Tag: Architecture

West Virginia Day

Color Photography, West Virginia

Today is June 20th 2018. It’s a state holiday. Today is the 155th anniversary of West Virginia becoming a state of it’s own. The American Civil War was raging when Abraham Lincoln separated us from Virginia. We’re the only state in the union to be created from another one. The T.V. and internet if full of trivia and history about West Virginia.

Rather than cover what’s already covered so well by mainstream sources I want to talk about today. West Virginia is still a frontier. I’m not just talking about the “hills and hollers” that are seldom seen by human eyes. I’m talking about the unwritten future. Yesterday’s post about what it must be like to step outside time-space and actually be able to view all the past, present and future maybes was meant in part to help people see that the future is the product of our choices. On this day of remembering history and pride in our state I want to ask what June 20th 2026 will be like? How about June 20th 3018? As we look to our past and remember the greatness of our ancestors let’s not forget that the responsibility of future history is in our hands today. If we want our descendants to be proud Mountaineers we have to create that history today. Today’s challenges go by different names than our ancestors faced but the solutions are ultimately the same. Namely, innovation, self motivation and gumption. Our ancestors built a lifestyle that we are proud of because they didn’t wait for someone to do it for them and we’re not going to pass on that heritage by waiting for someone else to fix our economy or solve the drug problem or any other challenge of modern life. West Virginians are a culture of doers. In the past we lit up the world one lump of coal at a time and today we can do so much more if we’ll just put our hearts into it. The way I see it, West Virginia Day 3018 is looking pretty good.

As The Storm Passes

Church, Color Photography

Just a quick note to my regular readers. I’m sorry that there’s been no post over the past few days. My internet connection was knocked out by a tree that fell on the line and there’s no public access where I live. I hope to be back on track now that service has been fully restored.

It’s a common occurrence in the Appalachian Mountains. Thunder booms and the wind seems to bounce from one mountainside to the other. Every region thinks it’s storms are the worst but the truth is that the worst storm is the one that catches you by surprise. As mentioned above one such storm recently knocked out communication and electric services for my area which temporarily transported us to the nineteenth century. Okay, maybe not quite that bad. We brought the solar powered lawn lights inside after the sun set and watched movies that were loaded onto our mobile devices. I used a small battery pack to keep anything not capable of being charged in the sun at full power and made limited use of the charging system in our vehicles. Fortunately (or unfortunately depending on point of view) I didn’t have drag the gas grill out of storage this time. But, we adapted to the conditions.

Storms are not always wind, rain and thunder though. Sometimes it’s more emotional or spiritual. Like the natural storms they can come up without warning and leave you alone in the dark. You might wonder how you’re going to get by. You might not have alternative lighting and such. But, let me tell you. God has built you to be stronger than you know and God’s got your back. He didn’t go to all the trouble of creating you as the special individual that you are just to leave you alone when you need him most. The storm will pass.

The Ghost Boat

Color Photography

I have been told that if you take enough pictures eventually something strange will turn up in one. With that said I absolutely no explanation for the fishing boat shaped hole in the water in this image. The picture was taken just a few days ago at Kanawha Falls West Virginia. I suppose it’s just an odd wave rolling over a submerged object. That is, unless you believe that ghosts like to go fishing. 😉

Crossroads

black and white photography, Thoughts and Musing

The symbolism of the crossroads is well known. A person stands at the intersection pondering a decision wandering which way to turn in order to reach a goal. Crossroads are everywhere in life. I have observed a certain amount of anxiety associated with life’s crossroads. But, isn’t a crossroads as much an opportunity as it is anything else? It’s an opportunity to change your course, continue ahead or, for some situations it’s a place to turn around and correct a past error.

The most probable cause of the anxiety is not knowing what lies ahead. There are resources we have access to. Maps, compass and the knowledge of those who have been there. For life’s crossroads I turned to the Bible and church elders.

There’s no need to be anxious about coming to a crossroads. It’s really all a matter of perspective and planning.

On Justice and Vengeance

black and white photography, Thoughts and Musing

Above is the Nicholas County Courthouse. While taking the picture I began to think of it as a place of justice. But what is justice?

We’ve all been there. Somebody does you wrong and you cry out for justice. The world seems out of balance you just won’t rest until things are set right again. But, is it really justice that we’re seeking? Or, is it vengeance? Common sense would seem to imply that the two words describe the same thing but do they really? As I contemplate the terms and try to sort out the answer I have come to find more questions.

Can justice truly exist without mercy and grace? ( which incidentally are not the same thing either). Mercy is when we are found guilty of some infraction and yet, we are spared the consequences of guilt. Mercy also has a tendency to come with conditions. When a police officer lets you off with a warning instead of a full blown citation as long as you’re not caught speeding on his street again. He knows that you’re guilty. He can prove it. But, he doesn’t pursue the charge. Maybe it’s your first offense or he just likes you or he he’s sympathetic to your circumstances. Whatever the reason, he granted you mercy.

Then what is grace? From the time I was a child I was taught that grace is the unmerited favor of God. We don’t deserve it, but he gives it anyway because he wants to. Now, let’s take our same police officer and same situation. Only now, he gives you money for lunch in place of the ticket. Our good officer has just demonstrated both mercy and grace.

So with the above example in mind let’s re-examine the difference between justice and vengeance.

Does vengeance allow for mercy and grace? Not really. We might claim to have shown mercy or grace or both but if we’re honest with ourselves we must admit that isn’t really so. We have either grown weary of vengeance or we felt that the other party has suffered enough. In either case, we didn’t allow the escape of a certain amount of punishment.

Justice however does allow for mercy and grace. Punishment is avoided under the right conditions.

One other thing about vengeance. Is it possible for an innocent person to suffer undue vengeance? I’m sure each of can find at least one example from our own past of a person being paid back for something that they didn’t do. However, if justice is true, then true guilt is established prior to pay backs.

It would seem that under a close scrutiny that there could be holes in what we call common sense if we can’t separate justice from vengeance.

Common sense may be easy to understand but in reality it isn’t always accurate and it isn’t always neutral.