Week 26: Part 1--Uncle Dan

This time I open with blooms from Maine, not Tennessee. That is where I spent the weekend. No one guessed the airport hints from last post.

Anyway, my brother Alan and I flew from Indianapolis to Portland, Maine, rented a car and drove to Waterville to visit our one remaining uncle--Daniel Hirschy (Mother's brother) who still lives at home at age 103. His two youngest daughters live with him. Kathy grows lovely flowers, too many to photograph all of them. I chose this honeysuckle bush because the start came from Grandma Hirschy and also it reminds me of the kind we enjoyed in Argentina.

On the 21st of June, he commented that he is already two months into his 104th. He does not complain, says he's nearing heaven (but does not act like it!). Several times he spoke of longing to see the 14 martyred pastors he trained. In 1973 Dan and Eleanor Hirschy went back to Chad for their seventh term. It only lasted 4 months before they were detained and evicted for "subversive" teaching that kept the people from performing the required idolatrous initiation rites. Fourteen church leaders were arrested, shot and buried in a mass grave.

He regaled us with stories of their many years in Africa: hunting elephants (back when it was allowed and the natives made good use of every part), antelope, hippos; building their house (ant hills, best soil for making bricks) and furniture; toils and travels. 

Their home in Africa

He loves poetry, always has. I recorded several, and hope I can upload at least one. His favorite one by Robert Burns, oft quoted to his wife--A Red, Red Rose. 

He enjoyed telling us stories about his treasured things. The little swing he made for a couple's Valentine get together where each wife had to guess which one was made for her. Eleanor recognized her husband's handiwork immediately and the reference to their favorite spot.

The girls play a word game with him almost daily. I played one with him Sunday afternoon. Despite his very poor eye sight, he taught me anagrams.

Photo credit, Alan Hoyt

The girls take such good care of their father. I say that's the secret of his long life!

Sunday dinner; Linda by the sign she painted; Kathy and Pumpkin the cat.

Linda has artistic talent like her father before her, and my mother (he has several of her paintings in his room)! I learned that our grandfather Hirschy also painted some, but didn't have time with his full life as a pastor and family of six.

Painting by Uncle Dan in his youth

Both sisters have worked at the same hospital for more than 35 years. Kathy is the one who drives and helps Uncle Dan in and out of the car. He still loves to go to church. Even though he cannot hear hardly, he thrives on the fellowship.

Getting in and out of the car; Alan helping him up the ramp and into the church

You gathered, I'm sure, that it was a full and blessed weekend. The flights were smooth as well, although we were delayed five hours on our return due to weather. We were grateful it was not cancelled. 

Meanwhile back in Indiana, Michael spent most of Monday involved in the memorial service for a faithful mentor who worked with the robotics team many years.

And he continued painting the house during every spare moment.

Look for Part 2 mañana o pasado (tomorrow or the next day).

God's timing

The weekly Sunday bouquet from my Tennessee-cousin is made up of blooms that have not yet arrived in our region.

However, I do believe we had a weather event they did not experience--a heavy snowfall this late in April. Did I hear it was a 100-year record? I think Mike measured a 5" accumulation by Tuesday night

Friends with blossoming fruit trees, fear a total loss, like last year.

The tree I see from my writing loft, Tuesday and Friday

The Winter-in-Spring Wonderland was wondrously beautiful. The heavy-laden branches bent over our lane created a Narnia-like effect. Each of us commented on the snowy-branch tunnel we drove through, but none of us managed to get a photo.

Later, in the car with Rebecca, as we were listening to the song "He's got the whole world in his hands," she added "And the snow!" So true. Job referred to God's control over nature, “For to the snow He says, ‘Fall on the earth,’" And the Psalmist wrote "He gives snow like wool; He scatters the frost like ashes."

Snow is referenced often as the ultimate white, representing flawless purity. God's amazing gift of forgiveness through Christ's sacrifice in our place, also mentions snow: 

Though your sins are as scarlet,

They will be as white as snow;

Though they are red like crimson,

They will be like wool.

Top: Tuesday night (can you see the zip line?) Bottom: Wednesday morning 

The weather delayed the cement pour on Stephan's house from Monday to Thursday. Karen tells more in her post (Un)cooperative Weather. 

Michael helped at various stages of the process. The most physically draining was to shovel snow off the protective tarps, lest moisture be trapped in the network of tubing.

The least strenuous and most fascinating was to watch the pumper truck and the crew of ten men pour the cement.

This week, Abuelo tried to teach us to play chess. Rebecca picked up the roles and rules quite well. And, of course, she is very good with certain cell-phone features as the following pics attest.

Kendra made a meal for us on Wednesday--gyro wrapped chicken marinated in tzatziki sauce.

Wednesday, April 21, was Uncle Dan's 103rd birthday. He is my only living uncle on Mother's side.

Top: Hirschy siblings and spouses in birth order from L to R.

Lower: Siblings in birth order from R to L: Joyce, Harlan, Daniel, Lois, Kathryn, Philip

Four of them became missionaries, two in Africa and two in South America.

Uncle Dan and Aunt Eleanor were approved to go to French Equatorial Africa (now Chad) in 1945 and left in May 1946.

Four daughters and several terms of service later, they left the girls in the US and returned to Chad a seventh and final time. Here I quote from his biographical sketch:

What was to have been a four year term turned out to be four months. The government, endeavored to go back to the old ways, to wipe out all traces of years of foreign domination. All who had never gone through their idolatrous initiation rites were ordered to do so. Government spies were in the church services to see if the pastors were complying with their orders. I believe the Lord took us back to Chad to encourage the Christians to stand true to God. In the face of great persecution, they did just that. I remember messages being preached from Daniel about the three men who were cast into the furnace and Daniel who was cast to the lions. Rather than destroying the church, the persecution cleansed and strengthened it.

Eleanor and I were placed under house arrest and given 24 hours to pack our bags for eviction from Chad. But a few hours later a government car came to get us. We were taken 75 miles to Ft. Archambault where we were detained at the Bureau of the Police. . . At midnight we were loaded with our baggage on a truck. Two guards with machine guns rode on the back of the truck with us. We men sat on top of the 55 gallon drums and the women on a pile of suitcases. Following a 400 mile trip over unpaved road we arrived at the capital tired and filthy. That night we had devotions, reading Psalm 40 and tried to get some sleep on a cement slab in front of the Bureau of Immigration. We were accused of being subversive because our teaching kept the people from obeying the government demand to submit to the initiation rites.

Monday we were sent to Paris. . . We flew to NY the week of Thanksgiving. . . and traveled by bus to Pittsburgh. . . extremely tired, but rejoicing in the Lord's tender care.

They were willing to die, if necessary, to spread the message of the Gospel. 

This week the gifts I planned to give each of our families on Resurrection Sunday finally arrived, though ordered long ago. 

Another week

Another beautiful Sunday bouquet from cousin Karin. The more I enlarged the photo, the greater my wonder at the delicate colors gauziness of the petals.

 My friend Georgia came by Monday. I urged her to pick the last of the flowers. She found this beauty.

And she dropped off a favorite sandwich from a local cafe, The Bridge, along with a couple pieces of art. She's been painting rocks and hiding them in places to cheer people. It had been her intention for me to search for them, but since I am confined to my chair for a time, they simply adorned the lunch.

I wish you could appreciate the exquisite details of her amazing miniature art.

The mail brings lovely and fun surprises almost daily. The get-well cards were a delightful mix of humor and sweet sentiments.

Phone conversations can be a wonderful and meaningful diversion. Tuesday was my Uncle Dan's 102nd birthday and I had a lovely conversation with him! He is now the last of the six Hirschy siblings left. He still enjoys life, even with the increasing limitations of his advanced age. He's looking forward to going outside and working in the raised bed garden as the weather improves. I told him I'd think of him as I hobble around with the walker.

Daniel, Philip, Kathryn

Wednesday we went back to the orthopedic center. The ankle is healing with proper alignment so that is good. I now have a walker and have permission to gradually begin to put some weight on that left foot.

Thursday I had special visitors and was allowed to hold my new great grandson!

Destiny, Skye and Kalani

Thanks to this confinement, I had time to remake and finish Kalani's blankie. I didn't like the first attempt so I frogged the project completely (in knitting terms it means to unravel). 

Eyelet Stripe Baby Blanket 

Another type of face-to-face visit was our weekly Writers' Bloc Zoom meeting. These days we are very grateful for technology that allows us to continue sharing each other's writing projects.

Those are some of the interesting distractions of each day. However, every day, all week, I have been plodding on in the process of mailing the surgical mask relief tension bands, as described in the previous blog post.

It's been fun to receive thank you notes, even a photo, and requests for more. So Michael has been busy all week laser cutting hundreds, even thousands more.

On more relaxed days, like Sunday, Michael has fun cooking and baking.

Blueberry Cherry Pie

I heard a Taylor University chapel talk this week, actually by a former student from years ago. His family answers three questions every day regarding Covid 19.

1. What have we lost?
2. What  is not lost?
3. What have we gained?

They are good for all of us to ponder and always remember Jesus' words, "Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid."  Variations of  "Fear not," are as numerous in the Bible as the days in a year.

2019 FIRST World Competition-Detroit

Only a few of these beauties were left when we got back from our days away at the FIRST World Championship in Detroit. My memoir writing moments were few as well. Yet the focus of this blog remains--memories and memorable moments. It is a record of memories that surfaced during the week, whether directly related to the period I am currently writing about or the highlights to be remembered.

Monday, April 22 was my uncle Dan's 101 birthday. Of the six hirschy siblings, only two remain.

Phil, Grandma Hirschy, Mother, Dan

My latino friends from our Doulos days and I have been following the visit of the newer ship, the Logos Hope, to the ports we remember fondly from forty years ago. Someone posted this old photo from 1981 in Buenos Aires. I couldn't find our family, most likely because we took time off to be with my parents and brothers who still lived in Argentina.

A drone view of our old home appeared on facebook today--Doulos Phos Anchor Isle, now a resort, hotel, and museum.

April 24 was Armenian Genocide Remembrance Day. Last week I wrote about Michael and Bob Craton's experience one memorable Resurrection Sunday in Eastern Turkey and the stories they heard about that event in history.

PhyXTGears headed to nationals after big season
Wednesday we left very early for Detroit. Michael always drives the team trailer to competitions. Our friend Donna Banker met us in the long line of team vehicles waiting for their turn to unload. She took me to the COBO Center Detroit where I picked up all the name badges for the team.



After delivering them to Michael, we took off for some time together. She took me on a beautiful drive along the shore to a very good eatery--the Nautical Deli.

We had a lovely time together before she drove me back into Detroit to the church that hosted the team for four days. Donna was very brave to deal with the complexities of city traffic and very generous to travel 30 or 40 minutes both ways to spend that time with me. Last night she wrote from the hospital asking for prayer-- what she thought was heartburn turned out to be A-fib, so we are praying for her.

I was in time to meet the team and proceed with them to the People Mover station. We used public transportation the whole time we were there to go back and forth to COBO, to the showers at the YMCA, to the Rennassaince Center for evening meals and other events.

I like newspapers, even the 19th century bronze one at the station.

The two days of qualifying matches were spent in the stands cheering for our team, . . .

Team 1720 drive team at their station, lower left.

. . . or in the PhyXTGears pit checking/fixing the robot--Space Walrus, . . .

. . . or walking around the ginormous convention center checking out different areas such as the Innovation Center exhibits, the FLL pits (FIRST Lego League) from so many different countries, various workshops, and more. I earned my first Urban Boot Badge--a Fitbit award for steps achieved! One day alone I got in 19,639 steps! Ha!

On one of those walks with Michael we saw this jet engine which triggered a memory from when he was in college at John Brown University. There happened to be a jet engine down the hill from the campus. His roommate Jack Roberts was running for student body president and they decided on the theme: Jet away with Jack! Six guys attempted to move the enormous engine up to campus and failed. That night, around 1:30 a.m.,  Michael and one other guy, only two of them, figured out a way. Leveraging it onto skids, they dragged the engine up the hill with a truck. The skids suffered the most, worn down to 1" thickness. He can't remember whether Jack won or not. Ha!

I think grandson Elijah (14) enjoyed t/his FIRST event--407 teams from 70 countries playing on six different fields or subdivisions; thousands of people, lots of noise; a whole lot to experience.

Friday evening FIRST arranged for an entertainment option--opening night of The Avengers! There was another option--Robo Prom. Four of our students chose that, and we went as chaperones! Ha!

Kaylee is our only senior on the team. 

Two seniors ;-)

We have a younger group this year, a great bunch of kids.

It's great to follow the alums of the program. We met up with one young man who now helps out with another robotics team while he is a student at Purdue.

Garret and his mom

His team was in a different subdivision. Surprisingly, though they were ranked 13th, they did not get picked in alliance selection. Hard to believe that it was the end for them.

On the other hand, Team 1720 ended up 23 out of 68 and was picked as the fourth or alternate team by Alliance # 2. Competition was tight, defense was brutal and we lost by two points in a rubber match.

Archimedes Alliance #2

Interestingly, the alliance that beat us ended up losing to the champions by one point!

So, why do we do this? I think the following poster says it all.

2017 Week 16: The earth is the Lord's

 His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen since the creation of the world, being understood through what He has made.           (Romans 1:20)

 Divine Cycle

The acorn fell into the soil

Slowly, surely and without toil

Became one with the earth

Eventually giving birth

To a small sturdy sapling

Stretching, grappling

Branches reaching high

Ever toward the sky.

Seasons came and went

The oak tree groaned and bent

At last like weary arms

Tired limbs gave way

To battering storms and scorching sun

Then fell and gently lay.

Cupped hands cradle

The hope of life to come

Moist leaves welcome

The tender green acorn

Till new life is born.

Rita Koch, April 10, 2017

In honor of Earth Day, I asked my friend Georgia if I could include her photo along with my poem in the blog. 

It was the art I chose to write about at the opening evening of the Barton Rees Pogue Poetry and Arts festival a couple weeks ago.

[No copying allowed, both are copyrighted, but Georgia sells her cards.]

One afternoon I walked around the path through our woods to see how many different spring flowers I could find.

Wednesday afternoon Rebecca was here for a couple hours and we had fun visiting and playing with the neighbors. 

Mother had not been well, so Thursday I made another overnight visit. Again we enjoyed reading more of Aunt Margaret's letters from December 18, 1950 through February 8, 1951--their first Christmas in Argentina, Lynny-boy's 3rd birthday--so many interesting comments and anecdotes.

We invited Margaret to go to dinner with us. Afterwards I showed them many photos from the early days in Argentina, my album titled Fotos Antiguas. We found one picture from the time when her letters were written.

Aunt Margaret and Uncle Jim

The next day, April 21, was Uncle Dan's 99th birthday--my mother's only living brother. I had just received a copy of a book his granddaughter created some years ago about the Daniel Hirschy family. I was glad to have it and be able to leave it there for Mother to peruse.

Throughout the week, whenever Mike is at the shop, I can watch live streaming and maybe catch some action, or see when they turn out the light and know he'll be home soon.
In this frame, they were probably on the playing field testing the latest improvement to the robot.

The mechanical and programming students (and mentors!) have been working hard preparing for the FRC World Championship in St. Louis, April 26-29. Most of the team will travel Wesdnesday. I leave Thursday with a couple others.

Indiana Weekend with John Strauss, aired an interview with two of the girls--Robot Fighters.
"A group of talented Muncie-area teen-agers is headed to the world robotics championships. The students of Team 1720, the PhyXTGears, talk about their passion for technology - and their determination to bring home another victory."

A big week ahead, indeed! Added to the excitement of Worlds, a very serious event is coming up Tuesday the 25th--Kristie's major surgery (median arcuate ligament release and partial celiac ganglionectomy) to correct MALS, a rare congenital anomaly.