Fireworks, Forts, and Tears

When I was younger and fireworks where not fully illegal. My brother and I spent all the money we had saved selling plants on weekends buying crackers and storing them up till we had the biggest stock pile ever. Getting ready for battle against the world with our crackers we built ourselves a little fort and barricaded ourselves in. We had little windows to throw crackers out. I am not sure but am almost certain we got dressed up for the occasion. We had big dreams for our fort and the joy that was going to come out of it. So here we are in our little fort waiting for some unsuspecting victim to come around the corner so we can attack and release the full force of our army.

So around the corner comes my dad, we threw a cracker or five in his general direction, he quickly disappeared and came back with him own selection of crackers. He lit his little jumping jack (those where the little crackers that shot some flames and spun round), It was small in comparison to our army of fireworks we had spent weeks building up and counting.  So my dad threw his cracker threw our window and into the bucket of supplies. Needless to say the bucket burst into flames and explosions like popcorn in a pot. It was a fantastic site, although when the smoke cleared and the excitement had passed. I was left with no crackers and crying.

Such a small cracker had destroyed my stock pile, it had taken my dreams of world domination and reduced it too sulpher. That is the power of the tongue. It might be said in jest, or done as a response to something else. But we need to know it has the power to destroy and penetrate strong holds and break down stockpiles. To ruin dreams. It has the power to take down walls we have built up against attack. The tongue as powerful as it is, is even smaller in its attack, is as small as an ant, it can get in anywhere. And sometimes only comes out weeks later, or even years and has a continual effect on us.

How are we using our tongues, are we using it too break down people, to get ahead in our own lives. To break others down so we can feel better about ourselves instead of seeking God and finding ourselves in him.

Let us never underestimate the power of a single small word. 

The apple that burned down the room

When I was in primary school, don’t actually know how old I was properly around 12, my parents threw a party, for which back in the day they where famous for. I come from a big extended family and in the days that everyone was talking too each other we would have friends and family over for any occasion we could. We had dress ups, Halloween parties where the whole house would be turned into a giant cave with hot ice bellowing out of the giant caldrons (before smoke machine days) and my dad dressed like a mummy popping out of the make shift coffin (since we didn’t actually have a real one) as people walked in through the candle lit drive way.  Needless to say it was always fun and full of people, the one year going back to when I was twelve wasn’t a dress up or anything but it was cool, my cousin who was a DJ at the time had bought all his stuff around, spit braai was on and everyone was getting along having a good time, as the party started to die down in the early hours of the morning and some people left, and some people just slept where they could, 

There was a group of us that stayed up in the outside room, If I recall it was my cousin the DJ, a family friend called Phillip (A quite Afrikaans farmer from Britz) and of course me. We stayed up all night talking rubbish and messing around, there was one 2l coke left from the party that we where saving for some unknown reason. Just one of those things. Phillip was in charge of the coke, and he lay reading his comic book all quietly and reserved while we decided to have some fun. We had for an unknown reason yet again had an one apple with us and some thinners. So my brother pours some thinners over the apple and I light it in the sink, it was cool to say the least. It went up in a ball of flames but it was short lived with very little flame much to our disappointment. So we decide to do it again, only this time my brothers hand is a bit heavy and the thinners goes everywhere over the sink, I am thinking it cant be that bad can it. Wrong again, the whole sink went up in a huge flame, forget the apple trapped inside there somewhere. Phillip jumped so high I thought he was going to hit the roof, he grabs the sacred coke and starts throwing it onto the flames, by this time my cousin is grabbing all his DJ equipment that just happens to be positioned right next too the inferno. I run out side to get the dogs bowl of water and start throwing it on the fire to make it go out. By this time as in slow motion the kitchen lights turn on and my mom starts to make tea and coffee for the ever awakening quest, little does she know there is black smoke bellowing out of the outside room, the roof is black, the chrome finish of the taps are no longer existent. So there we stood among the debris with no coke, laughing a little that we where still alive and certain of impending doom. When the smoked cleared we decided to tell our apple story and to our surprise it went down fairly well. Perhaps it was the fact that it was sunrise,  or that they hadn’t actually seen the damage yet, we survived to live another day. 

Vespa Road Trips

I have an VLB 150 Vespa sprint Veloce 1976! She is my beauty! She needs lots of cosmetic work but the engine runs like a dream! The only problem I am currently having is I cannot get the wheel but off to change the brake pads and check out the wheel! Other than that she still starts beautifully! Goes like a dream, my top speed is 96km a hour, but can't really average that! That is more of a down hill go getter! The pic is of my most recent road trip to Humansdorp! It was so much fun, it was just me and the open road! Granted I didn't go too far, seeing as I headed out from Jeffrey's bay! 

My friend just bought himself a scooter, so really hoping to be doing some longer road trips with him, as soon as I can get the nut off!