Monday, October 13, 2014
Sunday, October 12, 2014
Post by Rickey Carter
We
had just stepped off of the Bus at the Market Place in Mazatlan. Some
Mexican kid tried to Pick Pocket Uncle Shirl's wallet from his back
pocket. Shirl's hand shot behind him with the speed and deadly accuracy
of a Cobra! He grabbed that kids hand in the "Shirl Loveless Death Grip!
(with the wallet still in the kids hand!) He let him go and said "get
out of here, you little bugger!" I LOVE this man! I will miss him.
Rickey Carter
Rickey Carter
He slept with the Blood Moon
Early in the morning of Wednesday, October 8th, 2014 I woke long before I am accustomed to. This morning was the Blood Moon, which means there was a full lunar eclipse. There is a short time, just as the shadow of the earth crosses the moon, that the moon appears to be dark red - hence the name Blood Moon. Perhaps it was due to the emotional strain of knowing that my sweet grandpa was struggling with the finals stages of his cancer, but I was driven to experience the spirituality that emulates from such a beautiful manifestation of nature. Due to this desire, I pulled myself out of bed at 5 am and dressed.
When I first went outside and peered up at the night sky, I was disappointed because I could not see the moon anywhere. I live in the middle of the city, surrounded by many tall trees, and I assumed that the moon was closer to the horizon and I could not see it at that point. I was very tempted to stumble back to my bed, slip under the covers and roll over to get a few more hours of sleep before work. However, I once again felt an urge to experience something grand, so I herded my pups into the car and drove towards Y mountain to get out of the city and get a good view of the moon.
As I drove, a spot in the sky began to lighten that wasn't there before. Unbeknownst to me, the moon had been right in the middle of the sky all along, but I had initially looked for it right in the darkest part of the eclipse and was unable to see it. I kept an eye on it as I drove and slowly the dark spot began to lighten to a dark red color, which then slowly faded until a bright spot began to appear along the edge of the moon as the first true rays of light from the sun began to touch the moon once more.
I felt that the best way to experience the cessation of the Blood Moon would be to climb the mountain. As I climbed, I took pictures of the moon to mark the progress of the eclipse. The shadow of the earth slowly withdrew from the moon and had receded about half way by the time I reached the top of the Y. I found a quiet corner and sat down to reflect upon the beauty of the morning and of this phenomenon laid out before me.
Below me lay the city, perpetually alight, though the majority of its residents still slept peacefully in their beds, unaware of the wonder taking place above them. The moon above was displaying a whole month of waning and waxing condensed into the small space of two and a half hours. It reminded me of how there are some moments in life that are so momentous that time seems to condense, so that you can see great periods of time at once.
I began to think of my grandpa and the influence that he has had on my entire life. He was there throughout my childhood, guiding me and loving me. He taught me how to feed the chickens and how to collect the eggs from under the hens. He taught me how to prune the fruit trees and then later to thin them and pick them. I remember traveling with him to deliver cherries to the warehouses or peaches to the fruit stands. He also taught me that there was always a dirt road, well-traveled and safe, that led between my house and his, and that there was always a four-wheeler willing to carry me to and fro. I remember standing next to grandpa's seat on his big old tractor or riding on the front of the hood, hanging on tight while he mowed the orchard. He was also always ready with a hug and a warm lap to cuddle in whenever I needed it. As I remembered my childhood with Grandpa Loveless, at the same time I remembered the great grandchildren that came after and grandpa's exhaust-less supply of hugs and love for them as well.
Simultaneously I remembered his energy and his strength. He never stopped working or admitted defeat. He was always either working in the orchard, or serving a mission, or visiting and helping family and friends or on some grand vacation. He refused to stop living. He fought with everything he had, refusing to admit pain or defeat until the very end. Finally, I thought of how difficult it was to see him laying frail and tired in his bed and wondered when he would eventually have his final sleep. All these things I thought of as I sat there, though it took only a minute to glimpse the multitude of thoughts swirling in my head.
As the shadow of the earth continued to withdraw from the waxing moon, I made my way back down the mountain. I felt the urge to run, and as I did so the tension and the sadness of the last few days seemed to lift from me temporarily. When I reached my car again, I sat for a moment and enjoyed the peace that I felt from witnessing such a beautiful event in the heavens and the temporary reprieve from the turmoil and sadness of my grandpa's suffering. The night was still and calm as the city continued to sleep and I stared at the moon a little longer, touched by its beauty. Then I returned home. As I pulled onto my street, I received a text from my dad telling me that my dear, sweet, beloved grandpa had passed away less than ten minutes before. He passed from this mortal world as the Blood Moon relinquished its grasp on the night sky. Sometimes there are events that are so momentous that all of time seems condensed into a short period. Once again the events of the night passed through my mind, and as the sobs began to take hold of my heart, I sat in awe of the beauty of all of it, and thanked God that grandpa finally had his peace. He slept with the Blood Moon.
When I first went outside and peered up at the night sky, I was disappointed because I could not see the moon anywhere. I live in the middle of the city, surrounded by many tall trees, and I assumed that the moon was closer to the horizon and I could not see it at that point. I was very tempted to stumble back to my bed, slip under the covers and roll over to get a few more hours of sleep before work. However, I once again felt an urge to experience something grand, so I herded my pups into the car and drove towards Y mountain to get out of the city and get a good view of the moon.
As I drove, a spot in the sky began to lighten that wasn't there before. Unbeknownst to me, the moon had been right in the middle of the sky all along, but I had initially looked for it right in the darkest part of the eclipse and was unable to see it. I kept an eye on it as I drove and slowly the dark spot began to lighten to a dark red color, which then slowly faded until a bright spot began to appear along the edge of the moon as the first true rays of light from the sun began to touch the moon once more.
I felt that the best way to experience the cessation of the Blood Moon would be to climb the mountain. As I climbed, I took pictures of the moon to mark the progress of the eclipse. The shadow of the earth slowly withdrew from the moon and had receded about half way by the time I reached the top of the Y. I found a quiet corner and sat down to reflect upon the beauty of the morning and of this phenomenon laid out before me.
Below me lay the city, perpetually alight, though the majority of its residents still slept peacefully in their beds, unaware of the wonder taking place above them. The moon above was displaying a whole month of waning and waxing condensed into the small space of two and a half hours. It reminded me of how there are some moments in life that are so momentous that time seems to condense, so that you can see great periods of time at once.
I began to think of my grandpa and the influence that he has had on my entire life. He was there throughout my childhood, guiding me and loving me. He taught me how to feed the chickens and how to collect the eggs from under the hens. He taught me how to prune the fruit trees and then later to thin them and pick them. I remember traveling with him to deliver cherries to the warehouses or peaches to the fruit stands. He also taught me that there was always a dirt road, well-traveled and safe, that led between my house and his, and that there was always a four-wheeler willing to carry me to and fro. I remember standing next to grandpa's seat on his big old tractor or riding on the front of the hood, hanging on tight while he mowed the orchard. He was also always ready with a hug and a warm lap to cuddle in whenever I needed it. As I remembered my childhood with Grandpa Loveless, at the same time I remembered the great grandchildren that came after and grandpa's exhaust-less supply of hugs and love for them as well.
Simultaneously I remembered his energy and his strength. He never stopped working or admitted defeat. He was always either working in the orchard, or serving a mission, or visiting and helping family and friends or on some grand vacation. He refused to stop living. He fought with everything he had, refusing to admit pain or defeat until the very end. Finally, I thought of how difficult it was to see him laying frail and tired in his bed and wondered when he would eventually have his final sleep. All these things I thought of as I sat there, though it took only a minute to glimpse the multitude of thoughts swirling in my head.
As the shadow of the earth continued to withdraw from the waxing moon, I made my way back down the mountain. I felt the urge to run, and as I did so the tension and the sadness of the last few days seemed to lift from me temporarily. When I reached my car again, I sat for a moment and enjoyed the peace that I felt from witnessing such a beautiful event in the heavens and the temporary reprieve from the turmoil and sadness of my grandpa's suffering. The night was still and calm as the city continued to sleep and I stared at the moon a little longer, touched by its beauty. Then I returned home. As I pulled onto my street, I received a text from my dad telling me that my dear, sweet, beloved grandpa had passed away less than ten minutes before. He passed from this mortal world as the Blood Moon relinquished its grasp on the night sky. Sometimes there are events that are so momentous that all of time seems condensed into a short period. Once again the events of the night passed through my mind, and as the sobs began to take hold of my heart, I sat in awe of the beauty of all of it, and thanked God that grandpa finally had his peace. He slept with the Blood Moon.
/
Picture taken at 6:41 am Oct 8, 2014
Remembering Grandpa
I created this blog in order to have one place where anyone can come to learn more about Grandpa Loveless and to share with others what he means to each of us. He is a very special part of all of our lives and we are all very blessed to have been able to know him. However, the more that I think about Grandpa, the more that I realize how many things I don't know about him. Please contribute any stories or memories that you have of Grandpa here, so that we can all learn a little more about him.
In order to contribute to this blog, you can either send me your e-mail address so that I can add you as an author, or you can e-mail me what you would like to post, and I can post it for you.
My email address is christy.hanamaikai@gmail.com
Thank you for your contributions.
Love, Christy
In order to contribute to this blog, you can either send me your e-mail address so that I can add you as an author, or you can e-mail me what you would like to post, and I can post it for you.
My email address is christy.hanamaikai@gmail.com
Thank you for your contributions.
Love, Christy
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