What a time I had

For many years now and probably longer than I want to remember, I have had to use a portable tank of o2 when getting around. Last year when my family and I came out to Seattle to visit I did rather well going out there because according to United Airlines you could not bring o2 on board according to FAA rules so I decided to try to get out there without using it and then when I got to Seattle I could fill up my empty tank and be on my merry way. But on the way home as we were flying to Chicago I had a bit of a problem. My peripheral visiopn started to go and my breathing became very shallow and I began to fight for air. Now at this altitude there is not much that can be done, so I took it in stride hoping that we would soon touch down. To say the least I was quite happy when we did. The flight from Chicago to Bradley went a lot better because we didn't have to get up so high. Also it was a smaller plane and we had a lot more leg room.
This year coming out was a more harrowing experience. My wife and I booked our flight to come out to see our new granddaughter back in February. She had not even been born when we booked the flight. Tate was born on Monday morning after Easter and so with the way we had everything booked that it would work out fine with our son and daughter-in-law that would allow them to get back to school while we could stay and watch Tate Rose while they were teaching to finish out the school year. Every thing was fine and because of what I had understood the airlines people to say was that it would be ok for me to bring my o2 portable on board the flight. I e-mailed the AA who we had booked with on the Friday a week before we were to leave just to be certain. They had a form that had to be published and then signed off by your doctor stating you needed o2. I was having a big problem with my computer in getting that off so in talking to my son, he copied it and e-mailed it to me. When I ever read the copy it stated that the only way was to use a portable concentrater and that you could not use a portable liquid o2 tank, well my heart just about dropped.
I then decided that oh well I would try to do this without the tank, with the hopes thatI would be able to do this because of the flight that I had from Chicago to Bradley.
As we approached the day I became increasingly apprehensive about this. When we left Sunday morning I was sure that this was not to be one of my greatest ideas that I had ever come up with. Boy, wasI right. When we took off and started to climb to 35,000 feet I knew I was in trouble then. A bit later the pilot came on and said that we were going to go to 37,000 feet I thought that I was going to cry.
So here we are at 37,000 feet and I am running out of breath. My fingers are turning dark blue and my breathing is starting to be come more and more shallow. I began to pray and really thought that this was my end. Cindy, when she saw me said are you ok.The first few times she asked I said that I was but I really wasn't. On about the fourth time I said "no" "I can't do this". She said do you want me to tell the stewardess and I said yes.
Well both flight attendants came up and one was carrying a portable o2 tank. They quickly administered the o2 to me and then, that quickly I started to come back around. We landed in Dallas/Ft.Worth and we had to make out a report. Then we were not able to get our transfer until I got approval from my doctor in Vernon Connecticut on a Sunday morning to let them know how much liters of o2 to administer to me on the plane, what a day it was. To say the least when I talked with my doctor she lit in to me like there was no tommorrow. I know that she was mad when she said she wanted to talk to my wife even. Well all is well that ends well and we did get into Seattle a couple of hours later then we originally had planned but now we are here and enjoying our new little precious life. So as this life begins to fade which it is doing I begin to look at the new lives that God has shone me in Jacob, Aislinn, Susan and Tate RoseI say thanks to the God overall things who does know the beginning from the end. The Lord Jesus who has every hair on my head counted. I am not sure after this trip thatI may ever fly again. But I tell you the truth now that I am so glad that when I fly with Christ I will not need any tanks of oxygen to fly with. This old will put on new and I will fly with Christ Jesus.

Just doing what I do best

According to the movie Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, Butch is the guy that does all the thinking. So my wife has always told me that is what I do best because my nickname is Butch. I am supposed to do all the thinking. Well today I am sitting here thinking of how much blessing can one person endure. After spending Easter with the grandchildren in Rhode Island we were told that my son in Washington and his wife were ready to deliver their first in Everett, Washington. They already knew the sex of the child so we knew that Tate Rose was on her way. My son was going to definitely keep close tabs with us to let us know the outcome as soon as it happened.
Upon our arrival home to Ellington later that evening we were surprised to hear that our other granddaughter was also to be born soon for her mother was in the hospital to deliver. Early Monday morning I found out that Tate Rose was born at 1:00 Pacific time in the morning on Monday and that Susan had already been born at 11:30 pm Eastern time the previous evening.
So here I am thinking [which is what I am supposed to do best] of how can one man be so blest in the same day. I have looked at and looked at the pictures of these two precious lives and say what an awesome God we serve. I just want to take these little lives and hold them and hold them to shelter them from a large world out there. Only what I will do is pray that God will hold these little ones in his Everlasting Arms.
So with all this thinking that I have been doing I am not accomplishing much else. So as I am thinking now that it is time to start to get somethings done around here. My wife and I are planning to go out west in June and I will not be able to contain myself till then . I am so looking forward to seeing little Tate and her mom and dad. I am also looking forward to holding little Susan and as always hugging my Jakey and my "Munchkin" Aislinn. How blest I am to have four grandchildren can you "think" about that.

Good

I have long wondered why it is called Good Friday? Why is it different from any other Friday? What makes this day so important that schools would be closed and offices would be shut down and even bussinesses at one time were closed? What if any chance that the greatest event in the history of mankind never took place? Think about what you would consider the most important event in the history of mankind is? Some might say, man walking on the moon. Some might think of a great battle that was won. Some may think that the first flight at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina. Some of these events may have even taken place on a Friday, but yet we don't call it Good Friday. So what makes this Friday, Good Friday?
We can look at all the monstrous things that are happening in the world today. My thoughts go out to those who have lost loved ones and have even given testimony in the Moussai trial and how this man has shown nothing but contempt for those that lost their lives in the 911 murders on the Twin Towers in New York. It is so hard for me to believe that there are really whackos like him. But despite all these scenerios and all the other situations and the murders and the mayhem going on in our world today,we have Good Friday
What greater event has ever taken place then Good Friday. The God of the Universe allowed His Son to die for us. I replayed again the DVD of Mel Gibsons the "Passion of The Christ"last evening. This movie should be seen again and again. This historical event should be embedded in the minds of all. I know that there are some who don't believe it, but look up the Roman Historian Josephus [Antiquities of the Jews;Bookxviii chapter iii;section 3] account of it and see what took place to make Good Friday what it is. Whatever or however people think about Jesus they should never forget what he did. This is why they call it Good Friday. Only for Him suffering and dying on a cross which was the Roman form of torture and death at that time could we ever have a Good Friday. It certainly wasn't a good Friday for Jesus. What He went through that day, he did for all of us . Yes even you Moussai and yes even me. You see none of us are any better. We all deserved to have the same form of punishment that Jesus received. There is a song that says that, While He was on the cross that day,He looked ahead and saw. You and I were on His mind. Yes He did it for us. All we need to do is say yes to Him.
As I look at this Good Friday, my thoughts go out to all that need to understand and accept why it is called Good Friday. If you accept what took place on Good Friday you will definitely have a Glorious Easter. As Paul Harvey used to say"and now the rest of the story". Easter is the fulfilment of Friday. Jesus just couldn't die because the purpose would not have been served. The purpose of His dying was to rise again. Which is exactly what He did. So I say to you today I hope you have a Good Friday and a joyous Easter to remember what God did for you.

Again

Well here we go again. Another year of as Spring blooms eternal for the Red Sox. At the begining of this new season of baseball I again believe that the Red Sox have put together a dominant [ahem] team for this year, and that at the end of the baseball season we as Red Sox Nation will cheer on to the World Series our favoite team from "Beantown".
Now I will be 61 years old this summer and for the past 58 years have said the same thing and that not until 2004 did I actually realize my dream. I have taught my sons and daughter well for they too are, or will be rooting hard for the "Nation". One thing that I have taught them is not to give up because it can happen. Last night as I saw the opening of the season with the White Sox and the Indians I began to fantasize that once again this could be the year. I remembered back as a kid to how I used to take my baseball cards and put together the most fabulous Red Sox team ever. Those were the days of Jackie Jensen, Ted Williams, "Pistol" Pete Runnels and continued down through the years. I can remember my Dad taking me to Yankee Stadium to see the Red Sox play doubleheaders and actually being able to see these great stars along with the greats of New York even though I hated them. They were the "Evil Empire" even then. Mantle would usually hit one out or Maris .And I can remember back to the days of Clete Boyer, Gene Woodling, Whitey Ford, Don Larsen, Yogi Berra along with that great manager of all time Casey Stengal and actually having the priveledge of watching these players.
Well so much for the nostalgia. This year the pitching we should have. We still have the good hitters in "Manny being Manny" "Big Pappi" "Trot' and "Tec"and so with all that Red Sox should once again make the "Nation"proud. As I said before "Hope springs eternal"

They are OVA

Well like they say in Boston, They are O.V.A. ova. The Holidays are ova. Surprisingly enough I did a good job of getting through the Christmas holiday and really enjoying them this year. I don't know any reason why they were different this year than in past years except that the grandchildren made it that much more enjoyable for me. I actually enjoyed going out shopping for my wife and doing the wrapping. If you ever saw how I wrap a gift you would totally understand why people may even normally pay someone to wrap for them. Although again I did enjoy it.
As we start out on this brand New Year I am quite anxious to get back into my routine of going to help out at the school with my Sister-in-Law. It will be exciting to hear all their stories from Christmas and the other holidays that were celebrated by the students. I also look forward to what God has in store for me as I travel through this journey that I am on. It is amazing how we began last year with the same hopes that I had at the beginning of 2005 that I start this 2006 with. Maybe they aren't the same for others and in some respects for me they can't totally be the same. My hopes this year will include two more grandchildren. Isn't God wonderful!
What more is in store for me ? It will include another trip to Seattle for a new grandaughter who will be named Tate.
So much to look forward to. The best is yet to come for me. As I go to Rhode Island each week to see Jake and Aislinn I continue to enjoy these visits more and more. Just to see how they grow and are developing it truly astounds me. What more could a man ask for than to see these children progress through their own lives. So I say as this year begins with excitement for me my prayers are that your New Year will be not only an exciting time but even more that that, that this year will be filled with lasting memories and that as we come to a New Year in 2007, we can look back at 2006 and say that the journey has been a great event.
Blessed New Year

Just sitting here

I am just sitting here at the computer and kind of reminiscing about past Christmases. The older that I get the harder sometimes it is to remember about the" good old days" as we have called them. I have often wondered why it is that when my children had to be roused from their sleep to open gifts so that we could go off to church when my brothers children were always awake at 3:00 am to get a head start on their gifts. Maybe it was that they might have already known what they were getting because they peeked or maybe that they were tired from the evening before of going to their grandparents house on both sides. But I often wondered about that. We had started a new tradition last year of going to Rhode Island and staying over at my sons house which we will again be doing this year but in some ways I will miss the old traditions of going to my moms house on Christmas eve and listening to the old old stories of the "Green suited Santa Claus" that I saw one year or how as kids my dad would always make us sing carols doing what he called pop-ups. Pop-ups were when you started singing, the oldest which was my sister Karen would begin with Silent Night and the I would join in with her and sing together Holy Night and so on through the family.
Over the past few years things have changed of course and we sometimes painfully look back at those memories. As Mom has gotten older and long since my Dad has passed away two days before Christmas in 1977, I begin to wonder will the grandchildren talk of such things as don't you remember that Christmas when.
My prayers are that when they do talk of Christmas that once again they will remember the really good times of Christmas past. That they will fondly look back and think oh that one, what a great time we had.
As I think about this Christmas I am again waiting out the days and reminiscing that once again we will be celebrating what Christmas is really all about. Thank God that Jesus was born. Thank God that he grew up to become a man and thank you Jesus for going to the cross and thank you for ascending to the throne and I can't wait for your return in all your power and glory.
As the Angels declared that first Christmas "for unto you is born this day in the City Of David a Savior who is Christ the Lord". So let me get back to my reminiscing.

Dreary Days

It has been a while since I have written anything and being that it is another dreary Saturday and I really can't find anything to do , I thought I would post a blog. It has really been some trying times of late although things really haven't gotten quite out of hand as of yet. Two weeks ago we were in New Hampshire for my brother-in-laws 50th Birthday which was a real treat. I have only been to his house twice since he has been there and never really understood the meaning of "Red-Neck Country" until I went there for the second time. I will get to that later.
We arrived on Friday night and it began to rain when we arrived and it continued to rain all evening and it continued to rain all night and it continued to rain all day and into the next night.
What really was interesting is that they were going to cook two turkeys by using what they called a deep frying method. Well I have never had turkey cooked that way before because I am of the "old school" where a turkey was roasted in the oven for six or seven hours. Well Saturday morning they got up all the paraphenallia that they needed ,two gas tanks and these large homemade pots that they had and turned them up waiting for them to come up to temp. After they take the turkeys which they inject with this seasoning and throw them into the pots.
After that they grab a brew and put their one hand in their pocket and with the beer in their other hand. That is where the "red neck" part comes in because this is quite a sight. Out in the garage with four guys and one girlfriend of the other cooker and two others standing around. I had to laugh.
By the way the turkey cooked that way was excellent. We came home Sunday from the party and it continued to rain the remainder of the week.
With all the good times that we had we were to face another situation which we were not all that ready for. My wife's grandmother who was 94 years old took a turn for the worst prior to our going to N.H. On Wednesday night we received a call that she was slipping fast and that we should probably go to see her. When we arrived at about 9:30 pm we could see by the look on everyones face that was there, which was Cindy's mom and dad and her brother and sister-in-law from Alaska that it would probably not be long. Well I have never really been at the bedside of someone who was slipping into eternity recently and that I could see that this was probably going to be the case here. Cindy after some urging by her mother and I left at about 11:15 pm knowing that this would be the last time we would probably see her alive. Surely enough in God's infinite mercy Grandma passed at around 4:15 am Thursday morning. What was good for all that were at her bedside that evening was that we got to pray together and to sing a hymn before she passed.
So with all that rain that we had it sure was an eventful week. The funeral was on Saturday at the funeral home and my Son did the officiating of the service. Not just because he is my son, but I believe that Keith did and excellent job and that I was just so proud of him. And it continued to rain till we got done with the graveside service and just like that the sun appeared.
Now mind you in some spots it got over 14 inches of rain during the week and rivers were swollen and basements including mine were flooded what a horrible week it was.
Now I sit here again on another Saturday and as the rain is now beginning to pelt off the roof, dare I wonder not another dreary weekend. But once again this gives me time to reflect on the past two dreary weekends and remember the good and the hard and still to know God is in control of all the situations.
One last thought in remembering is that my brother-in-law and his wife and son went back to Alaska and just before they left I watched an elderly gentleman whom I love dearly began to cry.
I am not sure what all brought those tears to his eyes, but I do know that it made me began to well up inside and tears began to come to my eyes as well as the eyes of the son who was leaving to go back home. Maybe it was the fact of all that has happened over the past couple of weeks or maybe it was the man seeing his son go away again or maybe the thought of not seeing him soon or even God forbid ever again but I do know that on Tuesday it was a dreary day for Mr. Bill Livengood.