Emma by Jane Austen

"It is only poverty that makes celibacy contemptible."

~ Emma to Harriet on why she has yet to marry.

Day Fourteen: a Picture of your Best Friend(s)

I am fully persuaded that friends are seasonal.

I don't mean that they change with the wind or the climate.

I mean that God places a particular group of people together for a specific season.

I am so blessed to be surrounded by this season's friends.

 There is a time for everything,

and a season for every activity under the heavens...

a time to weep and a time to laugh,

a time to mourn and a time to dance...

~Ecclesiastes 3:1&4~

I'll never forget it.

You may be tired of hearing me write about it, but my trip to the San Blas Islands of Panama last year was truly one that I'll never forget.  The beauty of the place and the joy of the children are only two of the many reasons this trip was memorable.*

Today, another medical missions team returns to the area. I'll be honest, my heart hurts a little to know that I am not going to be with them this year.

My task instead is to stay and pray for them.  Pray that God will open doors and that His work will be accomplished during the next 10 days.

*To read about the trip, click the 'about Panama' tab at the top of the page.

Here's what I enjoy...

Coffee with friends. Doughnuts optional. 

It makes me laugh...

So, an American, a Jamaican and a Nigerian all walk onto a porch and have a seat...

...and proceed to watch a World Cup game through the window of a stranger's house. 

Did I mention that the stranger's porch, house and tv happened to be located in Puerto Obaldia?

Yep. This is a photo that makes me laugh.
Somebody check day 5 off the list.  :-)

Long, long ago in a land not so far away...

Day two: a photo of yourself at least a year ago.

Hmmm... I've noticed that I don't actually have a lot of pictures of myself available online.  So, I went and borrowed a previously uploaded photo for this one (thanks Lee!).  It's at photo of myself at least a year ago, alright. Try more than 12 years ago.  That's right folks. The precious toddler in the picture is now a 14 year old menace to society model of a teenager. :-) His mother, the beautiful lady pictured with us, is still counted among my close friends. I am so blessed with long lasting friendships.

Here we go again!

Wow, again, it's been 6 weeks or more since I've posted.  There are times when I think that I should write a blogpost only to find myself facing writer's block.  It's one thing when you decide to write because you have something to say, and another thing entirely to try coming up with something to say because you've decided to write.  I'm sure there has been no great loss of discussion simply because I kept my thoughts to myself.  The five of you who read this probably found some other way to fill your time. :-)  Still, I'm not quite ready to relinquish the blogosphere to every one else. So, in the infamous words of Bro. Jerry, "Here we go again!"*

I have a friend. Suffice it to say that she is my blogging hero. Recently, she posted a Photo a Day plan for her blog.**  And, because she is my blogging hero, I've decided - with her permission of course - to jump on board.  No promises as to how long this will stretch.  We've already established that my "a Day" plans don't always follow the standard 24 hour interval. 

Day #1 - A Photo of You

This is a photo of me taken about 1.5 years ago by my niece MooMaLa. 
She was 4 yrs old at the time. Not too bad, huh?

*See the About Panama tab for more info on the original phrase...

**
Day one: a photo of you.

Day two: a photo of yourself at least a year ago.
Day three: a photo that makes you happy.
Day four: a photo of a place you'd like to visit.
Day five: a photo that makes you laugh.
Day six: a photo of someone you love.
Day seven: a photo of something you stand for.
Day eight: a photo of something you enjoy doing.
Day nine: a photo of yourself when you were a baby.
Day ten: any photo you like for any reason.
Day eleven: a photo of a night you loved.
Day twelve: a photo of when you were happy.
Day thirteen: a photo of one of your favorite movies.
Day fourteen: a photo of your best friend (s).
Day fifteen: a photo of you and a family member.
Day sixteen: a photo from your childhood.
Day seventeen: a photo from a trip you'll never forget.
Day eighteen: a photo of your town.
Day nineteen: a photo of your favorite thing from school.
Day twenty: a photo of something you ate today.
Day twenty-one: a photo of somebody you find attractive.
Day twenty-two: a photo that you associate a good memory with.
Day twenty-three: a photo of something you want to do someday.
Day twenty-four: a photo of what you want to be when you grow up.
Day twenty-five: a photo that inspires you.
Day twenty-six: a photo of your favorite subject in school.
Day twenty-seven: a photo of something you are looking forward to.
Day twenty-eight: a photo of something/somebody that made your day.
Day twenty-nine: a photo of your favorite person from history.
Day thirty: a photo you find beautiful

"If the Grinch came and stole your Christmas presents...

...and they were about to go over the side of the mountain, what would be in your box?"  With a huge sigh, 5 year old Moomala answered, "Clothes." Her 8 year old sister agreed, "Yeah, probably clothes." 

The 9 year old of the group was certain that the answer was "video games." His preteen sister went with "a book."  (That's my kind of Christmas present!)

So began last Friday evening, a night filled with laughter and silliness. Watching the old school version of the Dr. Suess classic and eating a pre-light viewing roasted marshmallow, Becky, Moo, Boo, J.Eg, C.Eg and I were soon joined by Ashley and her clan. 

Piling into the cars we made our way throught brightly lit neighborhoods to the local Festival of Lights.
Our rules for the evening: 
     ~ If you're the first to see a decorated yard or house, yell out the code word* so that we can all look.
     ~Be on the look out for your favorite light display so that it can be properly recognized. 

Simple enough and oh, so fun!

Amid much singing**, yelling of the code word and teasing about mistletoe, we made our way through the lights.   Parking under the "Star of Bethlehem" we got out to wander through "winterland" and to see the wonders of the park lit for Christmas.  It was on our way back to the car (thank goodness we had the star to guide us!) that we discovered the light show.  Set to TransSiberian Orchestra's version of "Carol of the Bells," a beautiful display kept us enraptured.  With near unanimous agreement, we gave a formal presentation to the light show as our favorite display.  The one dissenter gave her vote to the Peacock, a worthy light display.

Returning to la casa de la noche, we indulged in s'mores, hot chocolate, fuzzy socks, Polar Express and attempted bribery (of the cat that is).  Could this be a new tradtion? We'll find out next year!

Ashley's video of the light show was interrupted by voices in the background, so this isn't the one that wond the award. Still in all, a beautiful song and a beautiful light show. Enjoy!




* I'm not going to share the code word with the world. But if you happen to guess it, I'll tell you if you're right.

** Who knew that 4 kids under the age of 12 could out do 2 grown women when it came to singing Christmas Carols?  They knew all of the verses to the 12 Days of Christmas and could sing them fast. Becky and I kept joining in around 8 maids a milking...

Koinonia

Love is:
~a verb.
~an action.
~a feeling.
~a belief.
~a reason.
~a many splendored thing.

How many people have tried to define love? How many philosophical and impassioned discussions have there been on the subject? Too many to count I'm sure.

I don't have an answer and I'm not trying to stir up another discussion.

I just have a few comments to make.

There are some people that I like. Some that I tolerate. Some that I may never have more than a passing acquaintance with.

Then there are some people that I genuinely love.

Sure, there's my family.

But there are friends for whom I have a deep, platonic love for.

A love birthed in fellowship.

{Fellowship -
{1. the state of sharing mutual interests, experiences, activities, etc.
{2. a society of people sharing mutual interests, experiences, activities, etc.; club
{3. companionship; friendship

I recently had the priveledge of gathering together with a group of friends that I love. It was a group that hasn't assembled for about 5 years. I've seen some of them off and on over the past few years, but this was a special time.

We shared joy together. We laughed. We shared trouble together. We prayed.

Truly this is a group that I share Koinonia with.

{Koinonia -
{Christian fellowship or communion with God or with fellow Christians;
{said in particular of the early Christian community.

I don't tell them often enough how much I value them. Honestly, the depth of my feeling for each of them doesn't in anyway make light of my other friendships and relationships.

But I read something today that I felt applied specifically to this group:

"I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus." ~ Philippians 1:3-6

I love you guys.

A Week of Good Byes

Have you ever really thought about what it means to say "Good Bye?"

The dictionary says that Good Bye is:
1. An acknowledgement at parting.
2. An act of parting or leave-taking.

That pretty well sums up the last week for me.

On Wednesday, I "acknowledged at parting" a friend who was moving back to her home country.

On Friday, I participated in the "act of parting or leave-taking" after four years of working at an awesome company.

Today, I said "Good Bye" to a dear woman of God who passed away over the weekend.

Some good byes are inevitably sad, but some are more along the lines of "see you later."

Christine, I hope to see you later.

MM, I'll see you soon.

Sis. Sylvester, I'll see you again one day.

Good Bye for now.

Back to work.

"Work is either fun or drudgery. It depends on your attitude. I like fun."

~Colleen C. Barrett

It's back to work for me today. No more vacation. No more rest.

Thankfully, I'm blessed to have a job that can be fun.

Of course attitude does make a difference.

Today's attitude:

"Hey guys! I'm back!" 
"How are you? Tell me about your vacation."

Oh, yeah. Let's get some work done while we chat.

Ahhh. It's good to be back.