It was on the banks of the Jordan, that I had a life-changing experience. Although I did not know what it was at the time, I was overcome with the feeling that I must go forward in a worship service that evening, to make a public statement that I wanted to be a Christian.
Lest you think this happened at the Jordan River in the Middle East, I should clarify that it was the bank of the Dry Jordan, in Harrison, Arkansas, around 1960. My parents had a business on the banks of Dry Jordan, called Home School Supply. The name is misleading these days, because the phrase "Home School" implies one gets their education at home, instead of at a public school. Back when my parents chose that name for their business, it simply meant that they sold items for both homes and schools. (see photo of Home School Supply Building on South Pine Street)
My family had been attending a revival (which in those days meant church at night with a guest preacher, who emphasized making a decision to be a Christ-follower) at the Cumberland Presbyterian Church, just two blocks from our home at the corner of Maple and Holt streets. I now realize that once I heard this message of how Jesus had died for my sins, I needed to make a public commitment to Him, in order to take advantage of His gift of salvation, I felt compelled to go forward the following night, to make such a commitment at the revival. The entire day following that conviction, I remember walking over and over in a small circle on the bank of the Dry Jordan, repeating over and over, "I must go forward, I must go forward." I was very scared to take those first steps to "walk the aisle", and tell the guest preacher I wanted to be a Christian. But I somehow did it, and remember feeling such a relief from the conviction I had been under. I now know that it was the Holy Spirit that had convicted me, that I had a decision to make. The Holy Spirit had not condemned me, but convicted me. I have since learned it is Satan that condemns us, not the Holy Spirit. After church that night, I remember mother took us to Jerry's Drive-In, to have a delicious Orange Slush frozen beverage, to celebrate. She told me she was proud of me for making that decision, without any outside pressure from her or my father. Arrangements were made for me to have the Presbyterian form of baptism, which is called "sprinkling", the following Sunday. When my Parrish grandparents heard of my decision, they two decided to be baptized ( "sprinkled" ) at the same time that I was, such that we all three joined the Cumberland Presbyterian Church on that same Sunday morning.
I am thankful I made the decision to put my trust in God at an early age, because some of the events that occurred in my life afterwards, made me rely heavily on prayer, and God's promises. That is because I developed a skin condition that make me appear very different from my peers, and required frequent visits to a dermatologist in Little Rock. I am extremely thankful for a core group of friends who accepted my condition, with "unconditional" love. Of course, there were a couple of boys who said and did mean things to me, but I remember the junior high principal, John Wallace Hudson, telling me if anyone was mean to me, to let him know, and he would correct the situation. This was before any organized "anti-bullying" campaigns in school, so it was very intuitive of Mr. Hudson, to make the comment to me.
The next big event that tested my faith was May 7, 1961. I remember Mr. Brandon came to our house in the middle of the night, waking up me and my mother. (My sister was away at college and my father was spending the night on his houseboat at Bull Shoals Lake). Mr. Brandon lived in an apartment building beside Crooked Creek, and had been evacuated because there was a flash flood that covered the apartment building. Since he knew we had a store in the path of the flood, he came to alert us. My mom and I went down to the area while it was still dark, and could not see our business. We got as close as we could to the edge of the rushing waters, where I climbed up on top of a shed, and could see just the top of our two-story business. I had the grim job of climbing down, and telling my mom, that our business was destroyed.
When the waters receded, we were allowed through the police barricades to survey the damage to our store. The entire bottom story had been covered in seven feet of water. We also had a printing business, and the gigantic, massively heavy metal printing press had been shifted off its base, as a result of the torrent of water passing through the building. All of the typewriters, microscopes, mimeograph machines, cameras, binoculars, slide projectors, movie projectors, sports equipment, school letter jackets, wool letter blankets, and paper supplies that we sold, were all ruined. As a youngster, I could not grasp the degree of loss, but looking back, I can only imagine how completely devastated my parents must have been, to see all their work of the past decade destroyed. And there was not flood insurance. We just got to work, mopping out the mud and debris, and picking up the pieces. Yet in all this massive loss, I never heard my father or mother blame God for their losses, or shake their fist at the heavens, cursing their Creator. My seventh grade classes never resumed after that day, as Harrison schools abruptly closed, because the students were needed to help with the clean up efforts. That was the year I was taking geography, so I have always blamed the May 7 flood, on my insufficient knowledge of geography! When I had been of as much assistance as a 13 year old can be to my parents, (or else I annoyed them to their breaking point), they encouraged me to go down to the Harrison square, and help business owners there, who had been flooded. I remember I went to the the Perry Harness shoe store, to help with clean up. Mr. Harness had us separate out shoes that were not completely ruined, and place them in new shoe boxes for a future "Flood Sale". He taught me how to put shoes properly in a box, to that the potential purchaser, could see both the front, bottom, and sides, of the shoes. He even gave my friend and I a few coins for every pair of shoes we re-boxed. It was my first time to "earn" money, from someone besides my parents! There were lots of Flood Sales in Harrison that spring, and I still have one of the shirts I bought at the Flood Sale at Walter's Dry Goods on the square. Normally, the prices for clothes at Walter's was more than my parents wanted to spend, but when the price came down for the Flood Sale, I was able to buy an item there.
As bad as the material losses were, the fact that human lives were lost, is even sadder. I remember, it was on the bank of the (normally "dry") Jordan, that I saw the first dead body I had ever seen outside of a funeral. The body of an elderly man who lived across the Jordan from out store was found a while after the waters receded, and I was standing on the bank, near his home, when I saw an open vehicle drive by with a body in the back that was partially covered, but his swollen and discolored feet were still visible to me. Although I did not know the old man personally (even though he was a reclusive neighbor who refused to leave his home when asked to do so because of the flood) I felt remorseful and never forgot that scene.
Another thing I remember during the time we were at our South Pine store location during the clean-up, was the much-anticipated daily stops by a humanitarian group, such as The Salvation Army, who would come by and bring us donuts, coffee, water, and hot chocolate. It is for this reason, that I now like to include them in my charitable giving.
The frustration my father felt was magnified when the federal program called Urban Renewal, came in and took steps to seize his property by imminent domain . They offered a small amount of money to him, but an amount substantially below its market value. So my father sued the federal government, to assure a fair market value for his business. I remember going to the Boone County Courthouse on the day of the trial, and it was my first time to ever be in a court room. The verdict was to increase the amount they paid my father, but no amount of money could make up for the great business location he had on State Highway 7 South, near the high school. The Urban Renewal project paved over Dry Jordan, and created a "weir", called Lake Harrison. I remember my father using that new-to-me word, "weir", saying it was a "weird" thing to do to a free-flowing stream, like Crooked Creek. And apparently, he was right, because decades later, the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission recommended that the dam that was constructed to make the "weir", be removed, so that Crooked Creek could be restored to its natural state! After the Urban Renewal project covered Dry Jordan, and did away with the South Pine street bridge than spanned Dry Jordan, there would no longer be any evidence of my childhood "play house". I would take big cardboard cartons from my parents store, and make a playhouse in Dry Jordan, under the bridge. I still remember the musty smell that the damp cardboard would retain in the humid Arkansas summers. My friend, Betty Sue, that lived next door to our store, and I, would walk in Dry Jordan, down to where it ran into Crooked Creek, and play for hours in the water. We have both commented after we were adults, how amazing it was that our parents left us unattended for hours on end, playing in Dry Jordan, and Crooked Creek!
Fast forward a few years, to when my parents built a new building for their business located at the corner of Central Avenue and Cherry Streets in Harrison. They worked diligently at the business, and became a major supplier of Underwood typewriters, used by many schools and businesses. When the Underwood typewriter company was bought out by the Italian-owned Olivetti corporation, an incentive plan was offered by the Olivetti company that would give an all-expense paid trip for two to Italy to the salesmen who sold the most Olivetti typewriters and adding machines. My father met their quota and won the trip. Since my mother did not want to go, I had the wonderful experience of two weeks in Italy with my father . ( I wrote about that in a blog that can be found in the archives)
Another church-related activity that helped shaped my development, was when the Harrison Presbyterian youth group that I was a part of, was invited by the Presbyterian Church of Bentonville, Arkansas, to come for a week-end in their town. We stayed in the home of Walmart founder, Sam Walton, and his wife, Helen, gave us a tour of their beautiful home there. The thing I remembered most was that it had SEVEN bathrooms! I also remember Mrs. Walton showing us the bedroom of their daughter, Alice, which was lined all around the top of the walls, with fancy prize ribbons she had won at horse shows. In case you are wondering what would cause such a kind gesture on the part of the Waltons to a church group from Harrison, Arkansas, remember it was the 1960's when racial tensions were very high. My home town was very white, and the Presbyterian Waltons, wanted us to see there were other Presbyterian youth in Arkansas, who had a different skin color from me!
On a beautiful, sunny day in May, my freshman year in college, my room mate, Miss Jeffrey Lynn Taylor, and I went to Lake Wedington (just outside Fayetteville) to sunbathe and study for our final exams. As we were studying, a beautiful young co-ed came over to use, saying she was from Oklahoma State University, and was part of a group called Campus Crusade for Christ, who came to Lake Wedington, to tell people about Jesus. We told her we were already Christians, and she replied, "Great, and would you like to have an even better Christian life than you already have right now? We said, of course, so she told us about John 10:10 that says, "I have come to give you life, and to give it to you more ABUNDANTLY!" So we gave her our contact information and from that point, got connected with Campus Crusade for Christ. That organization was very helpful in keeping me pointed in the direction of Jesus during my college days.
As the years clicked by, I tended to put everything except Jesus as First Place in my life. That began to change when I joined a nation-wide, Christ-centered program called First Place. The name comes from Matthew 6:33, that says "Seek FIRST the kingdom of God, and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well."
To finish out this testimony, I will give you one more story that has the word "Jordan" in it, which happens to also be the name of the river where John the Baptist, baptized Jesus. It was at Jordan, on the banks of Lake Norfork, in Baxter County, Arkansas, where my husband and I took a scuba diving advanced course, called "Rescue Diver". The phrase "rescue" is what Jesus did for me, by taking the penalty for my sins, through His death on the cross. I deserved to die, but He died in my place--he RESCUED me from an eternity of damnation, and saved me for an eternity with Him.
So may those of us who have accepted God's gift of salvation, "RESCUE THE PERISHING"!!
Remembering how I have been rescued, gives me "MILES OF SMILES"! Tricia
Decades later, it was at Jordan, where I took a scuba diving course called "Rescue Diver". Just as Jesus had been baptized in the Jordan River, my husband and I were "baptized" into the world of being a life-saving diver, by the instructor at Jordan Marina, on Lake Norfork , in Arkansas
This summer I had the wonderful blessing of exploring the middle section of the Hudson River Valley in New York State. I was in the region to attend a week-long Road Scholar program ( www.roadscholar.org ), and packed as much sightseeing as possible into the days preceding and following my program. In researching what to do in the area, a brochure that caught my attention was the one telling about the Walkway over the Hudson . Since I was spending the night in the town of Highland where it was located, and I have a habit of taking a daily morning walk, I determined I would check it out. I talked to the kind lady at the front desk of my hotel, who provided me directions to the entrance, and gave me the great news that it was FREE! At that point, I had not gone to their website ( www.walkway.org ), and did not know that all my questions were answered on their very user-friendly portal on the Internet. When I arrived in the parking lot, I was relieved to see that there were dozens of newer model cars parked in their lot, and plenty of "normal" looking people there, including families with young children, people walking their dogs, women my age taking their morning stroll, as well as a few who looked like serious athletes out for an extended bike ride, like the guys in this photo. (I was also relieved to see there were portable toilets available, as well as "real" restroom buildings with lavatories and running water! In addition, there was a water fountain at the entrance, and a few mobile food truck vendors, selling coffee, soda, juice, and snacks.)
In just a few minutes, I was standing in the center of the world's longest elevated pedestrian bridge (1.28 miles long), about 200 feet over the Hudson River. ( I had not seen such a magnificent sight from the center of a bridge, since I walked across the famous bridge in Sydney, Australia, and stood in awe of the design of the Sydney Opera House, and the bustling Sydney Harbor that surrounds it!) This photo shows the view as one is looking south, towards New York City, where the Hudson River flows into the Atlantic Ocean. The motor vehicle bridge shown in the photo connects the cities of Poughkeepsie and Highland. On all the motor vehicle bridges that cross the Hudson River, there is a toll as you drive your vehicle going east, but no tolls when you cross going west. 
Around the midway point, the pedestrian bridge extends on either side, and there are benches for resting, or, posing the family for a photograph! I had stopped here to take a "selfie" with my phone, when a lady about my age, kindly offered to take it for me. I found out later, there are volunteers that serve as "bridge ambassadors" to enhance the visitor's experience while traversing the span. Their duties include offering to take photos of individuals or groups, and answering questions about the area.
There are several tourist attractions that are in the immediate vicinity of the bridge entrances, such as this tour boat and park, on the Poughkeepsie side of the river. The nearby Marist College has partnered with the Walkway to develop a mobile phone app, that gives information and links to area restaurants, lodging, galleries, entertainment, bicycle/electric scooter rentals, etc. It also can be downloaded in several different foreign languages. Since the walkway attracts about 750,000 visitors per year--many of these from foreign countries---the mobile app is a great asset for your visitor experience. You can access the mobile app by using the QR scanner on your phone, to take a photo of the Mobile App image printed on the brochure, or on the placards at the bridge.
Seeing this cross on top of a church steeple, a symbol of my Christian faith, was a reminder to thank God for the beautiful country where I am a citizen, and to thank Him that I have the freedom and opportunity to explore this beauty through traveling! I believe the steeple is for the Catholic church called Our Lady of Mt. Carmel www.mtcarmelpok.org , and a look at their website made me think they maintained a very active congregation in this section of New York State. 
It was the week of USA Independence Day celebrations when I did my walk across the bridge, so preparations were being made for a big fireworks display to be shot off above the river. Although the Pedestrian bridge usually closes at sunset, there are after-hours special events for people who pay an annual fee to become a "Walkway Partner". For example, the partners are allowed to be on the bridge to watch the fireworks, and they also have occasional "moon light" walks, and pre-dawn walks, available for "members only". This is a method to supplement the limited funding that is provided to the walkway, as a part of the New York State Park system. 
This photo shows the Poughkeepsie end of the bridge, that is lined with shade trees and picnic tables.
I want to try one of these!
This dad could be called the "Pied Piper" of the walkway, as he leads his family of bicyclists across the bridge!
Individuals and families who want to demonstrate a higher level of support to the walkway than the annual membership, can contribute at the level that will entitle them to have a special memorial marker on the bridge over the Hudson River. They can then tell their children how they helped make this linear pedestrian parkway over a deep and wide body of water, a reality! It reminded me of another "river memorial marker" written about in the Old Testament (Joshua 4:1-24) where Joshua had the Israelites erect a monument where they crossed the Jordan River into the Promise Land: "When your children ask their fathers in time to come, 'What do these stones mean?'... "...then you shall let your children know, 'Israel passed over this Jordan on dry ground.' For the LORD your God dried up the waters of the Jordan River for you, until you passed over.."
On the Highland side of the Walkway, there is a connection to the Hudson Valley Rail Trail ( www.HudsonValleyRailTrail.net ). This multi-use trail extends several miles westward, towards New Paltz, New York. 
It is very fitting that this former railroad bed have a traditional red caboose train car as its Visitor Information Kiosk. I found a wealth of information when I went inside it, to look around!
Before I ever walked across the bridge, I did some exploring on the Highland side, in my car, to help me "get my bearings" on exactly what it was I would be traversing. I drove down a narrow, paved street called "River Road", hoping to get a photograph of the walkway from below. That brought me to a small marina, beside a restaurant (www.marinersonhudson.com ), where I was able to photograph both the pedestrian bridge (which has the distinctive design showing its railroad bridge origins ), as well as the newer motor vehicle suspension bridge further down the river. 
If a bridge that was constructed in 1886 is still around and functioning in the 21st century, there is a good chance it will qualify as a National Historic Civil Engineering Landmark. This plaque says, "The Poughkeepsie-Highland Bridge is the oldest surviving steal cantilever bridge in the world and, when built, had the longest truss and cantilever spans. The bridge provided the first, and only, all-rail route across the Hudson River south of Albany, and it facilitated the movement of coal eastward and manufactured goods westward for 85 years. Restored as the Walkway over the Hudson, the bridge provides an outstanding example of adaptive reuse. Its designers were Thomas C. Clarke and Charles Macdonald. Dedicated: 2009 (Note: The bridge had been closed after a fire in 1974, where friction sparks between a metal train wheel with the track, caught the wooden trestles on fire.)
The walkway website made the following statement, "The walkway bridges more than just two shores---it also demonstrates the power of ingenuity, collaboration, perseverance, and preservation. It is truly an American icon, preserving the best of our history, and culture, and our spirit." I say AMEN to that, and would encourage you to check out this and the many other icons that await you in the Hudson River Valley (www.HudsonRiverValley.com ). The walkway is a location that will give you "1.28 MILES OF SMILES"!! Tricia
