Aloha 'Oe

We're leaving Hawaii, home for the past eight years, this evening.  Yesterday was a difficult, emotional day as we said goodbye to our church home and dear friends and drove away from Kailua for the last time.  The word that keeps coming to mind is bittersweet.  Sweet:  We have been exceedingly blessed to have lived here and made lifelong friends. We've worshiped at a gospel-centered church and shared in the work there.   I don't think we've taken for granted the breathtaking beauty of this island, and OH!, how I will miss this weather.  They don't call this place paradise for nothing.

Bitter:  But leaving is hard.  We're pulling roots up that we've never put down this deep as a family before.  And we're heading to an entirely different culture and situation in Europe.  I keep crying, and thinking of my kids leaving what's been home to them hurts this mama's heart.  We will miss our friends so much.

Queen Lili'uokalani's farewell will be mine:



Aloha, Hawaii.  I hope we'll be back one day.

Moving

We've spent our last night in our house, and the movers are packing up things now.  Our house is in a state of chaos, and I'm in a state of anxiety.  It's such a battle in my heart and mind.  I'm constantly catching myself being anxious, repenting, asking God to help me to just rest in Him, and repeating that process over and over.  It's frustrating to be such a slow learner, such a slow believer.

I'm trying to remind myself, preaching to myself, that God is faithful and good and designs even the smallest details of my life to conform me to Christ and make me fit for heaven.  At the same time, I'm acutely aware that we're heading into a summer of major transitions, and I'll need a heaping helping of grace to get through it without being irritable, impatient, and unloving to those I love the most.

And as I battle my unbelief, I'm realizing how very much I'll miss the special people in our lives on this beautiful island.  God has been so good to us here, much, much more than we've ever deserved.  He's allowed us to put some roots down in one spot for eight years, something few military families ever experience.  My kids have grown up in a small town, in a small church, with good friends and aunties and uncles looking out for them.  See, Anne, He's always taking care of us, going above and beyond anything we could ever ask or imagine.  Believe.  Lord, I believe.  Help my unbelief.

Great Divorce Movie

A movie of The Great Divorce, one of my favorite C.S. Lewis books, is in the works, and the screenplay is being written by Nate Wilson, of Leepike Ridge and other entertaining books.  This could be a very good thing.

If A Picture Is Worth A Thousand Words...

...how much is a whole stack of videos worth?  And if you convert them all to DVDs, what is that worth? I think it's priceless.

That's what I've been doing for the past two days, and I'm not finished yet.  For Mother's Day, PalmBoy gave me a program that allows me to convert all of our old home movies to DVD, and it's simple enough for me to operate with very little gnashing of teeth.  So far, I've got a stack of 26 discs replacing countless cartridges.  And I've watched all of it as it's recording.

After watching hours of video, here is what I know:

~ I was seriously crazy when my kids were little.  Seriously.  Somehow I thought I should be Martha Stewart.  I was constantly sewing, painting, and decorating cakes.  One Thanksgiving when I was in my first trimester of pregnancy with PalmGirl and sick as a dog, I cooked a huge feast for just me, PalmBoy, and PalmPilot.  And PalmBoy wasn't even two yet.  Why didn't I keep things simple?  Spend more time just snuggling with my kids? Lower my standards a bit?  Celebrating is good, but I went overboard.

~ Speaking of snuggling, I want to go back in time and snuggle with those two funny, precious kiddos with the curly hair.

~ I was often annoyed by the videocamera, and I didn't hesitate to show it.  But guess what?  I'm extremely grateful for these little treasures.  Sorry, camera man!

~ Many memories are bittersweet.  Some couples in our movies are no longer married, and all our grandparents have passed away.  The video made at my grandmother's house made me feel a special kind of homesick.  And I can never go back there.

~ My kids were the cutest ever.

~ If I have to see another "rear" view of myself, I'm going to put my eyes out.

~ If I ever need to blackmail my kids, I'm set.

~ Technology amazes me.  Back in the day, those little video cartridges were high-tech.  Now I can use my laptop to convert them to DVDs, editing along the way if I want.  I wonder what's next.

I'm really thankful for the opportunity to see these moments again.  Yes, they're priceless.

A Hard Habit To Break

A little less than two months ago, my firstborn turned 18.  And I'm still not used to it.  For eighteen years, I've been the one responsible for paperwork, appointments, and so on, but suddenly others think he's old enough for all that.  For example, he had his wisdom teeth removed last week, and the reminder calls and pre-surgery information all went to him.  But, guess who they called up to the desk when it was time to pay for those holes in his head?  Not him, of course.

And when we were at the post office recently applying for passports, his form needed some corrections.  Out of habit, I filled it out, and the lady at the counter reminded me that he could do it.   Oh, yeah, that's right. I forgot.

After his wisdom teeth removal, I went to the base pharmacy to pick up his medicine.  I had to have his I.D. to pick it up!  No more is being his mother enough.

I'm really okay with his growing up, and I know it's time for him to do more and more on his own.  After all, he'll be starting college in a couple of months, while his dad, sister, and I are in Europe.   Yet, I reflexively keep mothering him in a way that he's suddenly outgrown, out of an eighteen-year-old habit. I've got a couple of months to break it before I have to go cold turkey.  

Giggle #2 of the Day

Giggle of the Day

A little classical humor here from a "punny" blog I just discovered.  Yes, you'll groan.

(Hat tip: RogueClassicism)

Aloha

After 154 years, the Honolulu Advertiser runs its last edition today. Tomorrow, we're a one newspaper town.

Quote of the Day

From Wendy Alsup's Practical Theology for Women:

Many Christians in today's churches seem much more convinced of the reality of their problems than the reality of their God.  Our cell phone bill, the transmission in our car, or the coworker in the next cubicle consumes our thoughts.  Whether we are single or married, stay-at-home moms or working women, we tend to get so tied up in the minutiae of life that we miss the biggest truth, the ultimate reality.  God must be big in our minds.  God needs to be at the forefront of our thought processes.  He needs to be the first consideration in all of our daily circumstances, not the last resort that we consider after exhausting all other options.  Believing in his existence - focusing with trust on his reality - is fundamental to a faith that pleases God.

God is, and his existence alone puts the rest of life in perspective.

I'm preaching this to myself this morning.

Quote of the Day

From Greg Gutfeld:

You know what I do when I’m confused about an issue?
I turn to Ashton Kutcher. And whatever he says – the opposite is true.