Joy Neal Kidney's Blog, page 8

Songs of Heartstrings: Poems of Gratitude and Beatitude

Songs of Heartstrings by Miriam Hurdle

Songs of Heartstrings: Poems of Gratitude and Beatitude depicts a road traveled with optimism, hope and appreciation amid heartache and unpredictable circumstances. It also celebrates genuine love and fulfilling relationships. The poetry collection includes nine themes: Songs of Nature, Songs of Dissonance, Songs of Physical Healing, Songs of Marriage, Songs of Parenthood, Songs of Tribute, Songs of Reflections, Songs of Challenge, and Songs of Inspiration. Each of these themes covers various aspects of her life experience. The poems are inspiring to the mind, heart, and spirit. The readers will resonate with these experiences. Hurdle illustrates the poems with her photograph and watercolor paintings.

My Thoughts

What a beautiful collection of verses and short prose. Divided into themes, the mesmerizing snippets cover the downs and ups of life, from chemo treatments to tributes of loved ones and inspiration. I especially enjoyed those of tribute and inspiration. Her photos add a special grace to Miriam’s blessed words.

About the Author

Miriam Hurdle is a member of the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI). She published four children’s books at twenty-six years old. Her poetry collection received the Solo “Medalist Winner” for the New Apple Summer eBook Award and achieved bestseller status on Amazon.

Miriam writes poetry, short stories, memoir, and children’s books. She earned a Doctor of Education from the University of La Verne in California. After two years of rehabilitation counseling, fifteen years of public-school teaching and ten years in school district administration, she retired and enjoys life with her husband in southern California, and the visits to her daughter, son-in-law, and granddaughters in Oregon. When not writing, she engages in blogging, gardening, photography, and traveling.

Please learn more about Miriam here.

Winners of the Our Iowa Lucky I Contests

It was fun to run ads for the Leora books in beautiful issues of Our Iowa magazine. I also participated in their Lucky I contest by offering gift certificates for part of the cost of the ads. Two winners have recently sent the best thank yous!

Marlo Rold, Margaret Law, Sue Rasmussen, Kathy Sanders at Off the Rails Quilt Shop in Bondurant

From Margaret Law: “In January I was a Lucky I winner of $100 gift card to Off The Rails Quilt Shop in Bondurant IA, donated by Joy Neal Kidney.

“Not being a quilter or a sewer, I knew just how to spend the money. The Ankeny Women’s Club makes comfort pillows to donate to hospitals and cancer centers. Four members shopped and bought material for pillowcases. What a fun day looking at all the material and choosing many prints, especially prints that children might like. Thank you, Our Iowa Magazine for the fun experience of finding the I’s, and especially to Joy for the certificate.”

Margaret said they made a day of it, including having lunch out.

One of my ads had a Lucky I tucked into it! There are three to discover in each issue.

Another thank you came from Cathy Nelson, who won the Machine Shed Restaurant gift card. She wrote,” I wanted to take a moment to tell you thanks for the gift card to the Machine Shed. What a great place to eat! I was very excited to see my name in Our Iowa Magazine. My father-in-law is 92 years old, and one of his favorite things to do is read the Our Iowa Magazine and find out what the newest contests are. H always calls to let me know ‘We have a contest,’ and I help him send in our postcards. He always says, ‘Cathy, if I wen I will share whatever I win,’ so I will make sure I share your generous donation with him. He was so excited to see we had won. . . . please know you made a 92 year old man’s day.”

Our Iowa is such a delightful magazine, fun stories and such glossy photos. Stacy Siegner in their advertising department was also wonderful to work with.

We Don’t Want Any Heroes in the Family

A fighter pilot, Danny Wilson was lost
in February 1945, when his silver Lightning
dropped back to take photos
on a mission over Austria.

Danny's last furlough home to Dallas County, Iowa,
was the spring of 1944. His picture, taken in Perry,
shows his solid jaw, broad shoulders.
Confidence, contentment.
Silver pilot's wings against the dark uniform.

In a snowy forest in the foothills of the Alps,
Wehrmacht personnel find a dead "American
flying lieutenant" in the wreckage of
his "forktailed devil."

The Wilsons had also taken snapshots of Danny
beside the '42 Plymouth with his sisters
and holding his nephew. Doris, her first baby due
in six weeks, stood behind Darlene and Danny
so her "condition" wouldn't show.


The airman who lost his life at Schwanberg, Austria,
in February of 1945, was identified by his dogtags,
which the Wehrmacht kept--Daniel S. Wilson.

When Danny began cadet training, Doris wrote,
"I just want you to know, whether you turn out
to be an ace or a grease monkey,
you'll still be a swell brother to me."

The 37th Fighter Squadron in Italy reported his P-38 lost,
his belongings were inventoried, and the flight surgeon added
to an official form, "good man--good pilot."

When he got his overseas orders, Doris wrote,
"Danny, you take darn good care of you,
and get home as soon as possible.
We don't want any heroes in the family,
just all of us home."

At Danny Wilson's first burial were four strangers:
the village inspector, the bergermeister,
the grave digger, and the Roman Catholic priest,
who held a burial ceremony for him--secretly.

His parents received a telegram in March 1943
with the news that he was MIA. But they never learned
the details of his death and burial. The daughter
born to Doris was the first family member to see,
fifty years later, his casualty records.

That fall, after the war was over,
Danny's grave was located
by a British Graves Registration Team,
through captured Germany records.

But Danny Wilson's parents received no more word
until January 1946, when the War Department reported
that it had received "evidence sufficient
to establish the fact of [his] death."

In a carton sent home with his other belongings,
was a small New Testament.
On the page with the American flag, Danny had written,
"I give everything for the country it stands for."


All five Wilson brothers served in the war--
two in the Navy, three in the Army Air Corps.
At age 21, Danny was one of the three young pilots
who never came home.

Spats, the Wilson Family’s Favorite Pet

Bottom to top: Spats, Junior, Danny, Dale Wilson, Dexter, 1936When the next door neighbor’s Boston terrier had a single puppy, he brought it over to show the Wilsons, who lived at Dexter at the time. Doris and Dale were home and fell in love with it right away.
    “It’s not a purebred so we’re going to sell it,” Joe said. “You wouldn’t want to buy it, would you?”
    “How much?”
    “Two dollars.”
    “Two dollars! Let’s ask Mom.”
    “Well, he sure is a cute pup,” she said, “but you’ll have to ask your dad.”
    Clabe said no. It would cost too much to feed it.
    Doris began to cry. So did Dale.
    “Okay, okay. I can’t stand for big kids to cry.” Clabe suggested a deal. “If you can get the dog for a dollar, you can have it.”
     The neighbor accepted the dollar, and the Wilsons had a new family pet. They made a bed for him on the back porch, where he always greeted his family. Danny was in junior high that fall and got home from school first. The pup was so glad to see him that he leaped right into his arms.
    One day Mrs. Wilt was visiting with Leora when Danny reached home. They watched him hug the dog and even give it a kiss. Mrs. Wilt glanced at Leora. “Isn’t that sweet?”
     Darlene wrote her brothers in the Navy (Delbert and Donald) all about school, and about the cutest puppy “a foot long and as round as a barrel. We can’t get a name to suit him. If you have any suggestions, let’s have them. He’s kind of a light brindle with a white spot on his head, two front white paws, and the black paws just have the tips of white.”
    Delbert came up with the name “Spats.” He and Donald had played in their uncles’ uniforms from the world war, which included spats that covered a soldier’s insteps and ankles.
     According to ten-year-old Junior, “Spats is the best dog in the country–he’s the smartest dog, too.”Danny, Junior with Spats, Dale, Doris, Darlene Wilson, Christmas 1935, Dexter, Iowa

Spats liked to go along with Clabe and his sons when they went hunting. When the family moved to the Minburn farm with the family in 1939, their pet moved as well. When they carried Fig Newtons to snack on, they discovered that Spats liked them as well, so they always had some along.

Spats with Lt. Dale Wilson, on his last furlough home. February 16, 1943, Minburn, Iowa

In their letters home from military service, the Wilson brothers often asked how Spats was.

Spats with Lt. Dan Wilson, on his last furlough home, April 26, 1944, Minburn, Iowa.Spats enjoyed riding in the landlord’s truck, and being with Clabe in the field. Spats and Clabe, 1940s, Minburn farm

After all their sons were serving in WWII, Clabe and Leora bought an acreage near Perry. After Junior was killed, oldest brother Delbert and his family moved home to be with his grieving parents. The Clabe died in late 1946.

Leora spent part of 1947 with her mother in Omaha. The very last mention of Spats was in a note from Delbert’s wife Evelyn to Leora in December 1947. “Spats has gone.”

We’ll never know what happened to the family’s favorite pet.

Soul Mates: Path to a Praying Partnership by Nick & Mary Portzen

Soul Mates: Path to a Praying Partnership

Back cover: Are you satisfied with a good (or good enough) marital relationship, or would you like an extraordinary one? With over seventy years of marriage between them when they met, the authors soon discovered how little they knew about a partnership centered on God. Praying together since their second date, they discovered the intimate spiritual discipline of prayer as a powerful relationship tool.

With a unique framework that includes both wife and husband’s perspective, this book shares lessons they learned and includes questions to facilitate discussion. Whether reading separately or together, couples can use this book to unlock a practice that will enrich and fortify their marriage.

My Thoughts

Mary and Nick had both lost their spouses when Mary was prompted to pray for a future husband. Three years later she met Nick, who was open to seeking God’s will even while they dated. It was a delight to learn they’d married, then later they were writing a book about what a God centered marriage can be. Both Nick and Mary are transparent about their attitudes and stumbles, but also how praying together helped them to better understand the other, and those around them as well. This is their love story but also an encouragement, with discussion questions in each chapter, prayer suggestions, and room to write your own. A wonderful resource no matter your age. Soul Mates.

The Authors

Nick and Mary Portzen are co-coordinators of the annual Cedar Falls Christian Writers Conference in Cedar Falls, Iowa, where they live. Nick is a former business owner. Mary is a certified grief counselor and workshop presenter. She is the author of seven books under the name Mary Potter Kenyon, including the award-winning Refined by Fire: A Journey of Grief and Grace and Called to Be Creative: A Guide to Reigniting Your Creativity. Nick and Mary speak on the topic of couples praying together.

The Shadows in Our Home

The Shadows in Our Home

were cast by my mother’s younger brothers–
Dale, Danny, and Junior. I was aware that all three
had lost their lives during the war. Mom didn’t talk about
those stories, but she did talk about when they were kids
during the Great Depression. Their pictures in uniform,
along with her two older brothers in uniform and with
their wives sat on bookshelves sometimes. Sometimes
Mom put them away, when the shadows began
to overwhelm her again, attempting to drag her
into a dark place. They weren’t in sight but
their shadows still lingered.

This is in one of the chapters of Meadowlark Songs: A Motherline Legacy, due out later this year.

That Bur Oak Tree

His is in a more picturesque setting, but this one is in the parking lot of our favorite chiropractor, taken last fall.

I’m grateful to Erin Moroney LaBelle for introducing this photographer. I’m a fan of bur oaks, so it’s a double delight for me that a treasured one became Mark Hirsch’s focus. They both have such a following!

“A lone bur oak may have forever changed the professional and personal life of one photographer in northeastern Iowa. In 2012, Mark Hirsch began a 365-day photographic journey with a single picture on his iPhone.”

CBS News (3 minutes)

Iowa PBS (10 minutes)

Sheri Smith Shonk’s winsome Houses of Hope Series, a new book!

There’s a new book in Sheri Smith Shonk’s winsome Houses of Hope series!

A Promise to Keep

Brenna Ellsworth is going home to Laurel, Missouri with her toddler son Wyatt and precious little else. When life throws yet another curve ball at her, it is almost too much to bear. On the verge of collapse, God sends help in the form of Jamie Walton, firefighter-paramedic and baby wrangler who extends a hand and more until she can once again stand on her own.

With the group of James family and friends we have grown to love in the small towns of Laurel and Owens Valley, Missouri, Brenna learns that God was with her always, even when she didn’t know Him. She learns that men who dance in the kitchen, put out fires and rescue llamas named Bunny just might show her what God’s true rescue means. Enjoy this fifth book in the Houses of Hope series. Small-town Christian romance with flawed characters who meet the love, grace and redemption of Jesus and find hope and love in a sometimes dark and lonely world.

My thoughts: Sheri Smith Shonk has woven such a compelling cast of friends, many of whom have had challenging pasts. In this one there’s a house to restore, hearts to mend, generous young folks who do life together and are sincere about their faith, news about new babies, restoration, and reconciliation. Oh yes, A Promise to Keep is also a winsome love story.

The Author

Sheri Smith Shonk is a vivid storyteller. Her novels awaken the senses as the setting, the smell of bread baking, the sound of music and laughter permeate the pages of her writing. Raised in Northern California, she now resides in small-town Iowa with her husband and youngest two of her ten children. She loves spending time with her family, snuggling with her spoiled cats and oversized dog and learning new things. She enjoys good music, particularly contemporary Christian or jazz and often listens while writing.

“My desire is to write stories of real, flawed characters that experience the grace and restoration of God in a very real way, giving hope and light in a sometimes very dark world.”

Sheri earned a Bachelors of Writing with fiction concentration at Southern New Hampshire University and as a life-long learner will continue to learn all that she can about her craft so that she provides her readers with the best possible stories of hope and healing.

Please have a look at Sheri’s other books.

Laura Jordan and Friends? Or is it her Wedding Photo?

It’s a sepia photo, taken by Rich & Corwin, Guthrie Center, IA. There’s an arrow pointing to the girl on the right. On the back, in Leora Goff Wilson’s handwriting, it says “Laura Jordan (Goff) at 19 or 20 years of age and friends,” so this was taken about 1887 or 1888.

I didn’t recognize any of the others so I posted it on the Historic Guthrie County Facebook page and asked whether anyone, especially those genealogists, just might know who they are.

One man said he thought it was the wedding photo of a Goff family, February 25, 1890. Hmm, that’s the date Laura Jordan married Milton Sheridan “Sherd” Goff. He thought the others were Goff siblings, Edward and Minnie, plus Laura’s sister Floy. I was stunned. Does that mean that the “groom” in the center is Sherd Goff?

We’ve met Sherd’s brother Edwin Carlton Goff, and his sister Minnie Belle Goff. It’s hard to tell from photos whether it’s “Uncle Ed” but the woman on the left wore her hair the same way in at least one other photo. She was also a friend of Laura Jordan, both teaching country school in Guthrie County. Minnie’s death a few years later was a tragic one.

I’m leaning toward believing that three Goff siblings are in the photo. This photo was probably made before Laura married, and she would have been friends with the Goffs a year or two earlier. The girl standing in the back looks nothing like Laura’s next sister, Floy Jordan, so maybe she was a friend, perhaps another country school teacher.

My biggest conundrum? Leora Goff Wilson was the oldest child of Sherd and Laura Goff. Why wouldn’t she have recognized her own father and noted it on the back of the photo?

For the want of a bolt: The forced landing of an airliner in rural Iowa, January 19, 1955

Two young sisters being dropped off the Dexter bus along Old Creamery Road south of Dexter heard the plane sputter, just to the southwest of their rural home. My sister and I watched it descend to the south until we could no longer see or hear it.

Kids being dropped off the Earlham bus on the road a mile east of us watched the same troubled plane.

From where he was working in the barn, Dad (a World War II pilot and instructor) could hear a plane in distress. He headed for the house. Soon we were all bundled up and Dad, along with half the neighborhood, drove toward the area where it went down.

By the time we got there, our bus driver John Herrick had completed his route, the returned to the plane to see if he could help. The 36 passengers and 3 crew were shaken up but okay, so he drove them into Dexter. They gathered in the bank to warm up and to be checked out by Dexter’s doctors Chapler and Osborn, before deciding how to get to their destinations.

The twin engine United Airlines Convair, heading to Omaha from Des Moines, began to have trouble over Madison County. With little control, the pilot crash landed the plane in the Hochstetlers’ field, then slid through fences and across a gravel road, coming to rest in the Lenockers’ field of corn stubble.

How amazing that all 39 people aboard that plane survived. Plane was disassembled, pieces lifted into trucks by crane, and hauled to the Dexter train station. Flatcars carried them to the Convair plant in San Diego for repair. The airliner became a cargo plane, flying another 34 years.

The captain, first officer, and stewardess were given bonuses for the successful handling of the crippled plane. The Lenockers, who served meals to the men who salvaged the plane, were given a set of dishes, which family members still enjoy today. The Hochstetlers got a United Airlines check for $25 for the three fences destroyed by the plane. They still have the uncashed check as a souvenir.

Diorama by Tom Fagen of the downed aircraft in a snowy field of corn stubble.

A chunk of the plane’s propeller is on loan to the Dexter Historical Museum by the Hostetler family. Their son-in-law, Tom Fagen, has made a video of the history of the crash and the plane itself as well as a detailed diorama. The diorama may be seen in the Iowa Aviation Museum at the Greenfield Municipal Airport. 

What caused the plane to crash that winter day? Human error. A Civil Aeronautics Board investigation found that a fastener, or elevator bolt, on the elevator linkage had been removed the night before during a scheduled airframe inspection, but not reinstalled. For the want of a bolt.