Getting To Know You ------

That phrase is in a famous song and is a good way to start this story concerning my life. In 2003, I wrote my autobiography called "Piqua To Palmia - A Life's Journey". I was born in Piqua, Ohio and now reside in a retirement community in Mission Viejo, California called Palmia. This was for my family and long time friends. I printed about 100 copies and none are available at this time

This book has stories and pictures concerning my life's journey which I will share with you from time to time. Everything in life reminds you of something that happened in your earlier days which helps to tell a story.

This has been a wonderful trip for me. I have been able to do so many things in my life that many people only dream about. I have been on television and stage because of The Watchmen Gospel Quartet. I have recorded four record albums with them as well. My voice has been preserved so that others will know what it sounded like. Because of our 47th wedding anniversary (in 2002), I made a CD and cassette of 12 songs that meant a lot to Ann and myself.

I found a paragraph written by someone unknown that sums up our lives and put it at the beginning of my book. It goes like this ---

"As we look back over our lives, it is not too difficult to see that what we went through was for a purpose and helped to prepare us for some valuable work in life. Everything in our lives can help make us of some use in the world. Each person's life is like the pattern of a mosaic. Each thing that happens to us is like one tiny stone in the mosaic, and each tiny stone fits into the perfected pattern of the mosaic of our life, which has been designed by God."

No more than once a week I will write in this BLOG something from the book which will help you to know my life better. Come along for the journey.

Happy Birthday To Me!

Is it just me or has time stepped up a notch or two in the past few years? Seems like time is going by very fast but this reminds me of something Doug Fields said in a sermon at Saddleback Church recently -- 5 minutes 20 years ago is the same amount of time 5 minutes is today! So I guess it isn't going faster -- just seems that way.

Well, it is time to add one more number to my age. It is now 74! I'd like to think of it as a dyslexic 47. I really don't feel that old and some have said I don't look it either. But what does a 74 year old look like? Not having been that before I just don't know what I should look like. Or feel like.

Here are some thoughts about coming this far:

1. I was born April 16, 1934, in Piqua, Ohio. Parents Leonard and Evelyn. I was child number 2 and our family grew to 5 kids.

2. My mother liked the name of a movie actor who was very popular at that time -- Richard Arlen. So I became Richard Arlen Moore.

3. Our father died at the age of 31 in 1940. Last child born two months later. I was 6 at the time.

4. At my age 8 our family was split up to relatives on my dad's side. My older brother, Ben, and I went to our grandparents home in Coshocton, Ohio where grandpa was the pastor of the Church of the Nazarene.

5. One year later we moved to Celina, Ohio where he was the pastor of the local Nazarene Church.

6. At age 15 I moved to Kansas City, Missouri to live with my Uncle Ray and Aunt Edith. They had one child at the time -- Kathy age 18 months. I lived 1 1/2 blocks from Ann Edwards. Attended the same church and same high school. She became Mrs. Moore later.

7. Graduated from Southeast High School 1952 and moved to California in the fall to attend Pasadena Nazarene College. Graduated from there in 1956 with a BA in Business Administration and a minor in Psychology.

8. Married Ann Edwards July 22, 1955 (after my Junior year) and son Rick was born April 10, 1956, six days before my 22nd birthday and two months before graduation.

9. Daughter Brenda was born April 24, 1959 and that completed our family.

10. Started work with State Farm Insurance Companies on March 3, 1958 and finished a career of 37 years in 1996. (Took 16 months off after 11 years there to try something else. Didn't work out!)

11. I have a wonderful wife, many friends, spent a lifetime in music, have many stories that I will relate over time here, have a wonderful family which now includes 4 grandkids - Emily 19, Eric 16, Hannah 11, and Rachel 9. Rick's Anne and Brenda's Scott joined our family and are wonderful additions. I am blessed!

Next year will be three quarters of a century. We will celebrate it up right! Look for the story about that one in a year from now. (It'll go by fast!)

Thanks for being a part of my journey.