May 14 – “Who is that guy?”

Once again someone must have left open the back door to WalMart’s weird people room.  Either that or they were out searching for the guy walking his leaf blower.  Chris glanced out our front window yesterday and noticed several people walking by.  By the time I got there, I only saw one.  Maybe it was for the best that I only saw one of them.  This guy was dressed exactly like a chef.  Dark clothes underneath a pristine, white, full-length apron.  He even carried a white towel across his arm.  The only thing he was missing was his tall white chef hat and the costume would have been perfect.  Why would a chef be walking through our neighborhood?  No idea.  But I really love this neighborhood. 

And speaking of WalMart, other than a quick trip there to pick up some last-minute items for our trip, I have stayed inside.  At least the Astros were entertaining last night.  Home run by Springer in the bottom of the eighth for the win.  I’m doing my best to drown this cold or whatever this malady is that has overtaken me.  Coffee.  Iced tea.  Hot tea with honey (Thanks, Jim and Laura Stone.  I’m scraping the bottom of the jar I got from you, by the way.  Great stuff).  An orange here and there.  Some fresh pineapple.  Water.  And then last night I kept the flow going with some Nyquil.  Stinky stuff, that Nyquil.  When I walked into the bedroom Chris said she could smell it.  Sorry about that, but I have to admit, it works.  At least for me.  Helped me stay asleep (for the most part) until just before 5 a.m. when I had to get up anyway.  Guess I’ll keep pushing fluids today and stay near a bathroom. 

Colossians 3:12-14 says, “Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.”

Father, could we rush this cold along just a little bit?  I’d really like to feel good for our trip.  Amen.

May 13 – “Oh my”

I met another roof inspector at the church yesterday for what I assumed would be another hour-long inspection.  After the big hail storm ma few weeks ago, the insurance company is in high gear to get everything taken care of.  Believe that?  Yeah, I’m not so sure I do either.  They already sent one guy out, but I guess they didn’t like his recommendations.  Or maybe they are just requiring a second opinion.  Do inspectors have a bidding process?  Just seems strange to me.

This one was different from the last in a few ways.  Started out with the appointment time.  We set it up for 8:30.  I received a call from the inspector at 8 wondering where I was.  I told him he was early, so he checked his schedule book and finally agreed with me.  I assured him I would be there in ten or fifteen minutes.  He said, “Oh, don’t hurry.  It’s still early.”  Funny guy. 

This time there were three of them.  One introduced himself as the inspector.  A second, who arrived much closer to nine, proudly declared himself to be an engineer.  He wore one of those headset pieces so he could dictate his notes to the hidden secretary he carried in his pocket.  Not sure but I think her name was Siri.  The third didn’t say much other than, “I’m with them.”  I finally figured he must be an assistant to the engineer.  He carried the ladder around.

I showed them around to the spots we saw leaking the day after the storm, opened all the doors they needed opened, and excused myself.  I went on upstairs to sit around with our Arlington buddies and wait for the crew to complete their task.  Little did I know that they wouldn’t leave until after 11.  I have no idea what they found or why it took so long.  They are supposed to send us the results. 

I did enjoy the time with Mona and David and their family.  Mona desperately wanted to find a metal detector to do some serious treasure hunting while they were here.  She was convinced that there had to be residue left in the sand from Hurricane Ike, just waiting for her to uncover it.  She couldn’t find a metal detector, but they still wanted to do some beach combing.  Chris had told them about the Kemp-Ridley sea turtle egg-laying, so they went sea turtle egg hunting on the beach the night before.  Sadly … no results.  That afternoon, armed with new information, I texted them with an all-new recommendation/warning for their tourist extravaganza.  It involved a slightly different type of “treasure” they could add to their list.  I didn’t want them to be too concerned if there was a lot of extra traffic around.  Seems a dead body had just washed up on shore not too far from the church.  I did get a response from Mona.  “Oh my.” 

Hebrews 12:28-29 says, “Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe, for our ‘God is a consuming fire.’”

Father watch over the family of the man who drowned.  Grant peace as well to the ones who discovered the body and the first responders who dealt with the situation.  Amen.

May 12 – “And in the news …”

I had some struggles yesterday with something I have avoided for a long time: a sore throat.  My hope is that it is just a seasonal allergy thing, and the front that just blew in a bunch of rain will blow away whatever it is that is causing this issue.  That’s all I need to start off our vacation with.

Last night we saw some really good friends from way back in our days at South Oaks Baptist Church in Arlington.  They are staying in Seaside’s retreat center for a week as part of their son’s high school graduation.  Mona and David are among those we have kept up with over the years we have been gone from Arlington.  In fact they were also among the group from South Oaks that was instrumental in getting us back into our house.  Always great to see old friends. 

I realized yesterday that my appointment at 8:30 this morning with an engineer to check out the roof at the church (hail damage) conflicts with our standing Tuesday and Thursday water exercise class.  The class is actually from 7:45 to 8:30, but it does take a few minutes to get out to Seaside.  Ah, well.  There is still Thursday for our swan song (or dive) before vacation.  And we do plan to seek out hotels with pools to continue self-inflicting water-inspired torture upon ourselves.  Can’t have us enjoying this hiatus overmuch, can we?

We managed to catch about 30 minutes of Cailyn’s gymnastics class.  It is becoming frightening how good she is getting.  Way too much of her Dad’s dare-devil gene in her  (Although I understand her Mom was quite the ”overzealous one” as well). She was flipping around one of the bars like she belonged there.  She even walked the balance beam like a pro.  Of course her feet are so narrow that she could put the side by side and both of them were still on the beam.  That may have given her an edge.  She did the vault jump with no problem, and the trampoline run with the flip at the end was impressive.  She’ll be joining the advanced class before she knows it.  And all for one end in her mind: so she can be a cheerleader.  And I’m sure that’s just what her Daddy wants: a drop dead gorgeous daughter performing amazing gymnastic/cheerleading feats of skill and agility.  A veritable vision of loveliness.  Who wouldn’t want to date her, right, Dad?  Of course according to Daddy’s plan, she’s going to be 30 before he approves any such plans.  And even then, every fire fighter in the city, and probably more than a few police officers, will be placed on alert to watch out for her.  I’m feeling sorry for that young man already. 

    

John 3:18 says, “Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth.”

Father, thank you for old friends and engineers and future prom dates.  And could you help me kick this throat thing?  Thanks for that, too.  Amen.

May 11 – “Absolutely Aww.”

We had a weekend of birthdays and baby dedications.  You know, one of those “absolutely aww” times.  Noa and Josiah both celebrated their birthdays with a Prince and Princess party on Saturday.  I think the guys responded better to the idea of being knights in shining armor, though, if the response to the games was any indication.

Christina had put together some cute games.  They did a dragon egg search.  Eerily similar to an Easter egg hunt, but inside each egg was a tiny dinosaur replica.  Micah then donned a dragon costume and the kids played hide-and-seek from the dragon.  Each one who wanted to had a chance to be the dragon.  The final outdoor game had a sneaky thief (aka Kel) captured red-handed trying to steal the accumulated dragon eggs.  He had to spend time in the cardboard stocks with each kid tossing very wet sponges at him.  The indoor activity was a craft.  The kids decorated made royal wands to go with the royal goblets they bejeweled when they arrived.  They also had the opportunity to magically transform a toilet paper roll, a piece of cardboard and some duct tape into an operating catapult.  Very impressive.  Very … aww.

Then yesterday, thanks to the efforts of Bob Wyrick filling in for me at Seaside, we were able to attend Noa’s baby dedication at her church in League City.  I was even asked to speak the blessing over Noa and her family.  That was a surprise and an honor, of course.  During the service Noa sat, then stood between her two oldest brothers, Jachin and Micah.  Any guy who wants to date her in the future is going to face quite a formidable obstacle.  As the singing started, so did her swaying.  And as the band reached an interlude, she followed their lead and nodded her head in time to the music.  As the singing continued she began to notice the guy across the aisle doing sign language interpretation.  Soon, as the song continued, her hands slowly rose and began to join in the sway with interpretive actions all her own.  Aww.  Absolutely fascinating look at the learning and developing of the act of worship in a two-year-old.  Parents, take note.  You can teach your child to worship.  It’s your job.

After the service a photographer was set up in another room to take free portraits for the Moms and their families.  As the last group walked away, Kel made a special request of the photographer.  Could he take a picture of Kel with his parents?  Go ahead and say it … aww.  Well, it would have been if he hadn’t added, “It’s so I can have evidence of being an only child.”  Uh huh.  I think your brothers might have something to say about that.  We did the extra portrait, and while we were there the guy even took one of just me and Chris, so I guess at some point we will have an official 40^th anniversary professional portrait.  Now you can say it again … aww. 

Deuteronomy 11:18-19 says, “Fix these words of mine in your hearts and minds; tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads.  Teach them to your children, talking about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up.”

Father, thank you for weekends with our little guys and for the chance to watch them worship.  Amen.  

May 10 – “At the end of the leash was …”

Well, we do have some interesting people in our neighborhood.  I glanced out of our front window yesterday and noticed what I first thought to be a couple out with their dog for an early Saturday morning stroll.  Certainly not unusual in itself, especially in our neighborhood.  After all, Chris and I are often the couple doing the walking.  But for some reason these two caught my attention.  Part of that, I suppose, was because I didn’t recognize them.  We do watch out for each other in Gulf Village.  And I guess the other part would be that I wanted to see what kind of dog that was they were walking.

They disappeared behind the big oleander bush before I could see the creature that was obviously tugging strongly at his leash.  A brief glimpse before they vanished behind the car piqued my interest for sure.  There was something very different about whatever was on the front end of that tether.  I turned my full attention to the sight outside our glass storm door.  This I was not going to miss.  And as they emerged … I was a bit stunned, to say the least.  The man was there, as was his female human counterpart.  But the dog was … not exactly a dog.  The man was indeed struggling with his grip.  But this wasn’t a leash at all.  He was holding … a leaf blower.  Yep.  By the handle, just as if he was clearing a path of debris in front of his fair maiden so she could walk upon a totally unobstructed path.  What a knight in shining armor.  What a role model for young husbands everywhere.  What a … strange man.  But then, we do live less than a mile from WalMart, and you know what interesting people can be seen there every day.

Psalms 25:6 says, “Remember, O Lord, your great mercy and love, for they are from of old.”

Father, thank you for the great array of people you have created and placed in my little part of your world.  They make for an incredible adventure.  Amen.

May 9 – “A harmless little plan”

Yep.  I have the expected “Lawn Boy” aches and pains this morning.  Along with the usual weekly mowing and edging, I fell into the trap of locating and destroying individual clumps of those dreaded interlopers, sticker burs.  It all started when I decided to rake out the dead patches of weeds that succumbed to the Weed n Feed we put out.  Over on the side of our house there was plenty to rake, and plenty more that survived the poisonous incursion of several weeks ago.

On the other side of the house, however, we have growing two very unique versions of oleanders.  If I remember right, they were called Mexican oleanders for some reason.  They were given to us by none other than the oleander society in their effort to complete the takeover of the Island by the invasive poisonous species.  These two finally took off without much tender loving care, and this year they have a fascinating yellow, cup-like bloom that has a less-than malodorous scent.  OK.  Yes, I mean that it didn’t smell all that bad.  Kind of sweet, actually. 

But it was the object I found underneath one of the bushes that truly caught my attention this fine Friday morning.  So wondrous was this spectacle that I had to share it with Chris.  We have been married almost 40 years, and we have come to share just about everything with each other.  I went to the front door and called out for her to come share the unique object with me.  She assumed it would a bird’s nest.  Those are always wondrous finds as well.  But not this time.  This was special.

Now I wanted it to be a surprise, so I concocted a harmless little plan.  As she rounded the corner I grabbed a limb of the oleander with an especially odoriferous flower.  I explained its pungent, yet not overpowering scent.  I urged her to join me in experiencing this wonder of nature.  And she was hooked.  She approached without reservation, surprised by my excitement over anything oleander-ish.  But just before she reached the key patch of ground that would also allow her to experience an additional thrill first-hand, she happened to glance at the ground in front of her.  And she stopped dead in her tracks.  There before her was the wonderfully flattened carcass of a quite large rat.  Her reaction was, if I may say so, priceless.  And I must also hasten to say, the bruises on my arms should be healing quite nicely soon. 

Here’s a little background on the fun escapade that makes it even more comical.  Chris had just been called out on FaceBook by Allen Dammeyer concerning her obvious distaste for the rodentia of the world, even to the extent of relocating her presence to the upper-levels of the atmosphere (well, at least to the top of a chair) when she spots even a cute, little bitty, tiny one in the house.  She formulated a great response about his own terror rendering him immobile, and his fear causing him to double over in humiliation (or something along those lines).  It was quite an accurate description of what I remember seeing, although I probably would have described it more like, “he was laughing so hard he couldn’t even move off the couch.”  But, then, that wasn’t my story.  It does, however, add a certain layer of depth of understanding to my harmless little plan, does it not?

Genesis 1:24 says, “And God said, ‘Let the land produce living creatures according to their kinds: livestock, creatures that move along the ground, and wild animals, each according to its kind.’ And it was so.”

Father, thank you for my wife.  She sure has put up with a lot of harmless little plans over the years.  And she’s still around.  Wow.  Amen.

May 8 – “Fire call irony”

Yesterday was the National Day of Prayer.  In Galveston that meant a gathering of folks on the front steps of the Criminal Justice Center.  I thought the meeting was to be at the old courthouse downtown, but when no one else was there by five minutes to noon, I knew I was at the wrong place.  I did make it to the correct site in plenty of time, though.  You can get pretty much anywhere on the Island in ten or fifteen minutes.

I do have one strong memory of this particular site.  Several years ago I attended another National Day of Prayer celebration there.  As I arrived I turned off my phone and entered into the spirit of the occasion.  An hour later, when I turned my phone back on, I saw that Chris had called and even left a message to call her back right away.  I made that call from the car on my way home.  Seems Mom had collapsed in the bathtub and the fire department was already there.  Sure enough, when I pulled up they were loading her into the ambulance.  Chris had managed to connect with Nathan and he got the squad over there.  Mom had stopped breathing at least for a time.  She recovered from that one.  Pretty scary stuff, though.

The mayor was there, proclaiming the day official.  Some local pastors led in prayer, as did one police officer.  Lots of sheriff deputies were scattered throughout the crowd, not for security, but because they were there to join in.  I stopped counting at 150 people, so it was a good turnout.  Prayers went up for our national government, our military, our state and local leaders, racial reconciliation, students, police officers.  They prayed for everybody … except fire fighters and paramedics.  Felt kind of strange, too, since I was in my chaplain gear.  I’m sure it was just an oversight, nothing intentional or political going on.  But I thought it was ironic that right in the middle of the whole thing, just as I began to realize that fire fighters had been missed, station five, which is right in front of the criminal justice center, got a call.  As the engine pulled away, I followed my usual protocol.  I focused on the siren and did some praying of my own.  Gotta keep our guys lifted up there before the Lord. 

2 Chronicles 7:14 says, “if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sins and will heal their land.”

Father, thank you for all the folks who came out to spend time praying.  Hear our prayers.  We could all sure use the help.  Amen.