves me in spite of all my flaws. Seeing God work in people's lives is beyond description.

My family is such a blessing to me. . My wife Lucy is a special lady. I am thankful for my children. Nearly 8 years ago I become a Poppa. My six grand kids bring smiles to my heart and life. Being Uncle Larry to terrific nephews and nieces is sweet.

I could go on and on and on. Seeing miracles along the way, living in such a great town, being part of many many lives are all blessings I count this Thanksgiving.

Join me in giving thanks! We have a lot to be thankful for!

Hearing From An Old Friend

My friend Norman called me yesterday. We have known each other for over 40 years. We ran track and cross country in Junior High and High School. How good it was to pick up the phone and hear his voice asking how I was doing.

We shared a lot when we were young. We spent lots of fun times together. Now we are both much older but still good friends. I remember the phone conversation we had last Christmas. It was like yesterday then and now.

Pick up the phone today, text or e-mail some old friend in your life. You will make their day!

Thanks Norman!

Wonderful Seasons

Spring and Fall share similarities. There are the cool morning temperatures both bring and the mild days. In spring we are looking for new growth, in the autumn we are preparing for winter.

For me each season is beautiful. I have memories and experiences from all 4 seasons that I cherish. I love the crisp clean air after a snowfall. The beauty of the blanket of white makes it in the words of Dean Martin and Frank Sinatra, A Marshmallow World! The promise of spring the blooms of the summer and the colors of fall are all wonderful.

Wildlife abounds in my backyard all year. Seeing Blue jays and Cardinals in the trees in the winter makes me feel like singing some patriotic song. Watching the Carolina Wrens and the Mocking Birds appear is beautiful to the eyes and ears.

We recycle everything that is recyclable so the soil is rich and the waste is next to nothing.

It is a wonderful world that God has created!

Summer Memories From Another Generation

This picture brings a rush of memories to my mind and heart. When I was a kid we stayed in cabins very similar to these. Into the White Mountains of New Hampshire, my friend John Foster (who took this picture) journeyed one day. We went to the place where my family (for three generations) went to "get away from it all" for a week. The cabins were gone.

Like these they belonged to age before Disney World was built and the strings of motel chains with easy access off the interstate dominated the landscape. I can remember that time very well. Now a family can stay an inn, get breakfast the next day and be on their way. We cooked our own breakfast in these cabins. We did the dishes too!

I remember the easiness of vacations then. With marshmallows on sticks over the coals which had cooked that evening's hamburgers we sat as the lightening bugs came out and talked. We laughed. Dad brought his ukulele and we sang old songs.

We hiked mountain trails in the day. We were on summer family vacation without a care in the world. For me it was, as I look back now, a foretaste of heaven.

When I look at the picture I remember that it was in a cabin like those that we had Dad all to ourselves. We played ball and horseshoes. He didn't have to get up early for work and we didn't have to get to bed early for school. Its a little of what I am trying to be to my grandkids today.

The cabins will be in my memory for the long haul. It was a simpler time. It was a golden age of family. I was privileged to grow up in it. If you did too, you know what I mean.

Organic Gardening

Organic Gardening is fun. Everything you need is outside
the Gardening Centers and Retail Stores. Almost everything
is right outside in your own backyard.

Composting is easy and the whole process keeps you doing something in your garden all year long.

My mother and grandmother got me started with it. Egg shells, potato peelings, watermelon rinds, grass clippings and garden waste go into the compost heap. Seaweed is free and abundant and serves as a great fertilizer.

Here is a result of years of treating the soil with natural fertilizers, assisting nature to do its work, and letting the rain and sun do its. For instance I plant Four O' Clock plants around the year each year. They have a poison in their leaves which is only poison to the Japanese Beetle. I don't use insecticides at all. Bringing birds into the yard is a great help. Peanuts attract Blue Jays which eat worms hardly seen by human eyes on the tomato plants. Our dog, Moe, chases the squirrels and the rabbits out of the garden.

Beside all this it is extremely healthy. As I ate one of these carrots last evening, it didn't need to peeled, just washed. You know what went into it to grow it and what comes out is delicious. My blog (www.larrysbackyard.blogspot.com) has instructions on composting and organic gardening. Take a look around in the archives and enjoy! Like eternal life, its free!

A Single Seed

This morning I went out a pulled three black seeds off a Four O'Clock Plant. This is a special plant. In the fall of 2005 these seeds were given to me from a neighbor of our family in China. We planted them the following spring. For 5 years we have been enjoying the blooms of these multicolored plants.

After the summer blooms are gone the Four O'Clocks bloom into November here on Long Island. As I held those three seeds in my hand I thought of how from year to year the seeds keep giving from that original gift. I thought of the wide variety of color they bring. Each bloom is white and splashed randomly with a deep violet. No two blooms are the same.

The Four O'Clocks give off a perfume fragrance. The sight and smell remind me of China. Some souvenirs have special value, others are beyond price. That is the way I felt today when I pulled the seeds off, brought them inside and stored them for the next April when I will put them in the ground and enjoy the show all over again!

Autumn Richness

The colors have just begun here on Long Island. Red and orange leaves are appearing. It is beautiful.

After those leaves fall (the picture is from last year) they are mulched and placed in the gardens on the premises. Why fill the landfills with what is the best fertilizer for the gardens: leaf mulch. Last time we bagged leaves (a while ago) there were over 100 bags to be picked up. Now with mulchers and wheel barrels we harvest what God gives us after we have enjoyed the colors and put it right back into the earth.

We were green before most people knew what that was!

October

The summer has gone. The harvest is almost in. Cooler temperatures prevail. Leaves have begun to turn colors. Mums are budding and beginning to bloom. Playoffs, League Championships and the Fall Classic, the World Series are the topics on Facebook and among friends.

Kids are home from school on selected days and not day in and day out. Some people have begun Christmas shopping but most have not. Iced Tea and Lemonade and the ice cream truck are being replaced by hot chocolate and hot cider.

High School Football Games, and raking leaves and making plans for Thanksgiving are among the activities now. Pools are closed, beaches nearly deserted and jackets are being worn. The occasional scent of a fire burning in the evening to take the chill out of a house fills the nostrils.

Days are getting shorter, nights longer and the sky clear and the air crisp as this wonderful month of October begins.