It's A Long Story...

Thinking about taking up blogging again as, if for no other reason, a chronicle of this journey I am on. Last night I revisited these pages for the first time in about three years and was glad to read and remember the the things I wrote of during my previous stint as a blogger.

SOMEBODY'S GETTIN' OLD

...and it ain't me!

Nineteen years ago today God blessed our family with a daughter, Taylor Grace. Where have the years gone?

Beginning on her first birthday, Taylie's dad has given her a dozen roses every year on her special day. Even though she is away at college this year, he wanted to continue the tradition. After a little consideration, I thought I would enlist the help of Kimmie, who is the Recruitment Manager and Head Volleyball Coach at Crown College where Taylie atttends. I called her to ask if she could give me the number of a local florist and some idea of when best to have the roses delivered.

Kimmie, bless her heart, enthusiastically offered to take care of purchasing and personally delivering the roses to Taylie as a surprise. She even went so far as to take a photo of Tay with the flowers and email it to us...as evidenced in the picture above. Taylie worked closely with Kimmie this year as the volleyball team manager and Kimmie shared with me how much she appreciated our daughter's help and her encouraging rapport with the team. I was very touched by her gracious words and help in carrying on this special tradition.

Happy blessed birthday to you today, "Gracie"....you have, indeed, been an undeserved gift to us from God.

GIFTS I NEVER ASKED FOR

This morning I was in town running errands and picked up an old Indian walking down the road. He also happens to be an old friend. I gave him a ride to his home and he invited me in for a cup of tea. A very delicious cup of tea...something from South Africa. When I asked where he'd gotten it he replied, "I'm a man of the world, you know." We sat on the back steps, sipping tea, catching up on each other's kids, and reminiscing. When I left, he gifted me with 3 bottles of this year's maple syrup and a new pair of moccasins.

As I drove home I thought of the unexpected gifts a day can bring. A visit with an old friend, precious pure maple syrup...new moccasins. I hadn't asked for any of those things, but they were bestowed upon me. In my opinion, these are the best kind of gifts.

My thoughts turned to how God knows what we need and He gives...whether we ask Him or not. Even whether we love Him or not. So many things we take for granted...the air we breathe...the power that enables us to move, function, work, and play. Many un-asked-for faculties...a brain that can reason; sensory perceptions with which to see, hear, smell, feel; and a heart that steadily moves my lifeblood throughout my body.

Most of the many gifts and blessings God has given me I never asked for...His Word so I might know Him, His Spirit which renews my mind and strengthens my heart to obey Him, His Son to take the penalty of my sin that I might have eternal life in Him, and free will to choose. I didn't ask for these things, yet He gave them to me. "Every good and perfect gift is from above and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no shadow of turning." James 1:17 NKJV

Thank you, Father God, for so much.

THE AFGHAN OPEN

"Specialist Ramsey Haynes is in the lead at three under par in the First Annual Afghan Open as he tees off on hole seven, a wicked 475 yard fairway with a monstrous sand trap."

Just thought I'd share this picture with you all...it made me smile. Until, that is, I talked to Ramsey on the phone this morning and he told me he was hitting the ball over the perimeter wall trying to set off land mines in a mine field on the other side. Sheesh.

CABIN FEVER

March can seem like the longest month of the year, can't it? Everyone can get a little testy, even our feathered friends at the feeder. We're ready to be done with winter and get on with spring weather activities, but this month delights in being fickle...sunshine and temps in the upper 40s to low 50s for three days and then it plummets back down into the 20s and 30s with freezing rain and snow. I saw on the news this morning that the areas of Texas, Kansas, Oklahoma and others are bracing themselves for one to two feet of snow in the next 24 hours! In my neck of the woods we'd take that with a begrudging sigh, but it's got to come as a rude shock to folks in those parts of the country.

Currently, I am on spring break with no plans to head south to a sunny beach somewhere. Instead my goal is to head deep into the dusty netherworld of my long neglected bedroom for a major makeover. First, a good old-fashioned pitch and toss, looking at everything with a critical eye and realistic expectation: "am I ever going to wear this or use this?", and organize what's left. Second, eliminate some of the furniture to free up some floor space, bring in the industrial-strength shop vac and banish all the dust bunnies, dust puppies, dust ponies, and dust rhinos.

Then the fun part begins: Down to the home supply store to purchase paint and back home to apply it. A trip to the fabric store to choose a coordinating fabric to sew curtains or perhaps just valances for the windows.

For the finishing touch: lay down the beautiful hooked wool rug and make up our bed with the wonderful new linens my girlfriends helped me pick out on our recent road trip to the Twin Cities. It's going to be quite a transformation. I will post an "after" picture but don't think for one minute you'll see the "before" shot!

BECAUSE THEY NEEDED THE BEST

...they sent the 951st Engineer Battalion Sapper Company

out of Rhinelander/Tomahawk, Wisconsin.

Thank you to Stephanie Aimone for these photos.

MAY I BRAG A LITTLE?

So I am going to use this forum to brag a little about my eldest son. Against my better judgment, I was online chatting with him on Facebook from 12:30 to 2:30 AM last night...or this morning...whatever.

Ramsey was sitting in a tent some place, not Afghanistan, waiting for the go-ahead to make the last leg of the flight to FOB Lagman, the base where he'll spend the next ten months. He sent me a photo attached to an email of him qualifying on the M4, a type of machine gun. It's kind of weird looking at a photo of your son in full battle gear intently firing a machine gun.

I asked him about the photo; what he was doing, who the other people in it were. He said it was taken on a shooting range at Camp Shelby, MS, where he was shooting targets while walking. Ramsey is the lead soldier on the right. The soldier directly behind him is an instructor. For those of you who have any experience shooting a firearm, it's difficult enough to hit a target when you are stationary, much less on the move. Ramsey qualified as an Expert on four weapons: the M4, M9, .50 caliber, and the M-240. Expert is the highest weapons qualification. It may come as a surprise to those of you who know Ramsey, and are aware of his reputation as a hunter, that this is the first time he has qualified as an Expert . Apparently, this is not an easy accomplishment.

Ramsey is a member of the 951st Combat Engineer Sapper Company, whose job it will be to provide route clearance...locating, disarming, and disposing of Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs), aka roadside bombs. In addition to his training to carry out this duty, Ramsey will also man the .50 caliber machine gun mounted on top of a vehicle, and perform emergency life saving medical tasks, like controlling bleeding and starting I.V.'s., as a trained Combat Lifesaver.

While it is very difficult to think about what our son may experience in the coming months in Afghanistan, I am very proud of him and his willingness to serve our country. I am proud of his accomplishments and abilities gained during his years of training in preparation for this assignment. I am thankful for the gifts God has given Ramsey and His Hand upon him shaping him into the young man he has become.