13 – memini

I boarded a plane in the wee morning hours to fly home. I was mindful of the fact that I would be losing time as I flew east, and I was already a little uneasy about how fast time seemed to be flying on its own. At the Anchorage airport I discovered there would be...

12.5 – Alaska VI

Mount Spurr is the closest volcano to Anchorage. It is roughly 11,000 feet tall. While I was engaged with Phil, fifth graders, and two other missionary friends - Jen (Native American) and Camilla (Chinese) - the earth across from and under Cook Inlet was heating up.  Geologists say that the crater lake at the top...

12.4 – Alaska V

A week of at least partial solitude sounded fantastic. It ended up to be more phantasmic. Maybe. I'll never be sure. Regardless, I never want to see it again. I had been studying angels ever since Mrs. Seale and I talked. (Alaska III) To do so, I learned to take advantage of the resources at...

12.3 – Alaska IV

The first thing I remember Mr. Hale telling us was that we would be dealing with several children who had "fetal alcohol syndrome" at the Native church. He explained that FAS was common among native Alaskan children, as alcoholism was common among the parents. I learned that FAS caused hyperactivity, poor impulse control, lack of...

12.2 – Alaska III

On December 7, 1941, the U.S. was forced into war with the attack on Pearl Harbor. U.S. military leaders knew that if Hawaii was a first target, Alaska might be a second.  The tiny area now called Whittier was a prime spot for storage of supplies and movement of troops, due to its remote location...

12.1 – Alaska II

"Anyone who doesn't want to go to Hell, come down to the front of the church!" This tactic was just as appalling to me then as it is now. Sure, it will often get people to "make a decision" and maybe get baptized, but it ignores the need for relationship with the Creator.  This was...

12 – Alaska I

My first experience flying was over the Atlantic and into London and wartime. My second experience flying was over the Rocky Mountains to Salt Lake City and from there, above Mt. St. Helen's - still barren from the eruption 12 years earlier - over the Chugach range in Alaska, and touching down in Anchorage, Alaska. ...