A couple of months ago my flatmate told me she wanted to get a place on her own. I couldn't afford to live by myself and didn't really want to either so I faced the task of finding not only a place to live but also someone to live with. At times it seemed rather daunting. The first person suggested to me graduated from HS last year. There's nothing wrong with being 19 but I go to school with people in their 20s and the same is true for most people in my church. I really wanted some maturity in my life but it seemed that everyone who wanted/needed to live with someone else was under the age of 25, young enough to be my daughter. I checked out a couple of places I found on craigslist but I didn't like the idea of moving in with strangers. On the days I was anxious God would remind me that he would take care of me.
For about a month I thought I had found a solution. It was somewhat open ended since it depended on a couple from my church being able to buy a duplex. In the end that didn't work out and I was back to worrying again and being reminded that I'm to be anxious for nothing but in everything by prayer make my requests known to God. As I did that I put an "ad" up at a large church. Within a couple of days I got an email from Jan. Long story short, she is a few years older than myself, has spent time living overseas, is back in school and wants to rent out two of the three extra bedrooms in her home that just happens to be across the street from two good friends of mine. Once we learned that we have some mutual friends, it didn't really feel like we were strangers. I am very thankful for the place and the people God provided in this great situation.
This past week as moving day approached God had to remind me once again that he is taking care of me. I was anxious about the actual moving process. My church talks a lot about being family to one another but it felt like my appeal for help in moving was falling on deaf ears. There was no need to be anxious about it. I should have remembered that I don't have lot of stuff (some of which is going back to my parents). And the help God provided was just what was needed: a family with their horse trailer and 3 hard working kids, a young man who is like a little brother to me and looked at it as his workout for the day and the two friends from across the street. Despite breaking the glass that covers the vegetable crisper in the fridge and spilling fruit salad in my car, I had a few minutes to put my feet up before everyone arrived a little after 6 yesterday evening. We had everything unloaded, the bed put together and were finished eating by 8:45.
I now have a guestroom and a housemate who is glad for the company so come visit!
Saturday, June 23, 2012
Monday, June 18, 2012
HS class reunion
This past weekend as full of family events. Friday evening I attended the third wedding in four weeks where the toasts were done with milk and cookies. Saturday I played with my niece who still doesn't like it when I win. Sunday I attended an aunt and uncle's 50th wedding anniversary celebration. My aunt had saved all the cards she had received and one of her granddaughters modeled the pink bride's maid dress. My uncle remembers being on time to the rehearsal while bride showed up late. At that time on the farm, it was impossible to start the wedding before 8 pm. The farmers had to have time to finish their chores. Uncle Wes remembers looking up at the clock as they cut the cake and seeing that it was already after 10 pm.
The other event of the weekend was my 26th high school class reunion on Saturday evening. I guess we weren't organized enough to do it last year and in the end it grew to include the classes of '85 to '88. There were 11 in my class and 19 in the '87 class so even though four classes were included we all knew each other. Most of us haven't changed a whole lot. I recognized all but two people, though I must admit that the name tags helped remind me of the name that went with the face. A few weeks ago I dug out a paper I had written as a senior for English class that described our class. Reading through it brought back memories of events and personalities I had long since forgotten. And I noticed the other night that though we may be a little grayer or a little rounder, our personalities haven't changed. I also noticed that thankfully, my writing has gotten better over the years.
Here's the opening paragraph to my paper describing the class of 1986.
During the last four years our class has developed its own personality. As a class we tend to be on the lazy side when it comes to school work. We would just as soon not have to take notes. We would rather sit around and talk which is something we are very good at. Since we are such good talkers we can get into good discussions if the subject seems to interest us. If not then we just get the teachers off the subject. We are just an average class in most areas. We are average students, musicians, and athletes. We have different individuals who are stronger in one area than another, but on the whole we are just an average bunch of kids. If we put our minds to it we can do just about anything. One of the reasons is we get along fairly well. It helps when there is more girls than guys. That means the girls can overrule the guys which of course makes everything work more smoothly. There are times when “majority rules.” We are also very good at having a good time. We had all-night parties our freshman and senior years and had a great time. We were just a little tired the next day. We are also a rather creative bunch. We were a wedding party our junior year during homecoming week. As seniors we came up with the awesome idea of dressing up like crayons. Our one problem is we forgot to bring a color camera to record the event. Only our class could think of something as interesting as those two ideas.
The other event of the weekend was my 26th high school class reunion on Saturday evening. I guess we weren't organized enough to do it last year and in the end it grew to include the classes of '85 to '88. There were 11 in my class and 19 in the '87 class so even though four classes were included we all knew each other. Most of us haven't changed a whole lot. I recognized all but two people, though I must admit that the name tags helped remind me of the name that went with the face. A few weeks ago I dug out a paper I had written as a senior for English class that described our class. Reading through it brought back memories of events and personalities I had long since forgotten. And I noticed the other night that though we may be a little grayer or a little rounder, our personalities haven't changed. I also noticed that thankfully, my writing has gotten better over the years.
Here's the opening paragraph to my paper describing the class of 1986.
During the last four years our class has developed its own personality. As a class we tend to be on the lazy side when it comes to school work. We would just as soon not have to take notes. We would rather sit around and talk which is something we are very good at. Since we are such good talkers we can get into good discussions if the subject seems to interest us. If not then we just get the teachers off the subject. We are just an average class in most areas. We are average students, musicians, and athletes. We have different individuals who are stronger in one area than another, but on the whole we are just an average bunch of kids. If we put our minds to it we can do just about anything. One of the reasons is we get along fairly well. It helps when there is more girls than guys. That means the girls can overrule the guys which of course makes everything work more smoothly. There are times when “majority rules.” We are also very good at having a good time. We had all-night parties our freshman and senior years and had a great time. We were just a little tired the next day. We are also a rather creative bunch. We were a wedding party our junior year during homecoming week. As seniors we came up with the awesome idea of dressing up like crayons. Our one problem is we forgot to bring a color camera to record the event. Only our class could think of something as interesting as those two ideas.
Sunday, June 10, 2012
Rugby fun
One of the things I missed when I moved to France was American football. There was plenty of soccer and some basketball but I missed football on those perfect fall Saturday and Sunday afternoons. To help compensate, I discovered rugby. It's a team sport that France is actually pretty good at and games were often televised. It is a rather simple game. The basic rules include: stay on your side of the ball; pass backwards; kick forwards; and the ball carrier must let go of the ball when tackled. But as with most games, there are plenty of other rules and strategies are far more in depth than I could understand from my armchair. But thanks to come good commentators who explained the nuances of the game, I learned to enjoy it and missed it when I returned to the US.
I was delighted when some friends of mine, told me that their son plays on the JV rugby team at Edina high school. I made it to one game during this spring season which actually ended up being a scrimmage since it is hard to find teams that want to play a JV team. But yesterday I was able to watch Esteban and his team play in the state semi-finals. They were playing a team from Duluth that had beat them badly in the first game of the season when (to quote one father) "we didn't know what we were doing." The boys have figured it out since then and on a windy hot day the teams played a hard fought game. Edina scored the first time they got their hands on the ball. Then Duluth took the ball and marched the length of the field into the wind completely dominating the rugby equivalent of the line of scrimmage. They continued to dominate in ball possession and it looked like it might be a long afternoon for Edina. But their defense stiffened and they got more serious about protecting the ball in the rucks. And Esteban, from his fullback position (similar to a safety in football), stuck his nose in there and helped turned the tide of the momentum. In the end Edina's defense stiffened and they pulled away in the 2nd half. It helped to have a strong and fast runner who gave some viscious stiff arms to break away for some tries and who was able to chase down one of the Duluth break-aways right at the goal line. I had other obligations today so I didn't see the finals today but they won and Esteban was named the MVP. Well done! I look forward to watching Esteban play varsity next season.
I was delighted when some friends of mine, told me that their son plays on the JV rugby team at Edina high school. I made it to one game during this spring season which actually ended up being a scrimmage since it is hard to find teams that want to play a JV team. But yesterday I was able to watch Esteban and his team play in the state semi-finals. They were playing a team from Duluth that had beat them badly in the first game of the season when (to quote one father) "we didn't know what we were doing." The boys have figured it out since then and on a windy hot day the teams played a hard fought game. Edina scored the first time they got their hands on the ball. Then Duluth took the ball and marched the length of the field into the wind completely dominating the rugby equivalent of the line of scrimmage. They continued to dominate in ball possession and it looked like it might be a long afternoon for Edina. But their defense stiffened and they got more serious about protecting the ball in the rucks. And Esteban, from his fullback position (similar to a safety in football), stuck his nose in there and helped turned the tide of the momentum. In the end Edina's defense stiffened and they pulled away in the 2nd half. It helped to have a strong and fast runner who gave some viscious stiff arms to break away for some tries and who was able to chase down one of the Duluth break-aways right at the goal line. I had other obligations today so I didn't see the finals today but they won and Esteban was named the MVP. Well done! I look forward to watching Esteban play varsity next season.
Sunday, June 3, 2012
Wedding Fun
Weddings are all pretty much the same. A joyful bride and groom say their vows, exchange their rings and a pastor says a few things that nobody really listens to - least of all the bride and groom. Top it all off with some cake and voilà, you have an American wedding. There is more to the ceremony than that and most people serve more than cake but there really isn't a lot of room for variation. Yet somehow the personalities of the bride and groom show through.
Last weekend I attended Janelle and Jared's wedding and there were plenty of things that showed their personalities (and that of their mothers). Jared and his groomsmen entered to Star Wars music led by his pastor who fought really hard to keep a straight face. Janelle grew up in France so there was some French thrown into the ceremony. But the thing that stood out to me was the obvious joy on Janelle's father's face. I have never seen a more happy father of the bride. I think his smile was bigger than Janelle's as he walked her down the aisle to give his precious daughter to Jared. And if you know Steve and weren't there, you missed your one chance to see him dance.
A great side benefit for me was getting to see my "French nieces and nephews." When I arrived in France over 20 years ago I worked with 2 families whose children called me Aunt Alice. Actually those first few years it was Aunt Allie since the younger ones couldn't quite get out "Alice." Janelle was one of those little ones along with her two brothers, Stephen & Nathan and their four "cousins" from the other family, Greg, Heather, Geoffrey & Jeremy. The love they showered on me helped make my adjustment to France go more smoothly. Over the years they gave me the excuse to decorate cookies, play games, attend all kinds of sporting events, go to the circus, River Dance and a live performance of Beauty and the Beast. I don't have many opportunities to see them any more so it was a special treat to catch up with Janelle's two brothers and meet Greg's 11-month-old son as well as Heather's husband. For this aunt, it will be too long before we are together again.
A great side benefit for me was getting to see my "French nieces and nephews." When I arrived in France over 20 years ago I worked with 2 families whose children called me Aunt Alice. Actually those first few years it was Aunt Allie since the younger ones couldn't quite get out "Alice." Janelle was one of those little ones along with her two brothers, Stephen & Nathan and their four "cousins" from the other family, Greg, Heather, Geoffrey & Jeremy. The love they showered on me helped make my adjustment to France go more smoothly. Over the years they gave me the excuse to decorate cookies, play games, attend all kinds of sporting events, go to the circus, River Dance and a live performance of Beauty and the Beast. I don't have many opportunities to see them any more so it was a special treat to catch up with Janelle's two brothers and meet Greg's 11-month-old son as well as Heather's husband. For this aunt, it will be too long before we are together again.
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