Taking Off

This novel is mostly about awareness, anticipation,
judgment and clarity. It's therefore also about growth, taking risks, sizing up challenges and moving ahead with what sometimes seems impossible. This makes the story at least a brush with love. Maybe not as close a brush as some would like, but I know my limitations.

We make mistakes in life, sometimes big ones. We also occasionally manage to dodge the worst consequences of some of them and find ourselves whispering a private prayer to our invisible copilot. Once in a while those people whose lives we touch aren't quite as fortunate and we do our best not to put them in harm's way again. We don't always succeed, but we keep trying.

On the day before Christ traveled to the Earth
His Father asked of him the hardest thing
He’d done. “You see,” He said, “the mirth
We hear from time to time, the joyous ring
of laughter, children’s voices, songs of praise—
these celebrations we desire for them
are what we long for. Every time they raise
their voices to exalt, to touch our hem
in solemn prayer to plead a desperate case
it pleases us to comfort or restore
good health to someone’s reverent up-turned face
or guide him where he hasn’t been before.”

Then Jesus said, “I like those very much.
I only wish we saw much more concern
among them for those souls so few will touch.
Too many have a great deal more to learn.”

And they talked on, recounting all the ills
and oversights and gluttony and greed,
as well as how hate maims or simply kills
the hope of underprivileged in need.

“You see, my Son, the world has drifted far
from what I planned. Free will has been abused
so much that humankind has crossed the bar
and drifted out of reach, a gift misused.
So now I need to send you down to save
My work and give mankind a way back home.
It won’t be fun, you know. I cannot pave
the way for You. You’ll sometimes feel alone.
And worse than that, the people you’d expect
to lend an ear, to hear the message clear—
they’ll be the ones most likely to defect
for silver, status--things they hold most dear.”

“I understand,” our Savior said, “the way
will be quite hard. But if it reconciles
humanity to what You had in mind I’ll pay
the price and walk those many blistered miles.
I see quite clearly there’s enormous need
and only I can close the lonely space
by offering a painful loving deed;
the means for all to see Your Holy Face.
I know we’ll share our thoughts throughout those years.”

His Father said at length, “And when you’re done
I’ll welcome you back home and dry your tears—
and then we’ll count the many souls you’ve won.”

Thanksgiving Turkey's Prayer

Thanksgiving Dinner


When last year I drooled on my plate
I had not even started to date,
but since now I am older
(though not that much bolder)
for this meal I hope to be late.

Dad's Memorial Plaque at VFW 446

Bought them a big flat screen TV too so that when vets and families watched it they also saw Dad.

Jan's Birthday Angel

Ben, Seabiscuit and their cute trainer

Dad's Birthday at 86

Fourscore and seven years ago, Martin and Ethyl Inderbitzin brought forth a new son named Milton, conceived in love and dedicated to the proposition that he would be the jolliest baby on the Kalamazoo River.

Now we are all engaged in retirement, testing whether this family branch or that can remain as active and productive as he continues to be. We are met this New Year’s Eve to celebrate the start of his eighty-eighth year. We have come to dedicate ourselves to following his example as husband, father, fisherman, gardener, hunter, breadwinner, rabbit keeper, World War II sailor and lover of jazz.

The world will little note what any of us can say here, but his children, his grandchildren his great grand children and much of Muskegon will always be touched by Dad’s presence in their lives.

Love, Gib (December 31, 2003)