Chris Loehmer Kincaid's Blog, page 25

Land of Ladysmith

Idon’t know how many times I’ve ridden through Ladysmith, Wisconsin. Many, many,many times. When I was a kid, we frequently visited a cousin of mine, and Ladysmithwas the half-way point between her house and ours.

Coming through town, on Highway 8, we’d always drive past Memorial Park, and I always wanted to stop. I’m sure my parents had to have stopped there sometime, but I don’t remember.

Last month, when I was staying at a nearby AirBnb with a friend, I finally got to explore the park, along with the rest of the town.

Throughout the city, population just over 3,000, there are several murals acknowledging area residents.  

Pioneer Park is on the site of the former Warner Cemetery.

A large display told the story of many who were once buried there in the early 1900s. It was so sad how many children and babies had died in those years, from things like diphtheria, pneumonia, injuries and erysipelas, which is some sort of skin infection. There was also a mother and baby listed who died during childbirth.

We missed several other parks in Ladysmith, as well as several museums, including the Wisconsin’s Plow Museum. Too bad it was closed for the season. I gotta get there next year! 

Words which ring true today

 It’sbeen a long time since I’ve shared an entire chapter from the book of Psalms.Here is chapter 118, from the New Living Translation. Sorry that it is so long,but I couldn’t pick out the best verses; I liked them all.  

1Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good! His faithful love endures forever.

2Let all Israel repeat: “His faithful love endures forever.”

3Let Aaron’s descendants, the priests, repeat: “His faithful love endures forever.”

4Let all who fear the Lord repeat: “His faithful love endures forever.”

5In my distress I prayed to the Lord, and the Lord answered me and set me free.

6The Lord is for me, so I will have no fear. What can mere people do to me?

7Yes, the Lord is for me; he will help me. I will look in triumph at those who hateme.

8It is better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust in people.

9It is better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust in princes.

10Though hostile nations surrounded me, I destroyed them all with the authority ofthe Lord.

11Yes, they surrounded and attacked me, but I destroyed them all with the authorityof the Lord.

12They swarmed around me like bees; they blazed against me like a cracklingfire. But I destroyed them all with the authorityof the Lord.

13My enemies did their best to kill me, but the Lord rescued me.

14The Lord is my strength and my song; he has given me victory.

15Songs of joy and victory are sung in the camp of the godly. The strong right arm of the Lord has doneglorious things!

16The strong right arm of the Lord is raised in triumph. The strong right arm of the Lord has doneglorious things!

17I will not die; instead, I will live to tell what the Lord has done.

18The Lord has punished me severely, but he did not let me die.

19Open for me the gates where the righteous enter, and I will go in and thank the Lord.

20These gates lead to the presence of the Lord, and the godly enter there.

21I thank you for answering my prayer and giving me victory!

22The stone that the builders rejected has now become the cornerstone.

23This is the Lord’s doing, and it is wonderful to see.

24This is the day the Lord has made. We will rejoice and be glad in it.

25Please, Lord, please save us. Please, Lord, please give us success.

26Bless the one who comes in the name of the Lord. We bless you from the house of the Lord.

27The Lord is God, shining upon us. Take the sacrifice and bind it with cordson the altar.

28You are my God, and I will praise you! You are my God, and I will exalt you!

29Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good! His faithful love endures forever.

   

Morewords from the Bible that ring true today.

Getting High in Wisconsin

WhenI was a kid, I remember being told that Rib Mountain in Wausau was the tallestpoint in Wisconsin. And look I even found proof of that.

 Actually, currently, the highest spot on Rib Mountain is 1,924 feet above sea level. But since this sign was installed, two other peaks have measured higher. Sugarbush Hill in Forest County at 1,939 feet and, at number one, Timm’s Hill at 1,951. Interesting that of the top ten tallest spots in Wisconsin, six are named hills and only two have mountain in their names.

But I really wanted to stick to Rib Mountain in this post. 

Five weeks ago, when the leaves were still on the trees, the sun was shining, and it was warm enough to wear shorts, my sister, niece and I took a drive to the top of the Rib Mountain State Park.

We didn’t climb to the top of the tower, and we didn’t hike any of the many trails throughout the state park.

But we had some laughs and made some memories.

Now, the mountain is waiting for the winter sports season to begin.

The Lord is Always with You

 “The Lord will guide you always; he willsatisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land and will strengthen your frame. Youwill be like a well-watered garden, like a spring whose waters never fail.”Isaiah 58:11

After the book of Psalms, Isaiah has the most chaptersof all the books in the Bible. And there’s some hard reading there. Lots of prophecyand history and things we struggle to understand because so much of it seems soforeign to us.

 “So do not fear, for I am with you; do notbe dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I willuphold you with my righteous right hand.” Isaiah 41:10

It shouldn’t be that hard, but I sure don’t have the knowledgeto understand it. But I do know that it contains some amazing verses.  

 “Surely God is my salvation; I will trustand not be afraid. The Lord, the Lord himself, is my strength and my defense;he has become my salvation.” Isaiah 12:2

As you may have heard, I’ve been compiling a 40-daydevotional of how to deal with pain, by turning to the Bible for answers andrelief. A lot of the verses I’ve included in this book come from Isaiah.

 “Lord, be gracious to us; we long for you.Be our strength every morning, our salvation in time of distress.” Isaiah 33:2

Some mornings I wake up and need to recall these lines,as my pain is still not completely gone.  

 “He gives strength to the weary andincreases the power of the weak.” Isaiah 40:29

But I need to hang in there and continue to turn mytroubles over to God. He has got this, and one day my troubles will be over. Oneday your troubles will be over too.

 “The past troubles will be forgotten…See,I will create new heavens and a new earth.” Isaiah 65:17

And just like that Autumn is over

I’vetaken quite a few drives and trips around the area the last month since theleaves began to turn. I’ll be sharing more of those pictures over the next fewweeks.

Butfirst, I wanted to share some of the shots I took on my short walk yesterday, sinceit is the first of November and we had our first snowfall the other night. Whichreminds me that our last snowfall in the spring was only five months and sevendays ago!

I've always loved this birch tree at the first corner of our road.  Someone already threw this pumpkin out on the corner a week ago. I just decorated my house for Halloween on Monday, as in the day before yesterday.  A mushroom bites the dust, or more like bites the snow. 
What we call yard art, on a tree in the yard. 
I really got my camera out and started taking pictures because I loved how the leaves looked
all over the yard.  But I didn't notice this circle of leaves until I put the pictures on the computer. Cool, huh? 
My flower bed off the deck. Looks like a mess.  Does that thing in the circle look like Groot from Guardians of the Galaxy? 
Or am I begining to see things?  

The Beauty of the Season and of God's Words

The back pain which afflicted me last April seems tobe finally easing up. I still have bad days, but overall, I think that God hasanswered my prayers. I think that the pain I’m still experiencing is somethingI can live with, and something I may have to live with it.

Over the past several months, I’ve been studying Bibleverses to give me hope, passages to lift me up and remind me that God willnever leave me nor forsake me.

I’ve also been getting out more and enjoying thebeauty that God has blessed us with this time of year.

May God bless you this week and beyond. Chris

Magical Kinstone

It hasn’t quite been a month since I visited my friend inMinnesota. South of where she lives, and just about across the MississippiRiver from Winona, is a fascinating place called Kinstone.

Kinstone is 30-acres of peaceful beauty filled with stone sculpture, natural buildings, planted prairie, and views of the Mississippi River. It features three stone circles, dolmen, standing stones, labyrinth, thatched cordwood chapel and more. 

In 1994, Kristine Beck, the founder and creator of Kinstone, purchased the land which had been part of her family’s original dairy farm.  Kristine’s focus is on the beauty and wonder of nature. For her, Kinstone is a melding of the Earth with art to form sacred spaces that invite and inspire people to experience the life-giving power of the land to transform, energize and revive.  

I wish I would have had more time to explore the place when I stopped in that day.

I also wish that the battery on my camera hadn’t died. You’re probably going to look at these pictures and wonder, “Her battery died? But she took all these pictures.”

Well, you know me. Even when I regret something, there is always something to love. 

Read more about Kinstone by clicking this link.

What - or Who - should we trust?

 Some trust in wagons and some in horses.But we will trust in the name of the Lord, our God. (Psalm 20:7, New LifeVersion)

Last spring, I bought a newer vehicle. It has a ton ofsafety features, all of which blow my mind. It tells me if I veer from my laneand when someone moves into my blind spot. It yells at me if another carapproaches me when I'm backing up. How can a vehicle know all that ishappening?

Of course, it also has a light that comes on when Ihave a low tire – a feature my last three cars have had. Unfortunately, thelight didn't go off even after Hubby put air in the tire. Hmm? How trustworthyis that?

Or, actually, how much should I trust all these otherfeatures? If I pull over in front of someone because one of those lights didn'tcome on, who's liable? The manufacturer? They put enough trust inall these safety features that my car insurance is lower because they believethe chances of me having an accident are lower.

But what – or who – can we trust 100% of the time? Whowarns us every time we stray into the other lane? Whose lights always come on whenthere is the need to be cautious?

God is the only One we can trust with everything, allof the time. As long as we put our faith in Him, He will not let us wander. Hewill keep us from harm.

Minnesota in the Fall

Nearly every season allows us to spread joy in our outsideplaces. From patriot flags in the summer to snowmen, Santas, and penguins duringthe winter. Granted the lights of Christmas win all decorating contests, but autumn,with its parade of pumpkins, satisfies all our senses. The smell of fallen leaves,the crunch of those same leaves underfoot. The taste of pumpkin spice on ourlips. Cool nights and turning our faces to the fleeting warmth of the afternoonsun.

Many people say that fall is their favorite season. I would say mine too, except that it’s followed by a miserable winter. But anyway. Pictures. 

A few weeks ago, I visited a friend in Minnesota. Those small towns along the banks of the Mississippi River take their fall decorating to a new level.  Especially in quaint Wabasha. 

Perhaps we embellish our surroundings so much this time of year because we revel in the beauty mother nature supplies. Not that we could ever compete with her.

Get outside and enjoy this season, before we are blasted with frost and snow. Maybe make some new friends along the way.

A Visit to A Toy Store and More

I haven’t been blogging muchlately. I don’t know if I’m just being lazy or what. And when I have posted aboutany trips I’ve taken this summer, I mostly just share pictures and not the longstories I used to write. But maybe you like just pictures instead of myramblings anyway. Let me know.

            I’mgoing to try to start writing more, whether you find that boring or not. I’llstill always try to include pictures.

            The last road trip I took was to see my friend Julie in Minnesota the weekend of Sept29.

            OnSaturday, she took me to Lark Toys, which is a huge toy store, but is also waymore. 

               

   Firstinside is Memory Lane, with multiple displays of toys from the past.

Allof us older adults kept pointing to toys, exclaiming, “I had that when I was akid.” And any of today’s kids who were being dragged along were like, “Where’sthe Nintendo?”          

               But Ithink everyone likes a carousel. I don’t care how old or young you are.       

 

Anotter for me.

               And a loon for my sister Judy.   

            Oh, hello there, Mr. Stegosaurus.              

 And of course, it’s autumn, so everywhere outside, there were pumpkins and mums, haybales and corn stalks.           

     Happy Autumn, Everyone. I only wished it didn’t mean that winter is next.