Finding Direction: The Wind Vane Chronicles

 [Note:  I originally published this post on May 17, 2005, but want to present it again because of the inspiration Greg England's story of his heritage has been the past three days over at "The Rev's Ramblings."  So enjoy and add to the original 4 comments to let me know what you think.]

 It's been quite a while since I shared a "Wind Vane" story. The first was on 3/1/05 when I changed the name of this blog to better suit the direction I wanted to go and to better reflect my writing (hopefully).

The second, on 3/17/05, was about how I acquired my vane, which was the inspiration for the title of my blog and is for my life, as well. And, to fully appreciate this post, you really need to read how I acquired my wind vane.

That being said - today I want to talk about Harvey. I named my wind vane Harvey after Harvey Stanley (1819 - 1897) for several reasons after I read his obituary.

First, he happened to have died in his horse drawn carriage on the road from his home near Hesper to Eudora, Kansas. If you remember, a man riding in a horse drawn carriage crowns my cast aluminum wind vane.

Second, more importantly, I named my wind vane after Harvey Stanley because of the kind of man he was and how he lived his life. Here - read it for yourself in his obituary from the June 30, 1897 edition of the Lawrence, Kansas newspaper, which reported:

News was brought to Lawrence this morning that Harvey Stanley was dead. He was father of Edmund and Emery F. Stanley, and a man highly respected in his community. This morning, Mr. Stanley started to drive from his home near Hesper to Eudora. When the horse came into that town, the occupant of the buggy was dead, although he still held the reins in his hands.

The relatives here were at once notified and they went down to make the funeral arrangements. Mr. Stanley was nearly 80 years old and was one of the oldest inhabitants of Hesper.

He was known far and wide as an upright, honorable man, and to be numbered among his acquaintances was considered an honor. He has been enjoying good health, and only about a week ago, spent a couple of days in this city writing an article on Revelation.

Mr. Stanley was a deeply religious man and carried his beliefs into the daily walks of life. His death so suddenly will be a great shock to relatives and friends, but it is some consolation to know that he was ready for the summons whenever it might come.

The funeral arrangements have not yet been made.

Mr. Stanley died sixth month 30 th., 1897, Harvey Stanley, aged 78 years, 5 months, and 5 days. He was born in [Guilford] North Carolina, First month 25 th., 1819. At the age of eleven years, with his parents he moved to [Hendricks County] Indiana, where he led the busy life of boyhood in farm-making, engaging later in teaching schools during the winter months.

In the year 1844, he was united in marriage with Dorinda Whicker, whose death preceded his thirteen years. In 1869, they with their children removed to Hesper, Kansas.

In very early life, he accepted salvation through faith in Christ, and lived the life of a disciple steadfastly to the end. He was a faithful student of the bible, not for the sake of either theory or controversy, but that he might realize its message for the people. The church acknowledged his gift in ministry in 1886.

In his gentle way he impressed himself upon all with whom he came in contact.

On the day of his death, in apparently good health, he started in his buggy, alone on an errand to Eudora, seven miles away. He greeted acquaintances along the road, was heard singing a hymn before reaching the town. His faithful horse went on, and finally stopped at the hitching-place in the village.

Father Stanley sat still, the reins yet in his hands. His spirit, however, had taken its flight, doubtless to continue the redemption song on the other side, and we say to ourselves in loving memory, "He walked with God all the days of his life, and was not, for God took him."

The scripture quoted at the end of Harvey Stanley's obituary is Genesis 5:24*, part of the first "genealogy" chapter of the Bible, chronicling Adam's line down through Noah, and refers specifically to Enoch.

Enoch, the 7th generation from Adam, was the father of Methuselah (the longest living man of the Bible, who lived 969 years and died the year of the flood), the grandfather of Lamech and great-grandfather to Noah. *See also: Heb. 11:5.

Enoch is an exception to the dismal refrain ("then he died") of the rest of the chapter in that he literally "walked about" with God and was a prophet (Jude 14-15). He, like Elijah (2 Kings 2:3, 5, 11), was taken by God from this life and did not experience death.

The Hebrews writer, in Heb. 11:5, tells us that before he was taken, Enoch was "commended as one who pleased God." So was the man, Harvey Stanley.

Harvey Stanley’s life, begun in the infancy of this country’s existence and lived throughout and beyond the youth and horrific adolescence of the Civil War, has deeply imbedded itself in my own. I feel a direct connection and kinship to him. So much so that the two Harveys - Harvey Stanley and now Harvey of the wind vane - have become metaphors for my life.

Harvey Stanley lived and died some 5 generations before mine, yet he impacts me still, in ways beyond comprehension or even deep reflection. Why? Harvey Stanley was my great-great-grandfather and he was a Godly man.

My son, David, thinks that he has now been able to trace my mom's family lineage back to the year 160 A. D., which is an impossible concept for me to entertain, much less comprehend. Whether it is true or not, I know that the Stanley family has traced it's direct history back to England. (They say to 1066 A. D., but that I do not completely trust, either.)

I do know that my mom has several Stanley genealogy books that trace, for sure, the Stanley family back to the time when three Stanley brothers entered the East Coast of America in 1688 in what is now South Carolina. They had all been disinherited in England for becoming members of the Society of Friends (more commonly called "Quakers").

That religious heritage lasted for generations through Harvey Stanley, his daughter, Elizabeth Ann (my great-grandmother), my grandmother, Milly Lois, to my mom, who was immersed in baptism as a young adult in the church of Christ.

I was baptized at 12 and all three of my children gave their lives to Christ as young adolescents. My heritage has been Christian for generations and the impact has been profound.

We don't often stop and think about our sphere of influence. But, I submit it is much, much greater than we'll ever know in our own lifetimes. There is no way in this world that Harvey Stanley would have - could have - known the impact his life was to have upon his great-great-granddaughter. NO WAY. No way in this world!!!! But, it definitely has.

Go back and read his obituary again. And, think about it. Then, read it again and think about it some more. I know they don't write obituaries in newspapers like Harvey Stanley's these days (unless the family pays for them). But, I know this.

His life had tremendous meaning for not only those who knew him then, near and far, but for those of us who think about and remember him now. Our sphere of influence is just as great. We just need to recognize that fact as we live our lives.

God bless Harvey Stanley for being the man he was - one who walked with God.

Trackback URI | Comments RSS