ROSES ARE
RED,

VIOLETS ARE
BLUE

I’LL WRITE A
POEM

THINKING OF
YOU

Here at Messiah Village we have a Poetry Society where most of the members write a poem at
least once a month. At the evening
meeting the third Tuesday of each month they all share a poem or sometimes two.
And then poems are sent to 50 Plus Senior News and a poem is selected for
publication each month. This year in November five poems related to Veterans
Day were published. In addition to that
honor the Poetry Society received an honor
plaque at the annual 50 Plus Expo in
Carlisle. WOW!

At the society meeting in November some of the poems read
were “The Year of 2012”, “Christmas of 1929”, “Thanksgiving”, “Cold Days are
Winter Fun”, “Church Steeple”, and “A
Time to Cheer“. One of these poems will
be selected for publication by Megan Joyce. editor of 50 Plus

Leigh Hoffman helped organize the Poetry Society in April, 2007, after he became a resident at Messiah
Village. Ten to twelve residents meet with the society each month in the
Fountain Room at the Village Center.

Most have written a poem but some enjoy coming
just to hear poetry read. Perhaps you would like to visit the third Tuesday of
a coming month to hear poetry read or to read a poem of your own. You are welcome to join them.

Traditionally, people greet one another by asking, “How are you?”, or perhaps “How’re ya doin”? Although they probably don’t really want to know about everything that’s bothering you, those questions seem mostly aimed at our health or welfare.

Instead of reciting a list of my current aches and pains or complaining about the bills that keep arriving in our mailbox, I’ve made it a practice to respond to those polite but generic greetings by saying, “Oh, I’m grateful”. …which I always am. Some folks act surprised by my off-beat answer to their friendly question, but few ever ask WHY I’m grateful.

So let me explain…. The reason is that regardless of my superficial circumstances at any particular moment, I’m always thankful for God’s grace and blessings in my life. Therefore when I say, “I’m grateful”…it’s the most honest and heartfelt answer I can muster up !
If someone DOES choose to explore the matter further—–which I highly doubt—-I’ll tell them that my gratitude results from God’s gift of eternal life in Christ. a wonderful wife and family and the joy of living at Messiah Village where our future is secure and enjoyable every day.

Now—–next time we meet, don’t be surprised if I tell you that “I’m grateful” when you ask, “How are you?”  (And I hope that you are grateful too.)

AFTER SERVING WITH HIM FOR OVER 37 YEARS, I WASN’T SURE IF I WOULD LEARN ANYTHING I DIDN’T ALREADY KNOW OR HAD PERSONALLY EXPERIENCED DURING OUR LIFETIME OF PROFESSIONAL SERVICE TOGETHER AROUND THE WORLD.

TO MY SURPRISE AND GENUINE PLEASURE, I ENJOYED THE BOOK MORE THAN ANYTHING I’VE READ FOR QUITE SOME TIME!

THIS HUMOROUS ILLUSTRATED BIOGRAPHY RECOUNTS THE PIONEERING WORK OF AMERICA’S LEADING CHRISTIAN PSYCHOLOGIST WHILE AT THE SAME TIME, INCLUDING AN EXCELLENT, CONCISE GUIDE FOR HELPING OTHERS RESOLVE PERSONAL PROBLEMS.

DR. NARRAMORE’S  DELIGHTFULLY  HUMOROUS ACCOUNTS OF PEOPLE HE WORKED WITH AND PLACES WHERE HE SPOKE IS SKILLFULLY WOVEN THROUGHOUT THE PAGES AND COUPLED WITH A SERIOUS, EASY-TO-UNDERSTAND CHALLENGE TO RECEIVE CHRIST AS PERSONAL SAVIOR…INCLUDING SCORES OF SCRIPTURE REFERENCES THAT NICELY TIE TOGETHER THE ENTIRE MESSAGE OF THE BOOK.

I’VE DONATED A COPY TO EACH OF THE TWO LIBRARIES ON THE CAMPUS AT MESSIAH VILLAGE AND I HOPE EVERYONE WHO READS THIS REVIEW WILL TREAT YOURSELF TO A MOST ENJOYABLE ‘READ’.  KEN MARKLEY

Of course if we are moving a distance, or if we are older folks, or if we prefer to see movers do the work for us then we hire a company.  Sometimes we want to sort our goods and decide what to pack and what to sell or donate and other times we want the mover to sort and pack and sometimes give us suggestions about what to keep and what to sell.

And sometimes the move is a long distance and we want to hire an interstate mover who can pack and then transport our furnishings over a long distance to a different state. When that is our moving choice then we see a larger truck and crew ready to help us.

So here we are at Messiah Village where moving residents are free to make their own choices about how they will pack and move. Our apartments and cottages are very attractive and comfortable. And if we discover something after we move that needs to be done, we just phone the Residential Living staff to discuss help and advice.

Messiah Village is a Wonderful Home

Topol as Tevye by United Artists

His emphasis on traditions is important because they’re based on habitual ways of living our lives in an orderly way. Habits help us through life with a minimum of effort, forethought or planning. They save time and reduce repeated agonizing over “what to do next?”
Day by day we give little thought to dressing, meals,bathing, driving to work, where to go on vacation, what to read, which TV programs to watch etc.
On the other hand habits can make life boring—-never changing daily routines can result in sleep-walking through life. Habits often block new experiences that could add spice and fresh air to our activities.
The other day, we were getting ready to go out to dinner with several friends. Before we left their home, I asked if they might like to try a new ethnic restaurant that recently opened nearby.

Adventuresome Food

One of the couples immediately said, “We wouldn’t like that kind of food”. I asked, “Have you ever tasted any of their entrees?”  He responded, “No, but I’m sure we wouldn’t like anything they offer on the menu”.

How sad—-for someone to deny himself what might be a delightful new experience! On the other hand, with that attitude, I’d guess that they probably wouldn’t have enjoyed the meals at that restaurant or for that matter  anything other than the narrowly restricted range of food and recipes they eat every day.

Bread & Water

On the other hand to be realistic, most of us aren’t very different than my “picky eater” friends when it comes to living our own  lives—where we vacation each year, the brand of cars we drive, how we vote, the clothing styles we select, the books we read….and in fact almost every aspect of our daily routines are governed by long-standing habits.  In many ways that’s a good and safe way to live.
However, I’d like to suggest that each of us try a few new experiences to add some zest and spice to our habitual routines. Take your vacation in a new location, go to a restaurant that you’ve been avoiding (without very good reason to do so), read a book on a totally different subject than usual, take a Pathways Institute course  that might sound uninteresting to you, volunteer some time to work in one of the service areas at Messiah Village

GO AHEAD, sample a variety of new experiences—they’re all over the place—-and can bring fun and psychological “fresh air” into life’s daily routines.

When you come to the Fall Festival or the Chili Cook Off in September…

you can also see some of the flowers.

Lots of honey bees visit our flowers. You are also welcome to visit.

I always pause and peer thru the window in hopes of seeing the 3 or 4 garden variety turtles which I know have a home in the ground near the rear end of the small lot. I am certain that there are both male and female turtles living there and I am also certain that they are now passed the breeding season.
However, I am baffled by the fact that I have not yet seen any young turtles that should have emerged from the den at the rear portion of the small lot. The adults come to the surface almost daily to feast on the food particles placed there for them by the Messiah employees working in the Evergreen Room.
Continuing my walk a short distance to the window on the other side of the hall there are presently two families of the Mallard variety of water fowl. The ages of the young vary considerably and therefore the heights of one family compared to that of the other also varies considerably.
As in the case of the turtles the Mallards are fed quite well which is probably the reason for the rapid growth of the peeps.

Ducklings

During the course of my daily walks I also occasionally meet up with a Messiah resident or two who bring their household pet dogs to the assisted living building where they pick up their daily mail. I, like so many other residents here at our building, have become familiar with one pet dog called “Maggie” who is the pet of Jerre and Carolyn Rutherford here at the Village. I am convinced that Maggie recognizes me by my voice and she is most receptive to the extra amount of attention I shower on her such as scratching her chin and ears. As you might imagine other residents here also pay a lot of attention to Maggie. I neglected to mention that Maggie is one of the popular Golden Retriever species of dogs. (See a picture of Maggie below).

Maggie

On my weekly visit to my Son and family in the Boiling Springs area I have learned to know another member of the Golden Retriever family, a Male whose name is ”Digmoore” and who like Maggie has also learned to recognize my voice and looks forward to the attention I always extend to him during my weekly visit. (See a picture of ”Digmoore“ below).

Digmoore

In conclusion, I am certain you will agree there are many interesting birds and animals such as pet dogs for us to admire as we make our daily rounds of the Messiah Village compound.
Bob Rickert (CarverBob).

However, we’ve already endured three heat waves that turned the grass brown and frequently kept us confined  in the air-conditioned comfort of our homes, as well as an earthquake followed by a powerful East Coast hurricane.
What a season Summer 2011 has been!!

After all these trials we’re eagerly anticipating the cooler breezes of Autumn with a chance to bundle up for a leisurely stroll around the campus. I suppose that if they had their choice, most folks would prefer a sunny, year-round temperature of about 80 degrees with just enough rain (during the night) to keep the lawns green and the garden producing fruit and vegetables.

Many years ago, there was such a place . It was called Eden. But , we can’t move there any longer.  The GOOD NEWS is however, that for those who love the Lord there is the assurance that He has prepared an even better place than Eden in which we will have a  mansion  and release from everything that bothers or annoys us in this life. The Bible doesn’t say anything about Heavenly weather conditions but I’m sure it will be absolutely delightful !

Meanwhile, I’m looking forward to the cooler weather here in Pennsylvania so we can sit on our porch and visit with friends and neighbors more often.

A few weeks ago we took a bus trip from Messiah Village to Lake Tobias Wildlife Park. It included a traffic tie-up, an animal visit, lunch, and an ice cream stop. It was a fun day.

Our bus driver with two dozen aboard headed for the Capital Beltway to take us across the Susquehanna River and up Route 147 to Halifax area but we joined a traffic tie-up. Hundreds of cars and trucks crept from four lanes to one lane and so we had lots of time to chat with our seat friends until we passed a tractor trailer accident. Then we were up to speed so our leader phoned ahead to Lake Tobias to reschedule our arrival time.

At Lake Tobias we got aboard an open-air bus to drive around 100+ acres of pasture land and wooded areas where we could see exotic animals and flightless birds. Our driver-guide gave us information and she had some ears of corn and some of us had some animal crackers to toss to birds and animals. Once in awhile you even got to quickly pet an animal and sometimes an animal climbed the couple of front bus steps to beg an ear of corn.  It was fun. From the bridge we could see a few American alligators in the lake.

Next we went several miles to The Carsonville Hotel for lunch. The Carsonville Hotel steps you back in time with a lot of antique items on display and it is an older building that was probably a farm house before it became a restaurant in 1976. It is very good food and the visit can be a lot of fun. French fry servings are big so that only one out of four eaters needs to order.

Another adventure of the day came after our Carsonville Hotel visit because there was a bridge repair closing a road. So the trip went around some country roads back to Halifax and then took Route 225 down Peters Mountain so we could stop at 3-B Ice Cream for after lunch dessert. Our trip to Lake Tobias was fun and we may go back sometime.

Apple Harvest Festival

In the Fall, the  Apple Harvest Festival at the South Mountain Fairgrounds in Adams County is a real treat and a ride on the PRIDE OF THE SUSQUEHANNA river boat paddle wheeler offers an interesting narrated introduction to the river-related history of the Harrisburg region.

Pride of the Susquehanna

Also,  there’s the famous ALLENBERRY RESORT just minutes from Messiah Village with their sumptuous buffet dinners and Summer theater playhouse entertainment.

Allenberry Resort & Playhouse

But I wonder how many local residents including those at Messiah Village are aware of the fact that less than 10 minutes from our campus is the largest collection of African mammals in Pennsylvania? There are 200 in all including an elephant, a hippopotamus, a zebra and a giraffe. Also, there are 100 specimens of North American mammals including a Kodiak Island bear, a great elk, an American bison, a musk ox,  mountain sheep and goats and a mountain lion.
As if that isn’t enough to really WOW visitors…they have a collection of 200 different bird’s nests and 17,000 bird’s eggs- the largest collection in Pennsylvania…plus 250 mounted birds !!!

Oakes Museum

All these attractions can be seen at the Oakes Museum in the Jordan Science Center on the campus of Messiah College. They provide interesting narrated tours by trained volunteers.

When Susan and I lived in Manhattan (NY City), we were surprised by how many long-time New Yorkers had never visited the Statue of Liberty or the observation deck in the Empire State Building. Many had lived there all their lives in New York but never took  the Circle Line boat tour around Manhattan Island. And its probably also true that the majority of residents in Central Pennsylvania including those here on campus at Messiah Village have never visited the Oakes Museum at Messiah College. Don’t miss this amazing and very interesting experience! Be sure to call ahead to determine when they are open for visitors.  The number is Area Code 717 796-1800 Ext. 2431. Admission is just $3.50 for Sr. Citizens and $6.00 for younger adults. You’ll never forget your visit to this amazing museum of Natural History.