BACK ON THE RHODES AGAIN

Time! What a great commodity, yet it can be either squandered or used wisely.  A few people are continuously productive, but sadly the majority, and I include myself, squander a lot of their precious time.

Let me give you an example.  Have you ever been driving long distance and suddenly you have have no idea how you drove the last 50 miles. It's just a blur.  Of course you have always been in control; you slowed down, passed other vehicles, drove through small towns, but you just can't remember the journey.

This happened to me recently when I drove down to Texas from Colorado Springs.  On the way back I was pulling a trailer with  a 1946, CJ 2A, Willy's Jeep strapped down on it. see the adjacent photo. It was late and I was tired.  I drove for hours but I could not recall a lot of the return journey.

No matter how hard I tried, I could not jog my memory, it was just a blur.  And no, it is not an age thing!!   So too, there are hours in the day we dwindle away without purpose and without remembering all we have done.

These were the thoughts which pervaded my mind at 3am.  I could not believe two years had come and gone without me putting pen to paper, or keyboard to screen and blogged.  Poof! Out of nowhere, I wake out of a dead sleep thinking, 'I must start writing.'  Not that it was a panic attack or anything, but a real 'wake up' call none the same, pun intended.

So I rolled out of bed, made a cup of coffee and began to write.  It's good to be at the computer again speaking fresh thoughts from the heart.  I may be a little rusty, but give me a chance and I'll soon be back in the flow.

It's quiet in the house at 3am.  Well, sort of quiet.  At least the noise from the refrigerator has stopped.  Man, that's a noisy beast.  Honestly, it sounded like a freight train rolling through the place. You really don't notice it during the day with all the other on-going noises of a regular household.  

Then there are the sounds of the expansion and contraction amplified in the  quiet of the morning.  If you let your mind go wild for a second you could almost believe someone was breaking into the house.  Fortunately, I have Winnie, our newest cat all curled up on my desk.  She heard the 'creak' as well. She perked right up, and looked intently trying to find the disturbance. After a while she slowly lowered her head back to continue her mouse dreams.  Whew, no thief. Thank goodness for a great watch cat.

Although the 'pen' from RhodeTrek has been silent for the last two years, let me assure you, the time has not been squandered.  In fact quite the opposite.  I have written an 85,000 word novel, a short book of exhortations, and finished a work manual;  most of which was done in the early hours of the morning.  In the coming weeks, I'll be giving you a glimpse into these works.

I'm hoping this blog'll (my new word) stir you up some poor traveler out in the cold, freezing and chilled to the bone and suddenly you come across a log cabin in the forest.  As you wipe the snow off the window and cup your hands around your face and peek into the dimly lit cabin you stare longingly at the warm glow of an open fire.  I want to invite you in, to keep me company through the words from RhodeTrek.  I'll even make you a cup of hot chocolate as you warm yourself by the encouraging truths and tales yet to be told.

In the meanwhile, Christmas is here. Noline and I want to wish you a Merry Christmas and an awesome New Year.  We love you all and if you are ever in the Springs area, go ahead, knock on our door and come in and sit awhile.