What's the White Stuff?

 I do not want to ignore the fact that many have endured hardship through the recent winter weather. I have cousins in Texas who have been without power through the cold for several days. Ben and his housemates had no power for almost a day, however, they have a wood stove in their kitchen and so, could gather in one room to stay warm and even cook some food. Ben was in last weekend for Nate's birthday and I sent him back in my truck with a load of firewood so I think between that and what they already had on hand they are in good shape.

Last weekend was supposed to be a four day weekend for DA students due to parent/teacher conferences on Friday and the President's Day holiday on Monday. Then our administration gave holidays to the seniors Wednesday and Thursday of last week as a consolation for the traditional senior trip that they can't go on because of the pandemic. About that time the winter weather started rolling in and icy conditions shut schools down all across Middle Tennessee and beyond beginning last Thursday. And since our administration didn't say to shift to our distance learning mode we've all enjoyed seven good old-fashioned snow days.

Fortunately for us the first wave packed very little freezing rain or we might have lost power. It was mostly sleet and a dry, powdery snow. It didn't fall all at once, but sputtered to the ground for more than a day. We got out Tuesday and went sledding on what little hill there is that is walking distance from the house. I should pause and say that "we" includes Nolan as he came on Sunday for Nate's birthday dinner with the plan to get snowed in with us. Vicki went back to work on Wednesday, but a second wave of snow came through and refreshed the winter wonderland scene. This snow was wetter and better for snowballs and snowmen. We went up to Kilgore Park Thursday and went sledding on the hill there.

Classes were canceled for me and Nate, but Jenna and Nolan weren't so lucky. Jenna's classes have shifted online due to the weather and Nolan has been doing online only due to the pandemic anyway, so they are just finding a quiet space and doing class when they need to. We are also playing some games and watching some movies, but a big project right now is picture organization.

Vicki and I had said to ourselves that 2021 will be the year we make a serious dent in organizing our pictures, at least the pre-digital ones. We have thousands. Then you add all that Mom had into the mix and we have a truly daunting task in front of us. So last weekend I pulled out all the boxes that have pictures, hoping I got at least 90% of them. All of Mom's slides were put in one place and set aside to deal with later. It has been pretty easy to take our snapshots and put them in a large group to organize later. What has been immediately interesting to me has been Mom's pictures. Except for looking at them briefly a couple of years ago when we cleaned out her house, I really haven't seen pictures from my childhood since they were developed. Mom had such limited storage space that they were basically inaccessible once she found a hole to stick them in. What's worse is that a batch of pictures of me as a four year old are next to a batch of pictures from my high school days, so I'm just trying to get these in some sort of chronological order as a starting point to make sense out of what I have. Fortunately I've had this stretch of days to start this project so that I could organize things into manageable chunks to tackle on a given evening when life returns to normal.

Having alluded to Nate's birthday twice now, he turned 18 on Sunday. So hard to believe. We celebrated with dinner after church so Ben could beat the weather driving back to Cookeville. Vicki made chicken fajitas with all the trimmings. For dessert she made strawberry cake from Pauline's recipe which is one of Nate's favorites. Nate got a weighted blanket and light saber chopsticks (that actually light up) among his birthday presents; all in all a good birthday for our new adult in the house.

So now the snow is beginning to melt and the magical landscape is disappearing. Jenna and Nolan build a snowman on the north side of the big boxwood bush. Given the temperature has risen above freezing and will hit the 60s the next few days we are taking bets on the poor guy’s longevity. Life will resume its normal pace tomorrow and next thing you know it'll be spring break and then Nate's last nine week term of high school. Not meaning to wish hardship on others, but it has been very nice to have the weather force us to stop life and stay home without distance learning classes this time.

Joe

Cameron Got Hitched

 Last weekend we made a whirlwind trip to Belmont, North Carolina, where, as I quipped to my students, we went to see my 6' 7" nephew marry his 4' 11" fiancée. Cameron and Jessica seem to be a very well matched couple in spite of the 20" height difference.

I announced here that Cameron had proposed to Jessica some 18 months ago (July 2019); a lengthy engagement so Jessica could finish graduate school. Of course, no one then suspected the pandemic would change the world by their wedding day. This was to be a much larger affair than it turned out to be with many of Jessica's relatives planning to fly here from the Philippines to attend. Travel restrictions forced them to watch the ceremony and reception via Facebook Live. And really, after Ben and Nate both had their brushes with the virus we are just thankful we weren't stuck at home doing the same thing.

I think the only major hiccup for us is that Vicki had found a really good deal on a VRBO for us to stay at and just days before we were set to arrive the owner of the home had to cancel our reservation due to a broken water heater. We wound up staying the first night in a hotel and the second night at the VRBO with the Jones family. It all worked out to be an unexpected blessing for us in many ways.

Traveling was uneventful. We picked Ben up in Cookeville as we passed through and dropped him off on the way home. We got to Belmont after dark Friday night, checked in to our hotel, and were looking for somewhere to eat supper when we got a text from Will and Darice asking if we wanted to come to the rehearsal dinner so that was a very pleasant surprise.

The wedding the next day began at 3:00 so our morning was pretty slow. When we arrived at the basilica on campus the wedding party were taking pictures on the front steps. We were glad the predicted rain held off. Jessica made a stunningly beautiful bride. Cameron cleans up well.

It was a very beautiful ceremony which included three Filipino wedding traditions in the Mass that were very special once I read the description provided in the program and understood the meaning. Jessica's brother sang throughout the Mass. He has a beautiful voice which added so much to the occasion. After the wedding we went to an area country club for the reception dinner and send off.

I feel like I am glossing over some of this; I don't mean to. I do want to note here that none of us had attended a Catholic wedding Mass before, so this was a new experience for all of us; also quite different from the Protestant weddings we are used to, so Jones family be prepared for something much shorter in September. As beautiful as all this was I think the parts that I treasure were the comments that I heard. You see, I am barely acquainted with Jessica, having only been around her Thanksgiving before last, and while I know Cameron, I really only know him as my nephew. My experience with Cameron has been through quick family visits where most of the time he was just one of the kids. We have talked some over the years but have not had the time to develop an adult level, in depth relationship. Those things will come and I look forward to that. I should be quick to add here that I grow relationships slowly for my part of it; that's just my nature.

So what I treasure from last weekend were all the comments and stories told on Cameron and Jessica by their friends in the wedding party at the rehearsal and reception dinners. Of course, I enjoyed hearing about the pranks and jokes, but then their friends got to the sincerity and depth of who Jessica and Cameron are as people. How Jessica was always willing to help a friend with their studies (all while teasing them about stereotyping her as a math whiz). How Cameron's roommate from Police Academy said from the heart that Cameron was always there when he needed a friend. The depth of friendship that Jessica cultivated with her friends. The fact that Jessica's friends noted that more than being a good boyfriend, Cameron was good husband material. The warm remarks the abbot said about them as he began the wedding. All these comments presented a clear picture as to the caliber of people that Cameron and Jessica are and it made me very happy.

So Cameron and Jessica, congratulations! I wish you all the best as you return from your honeymoon in Northern Arizona and settle down into life together. (By the way, one of our children--I will preserve anonymity so as not to embarrass our youngest--wondered if Catholics did honeymoons.) Pauline would be proud.

So the next wedding is in September. I'm glad Nolan came with us as he has now met with Emily's approval for Jenna, though I think he still has to face Cameron's police scrutiny to pass muster with him. Very interesting to see how Jessie and Pauline's little clan is starting to grow.

Joe