Jacob wrestled with God throughout the night. We never read in the Bible that God played football, or that he ever played baseball, not even hockey or soccer--but we know that the first sporting event in which the Lord Himself participated is wrestling. Mock-me-not! It is there in Holy Writ!

 Last night, for 3 hours, 8:00-11:00PM, was a re-enactment of the wrestling match between Jacob and the Angel of the Lord. Last night God's favorite sport was on display in Wrestlemania XXIV (note the Roman Numerals). While I did not have the pleasure of watching this event there were others who did. So, sit back and relive Jacobs last wrestling match as I give you the details (supplied by another) of last night's retelling of this glorious struggle. (Might I add that last night's wrestling event set new records at Florida's Citrus Bowl: and attendance of 74,635 and ticket sales in excess of $5.85 million. )

- JBL defeated Finlay in a Belfast Brawl. During Finlay's entrance, Hornswoggle came out and got a big reaction. Finlay and JBL started brawling right away before the bell could ring. JBL sent Finlay into the guard railing and then Finlay sent JBL into the steel steps. They got in the ring as the bell officially rang and Finlay threw weapons in. JBL cracks a trash can over Finlay's head. More shots to Finlay with a trash can lid and cookie sheet. JBL brought steel steps into the ring, attempted a piledriver, but Finlay countered with a high back body drop. Finlay with a boot to the face and three shots to JBL's head with a cookie sheet. JBL cuts off Finlay with a big boot as Finlay came off the ropes. JBL with some stiff punches and kicks in the corner on Finlay. Hornswoggle ran in and cracked a kendo stick over JBL's back. Finlay then cracked his shillelagh over the head of JBL. JBL fell out and Finlay dragged him back in the ring. Big reaction when Finlay pulled a table out and put it in the ring. Big clothesline by Finlay on JBL. JBL then takes out Hornswoggle on the outside and Finlay goes crazy - bouncing JBL's head off the announcers table. Huge spot saw JBL climb into the ring, roll out to the other side, grab a trash can lid, Finlay did a suicide dive through the ropes and JBL cracked the lid over his head! JBL then threw a trash can at Hornswoggle taking him out again. JBL with another trash can lid shot on Finlay. JBL goes for a Clothesline from Hell, but Finlay counters with a trash can to the face. Finlay with a flip senton bomb on JBL followed by sending JBL through the table in the corner. Finlay covers, but JBL kicks out. JBL with a kendo stick shot to the knee followed by a Clothesline from Hell. JBL covers and gets the pinfall.

- CM Punk won the "Money in the Bank" Ladder Match. The match starts with mostly everyone bailing from the ring and grabbing a ladder. MVP with a big boot on John Morrison and a ladder shot to CM Punk. MVP also takes out Kennedy, Benjamin and Carlito. Jericho comes in with a ladder as well and takes out MVP with his. Morrison launches a ladder at Jericho. HUGE spot saw Morrison grab a ladder, go up to the top rope and execute a moonsault with the ladder in hand taking everyone out at ringside! Kennedy is in and Jericho cuts him off. Kennedy gets launched into the ladder, goes up to the top and Morrison jumps on the other side. Another big spot saw Benjamin setup another ladder, jump over, hit a sunset flip on Kennedy and Kennedy held on to Morrison powerbombing him down to the ring! Benjamin balances on the top rope avoiding getting crotched, but he misses the ladder when jumping back. Benjamin fights back launching Punk into the corner. Punk with the Go To Sleep on Benjamin. Kennedy with a senton bomb on the ladder using Punk. That looked like it hurt. MVP with a big boot on Kennedy, but misses on Carlito. Carlito takes out MVP's leg with a ladder. Carlito is left alone and starts climbing up the ladder. Benjamin with a big spin kick on Carlito. Another HUGE spot saw Benjamin get thrown off the ladder and flip onto another ladder set across the ring apron and guard railing! Jericho, Carlito and Kennedy all get thrown off the ladder by MVP. Morrison is up reaching. Jericho runs up and somehow applies the Walls of Jericho on Morrison on the top of the ladder! Kennedy then sets up a ladder near them. Morrison gets thrown off. Jericho hits Kennedy. Carlito and Punk are now on. I think I just saw the TNA banner flying over the stadium. Jericho throws everyone off. Carlito jumps up and pulls Jericho off hitting a Back Cracker! MVP smiles seeing he is the only one left. MVP goes up, reaches, but Matt Hardy hits the ring and hits MVP with a Twist of Fate off the ladder! Huge reaction for Matt. Two ladders are stuck together. Morrison climbs up one side, but gets thrown off and crotched. Jericho sets up a ladder under the briefcase. Carlito spits apple in Jericho's face. Carlito has the briefcase, but Kennedy throws him off. Kennedy gets knocked off by Punk! Jericho with the Code Breaker on Punk using a ladder! Jericho is back up. Punk is making his way up. Jericho hits Punk in the face with the briefcase. Jericho gets tied up in the ladder fallling backwards. Punk goes up and gets the briefcase!

- Batista (Smackdown) defeated Umaga (Raw). Teddy Long (Smackdown) and William Regal (Raw) were in the ring for the entrances. The bell rings and here we go. Both men start exchanging lefts and rights. Batista gets thrown down first and then Umaga gets tossed out. Batista with a big kick to the face, but Umaga comes right back with a spinning kick. Umaga with a big boot that sends Batista flying off the ring apron. Umaga throws Batista back in the ring and connects with a body splash. Umaga launches Batista into the corner with force. Umaga repeats this and Batista favors his back. Umaga connects with a big thrust shot to the throat of Batista. Umaga then begins pinching the nerve in Batista's neck. Umaga with a big scoop slam on Batista followed by a body splash attempt that Batista dodges. Umaga goes back to work on Batista's neck. Batista gets to his feet and fights off Umaga. Umaga comes right back with a huge spinebuster on Batista! Umaga attempts the Samoan Spike, but Batista blocks and then Umaga hits him with a headbutt. Batista with a spinebuster on Umaga out of no where. Batista then gets Umaga up and connects with a huge Batista Bomb! Batista covers Umaga and gets the pinfall.

- Kane defeated Chavo Guerrero to become the NEW ECW Champion. This one lasted about six seconds with Kane appearing in the ring while his music played, grabbing Chavo and hitting a Chokeslam to get the win to become the new ECW Champion. Tazz and Joey Styles wondered if this was a WrestleMania record.

 - Shawn Michaels defeated Ric Flair in a Career Threatening Match. The bell rings and oh boy here we go. HBK with the first take down on Flair. Lock up, Flair works on the arm of HBK, HBK counters that and works on Flair's arm. The two exchange this until Flair hits a drop toe hold on HBK. Flair knocks HBK back into the corner and lets out a loud WOOOOOOOOOO. HBK catches Flair with a big slap that knocks him back. Flair has a bloody lip as a result and then starts chopping HBK in the corner. HBK gets some chops in of his own. Flair takes down HBK, drops a knee and goes for a pinfall. HBK back up and he knocks down Flair quickly. HBK goes up to the top and Flair throws him off! Flair goes to the top, HBK almost throws him off, but Flair kicks him away and hits a cross-body! HBK fights back throwing Flair out and catching him with a baseball slide. Huge spot saw HBK hit a springboard moonsault, but Flair moves and HBK crashes through the announce table! Wow, that landing did not look good for HBK. The announcers wonder if HBK has a broken rib. The referee is constantly checking on HBK after every spot they do. Flair with a side slam on HBK and HBK continues to favor his ribs. Flair with an underhook suplex on HBK. Flair with some more chops and then an impressive vertical suplex! Flair with another cover and another kick out by HBK. Flair with more chops and punches in the corner. HBK fights back with some chops of his own. HBK with a swinging neckbreaker on Flair. Flair gets tossed out of the ring through the ropes. HBK with another huge moonsault off the top rope onto Flair. Referee starts the count and both get in by 9. Both begin exchanging chops. HBK with a jumping forearm on Flair. Both men are down. HBK kicks up, favors his ribs and drops Flair in an atomic drop. HBK is back up to the top and connects with an flying elbow! HBK starts tuning up the band, goes for it, but Flair cuts him off, trips up HBK and applies the Figure Four Leglock! HBK counters and turns over. Flair gets the ropes to break it up. More chops and then a takedown by Flair. Flair counters a bridge attempt. Sunset flip by HBK on Flair. HBK gets launched into the corner, falls back and Flair chop blocks his knee. Flair attempts a Figure Four and HBK counters into a small package for two. Flair gets the Figure Four back on! HBK is trying to get to the ropes. HBK tries a counter but Flair turns over and keeps it locked in! HBK then gets to the ropes to break it up. Flair begins kicking HBK. Flair turns his back on HBK and then turns around to walk into some Sweet Chin Music! HBK covers and Flair gets a shoulder up. HBK tunes up the band in the corner. Flair won't get up. HBK picks Flair up and Flair low blows him with the referee distracted! HBK then applies the Figure Four on Flair. Flair gets to the ropes and pulls off the turnbuckle. Flair with a thumb to the eye with the referee distracted. Roll up on HBK by Flair that gets a close two count. More chops. Another Sweet Chin Music on Flair! HBK stands back up and goes to the corner. Flair gets to his feet crying. HBK says I'm sorry and I love you. HBK hits Flair with Sweet Chin Music and covers for the pinfall. Both men begin crying. Wow, what a moment. After the match, Ric Flair gets to his feet crying. The entire crowd is cheering and clapping for him. Flair takes one final last bow. Flair kisses his children at ringside and slowly walks up the ramp thanking the fans. Flair still has tears in his eyes. Flair continues to walk up the ramp saluting the fans and thanking them. He takes one last look at the fans and then heads to the back. (My own comment: I can only imagine that this is how Jacob felt when the Angel of the Lord put a hiplock on him that retired Jacob as a wrestler.)

- WWE Women's Champion Beth Phoenix & Melina defeated Maria & Ashley Massaro. The match starts with Ashley and Beth. Beth overpowers Ashley until Maria gets the tag. The two double-team Beth with a quick takedown. Melina gets the tag and Maria hits her with a big knee. Melina gets thrown out and the lady lumberjacks get in a few shots. Melina with a charge in the corner on Melina. Maria with a Bronco Buster on Melina. Maria pulls Melina from the corner and slams her down hard. Ashley with a big tilt-a-whirl takedown on Melina. Ashley with a facebuster on Melina. Melina throws out Ashley and the "heel" divas get in some shot. Melina catapults Ashley into Beth who applies a bear hug. Cool double-team move saw Melina get launched off Beth's shoulder into a moonsault on Ashley. Ashley trips up Melina and Beth gets the tag. The lights go out above the ring for some reason. They put spotlights on the ring to light it back up as Maria hits a cross-body on Beth. Maria hits a big bulldog counter on Beth. Melina gets launched off the ring apron by Ashley. Ashley jumps off and takes them out as well. Maria hits a bulldog on Beth, but Santino pulls her off. Jerry Lawler leaves his post and knocks out Santino that gets a big reaction! In the ring, Beth hits Maria with a big fisherman's suplex and gets the pinfall.
After the match, Snoop Dogg hits the ring and also knocks out Santino. Snoop then gives Maria a kiss to end the segment.

- Randy Orton defeated John Cena & Triple H to retain the WWE Championship in a Triple Threat Match. John Cena had a marching band play his theme song during his entrance. They had pyro go off all around the top of the stadium during Triple H's entrance. Orton got a solid reaction as well. Lilian Garcia did ring introductions for all three after the entrances. JR mentions this match has No DQ rules, making sense when Orton grabs the WWE Title and knocks out Triple H with it. Cena then goes after Orton with a long series of offense. Triple H gets involved and throws Cena out. Triple H also tosses Orton out. Triple H starts brawling with Orton over the ECW announce table. In the ring, Cena gets Triple H and Orton on his shoulders. Triple H jumps off and hits a low blow kick to Cena causing Orton to fall off Cena's shoulders. Orton then starts working on Triple H and Cena. Orton is up on the top when Cena joins him. Triple H puts Cena on his shoulders and Orton hits a cross-body on Cena. Cena hangs on though and lifts Orton up. That gets stopped by Triple H. Orton with two big clotheslines on Triple H and Cena. Another big spot saw Orton drop both Triple H and Cena with DDT's through the second rope! Cena dodges an RKO attempt and throws Orton on Triple H. Cena with a modified blockbuster on Orton and then a leg drop from the top rope. Cena chases after Orton on the outside and Orton sends Cena face first into the steel ring post. Triple H drops his body over the leg of Orton against the corner. Triple H drops Orton's knee off the ring and then catches Cena with a clothesline when he runs in. Orton with an RKO on Triple H. Cena with the STFU on Orton. Orton gets to the ropes with help from Triple H to keep the match going. Triple H sends Cena into the steel steps and goes back to work on Orton's knee. Cena breaks it up. Triple H hits the corner and falls outside. Cena has the STFU back on Orton. Triple H breaks that up. Triple H then applies the Crossface on Cena. Cena gets to the ropes. Cena with the side slam and five knuckle shuffle combo on Triple H. Triple H counters an FU attempt, but Cena counters the Pedigree attempt off that. Triple H with a big spinebuster on Cena. Orton is up on the ring apron and Triple H chop blocks him. Triple H with a Pedigree on Cena. Triple H covers Cena...1...2...Orton kicks Triple H in the face and falls on Cena. Orton gets the pinfall and has retained the WWE Title!

- Floyd Mayweather defeated Big Show. This match is no holds barred where you can win via pinfall, submission or knockout. Very cool entrance for Big Show. Lots of pyro. Well, Mayweather out did that entrance by having money get shot across the crowd. The bell rings and both men circle. Big Show goes after Mayweather and he moves out of the way quickly. Big Show charges again and once again Mayweather gets away. Mayweather dodges Big Show again but this time he adds in some quick body shots. Quick jab by Mayweather to Big Show's face. Some more quick jabs to Big Show's face and Big Show looks frustrated. One of Mayweather's crew brings him something to drink and Big Show knocks him off the ring apron! Big Show pulls him into the ring and chops the guy in the corner. Mayweather stops smiling as he looks on. Big Show stops a punch from Mayweather and then tries to stomp on his hand, but Mayweather pulls away quickly. Big Show catches Mayweather, lifts him up in the air on the top rope and Mayweather lands some right hands to break it up. Mayweather jumps on Big Show's back and applies a rear naked choke. Big Show falls to one knee fading away a bit. Big Show comes back flipping Mayweather off his back and then stopping on Mayweather's left arm! Big Show gets Mayweather in the corner, tells them to quiet down and then chops him over his chest loudly! Big Show then steps on the back of Mayweather and applies pressure. Mayweather fights back with some kicks, but Big Show drops Mayweather in a big side slam. Big Show drops his leg over the arm of Mayweather and then steps on his chest for a few seconds! Mayweather with more body shots and then Big Show headbutts Mayweather. Big Show goes to drop a leg on Mayweather, but his crew pulls him out to safety. Mayweather's crew start carrying him to the back and Big Show chases after him. Big Show takes out Mayweather's crew one by one and then finally gets Floyd. Big Show drops a forearm over the back of Mayweather and then starts dragging him back to the ring. Big Show has Mayweather in the ring, lifts him up for a chokeslam, but one of Mayweather's crew hits Big Show over the back with a steel chair. Big Show chokeslams that crew member. Mayweather grabs the chair and hits Big Show in the gut, back, goes for the head, but Big Show stops him. Mayweather with a low blow kick and shot to the head. Mayweather with two more shots to the head with the steel chair on Big Show. Mayweather gets brass knucks, puts them on and connects with a huge right hand on Big Show! Big Show stays down and is unable to answer the 10 count. Floyd Mayweather is your winner.

We don't football against flesh and blood--we wrestle!

 There--a lighthearted, fun, entertaining, and enlightening blog. As an old wrestler, Hulk Hogan would say, WHATCHA GONNA DO, WHEN THE ANGEL OF THE LORD RUNS WILD ON YOU!

I grew up in West Hyattsville back when the roads were unpaved, a general store for shopping needs, and several neighborhoods. It was a rare occasion when I would have an opportunity to visit outside the confines of this now sprawling suburb. This January I got the opportunity to visit the heart of the South—Tennessee, South Carolina, and North Carolina. I made new friends of the Dash family; Ken, Clair, and April, along with the family pets Sammy (the Golden Retriever) and Blitz (the white cat). They live in Lebanon, Tennessee where we stayed for the first ten days of our trip.

One thing that amazed me was the contrast in what your money can buy there and what it won't buy up here in Maryland. The homes that could only be afforded by the wealthy here in Maryland are owned by the middle class in Tennessee. Also, being the home of Country Music, there are many mansions there. I was fortunate enough to stay in the home of the Dash family. I had a Craftmatic Bed in which to sleep, and a nice hot tub in the back yard to relax in.

The Dashes are member of a Southern Baptist Church. When I was invited to attend their church with them I thought to myself, “Great, more funeral services.” I convinced myself that I could put up with that for a few Sundays.” I was very pleasantly surprised and spiritually uplifted during these biblical, contemporary, and lively services. The style of their services are very much like what we experience here at our non-denominational community churches. The Baptist churches I have been to (and a couple that I was even a member of) up here in Maryland have said that such services are blasphemous, but there I was, in the very See of the Southern Baptist Convention and Lifeway, and participating in some of the most uplifting and upbeat services I have ever attended. I am also very impressed with how these churches in the south meet the needs of the congregation. A few elderly members needed some medical assistance with blood pressure monitoring and medication dispensation and a member who is a nurse volunteered to help them. As members saw the value of this ministry they supported it, and now the church has a hospital room in the main church building with beds (I saw three) and all the hospital equipment for monitoring blood pressure, heart rate, etc. The members sought a healthier lifestyle, so this ministry was supported and the church now has a fully functioning gym and track. The track is like a balcony which circles the gym, and it is fully padded. While the Baptist churches I have attended up here in Maryland struggle with between 50-150 members, these churches are thriving with 1,000-3,000+ members. There are Baptist churches in almost every area there, within a few blocks of one another, and I noticed full parking lots in all of them. Something that I noticed too while I was down there; no one honked at me, swore at me, or cut me off. One day I walked to the local Walmart, and I got to the busy intersection and I had to cross over it. When I was in the middle of this busy intersection I noticed that when I had the light so did those who wanted to turn right onto this section, and trying to watch cars coming at me from several areas I became a little confused. Then people stopped their cars, smiled at me, and waved me across. Not one person yelled, honked, or swore at me. I began to see what the phrase southern hospitality meant.

We first crossed the Virginia/Tennessee border in the city of Bristol. Half of Bristol is in Virginia while the other half is in Tennessee. There we saw a guitar-shaped building which houses WOPI, 1490 AM, the oldest radio station between Knoxville, TN and Roanoke, VA. There is also a music store, visitor center, and a country music museum inside this unique building. Something inside the museum caught my attention—in the old days the people would take standard farm tools such as rakes, picks, shovels and axes and turn them into stringed instruments. Country music was everywhere. We drove by Al Gore's hometown, and mind you, we decided not to stop by and purchase carbon credits. It was onward to Lebanon.

We arrive at the home of the Dash family rather late, but they greeted us warmly and invited me to make myself at home. Even the family pets made me feel right at home. I still miss sitting out on the swing and Sammy wanting me to toss the ball about with him. I took Sammy for a walk one night, and there are no street lights down there. I have to admit, with the absence of light I found that I was quite lost. I also did not have a cell phone with me, so I decided to let Sammy lead the way. I've raised dogs my whole life and I know they have a good sense of direction—they know where home is, so I reckoned that Sammy knew where his home was too, and he does. One night I was sitting out on the swing and Sammy came up and sat with me when suddenly he turned, growled, and took off to the back of the house. With no lights aglow he quickly became invisible in the cloak of darkness. I did hear another set of feet or paws running through the leaves but I never saw who or what critter it was. Soon enough Sammy came back to me with no wear or tear, so I figured it was a fox or rabbit that he got scent of, but I sure felt safe with him by my side. One of Sammy's best friends is Blitz, the tiny, pure white cat. Blitz is quite of mischievous feline, always into things, jumping onto things, and getting Sammy under the collar, so to speak. It is a lot easier to train a dog than it is to train a cat, so training Blitz to stay off the dinning room table where our food would be placed was an interesting chore. We used a water pistol. When we saw Blitz jump up on the table we simply squirted him and he would tear off to some other room of the house—temporarily. Like Sammy, Blitz is very affectionate too. Blitz is as close to a Christian as a cat can become, and he should—he got baptized daily with the water pistol. In the midst of January it was so nice and warm that we went on a canoe trip on a lake. Even though we had to row manually I found it a very relaxing time, and watching turtles swimming lazily along only added calm to the mood.

As we left church the first Sunday we drove through the large estate of Conway Twitty, which is now owned by Paul and Jan Crouch of TBN fame. We stopped in and watched a movie on the life of Christ. Another thing I noticed down in Tennessee is that even though the Christmas season had shortly passed I saw in abundance what I rarely see up here—Manger Scenes, many of them life size, and proudly displayed. I am one that has grown tired of the cartoon Santas, snowmen, reindeer's, etc. Christmas has become a silly cartoon, and yet we wonder why the Board of Education uses the term Winter Holiday instead of Christmas. I digress; back on the road, in our travels we saw the estate of Loretta Lynn, the Coal Miner's Daughter. Something that caught my eye was a tree house and the platform that took you up to it, I have never seen such a well designed tree house. We did stop at a dinner where one of my favorite singing groups had stopped—The Temptations. One day we traveled to Lawrenceburg to have lunch with a friend of Keith's. I felt like I was in Pennsylvania as we were in Amish country. A kind gentleman, David, purchased an old inn and turned it into a market place to sell Amish goods. David lost a kidney to cancer so please keep him in your prayers. While we were there we were under a tornado watch. David told us that last year an F5 tornado had passed by on the other side of a water tower about a football field's distance from his market place. The pictures of the clouds are the storm as it passed by, thankfully we did not get a tornado where we were. I found it relaxing seeinng the Amish people driving about in their horse drawn buggies, even in the middle of the highway. No one hunked at them, swore at them, nor showed them their central digit.

We took the opportunity to visit the battlegrounds of Franklin, and standing atop the observational post, Winstead Hill. While the Confederacy could claim a legal victory in that they drove the Union forces back, the loss of their own military at this battle began their decline toward their ultimate defeat and the end of the Civil War. We visited the Carnton Plantation which contains the largest Confederate Cemetery, the soldiers from the southern states killed at the Battle of Franklin. The mansion is a work of southern beauty, but the shame remains of the slave houses. I would be remiss if I neglected to mention our side trip to ancient Greece, or at least a life size replica of the Parthenon. I found the beauty of ancient Greek architecture fascinating to say the least.

The day came when we had to head out of Tennessee and move on to Anderson, South Carolina. We had to stop by Cooter's and visit the Dukes of Hazzard museum. There was of course the General Lee along with the jeep driven by Daisy Duke, and squad car of the sheriff. The General Lee is not an automatic so Keith couldn't drive it—that meant that I had to be the one to speed us away from danger at extreme high speeds through treacherous territories while being chased by the sheriff at the orders of Boss Hogg. We are here to tell the story. We're just a couple of good ol' boys, never meanin' no harm. We then headed down route 441 through Pigeon Forge and Dollywood. I have to admit that I was very disappointed in this area. It has become a tourist attraction and the scenery resembles more a bad cartoon then Tennessee history and economic growth. I did enjoy the drive to the top of the Smokey Mountains, seeing the formation of icicles as the temperature dropped to below freezing, then entering the Cherokee reservation of North Carolina when we descended on the other side. I look forward to a return trip to this area, I found it friendly, welcoming, with a western ambiance.

During our tour of South Carolina we came across the last campaign stop of Fred Thompson. I got to meet him, shake hands with him as he signed the campaign poster one of his people gave me. You can see his signature across the “F” of Fred in the photograph. Members of the media were very rude and arrogant, but I found Fred Thompson and his campaign workers to be very cordial, friendly, and polite. Having done so poorly in the primaries he really had little choice but to resign his candidacy. But we had to press on and head north on our way home.

It was dark when we arrived at Mt. Airy, the boyhood hometown of Andy Griffith, and the town on which Mayberry is based. We parked on the main street and started walking around taking photographs. We were behind a building which contains murals painted by hometown folks. As Keith was finishing up taking pictures of the murals a local man offered to shine a spotlight on the building to give us more light. I found that uplifting, as I expected, “What are you all doing? I'm calling the police if you don't get out of here right now!” Instead he walked around with us showing us what was opened and what was closed. I felt like I did back in Schulyer, Virginia—where folks are kind, friendly, helpful, and trusting. We saw Opie's Candy Store and Floyd's Barber Shop. I'm sorry they were closed, as you can see from the photograph I could use a trim. But Barny Fife's Diner was opened, so we boldly walked in—right as they were closing. The proprietor cheerfully invited us in to look around as he and the crew cleaned up. They were very friendly, telling us about the town and all the festivals that occur during the year. They have a festival in September to honor The Andy Griffith Show, and the actress that played Barney Fife's girlfriend, Thelmalou, actually lives in Mt. Airy. Many of the surviving actors from the show make their appearances during this festival. There is also a Harvest Festival in October. There is also The Andy Griffith Playhouse where plays are performed, thanks to the generosity of Andy Griffith who gives back to his childhood community. There is a statue of Andy and Opie walking with their fishing poles from the opening scenes of each episode. By this time we were getting mighty hungry so we found our way to Aunt Bee's Diner for a pleasant meal. With that we bid a fond farewell to the south and made a beeline for home. A trip rich in southern history, southern hospitality, scenery, country music, friendly and trusting small towns, packed churches, and plenty of good eating. I hope you enjoyed this trip with me.

How many of you remember the television show The Waltons? The show was about a close knit family living through The Great Depression (that would be the 1930s for you youngins). That is also the era when my own parents grew up. The Waltons are based on the life of the show's creator, Earl Hamner, Jr. Walton's Mountain is actually Schuyler, Virginia and Jefferson County is actually Nelson County.

It was to this little hamlet set in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia that Keith and I decided to take a trip after the passing of his mother. Because of the popularity of the show much of Schuyler has been retagged to match the names in the show, and you will see signs along the way as you approach Walton's Mountain.

The scenery along the way is breathtaking; valleys, hamlets, and towns rich in forests, rivers and streams surrounded by majestic mountains blue in hue. The air is crisp and clean.

When you enter this little hamlet of 400 residence one of the first things you will see is the old Schuyler Elementary School, built in 1925 but in the 90s was converted into the Walton's Mountain Museum. Here Keith and I posed while one of the kind ladies snapped this picture of us.

 The green tractor played a very important part of our day's activities. It was used to pull a flatbed trailer covered with hay. During the day the tourists would pay $1.00 for a guided tour of the entire hamlet. Keith and I got there after the close of business for the day; but to our pleasant surprise the citizens invited us to join them on their personal ride around town, as their guests, not as their customers. I found them to be very friendly and trusting. They would each point out their homes to Keith and I, not knowing really who we were. Below is the picture Keith took of us on the hayride.

It brought a great deal of comfort to me that these strangers were so trusting and open with us. You don't often find this attitude in the great metropolis, cities, and suburbs. We saw many of the sites you heard about on the tv show; Rockfish River, Ike Godsey's General Store, the two-room school house, the elementary school, the high school, the famous Baptist Church, the hamlet's hospital and home of the doctor, and many other sites. I even got a chance to poke around in a 1930s automobile: I admit that I'm no mechanic, but hey, at my age I am somewhat familiar with the workings of these old machines. We even saw an old typewriter with a copy of the local newspaper coming to life from it.

These were days before word processing and multimedia. This was the old fashion way of bringing the local news to the townfolks. While we have cell phones, touch tone, and speed dialing the Hamers/Waltons used this crude telephone to contact the outside world: Back then operators had a real purpose to their jobs. Those were real people you spoke to, not "Press 1 for English!" Also, in the elementary school/museum I had to visit the rest room; YES! the very same restroom that the real John Boy used. How many of you can make that claim? And, the boys room even has a lounge area now, with flowers. Now that is class!

I want to introduce you to a new friend I made. His name is Winston; a right friendly chap indeed. You should have seen him bobbing about in the car as he watched me approach.

At first I was afraid he was going to fall out of the window as much as he was jumping about in excitement knowing that a good petting, ear scratching and back rub was on the way.

On our hayride we traveled by the old Episcopal Church, which is now the Mennonite Church.

What actually brought the hamlet into existance was the Alberene Soapstone Company, which turned the natural soapstone of the area into tiles.

There is a local quarry where soapstone is gathered today, and the company is back in business.

You can see how crystal clear the water at the quarry is in the photo to the left. After the company closed they sold the houses to the residences. The Hamners purchased their house for $500.00 and it is being renovated even as I write this. There was a barn behind the house back in those early days, and a saw mill just
one you saw in the tv show.

One thing that struck me was the original Post Office. It was no bigger than a nice sized bedroom. Talk about cramped quarters.

The railroad is directly behind the post office as it was a major stop back in the early days of Schuyler.

Sunday morning Keith and I attended the Schuyler Baptist Church.

It has a small, lovely garden off to the left side.

The building is an old, quaint country style church.

Everything was close by, easy walking distance. The pastor, Thomas Fowler, is a very soft-spoken, gentle man. The congregation is small, mostly the elderly. I spoke with the pastor and his wife for about two hours after the service, and they were very pleasant and warm. They had to visit a member of the church who was ill, so I asked if there were a bathroom I could use before we left. He pleasantly showed me where it was, and just said to turn the lights out and lock the door behind me when we left. He invited us to use the church's property to park the car while we rode our bikes around the hamlet, and he invited us to use the church's picnic area to eat lunch and dinner. Very open, kind, trusting, and gentle people. I thought, "It would take a real vile person to betray such trust."

We once again rode by the original hospital and the home of the doctor of that by-gone time.

The Rockfish River was as clear as crystal, fish swimming happily through the gentle flowing waters.

You can actually eat the fish you catch in this river; you will not find fishes with two heads, three eyes, and other deformities.

We rode our bikes down to Ike Godsey's General Store looking at the sites marked out on the map given to me at the elementary school. We decided to ride down Rothwell Road when the proprietor warned us, "If you're fixin' on ridin' your bikes down that road--there's dogs down that way that'll chase ya!" We stopped at the store and got a little bite to eat when Travis and his sister, pushing her baby in a stroller, came by. Travis is in the military and is home on leave before being sent to Iraq. He told us that he hated city life; the traffic, the crime. He wants to stay in Schuyler when he gets out of the military--its a safe place to live, and good place to raise children. I have to agree with him.

You probably will not believe this, but as we were leaving Walton's Mountain we came across a house belonging to this family:

It is true; when we saw it we had to stop so Keith could snap this photo; and I waited to see if Marge would come stroling out with Bart, Maggie, Lisa, and Homer. Alas, it was not to be.

The time came when we had to say "goodbye" to the quiet hamlet named Schuyler, but known to the world as Walton's Mountain.

I'm not going to close by saying something silly like, "You could almost hear each member of the family calling out "Goodnight" to each other." but I won't do that. I'm not going to say, "I believe I heard someone call out, "Goodnight John Boy!" That would be silly; but I almost could.

     I was using the Bulletin function to inform everyone what is happening with Keith's mom but I can't find that function now--so I'm using the Blog Entry. Keith will correct anything that needs to be corrected.

     To sum up, 7 years ago Keith's mom was diagnosed with lung cancer. They removed the cancerous areas of both lungs and she underwent radiation treatment. Several months ago the cancer had returned. This time she went through chemotherapy but it did not stop the cancer from spreading in her lungs.  At this point all she wanted was medication (morphine) to deal with the severe pain she is in. It was also decided that only her immediate family would be allowed to visit her--this meant Keith, his sister and her husband and children. No one likes the world to watch as you deteriorate from the ravages of cancer.

     Let me digress a little bit. After my mom passed away Keith moved in with me at my mom's house as I prepared to sell it. All who lived in Maryland back in 2002 will remember Hurricane Isabell, and we were without power for a week. During this time Keith took me up to his mom's where there was power, air conditioning, and some creature comforts. I imagine that Keith told his mom something about the abuse I suffered through growing up in my family; I say this because she asked a little about it. She then told me about the abuse she endured at the hands of her father. Like my own mom, she also had a hard edge about her, but behind the walls was a generous and compassionate lady. We became friends and she made sure that every Christmas I had presents. When I became ill she always had fresh fruits and vegetables that I could eat at hand. We would speak about our childhood to each other, and that allowed me to witness to her about how God used people in the church to help me through some very difficult times, and what God meant to me. She felt very much unloved, and this is typical for people who have been abused--and I'm speaking from a great deal of experience. My mom felt the same way about herself. You see the pattern! 

     I believe it was Mother's Day as I think she spent her birthday in the hosptial; but Keith took her out to dinner to celebrate and I was invited to come along. She informed Keith that we could ask her one question each about the cancer returning as she didn't want to spend the day talking about it. Keith and I decided that we wouldn't ask her any questions so as not to put a damper on the occassion. After dinner we went back to her house and Keith went about doing some chores that needed to be done. She invited me out to the patio to talk. She decided she wanted to talk to me about the cancer coming back. She asked me if I thought she was a good mother, and said that she tried as best she could to be a good mother. I let her know that Keith only had good things to say about her, and that I very much enjoyed the times I visited her. The hard edge was gone during this conversation, she was very soft spoken, and very concerned about her children. This allowed me to once again express what God meant to me and to Keith, and God's love for us and for her. As Keith and I prepared to leave Keith hugged his mom as he always does. When I hugged her I said, "I love you and I'll do whatever I can to help you." As she hugged me Keith got to hear her speak in a gentle, loving voice, "I know, and thank you."

     I wanted to tell you all this much because when I was told that only her immediate family was allowed to visit her I understood why, but I also wanted her to know that she is very much loved. I wrote her a letter I sent with a card. I told her how much I appreciate her friendship and all the kind things she had done for me. I assured her that I love her, that Keith loves her, and most of all that God loves her. I wanted her to know that I understood why she limited who could visit her, and that I was praying for her serveral times a day, every day. Keith called me from her home and she got on the phone and thanked me for the letter. To my pleasant surprise she told Keith that I too would be allowed to visit her.

     This past Friday, Sept 21, we went to visit her. She was listening to Christian radio. Keith and I talked about it as we cleaned the garage for her. His sister was there helping their mom wash up. By this time Keith's mom had lost a lot of weight, and now was less than 70 pounds, but this day she was in very good spirits and shared in a nice dinner with us. She was very talkative, outgoing, and energetic considering her condition. One thing that touched me very deeply is, she knows what foods are good for me and she bought the ingredients to make me something. She was apologetic in explaining that she just didn't have the energy to do it but gave me what she bought to take home with me to prepare myself. In her condition and pain she thought about my needs while I was there--I was deeply moved. As the evening wore on she began to get tired. Keith's sister left and so his mom asked Keith and I to sit with her a bit for a short talk before we left. She told us that as a child she had not gone to church but that she did have bible classes in school. She said that after she got married, for some reason she wasn't sure of, they just never went to church, but by the tone in her voice we knew she wished she had. She then expressed her desire to be baptized, that she has been thinking about it. I asked her how she would do it, she said that all she had to do was tell the nurse and she would have the pastor come over and do it. The joy that Keith and I have over this is inexpressable.

     Yesterday she took a turn for the worse, and the nurse came by to do what needed to be done to help her breathe better and to sleep. Keith spent the night with her to keep an eye on her, and help her get about to do what she needed to do. He also baptized her! How wonderful! Today she has been transported to a hospice where Keith and his sister have been told that she has only hours or days remaining. Keith is there now, he will spend the night with her. If she wakes up he will be there for her.  

     I feel so blessed to be part of her life, and it is such a joy to be her friend. I am amazed at how God works in the lives of people; and when we allow God to use us, even in small ways, to transform a life it is a wonderful experience that is difficult to put into words. As of this moment my dear friend Wilma Burkhart is still with us, but only for a short time. Please pray for her, pray for Keith--God has granted them this time to be together, a son who got the honor of baptizing his dear mother. May this final time they have together be truly blessed. Thank you Lord Jesus!