In my brief touchdown with FB this morning, I saw a notice of raw honey for sale.
I knew the people selling the honey; I knew
the address.
When Bob had died in 1981, and was
resurrected to a life of steadfast salvation … he was baptized in their swimming
pool.
They owned and operated the Chevron Station
in Cathlamet, along Ocean Beach Highway – between Mace’s Drive-In and Phil’s
Hiway Mart. Bob did business there (for Durrah’s, as well as personal
business), when Carricker’s Gas Station in Cathlamet closed up.
I remember when they lost their only son in a
car wreck … and Marv, who owned a tow truck was called out to pull the car out
of the ditch. As soon as he saw it, he realized it was his son’s car: and his
son was dead. Dorothy was devasted.
Leaving Longview in the rear-view
mirror, I was thinking on that past frame of time, when I happened to glance
out the right-hand side of the windshield; and saw a beaver dam had recently
been built in the wetland area along Ocean Beach Highway.
I enjoyed seeing that – the closest beaver
dam sighting is up Spruce Creek; a spur off Mill Creek Road, further down the
highway. A logging road at the end of Spruce Creek used to drop right into Cathlamet
behind the golf course before it was gated on both ends, in the 1980’s. We
drove that road a lot: I miss that.
Entering Cathlamet, I saw the burger shack,
and nipped in there for a quick lunch.
When I PM’d Dorothy earlier about the honey,
she didn’t recognize the name (and I didn’t bring it to her attention) –
we’d been gone from Cathlamet for 2½ decades. When I showed up at the house,
and she saw me, then she recognized me. She asked about Bob; and I told
her Bob now lives in Heaven. She was sad to hear that news. As we walked to the
garage, (where she has the honey stored in a warm cupboard, so the honey doesn’t
crystalize), she asked if I was attending a church anywhere. I said no; not
currently. She understood. She knows what it is like to piece a shattered life
back together before engaging fully in life, again.
We talked of past times. We were never close
friends; but we did know each other enough to have things in common to discuss.
We talked of the present – her husband
has been in OHSU. She believes he had a bout with covid; though that has not
been diagnosed. Marv’s health is still very fragile. They have been Senior
Citizens for a long time. She is concerned for her husband in the present … and
worried about the future.
Our situations are similar, and the
circumstances are different; but we talk the same language.
She asked me if I had moved back to Cathlamet:
I said I live now in Longview (and have for 25 years), and I am making Longview
my home. There is nothing recognizable to me in Cathlamet, now. There is no
pull to lure me back. Bob was my tie to Cathlamet; and he is no longer
walking among us. Except for Bob, I was always an outsider in that clannish
river hamlet.
After I had stashed the honey jars
in the car, I decided to drive to Skamokawa to find the ‘Inn at Crippen Creek’ …
and I did; at the end of Middle Valley Road.
I couldn’t spend time there: there are
memories connected with that place, that aren’t good ones: the memories do not
affect me personally – but it was tragic for bio-father’s family. I just couldn’t
… that creek would bring all those memories to the forefront of my thoughts,
and I would not have a relaxing, or enjoyable time.
So …
I turned the car homeward.
And drove through Cathlamet, along the way. I
have no desire to move back there – but I can’t resist driving familiar
territory. 20 years of my 64 years were happily spent there, before we sold and
moved.
Cathlamet is basically a tourist
town now, and the Marina is practically the sole town money-maker. And, it was buzzing
with activity today! Every boat berth was full; every parking lot space was
loaded with trucks hauling boats; and every RV spot was packed.
There was no activity, at all, on Main Street.
When I got back home, I opened the windows to
let fresh, sunny air breeze through the rooms; and worked a bit on another baby
blanket (my own design) before eating a light Supper. I was still kinda
full from the chicken burger/fries I ate around noon. But it was 6 PM, and I
didn’t want churning stomach acids from an empty stomach to keep me up all
night long: I ate a light supper.
==LOW-CAL FRENCH DRESSING ~ About ½ cup
Soak: 1 teaspoon Gelatin in 1 Tablespoon cold Water or
Tomato Juice
Dissolve it in: ¼ cup boiling Water
Add: 1 Tablespoon Sugar & ½ teaspoon Sea salt
Cool mixture.
Add: 1 teaspoon grated Lemon rind * ¼ cup Lemon Juice *
1/8 teaspoon prepared Mustard * ¼ teaspoon Paprika * A few grains
powdered Cayenne pepper * 1/8 teaspoon ground Black Pepper * ¼ teaspoon
Onion Juice * 1/8 teaspoon Curry powder
Shake the dressing. Chill it. Before
serving, beat well with a wire beater. Add, if you wish: 2 Tablespoons minced
Parsley & 1 tablespoon minced Chives.
This light meal was filling.
Tonight, 2021 years ago, Yeshua was given a
Judas Kiss, following supper.
He, and his disciples were gathered together
in the Upper Room, celebrating the Passover festivities – and Yeshua was
initiating the very first Communion, that Christians still observe, in these
days.
Following the last supper he would ever eat
on earth, Yeshua went to a garden in Gethsemane to pray … and was betrayed by
Judas. Yeshua knew the betrayal was coming; and He was prepared when the
soldiers came to arrest him.
His arrest and trial went very quickly: he
was tried, sentenced, hung, buried, and resurrected from Wednesday to Sunday’s
timeframe.
And through it all, Yeshua showed compassion,
and exampled kindness towards those who used and abused Him.
The life, teaching, examples, and acceptance
of Yeshua towards those (and me), are what helps me go through my time
of lonesome sorrowing – past, present, and future.
I am
thankful knowing He walks beside me, every step of the unfamiliar way – where the
only certainty is that He is.
