My Bucket List of Adventures Fulfilled

By Giles J. Isaacson

"A while after mom passed, I encouraged dad to actually make a bucket list.  When he sent me his first list I had to laugh because there were only just a few things on it.  I suggested that he needed to think bigger and encouraged him to think about other things he might like to do.  I also invited him to go to New York City because he had never been there and I have loved exploring the City and felt he would love it too. "So in June of 2019, dad and my youngest sister Christina and I headed out for what turned out to be quite the adventure, full of delight and drama and wonderful experiences that he shares in this book.  It was wonderful for me to be a spectator of my dad's experiences in a new place and especially to take him to the Brooklyn Tabernacle to experience in person, the wonderful Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir. In this book, dad will tell part of the story of this experience but there is more that I'd like to share.  We arrived an hour early for the service, after taking a bus and a ferry and walking a bit before taking another bus.  It was a very hot day and already there was quite a crowd lined up outside the Tabernacle, waiting for the doors to open for the 11:00am service.  During our wait, I encouraged dad to drink water but I saw that he was really struggling with the heat and having no place to sit. He was showing signs of exhaustion so I went to the entrance and talked with the two men there and asked if my dad could come inside and wait due to his declining condition.  They agreed and dad tells this drama part of the story in this book.  "When we were finally seated after the drama, I was beginning to feel claustrophobic.  The small, old theatre seats next to me were filled with overstuffed people and I was forced to be squished up against dad and I began to feel anxious.  But when the music started, 3300 people rose to their feet in joy and in worship and I was so overcome with joy that tears just poured from my eyes.  I couldn't stop the flow of tears. It was such a beautiful experience to be in the presence of God and just worship Him.  It was a day full of happiness and joy and I am grateful to have shared this with dad. "Dad was and still is a great but quiet teacher, teaching mostly by example.  When I was very young, we took a family trip to the ocean.  Even though I was only three or four, I remember so much about that trip…long walks on the beach with mom, looking for special rocks and shells;  clam digging with dad and going to sleep listening to the calming sound of the waves crashing on the shore.  One day while dad and I were clam digging, a huge wave swooped over me and took me out to sea.  Dad rushed into the waves and caught me before I could be taken to China or wherever.  As I look back, I don't remember being scared and the most amazing thing is dad didn't fuss about it at all.  He set me back on the sand and we continued to clam dig a bit further away from the ocean waves.  I truly believe this formed my initial beliefs about adventure and life…to be fearless.  If dad had shown panic or fear, the outcome may have caused me to be fearful instead of fearless.  I learned a most valuable lesson that day and have drawn on this lesson so many times in my life."

By Lynette Rose

• Language: English
• Publisher: Covenant Books, Inc.
• Release date: Apr 26, 2021
• ISBN: 9781636309354

Book preview

cover.jpg

My Bucket List of Adventures Fulfilled

Giles J. Isaacson

ISBN 978-1-63630-933-0 (Paperback)

ISBN 978-1-63630-934-7 (Hardcover)

ISBN 978-1-63630-935-4 (Digital)

Copyright © 2021 Giles J. Isaacson

All rights reserved

First Edition

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods without the prior written permission of the publisher. For permission requests, solicit the publisher via the address below.

Covenant Books, Inc.

11661 Hwy 707

Murrells Inlet, SC 29576

www.covenantbooks.com

Table of Contents

Hiawatha Road South

To Vantage

The Grand Circle

So What Is the Another Story?

Revisit Grand Coulee Dam

Revisit Keller’s Ferry

Return to Chelan

Return Again to Grand Coulee Dam

The Seth and Erin Wedding

Revisit South Campus

The Spokane Invitation

Back to Wenatchee—Very Special

Destination Cle Elum, Washington

The New York City Adventure with Lynette and Christina

The Railroad in Moses Lake

Moses Lake Pointe and the Dunes

Stehekin Northern Lake Chelan

Lunch at McGlinn’s in Wenatchee

Introduction

(By Lynette Rose)

An unusual and exciting or daring experience, my dad loves the Lord Jesus Christ with every fiber of his being. He has been the greatest example of Christ that I’ve ever known. His greatest adventure has been serving the Lord, as evidenced in a life well lived and in his writings. He has never had to put serving the Lord on his bucket list as this is simply how he has lived his life. If this was the only adventure he’d ever been on, I’m sure he would have been satisfied; it would have been enough. But God had other plans for him, and this book is about the privilege he has been given by God, to explore this beautiful world that God has made and to write about it. The verse he chose to describe this is:

I would have lost heart, unless I had believed that I would see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. (Ps. 27:13)

Mom passed into the arms of Jesus on January 10, 2019, after a long struggle with dementia and liver failure. During those last eight years or so, Dad didn’t venture very far from home because he was taking care of Mom and needed to be close by. I watched him as my siblings and I would share our adventures with him and could see that while he was genuinely thrilled for us, he may have had some desire for adventures of his own. But he is a faithful and caring man and wouldn’t give any additional thought to doing anything that Mom couldn’t do as well.

Awhile after Mom passed, I encouraged Dad to actually make a bucket list. When he sent me his first list, I had to laugh because there were only just a few things on it. I suggested that he needed to think bigger and encouraged him to think about other things he might like to do. I also invited him to go to New York City because he had never been there and I have loved exploring the city and felt he would love it too.

So in June of 2019, Dad and my youngest sister, Christina, and I headed out for what turned out to be quite the adventure, full of delight and drama and wonderful experiences that he shares in this book. It was wonderful for me to be a spectator of my dad’s experiences in a new place and especially to take him to the Brooklyn Tabernacle to experience in person the wonderful Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir.

In this book, Dad will tell part of the story of this experience but there is more that I’d like to share. We arrived an hour early for the service, after taking a bus and a ferry and walking a bit before taking another bus. It was a very hot day, and already there was quite a crowd lined up outside the Tabernacle, waiting for the doors to open for the 11:00 a.m. service. During our wait, I encouraged Dad to drink water but I saw that he was really struggling with the heat and having no place to sit. He was showing signs of exhaustion, so I went to the entrance and talked with the two men there and asked if my dad could come inside and wait due to his declining condition. They agreed, and Dad tells this drama part of the story in this book.

When we were finally seated after the drama, I was beginning to feel claustrophobic. The small, old theater seats next to me were filled with overstuffed people, and I was forced to be squished up against Dad, and I began to feel anxious. But when the music started, 3300 people rose to their feet in joy and in worship and I was so overcome with joy that tears just poured from my eyes. I couldn’t stop the flow of tears. It was such a beautiful experience to be in the presence of God and just worship Him. It was a day full of happiness and joy, and I am grateful to have shared this with Dad.

Dad was, and still is, a great but quiet teacher, teaching mostly by example. When I was very young, we took a family trip to the ocean. Even though I was only three or four, I remember so much about that trip…long walks on the beach with Mom, looking for special rocks and shells; clam digging with Dad; and going to sleep listening to the calming sound of the waves crashing on the shore. One day while Dad and I were clam digging, a huge wave swooped over me and took me out to sea. Dad rushed into the waves and caught me before I could be taken to China or wherever. As I look back, I don’t remember being scared, and the most amazing thing is, Dad didn’t fuss about it at all. He set me back on the sand, and we continued to clam dig a bit farther away from the ocean waves. I truly believe this formed my initial beliefs about adventure and life…to be fearless. If Dad had shown panic or fear, the outcome may have caused me to be fearful instead of fearless. I learned a most valuable lesson that day and have drawn on this lesson so many times in my life.

Dad and I have shared many other experiences during my life, but the most important ones for me are the many, many times we would just talk. Or I would cry, and Dad would just be