Morse code

Have you ever wondered if something is really worth learning; wondered if it really made a difference in the world? Morse code is probably one of those things. Wasn't that just something used a long time ago with telegrams? It was originally used with the telegram, but did you know that it enabled people to communicate long-distance before telephones were everyday items? Did you know that this code enabled prisoners of war to communicate with each other and strengthen each other's faith, without a word, right under the noses of Vietnamese guards? Did you know that now the SOS signal is recognized all over the world? Samuel F.B. Morse certainly has made a difference in the world by creating Morse code.

Morse code was invented simultaneously with the telegram, in a successful attempt to communicate faster than sending a letter by post. In 1844 Samuel F.B. Morse and his friend, Vail, worked together to develop a code made of dots and dashes, representing individual letters, which could be memorized easily. The first message, "What hath God wrought?" was typed on paper, but later a mechanism which made short and long clicking sounds became more widely used. The messages were relayed by electrical pulses in wires, which ran between major cities in the United States. As time went on, telegram wires were installed in smaller towns. Operators used the telegram and Morse code to send messages all across the country, allowing people to communicate long-distance long before families dreamed of having their own telephones.

Morse code has also enabled Prisoners of War (POWs) to strengthen each other's faith, even when they were not allowed to speak. In the Vietnam war, POWs tapped coded messages through the walls of their isolated cells, letting each other hear memorized Bible verses. When a prisoner was led through the hallways he would drag his feet in long and short patterns, relaying the news of Jesus to dozens of other prisoners at a time. All of this happened, without a word being spoken, because of the invention of Morse code.

Common people have been saved because they knew the easy SOS (... _ _ _ ...) signal. SOS is recognized as an international distress signal, so cavers, mountain climbers, campers and sailors all over the world know it. This signal has been sent dozens of times over radios, through smoke signals and by flashing lights. Morse code is so simple that everyday people can learn it easily.

Do you see how important Morse code is? Without it, the world would not be what it is today. However, appreciation is not enough. Without continued use, Morse code will remain a thing of the past. You should learn Morse code. You never know, you might be one of those people who signal SOS and are saved by the invention of Morse code!

note: For some reason unknown to me, my writing is better when it is in the form of a blog post, rather than an essay. This post was originally a writing assignment, posted here to help improve it's quality. If there are ANY corrections or suggestions which could help improve my writing, please leave a comment.

Little Cowboy

Here is Stephen, our little handsome cowboy.
He dressed himself up in full cowboy garb, complete
with a vest, hat, boots and rubber-band shooting pistol.

Xiana loves her older brother

Lauren Ashley

Whatever is Lovely

My family has been working on memorizing a section of Philippians, including the verses preceding and following this one. I have been thinking a lot about the negative side of things, and have to work hard at being happy, smiling and enjoying things in the present. Here is a list of things to think on which will be sure to make me smile.

• Cheerful little Xiana
• Stephen and Lucas' smiles
• The little ones giggling
• New babies at church
• Little Becky and Rylyn giving me hugs
• The four cardinal chicks in a nest in our arbor
• Caring for little Capitola Black goat
• Our silly roosters Henry, Leo II and Ronald
• Beautiful sunsets
• Growing gardens
• Chicks hatching
• The excitement of our bull Beau when he gets new grass
• Deciding whether turkey chicks are "chicks" "keets" or "turks" with Thomas
• Missionary stories of trust in the Lord
• Shi Weihan praising the Lord after he was persecuted for Christ's sake

Cows on the Farm

Yesterday Dad brought up a difficult subject. Which animals should we keep? Currently none of the goats or cows are giving milk, and we are not raising any large meat animals. Since the only fiber mill in Texas shut down, we have no way to locally process the angora's mohair. The only productive animals are the chickens, and we are currently starting another generation of them from the egg.

Our gentle bull Beau

The biggest things were the cows. They consume a huge amount of feed. We have had a Holstein cow since April, and a Jersey bull since September. As far as we could tell, they weren't working on making calves, and thus were not giving any milk. The bull (Beau) we have been trying, unsuccessfully, to sell on craigslist.

We made the decision. Mom called the vet and scheduled a time (this morning) to bring in our Holstein cow (Molly) to see if she was bred. If she wasn't bred, she would have to go up to the market. Dad borrowed a friend's trailer and brought Molly to the vet, and there we found that she was not bred. As soon as we got home from the vet, I put a craigslist ad up for her. Within three hours, she was sold. Dad called the friend to ask if we could borrow the trailer for a little while longer than planned. Right after lunch, he loaded Molly back up and drove her to her new home.

Sometime in the middle of this, Dad checked on craigslist for a bred Jersey cow. None. After he dropped Molly off at her new home, he checked again. There was a Jersey cow due in March or April, within five miles. Yes! He bought her and is currently on the way back home. He called to tell us that she is so beautiful he named her Bella, a perfect match for Beau.

This is a great blessing. We bought Molly from a friend of mine who had been trying to sell her for months. Our family has been looking for a bred Jersey milk cow for a couple months now. It is amazing that the Lord would work everything together so that the vet had an opening, we could borrow a trailer, sell an unproductive cow and buy a bred Jersey cow within five miles, all in the same day. Praise the Lord!

There was another blessing today. One of the chicks was so weak that we thought that he/she wouldn't survive. Usually the chicks are walking within an hour, but he was three days old and still wasn't walking. This morning he just stood up and started running around with the rest of the chicks!

Lauren Ashley

P.S. Bella was doing fine Sunday morning, but when we got home from church Sunday evening, Bella was laying on the ground, very bloated and very dead.

Little Children and the Way in Which They Speak

Recently I was in the boy's room, drawing a pattern for Roman Sandals for my brothers. Lucas, as usual, was watching and chattering away at the same time.

Lucas: "I like werning (learning). Do you know how I wern (learn)?"
Me: "No, I don't know."
Lucas: "I wern by watching. I like watching you to wern how to make Ronan sandals. Its not dee kind of werning like werning wetters (letters). Its werning by watching. Werning wetters I kinda like, but its too wetter-ie (letter-y). Dare's too many words I don't quite understand, but I like watching to wern how to make Ronan sandals."

Lucas doesn't always talk like this. When he wants he can pronounce words very clearly, but most of the time he doesn't put much effort into it. One day he was playing with his Red Ryder BB gun outside. If you have seen A Christmas Story you will remember that this is the you'll-shoot-your-eye-out gun.

Lucas: "I shot my foot, but the BB didn't penetrate!"

One day Stephen walked into the kitchen with an apple in his hand.

Stephen: "Can I have a snake (steak) knife to cut 
a ma-ple (an apple) with?"



A couple months ago we were at Grandma and Grandpa's house in MS. I was snuggling with Stephen and Xiana, trying to get them to go to sleep, but they wouldn't stop telling me about everything (very sweetly of course).

Stephen: "I tink (think) people made dee houses, but I tink God made duh twees (trees)."
Me: "Yes, but God made the trees and then people used them to make houses…" 
(a little while later...)
Me: "Someday I want to marry a missionary and have a whole bunch of sweet babies like both of you!"

When Xiana heard the word "babies" she handed me her baby doll. She thought that I wanted to have a whole bunch of baby dolls and so she gave up her one doll for me.


Aren't little kids adorable?