Sagamore Hill

We teach two classes each Wednesday, the first at Queens College, and the second at Little Neck. We have time between to study, find, shop, and last Wednesday we wanted a quiet place to study together. I remember Mom and Dad taking me to Sagamore Hill when they were serving their mission here. It is the beautiful home of our 26th President, Theodore Roosevelt and his family, at Oyster Bay. It has an amazing history, and I enjoyed Roosevelt's description of his glorious home. "The house stands right on the top of the hill, separated by fields and belts of woodland from all other houses, and looks over the bay and the Sound. We see the sun go down beyond long reaches of land and of water.....We love all the seasons; the snows and bare woods of winter; the rush of growing things and the blossom-spray of Spring; the yellow grain, the ripening fruits and tasselled corn, and the deep, leafy shades that are heralded by 'the green dance of summer'; and the sharp fall winds that tear the brillant banners with which the trees greet the dying year." We landed just in time to experience,"the blossom spray of Spring." The cherry blossoms were sensational! What a delightful reminder of the beautiful world God has created for us. It was all but deserted and we were able to imagine what it was like years ago as a working farm with six lively children roaming on 95 acres. Of his children he wrote,"They often went barefoot...They swam, they tramped, they boated...they coasted and skated in winter, they were friends, with the cows, chickens, pigs and other livestock."