My Blog - by Marge Marshall

In memory of my dad

2011-01-26T14:29:00.007-06:00

My dad, Walter Hobart Seaton, was born 106 years ago, in 1905. He as the youngest of 6 children. Here he is with his mother, Martha Jane Caton Seaton. I think he was about six years old when the photo was made.

He was born in Crane, Missouri. My four siblings and I were blessed to have him for our father.

Dad passed away in 1982, and is buried beside my mom, Dorothy Elizabeth Vaughn Seaton, in the Lyons, Kansas, Municipal Cemetery.

Flag of the United States of America

2010-05-13T19:39:00.003-05:00

Hello. Remember me? Some people call me Old Glory, others call me the Star-Spangled Banner, but whatever they call me, I am your Flag, the flag of the United States of America. Something has been bothering me, so I thought I might talk it over with you—because it is about you and me.

I remember some time ago, people would line up on both sides of the street to watch the parade, and naturally I was leading everyone, proudly waving in the breeze. When your daddy saw me coming, he immediately removed his hat and placed it against his left shoulder so that the hand was directly over his heart—remember? And you, I remember, were standing there, straight as a soldier. You didn't have a hat, but you were giving the right salute. Remember your little sister? Not to be outdone, she was saluting the same as you, with her right hand over her heart—remember?

What happened? I’m still the same old flag. Oh, I've added a few more stars since you were a boy, and a lot more blood has been shed since those parades of long ago. But now, somehow I don't feel as proud as I used to feel. When I come down your street, you just stand there with your hands in your pockets. You may give me a small glance, and then you look away. I see children running around you shouting, they don't seem to know who I am.

I saw one man take his hat off, then he looked around, and when he didn't see anybody else take off his hat, he quickly put his on again.

Is it a sin to be patriotic today? Have you forgotten what I stand for, and where I have been? Anzio, Guadalcanal, Korea and Vietnam?

Take a look at the memorial honor rolls, and see the names of those patriotic Americans who gave their lives to keep this republic free. When you salute me, you are actually saluting them.

Well, it won't be long until I’ll be coming down your street again. So when you see me, stand straight and place your hand over your heart, and I’ll know that you remembered. I’ll salute you by waving back! -Author Unknown

Great-grandkids

2010-04-23T12:06:00.002-05:00

Here we are with our daughter Janet and all 8 of our great-grandchildren. They are a fun bunch of kids! We always appreciate their parents for bringing them to visit us.

Moving ahead

2010-04-09T11:42:00.001-05:00

Just thinking that sometimes we get stuck with old ideas which really hold us back, when we need to trust the Lord to guide us into new ideas, processes and programs that will move us forward. I think that's what the Apostle Paul meant in 2 Timothy 1:13b-14 "...But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus." This can apply to each of us individually as well as to "us" as a group.

Attributes of Love

2010-04-01T18:52:00.003-05:00

Love

Love is patient and kind.
Love is not jealous, it does not brag, and it is not proud.
Love is not rude, is not selfish, and does not get upset with others.
Love does not count up wrongs that have been done.
Love takes no pleasure in evil but rejoices over the truth.
Love patiently accepts all things.
It always trusts, always hopes, and always endures.
Love never ends.

–Paul, in 1 Corinthians 13:4-8a (New Century Version)

Thoughts on some New Testament scriptures

2010-03-25T18:22:00.006-05:00

Faith expressing itself through love is what counts - not just obeying a set of rules. Our Heavenly Father provides His Holy Spirit to help us produce the fruits He wants us to have: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. This list of "fruits" tells us all about what Jesus is like, and the Spirit wants us to be like Him. (See Galatians 5:22,23.)

I like James 3:17, "...The wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere."

Colossians 3:12-17 provides a practical "code of ethics" for Christian living - and I try to review it periodically as a guide for my life.

Why?

2010-03-19T12:10:00.003-05:00

Why? We ask that about things we want to know more about. But we also ask it as a form of protest. We really mean we are angry that something is happening - or not happening. In these situations, we probably don’t want a reasonable explanation. We want it to happen our way, or stop happening and return to the way it was - in other words, just be the way we think it should be.

In Genesis 37, we aren’t told what Joseph was thinking when his brothers sold him as a slave, but we can guess he was thinking just about the way we would have. But God was in his whole situation. As Paul wrote under the anointing of the Holy Spirit, in Romans 8:28, "All things work together for good...." Young Joseph undoubtedly reproached himself for the things he’d said that angered his brothers, but it was blame he did not need to accept, for God had a wonderful purpose in mind for His people.

Dear Heavenly Father, please help us to learn to look for Your purpose instead of grumbling "Why?" and/or taking blame on ourselves when things don’t go the way we think they ought to. Please help us seek Your plan, Father, and abandon our own agendas. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.

Patience

2010-03-19T10:23:00.003-05:00

Patience is the Christian's growth hormone. It's not something you can purchase; it's home-grown! Requires lots of opportunities to practice, which is where the trials and tribulations come in. "Practice makes perfect" as the old saying goes. See Romans 5:1-5 KJV.

Landen is now 4

2010-03-04T10:03:00.002-06:00

Our youngest great-grandchild is now 4 years old. Landen is Jami's son. We celebrated his birthday at a McDonald's fun space in Olathe KS.

The gift that really got his attention was a battery-operated computer-like learning game.

Landen has a 12-year-old sister, Jacey, and a 9-year-old brother, Hunter. They all enjoyed one of his gifts, the fake glasses and Groucho Marx mustache. Also at the party were cousins Jaden (10) and Jaxen (9)

Southern Southeast Alaska

2009-05-10T21:51:00.002-05:00

My husband and I lived on Prince of Wales Island for five years and we have lots of pictures! So I'm sharing some of them by building an album on www.webshots.com. No cost to me and no cost to you to look at them; just sign up. You might even want to put them in your screensaver. ;) You can find my album at
http://outdoors.webshots.com/album/571956288fXvIKZ

Texas wedding

2008-09-03T20:42:00.006-05:00

Our youngest grandchild is now a married woman. Halee Marshall married Marshall Holland in August - it was a lovely wedding. The bridal couple is shown below. Marshall is a student at Texas Tech University in Lubbock.

Quite a few relatives and friends gathered in David & Shannon's home - it was funny to see the number of laptops furnishing part of the entertainment... including mine! We gave David's network a good workout. ;)

Tuned in

2008-07-29T10:27:00.005-05:00

I am a fan of classical music and enjoy listening to it on radio, TV, tapes, CDs and my Ipod. Pictured above is the Philadelphia Orchestra from http://www.gophila.com/. At church this past Sunday we sang a worship chorus with "The earth is filled with His glory" in it and I thought to myself there are many people who would doubt that statement. Then I remembered about 30 years ago when we got a pre-owned car which had an AM/FM radio in it. I had heard about FM broadcasting but had never been able to tune it in. I was driving somewhere one evening and decided to try it. Over the air came beautiful music, and I was delighted! Just think, this awesome music had been available for a long time but I had not been able to tune in and hear it.

If we want to be fully aware that the earth is filled with God's glory, we've got to be tuned in to Him. When that happens our entire being is changed! 2 Corinthians 5:17 states, "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he (or she) is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!" Howard likes to say that Jeremiah 33:3 is God's telephone number - " 'Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know.' " In John 3:16-17, Jesus declared "For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him." That's how you too can tune in to all of God's extravagant love and forgiveness!

Marge

Scriptures from the New International Version of the Bible

Motorcycles

2008-06-22T11:19:00.002-05:00

Our friend, pharmacist Bill Altland, is a motorcycle enthusiast who lives on Prince of Wales Island in southeastern Alaska. He recently went on a 19,215 mile trip to Tierra del Fuego in South America. He kept an excellent blog and you can read it by going to Whale Tail Pharmacy's website and following the links on http://www.whaletailpharmacy.com/.

Enjoy!

Alaska ministry

2008-06-02T14:54:00.003-05:00

Thanks to PictureTrail.com, we've been able to put on the Internet a slideshow of Howard's ministry in far west Alaska. I think you'll enjoy it. The address is http://www.picturetrail.com/marshallministry

Marge

2008-02-25T10:41:00.004-06:00

"Meadows in the Mountains" is a daily devotional program into which the Lord has led me. Its focus is: More of Jesus, less of me. I gained inspiration from Joan Cavanaugh’s book by that name. She writes, “The uphill road we travel is especially discouraging and tiring to the overweight — unless you catch a ride in a powerful car. The word of God is that power. Finding what we need and using it to overcome our very real problem is what this book is about. God helped me to find the special vehicle that helped me to the top, and He told me to share it with you. So hop in! Welcome to an adventure in overcoming!”

The details are on-line at www.spaciousskies.us/Meadows.html.

Focus on Today

2008-01-07T16:00:00.000-06:00

2008

This year I'm concentrating on Matthew 6:34 in The Message version of the scriptures. (See http://www.biblegateway.com/)

"Give your entire attention to what God is doing right now, and don't get worked up about what may or may not happen tomorrow. God will help you deal with whatever hard things come up when the time comes." -Jesus Christ

I so often find myself getting stressed out over things beyond my control and "awfulize" - sort of expecting the worst to happen. And of course it's a waste of my time and effort. So if I concentrate on what Jesus said, I'll feel better automatically.

Marge

Christmas 1952

2007-12-14T11:16:00.000-06:00

Howard & I didn't spend our first Christmas together. I was in Lyons, Kansas and he was stationed aboard the USS Piedmont, AD-17. Here's an excerpt from the autobiography he's writing.

1952 - One of the more enjoyable responsibilities of my job as chaplain’s assistant was at Christmas time aboard the Piedmont, when we had a Christmas party for Japanese American orphans. We had 85 of the children, boys and girls. Our ship had appointed a "committee" to buy toys for these 85 children as well as new clothing for each. They had the sizes for the boys and girls and made purchases and brought them back to the ship. So, for a number of weeks before the party, it was my job to gift-wrap these toys and I believe the clothing marked for the age of the child and for either a boy or a girl.

Our chow hall was converted to a large party area with a Christmas tree and all the gifts under it. But... before the Christmas dinner, each child was taken to the "head" for a shower and their new clothes, then came dinner for everyone, followed by Santa Claus coming to present the gifts. It was an afternoon that was well spent and the children went back to the orphanage fed, newly dressed and happy with their new toys. I need to tell you about the 6 year old boy I had for the day. His name was Joey Chan and by the time we parted, I was ready to adopt him. He and I got along quite well. I ignited an almost-fire when I wrote home telling them I would like to adopt him! Marge and I had only been married 6 months and it just was not meant to be. There has never been a Christmas like that one in Sasebo Harbor, Sasebo, Japan.

Thanksgiving Day

2007-11-20T11:56:00.000-06:00

Now thank we all our God, with heart and hands and voices, Who wondrous things has done, in Whom this world rejoices; Who from our mothers’ arms has blessed us on our way With countless gifts of love, and still is ours today.

O may this bounteous God through all our life be near us, With ever joyful hearts and blessèd peace to cheer us; And keep us in His grace, and guide us when perplexed; And free us from all ills, in this world and the next!

All praise and thanks to God the Father now be given; The Son and Him Who reigns with Them in highest Heaven; The one eternal God, whom earth and Heaven adore; For thus it was, is now, and shall be evermore.

To read about this hymn, and hear it, click this link: www.cyberhymnal.org/htm/n/o/nowthank.htm

"The First Thanksgiving", reproduction of an oil painting by J.L.G. Ferris, early 20th century. History tells us that the first Thanksgiving Day was in 1621 in Massachusetts.

Keeping Fit

2007-11-09T13:28:00.001-06:00

Howard and I work at keeping fit by walking and exercising at our local YMCA, near 86th and Parallel Parkway. He rides the stationary recumbent bicycle and I do range-of-motion exercises in the swimming pool.

Peace on you

2007-10-31T12:29:00.000-05:00

I learned an Arabic word this week: Salaam. It means "peace." In Islam, "Salaam alikoum" means "Peace on you." By saying "Salaam alikoum," a Muslim is offering peace and giving his word that he will never hurt you. My online friend Youcef Ouchaoua from Algeria taught me this. Thanks, ucif!

Romancing the Scone

2007-10-14T17:52:00.001-05:00

Our daughter-in-law, Shannon Marshall, lived her dream! She and her partner, Carol Teague, opened Romancing the Scone Tea Room & Gift Shop in Alpine, Texas on Valentine's Day 2007. Now they have closed the Tea Room. There was just not sufficient business to sustain it. Shannon was the chef and she specialized in just about anything chocolate.

Shannon & David's daughter Halee enjoyed working in the tea room and is now training to be a pastry chef. Her delightful Napoleon is pictured above.

Edited 13Feb08

Reunion

2007-10-12T09:54:00.000-05:00

My 55th year class reunion was held this month. I graduated from Lyons (Kansas) High School in 1952. It was fun getting together with old friends. I'm at left in the front row.

How to eat an elephant

2007-10-02T11:32:00.000-05:00

When my husband read my most recent post, he asked "How do you eat an elephant?" I answered, "One bite at a time." So of course I'll continue working on my book about Layne's Hospitality Home in San Diego, 1941-1975.

Some of our friends from those days sent photos for me to scan, and I'm making a slide show of them - using the excellent (and free!) spot on PhotoShow.com. You can see my progress by going to http://www.photoshow.com/watch/Pv7ue8fV.

Have a great day - I am!

Generations

2007-09-25T12:50:00.000-05:00

I am in the (long) process of writing a book about Mother Layne's Hospitality Home in San Diego, California. The Home ministered to military men and women from 1941 to 1975. More than 650,000 people passed through its doors during that time frame. It was sponsored by the Layne Foundation. I have quite a lot of documentation about the Foundation, the staff of the Home, and those who benefited from the Hospitality Home - and my task is to effectively present all of it to the reading audience. My husband Howard is helping me in all of it, of course.

I've already put some stuff online at www.spaciousskies.us/HospHome/.

I've recently become aware of studies showing that each of us can be placed within age-ranges, called "generations," based on the year in which we were born. Furthermore, the things going on in the world during our formative years have shaped how we respond to life. I think of "formative years" as being ages 4 through 12. Using myself as an example, my formative years were those of the World War II years, 1938-1946. So I fit nicely into the "Traditional" generation, those born in 1906-1945. The one-word summary of us Traditionals is "loyalty."

Our children were born between 1946 and 1964, so they are "Baby Boomers." The one-word summary of Baby Boomers is "optimism."

Most of our grandchildren were born between 1965 and 1980, and are therefore in what is called "Generation X." The one-word summary for this group is "skeptical." They want to know "what does this mean to me?"

The youngest group, the Millennials, are those born in 1981 until now. Their one-word summary is "realistic." Four of our grandchildren and all of our great-grandchildren are in this group. When Howard and I moved to rural southeast Alaska in 1999, we had no home phone during our first year. I told one of our granddaughters about that and she looked dismayed and said, "I don't think I could live that way!"

The age ranges are just guidelines and they can overlap. The "one-word summary" describes each group's attitude to the institutions in society, such as education, religion, government and the military. (I wonder if all of this applies around the world, or just to American society ... my guess is that it's about the same everywhere.)

How does all this affect my writing process? Many of the people who actually went to the Hospitality Home through the years are now deceased or aging fast, so I won't have much of an audience if I target only the Traditionals. I'm going to need to keep the Baby Boomers in mind, and make my focus an optimistic one. Generation Xers will look for ideas they can personalize and make them fit into their belief system. It has been noted that relationships often "skip" a generation - that is, Traditionalists relate to GenX, and Baby Boomers relate well to the Millennials. That makes me hopeful that my targeting the GenX group will be fruitful.

Bridging the gap between my generation and that of my younger grandchildren and my great-grandchildren is an interesting process too ... they cannot envision life without the computer, cell phones, TV, the internet, cars, planes, and so on. What happened in our youth is what they view as ancient history and therefore is quite probably of little value. So my challenge will be to portray the lives of their grandparents and great-grandparents as real.

Oh my goodness - I think I just talked myself out of the whole project! HELP!!!!

GGrandkids

2007-09-23T14:23:00.000-05:00

We have 5 great-grandkids and we have fun with them! They live about 20 miles from us. Jacey, Hunter and Landen are siblings, and Jaden and Jaxen are siblings. Top to bottom: Landen, Jaxen, Hunter, Jaden, Jacey.

Recently I took a seat between Hunter and Jaxen and discovered I was in a "boy trap." Then Jaden stood beside Hunter, putting him into a "girl trap." He got outta there in a hurry! ;)

Sunny Kansas

2007-09-22T14:49:00.000-05:00

We learned this in Park School in Lyons, Kansas in the early 1940s:

Oh, I'm from sunny Kansas, sunny Kansas, sunny Kansas,
Oh, I'm from sunny Kansas,
The best state of all,
Where it rains some and snows some,
Cycloes some and blows some,
Oh, I'm from sunny Kansas,
The best state of all!

It's a common tune, but I don't know its name.

Kansas

2007-09-22T14:05:00.001-05:00

Hi! I'm Marge Marshall and I live in Kansas City, Kansas, USA. I'm married to Howard Marshall and have been since 1952.

I design websites and decided to try blogging too. {See www.spaciousskies.us}

We have 3 children, 7 grandchildren and 5 great-grandchildren.

As of March 2010, we have 8 great-grandchildren because Kari and Andy adopted 3 siblings.