James Arness Birthday Poetry Contest Winner

Welcome back to Patti’s porch. Did it pour here last night! Rained so hard we could not see across the street. Our front yard turned into a lake and the driveway rivaled the Arkansas for a while. Our granddaughter watched out the window with the delighted excitement of the seven year old she is as pea-sized hail stones hit the ground and rolled around like tiny marbles.

We’re hoping for all the mud to dry up by tomorrow evening. It’s Madison’s first “machine pitch” baseball game. The kids are geared up and ready to go, if only the sun will come out and smile with enough warmth to dry up all the standing water.

I got some exciting news in today’s email. A very special person, my lifelong hero, celebrated his birthday a couple of days ago. I’ve written about Gunsmoke’s Matt Dillon, portrayed by James Arness on television for 20 years, on this blog before. This year, Jim celebrated his 86th birthday by offering a Gunsmoke poetry contest. Since I am a writer and a Gunsmoke fan, I could not resist entering the competition.

Today, I received notification that I had won one of the 4th through 16th place positions. The contest was originally advertised for 1st through 6th place, but Jim liked so many of the poems that he awarded ten more winners. Sounds just like our Jim. Kind-hearted to the core and loves his fans!

The poem was fun to write, but I have to admit, those first three were stellar and deserved the recognition they received. As a winner, I am given a choice of one of the photographs Jim sells on his web site, autographed by him, of course. I chose a photo with Matt, Kitty, Doc, Festus and Quint standing around a birthday cake and wearing big smiles on their faces. It reminds me of the camaraderie the characters always demonstrated on the show. Oh, yeah, I still watch every episode of Gunsmoke that TVLand airs. Now that we have a DVR, I never have to miss one! It’s great!

Just as God saw fit to bless our thirsting land with the rain we so desperately needed, I am saying a prayer that He will smile on Jim and bless him with many more happy, healthy years with his wonderful family and loyal fans.

Check Jim's web site to learn more about this great actor and read the fine poems that won first, second, and third place.

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Awesome God

As long as I have been a Christian, I am still struck with awe when I see how God demonstrates his infinite power in our daily lives. Tuesday, I traveled a couple of hundred miles to attend the annual Colorado Christian Writer’s Conference in Estes Park. I’ve been doing it since somewhere around 2003. I missed the year my son and daughter-in-law got married, but all in all, I’ve made the trip at least five times.

This year was a little different. First, I had worked the night before, so I only managed about four hours sleep before it was time to get organized (a major feat for me!) and hit the road. I had arranged to pick up another conferee in Colorado Springs. I was okay with this until she gave me directions to her house and I thought, “oh my gosh, I’ve never driven in this part of Colorado Springs. I’ll get hopelessly lost for sure.” I was a little out of my comfort zone here, but I figured with my GPS, which my sweet husband had given me for Christmas a couple of years ago, I’d do all right.

Let me explain at this point that, as much as I love to drive, I am somewhat visually impaired. I’m right at the limit to drive – 20/40 in one eye with correction. So, I can’t read street signs as quickly as the average person, my depth perception is poor, so more than two-lane traffic can throw me into a state of acute anxiety. I love my pick-up, but ever driven through Denver? You get the picture.

Anyway, a couple of days before the conference, I received an email from the lady who was coordinating transportation. She desperately needed a driver to pick up a conferee who was flying into DIA from Texas. I knew she had about run out of options, so I told her I could do that. Now I was really out of my comfort zone. Me in DIA?! I’d done it a couple of times, but it’s not my favorite place to be.

I started the trip a half hour late, so that added to my anxiety. However, despite the fact I was behind schedule, I took a few minutes alone with God to ask for safe travel, good driving sense, and a calm heart. He gave me all of those. When I called my friend in Springs to tell her I would be a little late, she was glad to have the extra time with her kids.

When we arrived at DIA, the friend I was meeting there was waiting right at the terminal pick-up point. Didn’t even have to park, which is the nightmare I dread in a big airport. Things worked out so well that I question why I ever doubted they would. If only we would remember that our God is such an awesome God, how much anxiety and worry would we save ourselves!

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