Dear Reader:

God Winks were popping yesterday and the timing couldn’t  be better. I read an article last week that pretty much summed up the crux of what  the vast majority of Americans are feeling now…EXHAUSTED!

In fact we have been feeling that way for a long time…it is like the country  is on a run-away train and we are holding on dearly for life…wondering how things got so crazy and hectic without any letup or ending in sight.

Not only do we want a ‘return to normalcy’ before Covid 19 disrupted our daily lives… but we want a return to a slower-paced life in this country without so much friction…we don’t want to be hit with disturbing news… day after day after day…enough…we all needs a vacation away from it all…badly! Somebody put on the brakes….please!

And speaking of trains….I promised you a solution to a mystery that has been going on for several months. It started back in January of 2020…my friend, Lisa, from Chapin, forwarded a copy of the train/life metaphor that she knew I would love. She had gotten it from a friend…and it was a popular “hit” with you blog readers.

 The problem was “The Train” …a beautifully written metaphor on life … had the author listed as anonymous. Still many readers inquired as to how they could buy a copy of the manuscript or even perhaps a book…

I texted Lisa but she didn’t know either.

Month after month more inquiries appeared and I wished so badly I could offer some helpful tip… but without an author’s name it appeared impossible.

The Train

At birth we boarded the train and met our parents, and we believe they will always travel by our side. As time goes by, other people will board the train and they will be significant… i.e. our siblings, friends, children, strangers and the love of your life.

However at some distant point, some random station our parents will step down from the train, leaving us on this journey alone. Others will step down over time and leave a permanent vacuum.

Some, however, will go so unnoticed that we don’t realize they vacated their seats.

(*To me the train travelers who had the opportunity to interact and become a part of the others passengers’ lives but chose not to are the saddest passengers of all. They literally let life pass them by.)

This train ride will be full of joy, sorrow, fantasy, expectations, hellos, goodbyes, and farewells.

Success consists of having a good relationship with all passengers… requiring that we give the best of ourselves and leave a memory behind.

The mystery to everyone is: We do not know at which station we ourselves will step down. So we must live each day in the best way…love, forgive, and offer continuously the best of who we are,  it is important for us to do this because when the times comes for us to step down, and leave our seat empty we should leave behind beautiful memories for those who will continue to travel on the train of life.

I wish you a joyful journey for the coming years on your train of life. Reap success, give lots of love and be happy. More importantly, thank God for the journey!

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And then suddenly, out of the blue, while reading my emails October 26… I saw where someone else had signed up to follow Chapelofhopestories.com. I was elated, as always. Then the next email (from the same person) had this mind-boggling and quite humble message attached.

 Richard Moriarty: “Thank you for printing my writing, “The Train”. I truly appreciate your comments and interest in reading my writing effort. Blessings to you, and thank you.”

We all need to sit on that train and talk to each other, these days, looking for what makes us more alike than different. I think God would be on the train bench across from us smiling…if we did.

Second God Wink:

Susan told me she forwarded yesterday’s blog to her two sisters and one of them, Wanda, in turn, forwarded it on to a friend who recently lost her husband. When her friend read the post…she recognized Honey and Mike Burrell’s name …they knew each other from the past and Honey told me that had just seen her husband’s obituary notice and were so saddened…six degrees of separation.

Third God Wink:

October is Pastor Appreciation Month...I picked up some note cards, some pumpkin, smores, and red velvet macaroons to take to Jeff, our beloved Dorchester Presbyterian’s minister, and his amazing associate and youth advisor, Zach.

Jeff and I had a great time catching up…then just as I was about to leave he opened up a cabinet next to him and in the bottom of it was a box… that it took a minute or two for me to recognize. It was a box I had given him long ago.

Jeff told me when he first arrived the congregation gave him pastor appreciation gifts and cards welcoming him…He now pointed to a box had that SC symbols on it…and then I remembered I gave him stickers, and historical tidbits about the Summerville area for his gift. He had kept it, along with the welcome cards that members had left with him.

Now here it was Pastor Appreciation Month again…our intertwined lives had come full circle. Another God Wink.

So until tomorrow….

I have one more God Wink. I went to the mailbox and there was the Lowcountry Dog Calendar for 2021….the calendar that my granddog, Pip, qualified for….thanks to so many of you readers who voted for him. Bless you! He is Mr. “May” (one of my favorite months) Tommy said he doesn’t go by Pip any more…just responds to Mr. May. 🙂 (and deservedly so!)

Guess who turned pink (just in time) for Pink Breast Cancer October Month…the Confederate Rose bloom…overnight it left white behind and went to pink…if the transition continues…it will be a dark maroon color tomorrow…before, sadly, dropping off the stem.