For the benefit of those of you not living in Tennessee our landscape is beginning to wake up from its winter sleep. Many Bradford pear trees in Springfield have begun to bloom and the other day I saw a fence row full of forsythia at their peak. The field across the road from Steve and Connie Freelenad’s house has a pretty carpet of purple clover.
PAULINE’S SURGERY. Vicki took Pauline to the hospital yesterday morning for her surgery. As they were waiting Pauline said to Vicki, “I can’t believe I’m here at the hospital when I’m feeling so good.” Seizing the opportunity for a good come back Vicki said, “Oh, don’t worry. Just wait a little bit and you will be feeling bad.” That earned her an eye roll from her mother as she agreed.
The operation got under way sometime during mid-afternoon. The procedure was supposed to take 2-3 hours but lasted about 6 hours due to scar tissue from a previous operation. The doctor was pleased with how things went and was happy to report that the lab work showed that all the cancer was contained in the tissue they removed so no further treatment would be necessary! When she was brought back to her room from recovery Vicki said she was kind and even cracking jokes with those caring for her. We really appreciate your prayers and ask that you continue to remember Pauline as she recovers.
SPRING BREAK. This has slipped up on me this year as several projects at work have kept me pretty focused. We had not planned on going anywhere this week so Pauline’s surgery hit at a good time as I can stay home with the kids without taking any time off. We did go on a fun outing yesterday afternoon. Our trip took us to Opry Mills where we ate supper at the Alabama Grill (don’t go without a coupon) and then bowling. This was the first time the kids had bowled and I think it was a hit. Jenna and Ben want to do this for their birthdays. It was sort of embarrassing for me as I came in last place even if the kids did have the bumpers up. Vicki is the bowling queen of the family. (This last bit of information was hard for me to divulge.)
What has been really fun for the boys is that they have a standing invitation this week to spend the night upstairs with Jenna. They take turns at this. The sweet part is that after Jenna and one of her brothers turns in we’ll hear her reading an additional bedtime story before they turn their lights out. Those boys don’t realize what a cool big sister they have.
SAVING FACE. I often describe Ben as being like a piece of flubber. It is a constant battle to keep him from doing things like jumping from couch to couch in the living room. When a kid has this much energy you can count on the fact that he is sure to slip and fall or run into something at least once a day.
For those of you who have not visited our house our kitchen table will seat six but it is a bit tight. We normally store the fifth chair in front of the window between the stove and the sink and as it is rare that all five of us are at the table for breakfast and lunch. (In case you are wondering, flubber-boy flipped the sixth chair over a couple of years ago and broke the back off. We’ve just never bothered to replace it. I thought then that the ride to the floor would have scared some sense into the boy. Glad I didn’t have any money on that horse.) The other morning Ben zips into the kitchen while we are cooking breakfast. Around four feet from the chair he launches himself. Forgetting he has socks on he miscalculates the traction he will have when landing on the chair seat and slides to an ungraceful crash between the chair and stove. Picking himself up, and with a sheepish expression on his face, he allayed our fears for his well being saying, “I’m alright, I meant to do that.” This is not the first time we’ve heard him say this and I’d say it is a safe bet to say it won’t be the last.
PASSOVER. I have been attending a Bible study on Sunday evenings at church titled Walking with Jesus through the Jewish Calendar (published by the Caspari Center). It has been a very fascinating study for me and is ending with a Passover meal. We are splitting our Seder meal into two parts because it normally takes about 2-3 hours to complete it. We did the first half Sunday evening.
I think the reason why I have enjoyed this so much is that I have gotten a new perspective about many of the claims Jesus made about himself and why he chose to makes these claims at the times he did (and why he made the Pharisees so mad). The neat thing about doing the Seder meal is that we have studied the structure of it along side the Last Supper Jesus has with his disciples before His crucifixion. For example, you think about Jesus dipping the bread and serving it to Judas before Judas left to betray Him (John 13:26-27) and then eat a cracker loaded with a glob of horseradish and you’ll think Satan has entered you too! All joking aside, I know I’ll never be an expert in Jewish customs but I have learned things through this study that I’ve never seen before studying the Word from a strictly American perspective.
Joe
