Free for All Fridays: Life Down Here on Earth

Well Happy Friday, again! This really is my favorite day of the week. Sure, it's a work day, but by 5 p.m., it's the weekend!

Going through my music library last night, I came across an album that I haven't listened to in a long time. It was given to me by my uncle a couple of years before he passed away and I can't help but think of him whenever I listen to it. He was a lot of fun and while we had our differences, there are times when I wish I could hang out with my Uncle Ronnie. Here's one of Kevin Welch's songs, Life Down Here on Earth. The video is a little low-budget, but listen to the song & I dare you not to smile:



And it got me thinking: life down here on Earth is pretty dang good! We are so blessed with so many wonderful things from our Heavenly Father; so many things that are just for our enjoyment!

And so, this train of thought sent me back to a subject discussed in one of my classes last week: national parks. Just look how beautiful this nation is:



Here's Yosemite National Park (photo credit: National Parks Service). How gorgeous is this?!




Vermont! (photo credit: Vermont Geography Portal) While I've never personally been here, it's on my list of stops (in summer) for the trip to the northeast which I plan to take...sometime! :)




And I had to include this pic from Sedona, AZ, taken by my mother this summer(she's a fantastic photographer, huh?!). I simply love the western part of the United States. I always say I want a summer home in Colorado. How majestic are these peaks and cliffs? Gorgeous!

We have been given so many wonderful gifts and are so blessed to live in this special nation. We must protect and be good stewards over everything we have been given, and this extends beyond the physical aspects of the United States:


(John Trumball "Declaration of Independence"; Architect of the Capitol)


My country,' tis of thee,
sweet land of liberty, of thee I sing;
land where my fathers died,
land of the pilgrims' pride,
from every mountainside let freedom ring!

My native country, thee,
land of the noble free, thy name I love;
I love thy rocks and rills,
thy woods and templed hills;
my heart with rapture thrills, like that above.

Let music swell the breeze,
and ring from all the trees sweet freedom's song;
let mortal tongues awake;
let all that breathe partake;
let rocks their silence break, the sound prolong.

Our fathers' God, to thee,
author of liberty, to thee we sing;
long may our land be bright
with freedom's holy light;
protect us by thy might, great God, our King.
America (My Country, 'tis of Thee), by Samuel F. Smith
(HymnSite.com)

Happy Friday!