"Brighter and Brighter!"

Proverbs 4:18-19

But the path of the righteous is like the light of dawn,
That shines brighter and brighter until the full day.
The way of the wicked is like darkness;
They do no know over what they stumble.

Think of that, the path of the righteous shines brighter and brighter. What does that say to you? I read it as if we gain more understanding and sight as we continue in righteousness. When we first start out walking in righteousness, we don't know quite what we are doing. We stumble because our minds are still very dark and we cannot see clearly, but as we continue on that journey, we begin to see the Truth better and better until (in death) we see with the full light of day. The love chapter, 1 Corinthians 13, says in verses 11-12,

"When I was a child, I used to speak like a child, think like a child, reason like a child; when I became a man, I did away with childish things. For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face; now I know in part, but then I will know fully just as I also have been fully known."

I think there is more to it still though. Not only will we see our path better; its purpose, excellence, glory, beauty, honor, truth, but I believe others will also see that glorious dawn brighten as we walk toward the Sun. It will be made known to others that the righteousness we walk in leads to something greater and lasting.

From Sunrises/Sunsets

Walk toward the dawn,
Joshua

The End Of Psalm 142

Psalm 142:7b

"The righteous will surround me,
For you will deal bountifully with me."

In Honor of Seasons Past

Since it is cold and snowy, I figured I would post a summer photo or two. It isn't because I don't appreciate winter type weather in its time, because I do. As a matter of fact, I have come to appreciate the change in seasons when they come. I have no qualms about one season passing and another coming in its place. I enjoy watching things change and welcome new seasons in their times. But I was going through some photos of mine and came across some captured lightning from a thunderstorm this past summer. I had my brother-in-law's camera and had a heyday with it. This is just something else I got to play with.

Low saturation with clouds lit up and power lines in the foreground.


A second showing rain with more saturation than the original capture.


I absolutely love thunderstorms. I would stay up all night watching one if it was to last that long. It is something I anticipate during the summer and get relaxed watching. Its like super high charged, loud, bright therapy... or something.

Joshua

P.S. I really appreciate comments and suggestions on my photos. You can either comment on this blog or on my photo page. Thank you!

It Snowed!

And I took the day off... because I am a lazy bum that likes excuses not to work. Haha.

Here's a picture.



Joshua

Cloudcroft-Walking In White

So, it has been nearly four weeks since I got back from Cloudcroft, so I should probably tell you all about it.

It started when I watched some videos from a series called "24 Hours" by Ryan Jordan. You can find him lurking HERE. The video series is about him backpacking on short trips. The only rule has is, he has to be back to his doorstep within 24 hours of his leaving for the trip. That makes for a short trip! But I liked the idea and it gets rid of a lot of the things that get in the way of me and the trail. So I took up the idea (with a little modification to the time frame) and packed for a short trip in Cloudcroft, NM.



My mother offered her heavy recommendation that I not go because the weather was supposed to be deteriorating to the point of snow while I was scheduled to be on the trail. I told her, "That's why I want to go right now!" I really wanted to hike in the snow. I figured it would make a good story. She insisted. I neglected to abide by her pleading. I love you mom! I started searching around for places to hike near Cloudcroft and came across a place called Bluff Springs. It has a waterfall. That's hard to pass up, especially when you live in the desert, so I claimed it as my trailhead and bought a map at the Forest Service Station in Cloudcroft. That was an adventure in itself because I didn't bring much for cash and my checking account was all but completely dry. After a frantic phone call to my mother, asking her to deposit my paycheck immediately, she helped and I purchased my map. Then I headed the additional thirty minutes to the trailhead, which happened to be down a few pleasant miles of dirt road. :) I like dirt roads. I found the trailhead and was surprised to see the waterfall RIGHT THERE! I was expecting it to be a little ways down the trail, but whatever.

It had been snowing for a while already and just let up when I got to the trailhead. So, I got my pack together, took a picture before I left and left a note in the window to let any passers-by know what the truck was there for.



It was cold. I mean, 32 degrees is not very warm. I left at 12:30. Once I got moving, things warmed up a lot, but until then, I was frigid. I started up the trail and immediately noticed that I was on an old railroad grade. What I had read on the trail said that most of the trails around these parts were old railroad grades, but now I actually saw how true that was. In about the first half-mile, I came across an old railroad trellis that was falling down. Then, a little ways further, I started seeing railroad ties scattered alongside the trail. I figured this was going to be some easy traversing. No problem. I didn't mind if I didn't have a 30% grade.

As I kept walking, I ascended into the clouds. Visibility was decreasing, but it wasn't to the point that I couldn't see the trail. I was a pleasant fog that gave me to opportunity to see the scenery close to me rather than gazing across canyons and down valleys. The fog didn't last too long before it got wet again. The snow started on light and calm. It seemed to just quiet everything down. I would stop from time to time to just listed to the snow fall. It was nice. It was serene, I was hiking alone, and it was fine. I watched the snow fall on my $10 Wal-Mart fleece, looked up to watch it fall, got it in my eyes, caught a few on my tongue, and just enjoyed it. I was glad I went during a snowfall. You could even see where the railroad ties used to be even though they were long since removed.



Soon after, I put on my moisture layer so that my fleece wouldn't get anymore wet than it already was. After a little more hiking, I came upon trellis number two. It was the larger of the two I came across, but in no better shape. It was kind of neat to see. I took some photos and videos.

The trellis and my trail


Snow on wood


The temperature just continued to drop after that.


And the snow got deeper and fell harder. Bonus? I got to see puppy tracks!




I stopped to top up on water at a spring I came across at about 15:15. It was a nasty spring that was frequented by cattle and had very little flow, so using my water filter was necessary, but difficult because there wasn't anywhere to pump it out of. I ended up making a small hole in the mud, let it fill with water, wash out all the suspended dirt and... stuff, then filtering it. My hands lost all feeling while doing this. It wasn't fun. I quickly warmed them under my fleece to get some feeling back, and did they ever hurt! Man, there are some things about the cold I really do not like. But all that aside, I kept walking. Right after that, I left the railroad grade for a narrow up a small canyon for a ways. The terrain didn't change a whole lot, it was just a little limited. The snow kept falling. I kept walking. Then I noticed a mistake I made. I wore the wrong shoes.

My tread was my Teva trail runners that I wore while backpacking in Colorado. They are comfortable shoes, but they aren't very well weather resistant. If there is moisture, I am feeling it, and I did. They have a mesh type material on the top that is similar to a jersey. When I got show on the top of my shoe, it would melt from the heat on my foot and get my socks wet. Wet socks and cold aren't the best combination. There wasn't much I could do except to keep walking. So that, I did. I walked until about 17:00 before setting up camp a ways off the trail under some nicely spaced pines. I first set up my tent, then tried to build a fire. The fire was a lost hope. Frozen wood that had been getting rain on before wasn't viable to build a fire with. I gave up and decided to cook something and warm up.

Mmm... Ramen.


I got to cook on my cat can alcohol stove, and that was exciting. Considering fuel burn and stove/bottle weight, it is about one tenth the weight. I was excited that it worked! I even cooked inside my tent. I put two stakes under the stove to keep it off the tent floor since the bottom of the stove does produce some heat. All things went well. After I polished off some warm soup and cocoa, I found my way into my sleeping bag for a late afternoon nap. I really didn't mean to, but I did. Haha. I woke up at about 19:00 and decided to melt snow for cooking and drinking tomorrow. I scooped it up with my bowl from right outside my tent and set it on the fire. It took quite a while to melt, but I filled all my water containers, so I was satisfied. Then it was time to do some reading before sleeping... again. I think I read some more about David before journaling and hitting the sack. Oh, and my little cottage was very cramped. Since I figured my Kelty tarp wouldn't suffice as a barrier against wind and snow, I decided to take a tent. The only reasonably light tent I had was a kiddie tent that I acquired from my sister. I took it along, but it was surely small. My sleeping pad found its way to both corners of the tent when spread diagonally. My feet would touch one side of the tent with my head being inches from the frosty tent wall. I would survive though. So, at about 21:30 (I am guessing), I went to bed. It was still chilly.



I woke up a few times during the night and one time when I checked the temperature, it was 15 degrees outside! Wow! That's cold. I didn't want to know that, so I went back to sleep. Haha. I finally rose at 7:15 or so the next morning. The snow had continued to fall regularly and light throughout the night. When I looked outside, I saw six inches on the ground! That was fun. The inside of the tent was frozen. When I touched the walls of the tent for any reason, I would get a small snowfall inside my tent from the moisture that froze against the walls. Oh, and most of my water was frozen. What wasn't solid, I boiled for some coffee and cooked some apple and spice oatmeal for breakfast. It was tasty and very much appreciated. I ventured outside after 8:00 and started tearing down camp.



While packing everything away, I attempted frost bite again but this time I remembered some hand warmers that I brought along and prepared them for when I was ready to put my gloves back on. Never underestimate the power of some hand warmers. Then I was off!



The entire mountain had changed with this snowfall. The trail was no longer an obvious path, instead, it was a slightly more cleared spot on the ground with the same white blanket as everything else.



All the trees had developed a winter type covering that gave the entire place a different mood. It was more wintery. And man, once that sun found its way over some of the trees and into the canyon, I soaked it up!



I had done over half my trek the first day, so today was going to be quick and simple. I took quite a few pictures and just enjoyed it. I saw lots of animal trails. It was funny to see where they went and the paths they took. They would walk in a straight line, veer off, come back, turn around, go down the canyon, back up, and all kinds of things. I really liked seeing the little birds in the snow. They puff up their feathers a lot when it is cold. Oh, and my feet weren't doing any better today either. There was plenty of snow to cover them.



I eventually made a full loop and came back to the trail I started on. I had about two miles left to the truck when I hit this trail. It was kind of sad to get back on it since I was enjoying things so much, but I had to remember, this is a short trip. I enjoyed seeing how everything had changed since I last traveled over it (without the white.)



The truck


When I got back to the truck, I took a little detour to the top of the falls before packing back into the truck. I saw just one small creek feeding the trickling falls.



On the bottom side, things were a little frozen.


Then it was time to start the truck up and get warm. When I stopped my steady walking, I got cold. So I hopped into the old blue Ford with 348,000 miles on the original engine and began to pray that it would start. I knew it would be hard. I doesn't like cold, especially when it comes with a white coat. The truck wouldn't start. I cranked on the thing and shot it with starting fluid, cycled the glow plugs, and just kept trying to no avail. I continued this until the battery died... completely. Not cool. I had gotten back to the truck at 11:30, but things weren't looking to swell to getting warm anytime soon. I waited... for two hours! I was hoping someone would come by. I saw two trucks while on top of the falls, but hadn't known my truck would give me so much trouble, so I didn't bother them. Now I wanted them to come back. I made a decision to go walking, looking for help. I know they say you shouldn't, but I had supplies and I knew I could get to the main road in decent time. And did I ever make good time! I was booking it. I soon came across the two pickups I saw earlier. They were a group of ranchers who had cattle on the Forest Service land. I talked them into helping me by giving my a jump start and we headed back to the truck. We tried and tried, but the old girl just didn't want to start. It was too cold for her. We EMPTIED a full can of starting fluid into the intake before finally catching the airbox on fire. That is just expected. After killing that situation, we went to plan C, propane burner. Yes, that's right. A propane burner. They had a massive torch they use for branding irons (much bigger than the one we have at home) and we started cooking the engine. We set the torch under the engine, on the ground, and let the heat rise onto the engine. After about thirty minutes, the engine finally heated to running point and she started up. It was sure a struggle. I now had no airbox or filter, so I could hear the turbo sucking air when I throttled on it. I thanked them profusely, asked if I could help them, then headed home. I am very grateful for their generosity. I made it back to Cloudcroft at 16:30, five hours after I arrived at the truck. But man, was that a trip!

I did about 11 miles in 23 hours. I took things nice and slow. I plan on going back to hike some more trails in Cloudcroft when it warms up a little... maybe sooner if I have a better tuck to take ;)



Bluff Springs is highly recommended by me. I really enjoyed it and now have some more stories to tell people that probably will never believe me.



Joshua

What I Am Really Doing

When I learn to fly a taildragger, this is what I am really doing and didn't even know.

http://www.airbum.com/articles/ArticleTailwheelTraining.html

Joshua

The Second Hardest Thing I Have Ever Done

What is that, you might ask? Well, it's flying a tailtragger, or more specifically, landing and taking off in a taildragger. Man, it is ridiculous! If I didn't have an instructor in the plane, I would be upside down beside the runway right now. I flew for just under an hour this morning in Artesia with Paul Sloan in his little Citabria. I bounced the landings, I over-controlled and under-controlled the airplane on the ground, maybe both at the same time :/ It mostly came down the the inability for me to get the tail off the ground at takeoff. Once the tail is off the ground, there is plenty of control, but I don't do it, and thus, I can't control the direction of the airplane. It is different than a nose-wheel plane which I learned to fly in. I am still a little frazzled. I fly again on Saturday at 7:00. Pray that I don't wreck the guy's airplane. I would really appreciate that.

Oh, and the hardest thing? Learning how to deal with relationships (especially with those lost.)

Joshua

Up, Up, and AWAY!

Monday. 9:00. I fly.

Joshua

The Good Stuff

Sometimes you don't find the good stuff until the end...



I really like french press coffee.

Joshua

When the Body Is Indifferent

I get weekly reports from Make Way Partners still and I love reading them. Lately, the newsletters have been focused on the House of Treasures in Romania, where I wrote about being led to help. Well, I still desire to go, but there hasn't been much of an initiative by enough people to plan a trip yet to do the necessary repairs on the Traffickee's Shelter which you can read about HERE.

In latest newsletter, Kimberly Smith included a letter from Iana (Shelter Director) on what is happening and what I read broke my heart. It was speaking about the girls in the shelter and how they are healing. Then she wrote this,

Saturday, Sunday and Monday, I lay in bed, very sick. Now I am better, but down emotionally, because the pastor at my church is rejecting to help spiritually support me and the girls. That hurts. I know God is near me, I can feel His presence, He is my comfort, but still hurts. It takes time, I think. For the last two weeks I was a non-smoker, but today I smoked one. I guess I felt lonely.

WHAT?! Why? Why would the hands and feet of Christ reject to help such a needed ministry in their home city? What would posses them to do such a thing? I was troubled, so I asked that question. Here is the reply I got from Make Way Partners,

Regarding your question about Iana, Kimberly has explained it this way -- The reason why Iana’s pastor refused support is because many people are repulsed by the boisterousness and often ugly behavior these broken girls exhibit. They can’t see past the external façade the girls display into the broken hearts they carry.

Sadly, much of the Church is often the harshest in this arena.

How tragic that the Body of Christ Jesus would reject helping a shelter for the broken because the broken in that shelter can be ugly. What do you expect?! What does Matthew 9:9-13 mean to you?

As Jesus went on from there, He saw a man called Matthew, sitting in the tax collector's booth; and He said to him, "Follow Me!" And he got up and followed Him.

Then it happened that as Jesus was reclining at the table in the house, behold, many tax collectors and sinners came and were dining with Jesus and His disciples.

When the Pharisees saw this, they said to His disciples, "Why is your Teacher eating with the tax collectors and sinners?"

But when Jesus heard this, He said, "It is not those who are healthy who need a physician, but those who are sick.

"But go and learn what this means: 'I DESIRE COMPASSION, AND NOT SACRIFICE,' for I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners."

We are here for the broken, not the well. The broken don't look well and don't function well, but that is why we are to find our strength in Christ. Since the local Church in Bucharest, Romania won't help Iana and the girls, please take their place and pray for them.

Joshua

Intercessory Prayer

"Patient determination is often the only successful method of intercessory prayer."

-Water From The Rock p.136

"Knock away till sundown; and then come again, and knock all tomorrow."

-D. L. Moody

Sunday Nights

I used to go to Calvary Chapel in Roswell for a prayer meeting, but things just changed. My dad teaches the High School Boys' Sunday morning class, and they had been doing a bible study for months now. It was great because it wasn't someone else's teaching on a particular subject out of a book, instead, it was simply opening the bible to a particular book and reading it then discussing it. But now, the youth leader decided that all the youth classes need to do the same thing on Sunday mornings, so that time is no longer open for a bible study. So, since my dad has a heart for a simple Biblical foundation, he started a Sunday night bible study at a guy's house just west of town. It is great! I love that kind of teaching. People get a solid foundation without another's interpretation. Christians don't tend to have that kind of foundation anymore, they hear lots of great teachings from great men of God, but it isn't personal between them and God's word. I am just excited to see it coming together. Last Sunday we had a great group of people. They all seem very interested and they were really thinking the whole time we were reading. There were middle school kids all the way up to middle aged adults. I certainly enjoyed it and learned a lot.

My dad asked me to attend the bible study so that I could help with input and so that when he is gone, I can keep it going. I am honored that he would ask me that and will definitely do it. We have started out in Proverbs. Now if you want a book that goes over just about everything in life, Proverbs is a very thorough book. Solomon wrote most of proverbs. In 1 Kings 3:12 God spoke to Solomon stating,

"behold, I have done according to your words Behold, I have given you a wise and discerning heart, so that there has been no one like you before you, nor shall one like you arise after you."

Crazy thought. 1 Kings 4:32 says, "He also spoke 3,000 proverbs, and his songs were 1,005." That is a wise man. And we have access to many of the proverbs he spoke! So, that is what we have started going over. I will try and give you a weekly update on what we speak about and what went on so that maybe you may learn and grow with our small group.
Proverbs 19:2, "Also it is not good for a person to be without knowledge, And he who hurries his footsteps errs."

Stay tuned.



Joshua

Shooting Each Other

I know that it isn't a good idea to shoot people, but when it is with paint, it is a little more reasonable. That is what some people and I did on the eighteenth of October. It was fun. I organized it in just under a week, and we had a turnout of about twelve people who were playing and a group of four who just watched. I started by calling Taylor to ask him if it would be fine if we played out at his house. He called his mother and called be back to say that it would be fine. Then I started calling people and those people started calling other people. I was surprised at how many people showed up, especially with so little notice. But thank you Blackwells for the use of your abode. Next time, at least one of you will have to play. Maybe you, Ranch Wife.

It started kind of slow because I planned it at 2:00 on a Sunday and the people that I rode with didn't leave Artesia until near 2:00. So I didn't get there first, but Ray and his friends stayed put okay. Once we got there, we all loaded up in a pickup and headed out to the field. We started playing before everyone was there, but we had already started late. People started showing up once we got out to the field and things got under way pretty good. The CO2 tank that I had leased was going low, so that made things kind of unfortunate, but we still played plenty of games in spite of that. When we got tired of running out of air, we started playing Civil War. It was RIDICULOUS! There were up to three of us playing at a time. We would stand back to back, take twenty paces away from each other, then turn around and take a shot. If we weren't hit, we would each take five steps forward then shoot again and repeat until there was just one standing. It was fun. I think the best part was the suspense of wondering if you would get hit. These are the things we do when our minds wander. Anyway, here are some photos.

The pink on Ray's neck is where I shot him.


Gathered around the CO2 tank.






Out!


Joshua

Fun On the Farm

Sorry, still no story of Cloudcroft (or paintball if you are keeping up), but if you want to see something funny, here you go.

In honor of autumn:


Joshua

Aerial Photos of Graves Farm

So, since I am behind on my blog posts, as I usually am, I am going to try I and keep them a little shorter, if I am able. We will see...

I figure I will start with my amazing experience with aerial photography. It all started with a conversation between my boss and his sons. They wanted to take a picture of the corn maze from the air as they had done the previous year. One of them mentioned me having a pilot certificate, so they came to ask me if I would be willing to take the pictures. I explained the predicament of renting a plane since I did not own one and I hadn't flown in so long. I mentioned an instructor, Paul Sloan (I have flown with him before), to them and my boss asked me if I would go with him to take the pictures. I told him I would love to. He said he wanted us to go real soon, before it froze. Last year they got a picture of the corn maze after it had already turned yellow, and this time they wanted a picture of it green. So I scheduled it for the following Monday. That was about three days away. Paul Sloan was appreciative that I mentioned him because he enjoys getting business (money). Also remember, I don't have a good camera. What was I to do but call up my aunt and ask her if I could borrow her D60? She didn't answer her phone, but she came to my work to buy some pumpkins anyway, so that was convenient. I asked her, she said that would be just fine, and I went to go get it! I like her camera. Just one more thing to do... I needed a telephoto lens with a decent focal length. As it just happens, I own one. You may wonder why I own a lens for a camera I don't own, but that isn't the right question. A question you may ask is, "Why do you own SIX lenses for a camera you don't own?" Or even better would be, "Why don't you own a camera for the lenses you have?" Those are decent questions. The reason I have six lenses with a Nikon F mount is because I found a deal. While talking to a guy at Walmart while I worked there, we got to talking about cameras. He said he wanted to get rid of some lenses. I said I was interested. Months later, he calls me and tells me he is ready to sell them. I go to his house with $100 and pick up the six lenses. Deal. Most of them are kind of old and off brands, but they work! So, with a camera, 55-200mm ancient lense, and a date to fly off into the sun, I was ready!

Monday I got to sleep in since the flight wasn't until 10:00 and we were leaving from Artesia. I made it to the airport a little early and watched Paul and his student make two landings before taxing to the terminal. I go over, meet them, go back to the truck and get the camera, discuss with Paul how we are going to do this, and get to it. We decided to take the door off the plane and that I would shoot from the back seat since the wing strut is in the way for the front seat. I was excited to fly with the door off. It's like riding a motorcycle compared to driving a car. You get a much better feel for your surroundings. I threw on a jacket from behind my seat, and we were off. He told me to fly us over to the farm since I knew where it was. Yay! I like flying. So from the back seat, I look out the sides to see where I am going and follow HWY 2 to the farm. It is always neat to see the places you know from the air. Like Hagerman.



We flew over Dexter and I could see the truck of a young lady I know at the hardware store she works at. Then we continue north to the farm. Once we get close, Paul calls up Roswell approach, talks to the controller, gets handed over to tower, and they discuss what we are doing. They give us the "okay" as long as we stay below 1000 AGL (above ground level.) Fine with us. We needed to be lower anyway. So once Paul sees the farm and I drop us to 400ft AGL, I hand the controls over to him and he starts circling. It makes me smile just thinking about it. I like steep turns, and that is what we did. We make two circles while I snap away on the D60 and capture 73 images.



That's a lot, but that is fine, because it's more to work with. My brother later said that he saw us, but only while we were leaving. But we start heading back and Paul asks me if I want to go take some photos of my house. I told him that would be great. I got the controls back and flew us to Dexter then angled a little more east while looking for the tanks and towers that stand near our house. It isn't long before I spot them and B-line it for them. I give the controls back to Paul and we do the same thing.



Then we fly back to Artesia.



One thing I noticed is that the Pecos Valley is a lot greener from the air. Much, much greener.

After landing, we figure up the flight costs, chat for a few minutes, and I headed over to my favorite place in Artesia, the Jah'va House!



Mmm... coffee. I didn't get coffee before the flight because... well... coffee has ill effects on your bladder, especially when you drink as much water as I do. But anyway. I zoomed on over there and uploaded the photos to my computer from the camera. I was excited. I was a little bummed that I took all the photos in JPEG format rather than RAW, but after a few minutes, I go over it. RAW gives you better quality images with more room for editing. Shoot. But I was pretty happy with them. It didn't take much looking to see that the lens I used was a little of a hindrance too. It took photos without as much color as we like and they were a little hazy. No problem. I have Gimp and with a little work with the wavelet sharpen or unsharpen mask and some toying with white/black balance and saturation, you can get some quality images. So I did that and edited a few of the better images while sipping wonderful coffee. It was a good day. Flying, coffee, a Nikon, and time playing with photos on my computer. But then I needed to head to the farm.

I made it to the farm at about 14:00. I was just goofing around, walking on some stilts.



They were fun. Then Andrew asked me if I was going to work today (not sarcastic, just needed to know) and I told him that if he needed me to, then I would. So then I was set on something that I don't quite remember. Then the day was over. Good day. I got paid to fly in a plane and take pictures. This is the photo they chose:


I hope you enjoyed the story as much as I enjoyed living it.



Joshua