Art jag

Nobody sees a flower - really - it is so small it takes time - we haven't time - and to see takes time, like to have a friend takes time. Georgia O'Keefe

This is one of my favorite Georgia O'Keefe paintings. (can you use "favorite" if there is more than one?)

I don't remember when I was exposed to O'Keefe first, but I remember exactly when I became enamored by her work. When living in Maryland in the fall of 1987, there was an O'Keefe exhibition at the National Gallery in DC and I wandered around by myself for hours. The enormity of some of her work simply awed me. I took a poster of this poppy home, and it has hung in various homes and rooms ever since.

After I left New Mexico, the O'Keefe Museum opened in Santa Fe. I've never visited, but I hope to next summer, because I see they will be doing an exhibition with O'Keefe and another one of my favorites, Ansel Adams.

I'm not an art scholar. But I know what I like... :-)

Are you warm, are you real, Mona Lisa?

I heard this story the other day, and was fascinated. What amazing technology, that can figure out what was, but is no longer. And, admitedly, I was amused. Because some poor cleaning chap, probably with the most honorable of intentions, might just have erased Miss Lisa's eyebrows. OOPS!

Don't worry- you won't find any kind of destructive cleaning like that around here...

Fall Classic

He's our favorite reason that this household will rooting for the Colorado Rockies in this year's World Series. No relation, that we yet know of... Well, and of course, that they are COLORADO. What sense would it make for this family to cheer for Boston? (though we did live in nearby Connecticut twice...)

Actually, I was hoping that Cleveland would beat Boston, and THEN fall apart against the Rockies. Alas... But, reminder..., the Rockies did outscore the Red Sox 20-5 in three games of interleague play at Boston back in June. Goliath who, we say?

Go Rockies!

Felony Flyers

These are my favorite shoes, well, right now, and I'm not just saying that because they don't hurt my infected toe and they only cost $5 on clearance. A friend, who has experience with such things, calls them my Felony Flyers because, apparently, they are jail issue shoes. Who knew I was so edgy? HA!

When I wear these shoes, I have a sense of being READY. Ready to go, on a moments notice. It's that same feeling of wanting to make "vroom-vroom" noises when I ride my mountain bike and hop the curb. Probably the Proverbs 31 woman did not wear Converse sneakers (only because rubber had not yet been invented, maybe, though I have to concede, that purple and fine linen probably don't go so well with sneakers...), though these shoes give me just a little extra bit of strength, and I smile when I wear them. (Prov. 31:25) These shoes aren't the Gospel of peace, but I am ready to go and speak it, live it, when I wear them. (Eph 6:15)

Watch out world!

Just wanted to share... :-)

"Go Simply Means to Live"

from Oswald Chambers, My Utmost for His Highest:

"Go ye therefore..." Go simply means to live. Acts i. 8 is the description of how to go. Jesus did not say- Go into Jerusalem and Judea and Samaria, but, "Ye shall be witnesses unto Me" in all these places. He undertakes to establish the goings.

"If ye abide in Me, and My words abide in you..."- that is the way to keep going in our personal lives. Where we are placed is a matter of indifference; God engineers the goings."

Fall Break

A day off! Fall Break! The Academy set off south yesterday, bikes in tow, to Indian Cave State Park. Indian Cave is located next to the Missouri River and offers some spectacular views of the Missouri River valley. There really is a cave, with Indian petroglyphs of buffalo and deer, and some more modern work, like "Jordan 1977." We resisted adding to the collection.






We did, however, climb trees. (well, some of us..., not the official photographer, of course...)

We rode our bikes along the Missouri Watershed trail.












Here's a self-portrait, a peek into a one-room schoolroom that's on the property. If you look past the glare, you can see the classroom...
















We saw more fields being harvested than we could count.

We stopped at a family farm pumpkin patch in Nebraska City on the way home, and left with our arms full of pumpkins and gourds. I think the lady liked us... :-)


At any rate, I'm sure glad that my kids enjoy road trips! I guess they can hardly help it, as I've been toting them around the countryside, indeed, around the country, since before they can remember. Wonder where the road will take us next...?

Intercession

...When King Jehosphaphat faced an insurmountable problem, he made no pretense to know the solution. A vast army marched against him, and "he was afraid and set his face to seek the LORD..." He assembled the people together, and he prayed,

O Lord, God of our fathers, are you not God in heaven? You rule over all the kingdoms of the nations. In your hand are power and might... For we are powerless against this great horde that is coming against us. We do not know what to do, but our eyes are on you. (2 Chronicles 20:6, 12)

Like Jehosphat, we can unapologetically say to a woman facing a vast army, "Our God rules heaven and earth. I don't know the answer to your problem, but I will help you fix your eyes on Him. I will remind you of His sovereign love and power. I will pray for you, and I will encourage you to search out His word to know Him more intimately."

from The Legacy of Biblical Womanhood by Susan Hunt and Barbara Thompson

When pigs fly...

Couldn't get past this week without a special post on one of the all-time greatest fall events, the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta, now in its 32nd year, I think. Now, the Balloon Fiesta has it's own park, with grass, which seems completely unbelievable to this New Mexican. (We didn't even have grass on the school playgrounds! We barely had grass in our yard, but I digress...) I think I remember going to the earliest balloon fiestas in the parking lot of the mall, but maybe I only remember that because I read it. My mom would know, and certainly, that would have been something that she would have taken us to.

At any rate, I KNOW I've been counting balloons since I have known how to count. For a full week in October, on each clear and crisp New Mexico morning, as the sun peaks over the mountains, one by one, those colorful globes fill the sky. FILL the sky. They drift, almost silently, to the west and to the south, or wherever the currents take them.

Going to the balloon fiesta means waking up early, before the break of dawn, and dressing in lots of layers, and walking a far way from the parking lot, sometimes over and through arroyos. It means hearing the hum of big fans and the whoosh of gas blowing up. ("blowing up" as in upward into the balloon, NOT "blowing up" as in BOOM!) It means Indian fry bread, and trading pins, and chasing ballons through town.

I grew up across the street from one of the first balloonists to cross the Atlantic Ocean. I was in his kitchen, playing with his daughter, when we were hearing news that they had made it to France. I once watched a balloon attempt to cross the Sandia mountains, and not make it. It went down in an ominous flame, a terrible free-falling plunge, seemingly just over the hill, but really, so much farther than we could possibly get to for help. T & I were married on a fall morning during the balloon fiesta, and I counted balloons on the way to church. I remember a lot about balloons. At any Albuquerque event, it seems there is always a balloon.

And yet, I've never actually ridden in a balloon, well, except for just a few feet off the ground, in one that was firmly tethered to earth. But, I suppose (now, look at the picture really close... see the snout? the pig ears? heehee!) that if pigs fly, someday I might, too...

You Can Learn A Lot...

We rented The Muppet Show, Season 1, for Friday night, and a couple of girls were especially amused by song, led by Kermit and one very special pig...

In Whom or In What?

This week I began a distance learning class, via the Internet, through the Chalmers Center for Economic Development at Covenant College. Foundations and Principles of Holistic Ministry primarily looks at issues surrounding poverty, and what the appropriate response and action of the church should be. The reading is both thought provoking and engaging. What are my thoughts and, yes, biases, on poverty, and the poor, and what is my own response? Does that line up with biblical mandate? So, over the next month, there just might be a bloggy emphasis on such topics...

Consider this bit from the introduction of Walking With the Poor (Myers):

...There is no such thing as not witnessing. Christian development promoters are witnessing all the time. The only question is to whom or to what? Their deeds, both what they do and how they do it, declare in whom or in what they place their faith and also demonstrate the moral content of that faith. The way they live their lives declares whom they love and on whom they depend. And, if they are truly living lives that demonstrate their love of God and their neighbor, then questions will come to which the gospel is the answer and they will witness with the words that provide this answer.

Isn't that truth for all of us, in whatever scope of life we interact? Over and again, it goes back to relationships, living as salt and light such that we are noticed as different.

A glimpse of life with four daughters...

(I hope this comes out big enough to read, although I know the script by heart already... If you need to see it bigger, click on the comic, I think.)

Thanks to Mark Tatulli and Heart... :-)

A click to save

Here's an easy way to do a good thing. Matthew Smith, from Indelible Grace music, is giving away the title track to his latest hymn CD, All I Owe. For every person that downloads "All I Owe", Matthew will donate to Blood:Water Mission to provide clean water for one person in Africa for one week. Water, something that we take for granted. So, go here, get a good old hymn in a good new style, and help to offer a bit of God's mercy in a place where it is much needed.

Saturday

No moss gathers on our family feet during fall Saturdays. (they might have some dust though- it was a windy day in the Midwest!) Some of what we were doing:

J. took a master's class from pianist Krassimira Jordan. She was in town to perform and teach at OCM. Her students are usually in the college setting, but she was very good with the younger students. I think James enjoyed the experience, and maybe The Little Shepherd will take on new lightness.

Deakin and Dillon were banished to the outdoors while Su, L & S excavated, oops- I meant to say cleaned, their room. Yes, under the bed. Yes, in the closet. Yes, behind the door. Thanks to their dad for supervising this monumental event. They are very happy about it today. They have friends over right now and were just overheard asking them to look under the bed. :-)

J. took the outside duties and mowed. T. says J. did a better job than he would have done himself. There's a compliment!

Team Dynamite took the field again, and finished with a win. YAY! Both girls played goalie and allowed no goals past. L. scored a couple for the good guys. Only downside, one player twisted her ankle. First injury to a Dynamite player in 4 years! (well, besides normal scrapes, bumps and bruises, of course...) Team H. helps out as K. is the team photographer and J. runs the flag on the sideline.

Here's S. on a throw in,

and L., heading towards the goal.

K. and the Warriors took the court for volleyball. No win for the Warriors this day, but count it all as training, right? Man, it's tough to take volleyball photos! The gym lights and the camera just do not like each other. We did get a great shot of K. lunging with her tongue out, though kind of fuzzy and dark. Here's the Warriors setting it up for K. to tip over...

We finished off the day at the Creighton Men's Soccer game. They took on Washington, and won in sudden death overtime. Good game! Very physical. TWO yellow cards which really impressed my young futbol players. There is no bad seat at the Creighton soccer stadium. And besides, you can take your picture with the Jay, roll down the grass hill, play the Big Screen Shell Game, and watch the Human Hamster Race at halftime. (I have a photo if you must see...) We resisted the call of the Mystery Mansion. (Just kidding! I wouldn't go in if they paid me, and the bats circling overhead seal THAT deal!)

On to Sunday. Ahh... the Sabbath. Worship and rest.

Mom's overture

Thanks to my friend Janet in NC for sending along this very clever ditty. It sounds Oh-So-Familiar, and made my entire family laugh, besides. Enjoy!

Some days...

Some days not even this or this is enough. Some days holding on to this is best of all...

Press on.

As long as I'm not chasing rabbit trails...

Found another silly internet quiz. I love these things. Good entertainment while making copies of the circulatory system...
What book are you? :-)

You're Watership Down!

by Richard Adams

Though many think of you as a bit young, even childish, you're
actually incredibly deep and complex. You show people the need to rethink their
assumptions, and confront them on everything from how they think to where they
build their houses. You might be one of the greatest people of all time. You'd
be recognized as such if you weren't always talking about talking rabbits.


Take the Book Quiz
at the Blue Pyramid.

Fall!

Hooray! The first day of Fall! My favorite season, even though it makes me sneeze. Thinking about fall, I think about growing up in New Mexico. Fall in Albuquerque is one event after another.

Starts with the State Fair in September. My sister and I would go to the State Fair every year, on School Day, with my grandma. We'd do every inch of the fair, the livestock barns, the exhibits and blue ribbons, and the Fine Arts Gallery. Through the Exhibition Halls to watch the knife demonstrations and get all the free stuff we could carry in our plastic sack. Through Villa Hispana, the mariachis playing, sombreros and leather and blown glass shops. Through the Indian Village, drums beating, with Fry Bread, turquoise and coral and silver jewelry, and beaded and feathered dancers. Through the midway and the fun house and the Tilt-a-Whirl. Later, as I got older, I went with friends- one year biked over which was good because no one likes to park at the fair. I went with T and rode the Zipper for the first, and last, time.

The Ballon Fiesta (hmmm... that should be a post by itself, later in the month, I think). The Greek Festival. Soccer. Aspen trees. Green chile roasting. Fall.

Yay for Fall, that all too quick season before winter descends.

"There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven." Ecclesiastes 3:1

"Delight"ful

"Let your father and your mother be glad,
And let her rejoice who gave birth to you.
Give me your heart, my son,
And let your eyes delight in my ways."
Proverbs 23:25-26

One of my favorite columnists is Andree Seu, a regular contributor to World magazine. I hate to admit it, but the back of the magazine, where her page always lies, is the first I turn to when I get my new issue. I wish I could say I read the issue cover to cover and wait for her. I do read it cover to cover, every issue, but I always look to see if there's a new Seu column first.

This week's writing is another gem, another "oh- I need that reminder." Here's just a little bit, and I hope you delight in it as I have. (click here for the full column)

Delight is the most useless of things. It doesn't get the house clean or the bills paid. Useless—like flowers. Like rainbows. Like Beethoven's Ninth.

Delight covers a multitude of parenting shortcomings. You may be too strict or too lenient and still come out all right, if you delight in your children. They will know it, for delight cannot be hidden. It finds excuse to ooze all over the place. It seeks a getaway vacation with the beloved when it's not convenient. It asks different questions than duty. Duty says, "I should." Delight says, "I want to." Duty is efficient. Delight tends to anything but.


What is less efficient than the story of mankind? If it were about efficiency, God would have wiped the plate clean and commenced with more promising subjects. The Bible in entirety is a love story, a tale of unquenchable delight—His for us, finally ours for Him. No sound rule of parenting is modeled in the sprint of an old man down the road to meet his prodigal. Only delight. No royal protocol is modeled in the dance of a half-naked king before his subjects and the Lord with all his might. Only delight. What is more useless than hymns?

"Let the mind for an instant consider the history of the Redeemer's love, and a thousand enchanting acts of affection will suggest themselves. . . . Our souls may well faint for joy . . . for our loving benefactor Jesus Christ our Lord, whose love is wonderful, passing the love of women" (C.H. Spurgeon).

"Field" Trip

This afternoon we made our annual pilgrimage to the meat locker in Hancock, Iowa, to pick up our 1/4 share of a cow. 1/4 cow in beef, that is- all kinds of cuts, burger to steak. Family farm-raised, corn-fed beef. Tasty meat that will last us the year.

Hancock is a nice little town- with what has become one of our favorite parks. This year, we were given a tip to look for buffalo. We snuck over to a fence and spied elk and buffalo in the distance, though we weren't too stealthy, as the butcher we had just picked up the beef from drove by and asked us if we were looking for more meat. HA! Butcher humor! :-). And, my J son was correct in guessing, it was actually bison. Who would think, that right there in Hancock, IA, population 201, we would find Botna Bend Park, a local wildlife refuge of sorts.

The fields are beautiful at this time of year. So many shades of gold and green, as the corn and soy near harvest. We saw some farms with equipment already out. Lots of birds, and plenty of cows, pigs, and horses along the way, as well.

We made a stop to surprise a friend along the way, but she wasn't home- that's what we get for not calling ahead, but I bet she was surprised to see our note! And, I was able to maintain control of the music selections while driving, despite occassional grumbles from the crowd. A good afternoon outing, all in all.

Have to include a few shots of the playground:

Spinning on the merry-go-round, a mighty success with no scraped knees!

HA! Look at K, so tall now that she does a handstand rather than hang off the monkey bars! :-)

A group pic on the teeter-totters. Big victory! L conquers her fear of UP on the teeter-totter! But, she'll still only ride with her trust-worthy twin...

A good day and a good outing in the Heartland. :-)

how did they know?

Today's Pickles is nothing short of a snapshot of life at our house, with a certain terrier...
:-)

Finished!

We did it! We finished!
It took a while, yes, but it was worth it.

We laughed. We quote our favorite scenes.

The duke and the king and the nonesuch will be with us forever.

We loved the end.

Thanks, Mark Twain.

Keep checking for our next literary adventure...

Memorial

Six years.

Six years since that seemingly slow-motion and yet all-too-quick-moment in time changed how we go about our world.

We all remember exactly where we were, what we were doing, what we were thinking, when we realized that not only were airplanes crashing and buildings crashing, but part of what we knew as normalcy in America was crashing as well.

Six years, and we think about families that were changed forever. Lives that changed in that blink of an eye, and questions that linger.

Last year, at a service of remembrance for victims' families, PCA pastor Tim Keller delivered a message that I believe is worth considering. It is not political, instead addressing so many of those questions that we all have after confronting tragedy, particularly on a scale as immense as the events of September 11, 2001.


SERVICE OF REMEMBRANCE AND PEACE FOR 9-11 VICTIMS' FAMILIES
Ground Zero/St Paul’s Chapel
Tim Keller Sep 10, 2006

As a minister, of course, I’ve spent countless hours with people who are struggling and wrestling with the biggest question - the WHY question in the face of relentless tragedies and injustices. And like all ministers or any spiritual guides of any sort, I scramble to try to say something to respond and I always come away feeling inadequate and that’s not going to be any different today. But we can’t shrink from the task of responding to that question. Because the very best way to honor the memories of the ones we’ve lost and love is to live confident, productive lives. And the only way to do that is to actually be able to face that question. We have to have the strength to face a world filled with constant devastation and loss. So where do we get that strength? How do we deal with that question? I would like to propose that, though we won’t get all of what we need, we may get some of what we need 3 ways: by recognizing the problem for what it is, and then by grasping both an empowering hint from the past and an empowering hope from the future.

First, we have to recognize that the problem of tragedy, injustice and suffering is a problem for everyone no matter what their beliefs are. Now, if you believe in God and for the first time experience or see horrendous evil, you rightly believe that that is a problem for your belief in God, and you’re right – and you say, “How could a good and powerful God allow something like this to happen?”

But it’s a mistake (though a very understandable mistake) to think that if you abandon your belief in God it somehow is going to make the problem easier to handle. Dr Martin Luther King, Jr., in his Letter from Birmingham Jail says that if there was no higher divine Law, there would be no way to tell if a particular human law was unjust or not. So think. If there is no God or higher divine Law and the material universe is all there is, then violence is perfectly natural—the strong eating the weak! And yet somehow, we still feel this isn’t the way things ought to be. Why not? Now I’m not going to get philosophical at a time like this. I’m just trying to make the point that the problem of injustice and suffering is a problem for belief in God but it is also a problem for disbelief in God---for any set of beliefs. So abandoning belief in God does not really help in the face of it. OK, then what will?

Second, I believe we need to grasp an empowering hint from the past. Now at this point, I’d like to freely acknowledge that every faith - and we are an interfaith gathering today – every faith has great resources for dealing with suffering and injustice in the world. But as a Christian minister I know my own faith’s resources the best, so let me simply share with you what I’ve got. When people ask the big question, “Why would God allow this or that to happen?” There are almost always two answers. The one answer is: Don’t question God! He has reasons beyond your finite little mind. And therefore, just accept everything. Don’t question. The other answer is: I don’t know what God’s up to – I have no idea at all about why these things are happening. There’s no way to make any sense of it at all. Now I’d like to respectfully suggest the first of these answers is too hard and the second is too weak. The second is too weak because, though of course we don’t have the full answer, we do have an idea, an incredibly powerful idea.

One of the great themes of the Hebrew Scriptures is that God identifies with the suffering. There are all these great texts that say things like this: If you oppress the poor, you oppress to me. I am a husband to the widow. I am father to the fatherless. I think the texts are saying God binds up his heart so closely with suffering people that he interprets any move against them as a move against him. This is powerful stuff! But Christianity says he goes even beyond that. Christians believe that in Jesus, God’s son, divinity became vulnerable to and involved in - suffering and death! He didn’t come as a general or emperor. He came as a carpenter. He was born in a manger, no room in the inn.

But it is on the Cross that we see the ultimate wonder. On the cross we sufferers finally see, to our shock that God now knows too what it is to lose a loved one in an unjust attack. And so you see what this means? John Stott puts it this way. John Stott wrote: “I could never myself believe in God if it were not for the Cross. In the real world of pain, how could one worship a God who was immune to it?” Do you see what this means? Yes, we don’t know the reason God allows evil and suffering to continue, but we know what the reason isn’t, what it can’t be. It can’t be that he doesn’t love us! It can’t be that he doesn’t care. God so loved us and hates suffering that he was willing to come down and get involved in it. And therefore the Cross is an incredibly empowering hint. Ok, it’s only a hint, but if you grasp it, it can transform you. It can give you strength.

And lastly, we have to grasp an empowering hope for the future. In both the Hebrew Scriptures and even more explicitly in the Christian Scriptures we have the promise of resurrection. In Daniel 12:2-3 we read: Multitudes who sleep in the dust of the earth will awake….[They]… will shine like the brightness of the heavens, and…like the stars for ever and ever. And in John 11 we hear Jesus say: I am the resurrection and the life! Now this is what the claim is: That God is not preparing for us merely some ethereal, abstract spiritual existence that is just a kind of compensation for the life we lost. Resurrection means the restoration to us of the life we lost. New heavens and new earth means this body, this world! Our bodies, our homes, our loved ones—restored, returned, perfected and beautified! Given back to us!

In the year after 9-11 I was diagnosed with cancer, and I was treated successfully. But during that whole time I read about the future resurrection and that was my real medicine. In the last book of The Lord of the Rings, Sam Gamgee wakes up, thinking everything is lost and discovering instead that all his friends were around him, he cries out: "Gandalf! I thought you were dead! But then I thought I was dead! Is everything sad going to come untrue?"

The answer is YES. And the answer of the Bible is YES. If the resurrection is true, then the answer is yes. Everything sad is going TO COME UNTRUE.

Oh, I know many of you are saying, “I wish I could believe that.” And guess what? This idea is so potent that you can go forward with that. To even want the resurrection, to love the idea of the resurrection, long for the promise of the resurrection even though you are unsure of it, is strengthening. I John 3:2-3. Beloved, now we are children of God and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when he appears we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is. All who have this hope purify themselves as he is pure.” Even to have a hope in this is purifying.

Listen to how Dostoevsky puts it in Brothers Karamazov: “I believe like a child that suffering will be healed and made up for, that all the humiliating absurdity of human contradictions will vanish like a pitiful mirage, like the despicable fabrication of the impotent and infinitely small Euclidean mind of man, that in the world’s finale, at the moment of eternal harmony, something so precious will come to pass that it will suffice for all hearts, for the comforting of all resentments, of the atonement of all the crimes of humanity, of all the blood that they’ve shed; and it will make it not only possible to forgive but to justify what has happened.”

That is strong and that last sentence is particularly strong…but if the resurrection is true, it’s absolutely right. Amen.

Date Night, part 2...

...which gives the impression that it's one date night after another around here. Well, maybe not, but perhaps this is our most frequent date- nearly every Monday night at 10pm, you'll find the two of us travelling to far away venues, partaking in local festivals, getting a taste of local foods, experiencing the culture of places around the globe. Tonight we're scheduled for Paris, "the city of light, love and culture." Globetrekker TV, locally found on NETV, the cheapest ticket to the world you'll ever find! (Thanks to our fellow GlobeWandering buddies for turning us on to Trekker! :-) )

Date Night

What could be more perfect than a good date night dinner only 1.3 miles from home? Such was the reality on Friday night when T. took me out to Dario's, right in bustling downtown Dundee. One word. Yum. I ordered a huge heavy black pot of mussels steamed with tomatoes and garlic. And pommes frites. Yum. And chocolate mousse, which he pretended to share because he knew that I wanted it but wouldn't order it by myself. There's love. :-) Yum.

Tribute

Madeline L'Engle died last week; she was 88 years old. As a young reader, I devoured everything by L'Engle on the library juvenile/young adult fiction shelves. And then later, as an adult, I discovered her non-fiction works, and read them with equal voracity. I appreciated her candid honesty and vulnerability; her ability to write out her questions and search for answers in personal struggles with faith, and life and death. Perhaps a scene from Meet the Austins explains her journey, when Grandfather explained to Suzy, "The search for knowledge and truth can be the most exciting thing there is as long as it takes you toward God instead of away from Him."

There was very little "childish" about L'Engle's children's literature. In her Newberry Award acceptance speech, in 1963, she said,

"What a child doesn’t realize until he is grown is that in responding to fantasy, fairly tale, and myth he is responding to what Erich Fromm calls the one universal language, the one and only language in the world that cuts across all barriers of time, place, race, and culture. Many Newbery books are from this realm, beginning with Dr. Dolittle; books on Hindu myth, Chinese folklore, the life of Buddha, tales of American Indians, books that lead our children beyond all boundaries and into the one language of all mankind.

In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth… The extraordinary, the marvelous thing about Genesis is not how unscientific it is, but how amazingly accurate it is. How could the ancient Israelites have known the exact order of an evolution that wasn’t to be formulated for thousands of years? Here is a truth that cuts across barriers of time and space.

But almost all of the best children’s books do this, not only an Alice in Wonderland, a Wind in the Willow, a Princess and the Goblin. Even the most straightforward tales say far more than they seem to mean on the surface. Little Women, The Secret Garden, Huckleberry Finn --- how much more there is in them than we realize at a first reading. They partake of the universal language, and this is why we turn to them again and again when we are children, and still again when we have grown up.

Up on the summit of Mohawk Mountain in northwest Connecticut is a large flat rock that holds the heat of the sun long after the last of the late sunset has left the sky. We take our picnic up there and then lie on the rock and watch the stars, one pulsing slowly into the deepening blue, and then another and another and another, until the sky is full of them.

A book, too, can be a star, “explosive material, capable of stirring up fresh life endlessly,” a living fire to lighten the darkness, leading out into the expanding universe."

L'Engle's books were among those stars that shone for me as a child, and as an adult. Her legacy will be long appreciated.

Class Photo

You're gazing on the Holliday Academy Class Photo, 2007-08. A motley crew. Hard working. Enthusiastic. Full of promise.

Keep up the good work, students!

"Train up a child in the way he should go, even when he is old he will not depart from it." Proverbs 22:6

That's the promise we're holding on to.

Labor Day Croquet

It might just become an annual event, the Labor Day Croquet Tournament. T. takes the rules seriously. (he also takes "sending" seriously, but we won't get into THAT here...) He didn't know about poison rules (scroll down to Option 6). Watch out, buddy! You are toast!

We did enjoy a great family outing today, all nine of us, including the D dogs. We headed east, crossed the river and the state line, to the playground and picnic areas at Lake Manawa. Besides croquet, we brought whiffleball, volleyball and soccer balls with us. A few magazines for me. Fried chicken for everyone. Before we left the park, we could smell barbacoa on the grill and hear a live mariachi band. Viva la heartland!

Not to mention, a stop at DQ on the way home. How's that for a very non-Labor Day?

One more shot of Team Croquet. (and why isn't croquet an Olympic event...?)

44 Pounds of Academic Joy...

... is that which we received in a formidable box on our front porch Thursday afternoon. Joy! It is all the books (well, almost- true to form, I forgot a couple of things, but they are now on their way also...) to complete our needs for the 2007-08 academic year. We're back to Sonlight this year- back to the oh-so-complete instructor's guide, back to literature that delights, challenges, and stimulates our thinking. Real books! The pile causes the hearts of bibliophiles in the family to skip a beat in anticipation. More than one book has been pilfered off the pile already!

We've a full syllabus in front of us. Our humanities (Bible, history, geography, language arts and reading) focus for the year ahead is a one-year survey of world history- it will be a fast and furious pace. Both the olders and the youngers will start in ancient Egypt and move forward to modern times. Our science focus is the Human Anatomy and Physiology, fine-tuned at different levels for our different levels of students. Math continues along the same path for everyone. Throw in some Spanish, logic, and keyboarding. Latin for the oldest. Music comes with piano and choir.


I'm excited! Last time we did this year-long survey I whipped T. in Trivial Pursuit at the end of the school year- honestly. Questions I surprised even myself that I knew the answers to!


We did start the discipline of getting back to school two weeks ago, but the new year starts in earnest in the week ahead. Check back for a Back to School class photo next week!

Therefore, go forth...

We have kept the South Korean medical missionaries in prayer since they were taken hostage by the Taliban in Afghanistan back on July 19.

This story causes me to sigh, deeply. Is there contradiciton in rejoicing at the release of these servants, and yet, grieving at the terms of their release?

Theologian Oswald Chambers said, "There is no conceivable situation in which it is not safe to trust God." If found in a similar position, do not negotiate with terrorists for me. Plead to the Lord. Cry out to Him for mercy. But, I ask you, do not give in to terrorist demands. Do not legitimize that evil in any way. Trust God.

I KNOW that the work of the Gospel will go forward, despite the limits that those against it try to place. I believe that messengers of the Good News must go forward, in obedience to His command. See Acts 1:8- "you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samari, and even to the remotest part of the earth." Now, in addition to the prayers for the safe release of the South Koreans (remember- not all have yet been released), and for the families of those mourning the loss of their loved ones already killed, we need to pray that Christians worldwide would be bold in both witness and obedience, going forth in a world that yet needs to hear.

Without Thy sweet mercy...

At times, it takes music like this speaking to my heart to remind me to stop and contemplate on all that is true.

This hymn was written by John Stocker, in 1776. I found the 2001 version through Indelible Grace music. Isn't there some comfort that the work of Christ on the cross allows the church universal, even in 1776, even in AD 61 when Paul wrote his letter to the Ephesians, seekers throughout time, to surrender to His mercy? Truly, "there is nothing new under the sun." (Eccl. 1:9)

Thy Mercy, My God
Thy mercy, my God, is the theme of my song,
The joy of my heart and the boast of my tongue;
Thy free grace alone, from the first to the last,
Hath won my affections, and bound my soul fast.

Without Thy sweet mercy I could not live here;
Sin would reduce me to utter despair;
But, through Thy free goodness, my spirits revive,
And He that first made me still keeps me alive.


Thy mercy is more than a match for my heart,
Which wonders to feel its own hardness depart;
Dissolved by Thy goodness, I fall to the ground,
And weep to the praise of the mercy I’ve found.


Great Father of mercies, Thy goodness I own,
And the covenant love of Thy crucified Son;
All praise to the Spirit, Whose whisper divine
Seals mercy, and pardon, and righteousness mine.
All praise to the Spirit, Whose whisper divine
Seals mercy, and pardon, and righteousness mine.
©2001 Same Old Dress Music (ASCAP).

Babies need...

We celebrate a new baby in the family this week- a little boy arrived to proud and very happy parents, our niece and nephew-in-law. T's sister is a grandma?!?! :-)

Babies need onesies, of course. Aren't freshly washed onesies, especially if you use that wonderful Dreft that first time moms always do (funny how Tide does just fine for the babies down the line...), the perfect example of baby-ness, in look and smell? A few of our babies needed the bouncy seat. The later version of the battery operated vibrating bouncy seat was especially handy when we had TWO babies and I could only solace one at a time.

There's A LOT of baby "stuff" out there, to be sure. But, recently I stumbled upon the following thoughts somewhere online, and it tells so well of all that babies really need. My apologies to the author, as I didn't take note to credit her, but kudos to her, as well. She captures so well what babies need.

Babies need a mother who is present. One who is available to meet their needs and who cares enough take the time to snuggle and bond.

Babies need a mother who is wise and understanding and who is able to discern what to do in a given situation.

Babies need a mother who is loving and giving.

Babies need a mother who is in control of herself in stressful situations--and believe me when I say that with babies there are many!

Babies need a mother who enjoys laughter and lots of giggling.

Babies need a mother who is excited about their new skills and accomplishments.

Babies need a mother who is ready to teach and to train.

Buying the latest gadgets for baby is not wrong, but I am here to tell you that most of those goodies won't make mothering any easier. Mothering is a full-time job with little monetary benefit, but it does boast the most amazing dividends.

When I think back to my time with my babies, I know that I would do it all over again in a heartbeat. I would, however, do it with a little more life wisdom. Would I buy the cute baby gadgets? Sure, a few of them, but most of my energy would be directed toward my baby's welfare and enjoying my time with them.

Life with baby is work, and all the pink, polka dotted and frilly goodies won't go as far as a mother who is willing to lay down her own wants and needs to do what is needed in the life of her little one.

But who will pay for the carbon credits...?

Admitedly, I was quite amused by this story when I first came upon it earlier in the week. I thought, though, I could pass it by, not stoop to that childish level. Until dear daughter brought me the attached art work today, completely unsolicited. And then I knew, it was meant to be.

So, for the story to accompany the illustration, check out this link: FOXNews.com - Researchers: Moose Gas Hurting Environment - Science News Current Articles

Reminder on Relationships

Through the summer I have had the opportunity to read and discuss the book Peacemaking Women by Tara Klena Barthel and Judy Dabler. A gem! It is one of those books that you pick up, thinking, "I might be able to use this to help someone someday." And then, by the second page, you are thinking, "That someone is me!" This book reminds us not to work harder at difficult relationships and challenges to everyday peace in our own strength, but to rest and be confident in the strength of Christ and His redeeming work on the cross. It has been a practical, challenging, and yet, encouraging study.
(Thanks also to that group of early rising ladies! They are iron that sharpens iron (Prov. 27:17).)

There are plenty of pearls to string from Peacemaking Women. Here's just one good reminder that will stay with me:

Relationships provide the opportunity for God to develop in us the fruit of the Holy Spirit. Such development, however, can be extremely painful. How do we grow in patience? Is it when we are sharing fellowship with a group of lovely ladies at a women's conference? No- they are all far too gracious and enjoyable. We grow in patience when we are called to relate to annoying and frustrating people. How do we grow in gentleness? When we are treated harshly by others but don't respond in kind. We grow in faithfulness when we are abandoned and rejected by others but continue to perservere in love. God uses people to help us grow to be more like Christ.

Lake Days

While in MI last week, we had opportunity to laze time away, visiting family at the where they summer. Beautiful weather for lake visits. What fun, to be out on the boats, to be in the water, to soak in the sun! We kept eye off the side of the boat for fish and for turtles. We watched the kids splash and dive and dunk and play. We adults enjoyed talk and adult beverages and doing not-too-much-at-all.

It is not so easy, for a girl that grew up in the southwest, to love a lake. Not many swim-worthy lakes in the desert climes. Years ago, when I started visiting the Great Lake State, it took some getting used to, wading the shore to swim in a lake. I still like diving into the middle of a lake, from the boat, deep enough that my feet can't touch bottom, the best.

But it's always fun to be with family at "their" lake. I'm thankful for that part of life T's family has added to mine. Or I'd still be sitting poolside and never would have known all a Lake Day had to offer.

"I'm Holding Out for Grace..."

I found this little piece on Bono, lead singer for the band U2, oh, six months or so ago. I saved it with the title "Cool Bono Quote on Faith."

I was "introduced" to Bono before I met Christ. Without comparison, I'm more indebted, more grateful, more thankful for Christ. But, I sure enjoy the music from Bono. In recent years, Bono has had a lot of publicity, as he hangs out with the likes of Bill Gates and world leaders and icons. This article tells a little bit of how he also stays in front of the cross. Like Bono, I'm holding out for Grace...

Steve Beard has an article over at the BreakPoint web site, a review of French journalist Michka Assayas's Q & A style book of his conversations with the rock star activist, that is well worth the read. I was especially taken with Bono's parsing of karma and grace:

The thing that keeps me on my knees is the difference between Grace and Karma.
You see, at the center of all religions is the idea of Karma. You know, what you put out comes back to you: an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth, or in physics—in physical laws—every action is met by an equal or an opposite one. It’s clear to me that Karma is at the very heart of the Universe. I’m absolutely sure of it. And yet, along comes this idea called Grace to upend all that "As you reap, so will you sow" stuff. Grace defies reason and logic. Love interrupts, if you like, the consequences of your actions, which in my case is very good news indeed, because I’ve done a lot of stupid stuff. . . . I’d be in big trouble if Karma was going to finally be my judge. It doesn’t excuse my mistakes, but I’m holding out for Grace. I’m holding out that Jesus took my sins onto the Cross, because I know who I am, and I hope I don’t have to depend on my own religiosity.

Feet

"How beautiful are your feet in sandals, O prince's daughter!" Song of Solomon 7:1

As part of the pre-wedding festivities, all the ladies in A's life took part in manicures and pedicures. Look at those toes!

This was all new to us! We were pampered. We sat in massage chairs, our toes in a swirling whirlpool bath with deep aqua tinted salts. Kind ladies said nothing about the state of our feet, but scraped and rubbed and clipped and painted. Oh, the colors to choose from! Lavenders and pinks and melons and irridescent whites that change in the sun. I'm the bright red. A traditionalist, I suppose.

How long does this last, now that we're back to the reality of everyday living, sandals, soccer cleats, running barefoot through late summer grass? Ahh, but it was fun for a day!

The excitement, you know...

She was in her first wedding at age 5, almost 17 years ago. She was bouncing, literally. She wore a pretty dress that she could twirl in. She stood absolutely still and was quiet when she needed to be, and after the ceremony ended, she exited the sanctuary and burst into tears. The excitement, you know. She recovered in time to run through the reception with my cousins and soccer players and drink more red punch than anyone could imagine. That was a one time only dress, lots of red punch on the front.

And then, in a blink of an eye, 17 years passes and SHE is the one getting married, to a dear man who is handsome and kind and cherishes her. She wore a beautiful dress and she stood still and quiet when she needed to, and she burst into tears before the ceremony even began. And so did all of us who love her so much. The excitement, you know. And, the memories.

I am sure I fell in love with that little blond girl with intense eyes, precocious, afraid of no stranger, long before I was sure about her dad. I expected way too much of her young years, and grew to know better, and she forgave me and loves me nonetheless. And I still love her, though now I'm pretty certain about her dad, too.

Be good to one another, A & T. Thanks for sharing the tears, and the excitement, with us. We can hardly wait to be with you both again!

Transmitting a love language...

My beloved knows me. This VERY COOL weather radio was my birthday gift this year. See that little crank on the side? You don't even need batteries to run this baby. It gets AM, FM, 2 TV audio settings, and 7 weather stations (if 7 weather stations actually existed in one place, which I don't think they do...). It has a light and a flashing red light, and a siren. It has a little hole for a cell phone adaptor and one for an AC adaptor (as in electricity, not Air Conditioning, which would make this a MIRACLE radio...). The tuning dial has a fine tuning option, so you can really just barely move the dial to tune in to a station perfectly. (one of the MOST ANNOYING things about digital radio dials- no fine tuning!) It has a nifty handle on the top, and a sturdy looking carrying bag for travel. And, he ordered it in my favorite color. My beloved knows me!

I have a long love affair with radio. When I was growing up, I had an AM transitor radio that I would listen to at night, in my bed. I could get a station all the way from Denver! Right now, as I type, I am listening to the weather station. I love this! "Today, mostly cloudy, with a chance of thunderstorms... Chance of rain 70%..." What could be better- weather and a cool radio, all in one?!

Thanks, beloved!

Branches or roots?

from Elizabeth Prentiss (1818 - 1878):

‘God never places us in any position in which we can not grow. We may fancy that He does. We may fear we are so impeded by fretting, petty cares that we are gaining nothing; but when we are not sending any branches upward, we may be sending roots downward. Perhaps in the time of our humiliation, when everything seems a failure, we are making the best kind of progress.’

Swimmingly!

Last night the summer swim season culminated in the City Championship meet. The H Family swimmers had high expectations going into the meet, as their team has won the City Championship for the last 3 years. And, there was extra anticipation Thursday night, as the meet was delayed a day due to storms on Wednesday. We did our part to help the team standings, taking top 6 medals in 9 of the 15 events in which our swimmers were entered. Way to swim, Team H! And, yes, just as importantly, Gallagher pool holds onto the title for one more year. Thanks, Coach Bill and Coach Judy! See you next summer!
(Doesn't this photo make you laugh? Can you tell that a couple of those girls were getting tired of mom taking pictures? :-) )

"God Honored"

A prayer for today,
from Valley of Vision, A Collection of Puritan Thoughts and Devotions:

O God,
Praise waiteth for thee,
and to render it is my noblest exercise;
This is thy due from all thy creatures,
for all thy works display thy attributes and fulfil thy designs;
The sea, dry land, winter cold, summer heat,
morning light, evening shade, are full of thee,
and thou givest me them richly to enjoy.
Thou art king of kings and lord of lords;
At thy pleasure empires rise and fall;
All thy works praise thee and thy saints bless thee;
Let me be numbered with thy holy ones,
resemble them in character and condition,
sit with them at Jesus' feet.
May my religion be always firmly rooted in thy Word,
my understanding divinely informed,
my affections holy and heavenly,
my motives simple and pure,
and my heart never wrong with thee.
Deliver me from the natural darkness of my own mind,
from the corruptions of my heart,
from the temptations to which I am exposed,
from the daily snares that attend me.

(with apologies to the author, for I cannot find how to "tab" and it doesn't read quite as nicely without them...)

Mas Laredo

Here's a photo of our team from Harvest that went to serve at Igelsia La Vid in Laredo last week, along with some of our Laredo helpers.

What a great week we spent in Laredo!

We went to help continue construction on the new La Vid sanctuary, right now standing as mostly a brick shell. We helped to frame bathrooms, storage areas and a sound area inside the building, and to paint the exterior. It was hot and dirty work, but only in God's economy can such work be so rewarding.

In the evenings, we spent time with the members of La Vid, delivering Bible study invitations in member's neighborhoods, and then joining small group Bible studies. Each evening we were whole-heartedly welcomed- and always enjoyed a hearty late evening "snack" of Mexican foods, a second dinner for most of us.

Most of the adults of La Vid understand English well, but speak Spanish. Most of the young adults and youth are bilingual, speaking Spanish in the home, but English with one another. Being with La Vid was a great opportunity to use Spanish, with occassional English words slipped in when our vocabulary failed us.

The sweetest part of the week for me was being able to meet and pray with a group of prayer warrior ladies from La Vid. This faithful group meets at the church every morning from 8-8:30, reading through a chapter of Scripture, praying, and praising God. Sweet, sweet times, to be able to pray for, and be prayed for, each morning. What a comfort and encouragement, to know these hermanas are praying over the same things we ladies pray for at home, their families, their church, expanding the Kingdom.

La Vid comes from a Pentecostal background, and their worship is passionate. I loved the words of Pastor Carlos, that the church should strive to have the mind of the Presbyterians, but the heart of the Pentecostals. :-)

It was exciting to serve along side T and k. and j.! The post just below shows shots of each of us at work. There is also a photo of j. with two of his Laredo buddies.

Gloria a Dios!

Laredo Missions 2007