The Language Barrier.

One of my grandsons, as an ungraduate in college, tutored other students in Latin and Greek. One of my granddaughter, after graduating from college, traveled for a few weeks in Europe, communicating with non-English speaking people.

I readily admit, they did not get the gene for learning languages from me. In fact, I stand in awe! I am a person who did not find learning another language easy.

So I read with interest, "FUNNY SIGNS FROM OTHER COUNTRIES" when a friend passed it along.

"FUNNY SIGNS FROM OTHER COUNTRIES"

In a Tokyo Hotel: Is forbitten to steal hotel towels please. If you are not person to do such thing is please not to read notis.

In another Japanese hotel room: Please to bathe inside the tub.

In a Bucharest hotel lobby: The lift is being fixed for the next day. During that time we regret that you will be unbearable.

In a Leipzig elevator: Do not enter the lift backwards, and only when lit up.


In a Belgrade hotel elevator: To move the cabin, push button for wishing floor. If the cabin should enter more persons, each one should press a number of wishing floor. Driving is then going alphabetically by national order.

In a Paris hotel elevator: Please leave your values at the front desk.

In a hotel in Athens: Visitors are expected to complain at the office between the hours of 9 and 11 A.M. daily.

In a Yugoslavian hotel: The flattening of underwear with pleasure is the job of the chambermaid.

In a Japanese hotel: You are invited to take advantage of the chambermaid.

In the lobby of a Moscow hotel across from a Russian Orthodox monastery: You are welcome to visit the cemetery where famous Russian and Soviet composers, artists, and writers are buried daily except Thursday.

In an Austrian hotel catering to skiers: Not to perambulate the corridors in the hours of repose in the boots of ascension.

On the menu of a Swiss restaurant: Our wines leave you nothing to hope for.

On the menu of a Polish hotel: Salad a firm's own make; limpid red beet soup with cheesy dumplings in the form of a finger; roasted duck let loose; beef rashers beaten up in the country people's fashion.

In a Hong Kong supermarket: For your convenience, we recommend courteous, efficient self-service.

Outside a Hong Kong tailor shop: Ladies may have a fit upstairs.

In a Rhodes tailor shop: Order your summers suit. Because is big rush we will execute customers in strict rotation.

Similarly, from the Soviet Weekly: There will be a Moscow Exhibition of Arts by 15,000 Soviet Republic painters and sculptors. These were executed over the past two years.

In an East African newspaper: A new swimming pool is rapidly taking shape since the contractors have thrown in the bulk of their workers.

In a Vienna hotel: In case of fire, do your utmost to alarm the hotel porter.

A sign posted in Germany's Black Forest: It is strictly forbidden on our black forest camping site that people of different sex, for instance, men and women, live together in one tent unless they are married with each other for that purpose.

In a Zurich hotel: Because of the impropriety of entertaining guests of the opposite sex in the bedroom, it is suggested that the lobby be used for this purpose.

In an advertisement by a Hong Kong dentist: Teeth extracted by the latest Methodists.

A translated sentence from a Russian chess book: A lot of water has been passed under the bridge since this variation has been played.

In a Rome laundry: Ladies, leave your clothes here and spend the afternoon having a good time.

In a Czechoslovakian tourist agency: Take one of our horse-driven city tours -- we guarantee no miscarriage'

In the window of a Swedish furrier: Fur coats made for ladies from their own skin.

On the box of a clockwork toy made in Hong Kong: Guaranteed to work throughout its useful life.

Detour sign in Kyushi, Japan: Stop: Drive Sideways.

In a Swiss mountain inn: Special today -- no ice cream.

In a Bangkok temple: It is forbidden to enter a woman even a foreigner if dressed as a man.

In a Copenhagen airline ticket office: We take your bags and send them in all directions.

On the door of a Moscow hotel room: If this is your first visit to the
USSR, you are welcome to it.

In a Norwegian cocktail lounge: Ladies are requested not to have children in the bar.

At a Budapest zoo: Please do not feed the animals. If you have any suitable food, give it to the guard on duty.

In the office of a Roman doctor: Specialist in women and other diseases.

In an Acapulco hotel: The manager has personally passed all the water served here.

In a Tokyo shop: Our nylons cost more than common, but you'll find they are best in the long run.

From a Japanese information booklet about using a hotel air conditioner: Cooles and Heates: If you want just condition of warm in your room, please control yourself.

From a brochure of a car rental firm in Tokyo: When passenger of foot heave in sight, tootle the horn. Trumpet him melodiously at first, but if he still obstacles your passage then tootle him with vigor.

Two signs from a Majorcan shop entrance: - English well talking. - Here speeching American.

A Wedding Poem

The Wedding Poem below was written at the request of my grandson Steven and his bride-to-be LaDonna. They asked me to write a poem and read it as a brief part of their beautiful wedding ceremony on June 23, 1990 in the church were her father was pastor in Atanta. They told me they had been reading the Love Chapter of the Bible, I Corinthians 13 together.

A Wedding Poem

"I wish you Love and More.

(Based on the "Love Chapter of the Bible" )

In a world of noisy gongs
And clanging cymbals in the air,
I wish you quiet love and more!
More than human love can bear
That spark of Love Divine
That truly molds two hearts as one
The flame of perfect love.
The essence of God’s Son!

In a world of idle, thoughtless words
On tongues of men and poets and seer
I wish you sounds of love and more
More than human love can hear
I wish you covenant with One
Who one day in a baby crèche
The Alpha and Omega spoke
The Word of Love made flesh!

In a world of knowledge unsurpassed
And technology advances
For you I wish a wedding gift more rare
Than instruction kits on love…or classes
The spark of Love Divine,
That truly molds two hearts as one
In perfect faith and hope and love;
The essence of God’s Son!

by Ruth Baird Shaw ><>

1 Corinthians 13 : 1-7
1Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not charity, I am become as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal.
2And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries, and all knowledge; and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not love, I am nothing.
3And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, and have not love, I am nothing.
4. Love suffereth long, and is kind; love envieth not; love vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up,
5Doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil;
6Rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth;
7Beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things.
8 Love never fails.

Children at Risk

Janice Shaw Crouse's latest book, Children at Risk, is released by Transaction Publishers, the publisher of record for social science research. Janice is a weekly columnist and a popular speaker at national and international events.

Janice Shaw Crouse, Ph.D., is a recognized authority on national and international cultural, children’s and women’s concerns, including sex trafficking, the United Nations, and U.S. domestic issues.

Janice was the Centers for Decency 2008 Woman of the Year. She has twice served the President as an official delegate to the United Nations (2002 and 2003).
The National Press Club’s compendium of experts describes Dr. Crouse as having “brought insight, keen perception and wisdom to domestic, family, political and women’s issues since the early 1990s as a Presidential speechwriter for Bush 41, United Nations delegate, think tank fellow, television commentator, speaker, author and columnist. Her common sense, refreshing honesty and intriguing perspective on cultural and political issues expose spin to reveal truth in a way that has earned respect and made her a popular cultural analyst. Known for applying her strong intellect and articulating her solid faith with candor and humor, she is a leader who appeals across ideological and religious barriers.”

“Everyone claims to care deeply about the well-being of children. But what would we, as a nation and as a society, do if we really cared? In Children at Risk, her passionate and scholarly new book, Janice Shaw Crouse does our nation’s children a great service by grabbing the rest of us by the lapels and forcing us to confront those questions.”
Robert P. George
Princeton University

“’Children are the future.’ I can’t tell you have many times I’ve heard that statement. Yes, it is true, but very few of us believe it enough to really get serious and be proactive with our time and money to make a real difference. Children at Risk accurately makes the case for getting involved. This book will cause you to see children in a different light . . . a great opportunity to act and save a kid; or if we do not act, we all will suffer, especially a very precious child. . .”
Stuart W. Epperson
Christian Association of Youth Mentoring

“Janice Crouse has captured in a compelling way the urgent need in our culture to more effectively protect and nurture our children. Having spent the past twenty-five years counseling pregnant women who bear the wounds of society often deaf to the dignity of a human life, Ms. Crouse offers hope for parents seeking a safe haven for their children. Having ‘broken through the glass ceiling’ in the eighties and left Wall Street behind to raise a family and home school two children, I am reminded from a personal perspective that the message of Children at Risk could not be more timely or important.”
Mary Cunningham Agee
President and founder, The Nurturing Network

“In Washington, D.C., Dr. Janice Crouse has long been considered an expert on family preservation. She knows the fierce challenges facing our children today –– and what must be done to protect not only their present but to guide their future. From the need to defend and promote marriage to the mandate for a solid and well-grounded education, Dr. Crouse truly does know what is in the ‘best interest of the child.’ Moving children from a place where they are at risk to a place where they can thrive is not just a good idea –– it is THE mandate for the twenty-first century!”
Janet Parshall
Nationally Syndicated Talk Show Host

“Dr. Crouse reveals numerous risks that children face, but unlike most researchers, believes that the solution comes from informed moms and dads –– not the government.”
Michael P. Farris
Chairman, Home School Legal Defense Association and President, ParentalRights.org

A Mothers Day Glimspe of My Mother.

Happy Mother’s Day! We are all either the son or the daughter of a mother. So in that capacity all of us fit into a Mother’s Day Celebration.

As a Mother myself, I have had a difficult time with some of the sermons I have heard on Mother's Day, They make us all …all mothers “angels.” One would get the idea that to become a mother is to become a saint.

Erma Bombeck said, “The easiest part of being a mother is giving birth. The hardest part is showing up on the job every day." And I might add it is showing up 24/7.

We all know there are loving, hard working, good mothers and there are also selfish and neglectful and not so good mothers. Most of us as mothers find our place somewhere in between.

At the same time, there is something about motherhood that tends to bring out the best in us. The seemingly endless nausea, misery and pain of pregnancy and childbirth mixed with that incredible love that we have for that helpless and amazingly beautiful baby when it is finally born is awesome.

It is awesome to be a mother. No wonder so many of us feel so inadequate we fall on our knees and seek the wisdom of God.

Many of us, probably most of us as adults have an emotional attachment and love for our mother. And in cases where the mother has such personal problems as to neglect, abuse or abandon the child there is always unbelievable sorrow. In case where the mother dies while the child is young, there is a great feeling of loss.

Just the thought of "mother" brings about great emotion in many of us. I remember one morning a few days before Mothers Day when I was sitting in the sanctuary at Grantville with our church music director.

We were discussion the music for Mother’s Day and got into conversation about some of the old time songs about mother. She mentioned two of the old gospel songs from her childhood, "That Silver Haired Mother of Mine" and "If I Could Hear My Mother Pray Again," and we both choked up with tears in our eyes.

Mother seems to see possibilities in us that other people seem to not notice. Just as God sees possibilities in us that we do not see in ourselves and others fail to see.

My father died when i was nine so i was raised by a bright, loving and hard working widow in the 1930 depression years.

Neighbors were an important part of life in the twenties and thirties. My mother used the term "We were neighbor to..." instead of saying "We lived near ... the So and So's."

We did not locked our doors even at night when I was a child. Neighbors were in and out of our home all the time; often to borrow a cup of sugar or flour or an egg to finish out a recipe for a cake. Often a neighbor would stop in to share vegetables or cookies.

Sometimes the visits were just to sit and talk. Our house was usually the gathering place after dinner at night on our front porch. Our porch had several rocking chairs as well as a swing that seated two or three.

While the adults were talking, the children played "hide and seek" or "kick the can" out in the front yard or on the unpaved road in front of our house.

I have fond memories as a child of being in and out of the homes of the Finchers, the Parnells, the Moores, the Hornings. And they visited with us daily.

Then there was a quaint lady from out of town, who, with her children, would visit us overnight and sometimes for two or three days several times a year. I remember sitting on our front porch (along with various friends and neighbors) near sundown one afternoon.

We looked down the street and saw this lady and her children coming toward our house. I said to Mama, "Here comes Mrs. Johnson (I'll call her).

Someone asked Mama why Mrs. Johnson and her children often came to our house. They lived miles away. The answer seemed simply enough to Mama. "We were neighbor to them on the farm," Mama said.

The lady was short and heavy with her dark hair pulled straight back in a bun. Her only daughter and older child was "Mae." Mae was thin and very subdued. She was even more timid than I. Mae walked just a little behind her mother on the sidewalk as they made their way down our street. The three little brothers followed in a procession.

I can visualize them now as they walked toward our house. Mama welcomed them, gave them supper, found a bed for the lady, and put pallets of folded quilts and a feather pillow each on the floor for Mae (and me). Mrs. Johnson sleep in my bed. Mama also put a confortable pallet of quilts on the floor for the three little boys.


I do not remember what, if anything, Mae and I talked about before we fell alsleep side by side on the floor. The lady had a husband but we never saw him. I overheard someone say her husband was "sorry’ and “no account”.

Children were "seen and not heard " in those days. So, of course, I did not ask. But I learned by listening.

In the days before TV, this was a mystery somewhat like a soap opera. The lady would always get up early, and she would come to the place where Mae and I were sleeping on the floor and say, "Rise, Mae." I thought this was "funny."

Incidentally, we sometimes referred to mentally ill people as someone who "acted funny" or had "gone crazy." I thought the Johnsons "acted funny" and we both laughed and cried for them.

Looking back it may have been wife and/or child abuse that caused them to leave home so suddenly, walk four or five miles and show up at our house. As far as I know they came and went without explanation. If Mama knew, she kept her own counsel and always treated Mrs. Johnson and her children with respect, preparing food and bedding for them as respectfully as she did when her own sisters visited.

After all, they had been "neighbor to us" on the farm.

New Mothers In our Family

Each Mother's Day on Ruthlace since 2005, I have honored my mother Eula Baird (1885-1973) with stories about her life and a ballad I wrote for her in 1983. I started the Web Log to pass along family history for my children and future generations.
For Mother's Day 2010, I would like to honor all the mothers in the Shaw-Baird clan and especially the three new mothers.

Emma Lynn Hearn's mother is Michaela Kolbe Hearn. Michaela is the wife of my grandson, Captian Joshua Hearn.
Emma (pictured at first birthday celebration April 24 ) is walking and already speaking two languages ( English and German)

Evey's (Evelyn Ann Johnston) mother is Meleah Jones Johnston. Evey was born on March 12, 2010 to Meleah and my grandson Joey Johnston.
Evey is the granddaughter of Ron and Carol Shaw Johnston of Franklin Tennessee,

Alexander James Rogers was born to my granddaughter Jessica Shaw Rogers and husband, Philip Rogers on April 6, 2010. Alex is the grandson of David and Vicki Brown Shaw of Annistan Alabama.

Happy Mothers' day to all!