October 16 – “Even in Waco”

My hearing aid tip got stuck in my ear again yesterday as I worked in the garage.  Great.  Didn’t panic like last time, though.  No quick visit to the emergency room for what they called “surgery” the last time this happened.  That’s right.  We got a bill for a surgery.  And all the guy did was reach in with his little alligator pliers and rip it out.  Our plan is to stop on the way home at the audiologist office in Houston.  We don’t have an appointment or anything, but I’m hoping they take into consideration the “emergency” nature of a foreign object imbedded in my ear.  The ENT doctor’s office is right in the next room, too, if she can’t get it out.  Meanwhile I guess I get to stay in my quiet little world.

Back to our trip log …

As we drove around Waco on our way to Christi’s appointment to interview a pediatrician, the boys noticed a strange looking architectural marvel reaching up into the sky.  Of course imaginations kicked in right away.  Why bother to ask for specifics when imagination can much more easily fill in the blanks?  Chatter began about the rocket ship and where it might be going.  Christi is well-tuned to her boys, though.  She waited for a lull in the future Star Wars screenplay being created and noted, just for their information, of course, that what they were seeing was not really a rocket ship.  It actually had a name and it was called a “steeple.”  Ever thought about that word?  I guess I should look it up to see where it comes from, but to me it just doesn’t fit what you see.  Maybe because it is steep? 

Anyway, one of the boys said, “There is a word for everything, huh, Mom?”  And that was the start of an entirely new episode of Adventures with Caleb.  He delightedly proclaimed, “There’s a word for everything.  Like …” And then it began.  “Like car and truck and house and foot and head and street and hospital and …”  The never-ending array of four-year-old vocabulary words streamed forth, punctuated on occasion with the chorus, “There’s a word for everything.”  It was like a rogue episode of Sesame Street. 

Once we arrived at the hospital for the interview, Caleb discovered a comfortable place to rest while we were walking.  He called it the “fireman hold” position, after my fire department hat, which he wore, by the way, whenever it started raining.  He draped himself across my shoulders so that I was holding one leg with my left hand and one arm with my right.  He looked like those pictures of shepherds carrying sheep.  When he got tired he just laid his head down on my shoulder.  When he wanted to see what was going on around us, he propped his chin on his cupped hand and dug his elbow into my shoulder.  Actually it was the most comfortable position for this old pack mule as well.  I could stand relatively straight, so it didn’t hurt my back nearly as much as hanging on to him with just my arms. 

The evening ended with supper at a Mexican food restaurant.  Yes, even in Waco.  We got so used to having Mexican food whenever we went to San Antonio that I guess it has become a tradition.  Chris loved her Mexican food, though, so she was happy.  And when Momma’s happy, everybody’s happy.  Oh, and the Mexican food was followed by none other than a trip to WalMart.  Yes … even in Waco.

Mark 2:9-12 says, “Which is easier: to say to the paralytic, 'Your sins are forgiven,' or to say, 'Get up, take your mat and walk'?  But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins . . . ." He said to the paralytic, "I tell you, get up, take your mat and go home."  He got up, took his mat and walked out in full view of them all. This amazed everyone and they praised God, saying, "We have never seen anything like this!"

Father, keep on amazing.  Amen.