The Kings of Israel - A Pictoral Timeline

Studying history can get a bit cumbersome when it is filled with so many names, places, and dates. When we recently studied from the greatest history book, the Old Testament, we attempted to make it a bit easier to remember by making a 12 ½ foot long timeline.

Each of my "students," John, Joshua, Christianna and Josiah, drew pictures and wrote captions to remember the major details of the kings of Israel. Each day, Monday through Thursday, I would read to them from the Narrated Bible which puts the Old Testament in chronological order, placing the Major and Minor Prophets with I & II Kings and the Chronicles.

While I read, my "students" listened and took notes of the important facts that they wanted to put on the timeline. On Fridays, they worked in pairs creatively putting their information in the right places. The designers of some of the drawings are: Josiah – Solomon's temple; Christianna – Solomon's chariots and horses, Queen Esther, and Daniel and the lion; Joshua – the drawings for Saul and most of the kingdom of Judah; John – the hand on the wall, the Marathon runner and most of the kingdom of Israel.

We learned a lot of facts that we had not known before about the 20 kings of Judah and the 18 kings of Israel. We cheered for the faithful kings such as Jehosaphat, Hezekiah and Josiah, and "booed" those that rejected God and set up idols or turned to other nations for help. The time line helped us to see who was king in both Israel and Judah and also who were the prophets warning them of God's wrath if they continued in sin. As both nations went into captivity, we learned about the other nations that were in power at that time: Assyria, Babylon, Persia and Greece. God not only used these nations to punish Israel, but also to encourage and help them to go back to Jerusalem to rebuild the temple and the walls of the city.

These 550 years of Israel's history took us about 5 months to explore and record in this fashion. The timeline gives us a quick and easy way to review the facts. One nice thing is that it is portable, so if you would like a close up look at some of the drawings, we could bring it with us the next time we see any of you. :)

The beginning of Israel's Monarchy. Here you see pictured the reigns of Saul, David, and Solomon. 

The Dividing of the Kingdom. From here on, the Kings of Judah are featured on the top half of the timeline, and the Kings of Israel on the bottom half. 

A close up of some of the detailed drawings.:) 

The end of Israel's earthly Kings. But praise God! We have a Heavenly King whose Reign will NEVER end! :) 

This will give you a small idea of the full length of our masterpiece! :) 

'Hair' Today, Gone Tomorrow

Greetings! My name is Sylvester An Parakeet, pet of Faith Ann Sauve and family. I have been living with the Sauve's for about 7 years, and am really more a part of the family than a pet. I usually join them for breakfast every morning, and I'll eat pretty much any fruit you serve me. I also enjoy the occasional salad when I have a chance to make it down for dinner, and I love bread and butter. (although it is awefully bad for me)

I would now like to tell you about John and his hair. A subject that is quite near and dear to my heart, as I was his personal moustache groomer before he shaved it off. (A fact that I have not quite yet recovered from, and that is still a tender subject between us.)
Ever since he was a little boy, John has had naturally spikey hair. So to combat the startling side wings and unsightly "fro" look, Mother Sauve has always kept his hair in a controlable short buzz. Just this past Spring, he decided that he would try to grow out his hair to see if he could get it to lay down on its own. Below you will see the results through a little sequenced photo history. I'll be along to explain each picture for you . . . . enjoy!

This is the hat that made John's hair flat! (poetry runs in the family you know. My great-great-great Aunt's, brother's, wife's cousin was the pet of Walt Whitman's daughter. At least that's what I've heard:-) John wore that hat almost 24-7 for the first few weeks. Especially on Sunday mornings after he had taken a shower. (which as you will see, produced some pretty startling results!)

O.K. Here is the very plastered look. But hey, it's laying down and that's all that matters. Just wait 'til you see the next photo! 

Yikes! It looks like someone stuck their finger in a light socket! Actually, that is what his hair naturally looks like after a shower. So now you can see the need for the plastering hat treatment. Quite startling, I nearly fell off his shoulder! 

And here is the finished buzz job. Which is probably how you will see him for the rest of the summer . . . . . . until he decides to grow it out again. Well, that is all from me for now. I've had enough of this hairy business, time to go preen my feathers.
'Til next time,
Sylvester