It’s amazing what a difference twelve months can make. Last year this time we still hadden’t play the first FFH show since the break and I had been on staff at Fellowship for just a few months. I remember how slow things were then, how relaxed and wide open the landscape seemed. As I reflect on this past week I realize how drasticly things have changed in the past twelve months. I also recognize how ungrateful I am. During those slow months of recovery I wished so bad for momentum, for motion. Now I find myself anxious and busy and wishing for more space. I’m rarely satisfied and content. It’s a sin that I’ve battled for as long as I can remember. My counselor in Africa told me once that experience without reflection is worthless. So here’s a couple of things I’m thinking about as I look back at last week…

Hutch started a new school last week. It’s a two-day program to compliment Jennifer’s homeschooling routine. He was nervous and clingy when we walked him through the visitation but after we dropped him off he came alive, appearently. He always gets rave reviews from sitters, teachers, and other parents who keep him. Sometimes we wonder what happens when we drop him off and why he doesn’t remain in that more-human form when we pick him up. Mrs. Jan, Hutch’s new teacher, said he was wonderful and Hutch told us when he came home that his first day was one of the best days of his life. Then he started fussing because we wouldn’t let him play Wii, which seems to be sucking his brain out.

Jennifer is still coughing. It’s going on three weeks now. She sounds like a life-long chain smoker. My brother-in-law Brian suggested that she go ahead and start smoking since she’s already got the cough. The zpack had no effect and she thinks it’s time to go back to the doctor.

Sadie-Claire woke up at 130am this morning crying like she was being bitten by a wild animal. After a while of trying to calm her down Jennifer just put her in our bed. For the next hour she kicked me in the back. Even still, I love when the kids sleep with us. I know it will only last a few years and then they’ll be over it so I try to enjoy it when it happens.

Derek, a frind of mine from church, is sharing the coffee-table with me. He was here when I got here so I plopped down beside him. He’s meeting a friend of his from Vandy who is dropping off medicine for Haiti. Derek is taking it across town to another friend’s medical practice. He is currently in Haiti working twenty hour shifts. He’s doing mostly amputations with no medicine or anestesia. The meds will be sent to him to assist in the surgerys. And I’m in Mayberry with my 1/3-Caf Americano listeneing to music, typing on my laptop, complaining about being too busy and too tired.

Father forgive me.

I’m sitting in a booth in the corner today.  It was the only way to plug into an outlet.  Power sources are limited here at Merridee’s and my battery is dead because Hutch used it up watching mini-movies on the Lego website yesterday.  We all spent the afternoon on the pull out couch in the family room  after church.  It’s too cold to be outside and Jennifer and I are tired and out of creavitve ideas at home.  We don’t do well in the winter, especially when you can’t even go for a walk.  We are an outside family.  When we can’t be outside we sometimes let the kids bring the scooters inside and ride them around the loop that our foyer, dining room, and kitchen create.  It’s dangerous but fun.   The cold traps the kids inside with us and that makes them crabby, and then we get crabby, and then it all falls apart.  I was a much better parent before I had kids.

A few days ago I was sitting in this same booth watching it snow.  Snow is rare here in Nashville and people get all worked up about the mere prospect of it.  The forcast was for one to two inches of possible accumulation and the parking lot at Kroger was completely full with people preparing for the blizzard.  Schools were canceled the night before and it was the big news story on every network.  Snow did come but only a dusting.  All that hype for nothing.  It was pretty to watch though and gave us all something to be excited about for a couple of days.  Jennifer and I considered taking our Christmas decorations down since we really had nothing else to do but then we realized how much work it is going to be and put it off for another couple of days.  Maybe we’ll just leave them up until next year.  I’d rather sell the house than take them down.  It might be easier that way.  I told Hutch I’d let him play Wii for three straights days if he did it by himself but he wouldn’t be able to carry our tree back to the attic.

It was a good week and a wonderful weekend dispite the blizzard letdown.  Jennifer and I were scheduled to lead worship at church this weekend alongside our other artist-in-recidence leaders Carl Cartee, Ronnie Freeman, and Jason Ingrim.  It was one of the most pleasurable worship music experiances I’ve had.  Leading as a team was so refreshing, so fun.  I know we don’t usually use the word “fun” to describe worship but that’s really what it was.  It was still reverent and serious and spiritual, but mostly it was fun.  Saint Ireneaus said that “the Glory of God is man fully alive”.  I think he was right and I think we see it when we watch our own kids play.  We love to see them enjoy life, to laugh, to discover.  That’s why we tickle them till they can’t breathe.  Because their laughter is like medicine to our souls.  That’s how worship was this weekend.  Light and fun and happy and alive.  And I think Yahweh was smiling and the Glory of His smile filled the auditorium.  Wish you could have been there.

Have a restful week,

Peace and blessings,

Jeromy

Good morning,

I just sank myself into one of the leather couches at Meridee’s in Franklin to write my weekly blog for our new website. This will be week one. I decided to call it Meridee’s Mondays because this is where you’ll find both Jennifer and I several mornings a week working and staying “connected”.

The weather is officially turning here in Tennessee. There are more leaves on the ground now than on the trees and the mornings are more chilly. Our dog Schnicklefritz eats his breakfast on the screenporch and this morning there was a bite in the damp air as I gave him his food. He doesn’t seem to mind, it just makes him more hyper which just makes the rest of us more irritated.

I’ve been reading Donald Miller’s new book in where he tells a story about a friend of his who journaled almost everything that happened in his daily life. This friend believed that an experience that wasn’t remembered may as well have not happened at all. So here’s a few things that I don’t want to forget from this past Holiday weekend…

On Thursday morning we went to our friends Carl and Heather’s house for Thanksgiving breakfast. After a quick bite Hutch got down to play with the other kids. He was the oldest boy, which is rare for him, and he loved every minute of it. Carl turned the parade on at ten and we watched the horrible lipsyncing for a while and then drove home to watch Disney’s “Up” by the fire and eat Jennifer’s favorite Honey Baked sliced turkey sandwiches. After a rest we headed to Thankgiving dinner at the Belbecks, another family from our church. There were fourty people there and they made us all feel welcome. Before dinner Sadie-Claire and I noticed the homemade hand-dipped chocolate covered marshmellows sitting on the cabinet beside the table and we both spoiled our dinners with them. After dinner I had ten more and had to ask for Tums. Then we sat in the living room and sang worship songs and said what we are thankful for. Hutch stood and said he was thankful for his Mama, Daddy, Sadie, his dog Fritz, and his hermit crab. His hermit crab died two weeks ago while we were in California. He still hasn’t noticed the crab cage being gone. That’s how well he fed him. I’m surprised the crab made it as long as he did. A few months ago Sadie kicked the crab cage down the stairs spilling it’s contents everywhere. The crab made a sprint for the front door but only got a few feet.

On Friday we headed out to look for deals on a new camera. As I was coming out of our bathroom Sadie-Claire came around the corner and I said, “Sadie, your look beautiful!” Then I asked, “How do I look?” She replied, “You look dressed.” We only made it a few hours until the kids melted down from being so tired and Jennifer and I melted down from the kids melting down. We spend the rest of the day hanging out at home.

Saturday was a better day. We hit the Franklin Farmer’s Market in the morning and the kids got their faivorite muffins. Then we went to Target to continue the camera search. The kids ran around the store beating each other with foam swords and annoying the other customers who didn’t have kids and appearently never were kids themselves. We went home for lunch and played ball outside for a while. In the afternoon Sadie-Claire and I took a nap while Jennifer went to the mall and Hutch helped our Jewish neighbor put up his Christmas lights.

Yesterday (Sunday) we went to church and actually got there on time. We kept the kids with us in worship because they almost always end up with colds when they go to the nursery and their classes. It was great having them with us and Jennifer and I both agreed that we want them to worship with us more often. It was so sweet to hold them while we sang. After lunch at Hutch’s favorite pizza place with the Belbecks and Ice Cream at Maggie Moo’s, Jennifer took Sadie-Claire home and I met my neighbor friend Kent and his son and we went into town for the Titan’s game. A friend of mine who plays for the opposing team had give me some free tickets. On the way, Kent and I talked about our Jewish neighbor with the Christmas lights and how he is always in the street playing with the kids and how I call him Super Dad. We also talked about Kent’s Mom who is suffering from terminal cancer and how we both hate cancer. After two quarter’s in the nosebleed section it rained a little and a few folks in the expensive seats left the game so we acted rich and walked to the front row and took their seats. The kids were in awe and the Titan’s won on the last play. Sixty thousand people cheered as Kent and I smiled at each other and relished the thought that we got to see it for free. As we walked back Kent’s truck the kids played football and pretended they were big and Kent and I thanked God for a cool memory.