Life: an adventure, a journey with Jesus!
My hometown!
This journey we are on, takes us in more than one direction at a time! You see, we go back in our thoughts, look forward in our dreams, and deal with detours as we travel. Just stick with us, though, as God is always pointing the way. Today our blog is nothing profound. But the end gives us plenty to ponder.
At this point in our lives, the exact location of our ‘hometown’ is questionable! We can make a withdrawal from the memory bank and picture the place where we both grew up, or where life began for us as a couple. Already that’s many different places for us; and probably would be for you, too, if you were to contemplate an answer to that question. But none of those places, no matter how fond I am of them, and no matter how many great memories I have from living there, none of them come to mind as my “hometown”.
As you know, we are on a journey. We don’t know how long the journey will last. And, yes, we have a hometown here in Peru. Somehow that seems to be temporary in my mind; although, San Juan de Lurigancho is definitely home for us right now. With all this in mind, I have to admit I think of Duluth, Georgia as the place which best describes my hometown.
Norman Rockwell should have visited Duluth. If he had, he would have painted a picture of the white crosses and the American flags that dot the roadsides every Memorial Day and Veterans Day. I just love the public display and annual reminders of our veterans who sacrificed so much for each one of us. Mr. Rockwell would also have had a pallet of paint with lots of red and white on it when he captured the Rexall Drug and it’s memorabilia as we all fondly remember it. Just a couple of Duluth memories I love to pull out of the bank and mull over.
Duluth has its own Norma Rockwell – oh, I mean Ann Odum! We are so fortunate she has used her talents to capture, in painting, the places no longer in existence in town, so we have a record of the historical landmarks. Speaking of historical landmarks, I think of the Strickland House. Don and I were in the antique business for a number of years, and our home had many, many things from Grandma’s attic. I’m sure our children and grandchildren thought we were a little outdated! We really appreciate things from years gone by. And the Strickland House sits atop a knoll on the side of the road, proudly displaying itself for many, many years. Once an antique shop itself.
I mention the Strickland House, which is presently home to the Duluth Historical Society and Museum. This is one of my favorite places to visit. We were on the board of directors before we left Duluth, and know the heart and desire of those who painstakingly work to preserve the past for each of us. Duluth with its neighborhoods as well as some subdivisions, tree-lined streets, sidewalks for walking, a town green for relaxing, swinging, romping with the children, nearby shopping, restaurants, allow each of us to please our fancy! This is not meant as an advertise-ment for Duluth, but an introduction to you to our hometown!
San Juan de Lurigancho (SJL), our present hometown. I don’t even know how to begin to paint a picture for you of this city, but let me try to compare our neighborhood to the above Duluth neighborhood which was right up the street from our backdoor. SJL, has sidewalks a plenty, with a few mature trees dotting the roadside, but no town center near our home. However, let us walk around the immediate area of our home and notice a few other things. For one, there are no front yards in sight. The houses sit on the edge of the sidewalk, approximately four feet from the street. There are many neighborhood parks and there are two we can choose to visit. One is about two years old, and has cement benches for one to rest and relax, play equipment for the children, and soccer fields. You have to pay an admittance fee to enter the park. The other park consists of a sidewalk through the center of the park, grass and planted trees, with barbed wire around the perimeter! The local shopping (within 2-3 blocks of our place!) consists of venders offering the things you might need in the immediate future – groceries, laundry soap, videos, school supplies, trinkets, notions and inexpensive gifts, a few items of clothing and an internet café with pay telephones. We have not located any libraries, public office buildings, banks, or places to visit within 20 minutes walking distance. There are many local restaurants, and of course you can pick up snacks and your meals from a sidewalk vendor if that’s your preference (warning!). There is a huge Mercado (several city blocks in size) we visit when we walk about 15 minutes in the opposite direction. It’s amazing, overwhelming, and a very, very congested place for buyers and sellers alike.
We have some ‘history’ of our own in that over the seven years that we have been coming to and living in SJL, we have seen a huge difference in the major thoroughfare which once was a place for tossing and burning garbage, but now includes a grass median with many newly planted trees and flowerbeds. Large posters with before and after pictures have been made available by the local government officials to show all that has transpired in these past few years. A little other piece of ‘history’ is the old, pine chest we rescued from a junk dealer. Now restored, it is a piece we treasure.
Guess when all is said and done – Duluth wins out with my vote as still being ‘my hometown”. However, this too is temporary. Because we read in the Bible that:
Heaven is an actual “prepared” place (John 14:2-4)
Heaven is described as a city (Heb. 11:16; 12:22; 13:14; Rev. 21:12)
Heaven has 12 gates which shine like pearls (Rev. 21:24-25; 22:14)
Heaven has a river (Rev 22:1-2)
Heaven has a garden (Rev 22:1-2)
Heaven has a golden streets, clear walls, throne, buildings of pearls (Rev. 21:18-21)
The names of Christ's redeemed are written in heaven (Luke 10:20; Heb. 12:23; Rev.20:15)
Heaven has the Fathers house (John 14:2)
Heaven has light, trees and healing fruit (Rev. 22:1-5)
Heaven contains animals, at least in its millennial phase (Is 65:25)
We will serve God (Rev. 7:15)
We will welcome people into our dwelling places. (John 14:2-3, Luke 16:9)
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