Author: leekierdorf

Longing

by leekierdorf
She stood on the beach and watched the sun sink into the sea. She was glad the sunset was so beautiful because she had seen so many. Each one was beautiful.

But the sea was empty. There was no boat like the one that had sailed off last year.  That special boat. The one that took him away.

He had promised to return. Was she a fool to believe him? She didn’t feel like one. She felt that their bond was strong enough to bring him back.

She remember first seeing him. He was so different. Different clothes, different manners. She would just watch him. And then he met with the chief.

He was interested coconuts and wanted the people to collect and dry the insides of them. But the chief said he could not make the people do this unless they wanted to do it.

That’s why he stayed. He looked for a way to get our people to help him. He learned some of our language. She remembered the day he became happy that he had found a way.

He had told her that he had to leave to find a way to pay the people for their work. He had an idea.

She wondered what it was. Her people, the men, would sail away and return with large stones from a faraway island. Some died on the way. They would return proudly with large stones they had cut from the rocks and place them in from of their huts.

Did it have something to do with that? Then he was brave to do it. But she didn’t care about the valuable stones. She only wanted him.

He had told her that if he succeeded, he would return and build a great house on the island where they would live.

But for now, she watched the sun slowly sink into the sea each night.

Based on the true story of Irish-American captain David Dean O’Keefe who brought large rai stones (limestone discs) to the island of Yap in the late 19th century to trade with the natives for copra.

New Direction One

by leekierdorf

See if your local church supports mission work. The larger the church, the more chance they do.

There are missions that focus on spreading the gospel. But there are also ones the focus on building something or providing a service.

How do expenses work? In many cases, you ask others to help finance your trip. You divide up the expense into smaller amounts and ask family members or other church members to help cover the cost.

What do you get out of it? You get to travel to another country and see what it’s like. You learn how to work on a project with others. The church may have done this before and has a preparation class to educate you.

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New Direction

by leekierdorf

Have you been anywhere?

Seriously, have you been out of your home country?

Now, sure, you have been to Florida.

But what about the country north of you. What? You live in Greenland? Okay, south of you.

I know, I know. It’s too expensive. What if I told you someone else will pay. Really. If you go and do something helpful or even something interesting, You can get funding. You can get a grant.

It’s true.

I will give you information that could help you realize your dream.

I met people in other countries that had a dream to do something. They were doing it.

Here are three ways to begin a cultural journey and help others:

newdirection1
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Mind if I sit here?

by leekierdorf

Mind if I sit here?

Yes.

Why?

You asked me if I minded if you sat there. I told you I did. Now, you ask me why. Does my reason have to be acceptable by you? Maybe I just heard of a death in my family.

There was a recent death in your family? I’m sorry to hear it.

No, I have a reason that I would rather not share with you. You know, if you just sat down there, I would have said nothing.

Really. You want me to move?

No, you don’t have to move.
So, you don’t mind.

Yes, I do mind because I didn’t want to talk to anyone.

So, that’s your reason.

No. Listen, just don’t talk to me anymore and it will fine.

Okay.

Silence.

How long do you plan to sit on this bench?

Now, you’re talking to me.

Yes.

Well, I don’t know. It’s a very nice bench. The sun is not too hot. I don’t see any other benches around.

Silence.

I sit here every day. At this time.

Sit as long as you like. I won’t bother you.

But I feel obligated to talk to you now that you’re here.

Don’t.

Now, who is being rude?

I’m just reading my book. What? Do you think I’m a spy or something? That I’m waiting for a drug deal? I’m just sitting here reading my book, lady.

Well, you don’t have to shout. Go ahead. Read your book. But you might be good company, you know.

Fine. I’m sorry I raised my voice. Thanks for letting me share your bench.

Silence.

It’s not MY bench.

I know.

Silence.

Do you think it will rain?

Now, that is a conversation starter, isn’t it? I thought you didn’t want to talk?

I didn’t bring an umbrella.

I can see that.

I usually do. Just in case.

Hm. That’s wise.

You never can tell this time of year.

I suppose not.

Silence.

You’re not much of a conversationalist, are you?

Actually, I’m a great conversationalist. You said you didn’t WANT to converse.

Silence.

Do you have any pets?

No.

I have two cats.

Two, you say?

Yes, they keep each other company. Bitsy and Rhubarb are great pals.

That’s nice.

Do you think those are strange names?

No.

Some people do.

Not me.

Silence.

What is the name of your book?

It’s called I’ve Read the Same Paragraph Seven Times.

Ah, you have a sense of humor.

Don’t we all?

I never try to be humorous. I do appreciate it though.

That’s nice. Lady, are you trying to make make me leave?

No, it’s fine. You reading your book. Me, just sitting here like I usually do.

Silence.
That cloud looks menacing.

Silence.

The birds know when it’s going to rain.

Do they? Maybe they read the weather report.

Ah, there’s that sense of humor again.

The weather report said nothing about rain.

They’re not always right.

No, and they never apologize if they are wrong about yesterday. They just go on predicting.

I suppose it’s not an exact science.

No, I guess not.

Silence.

I can see the title now. Atlas Shrugged. Is it good?

No, not really. It’s famous but it’s long and I’m giving it one more chapter. It’s not a page turner. Atlas hasn’t shown up, yet.

Maybe it’s a metaphor. Like Atlas is holding up the world and he shrugs for some reason.

Maybe he read this book. I’m ready to shrug about now.

Good thing you aren’t holding up the world, then.

Now, that is funny.

Really? How?

You took the metaphor and applied it to me. I’m really AM done with this book. My lunch hour is over, too.

Will you be back tomorrow?

Doctor Fury

by leekierdorf

“I need a new place to work.”

“What about the house on Bleak Hill?”

“It does have the right ambience.”

“It’s for sale. But they say it’s haunted.”

“Does that lower the price?”

“Yes, quite a bit.”

“I’ll need a loan.”

“The bank will want to know what you’re working on.”

“Oh, this and that.”

“Explosives? Viruses??”

“No, no, nothing like that. Transplants.”

“What kind?”

“All kinds. Human to animal. Animal to human. Human to human.”

“Animal to animal?”

“There’s no market for that.”

“We’ll call it “medical innovations.”

“Can we see the property?”

“No realtor will go there now. Too many bad experiences.”

“Like what?”

“Bats flying around – strange noises – ghosts in the hallways.”

“That’s nothing. The last place had all that and more.”

“Until you blew it up.”

“No more explosives, I said. I’m done with all that.”

“You know, your scars are starting to fade.”

“People like me have nine lives.”

“Well, you’ve used up six by my count.”

“Is there a road we can get a truck up? Or a hearse?”

“A hearse?”

“For transporting patients who need new parts.”

“Have you ever considered normal science?”

“That’s for wimps! I’m the cutting edge of science!”

“We’re banned from Florida. I think they passed a special law.”

“That was just bad wiring.”

“That’s not what the Fire Marshall said…”

“I work miracles! What about that saber-tooth tiger I resurrected?”

“They hunted it for three weeks.”

“But they never found out we did it.”

“We?”

“I consider you my trusted assistant, Igor.”

“Don’t call me that!”

“A nickname, that’s all.”

“Okay, I’ll get this typed up and run it by the bank”

“If they don’t come around, threaten their family.”

“I can’t do that.”

“Okay, tell them they might meet with an accident.”

“I’m sorry I broke you out of the asylum.”

“They didn’t understand.”

“They wanted to hang you. You were being evaluated for trial.”

“That’s all in the past …”

“Okay, we’ll talk next week.”

Iceland Escape

by leekierdorf

I heard some friends of mine were going to Iceland. I had been sitting in a comfy chair for too long. I managed to reach out to push a button that booked a flight.

My action caused me some difficulty amid great adventure. You must bring a large amount of money with you. I did not.

I found a reasonably priced place to stay. The breakfast was $15 for all you could eat. My friend found me there. He, too, was trying to save money. He rented a car and slept in it.

He wanted to go around the island nation while I decided to stay in town. When he returned, we went to a couple places close by.

There was a waterfall and a geiser. There is a tourist place with hot blue water that we visited called the Blue Lagoon.

The water was blue but the cost was high. We saw rocks that filled a field close by. I could believe they were thrown from the nearby volcano. More later.

My friend was going back to the USA and I went to the airport with him. I thought I would try to return early. My return flight was two days off. My ticket would not allow change! Since I had little money, I ended up sleeping at the airport for two nights.

I found a place close by that offered hot tub soaking. Taking the bus, I found it cheap to enter. The outdoor pools are of different temperatures. The experience is what I remember of Iceland. Families would come and enjoy the hot water in large warm pools with bubbling jets around you.

In the morning, older men would meet and talk in a smaller tub. I spent hours there during the two days in limbo. One afternoon, a cold rain came down. Sitting in hot water with cold rain coming down on my head was a unique experience.

As you can see, I had good and bad experiences. I spent a lot of time walking around the city. You left the ocean behind and walked for blocks only to arrive at the ocean. The capital is on a peninsula.

After returning to the US. I saw a story about Iceland. The very city I walked about in was rocked by earthquakes that opened cracks in the streets. The volcano near the resort pushed out lava that covered the road we had driven on. The expensive Blue Lagoon was closed after an alert about the volcano that sent tourists running.

Iceland is tapping into geothermal energy to produce electricity. The steam spins a turbine. One of these was damaged by the lave flow. They have a more ambitious plan to use underground magma to produce energy.

Iceland counts the Vikings as their ancestors. An exciting land with interesting history.

More Volcanoes

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Alien 2

by leekierdorf

I heard Blyg was talking slap about me. Just because I adopted some of your jingo.

I was assigned to monitor your TV. I was in big trouble because I was not getting it.

There was network. There was cable. There was podcasts. There was streaming. There was CNN, NBC, CBS, FOX, MSNBC, and there was more. And more. It was 24/7. It was LIVE. It was Breaking News. It was weather. It was sports. It was news. It was real. It was fake.

I watched a weather channel. It was weather all day, all night, all over. There was a pregnant lady weatherperson. She blocked out your whole east coast when she turned sideways. Lady! Get off your feet and take a break.

The best part was about this Trump guy. He was a monster. He was going to be arrested. I kept waiting for this orange jumping suit. He was crazy. I kept waiting for this white coat with long sleeves. I was watching every night.

But now he’s gone. Story over.

We should run somebody from our mother ship for your president.

That’s right. Mother Ship! We got one. We’re hiding it. I can’t tell you where. But it’s there all right.

Well, I’m being reassigned to another planet. I haven’t checked it out yet. I’ll be in charge of monitoring Mars, as you call it. A whole planet!

Well, bye, Xthyg

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