A Microcosm of Prophecy

   I heard from my parents that they could remember where they were and what they were doing when JFK was assassinated. And for a lot people 9-11 was the same. I had just changed and was preparing for a day of Canvassing in Maine when someone said that I needed to see what was happening on TV. The infamous event known as 9-11 occurred more than 20 years ago, yet those who lived at that time will remember how cohesive American society was in the immediate aftermath of 9-11. The Democrat and Republican lawmakers were not only hand in hand, but even stranger, they were prominently displayed on live Television walking into churches and sitting down together. Patriotism was at its height, and the enemy was not America. At this point in history, I would say that this is still true. At the moment when each of the twin towers fell, the reserved, suave and collected reporters panicked and along with many others, called on God in terror while on live television. For a time, such suffering and such distress brought the nation together. And the nation had been greatly divided.

    Up to that time, with the possible exception of Dewy vs. Truman in 1949, the 2000 Presidential election between Al Gore and George W, Bush was the most hotly contested presidential runoff in American history. At the time just preceding 9-11, it was very recent and painful history for many people. A large slice of the populace still resented the outcome and many openly questioned its legitimacy. 9-11 was not a natural disaster, but it was a disaster. And the incalculable magnitude of the horror and rage both on television and in society created an interesting situation. The divided nation went from being a divided populace to a united people who as a nation, regarded the Taliban as number one on the national hit-list. The disaster of 9-11 brought America together and the scapegoats were mostly the Taliban and other extremists groups.

  

    In the last number of years, some terrible disasters have struck in America. In California, the devastation caused by wildfires only seems to grow worse and worse year after year. And around the world there is no lack of devastation and carnage. The pacific tsunami of 2005 claimed an estimated 30,000 lives. Yes, there have been terrible natural and not so natural disasters. So it would seem weird to ask why there have not been more if we did not look at the book of Revelation.

Revelation 7:1-4 is very relevant regarding disasters and tradjedy. 

 

“1. And after these things I saw four angels standing at the four corners of the earth, holding the four winds of the earth, that the wind should not blow on the earth, on the sea, or on any tree .

2. The I saw another angel ascending form the east, having the seal of the living God. And he cried with a loud voice,to the four angels to whom it was granted to harm the earth and the sea,

3. saying, “Do not harm the earth, the sea, or the trees till we have sealed the servants of our God on their foreheads.”

4. And then I heard the number of those who were sealed. One hundred and forty-four thousand of all the tribes of the children and Israel were sealed."

    There have always been disasters and anyone who holds that they are not increasing in frequency or intensity is uniformed to say the very least. In verse one of Revelation chapter Seven, only the trees are living, and trees are indicative of human life. No trees are to be harmed. In verse three, an angel ascending from the east with the seal of the living God reiterates the actions of the four angels in verse one who are holding back the winds of strife, only the message is a little different. In verse three the angel from the east needs more time to seal the servants of God on the forehead. The message here is that God knows that His people are not yet ready and has graciously mandated more time for them have His seal in their forehead...to have His Bible truth in their minds...to spread the gospel messages with power. And He directs the angel from the east to inform the four angels to continue to hold the winds of strife for a little longer.

    Hurricanes, twisters, earthquakes, bizarre weather and other calamities cannot be called little disasters. These are big disasters. A little disaster might be losing a lot of money if it is not loss of life. And yet the big disasters just mentioned are not of such as massive scale as the Lisbon earthquake of 1755 which almost wiped out this very large city. America was brought together by the disaster of 9-11 even though it was not a natural disaster. There are a lot of conspiracy theories regarding 9-11, and aside from bringing out one point, indulging them is a waste of time. 9-11 in the eyes of the government merited the passing of a number of laws that in a lot of respects were not in the best interest of American citizens. Among other things, the Patriot Act, which contained some legislative provisions passed in October of 2001, gave the government more power such as the ability to spy on American citizens and tap phone lines, something they could not do before without a warrant. There were a lot of Americans who felt that 911 was not justification for the government to limit their freedom. But the government countered with the reiteration that terrorism should be stopped at all costs.

    

    The point is that 9-11 was a major disaster and one positive result was that it brought Americans together for reasons that were commended by all. What sort of big disaster is looming that will unite the world into two camps and will it unit men for reasons that can be commended by all? What awful disaster would be so great, and so sadly epic in scale as to unite so many implacable and hostile groups? In scale, such a disaster could, very sadly, surpass the horrific distress of international disasters. What could be worse than 9-11? Mankind does not have the answers, but we do know that God has directed His angles to hold back the winds of strife. He wants His children to have a little more time to be ready! Being in that group and bringing others into that family should be among our most prayerful endeavors.

    When the great disaster does strike in the nebulous future, what happens next? How does what will later be called history transpire from there? How will it affect the 3 angels messages? Is there any kind of indication from history as to how we might expect events to transpire? It seems, these days, that every subject in school or in colleges is given greater and more pronounced importance than History. This grand subject is like food. If you don't season food, people will not want to eat it. Revelations from History can bring about joy and sorrow. Joy for the successes of people in history who accomplished great good. Sorrow for how tyrants have nurtured evil and who have often appeared to succeed or go unpunished. When history is explored in a dynamic manner, and rendered relatable and engaging by teachers rather than being just a long list or a soporific relay of facts, dates and names, which is interesting to some but not all, then it becomes an interesting mural of the past. It comes alive and yields stories, lessons and hints for what the future holds. Forewarned is forearmed they say, and this is of course is not a promise that what will later be called history will follow exactly as what is considered here. What will Adventists have to go through regarding the trial of their faith? There is a true life scenario that has some interesting parallels to what Adventists may have to go through. I am not going to delve into fantasy but a consideration of what has happened and what could happen again. Some of the following is of course conjecture and not a statement of fact, but I am not unwilling for folks to put it under a microscope.

    When I took an rather unofficial poll on social media, a lot of people had never heard the name, Lindy Chamberlain. After reading what was more than a five hundred page book about Lindy Chamberlain, I have profound respect and admiration for this woman. Lindy Chamberlain was the wife of an active SDA pastor in Queensland Australia. She was the mother of 2 boys and had just had a little girl named Azaria. In August of 1980, when Azaria was 6 weeks old, the family made a trip to Uluru, formerly Ayers rock, which was a tourist destination in the central part of Australia south of Queensland. Without making this article too long, I will just recount the major points of what happened. On the evening of August 17th, 1980, Lindy put little Azaria to bed in her tent and went back to the campfire. Lindy Chamberlain well knew what her baby was wearing when she put her to bed, and sadly, she would never see Azaria again because a dingo, which is a wild dog native to Australia got through flaps in her tent and made off with her baby. Lindy was coming back to the tent because she had heard Azaria cry. Lindy said she saw the outline of a dingo as it ran off with what she was sure was her baby. A massive man hunt that utilized a number of usual and unconventional methods began, but not a trace of the baby, or her clothes was found at that point.

    This was in a sense a natural disaster, not in the sense of weather or earthquakes, but loss of life. Irreplaceable life. After some time, the manhunt was called off, and the Chamberlains were of course distraught, although their faith in God assured them that they would see Azaria again at the 1st resurrection which is the resurrection of the righteous. Of course, this did not mean they did not suffer over the loss of Azaria. In John 11:11, Jesus said, “Our friend Lazarus sleepeth, but I go that I might wake him up.” Some of the disciples still did not catch on, so Jesus told them plainly that Lazarus was dead. Death is not so great a tyrant to Bible believing Christians as it is for someone who believes they will never see their most beloved again. Christians grieve in death, but not as deeply, or as forlornly as other people do. Non-Christians, or nominal Christians may not be able to understand this. Regardless of the scale of our grief, we have the hope and promise in God's word regarding the resurrection, and that God will wipe all tears from our eyes. And we can trust God's promises!

    The Chamberlains had been through a lot. The death of their only daughter was an indescribable loss and in the aftermath of this tragedy, the media coverage always brought it fresh to mind. Because a baby had died, there was the customary inquiry or trial which was in Alice Springs, Northern Territory. The magistrate in the case and the coroner in December of 1980 and January 1981 took as fact that what the Chamberlains reported regarding Azaria being taking by a dingo. They believed the report was true, and there were a number of witnesses as to what had happened. The event had been on headlines all over Australia and in papers in other countries as well.

    The Supreme Court of Australia however was much less accepting when they heard of what the Chamberlains reported in the 1st inquest, or trial. So a 2nd trial was ordered from the top. It was believed by some that what the Chamberlains reported in the 1st trail was little better than circumstantial evidence, and there seemed to be an element of bias in the Supreme court's reckoning. There were some who, over time, became certain that it was a homicide and that Lindy had murdered her baby. They suggested postpartum depression as a motive for Lindy killing her baby. There was an insidious suspicion over the fact that the name Azaria meant sacrifice in the wilderness although Uluru was where the Chamberlains had gone for a camping venture and nothing more. The Chamberlains found out that there would be a second trial not long before it commenced. The second trial began in February 1982 and it was well publicized. In the pubs, restaurants, papers and homes of Australia, the subject of whether or not the Chamberlains were guilty was a common source of discussion. People who went out to eat in restaurants would talk about the Chamberlain case over their food and people in clubs would relay what supposedly were the facts for why the Chamberlains were guilty while others would point out supposedly inconsistent details in their story.

    Years later, the evidence against Lindy Chamberlain in the second trial was proven to be circumstantial and less than viable. Nevertheless, in September 1982 Lindy Chamberlain was charged with Azaria's murder, a verdict later proven to be inaccurate. Michael Chamberlain was also charged as an accessory to murder and they were both found guilty as charged. This was highly publicized all over Australia and it was well known that Michael was an active SDA pastor. This was not an easy time to be an Adventists in Australia, and many people suddenly viewed SDA's with suspicion and prejudice. To say the least, the public relations department of the SDA church in Australia suffered a lot for several years. But, the truth would set Lindy free and vindicate Seventh Day Adventists.

Throughout the second trial, Lindy Chamberlain had to affirm again and again in the cross examination what her daughter was wearing on the night of August 17th. She had to testify over and over as to what she had been doing before, during and after putting Azaria to bed.

    Two years after this terrible disaster during her time on the stand, Lindy Chamberlain, in hope of the resurrection was calm and on the outside, seemed unaffected by what had happened. She merely had to tell the truth, knowing it was the truth, knowing many would not believe it was the truth, knowing it was her best course of action regardless of what was happening. There were many who misinterpreted Lindy's manner and were convinced that her calmness was indicative of indifference. Lindy was sentenced to prison and had been there for three years when some of Azaria's clothes were found during a manhunt for yet another missing person near Uluru.

    Azaria's clothes, though somewhat deteriorated by time and the elements were easily recognizable as the clothes Lindy had described many times over during the second trial. Lindy was released immediately and later the government of Australia recompensed her 1.3 million Australian dollars. There was a 500+ page book entitled Evil Angels covering all the facts, statistics, details and any information relating to the whole story. It was turned into a movie called, “A Cry in the dark.” It was the most expensive movie made in Australia up to that time and had 4000 extras and starred a well known actress who was very popular both in America and in Australia. And more importantly, Micheal and Lindy were completely vindicated.

    There was a fiendish, wicked power at work in the dismissal of the first inquest which was itself very straightforward and brief. This fiendish power was evident in the second inquest and in the obsessive, predetermined focus on Lindy's supposed guilt. There was a maniacal determination to disregard the testimonies of the witnesses who had been near the Chamberlain campsite the night Azaria was carried off. Many people involved in the trial were just absolutely certain Lindy was guilty and they could not wait to see her incarcerated. After the Chamberlains were proven innocent, many began to second guess the legal system, and there was the impression on many sides that the justice system had failed, which it had. Australians began asking each other if they had not acted too harshly, and if their impression of themselves as a just and fair people was still accurate. But how could they know that the enemy of souls had used the faltering justice system as his weapon in his hatred of God's Gospel message and those who follow the Bible and the Bible only?

    The enemy of souls probably hates those who follow the Bible and the Bible only more than any people who walk the earth. Why? The Great Controversy has an interesting bit of insight on this.

“There is nothing that the great deceiver fears as much as that we shall become acquainted with his devices. The better to disguise his real character and purposes, he has caused himself to be so represented as to excite no stronger emotion than ridicule or contempt.”

    If you think about the distinctive truths that those who follow the Bible and the Bible only have, it is no wonder the devils hates us, and hate is certainly a motivator in what the devil does. In our doctrines and hopefully in our lives, the deceptions the devil proffers are exposed. God has given us great and precious truths such as the sanctuary, the state of the dead, and God has given us the spirit of prophecy, which in so many ways in books such as the Great controversy, rips away Satan's disguises. Yes, the enemy of souls hates us very much! The enemy of souls saw in the case of Lindy Chamberlain the opportunity to do the most harm he could not only to Lindy, but to our cause and the truth.

    As long as people thought that Lindy really had murdered little Azaria, the message of Seventh Day Adventists would have fallen on prejudiced and enraged ears, and this was likely the effect that the devil wanted, although God would not let this scheme go on long. A natural disaster had occurred in that life was lost...a baby died, and worse, the devil would do his upmost to pin the blame and cause on SDA's. Lindy's reaction to the disaster is impressive in that she did not sue the state for every penny it was worth, and I recall no unChristlike retaliation from her in the book, Evil Angles though it has been a while since I read it. As a result of this personal tragedy and disaster, Lindy and Michael were taken before courts and grilled on the details of their baby's death by people who from the start seemed to have entertained or desired the very worst scenario. But Lindy only told the truth while on the stand, and she was imprisoned for it. She did not have to make anything up. She just had to say what happened regardless of those who were dead certain she was lying.

    My point here is not to raise the ire of anyone although righteous indignation is understandable. The case of Lindy Chamberlain will I think, be very relevant in a time when Adventists will be falsely accused, misconstrued, hated, misrepresented, imprisoned, killed and thought the very worse of all people. In the end times, there will only be two groups, not thousands. There are millions of groups in the world, but in a sense, there are only two groups. Mathew 25-34-

 

³⁴ Then the King will say to those on His right hand, ‘Come, you blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: ³⁵ for I was hungry and you gave Me food; I was thirsty and you gave Me drink; I was a stranger and you took Me in; ³⁶ I was naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you visited Me; I was in prison and you came to Me.’³⁷ “Then the righteous will answer Him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry and feed You, or thirsty and give You drink? ³⁸ When did we see You a stranger and take You in, or naked and clothe You? ³⁹ Or when did we see You sick, or in prison, and come to You?’ ⁴⁰ And the King will answer and say to them, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me.’ ⁴¹ “Then He will also say to those on the left hand, ‘Depart from Me, you cursed, into the everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels: ⁴² for I was hungry and you gave Me no food; I was thirsty and you gave Me no drink; ⁴³ I was a stranger and you did not take Me in, naked and you did not clothe Me, sick and in prison and you did not visit Me.’ ⁴⁴ “Then they also will answer ^[a]Him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to You?’ ⁴⁵ Then He will answer them, saying, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to Me.’ ⁴⁶ And these will go away into everlasting punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”

 

 In the second group, inspired by the devil who is enraged with the message that rips his mask away, people under Satan's sway will say all kinds of things about those who believe in the Bible and the Bible only that are not true, just as many people said false things about Lindy Chamberlain.

    At some point it is very likely that many who believe in the Bible and the Bible only will find themselves on the witness stand answering for their faith. If we are explaining our beliefs according to the Bible, we will not have to make anything up. Some people will be certain that we are lying, but if we, like Jesus say, “it is written,” then even if some people are dead certain that we are in error, we will have God's word to back us up! But if we do not know what we believe and cannot show it from the Bible, we will be in dire straights. We will be granting people the opportunity to mock what we know is true but have not studied enough to verify its source openly. We need to get ready by studying our Bibles and being able to say, “it is written” for everything we believe! The great disaster will come, and to try and say when that will be, is a waste of time. Lets be thankful that we have time in the present to fortify ourselves with God's word.

    When the time does come, will the great disaster that separates everyone into just two groups be a massive earthquake? Will it be a tsunami many times bigger than we could imagine? It could be a series of disasters. We do not actually know, but thankfully God has not left us uninformed in the all important point of depending on Him and knowing our Bibles inside out. Like 9-11, the event in question will result in laws that limit freedom. The Patriot Act was an invasion of freedom for the supposed sake of security, but the Patriot act will pale in insignificance next to laws about what day you have to worship on and the restriction of freedom they will bring about.

    We do know that those who do not go along with a religious laws about what day you must worship on will be blamed for the catastrophe or series of disasters then ensuing. The beliefs of those who are not going along with worshiping on Sunday will be put under national scrutiny and the 3 Angels messages will have a platform and outlet like never before. During the second Lindy Chamberlain trial, the media was in a frenzy. Sensationalism sells and the Chamberlain story was all over the papers and media. The restaurants, pubs, churches, transports and homes were abuzz with the latest and often most minute developments from the Chamberlain trial. It is not a hyperbole to say that the Chamberlain trial was the trial the century. When the faith of Adventists and their position on the Bible and the Bible only will be on trial, it is not absurd to consider that there will be a repeat of the media coverage that attended the Chamberlain trial.

    When religious laws will be enacted and people who believe in the Bible and the Bible only refuse to play along, this will be interpreted as audacious civil disobedience, to say the least. Seventh Day Adventists and other converging religious groups will infuriate some, and intrigue others, and newspapers and the media will want to capitalize on it. To them, it will be good business. It will be claimed that fundamentalists who believe in the Bible and the Bible only are harmonious with the designs of the worst people from history.

    In the homes, cars, restaurants, parks, bars and churches, it is not absurd to consider that conversation will be abuzz with the details of our faith, and the efforts of some to disprove and overthrow it, and the interest of others to know more. When we are on the stand, the prosecuting attorneys will be certain we are wrong, but, if we know our Bibles, we can be courteously correct. We will know the truth and to speak the truth alone will be our duty and privilege. It will not be our job to defend ourselves, but the truth...sola scriptura. Society at that point will probably be a lot more chaotic than it is now and Adventists as well as other nonconformists faiths will be blamed for anything they can be blamed for. Like Lindy Chamberlain, some will be imprisoned. Some will flee to the shelter of the wilderness and God will care for them there. There will be many who no doubt will be killed for their faith. The time to prayerfully prepare is now.

 

    There does not seem to be much in the news that even hints at religious in-toleration. But there are quiet rumblings. A very popular University on the right that starts with the letter P, and has only ever defended religious beliefs and ideas recently stated that the separation of Church and state is not guaranteed or mentioned in the US constitution. Where is such a topic like that headed? A congresswoman from Arizona, a few years back, when talking about some social problems stated that perhaps everyone should be required to attend a church of their choice on Sunday. The point is that there are rumblings of future efforts to legislate morality if we listen.

    A disaster greater than perhaps anything of antiquity or modernity (with the exception of the flood) will happen and God has directed his angels to hold back the winds of strife for a short time. He wants his people to be sealed, to be ready, to know their Bible for themselves because there will only be two groups and God wants us in His camp.

    That which has been is what will be. That which is done is what will be done. There is nothing new under the sun. Ecclesiastes 1:9

    This is a simple foreshadowing of the inevitable. God has not left us without His word to guide us. If we prayerfully stick to it then we won't have to worry about defending ourselves. We will be defending God's truth, and the veracity of this truth is unassailable. In whatever way that naysayers will try to shift the blame and the focus on us, we like the prophets can boldly declare, thus saith the Lord! We can depend on our Master, and like Him when the accusations and lies fly declare, "It is written!" When the microcosm of prophecy we see in the life foreshadowed in the experience of Lindy is our reality, may it find us, by the grace of God, prepared. Amen.

Road trips
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A recounting of road-trip mishaps and adventures.

In the proverbial photo album of one’s memory, different events stand out and road trips, like camping or true and bizarre weather stories are definitely an example of this. Camping can be fun. My older brother Tim seemed to regard camping as the epitome of worthwhile pastimes and he was very successful at dragging his brothers along. Some time later, his brothers appreciated his efforts and adventuresome ideas. In one camping trip, my older sister Caroline and my cousin Mandi frequently called on Brian and and myself to get the spiders out of their tent. And on another camping trip in Texas, everyone brought a tent and sleeping bag, yet everyone still got wet by the bizarre amounts of rain that fell in Texas at that point.  Road trips are sometimes remembered as much for the weird things that happened and the memories whether of laughter or chagrin than the fact that the people were trying to get from point A to point B. It has been said that truth is stranger than fiction. In one incident in 1999, Tim, Brian and Roy were taking turns driving in one vehicle with Mom and Dad in another. It was at that point that they were moving from Window Rock Arizona to Walton Oregon and they drove through Salt Lake City Utah the day before a number of tornadoes went through. 


In another instance, Brent, Roy and another person were driving from the bus stop where Brent and Roy had just been picked up. Brent had asked to sit next to the passenger door of the pickup since there was nothing to hold onto in the middle, but the driver who was not Roy wasn't the obliging sort of person. The driver was someone whose driving was not for faint of heart and if you were a short person in the middle with nothing to hold onto, you could get bounced around a bit between the passenger and driver. That is what happened to myself.  As the driver made a characteristic rapid swerve onto a side road from the main road, a strange thing happened. Just after they had turned onto the side road, with a telephone pole on the right and a telephone pole on the left, the truck began to spin. The driver, Brent and Roy began to look around wildly as the truck spun precariously between the two poles. Nobody said it, but everyone was thinking the same thing. "Why in tarnation is the truck spinning!" The driver had his foot on the brake this whole time and suddenly he screamed, "Get your foot on the gas!" The truck was his prized beauty and he did not want so much as a scratch on it. Well that is just what happened. Brent had had his foot on the gas by accident in an attempt to not be jostled around so much. The driver and Brent released both the brake and the gas at the same time and the truck came to a stop amide a whirlwind of dust. For about 30 seconds, nobody said anything and relief was the only thing etched into the expressions of the three guys. And before that relief turned into something else, Brent informed the driver and Roy that he would walk the rest of the way. It would be safer anyhow, and Roy and the driver did not object. Nobody was laughing at the time, but people do laugh about it now except perhaps the driver whose traffic violations had included running into gas pumps, overturning big old cars while doing 40 on old dirt roads and driving with his eyes shut. Very often, riding with some people or on the road with some drivers is not for the faint of heart. This incident was not exactly a road trip unless you count a 10 minute drive a mini-road trip. 


Around about 1983, the family had moved from Arizona to Needles California. Caroline related this story, and while not exactly a road trip, it did involve Mom and all us kids being in the Green Station wagon which at that point may have been a recent acquisition. Dad was working at his new job, and a more ideal section of real estate was needed. Mom had made arrangements to pick up a real estate agent and he was going to show her some houses. With 6 kids, a method was needed to keep them occupied. So, Mom had bought a gigantic bag of m&ms. Caroline had the bag, and sitting in the middle seat with Tim on the right and Lila on the left and Brian, Brent and Roy in the way back, she doled out the m&ms to everyone and this kept everyone occupied. Mom met the real estate agent at the time and place agreed upon. When he got in the front passenger seat, he looked behind and 6 kids all eating m&ms and all staring at him. He turned to Mom and said, "I see you have come well provisioned." 



Every once in a while in Alaska, in the summertime, the family or the ones who would all fit into the little Honda hatchback would take a road-trip. This Honda got 50 miles a gallon and it could be filled up for just 10 dollars. The family would sometimes take road trips that extended over several days. The destination was either Fairbanks, Nenana or some other destination. Sometimes the purpose was just a long scenic drive. Frequently, Dad would take audiobooks along and Mom always brought various books along also. One audiobook was the African Queen and Mom sometimes brought the little house books, or the Borrowers or some other book. In the summertime, when driving north in Alaska near sunset or in the evening, the sun would go behind one peak. And about 10 minutes later, you would see the sun again when you had driven out of the shadow of the peak in question. And this was repeated a number of time for several hours. On one occasion, Tim and Caroline stayed home. Caroline had her drivers license at that point and use of the old green station wagon. There was some sort of speculation that the food they ate that weekend may not have been the healthiest but there was also the speculation that they had a good weekend. While Caroline and Tim stayed home, the rest of the family went on a 3 day road-trip. Lila made some references on that trip relating to her relief on not having to go to school during that time and she made more references the closer to home we got on the return leg of the road trip as to what should happen to the people who invented school and math. And her sentiments would be repeated in years to come by other members of the family who equally detested math. Dad had been a trucker for years and was used to driving long distances for long periods of time. Making hot cereal on the road was not something that convenience dictated and so cold cereal was the preferred option. Cold cereal was something that was typically eaten on Sabbath and was a treat. So eating it on a road trip during a rest stop was a special treat. So Dad drove into the night and Lila, Brian Brent and Roy went to sleep. The next morning before the 4 kids woke up, Mom and Dad were awake and watching around the Honda as a rather large number of Rabbits hopped around without a care in the world. Not long after, the kids woke up and everyone walked around. The family walked up to a fir tree about 3-4 feet away, and about 5 feet up the tree on a branch was a chipmunk. He sat there eating a nut and did not seem to be afraid of us at all. For about 5 minutes it sat there eating it's nut and watching us. After that, Mom got the cooler and Dad got a table cover. There was cereal, bread, jam and peanut butter as well as goat milk from our goat Ginger. On the return trip, we knew we were close to home when we stopped at a place called Long Rifle Lodge. It was a restaurant, but could have been a museum of stuffed animals or a taxidermist's paradise. The hot chocolate and grilled cheese sandwiches were good, and the stuffed bears, wolves, hawk and about 50 others stuffed animals were quiet a diversion. Somewhere in the family's numerous photo albums are pictures of this trip. 


In another incident, God's protection was quite evident. It was a late afternoon in Wasilla Alaska around 1991. Mom was returning from nursing school and she had picked everyone else up from school too. We were all going home for the family dinner together. Mom and Caroline were in the front two seats. Lila, Tim, Brian and Roy were scrunched in the middle seat and Brent was sleeping in the way back. We were all in a little yellow Subaru and a Suburban hit us head on. Tim later said that he had looked over from talking with Lila when he saw the hood of the car come up the way it would when a car is hit or runs into something else. The driver of the suburban was a teenager who had just come from the DMV and likely his driving privileges were revoked for some time. He hit us and then hit someone else right afterwards. With such a larger vehicle hitting a smaller car, one might suppose that at the least, some serious injuries would have resulted. But, God's angels were there and nobody in the car was really injured although everyone did go to the hospital. There are distinct memories of laying on an uncomfortable wooden board for two hours and the equally uncomfortable neck braces we had to wear too. But again, nobody was injured. The next day, nobody went to school or work, but just stayed at home to recuperate. And Gloria, having heard about the incident came over with about 20 family friendly movies and it was a needed and appreciated diversion. Some people might say that our not being injured was luck, but the fact is that God is always watching over us.  


The following short stories are in some respects typical of road trips while other aspects of the following stories were unpredictable and unbelievable if you had not been there.  If anyone else has short, road trip stories they want to add, or if they remember details about the following road trips that I do not, they are welcome to add them.

The year was 1985 and the Stone family had been living in Oregon for about a year. The grand goal of moving from California to Oregon in 1984 was the eventual move to Alaska. The family made the trip from Eugene Oregon to Anchorage Alaska over the course of about 2 weeks. It was not exactly a joyride, but interesting things did happen on the way. 2 Adults and 6 kids huddled in the cab of a 1960’s wonder bread van all the way from Oregon to Alaska. In the cab was a heater that was fitted with two long dryer funnels so that the hot air could be blown onto cold faces and cold hands. In Fort St. John British Columbia, Dad went to make a call to Uncle Jim and Aunt Kathy who were in Anchorage at that time, and he noticed that a sign showed that the temperature was 87 degrees below 0. In the back of the van were various household items including a black and white 14 inch battery powered television set, but it never worked well since a television signal would never last long enough to finish any shows that could be tuned into. 

Not long after leaving Fort St. John, the cold weather began to freeze the carburetor. Between the driver and passenger seat was what was known as the doghouse because it looked like a doghouse and it covered the engine.  The top of the doghouse could be lifted up in order check on or work on the engine. When the carburetor began to freeze and the potential for locomotion was placed in jeopardy, the lid of the doghouse was lifted about 6 inches and one of the dryer funnels from the heater was directed onto the carburetor which prevented it from freezing.  One Friday night, we made a stop at a motel and the husband and wife who owned the hotel brought an enormous pot of potato soup with dumplings. 

The next day it was 40 below zero and the van would not start. So the fellow who owned the motel took a piece of stove pipe that had an elbow and directed the pipe up onto the engine of the van. Then he put a space heater in the other end and turned it on. Before too long the van engine started and we were on our way.  At another point, the van was on an icy paved road that was high up in the hills. One side was the steep embankment that dropped down hundreds if not thousands of feet and on the other side was part of the road that had not been driven on because there was an accumulation of ice.  There had been a lot of sun that day and it melted the ice on the road that went around those hills.  In the warm sunshine, the road became someone slippery and the van began to slide, but the odd thing was that it was sliding uphill rather than downhill, as momentum and the grade would have predicted. 

The van slid uphill until it stopped. There could be only one explanation and that was that an angel had caused that to happen. Needless to say there were some whose nerves were affected and whose faith was strengthened.   At one point we stopped and my siblings and I went out to play in the snow, but my brothers and I wore two pairs of pants since we did not have snowsuits then. At one point we stopped at a barbershop, which is my earliest memory of going to a barbers.  At another stop mom had bought some cheese whiz, which was considered royalty food by us kids. She made sandwiches and the event would not be forgotten. A lot of other things happened, most of which I cannot remember, but the incident is worth remembering.

About 10 years later in 1995 we were moving from Alaska to South Texas. Dad and Mom wanted my brothers and I to attend a good high school and the one in South Texas was definitely a good one. Dad, Brian and I were going to travel in a car from Wasilla Alaska to South Texas and of course Dad did all the driving.  In the month of May, Mom, Roy, Tim and Lila had flown from Anchorage Alaska to McAllen Texas. On the same day, after a rather specific phone call, Ivan came over with 4 ice-cream Sundays for Caroline, Brian, Brent and himself.  In September of that year, Dad, Brian and Brent, after preparing the double axle trailer with all our items on it (which would come several years later), and after conducting a massive cleanup of the yard and house, Dad Brian and Brent left the house on Beverly Lake road which we had called home for almost ten years.  The day before we said goodbye our neighbors who were also our relatives, Uncle Jim, Gloria, Mandi, David, Jessie, Wayne, James and Brandi.

At the start when we were at the store, Dad told Brian and I that we could pick out any snacks or food we wanted. I thought before the trip that I liked Bugles, but not long after crossing the border into Canada, I discovered that I despised bugles. We thought we had brought enough audio tapes, but by the end of the trip we were sick of listening to every tape in the car.  Dad drove straight from Anchorage to Whitehorse without sleeping and Brian and I sang, or read or listened to tapes. We went through one town that was not very big, and were wondering whether we should stop to eat. At one restaurant was a sign that read “Next restaurant, 70 miles.” So we decided to stop there.

Brian and I ordered pancakes, and the waitress was someone who seemed to enjoy watching Brian and I squirm by the sort of questions she asked. We had turned 16 recently and were characteristically uncomfortable when it came to adults asking us about anything to do with romance. I can still remember the overpowering taste of the baking soda that was in those pancakes and how we were glad to get away from that waitress. Two miles down the road we saw another couple of restaurants.

There was a lot of stuff in that car. Dad of course always sat in the drivers seat with Brian and I taking turns riding shotgun. There was a seat in the back that was lacking in room at times. At one point in Canada, Dad asked me to hold the wheel while he poured himself a cup of coffee. The 1^st time all went well. The 2^nd time Dad asked me to hold the wheel while he poured coffee, we almost went of the road as the wheel jerked around a bit and Dad ended up having hot coffee on his pants that time, but we did stay on the road.

We arrived at Whitehorse in the wee hours and Dad pulled off somewhere to sleep. He probably slept about 6 hours or so while Brian and I watched the sky go from black to a dark blue to a lighter blue. Not long after we had gone through Edmonton, Dad stopped at a motel around about 10 o’clock AM and he slept for the entire day. The clerks at the motel desk gave Dad two sets of keys. Dad gave one set to Brian and I and kept one set of keys in the room.

Brian and I were not sleepy and so we went around exploring the nearby surroundings. There was a Wal-Mart in that area and Brian and I went window-shopping for a while before going to other places. 

We were walking in a field when we heard something that sounded like a rattlesnake nearby and we both froze. This was Canada! Did rattlesnakes live this far north? Brian and I looked at each other and on a signal we bolted from the area. Later on we learned that some sort of infamous insect made a noise similar to a rattlesnake.  We did not have any money and there was not a lot to do. After an hour, Brian and I realized that we had forgotten something in the motel room. But we had a set of keys. We wanted to do anything but wake Dad up since he was so tired and had driven so far.  As quietly as possible, Brian and I went into the room and got what we needed.  When we came out of the room, we discovered that we had locked our set of keys in the room and were stuck. How would we know when Dad was going to wake up? 

We hung around the hotel lobby for a while and then we decided to explain our dilemma to the motel clerk. “Oh, well we have another set of keys here, but don’t lose them! We only have 3 sets.” Brian and I were relieved. There was yet another item we wanted to remove from the room. And as quietly as we could, we went into the room and got what we needed. Fortunately we did not wake Dad up or leave the keys in the room.  

Later in the evening when the sky was turning dark, Brian and I came back to the hotel room and discovered that Dad had woken up not long before. We got ready to go and put our things into the car. The people at the desk had asked that we leave our keys in the room. When we got to the car, Dad asked me to return his set to the room. I did, and went I came out of the room I realized that I had inadvertently locked all 3 sets of keys in that hotel room. Well, I did not panic, but I had visions the motel staff throwing a fit and threatening some sort of legal action. So, as quickly as I could I took an indirect route out of the motel and got in the car.

“Okay Dad, lets go!” 

“We need to get some gas.”

So Dad drove across the street to get gas, and I thought, “they will be able to see us here at the gas station from the motel! They will come and at the least harangue us and I will get in big trouble! If we get going soon, maybe nothing bad will happen!” And then, there at the gas station, the keys got locked in the car. “Oh no, now the hotel people will get us for sure!” Dad was not too happy about it either but not for the same reason. We were there for about 30 minutes waiting for the locksmith and the whole time I expected to see some angry folks from the motel come our way, but they never did.  I can laugh about it now, but I was not laughing then.  That was a long road trip and Brain and I slept through what seemed like most of it. One morning I woke up and wondered why I was sweating so much.

I needed water, and when I got some it tasted terrible. We had brought water from the house in Alaska, which was delicious, but Texas water was terrible. In the wintertime in Alaska, no sane person drives a car with the windows open. In the summer, whenever you rolled down the car windows it was always like being under the vent of a powerful air conditioner, but in Texas, the air that came through the car window was hot! I would resign myself to sweating everywhere and anywhere in Texas where there was no air conditioning. Later on and to a lesser degree, this would extend to some other southern states. 

Brian and I read all the signs we could, but we did not really know where we were, and Dad was not volunteering any information. Later in that day Brian and I began to notice reoccurring signs here and there.  We realized that we were seeing the same signs over and over and that we were going in circles. Two years before when Lila had graduated from the same Academy we would being going to, Mom and Dad had gone down for the occasion, and we realized that Dad was looking for a certain road that was hard to find. When we had left Alaska, Dad had not told Mom that we were coming. She was expecting us, but in another couple of months or weeks and Dad had wanted to surprise her. Dad had asked Caroline not volunteer information that would help Mom to conclude that we were on our way down. And Dad was looking for a certain road that was hard to find. So, Dad pulled into the parking lot of a large store called H.E.B (named for it’s founder Howard E. Butt). Dad went in to make a phone call so He could remember where the road he was looking for was. We had come all the way from Wasilla Alaska to Weslaco Texas and parked in the very large parking lot of H.E.B.

About 5 minutes after Dad had gone into H.E.B, Brian and I were talking about this and that when all of a sudden Brian almost went bezerk with animation. “Hey! That’s Roy over there!  Hey Roy!!  Over here!”   And sure enough, parked right across from the car was a black Ford ranger pick-up truck and Roy and Aunt Iona were getting into it. Brian and I wasted no time but went over right away. At first Mrs. H thought that some friends of Roy were calling his name, but then she saw it was Brian and I. How did such a thing happen? We had gone from Wasilla Alaska to Weslaco Texas (10 miles from the border of Mexico) and parked right across from the black truck!!! Well, after a bit, Brian and I decided to get in Mrs. H’s truck and Roy stayed in the car.  Later on someone asked Roy what Dad did when he came back to the car, and Roy replied that Dad seemed surprised in a quiet sort of way. Brian and I went straight to Valley Grande Academy but the incident was repeated again the next year. 


A year later in the fall, it was Matt and Lila’s wedding, which was in the state of Colorado. Melissa had a red Ford explorer. She and Mrs. H were in the explorer headed for the wedding.  Uncle Arsenio and Aunt Iona had moved to California and we had moved to Arkansas. We came from Arkansas to Denver Colorado and Mrs. H and Melissa had come from California.  It had been a very long trip for Tim, Brian and Roy along with our German shepherd Clara in the back of that truck. Our car pulled onto the road where Ken and Sue’s house was right behind a red Ford Explorer.  We had come from different directions but had pulled into the same street at the same time. Some might call it spooky and others would have called it fantastic, but these two incidents really happened and we laugh and joke over them from time to time.


At one point, Brain and Beth took a trip to Portland to go to the Zoo. Beth's experiences with road-trips were not the mostly positive experiences that the rest of the family had. But Brain and Beth did have a good time going to Portland and back. When they were at the Zoo at night, Brian and Beth were sitting together on a bench. Across from them were a bunch of noisy teenagers who were all talking at once. Unknown to the teenagers, the lion's cage was right behind them. As Brian and Beth were watching, right behind the teenagers, a lion roared. The teenagers jumped up and started screaming and they ran away screaming. At one point when Brent and Kathy were at the Zoo, they were standing at one place that was a pen for animals that would normally live on the African Savannah. Kathy was not looking at the signs but was looking in the large expansive pen for any kind of Safari animals. "I don't see any gazelles here." And Brent replied, "I don't see any Great Kudu's either." "Oh Brent, there are no Great Kudus." Brent was used to making up bizarre names various animals that did not exist either in the past or the present, so Kathy's response made sense. At one point, Kathy and Brent walked into a hotel lobby with nothing but a car tire. No backpack or anything else besides a wallet. The blue maxima they drove had suffered a flat tire and they had gotten a taxi to town.       

Just as a note, I will be adding more road-trip short stories to this a little later. Any input, or details I have forgotten would be appreciated:)