'The End is Near; Island Time

With a bit more than a week to go here on St. Thomas, I sit here at the least obtrusive patriot of the bar at Hull Bay Hideaw, sipping on a cold one! It has been quite a time for this old ( relatively speaking ) cripple; several new experiences have occurred to me so far & while being driven around on the wrong side of the road is one that I thought I'd never get used to, I've actually become almost acclimated to it! Driving myself that way, on the other hand.......

The water IS great; come on in! ( or down, rather ) going to the beaches down here is an adventure, especially for me! I've been to three different beaches so far & 2 bars! So far, I like the beach at Lindbergh Bay best, but the bar at Hull Bay is my favorite ( down here- Tona's is still the best ). This morning, I attended services at St. Thomas Reformed Church. The sermon was based on the text from Matthew 6 on what we call the Lord's Prayer. To be exact, the fourth request, 'give us this day our daily bread'! The minister did a good job of presenting the material & made some good points about how our presentation of the good news is what ministers the Bread of Life to others. Going over the bulletin that I was handed, as well as in the service itself, there were several times that I noted, 'so close, yet so far away'!

One thing I have enjoyed during my stay here in the islands ( it ain't over yet, mon ), is the laxity! There have been days when I barely even wear sandals & when I do, I usually shed them as soon as I'm back at the apartment! It's been nice not to worry about having to budle up against the weather & even though it's been getting down to the low seventies at night ( BRR ), I still enjoy the cool breezes through what little I have on!

Though I have not necessarily been on what you'd call a sight-seeing tour of the island yet, I have enjoyed the sights I have seen! I hope to get over to neighboring St. John sometime before for next leg of my big adventure, but I have been studying them ( the ones that I can see ) through the lens of my camera & plying my brother-in-law with questions about them!  Although it may be for me, though, I must realize & acknowledge that such is not the case for my brother-law & sister! Living the island life, in all its glory, is not cheap; though we've had our share of fun, my sister, besides working part-time at 3 different places, still home schools & finds the time to cook & clean. My brother-in-law works mostly double-shifts ( every day but Friday ) at his place of employment!

When I do leave this Paradise, I know I will take a piece of it with me! Though I have not done a lot of things out of the ordinary ( for me ), if nothing else, I will take memories back with me to the Paradise I now call home, Whitehall, Montana. Things have occurred to me here that will stick with me the rest of my life, hopefully for the better!

We all have that hope, no doubt, the hope for the betterment of, if not our individual situation, then of our individual person. The closest & best hope we have is of improving ourselves individually, but even then & especially then, we can affect a change in our situation! My hope, individually, is that through my own life experiences, both at home & abroad; I will be able to affect, for the better, the world in which I live, move & have my being!

The End IS near, but 'the End of what?', one might ask! Well, the End of Everything IS near & not only that, He's HERE! Once we truly realize that, it is impossible to live a life that disregards His Living Presence! Then we know, because of that nagging little voice we call a conscience, that whatever we do is either wrong or right. No longer must we be afraid to do what we want because we're told that our Heavenly Father wouldn't approve!

Speaking of the End..........

Charles Haddon Shank