Clingmans Dome - The God of Daniel

The King Darius wrote to all the people, nations and men of every language throughout the land:

"May you prosper greatly!"

I issue a decree that in every part of my kingdom people must fear and reverence the God of Daniel.

"For his is the living God and he endures forever; his kingdom will not be destroyed,

his dominion will never end.  He recuses and he saves; he performs signs and wonders on the heavens and on the earth.  He has rescued Daniel from the power of the lions."

Daniel 6:25-27 NIV

Smokey Mountains - Hope in him

 

The LORD is good to those whose hope 

is in him,  to the one who seeks him; 

it is good to wait quietly 

for the salvation of the LORD.

It is good for a man to bear the yoke

while he is young.  

Let him sit alone in silence,

for the LORD has laid it on him,

Let him bury his face in the dust--

there may yet be hope.

Let him offer his cheek to one

who would strike him,

and let him be filled with disgrace.

For men are not cast off

by the LORD forever.

Though he brings grief, he will

show compassion, so great is his

unfailing love. For he does not 

willingly bring affliction

or grief to the children of men.

Lamentations 3:25-33 NIV

Appalachian Foothills

He who dwells in the shelter

of the Most High

will rest in the shadow of

the Almighty.

I will say of the LORD, "He 

is my refuge and my fortress,

my God, in whom I trust.

Psalm 91:1-2

If you make the Most High 

your dwelling--

even the LORD, who is my 

refuge--

then no harm will befall you,

no disaster will come near your tent.

For he will command his 

angels concerning you 

to guard you in all your ways;

they will lift you up in their hands,

so that you will not strike

your foot against a stone.

You will tread upon the lion 

and the cobra;

you will trample the great 

lion and the serpent.

"Because he loves me," 

says the LORD, 

"I will rescue him;

I will protect him, for he

acknowledges my name.

He will call upon me, and I

will answer him;

I will be with him in trouble,

I will deliver him and honor him.

With long life will I satisfy him

and show him my salvation."

Psalm 91:9-16 NIV

Plants in the Mist

The plant grows in the mist and under clouds as truly as under sunshine." 

--William Ellery Channing

Like the seed that has lain in the ground all winter, in spring it will begin its springtime dance into new life.  One who is higher than I leads me through this dark land.  I am moved along in steady and unseen ways into new life.

Healing After Loss

Martha W. Hickman

The Trees

The Trees


by Phillip Larkin


The trees are coming into leaf
Like something almost being said;
The recent buds relax and spread,
Their greenness is a kind of grief.


Is it that they are born again
And we grow old?  No, they de too,
Their yearly trick of looking new
Is written down in rings of grain.


Yet still the unresting castles thresh
In fullgrown thickness every May.
Last year is dead, they seem to say,
Begin afresh, afresh, afresh.

Mary Lee Smith-Brown with her granddaughter Angela in Cherokee County, Ga.  She loved the Smoky Mountains.  She had Cherokee Indian ancestors, Augusta Cole and Mourning Brown who lived in the Great Smoky Mountains of North Carolina.

Sevierville Missing Link FootHills Parkway

Shaconage My Ancestral Home

Mingus Gist Mill

 

Laurel Creek

A Foggy Morning Mountain Valley

New Year's Resolution - Return to Cades Code

My New Year's Resolution is to return to the Smoky Mountains in spring and again in early November.  We may catch the first snow fall of the winter season like we did on this trip.  We also drove in rain and sleet and the main road was closed due to snow and ice.  It was an adventure of breathtaking beauty and I will do it again and again. I consider the Smoky Mountains as my home away from home.  It is were my ancestors  dwell for hundreds of years.  I can feel the spirits of native Americans in these woods, mountains and streams.