Hard to mix Marines an Carp. But it can be done, will show you how, and we will just get the carp out of the way first. This blog is about hero's and even Carp can be hero's if they are eating the algae and moss in my pond. The third picture down shows my release of 5 new pretty large grass carp into my pond last tuesday. I quit using chemicals on my pond about 4 years back...By hook or by crook I want to make my pond a beautiful place but not with chemicals...These guys can do it if I can keep the cranes from eating them...It was not an hour after I added my new hero's to the pond and there was a huge crane probably capable of swollowing them standing at the entrance to my dock...I lost my head and aimed my 12 guage at him and let go with a load of double 00 buckshot...he flew away but my garden hose coiled on the dock behind him did not...it became a fountain with water spraying into the air...I had plugged it with 4 nice holes and some other of the shot was buried into the poles on the dock...that is one lucky crane...he has not been back...he knows Jack likes his pond and likes his hero's....
Second picture down is two other even more important hero's...Randy and Patty Kington enjoying the visit to Battle Ground Indiana where the battle of Tippecanoe took place...Where Gen Harrison with 913 men camped on the "high ground" one night in 1811, not far from the Indian village that ran for two miles along the bluff over looking the wabash river..The rest is history visit the battle field for the rest of that story....
More important to me was Randy and Patty's visit to the Battle Ground Methodist church last night where Randy gave his testimony about his life...a wonderful life that he has had since becoming a Marine, taking a paralizing bullet in Viet Nam and then meeting an angel who became his life's love....he wrote a book titled "What a Life"...you can buy a copy right here on this blog off to the right side here...It is a book you can not lay down that takes you from Morristown Tenn. to a rice paddy in Nam where Randy took a bullet...very rivoting story the first 9 or so chapters..then the last couple I think may be the best love story I ever read...
We had fun there last night with that church and my friends, Pastor Brian and Carla White and grandson "little Zack"....Then Randy was hungry so we took care of that at Arni's a Lafayette favorite meeting spot now for maybe 52 years I think....
The top picture to the right is Randy setting where I wanted him setting 6 months ago when I first heard him speak in Naples Florida. He is setting in front of my home church at Dayton Indiana...He delivered, as he always does, a wonderful account of how God has watched over and blessed him for 42 years now...Lots of people heard Randy yesterday and lots more will tonight when he has his final appearance at my church...It has been great, everything I had hoped it to be...I was able to be with Randy and Patty in Pastor John's office for prayer before the services. I was able to push my freind Randy into the sanctuary and leave him there on the side lines near the pulput until he would be introduced to deliver his message of hope....Then I was able to set by sweet pea and listen again as new, the story that Randy tells...And then I was able to help Randy to the rear of the church to sign the many books that people purchased and watch him converse with them and autograph his good book...We have one more shot at this tonight at 6:30 we will do it all again one last time...What a Life......
Then Tuesday morning my freinds head back to Tennessee..and I head to Omaha Nebraska for a reunion of my boot camp platoon..Platoon 3002(the honor platoon by the way) of three platoon that graduated as U.S. Marines in August of 1956...sweet pea being in her terrible two's could not have cared less, but to us it was a big deal..we were finally Marines...close to 30 of the 75 that did it so good will be there...I can not wait to look them in the eye and say and mean it, "I remember you"..."I marched behind you", "remember when the D. I. 's set us up at the barber shop"????
By the way, you can become a part of that platoon, live that story with us by reading my blog account from February about becoming a Marine right here on this blog site...
Any way you get the idea, this has already been a wonderful week fulfilling a dream I had in Florida that by hook or by crook I had to have the Kingtons come to Dayton Indiana...It has happened or will have after tonight, and now on to Omaha where I may have time to do a blog post or two...No guarantees, as the "saltiest of sea tales will fly", when these 30 Marines get together but I will try....if I have the time..
Semper Fi...
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