January 28 – “Coincidentally”

Church yesterday was another exciting day.  We had right around 80 people there.  Lots of interaction during the teaching as well.  In fact I stopped about halfway through.  Too much material and too little time.  Felt like I was back in my TA days at seminary when I was filling in for the professor I worked for.  We are having a lot of folks from the nearby RV parks.  I watched one group of eight (four couples) gather in the parking lot, then descend upon the worship center all at once.  Kind of ominous-looking.  Our new friends from Canada and Missouri were back as well.  Snow bird season is officially upon us.  Oh, and we even had a few folks who have just moved to the area full time. I had a gentleman stop me before church to ask a specific question about an issue he was dealing with – how do you reconcile loving people even when they do things that outright disgust you.  “Coincidentally,” that was one of the teaching points of the sermon.  I love it when God does stuff like that. 

Sunday afternoon we were invited, along with some other guests from church, to the Dawson’s new house for lunch.  After a rousing bowl of taco soup, we all gathered in their living room for a house blessing service.  We did some praying and scripture reading from their old Bible (to represent their Jesus-based roots) as well as a brand new one (to represent the new life ahead of them as home-owners under Jesus as well).  I splashed some water in four directions using a flower to represent our request that the beauty and joy of the Holy Spirit fill each of them as well as every corner of the house with his presence.  Finally they agreed that the from that point forward the house should be declared as belonging to its true owner, the king of Kings and Lord of Lords – Jesus.  He is, for the time being at least, allowing them to be his stewards and take care of the house for him.  I’m sure it was a little different, but even the cocker spaniel did a great job of sitting quietly while we worked our way through it. 

Psalms 136:23-26 says,

“to the One who remembered us in our low estate

    His love endures forever.

and freed us from our enemies,

      His love endures forever.

and who gives food to every creature.

      His love endures forever.

Give thanks to the God of heaven.

      His love endures forever.”

Father, thank you for chances to try new things as we acknowledge you as God over all.  Amen.

January 27 – “Opulent”

Watch out for this guy, folks.  He just orchestrated not one, but two – count ‘em – two dates, two days in a row.  It was hard to top the musical theater of Friday night, but we engaged in a lighter, more aerobic trek on Saturday. 

Well, the “more aerobic” part started after we enjoyed lunch at none other than Shrimp and Stuff.  I had the popcorn shrimp dinner.  Chris stuck with popcorn shrimp a la carte.  Can’t beat that. 

Then we headed downtown for the inaugural Galveston Museum Day.  The Galveston museums were offering free or two-for-one admissions.  And I will say up front that we did locate and appropriate the services of a very cute little stuffed dolphin named – what else – Darryl to be our tour guide.  We have never toured the Moody Mansion in particular, so that’s where we began our little day trip.  That place is … opulent (Always wanted to use that word in a sentence).  Unbelievably lush furnishings and even had material on some the walls instead of paint.   

Next we stopped by Rosenberg Library.  Now we have been there a time or two before, but they had a little scavenger hunt going on, so we wanted to join in on the fun.  You had to walk all around the library and find the answers to some questions in the little handout they gave you.  Fun stuff, except for the one trick question about when the library opened.  I figured it out before we turned in our entry, though.  Oh, and because we completed the entire trek, we won a pen with Rosenberg Library stamped on the side. 

Our last stop was the famed Bishop’s Palace. Yes, we have been there before, but not since we were in college and Chris had to do a report on architecture for her sophomore CORE class.  That was one or two years ago.  The only thing either of us remembered was that it has a fireplace in every room.  Still does.  It really is a beautiful place to see, especially when the price is … free.  Chris found a thimble there for her collection.  We also got a free t-shirt and a coloring book because we had seen at least three of the museums.  How many people can say they garnered such valuable souvenirs on a date?  And to top it off, by the time we finished we had walked up and down four flights of stairs and walked a mile and a half.  That’s a pretty productive, aerobic date day. 

Psalms 136:7-9 says, “Who made the great lights — His love endures forever.  The sun to govern the day, His love endures forever.  The moon and stars to govern the night; His love endures forever.”

Father, thank you for opportunities to do fun stuff with Chris.  Amen.

January 26 – “It’s a date”

We finally had a bit of an eventful day.  Guess we had to wait for a “day off” for it to happen.  Now by “day off” I mean I didn’t work on the computer.  What we ended up doing did amount to a bit of work on a few different levels.

First off, we did a workout.  Not like a “go to physical therapy and play with the machines and therbands” kind of workout, though.  We walked two miles, then followed each other up and down the deck stairs for three or four minutes.  It was certainly enough to give my knee a workout, so I would say it counts.

Then we made our way into Texas for another side of the “work” coin.  I had to pick up some Bibles and birthday cards at Lifeway Christian Store in Webster.  While that far away from home we also made a stop at Hobby Lobby.  That would be Chris’ domain.  She needed some sewing stuff.  We also went to the big Best Buy up by Baybrook Mall.  Impressive place.  We wanted to get a lens protector for Chris’ camera and a few more accessories if they had them.  The guy who helped us out, Jose, was pretty amazing.  He was even wearing his camera on a strap around his neck so he could show us various uses of the accessories.  It took us about ten minutes to get what we needed and be out of the store.  That is pretty much a record, I’m sure. 

When we got home we had some other work to do.  The chairs we ordered for our patio (the one that now has lots of space because we sent our hot tub to the Dawson Rescue Farm) were delivered.  Two of them were smaller, so all we had to do was take them out of the box.  The two bigger ones, however, came with “some assembly required.”  Not a good sign.  We ran into some difficulties with the first one, but we persevered and finally got it together (the chair, too).  The second one is always easier.  It went off without a hitch.  We now have a place to sit on the patio.  Next on the list for out there?  Maybe a ceiling fan?

The highlight of the day came last night.  On the spur of the moment we decided to … drum roll here … go on a date.  Actually I just found out that the Galveston Independent School District musical was in its last night over at the high school.  We have been to one of those before, so it was not a hard decision.  As it turned out, it was a good decision as well.  Before we even made it up the steps to the building, a lady called out to us and handed us two extra tickets that she had.  No charge.  That was certainly a good start.  Can’t beat the price.  We saw a few folks we knew in the lobby and once we went in to get seated.  But once the show started all eyes were on the stage.  Some folks were obviously there to see their little one prance about dressed as Peter Pan or Robin Hood or even the Gingerbread Man (This was a performance that used all the kiddos in the Galveston schools.  Lots of young talent out there).  Others, like us, were there just to enjoy the show.  And we did.  The lead characters all had fabulous voices.  My favorite, though was the girl who sang the voice of the dragon.  She was just in ninth grade, but her voice was amazing.  The donkey was quite entertaining with his wild antics.  The evil (and short.  He played the role on his knees) prince handled his comedic role well.  The Shrek character had a booming deep voice, and the Fiona character was obviously in her element.  She owned the stage with her dancing, singing, and overall stage presence.  Wish I could recommend that you catch the next performance, but that was it.  Maybe I’ll find out about it sooner next year …

Psalms 136:4-6 says, “To him who alone does great wonders, His love endures forever.  Who by his understanding made the heavens, His love endures forever.  Who spread out the earth upon the waters, His love endures forever.”

Father, thank you for the amazing display of talent we saw exhibited last night.  You have certainly gifted some of those youngsters.  May they each find ways to use that gift to your glory.  Amen.

January 25 – “Are you cutting me loose?”

I should have known something was up.  We arrived at physical therapy to find my original therapist was back at the fore of my recovery bid.  And of course the first thing she did was stop at the dreaded, evil Blue Circle of Balance machine.  It had been so long that she had to remind me how to operate everything, but sadly it all came back quickly enough.  I have to say that it was indeed much easier than it had been the first time I attempted it, but it still had its moments of delighting in tossing me off balance. 

We moved from there to the other balance contraptions.  Guiding a ball through a maze while balancing on a ball at one end of the maze.  Rocking back and forth on a board with a bar in the middle under it.  Standing toe to heel on a three inch thick mat with my eyes closed for thirty seconds (Hey, you try it.  Harder than you think).  I have to admit there were a more than a few times when I got distracted and started playing around on the devices while she wasn’t looking.  You know, pretending to be surfing or crossing a pit of burning lava on a tiny strand of … well, I digress.  But I think you get the idea. 

Finally she led me over to “The Table.”  That’s when I was sure of what was to come next.  The dreaded “Measurements.”  I made my way onto the table, and while she was preparing her computer, I struggled to bend my knee as far as I could possibly get it.  When she turned around I assured her that it would be a good idea to take this measurement first because I probably couldn’t get it any more bent.  She agreed, and as it turned out my goal of 122 degrees has officially been blown out of the water.  133 degrees.  That’s the same measurement as my other knee.  Guess that’s a check on the old checklist.  The other measurements all showed significant advancement as well.  And when she told me to squeeze my knees together while she tried to keep them apart, I was able to overcome her pressure and push her ring into the other hand hard enough for her to cry “uncle.” 

She backed off then and said, “You are a Superstar.”  I replied, “So am I done here?”  She said, “Well, you have several more appointments scheduled.”  I asked. “Do I have to keep them?”  She answered, “Do you want to keep them?”  This was becoming quite the cute little game.  I finally just outright asked, “So are you cutting me loose?”  And she said, “You are a free man.”  There it was.  She canceled the future appointments, assured me that she would be around if anything came up that I needed, and wished me well.  Now I get to make up my own crazy exercises instead of doing the ones they make up.  Hmm.  I wonder how long it will take to leap onto a chair … Can’t wait …

Psalms 136:1-3 says, “Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good.  His love endures forever.  Give thanks to the God of gods.  His love endures forever.  Give thanks to the Lord of lords: His love endures forever.”

Father, thank you for the great news.  Help me to stay consistent with exercising so I can get this built back up to where it needs to be.  Amen.

January 24 – “A encounter of the aging ones”

As I prepare to head off to physical therapy again I am reminded of a brief anecdote that happened at the last appointment.  Well, after it actually.  As we were leaving the PT clinic someone at the counter checking in swung his head around in our direction.  I just caught the movement out of the corner of my eye, and I almost didn’t turn back around, but I was curious, and it was a human being that I might have a chance to connect with, so turn around I did. 

Sure enough the gentleman was staring in my direction, and I recognized him right away as Ted, a guy I went to school with many, many years ago.  We exchanged pleasantries and as I was leaving, he tossed out this word of wisdom: “You know you’re getting old when you see your old football buddies … at the physical therapy clinic.”  Ah, how the truth hurts, eh, Teddy?

It did turn off cold and rainy again yesterday.  38 degrees with a wind chill of below 30.  We stayed inside.  Well, except when I ventured out to pick up the trash cans.  After emptying them, the truck had dropped them off – literally – into a heap in the street in front of the house.  They were blocking the driveway for the other outside excursion.  Chris went to get her hair cut.  It looks great.  She sure is cute.  And I get to see her every day.  Now that’s a gift from God.  At least it is to me.  Not sure how she feels about that …

Psalms 135:13 says, “Your name, O Lord, endures forever, your renown, O Lord, through all generations.”

Father, thank you yet again for the great gift of my wife.  And for friends who still  remember me.  Amen.

January 23 – “Working on my whining …”

Well, after my long weekend of sorts, it was back to the physical therapy grind yesterday.  And to my chagrin, they invented some more new stuff for me to do.  T6he guy even turned me around backwards on the treadmill and had me walking downhill.  Weird feeling.  Then he increased the weight on the leg lift weight machine.  That squished my knee together closer than it has ever been (well, “ever” since the surgery anyway), I’m pretty sure, so I guess that’s a good thing.  Throw in there a couple of minutes doing dipsy doodles.  I told him about my snafu with the timer doing them at home the day before.  Right in the middle of one of the runs he announced, “Two minutes left.”  Fine.  I kept on going.  Then he quickly added, “Oh, wait.  I mean one minute.”  Smart aleck.  I think he got ahold of my timer.  And the theraband exercise where my legs are tied together?  Now I have to squat while I walk sideways like a crab.  With my knees perpendicular to the ground and my back straight.  Sure.

And after all that power lifting and downhill racing and dipsy doodling, THEN he announced that we were going to do some balance work.  I could barely stand up with both legs, and now he was taking away one at a time.  I had to balance on that upside-down ball again, but this time the ball side was down, making it much harder, of course.  Oh, and I had to squat.  Of course.  The balance beam cushions weren’t too bad.  At least that one was familiar.  I gotta keep at it though.  Only three more scheduled sessions before I find out if I am officially released by them. 

I spent most of the rest of the day working at the computer.  I did get a lot of work done, but I also sure got stiff from all that sitting after working out.  Sigh.  Such “horrendous” difficulties.  Actually I’m just working on my whining a little bit.  How am I doing?

Psalms 135:5-7 says, “I know that the Lord is great, that our Lord is greater than all gods.  The Lord does whatever pleases him, in the heavens and on the earth, in the seas and all their depths.  He makes clouds rise from the ends of the earth; he sends lightning with the rain and brings out the wind from his storehouses.”

Father, thank you for progress.  Sometimes painfully slow.  Sometimes comes in a rush.  Help me to keep looking forward.  Amen.

January 22 – “4X6 memory-assist tools”

We remembered about halfway through the morning yesterday that it was a holiday.  No mail delivery.  Banks closed.  That sort of thing.  So instead of working we decided to just do something together for the day.  And what should rise to the fore but organizing all the phots we picked up from CVS? 

Why organize?  Well, they were not exactly in day by day order any more.  Well, some were.  And some were tossed in fifty or a hundred pictures away.  I think they came out the way they were uploaded by our computer and the store’s capture program for that sort of thing.  Oh as far as we could tell they were all there.  But that meant we had to go through them one by one and match them up with the order Chris had established on the computer.  Tedious work, to be sure.  But we were together, right?  Counts as a date, right?

Date or not, we finally completed the task around 5 p.m. last night.  And we were still talking to each other.  We were even laughing and remembering, certainly things one would be expected to be engaging in while sorting through memories.  We filled up a shoebox, so now it’s all in Chris’ court as she begins to translate the image she has in her head of a scrapbook into real life.  I for one can’t wait to see what she comes up with.  But don’t hurry her.  It will take a while. 

Gotta run.  It’s almost time for my physical agony – er - therapy session.

Psalms 135:3 says, “Praise the Lord, for the Lord is good; sing praise to his name, for that is pleasant.”

Father, thank you for those laughing and remembering things called memories and for those little 4X6 memory-assist tools.  Oh, and thanks for the idea in Chris’ head that will eventually become the scrapbook.  Kind of like the idea you had that eventually became … well … us.  Amen.