July 18 – “Tap Dance on the Wall”

Cailyn got here last night right at what Nathan assured me was her bedtime.  In fact, to make it seem like he was telling the truth, when I picked her up to say hello, she put her head down on my shoulder and snuggled in.  He left and she stayed there.  She even closed her eyes.  Her breathing got slow and regular.  Her muscles relaxed.  For all intents and purposes she appeared to be asleep.  So I took her into "her room" and put her on the bed.  I should have guessed.  It was all a ruse.  The moment her little body touched the bed she was up in a flash, laughing and jabbering and ready to play.  I gave it a brief try to keep her there just in case it was a fluke.  It wasn't.  So we went back into the den and played and watched the Astros lose the rest of their game.   Mom finally gave up and went on to bed.  A little before ten I finally went around and turned out all the lights.  That helped.  Cailyn climbed into my lap and we watched the end of some show I have never seen before about rookie cops.  By about the middle of the ten o'clock news she finally gave up.  I could feel the relaxation hit her.  But I had been fooled once before.  I stayed put for an extra ten minutes or so before taking her on to bed.  This time the eyes stayed closed.  I went on to bed, too, once again appreciating Chris and wishing she was here.    Just as I was brushing my teeth, the bedroom door creaked open just a bit.  I thought I had once again been had.  But no.  This time it wasn't Cailyn.  It was Mom.  But she had been asleep for a long time.  She wanted to know if I wanted her to turn the light on in Cailyn's room.  "There is one in there, you know," she informed me.  "No, that's OK," I managed to whisper, muffling an urge to laugh and scream at the same time.  "She's asleep.  She can't see it anyway."  All clear.  All to sleep.  Tomorrow is Sunday.  I need the rest.   Ah, but strange things happen late in the night.  At straight up two a.m. I heard the cry, muffled and distant and not in terror, rather a sound of slight distress.  Instantly I leapt to my feet and raced into Cailyn's room.  There she was.  Sitting up in the bed.  Smiling from ear to ear.  She greeted me with a big "Hi!"  OK.  Much better than crying for Mommy, I guess.  So I crawled in the bed with her and tried to get her to settle back down.  Not so much.  She never got out of the bed, but boy did she ever use every square inch of it.  She bounded from end to end, talking constantly about whatever it was.  She knew exactly what she meant, so I just nodded and chuckled at her antics and grunted an occasional "Is that right?"  My all time favorite of the night, though was when she rolled over on her back, braced herself against me, and did an incredible tap dance on the wall.  Watch out "America's Got Talent."  A little before four she finally started to settle down.  Some.  That is, until DadDad fell out of the bed.  She thought that was pretty funny.  Hey.  It was 4 a.m.  I was kind of sleepy.  And I had been perched precariously on the edge of a twin sized bed for two hours.  After we both somewhat recovered from the incident, I decided it was time to relocate in a larger environment.  We moved to our bed so I would be less likely to crash again.  As we left the room she remembered something and ran back.  What did she return with?  One of her blankets.  Sure.  But what was that in her other hand?  She proudly held it up for me to see.  It was … no, not her stuffed monkey.  Not her Daddy's stuffed dog.  Not the baby doll.  Not one of the other three blankets she had in there.  No.  Cailyn salvaged something much more important to her.  A shoe.  Just one.  And she was fine.  She went to sleep almost immediately in our bed, clutching the shoe.    When she awoke this morning at seven, the first thing she did was head back into her room and grab the other shoe.  Then she walked to the front door, once again jabbering all the way.  The only clear word in her discourse, which popped up several times, was, "Mommy."  When Mommy got there, she was very excited to see her, but of course she wasn't ready to leave just yet.  She stopped short of giving her a big welcome hug and maturely said, "Hi, Mommy."  That's my girl.   Psalms 138:8 says, "The Lord will fulfill [his purpose] for me; your love, O Lord, endures forever."   Father, thank you for Cailyn.  Help that girl to get a good nap today.  I think she's gonna need it.  Amen.

July 17 – “Showtime”

Chris is gone again.  Her visit was way too brief, but she is back with her Mom where she needs to be right now.   I had a wedding on the beach this morning.  Young couple from Spring who already had a six week old daughter.  The bride and groom were the last ones to arrive – right at "showtime."  The bride's mother really wanted to be a part of what was going on, but it was evident that she and her daughter had been at odds for quite some time.  They had told me that they wanted to do a sand ceremony.  We began with nothing set up, however.  I had a hunch about it, though, so when it came to that point in the service, I asked them if they still wanted to do it.  "Sure!" they said.  And the bride walked over to a gym bag and dug out the two really pretty jars and the long tall one for the middle.  Then she pulled out the colored sand, still in the jars from Hobby Lobby, and got everything set up.  When everything was ready, we started back up and got it done.  There was some sand left and space left in the tall jar, and they almost stopped again for a refill, but the bride decided they could finish it out later.  Just goes to show all those bridezillas out there that it will get done.  All that stress and worry is not really necessary.   I went out to the church to meet the group from Fort Worth.  They are here to do some construction work in town as well as to lead our Vacation Bible School at Seaside.  They have 27 students and 27 adults in their group.  We could very well have a one on one ratio of workers to kids at VBS next week.  And we have dinner on the grounds tomorrow.  I'm not sure if they already have plans for lunch, but we're going to need a lot of extra food if even some of them decide to stay.  At least we'll have some extra hands to help set up tables and chairs for the meal.    Found out while I was waiting for them that Mom and I get to babysit with Cailyn tonight.  Her Mom and Dad are going to a birthday party for a friend.  At least I assume it's a friend.  I hope it's a friend.  Cailyn will get here around bedtime and her Mom will pick her up before we leave for church tomorrow.  I asked Nathan if he meant her idea of her bedtime or his.  Hers seems to be more accurate than his.  We'll see.   Psalms 29:3 says, "The voice of the Lord is over the waters; the God of glory thunders, the Lord thunders over the mighty waters."   Father, thanks for calling these people to do missions here this week.  Honor their obedience.  Amen.

July 16 – “Back to ministry”

Wow.  I just typed in that it was February.  Don't look.  I changed it.  Time has certainly eluded me since Chris has been gone so much, but that's a bit much even for me.    I am pretty old.  I can remember when to change something you typed you had to have some of that liquid paper stuff.  It was magic.  Covered all kinds of mistakes.  But it was also messy.  And you could tell it was there.  That other stuff worked pretty good, too.  The little strips of paper that you had to stick in there and retype to erase the individual letters.    I used to work at a church in Houston where the secretary had to turn a crank of some kind and pour a bottle of ink into a big cylinder to make copies of stuff.  Messy, nasty stuff.  Oh, and then there were those carbon paper things that you put between two sheets of paper.  Then you could make two errors at the same time with no hope of fixing either one.  That was back when it really meant something to say how fast you could type with few or no mistakes.  I can see why.   So give me these computers where I can make all the mistakes I want and all have to do is backspace and delete.  Of course that's if I realize they are mistakes.  That little curly red underline thing is great with spelling but not so good on grammar.   All of our Galveston kiddos came over for a fish fry this evening.  Kind of a welcome home to Chris along with a good bye.  She leaves again tomorrow.  But boy, did she ever get a grandkid fix.  She held Josiah and played soccer with Jachin and Micah and get a kiss from Cailyn.  Not to mention her hugs from Kel, Nathan, Christina and April.  She really needed that.  Now it's back to ministry tomorrow.   Psalms 29:2 says, "Ascribe to the Lord the glory due his name; worship the Lord in the splendor of his holiness."   Father, I really can't imagine what your glory looks like.  I sure don't have much to compare it to from my life.  I just know you're God.  Somehow that's enough.  Amen.

July 15 – “Secrets”

Chris came home last night.  She got here just as Mom and I were finishing up a slice of pizza we reheated.  She was trying to keep it a secret.  I had a hunch she was on the road, though, because she didn't answer my texts right away.  So the last text I sent, I asked her how many slices of pizza she wanted.  She returned, "2."  Then I answered, "I know you are not texting and driving."  After awhile I got, "Nope."  That cinched it.  She was on the road.    She was pretty tired, too.  Not o much from the drive (Although the air conditioner goes in and out on the truck, so she was burning up).  She was just tired from not being at home and being under tons of stress taking care of her Mom.  She is still beat today, and she even took a nap this afternoon.   One good thing, though.  Cailyn came over and spent the morning with us.  Stage One of the Nana fix complete.  She still needs to see Jachin, Micah, and Josiah.  That will be Stage Two.  If everything works out and Chris is still here, we are having a fish fry tomorrow.  Nathan will be off, so as soon as Kel gets off work, we'll eat.  That will leave only Stage Three, Zakary and Caleb.  They are actually supposed to pop in next week for a quick one day visit on their way to spend the weekend in Freeport with friends.  We are having VBS at Seaside next week, too.  Lots going on.  A group from Haltom City is coming in to lead it.  They'll be here Saturday afternoon and will stay in our building all week.  Which also means we need to come up with a lot of extra food for dinner on the grounds Sunday.  Anyway, Chris will almost assuredly be in Bay City.  But they may get to go through Bay City on their way home, so Stage Three is not completely in jeopardy.   Been getting texts and even a phone call from the kids in North Carolina at youth camp.  They are having a great time.  I have been writing a goofy song to chronicle their exploits, so they are enjoying "telling" on each other.  It's written to the tune of that wildly popular classic hit, "I'm a Nut."  No one knows what will ultimately make the song, though.  It's a closely guarded secret.   Home group is scheduled for tonight.  I know Anne and Eric won't be here.  His grandfather died, and they are headed to Oklahoma for the funeral.  Don't know about the others.  I'll get some songs ready (on the computer, not the uke).   Philippians 4:12-13 says, "I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. 13 I can do everything through him who gives me strength."   Father, thank you that I don't have to keep any secrets from you.  It is definitely a stress reliever to be honest.  Amen.

July 14 – “Expecting unexpected”

Where is the line anyway between accomplishing what you expect and welcoming the unexpected?  It can happen in big events, I know, and it's usually easy to see and welcome.  But what about in the little things?  The mundane events of the day that are "supposed" to go one way and inevitably take a different turn?   That's been my day so far.  I fully expected to fall into my usual morning routine.  Take some pills with a glass of chocolate milk.  Pour a cup of coffee and grab some breakfast.  Get the newspaper in.  Let the dogs out and feed them.  Do my quiet time.  Read the newspaper.  Check my email.  Begin my day's work (at which point pretty much anything goes.  It might mean working on the sermon or the camp song or SCA stuff or a visual verse … whatever.  That can change and I'm fine with it).   But not today.  My morning routine was totally changed.  I remembered that Chris might come home today.  That reminded me that I wanted to clean the house and make the bed and finish washing clothes, so I did all that.  I forgot to get newspaper until Mom woke up and was looking for it (so I got it for her).  The dogs did get fed, and I eventually spent some time with God.  But I almost forgot to take my morning medications and eat breakfast.  I don't get very hungry any more.  A side effect of the rheumatoid arthritis meds.    When I finally began working, the first thing I remembered was that I had to go out to the church to check on some school transcripts in answer to a parent question.  So I headed on out there.  While I was there, I moved some school stuff out of my office so the new headmaster could take it up to the new building and find a place for it.    On the way home I stopped off to pick up a prescription refill.  And there were two.  I'm on some kind of automatic refill thing.  For some reason that reminded me to pick up some fruit.  If Chris does come home today she likes to have fruit to snack on.  Plums, nectarines, and grapes.  That should hold her.  And make me look good for having them.   Cailyn was supposed to come over this afternoon.  Her Mom was going to be cleaning a house.  Her Dad was to be in an honor guard for the opening of a new fire station.  But Cailyn didn't come after all.  Her Mom decided to stay at home.    I'm still hoping Chris will be coming home today for a few days.  She said she would leave as soon as the hospice nurse gets there, does her thing and leaves.  I checked with her around noon, and all she knew was that the hospice nurse was due "sometime this afternoon."  If she can't come today, I'm going there to spend the night.   Christina called after a doctor's appointment for the boys.  Josiah weighs 14 lbs 10 oz).  She said Christi told her Caleb weighed 18 lbs, but he's got about a year and a half on him.  Sounds to me like Josiah is one big kid.  All good news.  Then she said they had an appointment with a pediatric cardiologist on Friday for Jachin.  He's beginning to have some of the same symptoms his Dad developed that led to passing out.  Not so good news.   Philippians 3:20-21 says, "But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, 21 who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body."   Father, help me to use my "expecting" energy on awaiting you, and to relax and receive whatever comes each day as just the next gift from you.  Amen.

July 13 – “Could one fish do all that?”

First, a correction.  The trailer event I mentioned during our last trip to youth camp in Ridgecrest actually happened in Knoxville. Tennessee, not Chattanooga.    They all looked alike to me.   It has been a challenge to keep up with the texts I have been getting from different ones at camp.  Some have some really juicy stuff that will be funny in the "I'm a Nut" song I'm writing.  Others are appreciated just because they help me feel connected.  Sure wish we could have gone along.   Talked to Chris last night about that possible trip home.  Her Mom and Dad are not really letting her sister do all that much.  They call on Chris for pretty much everything.  Guess I'll be planning a trip to Bay City for tomorrow morning.   This morning Jachin and Micah needed a place to stay while their Mom went to a doctor's appointment.  So we went over to Great Uncle Jerry's house to try some fishing.  We lost a lot of bait to those little tiny catfish, and we didn't catch a single fish.  Nothing.  Well, Jachin had something on his line briefly, but it released.  Right after that Micah's little junior sized rod and reel took off.  It didn't take long, though, for whatever it was to break the line.  I got him a different rod and reel to use for the rest of the trip.  Didn't help, though.  As far as he was concerned, that was the only fish in the water anyway.  Jachin even asked if there was just one fish out there stealing all the bait.  "Could one fish do all that?"   Their favorite part of the day came when we went upstairs to say goodbye to Uncle Jerry.  He invited us in and amazed us with tales of his foreign travels.  He showed pictures on his I Phone and explained the significance of the artifacts on the walls and shelves.  He even let the boys play with his chess set.  The chess men were Christian Crusaders versus Muslim warriors.  He even insisted that I see a movie just out on DVD – The Lightning Thief.  Something about a kid accused of stealing Zeus' lightning bolt.  And he discovers that he is actually the son of Poseidon.  Sounds like an odd yet interesting mix of mythology and the modern world.  Guess I'll pick it up and check it out.   It's becoming a habit.  When Christina came to pick up the boys Mom invited them to go out to lunch with us.  She let the boys choose, and Jachin immediately picked.  Golden Corral.  It is becoming the new Luby's.  At least they have fried popcorn shrimp.  And my favorites: black eyed peas and butter beans.  Can't wait for Chris to get home and we get a home-cooked meal.   2 Tim 2:15 says, "Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth."   Father, I've been thinking about that "one fish" question.  How much bait stealing can just one fish do?  How much good can just one person do?  Amen.

July 11 – “Full”

Now this was a full 24 hours.  My 39th high school reunion was scheduled for 6 to 10 pm last night at Mario's.  I was also scheduled to do a destination wedding at the San Luis Hotel at 7.  Not impossible.  The plan was to go to the reunion, then the wedding, then back to the reunion.  Piece of cake.   Until I got on the seawall.  It was a typical Summer Saturday night on Galveston Island.  Tourists everywhere.  Cars clogging intersections.  Sitting at street lights two times.  There was no way I could get all the way to Mario's on 6th Street and back to the San Luis in time to do the pre-wedding photos they asked me to pose for.  So when I got to the hotel, I just pulled in.  Luckily I had a novel I had been reading, so I wouldn't be completely bored.  The Testament by John Grisham.  So far pretty good.  Some mega-rich guy changes his will at the last minute, leaves it all to an illegitimate daughter no one knows about, then jumps out the window.  This one has possibilities.    So first the wedding.  I found a comfortable chair in the lobby and settled in to read.  The minutes ticked by and the seven o'clock start time was getting closer and closer.  Still no contact from the photographer or whoever had the license or even the wedding coordinator.  Right at seven people started showing up.  Guests.  Wedding party.  Coordinator.  And finally photographer.  But he didn't mention the shots he asked me to be there early for.  So we didn't do them.  Oh, well.  The young guy who was assigned to escort the grandparents and parents (all were escorted by the same guy) got there and started his job.  But he wasn't supposed to start yet.  And then the bride's Mom showed up and found out.  She made him go get the grandmother he had already seated and bring her back.  About the time they got to the door she told him to go on and seat her, so they turned right around.  What a start.  The wedding itself went fairly smoothly.  Except that it was hot.  And humid.  Galveston in July.  We were all dripping with sweat.  And then the bride started down the aisle.  We lost one of the photographers.  He had to go inside and cool off before he had a stroke.  And they had added several traditions to the ceremony that they wanted explained – sand ceremony, jumping the broom, father's blessing.  It lasted a long time.  By the time we finished I was literally drenched.  My suit was dripping wet.  But everyone was happy.   Being the incredibly intelligent and experienced destination pastor that I am, I had a hunch that it would get hot.  So I actually packed a bag with some shorts and a t-shirt to change into before the reunion.  Good thing.  I was feeling kind of sick and dizzy as I changed.  I also hadn't eaten.  Remember I planned to do that at Mario's before I even went to the wedding.  But in my survival kit I had some peppermint candy (the kind that melts like sugar in your mouth) and gum.  I savored it as I drove down the seawall.    I got to Mario's around 8:10.  Still plenty of time to see people and eat.  I went in and asked where the reunion was.  And they said, "Oh, we had someone else ask that same thing earlier.  That's at the other Mario's over on 61st street.  Now understand something here.  Follow the numbers.  The wedding was at a hotel on 53rd street.  The Mario's I was standing in was on around 6th street.  And now I had to go back to 61st street.  I was eight block away when I left the hotel.    I made the drive back to the other Mario's, at least happy that I was not the only one who messed up on the location.  I was told that virtually everyone was still there, so I had a chance to chat with some old friends as well as some people I knew back in school but not all that well.  We had something in common, though.  We all remembered certain teachers, like Mr. Jeter and Mrs. Marchand, or drama productions (who could forget The House at Pooh Corner?  It was good to see Roo again, and she remembered me as Tigger).  We all looked forward to doing it again next year (the reunion, not the play).    Now that would have been enough to head home and go to sleep on.  But I still had one more thing to do.  Actually I did go home, and I did go to sleep.  But I set my alarm for 2:15 a.m.  The teenagers from Seaside were leaving for camp in North Carolina, and I wanted to see them off.  Half of them met at Seaside at two.  That group then drove to Dickinson to meet up with the rest of the group, have a donut at Shipley's, and get on the road.  This is the first year in a long time that Chris and I haven't gone to camp, but with the uncertainty surrounding her Mom we decided we better stick around this time.  So it was bittersweet to see the excitement in their eyes and to enjoy the goodbye hugs as they loaded up.  They promised to send me emails and text messages every day so I could keep up and even write my usual song about the trip.  We'll see how they do.   Psalms 44:8 says, "In God we make our boast all day long, and we will praise your name forever."   Father, this has been a long day.  And I didn't even tell half of it.  Through it all I praise you.  Amen.