Category: Family

The Little Things

These are shots of the “little things” that make my Dad’s home. Some of these things have been around the house for years, like the fountain my step-mother had to have for that back patio when they lived in Houston during to 1990s. The birdhouse with “Pops Pub” is there because my dad goes by Pops with all the grandchildren. The marker for Barbara Arnold was on her grave before they got a tombstone. She was my Dad’s sister, and my aunt. St. Francis of Assisi has been hanging around gardens now for several hundred years.

All photos are copyright © Timothy J. Hammons 2021. 

Celebrating 60!

She did it again. My wife surprised me on my birthday. I told her I wanted to go to Balcones Distillery to sample their whiskey for my birthday. She thought it was a splendid idea. So off we headed, the two of us, for a night of sipping whiskey and being together.

What I didn’t know was that she invited Miller and Stephanie to join us. That was the surprise. It was a great celebration. We did what we loved to do: talked theology, the church, and the things that are important to us. What is more, is that we got a chance to share a wee dram of Whiskey together (a dram is about 1/16 of a shot, so not much).

Miller also brought a few cigars. I enjoy a cigar now and then. I realized later that the last time I had a cigar was … with Miller when we were at a Presbytery meeting in May of last year, where after the meeting, we talked theology, the church, sipped whiskey and smoked a cigar. For me, that is the best fellowship. It was a great birthday.

All photos are copyright © Timothy J. Hammons 2021.

Out and About: Rosie

This one wasn’t quite an Out and About, but I love it so much, I’m running it as such. This is Rosie, my brother-in-law’s mother. She was with us at my father’s 90th birthday party and I couldn’t help but think how majestic she looks.

I asked Heidi if she looked like she belonged on that old sitcom Golden Girls, and she said that she did look like Bea Arthur, only prettier.

It was a joy listening to her talk about wine and HEB (the grocery chain here in Texas). She is responsible for wine sales, and knows a lot about wine. Needless to say, when she was talking about it and I was all ears.

She also told us what a great man Charles Butt is. He is the owner of HEB, and donates millions to charity. She told us that he also has a fleet of 18-wheelers that are filled with water, generators, and even ATM machines to provide rapid responses to disaster areas.

The topic came up because I mentioned that I don’t like wearing masks, and don’t do so in HEB. Rosie said Mr. Butt has said from the beginning of the Covid Crisis that if someone doesn’t want to wear a mask, that was their decision. That was enough to heighten my admiration for HEB all the more. It also happens to be the best grocery store chain in the state.

All photos are copyright © Timothy J. Hammons 2021.

60 Years!

60 Years

Wow, it’s hard to believe. 60 years ago today, I was born into this world in a hospital in Houston, Tx.

It’s only by the grace of God, that I have been given this many days on earth. In fact, if you do the math, I’ve been on the earth for 21,915.6 days (365.25 x 60). That .25 adds an additional 15.6 days. That is also about 66,000 meals, countless clothes, many roofs over my head, hundreds of friends who have come and gone, and thousands of experiences.

Every breath, meal, and day was a blessing from the Triune God, even that difficult moments. I don’t say that lightly. I fully recognize that all I’ve been through these 60 years were ordain long before the foundations of the world, by our Creator. There has not been a single moment of chance in all those 60 years. I don’t believe in luck, or chance. If God has not decreed it, it doesn’t come about. He will not share His glory with another, and believing in chance is believing in another god all together.

30 Years

I am also grateful for the past 30 years, for it was 30 years ago that the Holy Spirit moved in me, made me born again, and I went from being a child of wrath to a child of Christ. I was a passive recipient in the process, just like I was a passive recipient of my natural birth 60 years ago.

The last 30 years have been far better than the first 30 years. Not that I have been more prosperous, but I came to know Christ as my LORD, and He knows me as His child. There is no better relation for a man, woman, or child to have. Christ gives us ultimate purpose in life, so that when we face the trials of this life, we know He has ordained such trials for our benefit and His glory.

6 Years

The LORD has also blessed me with the most wonderful woman, Heidi Ann. The last 6 years of the last 60 have truly been the best because He has given me a true friend, and a true wife to walk with. Having a wife who is just as born again as I am, has been the ultimate blessing from the Father.

The Next 30?

If you follow my blog, you know that my family just celebrated my father’s 90th birthday. Not that God will give me another 30 years, but He could. And if He does, my hope is that I will continue to grow in grace, and in the knowledge of Christ and His ways. There is no better gift, especially with the reality that we all have a day appointed for us in which we will meet Him in judgement.

 And as it is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment (Hebrews 9:27).

The best advice I can give you, on the 60th anniversary of my birth, is to know Christ and be known by Him. Turn to Him by faith and in repentance. Quit trusting in your own self-righteousness and look to Him for His, for there is no other way to be accepted in the presence of a righteous God without the righteousness of His Son.

So we all have an appointment with death, whether today or in 30 years. We cannot change that. It’s in His hands. Therefore, we should be ready. I am. Are you?

All photos are copyright © Timothy J. Hammons 2021.

Happy Birthday Dad!

Happy Birthday Dad!

It was great getting together with you on Saturday to celebrate the awesome anniversary of your birth. 90 years is a long time. But I’m sure from your perspective, it has flown by.

I want you to know how grateful I to be your son, and to have you as my Dad. You have blessed me in so many ways, it’s hard to count, but I am especially grateful to you for your encouragement over the past 8 years, and all you have done to help me and Heidi. We are truly grateful for you.

I’m also grateful that we could gather and enjoy one another, the food, and hearing you talk with cousin Pat. (I was eavesdropping.) It was great to give Christopher an opportunity to show off his cooking skills. The food was excellent. And both Donna and Amy were the perfect hostesses. You are truly blessed by those two women in your life.

Happy Birthday. I Love you Dad.

Your son, Timothy

You can read about other posts about my Dad at these previous posts:

East Galveston Beach

My Father’s House

Moody Gardens Galveston

The Oleek, My Dad, and Being Dad

Bolivar Ferry Spring Break 2014

Dad & Donna

 

 

All photos copyright © Timothy J. Hammons 2021.

Thursday “Missing” Doors — March 18, 2021

Sanger Avenue Grade School

1930

I’m always a bit nervous when I hop in the car with my camera. I think this is why  I take my boys with me. I like to have them along for the ride, and for the extra set of eyes. It was no surprise that we all saw these doors, or lack of doors at the same time. How could you miss it? There, on one end of an empty field, was the remains of an entry way to some kind of building. I had to stop and take pictures. It was perfect for Thursday Doors, only, it’s more of a case of Thursday Missing Doors, since the doors were gone, and all that still stands is an entry way.

That is all there was for the Sanger Avenue Grade School. There has to be a story. Without looking, I imagined the school was built by the WPA during the depression, and didn’t wear well. I’m sure it had plumbing that didn’t last, walls full of asbestos, a heating system that was dangerous, along with a complete lack of air conditioning. I can remember days during the 1960s when I sat in a school room without air conditioning, so it’s hard to imagine this one had any at all. In central Texas, that can mean long, drowsy days, with a lot of unproductive learning sessions. Kind of like our Covid days now.

But the door itself is a bit misleading. According to a history page for Waco, the school was actually built in 1904. There were renovations in 1930, which led to the only lasting remnant for the building. There were plans to turn it into something worthy of the building until money ran short, and arsonists hit in 2008. Even then, the building stood for a few more years. It was bulldozed in 2010. Sad. You can read the history here.

I’m glad I find the courage to go looking for things. It was neat to discover something so filled with history and mystery, and sad to think of its demise. I hope you enjoy the photos.

Joey asking, “where is the rest of the building?”

All photos copyright © Timothy J. Hammons 2021.

Mid-Week Monochrome #55 — Turning Two

From the archives…

After my son was born, I was talking with my Dad about the joys of having a newborn around the house. He responded by telling me that I should patient, because the joy only increased the older the children became. I began to see what he meant when Andy turned 2.

I though I would share these as part of the Mid-Week Monochrome #55 with the Brashley’s.

All photos copyright © Timothy J. Hammons 2021.

Could’ve, Should’ve, Would’ve

Originally published January 3, 2015.

We buried my brother today. As you know from earlier posts, my brother Stoke was found dead in his kitchen a week ago today. Since we had just seen him on Christmas day, the news caught us completely by surprise and it is still difficult realizing that he is gone.

We have the hope one has when a brother has trusted in Christ for salvation, and for that we are grateful.

But some still have questions, doubts and that never-ending desire to reach back in time and change things so that Stoke would have avoided death on that day. It’s a temptation we all face, the could’ve, should’ve, would’ves that would somehow give us a different result than the one we are living with. Mostly, I have heard that we should have encouraged Stoke to eat more healthy foods, and less of it, so that his weight would not have taken its toll on his life. This view is supported by the prevailing false belief in our culture, that if we eat healthy foods, we will live longer.

However, the reality of God’s sovereign hand involved in our lives really show us that there is nothing we could have done to change the outcome of what took place. What I mean by this is that God had already decreed before the foundation of the world the number of days that Stoke was to have. So had we helped Stoke lose weight, the only difference would be in the weight of the casket as we carried it from the hearse to the grave. (By the way, I’m not convinced his weight had anything to do with his death. He had lost 20 lbs. in the last six months, so he was taking measures to lose weight).

Listen to the writer of Hebrews: And as it is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment. The idea is that it is already determined when we will die by God, and then we will all face judgment. So the idea that we can add to our days is not supported in Scripture, especially when you look at what Christ said in the Sermon on the Mount: “Which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature?” The Greek also supports the translation: “Which of you by worrying can add a moment to your lifetime?”

I believe Jesus is saying indirectly that we cannot add anything to our lives, especially through worrying about it. If you believe in a sovereign God, who decrees all things, then there is no changing the number of days we have been blessed with.

Yes, there were ways the Stoke could have lived a healthier lifestyle. But the number of days he was given was still the same, just as the number of days we are given cannot be altered. What is important is not worrying about what we did or didn’t do with Stoke, but to make sure we focus on those who are still with us, so that when they pass, we won’t be left with the thoughts that we should have done things differently. As for Stoke, I don’t believe there was a single thing he would have done differently. He lived, loved, laughed and really, really helped a lot of people. The stories that were told at his funeral and afterwards, really helped me and my family see what a loving and caring man he was. I miss him and I’m glad to have the blessing of knowing him in this life. I look forward to knowing him the next as well. I have no “should’ve, could’ve or would’ve,” just the joy of knowing Stoke and the joy he brought so many people.