Our Anniversary

It was our anniversary the other night and CrazyMom and I went out for dinner.  I am inclined to say, "With as many kids as we have underfoot, it is good to get out of the house for some time alone," but that would not be honest.  Sure we have lots of kids, but they are not what keep CrazyMom and I from connecting.  If anything, their demands often bring us together - around the dinner table or around the campfire.  What keeps us from connecting is the to-do list.  So the more accurate statement is, "With as many things as I have on my to-do list, it is good to get out of the house for some time alone."

During my burn-the-to-do-list night, CrazyMom and I saw some wild things.  We went to an area where there were lots of restaurants and shops on a night when the weather was inviting people to be outside.  If you have ever seen one of those nature shows with exotic birds that do crazy calls and gestures in order to attract a mate, then you can imagine the scene.  Not only were many people dressed like they were looking for a mate, but when they were standing around talking to the people in their small groups their eyes were constantly scanning the crowds looking for that perfect person. 

There is no question that their methodology is fraught with peril - shorts that don't quite cover one's cheeks is not a good indicator of lasting love.  Yet I do hope they find the person for which they are looking.  As I sat there with my bride of 17 years, I know that I have and it has made all the difference in the world.

Our Second Home

I am sitting around a campfire right now off somewhere in PA. Our family came here for some extended family reunions and opted for a campsite rather than renting two hotel rooms each night. It has been great, but it has caused me to reflect on our second home.

When I hear that someone has a second home the image that comes to mind is some nice place in a vacation-type spot – in the mountains, on a lake, or near the ocean. Sure the home may be a little smaller than their first home, but it is one of those magical places filled with so many positive family memories.

A few weeks ago when I was in New York State, I had the chance to talk with a missionary who worked with remote people groups in northern Kenya. When he was in Kenya, there were several other missionaries working in his general area and every once in awhile they would travel to the same spot to get together. He had a photo of a “village” with a couple of stick and mud homes of the local African tribe and then there were a handful of Coleman tents that the missionaries were camping in while they were meeting. The local Africa people thought the missionaries were so rich. All the missionaries had, after all, two homes.

Now I had never thought of our family tent as a second home, but I guess it is. It is a little smaller than our first home, but is often in a vacation spot and it is filled with so many positive family memories. I just needed to get a little African perspective on things in order to fully appreciate my second home.

Buddy’s Birthday

Buddy’s Birthday

We have been on the go for the last three weeks. Between Africa, New York state, and Michigan, I have only spent two nights in my bed since the madness began. While I hope to catch all of you up on these trips and what is going on in our lives soon, first things first – Buddy had a birthday.

Since we were on the road, we celebrated Buddy’s birthday in a hotel. Just to give you an idea of what kind of eleven-year-old boy Buddy is, here are a few shots of him in the pool.

The Cannon Ball

The Belly Smacker

The Back Smacker

The Gang

CrazyMom is amazing, as you know. Even though we were on the road, she had a homemade cake for Buddy. It was not her finest creation (you can see her princess cake here), but pretty impressive given all that was going on in our lives.

Buddy got some great presents – like this kitchen appliance. It is not every boy that asks for a dehydrator for his birthday.

Happy birthday, Buddy!

Soccer-Frenzied Weekend

Our soccer-free weekend last weekend led to a soccer-frenzied weekend this weekend with six soccer games over the three days.  One of the highlights was that the team that Miss Bookworm and Ed are on won their tournament.  F.G. and Buddy also did well at the end of their season and were able to play in the all-star game.

Soccer-Free Saturday

Since it is a holiday weekend, we had a soccer-free Saturday.  It was wonderful.  I just love it when our kids have large chunks of unscheduled time where they can play and create without adult programming.  The weather was gorgeous, which resulted in lots of quality time in the yard.

Miss Bookworm and Ed making a castle.

Another Day, Another Cause

Mother’s Day, Sweetest Day, Take Our Daughters and Sons to Work Day – the list goes on and on for the special days we create for the things we care about. Well, May 7th is a day that is close to my heart; it is World AIDS Orphan Day.

It is staggering to try to come to terms with the number of children who are orphaned by AIDS in our world and who themselves may be HIV+. So on this day I ask not that you try to come to terms with all of them, but rather to come to terms with just one story – the story of Tenagne and her nephew.

Tenagne and her nephew's story

In this world there are children who are HIV+ and children who are not, but that is not the divide that I think about. I think about the divide between those who receive medicine and those who do not. When I was in Ethiopia, CrazyMom and I stood in the midst of over 50 children at the AHOPE orphanage for HIV+ children. The children were so full of life as they enjoyed ice cream on a bright sunny day. They also were the lucky ones. Of all of the children in the country with the double misfortune of being orphaned by AIDS and being HIV+ themselves, these few somehow made it to AHOPE. And making it to AHOPE meant receiving life-giving medicine – and the hope of a mom and dad.

Impromptu Togetherness

The other day we were walking back from an ice cream shop when the kids draped their arms over each other and started walking as a group.  There was a lot of fun positive energy radiating from them, which made for one of those common but magical moments.  Sure, the kids can bicker and squabble and all of that, but just as often they create an atmosphere of togetherness that CrazyMom and I can't create on our own.

Made in Pakistan

As a big soccer family, we are in the full swing of the spring soccer season. As I lug a bag of soccer balls to the field and back nearly every day, I have noticed that all of the soccer balls are made in Pakistan. Now I don’t know exactly how the balls were made, but the image I can’t shake from my mind is one that I came across a few years back. It was a photo of a young Honduran boy – maybe 8 years old - who had fallen asleep at a dilapidated worktable as he was stitching softballs. His clothes were indistinguishable from the dirt around him. He was holding a softball in one hand and a needle in another, but he was sound asleep. My heart went out to the boy.

The photo moved me enough that I hung it up in my classroom for a few years. Now, every time I pick up a softball I think about that boy. Did I get a better price on the softball by shifting the cost to that young boy?

But those were softballs, and we don’t play much softball in our house. But tonight I decided to do a quick search about all of the “Made in Pakistan” soccer balls in my home. The top Google hits were not encouraging. It seems like getting children to sew things for us Americans is not limited to Central America.

My searches made me feel uncomfortable enough that I decided to look for some fair trade soccer balls. They were easy enough to find, but they cost more. (At Amazon.com you can search “soccer balls” and compare that to “fair trade soccer balls”.)

So what will I do the next time I need a soccer ball?

I hope I put my money where my mouth is.

Striving

I have been reflecting on the verb “to strive” of late. In part, I suppose, because I find myself striving so much. When my head hits the pillow at night, I simply switch from physically striving to mentally striving as I turn over new ideas in my mind. Now, while the fine line between working hard and being a workaholic is lost on me, I am smart enough to know that it matters what you are striving for. I am one who is not prone to strive for worldly things - gold, glory, and girls as Ray, a missionary in Ethiopia, once told me.

Or so I thought.

On the way home from church yesterday we were listening to “Peter and the Sword of Mercy” on CD. Having spent the morning thinking over my motives, I started a conversation around motives at lunch.

“So kids. What do you think motivates the bad guys in this story?” I asked.

“They want the Sword of Mercy!” K.D. said excitedly.

“But why?”

“So they can get the star stuff,” said K.D.

“But why do they want the star stuff?”

“Because they want to rule the world!” said Little Foot.

“Yes, they do. They want to rule the world. They want the power to make everybody do what they want them to do,” I said.

But seeking power is not my vice.

I have been telling myself, “so whether you eat, or drink, or whatever you do, do all for the glory of God.” If it is for God’s glory, then I had better do a fantastic job, I tell myself. And so I strive to do a fantastic job at all of the things that *I* have put on my plate.

But Sunday morning, as my thoughts on striving mingled with the congregation singing “I’d rather have Jesus,” I was not able to convince myself that my motives were so pure.

“I’d rather have Jesus than men’s applause,” we sang.

“Glory,” I could hear Ray saying. One of the three things we men strive for.

So do I strive to do things well for God’s glory or for my own? I fear that is another line that is lost on me.

Lord, help me to live for Your glory and not my own.

Easter