SOLITAIRE & RETIREMENT

Sorting out more old files tonight and found this. I must have written before I got a computer as I seem to have been playing solitaire at kitchen table at home.. That would have been in about 1997. A lot of things has happened since that time. A lot of them I did not even think about happening way back in what my grandkids think were the "horse & buggy" days.

SOLITAIRE & RETIREMENT

He sat at the table playing Solitaire

No outside work today, with frost in the air.

It was Wed., or Thurs., or some other day,

They all run together now, like a Saturday.

If he wanted to work or to loaf, or perhaps play,

He could do what he wanted, any given day.

He has dug in the yard and gave the lawn a trim

Then “don’t over-do”, his wife would tell him.

He knew it was facetious, this saying of hers.

It was like under a saddle a bunch of burrs,

To get him to move, or to buck or to run,

 But not me today, not unless it is for fun.

It seems strange to have every day as a day off,

Except when you’re sick or you’re starting to cough.

To do genealogy is too hard on the brain,

If you are sick it causes your body to strain.

You have to think, and to process the facts that you find.

It’s easier to play solitaire, than get in a bind,

By trying to do something to tax your recall.

It might even be better to do nothing at all?

I have been retired now for a month, no it’s two.

I’ve been able to keep busy, there is plenty to do.

But I am glad to get out of that every day grind,

To leave all the complaints and gripes far behind.

I miss all the friends I made along the way,

Those that I met with day after day.

My life will now take a new turn I hear.

I’ll spend much more time with those I hold dear.

My consort, my friend, my companion, my wife

With whom I will spend the rest of my life.

And even when life has ended I pray,

In Eternity we will see each other, each day.

As I play solitaire, and out the window I stare

Does it cause anxiety, and give me reason to care

About more important things, in my time of distress

Or am I sick enough to cause worry or cause stress?

“Of course not,” I say to myself with concern,

But these cardboards should go in the fire to burn.

The scriptures I could read, or a classic or two.

It’s not like I sit here with nothing else to do.

A letter could be written to my children or a friend,

Or a note to a grandchild, in the mail I could send

To tell them I love them and I am here to help solve them

Whenever they have one of life’s little problems.

I could write to my sweetheart and tell of devotion,

Or of appreciation she feels in times of commotion.

I depend on her and her unconditional love

To calm my emotions, like balm from above.

The cardboards still slap on the table with haste

As I think of all the time I must waste.

While playing solitaire, as out the window I stare

Thinking, I must stop this game now for other things that I care.

Written by W.R. Baldwin in April 1997

while suffering with a cold and cough,

but not really sick.

NAMES

                                                                          NAMES

                          NAMES

What is your name, the stranger asked?

I told him Baldwin, as he went on past.

I thought to myself later that day,

What’s in a name, what does it say?

By your name you are known, for good or bad.

Your name, you inherited from Grandpa and Dad.

Some names are glorious, some trip off the tongue.

Some known for evil, and some, heroes unsung.

One thing I’m sure of, as sure as can be

I want no one to steal my good name from me.

Not Father or Mother or Daughter or Son,

Will tarnish the name our family has won.

When I think, can I sin a little today,

I think of my name and temptation goes away.

Your name is something to cherish and praise.

Children with a good name, we hopefully raise.

Don’t steal another’s good name, no way.

By gossip or lying or whatever you say.

Let your name be integrity and consideration,

If it is, you will be known throughout the nation.

As one whose name is as good as his word,

Not someone just shouting, his voice to be heard.

If your name is good, you are solid as gold,

People will trust you, your confidence hold.

A good name means a lot in temporal things,

But think how much more, when an angel sings.

When you have gone past the veil and shut the door

And you face justice for your name, only once more.

Were the people on earth very proud of you?

Did you do all the things you said you would do?

Did the name you carried make you very proud?

Did you ponder these questions as you passed by a cloud?

Will you always remember as you go through the day,

Your name could be blemished by the things you say?

Or it might be revered by those you meet,

By the way you act, and not some heroic feat.

A name you are given at the time of your birth,

The name you’ll be known by while here on earth.

That name may be changed in the heavens above,

As we pass through the gates to our Father’s love.

Be proud of your name and the works that you do.

By that name you are given, we will all know you.

In England our name means “Bold Winner:” they say.

Don’t tarnish the name that you’re known by today.

W.R. Baldwin

16 March 1993
THE COAT OF ARMS SHOWN AT THE TOP OF THE PAGE IS THOUGHT TO 
BE CONNECTED TO MOST OF THE BALDWIN'S IN THE UNITED STATES.

WHAT IS IT?

Does everyone know what this is? If you know what it is do you know why it is shaped the way it is?

REUNIONS- FRIENDS and MEMORIES

I have found out over the years that I have a lot in common with people I have just met, people I did not know a short while ago and people I have known all of my life. Some of course I was raised with, some I met over the years and some more recently because of the virtual reality of the internet and blogging. I have made an effort to become a media-savvy citizen. I love the computer and all of it's Blogging, Texting, emailing, etc. but I meet a lot of people by just talking to them.

I have a great way of starting a conversation, even  with strangers and it is easy and almost painless. I have three hats (well actually I have a LOT OF HATS) but these three say HIAWATHA DAY or have a big "H"on them.

I have a lot of conversations start by someone asking, "what is a Hiawatha Day?" It is easy to explain but hard for some people to understand. However after you have explained it a lot of people want to know where Hiawatha is or how long have I, or did I, live there?

Many times I have thought of how happy I was growing up in a small town. I am sure a lot of it is because there was no "high pressure or hype" when I was growing up. I am sure that times have changed since then and even the small towns are not like they used to be.

A few years ago we were sitting in the park having some lunch and exchanging stories while waiting for our reunion to get under way and two older couples drove up and come and ask if they could sit at the picnic table with us. They were traveling from the Midwest to California.

Of course they asked about our hats and we got to explain that we were waiting for our town reunion. We explained there were usually about 100 to 150 people came. They could not imagine that. As one said he could not imagine such a thing as a town reunion. He said he had been to family reunions, school reunions and he had even been to a couple of reunions with guys he was in the Army with, but never a town reunion. When I explained that the town did not exist any more, and had been a ghost town for many years. he could not imagine people keeping track of each other for 40 or 50 years just because they lived together in the same town.

Well after many years I have explained to many people that we not only have a reunion, I also keep a Blog that we try to keep track of those who pass away, pictures of people and places 50 or 60 years ago in the town we all lived in.

We also have a group of guys that meet twice a month for Breakfast together and we talk, laugh and reminisce about growing up in a small town, and many other things from 60 to 70 years ago.

Come on to Breakfast if you are from Hiawatha and want to come and  talk about those that don't come.
Wally 

OUR HOME

OUR HOME

Our home was not a mansion               Feb 2006

With big rooms and many baths.

But while raising up our children

There were many, many laughs.

Our home was never quiet.

It was always like a hive.

I thought to myself many times

Oh, I wish they all could drive.

Donnie and I were country folks

And for sure not city wise!

Bringing up our children here

Brought many tears unto our eyes.

Time swiftly moved along its path,

And soon the children were all gone.

So we sit home as empty nesters.

Instead of watching children, we just watched the lawn.

Then our children and their spouses

Started families of their own

And even though it seems impossible

Some grandchildren are now full grown.

Our home still sits here waiting

For them to drop by every now and then.

Our home, still is not a mansion, sitting in the sky,

But we sit here waiting for someone to drop by.

We sit in the front room, in our chairs that rock,

And talk , and talk and talk of the very good old days

We reminisce and wonder, with memories galore

And wait for an opportunity to give our children praise.

Nothing much has changed you see

Except we have gotten old.

Our home is still no mansion sitting in the sky

But we still wait and rock and wonder when someone will drop by.

STATEMENT OF BELIEFS

I have been cleaning out some old files, papers and such and I run across this statement I wrote way back in 1992. When I read it I thought to myself that my feelings have not changed much so I thought I would share it:

STATEMENT OF BELIEFS

W.R. BALDWIN
Sept 19, 1992

We were challenged in Stake Conference to write down on paper a Statement of our Beliefs so we could refer to it and so our children might read it later in our lives. I chose to do it in the form of The Articles of Faith, so here it is:

1.I believe that families are the key to perfection, not only in the Church but also in world affairs, politics, and every day living. To be close together as a family and to help each other in time of need or stress, is truly a Godsend and could change many lives.

2.I believe in Jesus Christ, God the Father and the Holy Ghost and in the Plan of Salvation that they have set up for us to follow.

3.I believe that much good can come from all people, if we are honest in our dealings with all people. If we do good, for the sake of doing good and not to see how much credit we will get for what we do.

4.I believe that the laws of this free land were instigated to protect us and not to punish us. I believe we should abide the laws, keeping in mind, that we have the free agency to choose to keep the laws or not, just like we have the free agency to keep the laws of God or not. However we also must keep in mind if we break either temporal or eternal laws we must pay the penalty.

5.I believe that contention is a tool of Satan, that causes disputes, arguments and quarreling in every home at one time or another. Contention in one person invariably causes hurt in others. If we truly put ourselves in the other persons shoes we would be on our first step to doing away with contention.

6.I believe that if every member of our Church would share their testimony with someone else, the Church would grow at a rate which we cannot imagine. Our Prophet has told us this. Why should we doubt it?

7.I believe that we as members of the Church have many latent talents and that sometimes we are called to positions to help us bring out new talents, and not because we are an expert in the field we are called in.

8.I believe the Lord answers our prayers. If we pray with sincerity, expecting to receive an answer, and we are living worthily, we can receive answers to our prayers. Sometimes the answer may not come immediately, and sometimes it may not be what we want to hear or feel but our prayers will be answered.

9.I believe as we become older the small things in life take on new meaning. Comments from children and grandchildren become precious to us. Small acts of kindness become more meaningful. At least to me they have. The Church also has become more of a center piece of my life and a guide as to what I choose to do and how I will act and react.

W.R. Baldwin

DAWN

I have found in my life that there are many things that happen every day that we just take for granted. Usually they are small things that are put here for our enjoyment, but WE must make an effort to enjoy them or they will just pass by and we will never see them, and perhaps not caring much if we see them or not. I sit by a small pond in the mountains for about two hours one  morning , just as dawn was breaking and watched the miracle of DAWN.   

                             

                       DAWN    

It’s been awhile since I awoke in the morning

            Early enough to watch black of night turn to gray.

As dawn burst over the mountains and trees,

            And that Orange Orb, the sun showed it’s rays.

The Aspen leaves were wet and shimmering in the breeze

            As if shaking off the long rest of night.

The birds were all twittering their special song of the day

            As they flittered from thistle and tree top in flight.

And I saw brown, in the trees as a doe and a fawn

            Came strutting along through the green of the trees,

Just nibbling at breakfast and looking round now and then.

            But unconcerned as they sniffed at the breeze.

A humming bird darting from tree limb to flower

            Did stand still in the air so it seems.

Then a finch on a branch cocked his head to the side

            Saying stay away you are disturbing my dreams.

I drove to the pond and watched the sky turn to blue,

            With white clouds scudding slowly on by.

A hawk soared above without moving a wing                                                                                          
          
As the updrafts kept him high in the sky.

And the pond in itself is a world of its own

            Brimming with life at the beginning of day.

With ripples on the surface where a fish comes to feed

            On a worm or a seed or an insect at play.

And a family of ducks leave a small wake behind

            As unconcerned they just paddle around.

They duck heads in the water, with their tails to the sky

            As they see what food under water can be found.

And the dew on the end of the grass, sprig and flower

            Sparkles like diamonds that are laced with gold.

And the breeze shakes the leaves and the dew falls to ground,

            And again I thought what a beautiful World.

                                                                                                Written at Benches Pond in

                                                                                                August 2001 byW.R.Baldwin