Monday, May 21, 2018

2018 Memorial West Coast Road Trip

Colorado Springs to Santa Fe - 2018-04-06
 Spanish Peaks

 White Pelican at Maxwell Lakes

 American Coot
Upaya Zen Center in Santa Fe

Blossom petals adorn front entry way





Santa Fe, New Mexico to Flagstaff, Arizona - 2018-04-08



Flagstaff, Arizona to Newport Beach, California - 04-09-2018




Joshua Trees

San Andreas Fault View
 


Joshua Trees







Sunday, March 18, 2018

Amie Ruth Logsdon, R.I.P. - "Ruth"



Amie Ruth Logsdon

Born May 15, 1921 in Temple, Oklahoma  
Passed away March 4, in 2018 Colorado Springs, Colorado.


Her obituary was published in the Pueblo Chieftain newspaper, March 7, 2018 in Pueblo, Colorado. It read as follows:

Amie R. "Ruth" Logsdon, 96, entered life on May 15, 1921, and entered eternal life on March 4, 2018. Ruth was a retired hairdresser and a great artist. She adored fishing, sewing and growing roses. Ruth was saved and baptized into the Baptist Church in Hastings, Okla., 1942. She is survived by children, Ann and Doyle. Preceded in death by husband, Clinton; and son, Lyle. Memorial contributions may be made to Pueblo Art Guild, 1500 N. Santa Fe Ave., Pueblo, CO 81003. Viewing will be at 1 p.m. March 13, 2018, followed by service at 2 p.m., at Imperial Funeral Home. Online condolences, www.imperialfunerals.com






The following is the script of her visitation and service:



2018-03-12
Amie Ruth Logsdon Funeral Service

Time Lines for Mother’s funeral

1:00 PM - Visitation

Play five John Denver songs that take 19 minutes, repeat three times. Pause one minute before repeating each set. That will fill one hour. Play songs at low volume.

2:00 PM - Service

2:00 PM to 2:03 PM

Play three minutes of Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 In D Minor, Op. 125 ('Choral'): III. Adagio Molto E Cantabile / Andante Moderato / Adagio (Beginning) to begin the service. (This is the third track on the album by The Paris Conservatorie Orchestra)

2:03 PM
Doyle talks. (Introduces himself as the officiator and welcomes guests.)

Good afternoon, My name is Doyle and I am the son of Amie Ruth Logsdon. I was her care giver near the end of her life and felt it appropriate that I lead this service.

It’s been seventeen years since I last attended a funeral service in this facility. That service was for Ruth’s husband and my step Father Clinton Logsdon. Some of you were present at that time. Notably my cousin Stanley and Aunt Joyce and her children.

I am here with friends Karin and Amber from the Yoga Studio Satya in Colorado Springs. They graciously offered to accompany me on this trip.

I want to give you an overview of this hour of service and the grave side and reception events that will follow. My mother left written instructions for her funeral service that she wrote in 1998. Mother requested that John Denver music be played at her service. However she did not pick the songs, I picked five songs from the Essential John Denver album. I did this when she moved into the nursing home in the fall of 2016 and I sorted through her papers when I closed her apartment. These songs played during the visitation hour. Originally I considered playing them during this service along with my commentary between them. However, that would prolong the service considerably.

Perhaps John Denver music may seem rather upbeat for a funeral service, but then Mother always was somewhat of a jokester and indeed had a youthful outlook and was always up for a good time.

Following my talk, and invitation of others to talk, Beethoven’s Symhony No. 9 in D Minor, Op. 125 ('Choral'): III. Conclusion will play. (This is the fourth track on the album by The Paris Conservatorie Orchestra)

At that time, we will head to the grave site for a brief grave side service. Limo rides will be provided as can be accommodated. At the grave site, two Tennessee Ernie Ford songs will be played. “His Amazing Grace” (100 Greatest Gospel Classics) and “Take Me Home Precious Lord.” (100 Hits Vintage No 5) Between their playing will be with the reading of Psalm 23. The last song will be followed by a reading of the Lord’s Prayer. We will then return to the fire side room in this building for a reception with coffee and pastries. Keep it simple, keep it short were my Mother’s wishes.

Adopting the role of officiator at my Mother’s funeral service is a natural extension of my role as her care giver. While I did not provide 24x7 hour care in my home, I managed my Mother’s affairs and coordinated with the nursing home administration. Ruth lived independently till she was 95 at the Richmond Tower Senior Apartments in Pueblo downtown near the River Walk. In the fall of 2016, she fell in her apartment and broke her hip. She never returned to independent living and was unable to walk after that.

I managed to get her transferred to the Sunny Vista Living Center in Colorado Springs near where I live. This facility provided a private bedroom and bath in a beautiful calm environment. She lived there for a year and three months. She often said she liked the place, partially because she “Didn’t have to cook or wash the dishes.” The facility offered many entertainment options for the residents. She especially liked the classic guitarist that played Sunday afternoons.

The Colorado Springs Heritage Pentecostal Church conducted services in-house that Mother attended. She was given a Bible as a gift by a member of that church. It was dedicated to “Seeking God.” This Bible is going is to be placed in her casket.

My sister Anne who lives in San Diego came for an extended visit in February of 2017. She stayed about three weeks and visited Mother daily. Thereafter, she talked to Mother frequently on the telephone and sent many cards and flowers.  My Mother and sister spent several years without talking so it was good that they reconciled their differences in my Mother’s final days.. My Mother’s motivations were hard to understand at times. She often said “I did the best I could.” At times I began to wondered about “Best for who?” Understanding and reaching peace with one’s parents can be one of life’s great challenges.

Mother asked that John 3:16 be read at her service. Her new bible has a leaf turned down on a page to mark the passage. This is the King James Version (KJV):

John 3:16
For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

Her final decline was very sudden. She appeared to be getting along just fine. Then she caught a lingering wet cold. It was not pneumonia. On a Monday morning, after singing the previous day with the Sunday afternoon guitar player, she told the charge nurse that she was ready to be with God and did not want to get out of the bed. At this point she was completely bed ridden. The last words I heard her say included the included the phrase “I want to go home.”

This brings us to the first John Denver song titled “Leaving on A Jet Plane” which I see as a metaphor for the spiritual journey that Mother took early in the morning of her passing.

Her funeral card includes a poem she wrote that I’d like to read which definitely includes references to that final plane ride.

Mother’s Love for Her Children

Weep not for me,
I’m not alone,
I’m with Jesus,
I am his own.

Take heed my children,
and gather near.
You too will be called,
Have no fear.

As each day on earth,
You eat your bread,
Just sing, she’s alive
With Jesus, she’s not dead.

I’m going on a vacation,
I’m ready to fly.
I’ve taken that last plane,
To my home in the sky.
Composed by Ruth Logsdon, 11-27-98



Mother was from the country hills of Oklahoma. She was definitely influenced by her years there. She graduated from the Lone Star School near Temple, Oklahoma. Later, she graduated from Beauty College in Lawton, Oklahoma after deciding that the farm life was not for her. I sometimes characterize our departure from Oklahoma as Late Dust Bowl Refugees.

She settled in Pueblo with the assistance of her older brother Steve Hensley. It was here that she met the love of her life and long time husband, Clinton Logsdon, who was originally from Kentucky. My Mother was working as a hair dresser and rode the bus to and from work. Clinton was driving a Pueblo city bus. When I asked how they met, she said she would wait inside the beauty shop until she saw his bus coming – she could tell by the way he sat – and then go out and get on his bus for the ride home. Clinton responded by asking her to set close behind him so that he could protect her and made a special detour to drop her off at the door of her house. She liked that.

I thought that the John Denver song “Take Me Home, Country Roads” (3:10) would be a good song to celebrate the many roads that Ruth and Clinton traveled on their fishing and camping trips.

Ruth was the youngest of nine children of Luke and Amie Hensley. All of her siblings preceded her in passing. She was the baby of the family, the last to leave home. One of her favorite stories was about the family farm that was located three-fourths of a mile from the Lone Star School, from which she graduated. Her father Luke bought an old grain shed from a farmer named Delany for fifty dollars and built their home around it. This house was moved into Temple during World War II where her Poppa Luke and Momma Amie spent their remaining years. I remember going to Temple for my grandparents 50th Golden Wedding Anniversary celebration during which I recall one of my uncles chasing my sister, Dixie Ann, around trying to pull one of her lose teeth with a pair of pliers. He did not suceed.

My Mother’s memories about the Temple home included plenty of fish stories and games of dominoes. While at the nursing home in Colorado Springs, she tried to get people to play dominoes with her. She was unbeatable and eventually no one wanted to play her because she never lost. One of her Oklahoma fish stories was about camping at Cache Creek and catching cat fish so large that it took two men to carry it back to camp where her Momma would cook it in the same black iron kettle that was used for clothes washing as well as for making Lye soap.

One of my Mother’s memorable dishes was the holiday fruit compote dish that she called “Fruit Salad”. Basically it was a couple of cans of Delmonte fruit cocktail with additional mandarin orange slices and sliced bananas mixed with shredded coconut. A jar of left over Fruit Salad in the refrigerator made a great late night snack when combined with a slice of ham on a dinner roll juiced up with mayonnaise. And don’t forget the piece of fruit cake or pecan pie to round out the snack. My Mother must have loved cooking when she was younger because she certainly did a lot of it.

Mother liked to sew. She bought a brand new avocado colored Bernina sewing machine that was a real work horse. She made lots of clothes, quilts, and throw pillows. I recall one hand tailored red and black paisley shirt with matching bell bottom trimmed jeans that she made for me back in the 70s. I wore them till they fell apart. She also made lots of quilts. I still have a few of them. Some are dramatic patterns of hot colors with black frames. She was always trying to do something new “just to be different.”

Her creative interests extended to painting as well. She was a self taught artist and worked in oil paints for a long time. She was a member of the Pueblo Art Guild and won a few ribbons for her exhibits there. She liked to paint landscapes of mountain scenery that reflected her interest in hunting and fishing. Flowers were a favorite subject also. She also taught painting.

Music was a life long interest. She played the piano. At one time she had a Hammond Organ in her house and later had a keyboard in her apartment at the Richmond. She liked gospel and early 50s pop songs. While at Sunny Vista, she liked the music entertainment especially the Sunday afternoon classical guitarist. She still liked to sing and collected the lyrics of some of her favorite songs in a notebook so that her and another resident could sing together. In addition to gospel songs, she collected the lyrics to the “Tennessee Waltz”, “Flowers on the Wall” by the Stadler Brothers, “Heavenly Sunshine” by Kenny Rogers and “You are my Sunshine.” I recall her singing the last one around the house when I was small.

She liked to walk for exercise. It seemed like she was always just getting back from a walk or getting ready to go for a walk when I talked to her on the phone while she was living at the Richmond. She had ready access to the River Walk. As she got older I started doubting this because on our shopping trips, it was becoming clear that her ability to walk was diminishing. I believe she wanted me to think she was more capable than she was.

At one point though she walked the track at South High School daily. I walked with her a few times and she indeed set a fast pace.

Mother liked to swim and go to the hot springs. One of the pictures on the poster baord is from a trip that we took to the Ojo Caliente Hot Springs in New Mexico near Taos. This was in the 80s. The place is now up scale luxury. Back then, it was funky and cheap. We stayed in an small motel room that had linoleum flooring and a corner gas heater, the kind with ceramic bricks behind a grill. This was my first experience with a herbal wrap and it was old style with men and women separate. The men attendants wore cowboy clothes and wrapped you in flannel sheets and army wool blankets as you lay on a plastic covered mattress that made for an intense sweat experience.

With those family stories and Mother’s poem in mind, I thought John Denver’s song: “Poems, Prayers, and Promises” would be a song she’d like.

One final note, she liked to dress up and look pretty. Her pictures show this.

Now I’m going to talk about my brother Lyle. Clinton and Mother named their child Clinton Carlisle Logsdon, Jr. He was my younger brother by ten years. He was commonly called Lyle. I knew him all of his life. Lyle passed away last summer on August 16th at age 65. He suffered with gastrointestinal issues and eventually died from a cerebral hemorrhage. I ended up being his final care giver. After his death, I took possession of his ashes. I’m taking this opportunity to have his ashes placed in Mother’s casket and buried with her. Thus Clinton, Ruth, and their son Lyle will share a common grave site. I like this arrangement better than illegally scattering his ashes.

One of my best memories of my brother is as as a happy laughing funny little eight year old guy at my 18th birthday party. As he grew older, he seemed to give up on life. I don’t want to be too judgmental in this regard, however, because I see some of his characteristics in myself as we shared many of the same influences.

So it seems that the John Denver song  “Rocky Mountain High” (4:44) reflects some of the events that shaped our lives.

Mother wanted John 3:16 read at her service, so I’ll read it again. This time it’s the New International Version, the NIV

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.

What great truth about my Mother’s life do I have to share?

First of all, “What is truth?” That question is one of Jesus’s Biblical quotations.

I never forgot one of my birthday cards wherein my Mother wrote: “God gave you life through my body.”

We are reminded that we face life daily with its potential for ups and downs by the last John Denver Song that I selected, “Some Days as Diamonds (Somedays are Stone)”

How does one know if today is a diamond or a stone? Does it sparkle like a diamond or shine like a piece of coal? A diamond is a stone, is it just our perceptions that make some days diamonds and others stones? Who is to say that a diamond is more precious than a stone? What are the circumstances that create diamonds from stones?

Based on my personal observations of the passings of my step father Clinton, my brother Lyle and my Mother Ruth, one of the truths of life is this: “Dying is the hardest part of living.” Again, “Dying is the hardest part of living. Maybe its more specific, letting go of one’s breath is the last physical act of living that consumes one’s very last bit of energy.

Life is the greatest gift.

In conclusion, I believe my Mother used her gift of life the best that she could.

It is customary at these events to offer the opportunity for others to speak if they wish. Does any one want to talk?

One final event that my Mother asked for. That was the reading of the Lord’s Prayer, This is the Matthew 6:9-13 (KJV) version. She asked that you join in if you wish.

Matthew 6:
9 After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, hallowed be thy name.
10 Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.
11 Give us this day out daily bread.
12 And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.
13 And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen.
(Commence playing of Beethoven’s Symhony No. 9 in D Minor, Op. 125 ('Choral'): III. Conclusion. People file out to Limos.)

(Place the Heritage Bible in Mother’s casket

(Assemble at the grave site.)

Thanks for accompanying me to the grave site. We are again following my Mother’s final wishes. We will play two Tennessee Ernie Ford Songs with the reading of the 23rd Psalm in between. The first song is “His Amazing Grace.”
Play “Amazing Grace “ (2:32)

Psalm 23 (KJV)
The Shepard psalm - A Psalm of David
1 The Lord is my shepard; I shall not want.
2 The maketh me to lie down in green pastures; he leadeth me beside the still waters.
3 He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name’s sake.
4 Yea, though I walk through the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; they rod and thy staff they comfort me.
5 Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.
6 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever.

Play “Take My Hand Precious Lord” (3:08)

The final event will be another reading of the Lord’s Prayer. This is the New International Version

Matthew 6
9 This is how you should pray:
“Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name,
10 Your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as in heaven.
11 Give us today our daily bread.
12 Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.
13 And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.

(End of grave side service.)

(Return to Fireside Room for reception)