CLIF FROM A TO Z ― ARIZONA

Thursday, August 08, 2013

This post is the first in a new series for my blog. I'm calling it: Clif From A To Z.

Today I am writing about ARIZONA.

Can you believe that Arizona was not my first thought for A? For a long time, all I could think of was Athens. It was only when I sat down to write, that Arizona came to mind. I can't believe it! I'm fascinated by Athens but Arizona has my heart.

In the past anytime I passed through Arizona, that's exactly what I wanted to do―pass through, just keep going! I wondered to myself, "Why would anybody want to slow down here, much less live here?"

My ministry in Stockton, California, after twenty years had come to an end. My friend and former Youth Minster in Stockton, Matt Corbin now lived in Phoenix, Arizona. He called me every day just to check in, see how I was doing and to encourage me. And then one day he called to encourage me to consider a church in Phoenix, which I eventually did. That is a story for another time.

Charlotte and I stayed in California until a home we bought could be built and we moved to Scottsdale in August, 1989. We believed then and still do that God wanted us at the Lincoln Heights Christian Church in Phoenix. And maybe that is why we immediately fell in love with the Phoenix area and Arizona. I don't really know. But I do know that we love Arizona.

Hot? Yes! Arizona is hot. People in other parts of the country smile and sometimes laugh out loud when we say, "It's hot, but it's a dry heat." But we don't laugh. Charlotte and I both have lived where it's hot and humid. And we have traveled to many places where it was so humid that it was almost unbearable. So for us, until it gets over 110 we are not bothered that much. Our home is air conditioned, we have a pool in the back yard, the car is air conditioned as is almost everyplace we go.

If you have never been to the Grand Canyon, put it on your Bucket List right now.

There are so many great places to visit that I can't list them all. What I want to talk about is not tourism, but everyday living.

Entertainment? It's all here. Educational opportunities at every turn. Sports teams and events saturate the area. Shopping is fantastic. If you can't find it here, you don't need it.

October is my favorite month in Arizona. And then in the winter months when other parts of the country are snowed in, we are out and about getting sun tans. In the winter if your neighbors go missing. Look for them here. We call them Snow Birds.

The truth is, if I had the money I would love to live in many, many different places for about one year at a time. But I don't have a lot of money. So here I am "stuck" in this wonderful place.

Yesterday a fine, slow rain fell all day. I sat out on the patio and watched the drops falling softly into the pool and watering the lawn and flowers. Today as I look out my window, the sun is shining and the sky is a beautiful blue.

Ah, life is good in Arizona. Maybe I will write about Athens someday. I loved my visit there.