Holy Days, Durham and Annie

1. The Irish Lads faced Miami on Saturday and managed to “pull one out.” This Saturday they face Navy. I enjoy watching the games every year and have not missed many. It doesn’t matter who wins, it’s the history of the games that make it fun.  

The Richmond Spiders are at 7-1. Only three games to go and two of them are at home.

Go Spiders!

2. This is a quote sent from Sister Claire, a close friend of my buddy Jim. 

“A great source of peace and comfort is knowing that we have a cheering section in heaven: the saints! Like us, they come from every walk of life, every different set of circumstances, every age group, and every part of the world. Like us, they struggled with the difficulties of life, but they held on to God's love and grace, and they made it through their struggles. They never lost hope that God would take care of them in every circumstance.

We tend to idealize the saints, but once we get to know them, we realize that they have a lot in common with us. They relied on the same strength from God that also sustains us. The saints cheer for us because they love us, they help us with their prayers, and they want nothing more than for us to join them in everlasting joy.

As we look forward to All Saints Day, let us be grateful for the gift of the saints, who show us how to persevere in our own spiritual journeys.”

3. The Feast of All Souls provides us an opportunity to pray for loved ones, friends and anyone else who have left this world. At our church we prayed for the 26 souls who departed this earth over the last year. There is a cross of remembrance that is handed out to each family by Father John. A church community supporting each other.

Our prayer for the evening: 

“Eternal rest grant unto Your servants, Oh Lord,

and let perpetual light shine upon them.

May their souls, and the souls of all the faithful departed,

through the mercy of God, rest in peace.”

Amen

4. Calvin and Hobbes, watching for incoming aliens.

5. Dee and I visited the American Tobacco Historic District while we were in Durham, N.C. last week. It is a beautiful place to visit and we enjoyed lunch at a terrific restaurant, Tyler’s Taproom.

6. Randy Travis - “Shallow Water.” This is a beautiful gospel tune.

7. On October 24, 1901, Annie Edson Taylor made history by being the first person to go over Niagara Falls and living to talk about it. Her statement, after exiting the barrel;

“If it was with my dying breath, I would caution anyone against attempting the feat…. I would sooner walk up to the mouth of a cannon, knowing it was going to blow me to pieces than make another trip over the Fall.”

Go over to "This Ain't the Lyceum,” where Kelly is hosting more takes.