SEASONS - IS THERE A POSSIBILITY THAT LENT EVOLVED FROM THE PRACTICE OF PURIM?

LENT FROM PURIM????
(Written by Sheila Gail Landgraf)

The rhythms of religious time are quite amazing.  

I have long held the theory that the season of Lent and the time of Purim are related and linked together in so many hidden and unnoticed ways.   

This becomes clearer to me each season that I observe Lent and Purim together.   That may sound a bit strange to some ears, considering the fact that Purim is a joyous holiday celebrating the end of more than two centuries of exile under the Babylonian Empire and the rescue of the Jewish people from an extermination plot by the sacrificial acts of Esther, and Lent is a time of fasting and penance during the 40 days, plus Sundays, from Ash Wednesday to Easter in the Christian calendar.  How could I possibly place these days together?   Think about it....

In this time of Lent, most Christian people remember the journey of Jesus to the cross and the time leading up to His resurrection.  

This is often the first place in time that many Christian people come to hear and appreciate all the details of the story of salvation.

In the time of Purim, most Jewish people remember the acts of Esther, how she was willing to sacrifice her life for her people and the time that led to the conviction of Haman, who was the enemy of the Jews.  It is as much about the defeat of Haman as the heroic acts of Esther.  His conviction and the reversal of the decree he had placed against Esther’s people saved the nation of Israel. 

Hmmmmm…..do you see the parallels here?  Can you see that sacrificial love in each case is saving people from total destruction?  We have Jesus defeating Satan; Esther defeating Haman.  God is definitely the author and orchestrator of both stories.   Both acts brought hope and new life and joy to those who had lost hope and joy.  Both stories are about great restorations and great reversals that only God could bring into totally hopeless circumstances. 

So I ponder these things each year as I celebrate both occasions; Lent with my Catholic brothers and sisters, and Purim with my Jewish brothers and sisters.  Oh wait….Oh dear….Have I lost you with this one statement?  I surely hope not.  Does it have to be either/or here?  Is not the same God teaching the Catholics and Protestants that teaches the Jews?  Can I not as a godly Protestant agree with some Catholic and Jewish customs and observances? 

I think yes! Not only do I think yes, but I think it very much matters that we recognize it is the same God at work in all cases.  Christianity (both Catholic and Protestant) and Judaism worship the same God.  We all have our Father in common.  Perhaps all of us do not yet know our brother, but we do recognize that our Father is the same.  This God we all worship is different than the god worshipped by Hindu’s, Buddhist and some other religions.  None of these cultures worship our God; they have their own gods, but the two cultures of Christianity and Judaism do worship the same God.   Who can read the scriptures and history and deny this fact?
 
I agree and recognize the fact that the Jewish people have not accepted the whole story yet, but just the same,  all of the stories are told specifically to them (Jews)  and us (Christians), by the same God, and it is evident throughout the scriptures.  So, each season I ponder and journey through both of these customs, because I have finally been able to see that it is not about US, but it is all about GOD, in both situations. 

Personally, I can’t get lost in the spirit of division that both sides are striving to defeat with these very observances that we speak of.  That would be too ironic for me.  The love of my Father gives me the grace to go both places and experience the richness of both occassions.  I must stay in the love of God that I see in both cases.   THE FOCUS MUST BE GOD IN ORDER TO UNDERSTAND EITHER OF THESE TEACHINGS.  If you’re looking at the ways of man, you will miss it completely. 

God meets true hearts that celebrate Lent.  God meets true hearts that commemorate Purim.  Miracles keep happening to both Christians and Jews.  Prayers are heard and answered to both Christians and Jews. 

It always does my soul good to go back and have a deeper look at the parallels in both seasons, because they only prove this same theory to me over and over again.

For instance, let’s take a look at some scriptures found in Esther 9:20-23:  

And Mordecai recorded these things, and sent letters to all the Jews who were in all the provinces of King Ahasuerus, both near and far, enjoining them that they should keep the fourteenth day of the month Adar and also the fifteenth day of the same, year by year, as the days on which the Jews got relief from their enemies, and as the month that had been turned for them from sorrow into gladness and from mourning into a holiday; that they should make them days of feasting and gladness, days for sending choice portions to one another and gifts to the poor. So the Jews undertook to do as they had begun, and as Mordecai had written to them.

Can you see the striking similarities more when you read this passage?   Did you catch those words saying “the day on which the Jews got relief from their enemies, and as the month that had been turned for them from sorrow into gladness and from mourning into a holiday; that they should make them days of feasting and gladness, days for sending choice portions to one another and gifts to the poor?”   Can you see the picture of the Jews going from fasting (as Esther did with her maids before she went to the King on behalf of the people) to celebrating their freedom and the forgiveness from the decree of the King? 

Isn’t this just like Lent leading up to Easter, when Jesus first suffers and is then resurrected?  Do we not go from sorrow to joy?   We find such a shadow of the story of the cross and the resurrection in the story of Purim.  

Do we not see Satan defeated just as Haman was defeated?  There is the custom of the Jewish nation to always use plays to symbolize the stamping out of the name of Haman at Purim.  It was just a shadowing of Jesus forever defeating the work of Satan with the cross.   The Jewish people are very focused to remove all memory of Haman from the earth, just as the Christians are very focused on the fact that all sin should now be done away with. 

Do we not see the King of all Kings, the God of Heaven and Earth, overturning his decree against humankind and bringing mercy and forgiveness for their souls?  This is just as the King did to Haman’s decree after he hung him from the gallows.  He reversed the decree and gave freedom and mercy to the Jewish people in the land. 

A king's word cannot be reversed, just as the Word of God can never change.  The King could not legally take back his decree, but he could allow the Jews to defend themselves, which they boldly stepped up and did.  God could not change the curse that mankind brought on himself by disobedience, but He could allow them to be defended and covered by the blood of Jesus.  The price was still paid through a way of substitution.  The law was upheld, but The Christians claimed Jesus as their defense against sin and the mercy of God has prevailed!  The mourning has turned to joy! 

You may be astonished to see these things and how they have worked hand in hand together in the whole big picture of salvation. Then again, perhaps not; maybe you had already seen this picture that God painted for us twice.  I don’t know, but either way, now that the first glimpse has been presented, did you see the rest of the links? 

Did you see that one story would not have been possible without the other?   Had Esther not sacrificed herself to save the lives of her people on Purim, the bloodline of Christ would have been wiped out.  We, Christians, would not have our “rest of the story” to tell.   The mourning would not have been turned to joy.  Thank God for BOTH stories!

Does this make the miracle of Purim and the practice of Lent and Easter tie together even more for you?  I hope so.  These stories do go together.  They go together as surely as God will bring the two peoples together in the end.  We all share One Father.  This is a Father who prefers a united family.  We are not blending different religions in putting two and two together here.  Neither are of pagan origin.  We are simply understanding more completely ONE religion; the one where God The Father reigns over the Kingdom. 

He will clarify all the rest for us eventually.  Every little detail will pan out just as it is supposed to. 

In the meantime, let us open our eyes and love one another with respect and dignity and keep moving together toward the table of our Father in all that we do. 

Let us enjoy our feasts together because God has spoken and His words are “whosoever will may come.”

AN APPLE A DAY - DAY 124 OF 365 DAYS TO A HEALTHIER LIFESTYLE - ORGANIZING THE FOOD YOU EAT

STILL GETTING ORGANIZED IN ORDER TO STAY HEALTHY - THIS WEEK:  FOOD

(Written by Sheila Gail Landgraf)

So we’ve been talking about how to de-stress your life by achieving a better organization of life’s daily events and activities in order to achieve the healthier lifestyle we all desire.

So far; we’ve organized our time by learning to use a calendar and a personal planner and  We’ve learned how to avoid “time-clutter” in our lives. 

What else can we organize in our daily living that will help us to get and stay healthy? 
 I think our food choices would be a next place to start.

I’m told by the experts that most people have good intentions to eat healthy.  The problem with good intentions is that they are never followed up with action. 

Why is this? 

The research tells us there are three reasons:

1) Lack of planning

2) Lack of following through the plan with action and

3) Boredom

I can see where that has been true in my own life.  What about you?

I have been guilty in the past of eating unhealthy simply because I forgot or even deliberately did not take the time to make out a healthy menu. It is a tiresome chore and it gets to be monotonous.  Of course even if I did decide on a weekly menu; I often forgot or simply got too lazy and did not make the time to follow that menu plan by making out a healthy grocery shopping list.  

Even if I DID remember to do those two things; I would often leave the list at home and/or go buy all the wrong things at the grocery store. 

I MIGHT even occasionally get all of those things in order and plan and buy the groceries, and then get home to find out I need some special type of dish or container or cooking tool that I do not have on hand at the moment; and all my extra efforts would still be wasted. 

I think it is time to get organized with all of this in order to make life simpler and easier for all of us. 

I’ll tell you what I want to do; keep watching the AN APPLE A DAY blog articles during the last few weeks of February and the first few weeks of March.  (I'm posting these every Friday.)  I’m going to make all of this planning much easier for myself; and at the same time; I’m going to copy you with the very helpful results of all my efforts for free! 

Can you beat that deal? 

Here is the actual plan: 

1.  I’ll make an easy to follow list of healthy breakfast menus that are tasty and nutritious (30 days worth) and I’ll list all the groceries and special dishes needed.  All you will have to do is shop and prep the meals.  A lot of these foods will be the types of food you can actually eat on the run.  We will do a week of the breakfast menu just to get started and ease into this program. 

 2.  The next week, I’ll do the same thing for lunches that are tasty and healthy and can easily be carried to your work space every day.  By this point we will be doing the breakfast and lunch part of the plan.  We are building our healthy diets a little at a time so that we stick to the plan for the long haul.

3.  The next week I’ll do the same for easy at-home dinners that are totally healthy as well as fast and easy to prepare in the evenings.  You will now be preparing three healthy and nutritious meals a day for yourself and your family.  This is great progress!  In just three weeks we will have formed the habits of putting DAILY healthy meals into our lives, and it will be easy and not at all stressful.  It is simply a matter of what we discussed before; good organization and planning (and I will help a lot with the menus and the grocery lists.)    

4.  By the fourth week of our plan, when all of these 30 days worth of 3 meals a day are created; (90 meals in all for a 30 day menu;) I’ll combine all of the lists together into a whole 30 day’s worth of 3 meals a day menu plan for 30 days along with a weekly grocery list for your 3 meals a day for each week for one month.  You can simply use this 30 days plan over and over again each month.  No more grocery lists to make out, no more agonizing over what to cook!  

Now you have NO EXCUSE not to get your meals organized for cooking at home; nor do I.

All you will need to do in the end is shop and prepare.  It will only take you 2 and 1/2 hours a week and an hour a day total.  That's it!  The planning is done; so just pick one time-slot (and mark it down on that planner we discussed a few weeks ago) for a once-a-week grocery shopping trip and allow an hour for grocery shopping and half-an-hour for putting it all away in an organized manner.  Then set aside thirty minutes more each morning for meal prep to fix breakfast and lunches, and thirty minutes each evening for preparing dinner.  You will also need an hour once a week for cooking a few things ahead.  (Block that time on your calendar off too, so you will remember to keep the schedule.)  That is all that eating healthy is going to cost you; simply the price of your regular grocery bill that you are already spending, and routinely scheduling 2-1/2 hours each week for shopping and cooking ahead, plus an hour a day TOTAL for simple meal-time prep.    

Your health is worth it!  

This is simple and easy.  

You will not get bored because no meal plan is ever the same for 30 whole days.  You can just re-use this 30 day menu over and over again, adding your own adaptations for any unique needs as time goes by.  Because you will be using less meat and more fruit and vegetables and less pre-prepared items; your grocery bill may even be less.  That might be a bonus surprise to the fact that your waistline will be going down and your health quota will be increasing.

 

Just keep watching the blog if you want to join in with me on this little adventure toward organizing more healthy eating routines.

We can get our healthy eating organized in no time flat.  

The rest of this year will be dedicated to making these meals become very useful in our daily lifestyle.  In making up the menus, I’ll basically be following the healthy food plan I suggested several blogs back.  Here is the link to the blog post with those healthy eating plan details in order to refresh your memory:http://dancinginseason.blogspot.com/2016/07/an-apple-day-day-104-learning-lesson.html.

Just remember if you decide to follow the diet plan I referenced in the above linked article; that it calls for two meals a day spaced many hours apart. So, combine breakfast and lunch into one morning meal if you are following that plan of two meals a day spaced more hours apart.   If you are wanting to lose weight; I recommend you adhere to that plan.  If you are simply maintaining your current weight; you can be okay with eating the three meals and probably not gain any extra weight; but you will feel much better simply from eating the same foods.  You might want to re-read the whole previous post, then decide what your specific goals are.  

While you refresh your mind on these facts I will do all of the other hard work. Decide what stage of life you are in and do what works best for you in the area of how many meals a day to consume, but either combine breakfast and lunch into one morning meal with dinner much later, or eat three separate meals of breakfast, lunch and dinner at THE SAME TIMES each day.  

Stay tuned for an organized eating plan made easy and simple!  

We’ve all needed this forever and it is yours just for being a regular reader of my AN APPLE A DAY blog column.  

You could probably pay a lot of money somewhere else and get a similar less detailed plan; but why would you do that?   As a favor, I would kindly ask that you click on the G+ FOLLOW button right underneath my photo on the right-hand sidebar of this blog in order to follow these blog posts without missing any of the articles.  That will keep me from e-mailing over and over to those of you who miss a few blogs.  Besides; you get a lot more than AN APPLE A DAY posts when you subscribe; you get a whole week's worth of great articles; similar in fashion to a magazine you might pay a lot of money for in the store.  

The blog subscription is totally free - no strings attached.  I would simply like the credit of having the numbers of those subscribed to my blog increased in order to raise my popularity quota in the eyes of the editors that I submit freelance articles to.  So you WOULD be helping me out and thanks in advance!  I hope the process will be mutually satisfying for both of us.  

While you are at this task of subscribing to my IN SEASON BLOG; you might also enjoy reading many of my other daily posts.  In general the blog is about the things that carry all of us through the many varied seasons of life (hence the title; IN SEASON.)  I am a Christian, who often thinks Hebraic; so much of the blog is about the daily thoughts of a Christian woman trying to live life to the glory of God in-season and out-of-season through all the timely and seasonal activities that come and go daily with all the ups and downs of life in a Christian family.  

Keeping all of the above in mind; my daily posts work much like a magazine with articles broken down into certain subject categories which are usually posted in the following order each week: 

MONDAYS – MONDAY WEEKNIGHT MENUS:  Something I created with ordinary (not necessarily all healthy) menus on Monday nights just to make at-home meal planning, shopping and cooking a little easier for at least one night a week.  This was so successful; it sparked the above article in the organizational series you’ve just been reading.  Don't confuse these Monday night posts with our easy new diet plan.  This Monday column will continue to provide something easy and organized for people not wanting to plan their Monday night cooking chores; but it isn't as health oriented as what we are discussing today.

TUESDAYS – THE HOUSE DOCTOR:  A little column once a week to discuss making a house into a home.  I use my own personal experiences and share little stories about how we have loved, cared-for and remodeled our current home over the past twenty years, (a project that will probably never end) as well as telling the stories of others with the same heart for their home, who have shared their stories about creating their own homes with me.  The subjects have more heart than technique.  If I do anything with this column, I want to encourage people to have a heart for making a home.  I think that may be a major problem in our world today; people have forgotten how important this is to our daily living.   Hopefully I am able to relate some homemaking thoughts to everyone by passing on such stories and experiences.  This is NOT a decorating column; but more a "share your experiences " column and a “making a house a home” column.  The subject matter is very random, and a lot of it relates to the current season.

WEDNESDAYS AND SUNDAYS– SEASONS/PEN ART/PIECES OF THE PUZZLE:  
I randomly alternate writing about these three themes/subjects/categories in articles every Wednesday and Sunday.   Below is a brief description describing each:

I could post on any of these three subjects on Wednesdays or Sundays.

The SEASONS articles are all about holy days and holidays.  I am a non-denominational Christian; but I have a Hebraic heart; therefore I tend to keep the Holy Days from Exodus, Chapter 20 (not in a legalistic way, but in a loving, devoted way) and I also love all the regular seasonal and national holidays we observe here in America.  With the SEASONS articles; you will read my take on each new season as it approaches. I love to relate the seasonal themes to the daily seasons of our lives here on planet earth. 

The PEN ART articles are simply me sharing some of my literary leanings.  It could be random short stories, essays or poems that I’ve written on almost any random subject under the sun.  These articles could be by me or a guest author; or they could simply be me reviewing something that someone else has already written.  The one theme is that most all of it follows the current season of which it is published.  The "seasons" are what my blog evolves around, in many different ways; and this category conforms to that pattern too.

The PIECES OF THE PUZZLE articles are about deeper, more theological subjects that are not always discussed at length in the other blog posts of this blog.  It is full of my own personal thoughts as well as how I arrived at those thoughts.  I am not a theologian; but I DO have many theological thoughts and I’ve spent 50 years studying the scriptures with all of my heart.  I consume theological books like most people breathe; so you might find a few interesting facts here.  I can guarantee you they will not be run of the mill articles.  

THURSDAYS – COME AS A CHILD – This is an on-going weekly bible study where we are walking together all the way through the bible, page by page and verse by verse in narrative form with the fresh eyes of a child who has never heard the scriptures before. We aren't in a hurry.  We are taking our time to learn all we can and to soak up the goodness of God.   Here we are  discovering the wonderful treasures of life in The Kingdom of God through weekly chronological scripture studies.  As I post this note; we are most of the way through Exodus.

There have been 156 study lessons presented so far; and the next one will be number 157.  It might be fun for you to start from the beginning; but it isn't necessary that you do so.  If you wish to review what we have already done, just look all the way back to the year 2012 in the chronological postings on the side bars of the blog pages (the blog archives.)  The lessons have been posted every Thursday since 2012.

FRIDAYS:   AN APPLE A DAY – 365 DAYS TO A HEALTHIER LIFESTYLE – These are articles on maintaining and keeping a healthy lifestyle and they have all been written in easy, common, lay-man’s terms.  They speak of how to maintain that healthy lifestyle that we all desire.  You are following this column today.  These are practical, common sense facts that are usually given from a biblical and/or Christian worldview.  I am NOT a medical doctor; I'm just an ordinary person, like you, who wants to live my life to be as healthy as possible.  This is a blog where we can all do that together and support one another as we go along the journey toward better over all  health.

SATURDAYS – OH THE PLACES WE SHOULD GO –  Everyone needs a little fun and activity every week in order to lead a healthy lifestyle!  Isn't that why we are doing all of these things to start with?  This column is part of how I feel God rewards us in life; with interesting places to go and fun things to do together. This is my way of finding those fun parts of life by exploring the obscure little corners of my part of the world with good friends and loving family and writing about what we discovered in these places.  

These articles are about traveling to the sometimes not so well known and off-the-beaten-path places in the South; and sometimes even further.   Here I share the amazing little details of all the small and large places that I have personally visited and experienced and appreciated.  

I love small towns; yet I also enjoy busy, active, alive and growing cities.  I’m not into the exotic; but I'm more into traditional, family oriented, laid-back, home-town types of places to visit and travel. I happen to believe some of the best places exist right under our noses, usually only a few minutes from our own homes; if we just take the time to explore and discover all the wonder of our own communities.  

I am also fascinated with travel from a “seasonal” and “historical” point of view.  So you may find my “travel” articles are not full of the usual touristy words; but they tend to be more down-to-earth, yet very informative; and I try to show people fun and enjoyable places that they haven't seen before that are actually affordable for the average family and even sometimes offer history lessons.

So; I hope that explains my blog a bit; and I hope you click that G+" “follow” button right under my photo on the right, because this freelance writer could sure use a lot more followers to impress all of those statistical people I deal with day-in and day-out.  The blessing for you will be that you will never miss another one of my daily blog posts; and I highly recommend sharing them with friends and family whenever you hit on a subject that you think they will find interesting.

Okay - Now I’m off to make out those menus!  Check in again next week (or have fun reading all the other blog posts with the time I'm going to save you!)

OH THE PLACES WE SHOULD GO - THE PERFECT GETAWAY FOR VALENTINE'S DAY

GORHAM'S BLUFF - PISGAH, ALABAMA

(Article written by Sheila Gail Landgraf)

  Looking for a very romantic getaway for Valentine’s Day?  Top of my list would be Gorham’s Bluff in Pisgah, Alabama.  The drive seems to take forever, but anticipation is a good factor in romantic getaways!  You will not be disappointed when you arrive.  This is a beautiful hideaway. 

Maybe you have been thinking of a romantic dinner you would love to make your loved one.  What better place to make it than the two-bedroom cottage located at the bluff?  It is about as cozy as you can get.  Light a fire, pour your loved one a glass of wine (bring your own – Gorham’s Bluff is located in a dry county), and start cooking in the great little kitchen of this sweet cozy little cottage.  Be sure to shop ahead and bring your groceries with you because when they say get-away; they mean get-away.  You will not wish to leave the area until you start home.  Pick up some pretty flowers for your honey when you buy those groceries and arrange them on the table when you serve your elegant dinner.  She will never forget!

I would highly recommend spending at least two nights.  Be very lazy and sleep late.  Make a leisurely breakfast and drink your coffee overlooking that famous bluff in the back yard. 

Bring a few romantic novels in your suitcase as well as a few romantic comedy movies to watch on the dvd player inside the cottage, but don’t spend too much time inside; the area is great for hiking and long leisurely romantic strolls.  At night star gazing is the best way to pass the time.  Be sure to take an old blanket so you can make a pallet on the grounds and look up into the sky.   Way out of the city like this the stars are so bright and beautiful that you will feel like you can reach up and touch them.  Dress warm though – after all it is February….and you are sitting on top of a bluff where the wind is stronger.

Sunrise and sunset have never been framed in a more beautiful setting.  Be sure to catch at least one of each while you are there.  If you don’t want to cook the whole time – the chef at The Lodge nearby is excellent and you can make dinner reservations by calling the Lodge.  I’ve heard his Valentine’s meals are creative and very romantic.  Take your own choice of your favorite wine to the desk at the Lodge and he will chill and have ready for you when you dine.

So go ahead and make plans for this excellent little escape – you will not regret it.  If you can’t make it for Valentine’s Day, there are still 364 other days of the year to enjoy Gorham’s Bluff.   Drive up for the day and take a tour, plan one of their special events or just make dinner reservations.  You do not have to be a guest of the cottages or the Lodge to dine.  

It is not too far away and it is not too crowded, and it is still (except for scheduled public events)  rather hidden from the public’s attention.  The history of the area is also quite interesting.  Here is a little bit to tuck inside your hat and share with your loved one as you scroll the lovely grounds:

In 1892 W.B. Gorham was deeded eighty acres of land by the US Government.  At that time Mr. Gorham was more fondly known by the locals as “Uncle Billy.”  Uncle Billy was a Confederate veteran who built his family a remote lean-to shack in a very isolated and lonely place on the bluff.  It was so lonely that his wife and children later decided to move back down to the valley where there were a few more people.  Uncle Billy, however; continued to live in isolation.  He spent his time growing strawberries, playing his fiddle and feeding himself well with the money he received from his soldier 's pension.

About one hundred years after Uncle Billy owned the land, it was purchased by a family named McGriff.  The McGriffs loved gathering their extended family together and having picnics at one of the huge rocks on the bluff. They called this pretty little area Picnic Rock.  In 1992 the McGriff’s decided they would like to share the area with others if they could think of a way to do so without distracting from the natural beauty of the land.  They came up with an idea for a fully integrated holistic community.  A Florida neighborhood called "Seaside" was inspirational to the McGriffs as they formed their first ideas for sharing their land.    A real estate agent from Seaside, Chris Kent, introduced the McGriff’s to an architect from New Orleans named Lloyd Vogt.  Mr. Vogt sat down and shared his ideas with the McGriff’s.  In their conversations he spelled out the qualities he thought defined the best of neighborhoods.  These qualities incorporated a seamless interlacing of history, culture and architecture.   Keeping these defining thoughts in mind, the group sketched out a town plan.  This is how the dream began to form for the future of a place now known as Gorham’s Bluff.

One of the first areas to be completed was the outdoor Amphitheater The lovely open-air theater sits on the edge of the bluff.  Existing trees and rock outcroppings were incorporated into the design of the natural and artistic structure.  Today audiences can enjoy a performance while at the same time enjoying the amazing view.  The outdoor amphitheater now fills up regularly with great performing artists from all over the country.  If you are interested in performing yourself you can rent the venue - just call (256) 451-8439 and speak with the Innkeeper at The Lodge.  Just keep in mind that the amphitheater closes by 11 p.m. 

Construction started on the first home of the development during the summer of 1993.  Mr. Vogt gave each home the signature look of the town.  They all contained front porches, tower rooms, scenic views, and natural surroundings.  You may purchase one of these homes if you want; just contact Gorham's Bluff Realty.

In 1994 construction began on The Lodge.  This lovely building opened to the public in 1995. There have been a steady stream of happy guests lodging in the pristine serenity of this place since that first day.  It is a wonderful place for conferences, reunions and weddings.  There are public events scheduled often that you would love to enjoy for a weekend.

Three years after the building of the Lodge

 another interesting structure was added.  It was the former 1938 Pisgah High School schoolhouse where the McGriff’s had attended high school.  The building was to be torn down in order to build a new more modern one, and the McGriffs decided to move the old building to Gorham’s Bluff.  It now stands in the heart of the land with a new roof on top and new bricks on the outside and has become a community arts and activities center.  

There is a lovely mixture of the old and the new, and it all works quite well. 

Adjacent to the old school/new community arts and activities center is The Gorham’s Bluff Meeting House, which was completed in 2001 and designed by  Lloyd Vogt.   The Meeting House has cathedral ceilings and floor to ceiling windows.  The building has excellent acoustics.  It is a perfect place for meetings, performances, and workshops.  There is also a bi-weekly nondenominational church meeting held here.

As the little town began to grow people bought lots and built houses.  The true mission of the property and community began to take shape and grow.  From early on the mission of the community has been to promote arts and cultural activities in the area.  A non-profit institute was formed to promote local artist and to give the people living in this region art that they might not have otherwise experienced.  The Meeting House became the stage for theater, concerts, dance and other artistic performances. 

One of the first performances, held at the Amphitheater, was the production of a play called “Foxfire.”  This Hume Cronyn play was directed by Joe Warfield, a New York University professor, in the summer of 1994.   Next was the Gerhart Chamber Music Festival.  The Institute began bringing in top-notch classical musicians and established their signature annual event called Concert under the Stars.  This event serves a gourmet meal for 200 guests and doles out amazing performances by world class musicians.  The people of the area love this annual midsummer bluff side evening. 

Soon The Alabama Ballet became interested in Gorham’s Bluff and established a week long summer dance residency on the premises.  At the time they had the idea to bring some of their talent to the community there was no place for them to rehearse and perform.  They improvised with an open tent/stage set near the bluff.  The tent was located near a great outdoor space for setting up tables and serving gourmet meals to the audiences during their performances.  This was a very successful idea.  The tent coupled with the intimacy of the bluff side panoramic view created a one of a kind experience for both the dancers and their audiences. 

Soon the Institute incorporated a Storytelling Festival into its growing schedule of events.  The power of the story and the spoken word of the narrative were brought forth by some renowned and amazing storytellers.  This success soon led to the formation of ARTSACCESS, the Institute’s arts-education outreach.  Storytellers started visiting public schools and held assemblies and workshops with visiting dancers and musicians.  Local libraries also began to participate.  This has greatly improved the exposure to various art forms in the education of school children in the area.

In 2001 the community held a charrette (an intense, focused architectural planning session.)  They decided to consult with Mr. Steve Mouzon of Mouzon And Associates, Architects; a traditional Town Planner in Huntsville, AL.  Mr. Mouzon took on the role of Gorham’s Bluff's Town Architect, and the town hosted 75 like-minded “souls” who were all believers of the Traditional Neighborhood movement.   These people moved in for awhile and were compensated only with four meals a day and a place to sleep.  The group consisted of a full list of impressive architects, planners, developers, writers, educators, etc.  In this 48 hour charrette the various artist sketched and talked and illustrated the ideas presented by the community.  Mouzon put it all together in one package and took the presentation to the Congress of New Urbanism’s 9^th Annual Conference in New York.    That conference provided a roundtable of feedback for the community to consider. 

Four significant revisions were identified and recommended:

1)     A new concept for Main Street that would  redirect the street so that the school’s “signature” cupola is the focal point as you approach downtown from either direction with the larger homes giving way to cozier two-story homes on smaller lots to make Main Street a more viable option for young professionals and families.

2)    A plan to move the elder residences closer to the center of the town, underlining the town’s desire to be a fully inter-generational community.  The services and amenities that were generally included in independent and assisted living centers (restaurants, hair salons, libraries, clothing and retail) would be expanded to serve the entire town, with the elder residences closest to all of them.

3)    It was decided to scrap; the idea to dam up the branch on the east side of town and turn that area into a place called “Shepard Park.”  The park preserves the meandering creek, leaves the forest and creates a play area for kids.  Some Birmingham architects, Jeff Dungan and Louis Nequette, were hired to design the Shepard Park Tree House, and it was built in 2002.  This is one of the favorite places for people to gather with their children. 

4)    It was decided to design an open air performance center at the crest of downtown Gorham’s Bluff.  The plan was changed to include a quad of artists and student residences as well as a black box theatre. 

From 2003 – 2007 the Institute moved to year round programs of small events utilizing the Amphitheater and the Meeting House.  They also began to offer community arts workshops.  They continued to bring art educational opportunities for local schools, but encouraged the schools to come to the bluff instead of the bluff going to the schools. 

So now the bluff has evolved into a thriving community of artist and educators who have built on the land and are living in the community.  They are always eager to share their art and teach something new.

If this sounds interesting to you, check the schedule of events on the blog located at www.gorhamsbluff.com  and see which event you need to sign up for.

The art I would chose to indulge in here is the art of the written word.  This would be a wonderful place for any aspiring author to retreat away into the quiet and natural beauty.  One could write for hours at a time, with refreshing breaks in between each session.  You could stroll the grounds, take in some great concerts in the evenings, hike or swim, or maybe even participate in a storytelling workshop or two. 

There is an elegant southern style restaurant at The Lodge, you would not have to drive off the property to be well fed.  Evenings are quite a treat with candlelight and a four course meal

This spectacular retreat perches on a stately ridge hundreds of feet above the mighty Tennessee River.  It has one of the most delightful views I’ve ever seen, totally surrounded by natural beauty.   You can gaze at the luscious landscape and take in the dazzling river below the ridge from your own comfortable chair off of your lodge room’s private porch or from the windows inside your luxurious guest quarters.  There is a lovely large Gazebo behind the Lodge. 

Anywhere you care to be or go in this area contains some type of amazingly beautiful view.  It is a very scenic way to start the day while having your morning coffee.  

This scenic bluff along a mountain ridge with a river running through it has more history than Uncle Billy and the McGriffs.  It is also known as the long ago land of the Cherokee Indians, who were also drawn to the magic of the bluff.   Every time we visit this place I remember that  my great grandmother was a Cherokee,  and I always wonder if any of the Cherokee ancestors from my own family might have roamed these grounds years before I was ever born.   

You can visit Gorham's Bluff any time you wish.  Just call The Lodge ahead of time to make your reservations for a room at The Lodge or to rent one of the guest houses on the property for your family or group of friends.  

I will warn you though, if you go, you just might want to stay forever.    

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