a year of words

Let’s be clear from the outset: this is Andy writing (shocker!) and Robin’s booklist would look far different. A friend recently shared with me his “Best of 2007” in music, so I’d thought I’d release on you my best of 2007 in reading. The books below were my reading list for the year: remember I was heavily in school for the first 6 months – so not much time to read.

Oskar Skarsaune - In the Shadow of the Temple: Jewish Influences on Early Christianity.
James Nieman and Thomas Rogers - Preaching to Every Pew
Barbara Brown Taylor - Bread of Angels
Ian Pitt-Watson - a Primer for Preachers
Fleming Rutledge - the Bible and the New York Times
Joanna Wijk-boos - Making Wise the Simple
Ulrich Luz - the Theology of the Gospel of Matthew
John Muir - My First Summer in the Sierra
JK Rowling - Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
JK Rowling - Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows
Alan Jacobs - The Narnian
Norton Juster - the Phantom Tollbooth
Wallace Stegner - Beyond the 100th Meridian
John Steinbeck - the Grapes of Wrath
John Goldingay - Israel's Gospel
Mark Twain - Huckleberry Finn
Art Beals – When the Saints Go Marching Out
Michael Chabon - The Yiddish Policeman's Union
Michael Chabon - Gentlemen of the Road
James K.A. Smith - Who's Afraid of Postmodernism? Taking Derrida, Lyotard, and Foucault to Church (fantastic book)
Erwin McManus - the Barbarian Way
C.S. Lewis – On Stories
Steven Ozment - the Age of Reform (1200-1550)
Francis Oakley - the Medieval Experience
Alister McGrath - Reformation Thought
Marcus Buckingham - First Break all the Rules
Jeffrey Sachs - The End of Poverty: Economic Possibilities for our Time
Friedrich Schleiermacher - On Religion: Speeches to Its Cultured Despisers
some more (not much) theology: Wesley, Lessing, Barth, Harnack, Luther, Calvin, others ...

So let me pick three of my favorites this year:

• Stegner’s Beyond the Hundredth Meridian: John Wesley Powell and the second opening of the West. I’ve wanted to read this ever since Stegner’s prize-winning Angle of Repose. This gifted writer’s account of a remarkable individual and moment in history is both a beautiful blend of biography and essay and a glimpse into just how short-sighted and self-interested we can be as a country.
• Michael Chabon’s Gentlemen of the Road. (ok, so I finished it in 2008.) While I tried to go back to the classics a bit this year (and close some gaps in my literary education), I’ve got to give it to Chabon: this little book is a satisfying, and yet subtle, adventure. The vocabulary and syntax are gorgeous.
• Alan Jacob’s the Narnian. Dr. J was a favorite teacher of mine in college, and I now think he’s one of the best essayists we have. This book was an illuminating look into the mind and imagination of C.S. Lewis, and did much to help me tie together the thoughts that Lewis leaves strewn across the many genres through which he so easily moved.
• Honorable mention goes the Skarsaune book on the Jewish roots of Christianity and Ozment’s major work of medieval church history. Gotta love it when a text book grips you so you keep turning the pages … both are fantastic.

As for 2008, who knows? But I’ve toying with reading the1500+ pages of John Calvin’s Institutes of the Christian Religion. I’ve wanted to read it for years but am afraid I’ll never do it. So the thought came to me yesterday: how about 5 pages of the maligned and mysterious JC a day? 15 minutes a day ought to do it. Maybe I’ll write about it as I go (but then I don’t suspect any of you would want to read it …)

Love to you all – Andy.

bag swings

Friends of ours invited us to their family place in the country last week while Andy was gone (Medieval/Reformation Church History). They have a "bag swing" (so called because the seat used to be an actual bag instead of wood). Elanor was not the only one of my children to swing, I promise, but these three were my absolute favorite images from the day. I have others. And I apologize for the frame, but I'm double dipping here--the same images are already on my photo blog. I just liked them that much!

ugly mug makes some goooood coffee

Mark & Mylissa sent us a Christmas present with two things in it. One was a book called The Year of Living Biblically: One Man's Humble Quest to Follow the Bible as Literally as Possible (link) and the other was a pound of coffee from a company called Ugly Mug.

First, the book. It's quite well written and hilarious at times. I read it more or less against my will, but I will say that I really enjoyed the ride. He got some things right... I would venture to say that he missed the boat on quite a lot about the Bible and our faith (both Jewish and Christian but more so on Christian). Fun book, though.

The other part of the gift.... mmmm..... wow. Andy and I are kind of picky about our coffee. Him more so than me. For me, as long as it's hot, strong, and black, I can live with Maxwell House. Not he. So you have to understand that sending Andy coffee (that's not Starbucks) as a gift is a gutsy proposition. We liked the first bag enough that we ordered a second, a different blend. And this one knocked our socks off. So, we're hooked.

To that end, I'm going to share the wealth with you (so to speak). Go visit Ugly Mug. And order some coffee. The best part is that when you use that link that I just gave you (no typing in the address please), 25% of the proceeds off the coffee go to benefit Habitat for Hope. I have to tell you, I've been sitting on the email with this code for a while, partly because I can send money to HFH without buying gross coffee. But now that I know it's not gross, I am spreading the good news that you can buy good coffee and support a wonderful cause!

I would also like to tell you that I met the CEO type for this company when I was in Memphis for Labor Day and I got to hear the philosophy behind Ugly Mug. Y'all, this is fair trade coffee--really--and it is roasted right there in Memphis! So it's really a threefer--buy good coffee, support Habitat for Hope, and drink responsibly. We are almost done with the second bag. Time to go buy more.

Now, where did I put that link? Go order yourself some coffee!

DEFCON status

I decided that I needed to implement a system for gauging the urgency of issues/requests around our house. I was tired of dealing with every issue as a crisis requiring screaming and immediate intervention. Seriously, is it necessary to interrupt me while I'm in the middle of a phone call in order to tell me how you want to spend your Christmas money when we next go to Target? That's not exactly an emergency, in my mind. However, I can understand that there are times when excitement and urgency are natural. We just need a classification system to help define it. So here is our new household threat monitoring system in a nutshell:

• DEFCON 1: GET EXCITED, take injured party to the hospital, the house is on fire, etc. etc. screaming is understandable but still not OK. mortal peril. interrupting Mom is expected.
  
• DEFCON 2: get excited, someone is bleeding or about to fall off the roof--immediate assistance is required but no lives are in danger. screaming is not necessary, but exclamations are OK. interrupting Mom is acceptable.
  
• DEFCON 3: no need to get excited. help is needed, but not urgently. no one is injured and no one is in peril. buttons can wait 30 seconds and help will be given as needed. please remain calm and use statements or requests, no exclamations or commands. interrupting Mom is not acceptable.
  

Surprisingly, the children have taken to it pretty well. We did have a lengthy discussion one night, analyzing different situations and discussing what category they fell into. At first they thought Elanor's staples were a DEFCON 2, but I explained that an ER visit actually merited a DEFCON 1 status. They have already realized that most of their issues actually fall into DEFCON 3 and that they need to react accordingly. I've even been able to derail some hysterics simply by saying, "Wait, wait! Is this a 1, 2, or 3?" Not a lot has changed, but so far it has served to give them a moment to stop and really analyze what's going on and what needs to be done.

I'm telling you, give me a year to flesh this out and I'll have my book deal.

grace and peace to you in 2008

Today we had a family envelope stuffing, labeling, and stamping fest--that's right, Christmas cards are on their way! Actually, since it's January, I suppose they are technically New Year's cards... what can I say about the delay? Only that I failed to get a satisfactory picture of the three children together until we went on the "three mile" hike with Uncle John. And since the picture is the most important part of the card, it just had to wait. The second most important part would be our blog address, which may be what brought you here today--either you've never known yet that we had a blog, you lost the address and were too embarrassed to ask me for it again, or you just were never that interested in what's going on (no blame here and you are welcome to stop right now if you like. If you are one of the first two categories, feel free to add our blog to your RSS reader, whatever that may be (I use Google Reader myself) and you will be subjected to my words and pictures all year long.).

What to say about 2007? It was both a fun year and a busy year. I'd like to tell you about it in an organized and sequential fashion, but you know that's not just me, so sit back for a little paddle down my stream of consciousness.

Andy drew ever closer to finishing his (eternal) M.Div. program through Fuller Seminary with two more full-time quarters (yes, straight A's even though he took more classes than his advisor was comfortable with). I believe this leaves him with five or six classes to go, one of which he'll be knocking out in the next few weeks--Medieval Church History. Other than that, I don't know what's left for him other than the Preaching Practicum which has to be done totally live, in person, and on Fuller's campus (don't get me started) or at a local seminary (is Orlando local?). He wasn't able to take it during the summer quarter as planned because it runs for two weeks and he had a trip to Mexico with his teens on for the second week. One challenge of planning seminary education is that Andy plans his schedule (meaning youth) 6-12 months in advance and the school seems to go more like 8-12 weeks in advance. It's a challenge.

We drove back across the country in June, taking the quickest route we could and driving for an entire week, instead of the dawdling, friend-filled trip we took out to California in 2006. Andy's dad helped us drive part of the way, which was a huge blessing to us. There's not much to say about the trip itself, other than it was long and trouble free. We pulled into our driveway just a few days after the city ground up our street in preparation for laying down new water, sewer, and storm drain lines. I'm writing this just one day after the crew came through laying sod in order to (almost) finish up the project on our street. I believe there is one more layer of asphalt to be laid. The whole project has provided a lot of entertainment for the children--watching different machines at work, climbing on the stacks of concrete pipes in our yard, and feeding the workers fresh baked cookies. Every trip in and out of our neighborhood has made me feel like a lab rat in a maze, not knowing which roads were passable, which ones were open, or even if I could get into or out of my street at all. It's actually been kind of fun.

Michael finished first grade and received a good evaluation. He is devouring books at an alarming rate and every visit to the library feels like a 60 second shopping spree. Thankfully one of the librarians is an avid reader herself and views Michael as an exciting challenge rather than a cause for alarm. He also played on a soccer team with the YMCA this fall--although the team's record was not impressive, Michael's enthusiasm for the game was. He was an eager and excited player. I think we'll be signing him up again next year.

Caroline and Elanor are in ballet together at a local studio. They love it and spend most of the week looking forward to each lesson. Caroline is one of the older girls in the class and is very focused. She continues to impress us with her impressive memory--after one week of learning the Christmas dance, she knew it by heart for the next class. Elanor is one of the youngest in the class, but she is dedicated to following Caroline and therefore also pays close attention. Her trademark is to dance with her mouth wide open and her tongue hanging out.

Caroline is in kindergarten with us this year and is a great student when she feels confident about what she's doing. She is a little high strung and gets very frustrated and obstinate if she feels that something is too hard for her or too confusing. Her math is coming along much better than her reading/spelling. Before Christmas, she finished the math book for the first half of first grade--which covered addition, subtraction, multiplication, telling time, measuring, and basic perimeter/area. She really impresses me and amazes me.

I have not been idle this year, either. Thanks in part to a series of sermons at our church in LA at the beginning of 2007, I decided to step out and start my own little photography business. I shot some families out in Pasadena before we left to help start my portfolio and am now shooting here at home. I got to fly up to Memphis for Labor Day weekend and shoot some families for friends Mark and Mylissa (Habitat for Hope). The fall was pretty busy as families were wanting pictures for Christmas. Now that that's over, I'm taking a little time for some revision and re-visioneering. (May I call it that, Mylissa?)

So, it's been a packed, fun, and busy year. We are thrilled to be back in our own home and with our church family here at Covenant (which I would be remiss if I failed to mention their support throughout the time we were in Pasadena). The children are thrilled to be home with Emma again, who seems to feel like she's loved a little too much at times. Andy loved being a student full time but was ready to come back to the trenches (so to speak) and hang out with his teens again. I would ask for your prayers for our church over the next month, as we are holding a congregational vote on February 3 to determine whether or not we should leave the PC(USA) and join the EPC. It's a big decision and we pray that our congregation would hear a clear call from God for how to vote (if you are wondering, Andy and I will be voting to join the EPC; if you would like more details or information you may email either one of us).

To close, because I should, I would just like to say that we are thankful for the different places that God has taken us in 2007. We are thankful for our time in Pasadena. We are thankful to be home in Fort Myers. We are thankful for our house (complete with the popping tile and the sugar ants). We are thankful for Emma (and especially for the Elliotts for giving her a home while we were gone!). We are thankful for Andy's bright yellow truck (it's not the Grocery Getter, I know, but trust me, it's a lot more fun to drive to photo shoots). We have more to be thankful for, but I'm afraid that having the luxury of not being confined to an 8.5x11 piece of paper has led me to ramble on. Suffice it to say that we are blessed. Thank you for stopping by and for sticking with me for as long as you have. Feel free to come back and leave a comment anytime!

a three hour tour

So, I mentioned that my undignified uncle took us for a little hike while we were in Virginia. He said it was a three mile hike. He forgot to mention that we would still have to hike the three miles back.

Here we are, at the beginning of the hike, full of optimism.

Michael, checking the signpost to make sure we don't head for Vermont on the AT.

Do you think he's laughing at us because he knows what's coming?

An early break. Elanor has to adjust her shoes a lot.

Caroline is still happy at this point. Thanks to Andy for the walking sticks. (Dad shot this.)

Another decision point. The sign makes no mention of the waterfall we are hiking to see, so my uncle pulls out the map and makes Michael decide which way to go. He refuses to offer any insight, only commenting that he'll only hike downhill a quarter mile before he'll drop his pack (a holdover from his Boy Scout leader days. Dad shot this.).

Michael was chipper for the entire hike. Drat him.

Shot a 4/5 family picture here. They are cute, aren't they? It's about the one time all those clothes will be worn.

Uncle John and Wonder Dog Wesley (Dad shot this.).

The last, very very very steep hill. And it was long. Elanor had totally given up at this point and insisted on being carried. Caroline was running out of steam and was weeping for the last quarter mile. It didn't help that it was nearly one o'clock and we hadn't had lunch at all. (Dad shot this.)

The view from the waterfall area. The water was mostly turned off so the waterfall itself didn't make for much of a picture. It was also quite cold and windy.

It was a gray, somewhat forbidding day.

Wesley the Wonder Dog. I'm glad I wasn't sharing water with him.

By the end of the hike, Caroline had recovered her cheerfulness and insisted on a mini photo shoot (actually this is Dad's picture, not mine). We like to go hiking with Uncle John but we were all pretty tired by the end of this one. Hooray for the hot tub back at the house!

christmas in virginia

It has been pointed out that I have failed you in my duties as a blogger. Not only have I not wished you a Merry Christmas yet, but I also forgot to tell you all that we were leaving for the holiday (not, I suppose, that that is a fact one wants to advertise online, is it?). To make up for it, today's post is excruciatingly long. We flew up to Virginia for a family holiday with my mother's family--our first time with that side since last May/June and this was actually my first time to see my new niece! Who is not so new anymore. She is cute, though, and now I have documented that fact for myself. Here are some pictures.

What little boy doesn't love new trains for Christmas?

And what little girl doesn't love new shoes?

The cousins on this side of the family--my brother David, me, cousin Julie and her brother Mike.

My great uncle Don and Elanor.

We wanted a picture of all the great grandchildren with my grandfather. My father has absolutely no reason to be in the picture except that her Miminess (the aforementioned niece) refused to let him put her down. I think he encourages her.

My grandfather. Looking pretty distinguished for 88, isn't he?

My grandfather and my uncle. Who is not distinguished. And who took my family on a "three mile hike" on Friday. He neglected to mention that we would have to still hike back.

Her Miminess and her devoted slave, I mean, my dad.

More.

Isn't he cute? This is my nephew. Who looks just like my brother at the same age, but in a different shade. Actually, her Miminess looks even more like my brother at the same age and the two kids don't look much alike, so the conclusion is that Isaac actually looks more like his mama, which is totally OK. And I will point out that her Miminess is actually cuter than my brother, but most toddlers are much cuter than their parents.

We wanted a picture of the two three year olds together.

Mine didn't want to cooperate.

What is it with the tongues?

Still no cooperating. I give up.

If you are wondering if you are no longer on our Christmas card list, don't worry, you probably are. We just haven't ordered cards yet. We'll be doing New Year's cards this year. Or SuperBowl cards. Maybe Easter?