A MOTHER'S DAY GARDEN

Our son David drove over from Kennewick for a couple of days to visit and do a little "Mother's Day" gifting, and after doing our running around Friday, we all decided to stick around the house Saturday. David picked up on his Momma's desire to "do something" with the prepared flower bed near the front door. After juggling the few purchased flowers around a bit, rounding up a few mossy rocks from elsewhere in the yard, another trip to Walmart/Home Depot for additional blooming plants, and a few hours of getting into the compost, a beautiful gift for Momma emerged.

OK, The calendar says it's really a Memorial Day display and the plants selected do feature reds and white and blues - very patriotic. In the back corner will be dahlias and camas lilies when they come up; those should come back next year. The other flowers are perennials, so there is some hope of seeing them again too. Probably other additions will join the initial group as other pretty and appropriate choices are spotted through the rest of springtime.

As the project neared its finish and the clean-up was done and tools put away, the proud landscape architects consented to a photo commemoration. Look at 'em grin! So, David, Thank You for giving your Momma a Flower Garden. You made her mighty happy! (And therefore, me too!)


PS Almost everything survived the one-inch-in-an-hour thunderstorm downpour a few hours later as a record breaking rainfall caused instant flooding locally and caused 4" of water to stand on our inclined gravel driveway and in the rings around our yard trees because there was just nowhere else for it to go for nearly the whole hour. Now we have had our storm drubbing like others; a big mess, but no serious damage here, thank goodness.

JAPANESE-AMERICAN HEROISM

Eugene, OR, has dedicated a beautifully designed pocket park in downtown to the memory of the Japanese-Americans who taught this nation so much about dignity and endurance during WWII and in the years since. These were the American citizens and their families who were mistreated during the fear and panic which swept the nation in the months and years following the attack on Pearl Harbor by the nation of Japan.

In February 1942, most American citizens of Japanese descent were ordered to report to collection centers to be deported from the west coast states and to be relocated into isolated, primitive, internment camps in remote and often inhospitable desert regions throughout the western USA. 120,000 or more were thus separated from society, losing in the process their personal properties, family heirlooms, businesses, and individual rights.


Three monoliths tell the story under the titles "Perseverance", "Honor", and "Justice". The texts are terse, but even so condensed, one can sense the drama of a people struggling to regain losses and dignity which never should have been taken from them. The text of "Perseverance," (pictured above) is shown below.

Even while incarcerated in the deplorable camps, opportunity came (after first being denied) for young men of military age to enroll in a special unit to be made entirely of Japanese. This chance, although spurned by some, was seized by many individuals and families as an opportunity to display loyalty and regain some measure of supporting the war effort. This was a way to demonstrate "Honor", the topic of the second stone. The unbelievable accomplishments of the 100th and 442nd Combat Teams are the most inspirational in all of our military annals.

The text does not tell how these remarkable heroes fought some of the dirtiest, bloodiest hand-to-hand battles of WWII, in the process rescuing an isolated regiment of Texans and incurring overall more casualties and deaths and earning more honors in combat than any other military unit in American combat history. Characteristically, most of them never spoke about their achievements after returning to America where, because they did look Japanese, they were often treated as though they were the enemy.

After many years and some years of fighting in the courts for reparations against the losses suffered and the rights denied, and because of focused and dedicated Japanese civil rights leaders, the Federal Government - Congress and the President - Redress was obtained, apologies were expressesd, a token repayment was tendered to camp survivors, and the nation began to understand the injustice which has been visited upon this group of Americans.

Here, a brief text recounts the efforts expended to obtain the corrections and reparations due, but it tells nothing of the legal difficulties and personal persecution some dedicated individuals endured in the process of seeking justice after the fact. These individuals are heroes too, having fought on a different battle front, but having incurred wounds of a different sort.

In the park is a small granite bench. The statement along its front summed up what such a memorial should help us remember. Pointing out that those in the camps, those fighting and dying in battle, and those who took on the government and a shameful national prejudice gave their all for one basic reason: that the next generation would never have to endure such indignity and pain and "loss of face".

The words on the bench say, "Dedicated to the spirit of the Issei (1st generation Japanese) who toiled for the sake of the children. "Kodomo no tame ni"."

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**PS If you click on the pictures they will expand to full-screen magnification for easy reading. Thanks for the tip, PK.

A 100 YEAR OLD OYSTER (BAR)?

For any business to last over 100 years is remarkable; maybe even more so when its primary product is seafood, especially oysters! Dan and Louie's Oyster bar in Portland Oregon is exactly that, an oyster emporium over a century old, continuously on the same location and still owned by the same family.


After some time in another Portland landmark, Powell's Bookstore, Mike and Patty and I lunched in this uniquely marine-themed restaurant. Curiously, Mike, a buddy of mine since 1969 (that's almost 40 years now) worked at Dan and Louie's when he was growing up in Portland, well before he joined the Coast Guard and eventually ended up in Alaska. He makes the perfect guide to the decor, some of the history, and the behind-the-scenes stories in this landmark eatery.


Just take a look at the nautical objects, pictures, artwork, items of the sea, ship models, historical photographs, collectibles, decorative china featuring plates and cups, line work, and much more as the photographs will testify. We had some of the finest food one can enjoy downtown: salmon chowder for Patty and Mike, and small, fried oysters for me. It made for a wonderful lunch worthy of many memories.


As a bit of a bonus, we were able to visit for a few minutes with the owner Doug, whose emigrant grandfather started the food business after mastering the art of oyster farming around 1900 in the Oysterville area of Willapa Bay which is formed by the Long Beach peninsula just north of the Columbia River in Southwest Washington. He was most cordial and willingly shared some of his family history as well as some of the unique features of the restaurant's history.

**This is a shameless plug: "Eat at Dan and Louie's Oyster Bar in Portland. You will be delighted. It is located only a block or two west of Skidmore Fountain. Both are near the area of the equally famous Saturday Market held under the west end of the Burnside Bridge on weekends."

ANNUAL BEACH RETREAT 2008

Our Wednesday Evening Bible Group, as precious to us as family, spent last weekend in a beachside condo at the top of a bluff in Netarts, Oregon. Even when some arriver earlier, we always rendezvous Friday noon at a restaurant for lunch, this year being our second visit to Rachel's not far from our lodgings. This year most of us enjoyed the wonderful chowder and the rest opted for the giant Reuben sandwiches.



The views are wonderful and the coastline can be seen for miles to the south across Netart's Bay, clear to Lookout Point and along the spit even to the outlet opposite our location. It was hard to select from among the nearly 200 pictures I took in every direction. This shot along the beach to the northwest shows where some hiking and wave watching time was spent by a few of the more adventerous among us.



On one of several outings, we visited Cape Mears, a few miles north, where the fascinating "Octopus Tree" is located, a multi-trunked Sitka spruce that has drawn visitors for a century or more. There is also an interesting lighthouse, perhaps the smallest of all on the entire Pacific Northwest Coastline. Peregrin falcons and a host of various seabirds make this location a birdwatcher's mecca, and hefty telescopes and binoculars and cameras with telephoto lenses are common equipment seen on the trails and overlooks at this great site.



Dozens of activities got us through the weekend with Maui being the most popular card game, our famous and hilarious evening sessions of Balderdash being the overall favorite, but with plenty of great meals, hikes, day trips (this year to Garibaldi's antique stores), naps, crossword puzzles, and finally, Sunday Morning worship with the Church of Christ in Tillamook, Oregon.



The last photo, with the tide coming in, and the beach oddly empty of folk and their pets, was as close to a sunset as we were able to claim, the horizon being unfortunately clobbered with cloud banks and mostly overcast skies at all points of the compass. Still, for a few minutes, even almost an hour before "official" sunset, there was brilliant color in the pink and purple and orange ranges, and we all paused to admire God's paintbrush.

PS Sound Good? Come and become part of this group and seek God with us, and enjoy our Bible Studies, other activities throughout the year, and qualify for the retreat in 2009. We'd love to have you along.

OIL PAINTING AND THE EAGER AMATEURS

Since word about this popular oil painting class has spread widely, the enrollment has maxed out. We are now up to 28 student artists according to the last figure, and not a space remains for another. No wonder, really. Most good "Mature Learning" classes draw a number of enthusiastic learners, but when the subject and the instructor are both exceptional, well, call it the the grapevine, or jungle drums, or just plain gossip. Word does get around. Fact is, more folk want into this group every term than there are places to fill.

Skills range from the somewhat experienced painter to the raw tyro. No matter, because the class spirit happily accommodates both sort. Everyone is encouraging and helpful and quick to lend supplies, favorite hints, generous complements, and even snacks. Sometime in each session, each budding artist will quietly move around the room for a stretch, a look-see, and a bit of visiting. We are a mixed lot of folk, with a varied set of backgrounds, and a and an equally wide variety of styles and goals in our own paintings. Still it is fun to compare and to see the progress others are making in a single painting or in a series of art works.

Without doubt, the draw and loyalty of this class centers around the guru who guides and cajoles and pushes us to our best. An accomplished artist in oils himself, Stan is a master of color, knowing from experience and intuition (and perhaps a little black magic) which tube colors to combine in what ratios to create exactly the shade or tint needed for the picture in progress. He will advise or he will "sit in", as above, to demonstrate how to distance the background, control the apparent light in a picture, create the impression of great detail in a few carefully woven strokes. He is astoundingly versatile in working with such a range of amateurs. It is always a joy to learn under a talented, informed, gentle, and stimulating instructor. No wonder Stan's class is packed. No wonder everyone is eager for their turn to receive a couple of minutes of his time during the three hour session. No wonder we all are eager to sign up for each new semester.