Today’s walk – 11 August 2013 – involved viewing and photographing a number of purple flowers.
See you along the Trail.
Category Archives: Cleveland Heights
Walking – without Charley
I am in Cleveland Heights for a week of vacation with Tricia. Eric is here; Sean will be in town for a few days as well.
My walking has involved the streets of Cleveland Heights. Often this takes me places where I used to walk with Charley.
I walk. I remember. And I smile.
See you along the Trail.
Filed under Cleveland Heights, Exercise, Family
A Tolkein moment in University Circle
While walking through University Circle in Cleveland, I again spotted a variation on the theme of two towers.
There are obvious parallels to the two towers of Central Park. The Upper West Side of Broadway also has two towers.
See you along the Trail.
Filed under Cleveland Heights, Photo
The next step: Palestine refugees in Syria
UNRWA, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East, has issued a story about the dire situation of Palestine refugees in Syria. The UNRWA employee in Syria I met last Thursday and her colleagues are among the sources of the story.
The story begins:
Palestine refugees in Syria are being killed, injured and displaced in greater numbers than ever before, as the armed conflict continues to overwhelm refugee camps across the country. The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) now estimates that approximately 235,000 Palestine refugees have been displaced inside Syria and is particularly concerned about news that was confirmed today on the displacement of some 6,000 Palestinians from Ein El Tal on 26 April, a Palestine refugee camp some 12 kilometres from Aleppo in northern Syria.
The story concludes:
UNRWA urgently appeals to all sides to halt the human suffering caused by the conflict in Syria, and to resolve their differences through dialogue and political negotiations.
I have prayed for my friend and for the Palestine refugees in Syria. I continue to do so. I have shared their story. I continue to do so. Now it is time to give. UNRWA has issued a special appeal for Palestine refugees in Syria. I have made a contribution.
See you along the Trail.
Filed under Cleveland Heights, United Nations
Purple flowers, Cleveland Heights back yard 4
Comings and goings
in a variety of purple shades
at the same time
Cleveland Heights, Ohio
7 July 2012
Filed under Cleveland Heights, Photo
Tears remain
Be careful.
Keep safe.
Don’t get into trouble.
If trouble comes looking for you . . .
run!
So they told him –
those who loved him,
who heard his first cries,
who held him at his birth,
those who would protect him
those who loved him,
who heard his first cries,
who held him at his birth,
those who would protect him
from a world in which children
die too soon
die too soon
so often
that no tears remain to shed for them.
that no tears remain to shed for them.
Be careful.
Keep safe.
Don’t get into trouble.
Don’t get into trouble.
If trouble comes looking for you . . .
run!
run!
He heard their words
and learned them well.
When gunshots
When gunshots
tore the silence
of the street where he played,
he ran.
of the street where he played,
he ran.
For cover he ran;
for safety he ran;
for his very life he ran.
for safety he ran;
for his very life he ran.
Following the sidewalk;
cutting through the grass;
leaping up the steps, he ran –
his heart racing
faster than his feet.
leaping up the steps, he ran –
his heart racing
faster than his feet.
Sprinting across the porch;
throwing open the door;
stumbling through the doorstep, he ran –
entering what should have been the safety
of his own home.
stumbling through the doorstep, he ran –
entering what should have been the safety
of his own home.
Filled with fear
and their words, he ran still –
his fingers touched the bannister
as he began to mount the stairs
that led to his room,
the wall beside him exploded –
his fingers touched the bannister
as he began to mount the stairs
that led to his room,
the wall beside him exploded –
a chunk of hot lead
ripping through vinyl siding,
spraying drywall,
violating his body,
tearing life from him.
ripping through vinyl siding,
spraying drywall,
violating his body,
tearing life from him.
Be careful.
Keep safe.
Don’t get into trouble.
If trouble comes looking for you . . .
Don’t get into trouble.
If trouble comes looking for you . . .
run!
So they told him –
those who loved him,
who heard his final gasps,
who held him as his lifeblood pooled around him
those who tried, but could not protect him
from a world in which children
die too soon
so often
yet still tears remain to shed for them.
who heard his final gasps,
who held him as his lifeblood pooled around him
those who tried, but could not protect him
from a world in which children
die too soon
so often
yet still tears remain to shed for them.
15 August 2001
Cleveland Heights, Ohio
Filed under Cleveland Heights, Poem
An easy return journey
Having chronicled the challenges that I faced traveling from New York to Cleveland, it only seems fair to report on the return journey.
Twenty-four hours before the scheduled departure, I received an email telling me I could obtain my boarding pass. I smiled.
My older son and I were on the same flight. Tricia took us to the airport, allowing lots of time in case things did not go well. Due to his platinum status, my son checked our bags. I obtained a boarding pass with ease. We went to the gate. After a couple of calls for volunteers to stay behind, the boarding process began. Maintenance applied de-icer to the plan. We took off and after a very smooth flight we arrived at LGA.
An easy return. Too easy I would say if I were in a spy novel. But I am not.
As I made my way to baggage claim, I winced when I observed that red cancellation notices had begun to appear on the flight boards. I hope all who traveled today did so with ease and safety.
See you along the Trail.
Filed under Cleveland Heights, Family, New York, Travel
Silent night, 24-25 December 2012
The familiar words of “Silent Night” filled the sanctuary of Forest Hill Church, Presbyterian as the 11:00 PM service drew to a close.
Outside at least six Cleveland Heights police cars, lights flashing, roared past.
It occurred to me that the world is rarely silent.
Life is messy, chaotic, confusing, and noisy. And much of that noise stems from our violation of one another and God’s creation.
Gun shots.
Drone attacks.
Land mines.
Shouts of anger.
Tears.
Bombs.
Hate-filled rhetoric.
Collisions.
Screams of fear.
Clanging chains.
Machinery ripping at the earth and its resources.
A cacophony of pain and abuse and exploitation fills life’s sound track.
But it is precisely this messy, chaotic, confusing, noisy life to which God comes. In Jesus, God enters this life freely. Experiences this life fully. Embraces this life wholeheartedly.
This un-silent life, filled with deafening days and noisy nights, matters to God. Matters so deeply that God gives us Jesus to offer another way, inviting us anew to:
accept new beginnings,
offer forgiveness,
pursue peace,
seek justice,
love kindness,
live into hope,
and walk with God.
May we do so
on silent nights
on noisy nights
on this night
on all nights.
See you along the Trail.
Filed under Cleveland Heights, Current Events, Music, Worship
The quest for coffee
After a bit of a challenge, I made it to Cleveland to celebrate Christmas with family and friends.
Today brought a meeting with my friends, Isaac, John and Frances to talk about the progress of, and the vision for, the Dougbe River Presbyterian School in Liberia. Isaac had the vision and the people of the area, supported by the saints of Noble Road Presbyterian Church and partners in Cleveland and in Liberia, have made it happen.
The school opened at the end of November. Thanks be.
We gathered to talk about what comes next – more students, farming to feed the students, further partnerships, community building, capacity nurturing, more schools in other places. The vision is far reaching. The steps will come one at a time.
We planned to meet over breakfast and coffee. That proved a bit of a challenge. The first two places we visited were closed. Finally, we decided to check out Cafe-Ah-Roma next to Trinity Cathedral.
Their sign extended a warm greeting.
And the coffee and breakfast tasted good!
See you along the Trail.
Filed under Cleveland Heights, Food, Friends
Along the Graybeard Trail 