CHAPTER 27
Journal Entry: Thursday November 14
Two days ago, Mt Rainier blew; with it went the Seattle/Tacoma coastline. The Pacific Northwest now lies buried beneath six feet of ash. It seems that the Pacific Northwest coastline is no more; another untold number of dead buried beneath ash, a multitude of others dying from the superheated pyroclastic ash that is spreading out, choking all in its path. News channels are the only programming there is. All of them appear to be too rattled to even try to appear impartial or unaffected. The media anchors are covering these events as best they can, I guess, but it’s apparent that the talking heads are more than stunned. They too look shell-shocked. I wonder how many of them are lost. Likely all of them, I’d guess. I wonder too if they would listen if anyone told them the truth of what has happened and what is still to come? In my heart, I doubt it. America’s judgment continues.
Finally, there was news coming out of Europe and the Middle East. Nothing much had been said after Ezekiel Day, but now reports were beginning to filter out of both Israel and Europe. In the wake of the continuing US disasters and the destruction of Russia, Turkey, and Iran, there has been a reshuffling of nations and alliances; a redrawing of international borders along with a reset of the global financial system. Apparently, this newly revealed entity has been in the works for a very long time, just as Will surmised, but is only now, after recent events, being brought forward into the open. I began to get chills as I sat in our den with Mitch and Trail, listening to the latest international news from the BBC talking heads describing the formation of what is to be a 10-kingdom conglomerate of nations. They actually used the word ‘kingdoms’ – these 10 core conglomerate kingdoms were calling themselves Euro-Phoenicia.
The newscaster went on to say:
“A heretofore unknown European diplomat, speaking on behalf of the newly emerging EP, stated that this 10-kingdom empire would be a blending of and an homage to the ‘rich and varied’ cultures and histories of both the west and east: a global uniting of western and eastern nations and cultures into one that will bring together under one new entity a unified world; a world united economically, politically, religiously, and ideologically. He stated that those who have been working together for decades to shape and ‘birth’ this final global entity of Euro-Phoenicia are confident that it will succeed where the Club of Rome, the Common Market, NATO, the UN, and the EU have failed.”
As we suspected, there appears to be an equal division of – what? nations? countries? kingdoms? which make up Euro-Phoenicia. The motto of this new entity also gave me chills. It’s the same inscription that is on our American one-dollar bill: ‘E pluribus unum’ – out of many – one.
The newly rising entity will apparently consist of 5 western and 5 eastern conglomerate kingdoms. Here, forming and emerging right before our eyes, is the ‘seven heads and 10 horns of Daniel 7 and Revelation 13 that was prophesied nearly three thousand years ago. Euro-Phoenicia – E pluribus unum – out of many, one.
Over the next several days, we began to hear from this previously unknown man who was speaking more and more on behalf of the new EP. He stated that he is not a newcomer in geopolitics; that he has been active for over two decades in the planning and implementation of Euro-Phoenicia, but has remained by choice in the background, helping to forge and shape this new global entity that now stands ready to fill the void left by the destruction of the two former global superpowers: the United States and Russia.
The BBC carried a documentary on Draken, giving us more insight into the new global, political rising star:
“The name of the spokesman for the newly rising Euro-Phoenicia is Lucius Draken. Draken, in his early forties, is a striking figure. Of Syrian and Greek heritage, Draken was born in Lebanon to a Greek father and a Lebanese mother. Coming from a wealthy family, he spent his early years in his father’s home in Cypress. Draken’s father, being a Greek diplomat, meant that Draken grew up having extensive exposure to a multitude of cultures. He was educated in Europe at both Oxford and the Sorbonne where he acquired advanced degrees in the study of the ancient cultures of Assyria, Greece, Persia, Babylon and Rome. He is fluent in six languages and also holds degrees in international relations.
“His appearance is nothing remarkable but his manner, bearing, and countenance is striking. He carries himself with an air of not just confidence, but authority. When he speaks, both the cadence and timbre of his voice is almost mesmerizing. He is a brilliant orator. He appears able to hold whatever audience he is addressing, whether large or small, in the palm of his hand. He is an eloquent speaker but does not come across as condescending. He appears to be sincere in his goal to ‘unite’ what he calls a ‘fractured world.’ He is calling for a sort of renaissance of the ancient Roman Empire when it was at its zenith. His goal, he says, is to unite the east and the west into a new Pax Romana that will encompass not just the boundaries of the old Roman Empire, but one that would become a Pax Globus – the unification of a truly global empire.
“He is passionate without being histrionic, fervent without being overbearing. In his own words, his passion, he says, is a ‘final and lasting global peace that will arise from the ashes of global conflict.’ The emblem chosen to represent the new Euro-Phoenicia is a double-headed phoenix: one head facing east, the other west. This mythic bird is pictured rising from the burning ashes of a globe in ruin. The rising body of the bird appears almost serpentine as it rises from the smoldering ruins. Beneath the emblem is a banner that reads: ‘E pluribus unum.’ Mr. Draken has called for a meeting with the Israeli Prime Minister to be held at Draken’s palatial coastal villa on the Aegean Sea near Athens Greece to discuss the ongoing clean-up operation in Israel – particularly in Jerusalem and the Temple Mount areas. He says he wants to offer Israel, on behalf of Euro-Phoenicia, a ‘covenant for peace’ that will unite the world and guarantee Israel’s peace and security.
“The following remarks were made at Mr. Draken’s first press conference addressing the introduction of Euro-Phoenicia:
‘I greet you today on behalf of a new global entity that will take the reins of global unification. Its many predecessors have tried valiantly but all have failed to make this global unification a reality. The formation of what we call Euro-Phoenicia has been in the works for decades. It has been carefully formed and nurtured in secret, away and hidden from the eyes of the geopolitical stage until such time as was right to bring it to the forefront. We have watched the rise and fall of its many predecessors, each of which in its own way has led to this final form that will at last accomplish what others have tried but failed to accomplish. While the Club of Rome, the Common Market, NATO, the UN and the EU have all been instrumental in the building of this final entity, each has done their job in laying the foundations of what we have now; the rise of Euro-Phoenicia.
‘The name we have chosen is an homage to and representative of the great western and eastern empires throughout history,” Draken said.
As this particular newscast ended. The three of us sat together silent and overwhelmed, even though we knew this was coming. The ringing of Mitch’s cell phone broke the silence. It was Will calling.
“Put him on speaker,” said Trail.
Mitch did so. “Guys,” began Will in a shaking voice, “Did you see the news?”
“Yeah,” said Mitch, quietly; “we saw it.”
“Will,” I said, “it’s the phoenix! You called it! Right down to the metaphor of the phoenix rising!”
“This is it guys. It’s beginning. Once that covenant is signed, the last seven years will begin in earnest. God help us all.”
“And he shall confirm the covenant with many for one week: and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease, and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate” (Daniel 9:27 KJV).
CHAPTER 28
Journal Entry – Wednesday November 20
Today was our regular meeting day. I am still amazed that the number of people coming in for the meetings is still almost at full capacity. I expect that will change once the really cold weather hits. Then again, I could be wrong on the number who will continue to show up. I’m batting a thousand. I’ve been wrong every time.
In today’s meeting, Clyde introduced some of the newcomers who have joined our community. So far, we have been unusually blessed in that no troublemakers have shown up, although we know that will change. Eventually trouble will land on our doorstep and likely sooner rather than later. Most of the 15 or so newcomers who’ve come into town have come in from Iverson with a few coming ‘into the hills’ from Asheville. Among these new townsfolk is a Dr. Brent Talbot and his wife Vera. Dr Talbot, a veterinarian, offered to join Trail and the girls at the clinic; his wife Vera had been a librarian, so she offered to help Will and Amanda Perkins, one of Will’s former church members, with the town records and scheduling at the Community Center. Both the Talbots said they were believers now, after the rapture; but about the other newcomers, we didn’t know. Trail was overjoyed to have a real doctor to partner with even if his expertise and degree was in animal not human medicine.
Clyde had set up a sort of interview process upstairs at the Town Hall where newcomers were asked to come when they came into town. He asked for their names and what their areas of skill were – not their former occupations; we had no need for bankers or realtors, for example, but what skill sets did they bring: carpentry, medical skills, farming or agricultural skills – even just gardening or such. The reason he did this was to try to meet each person and get a feel for their character. Also, to see how best to ‘plug them in,’ in his words, to the town so they could become productive town members. Clyde stressed at every opportunity that everyone had to work. The town would survive for as long as possible by using a barter system, but anyone who was not willing to work in some capacity would not be allowed to get food or to stay. So far there have been no issues. Again, as I listened to him speak, I wondered how much longer this period of grace would last.
Mitch addressed the assembled town, reminding everyone to check on the elderly to see how they were faring and to see if any of them needed firewood cut or extra clothing or blankets. He also asked everyone to check with Izzy Blake and Byllie Duncan to give them the names of those who might need extra help when the cold weather sets in. He finished, as he always does now, by reminding us all that troublesome times are coming; that we would hold together and continue to help each other out for as long as possible, but that we all needed to be prepared mentally and spiritually to face the coming Tribulation. As always, Mitch reminded us to remain ‘faithful unto death’ no matter what.
Will closed the meeting by underscoring Mitch’s message. He also stated that, since tomorrow is Thanksgiving, he would open the Church tonight from 7 – 8 for anyone who wanted to come for a time of prayer and thanksgiving for God’s blessing and protection. The six of us in our gang for sure planned to be here.
The girls had been talking for weeks about wanting to have a big Thanksgiving dinner. They wanted to have the six of us plus Clyde, Mike, Eva, Carter, Will, Vin Sawyer and Izzy Blake. We had invited Dewey, Rod, Karen, Grant Owen, and Cindy, but each of them had already made their own plans. The girls’ house could certainly hold that many. The dining room in Eva’s old house was big enough. Her dining table could seat 8, and another table and chairs borrowed from our place could seat another six if we were creative in arranging things.
Early Monday morning before the sun was up, Trail, Mitch, Big Mike and I all took our guns and headed up into the woods on Yellow Top. Trail had left the new vet, Dr. Talbot, with Lilly and Sarah to mind the clinic when it opened that afternoon. Lord willing, we were going to do our best to get the girls their turkeys. They had been lamenting about wanting to have a real Thanksgiving dinner with turkey, dressing, and all the fixings. That sounded like a mighty fine idea to us too.
Eva and Carter said they’d show the girls how to butcher and dress the birds. Carter said his mama used to make the best cornbread dressing in the universe, so he volunteered to make the dressing and bake a couple of huge pans of homemade buttermilk biscuits. Eva had mounds of fresh corn, 3 quarts of Amos’ home-canned green beans, and plenty of potatoes to make mashed potatoes. Sarah asked Mike if he had any fresh, whole cranberries in the store. He did; two bags of them. She said she’d take those and 3 or four apples. She said she would make hot cranberry casserole, a dish that her sister-in-law Kristen had always made at Thanksgiving. The Duncan girls said they would make candied yams, a fruit salad from canned cherries, mandarin oranges, sliced bananas, and pecans. Byllie promised to bake pumpkin pies for dessert. She also promised Trail she’d bake another huge double fudge chocolate cake for him if he promised to share it with everyone. Trail was so excited he lifted her off her feet and danced her around the den.
Yellow Top is always full of wild turkeys. Mitch and I shot a couple – one tom and a hen. Trail shot a couple of pheasants. Mike bagged a turkey hen too. All in all, we came home with 3 turkeys and 2 pheasants. Not bad for a day’s hunting. Eva said she’d dress whatever birds we didn’t use for Thanksgiving and put them in the freezer for Christmas. It wasn’t turkey hunting season, but who was going to stop us? – and frankly, there weren’t going to be any hunting ‘seasons’ of any kind any more – except for the open season it is soon going to be on the Tribulation Saints; those of us who are believers in Christ.
So today, the girls stayed home from the town meeting, and joined by Eva and Izzy, the women spent the entire day baking and cooking. Izzy said she would roast the two birds in the huge ovens at the school and bring them over. We all went to the prayer meeting together and looked forward to what was almost certainly going to be the last Thanksgiving we were likely to celebrate this side of heaven.
On Thursday, Thanksgiving Day, all us guys hauled tables and chairs from our place to the girls’ house. We actually had room for everyone to sit together in the same dining room, even though it was a bit tight.
“Bobby,” said Sarah, “we think you boys ought to leave your table and chairs here. Y’all don’t bother to eat at the table anyway. Honestly y’all are barely above Neanderthals in your insistence on sitting on the floor to eat instead of sitting at this nice table like civilized people.”
I don’t have a problem doing that,” I said as I shoved another bite of turkey and dressing into my mouth.
“Do either of you other Neanderthals have a problem leaving this space-waster here to clutter up their house?”
“Nope, not a bit,” replied Mitch.
“I’ll gladly trade this fine table and chairs for an unending supply of pies and cakes,” replied Trail, finishing off a second turkey drumstick.
“Carter, this really is the best dressing I’ve ever eaten,” said Mitch. “Everything is amazing!”
“Ladies,” said Trail, doffing an imaginary top hat and bowing, “you have provided us with a feast. My compliments to you all.”
“Stop being a dork, Trail,” said Mitch.
We all left the table barely able to move. After we helped the girls clear the table and divvy up the food among everyone to take back to our respective homes, we sort of vegged out in the den for a while. There were no football games or parades to watch on TV, so we just sat and talked, allowing our meal to digest. No one wanted to turn on the news. For today, we just wanted to enjoy as normal a holiday as we could, although none of us could really enjoy the day like we would have in the past, knowing the magnitude of suffering of our fellow surviving Americans. Trail led us all in a prayer for those suffering along the West Coast and in the DC and NY areas and for everyone left alive the world over.
After an hour, all of us younger set chose sides and played a game of tag football. Lilly turned out to have a mean throwing arm. Their team with Lilly, Will, Vinny, Mitch and Sarah beat my team with Trail, Carter, Byllie and me. Trail was big enough that we counted him twice. His presence on our team didn’t help us any; we still lost. After our loss by two touchdowns, we headed back inside for dessert.
“Okay Trail,” asked Byllie, “you want pie or cake?”
“Wrong question, Byllie girl,” said Trail, grinning; “The correct question is, ‘Do you want pie and cake?’ The answer to that question is, yes!”
And so ended the first and almost certainly last Thanksgiving Day after the rapture – the last until we get to Jesus’ kingdom where every day will be a joyous Thanksgiving that we will get to spend with all our believing families and friends who are in Heaven now, gathered around the emerald-encircled throne of God, waiting for these last seven years to unfold before the Kingdom Age begins.