Tag Archives: photography

death on a tree

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It’s just after the end of a Good Friday. More than some in the past, I feel like the timing was perfect. Many of us needed it; the reminder of who Jesus was, all that He stood for and what he did … for ALL of us. I think today’s message is very simple. And very clear.

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21 To this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps.

22 “He committed no sin, and no deceit was found in his mouth.”

23 When they hurled their insults at him, he did not retaliate; when he suffered, he made no threats. Instead, he entrusted himself to him who judges justly. 24 “He himself bore our sins” in his body on the cross, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; “by his wounds you have been healed.”  – 1 Peter 2:21-24

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music and light

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A couple weeks ago, I received an email from World Vision inquiring if I would be interested in volunteering at the upcoming Winter Jam 2013 concert in Grand Rapids. I thought it sounded pretty awesome as 1.) I love the mission of World Vision, 2.) Winter Jam brings in a heap of amazing Christian artists and 3.) it would be free.

The concert was last night and it did not disappoint. We arrived early for a quick training and I couldn’t believe the number of people outside. The event is very cheap ($10/head) and there is no assigned seating so as soon as the doors open, screaming kids fans flock in every direction. We were fortunate enough to get right in (read: avoid waiting outside at all) and find seats in our assigned section before doors opened for general admission. The arena was completely sold out; and some, unfortunately, were turned away.

I believe it was Newsong that first made use of this giant disco ball that I’d somehow missed positioned in the middle of the arena. I’m here to tell you … when that thing lit up I think my face did also … like that of a child. It was breathtaking.

[83.365] best.disco.ball.ever.
We didn’t stay for the entire concert (what? i’m old.), but we did see several great performances, a great speaker and three people in my section signed up to sponsor World Vision children. Yay! I think my favorite part was seeing the response from the youth in the audience. We were also asked to hand out books including the Gospel of John for the main speaker. I had so many kids in my section request copies that I ran out. How awesome is that?! And out of the three sponsorships I received back, two were young men. Again, awesome.

When we left, Matthew West was performing his song ‘Strong Enough.’ In addition to everything else I witnessed last night, the song’s lyrics were such a great reminder that I’m not in this alone. Well, those and the several thousand other people around me.

” … Cause I’m broken down to nothing; But I’m still holding on to the one thing; You are God and you are strong; When I am weak.
I can do all things; Through Christ who gives me strength; And I don’t have to be strong enough, Strong enough …”

a quiet sunday afternoon (in pictures)

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Well, I guess I should first clarify that our Sunday activity was the antithesis of quiet. We found ourselves at THUNDER JAM NATIONALS (and yes, you have to shout it otherwise it’s not as impactful) this past Sunday alongside a host of other truck-loving little ones.

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who doesn’t love spiderman?

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racing + jumping over cars = cool

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jet-propelled quad thingy

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transforming robots …

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who battle …

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and the good guy always wins

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chicks can jump over cars, too

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the real star of the show

Overall, just over two hours of good, clean (and loud) entertainment. And for anyone who may be curious, I did not attempt any of these stunts on the way home.

uncle harry’s sunset

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[67.375] for harry

south haven, march 8, 2013

Last Friday was a really rough day. I woke with a caffeine headache (of course!) and the knowledge that my Uncle Harry had opted out of further intervention to heal his failing body. I left work early to get some rest and in anticipation of that call. I was laying on the couch when my mom called and let me know that he had decided to go home at 4:20 in the afternoon on the same day when previously his dad was born, and his older sister was buried.

The sun was beaming in my window; it was warm and beautiful and I had this overwhelming feeling that I needed to go watch the sunset. I took my camera in the hopes that it would live up to what I’d hoped and as I sat there through tears and smiles thinking of that mischievous guy, I snapped a few photos. I sent this one to my cousins and let them both know that they were on my mind and that I watched this gorgeous sun saying goodnight just like Harry had a couple hours earlier. They opted to use the photo for the funeral program (which was a huge honor!). Inside the program was this poem:

Do you know the hour when the sun goes down is a beautiful time of day, when your task is done and the shadows fall and your worries are laid away?

Well, it’s just as true that the close of life can a beautiful sunset be, every task well done, let the shadows fall, there’s no fear of eternity. – G. Gilbert

Goodnight, Uncle Harry. Your smile, quick wit, pipe and plaid shirts will never be forgotten by this niece. Thank you for sharing that final sunset with me.

perseverance

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(n) 1. steady persistence in a course of action, a purpose, a state, etc.,
especially in spite of difficulties,obstacles, or discouragement.
2. Connor

This kid, he amazes me. Connor and I were blessed with a long weekend (yes, a planned day off from school is far preferred to an unexpected snow day) and I had some fun activities planned for Saturday and Sunday but was leaving Friday open for errands.

When Connor got up Friday, he declared that today was the.day. that he would start (and finish) building his Malevolence LEGO ship he got for his birthday. We’d been waiting for a good, long stretch to work on it because it includes just under 1,100 pieces. I told him that he could definitely get started on it and then we were going to run up to Grandville to take care of some mom things. He got to work and calculated just how many pages he would have to get through. That would be 134.

He got through page 20 and I told him it was time to get our move on. I remembered (quickly) how little kids like errands. He was asking in the car how many places we had to stop. <warning>Parents everywhere: This.is.a.trap Be vague. Don’t give a direct answer.</warning> I told him that I wasn’t sure, but it would include Hobby Lobby, Lowe’s and the meat locker. What? These aren’t your normal errand-type stops?

We got through our errands in about three hours (mind you, the drive was a little over an hour and a half of it) and he immediately got back to the ship. At one point he said, “Um, a little help here?” I was quick to jump in because I could tell throughout that he did not want my help. He really wanted to tackle it himself. He did stop to ask me a couple times if I thought there was any way he could finish it and I told him that if he put his head down and focused on it that very likely, yes, he could.

studying

studying

So, at about 8:20, he asked for help one last time to get the ship’s top in place and voila!, the Malevolence was flight-ready.

Can I take one moment to ask the LEGO company to STOP including ‘extra’ pieces? I have mini panic attacks (and I’m not the only one; a girlfriend at work and I chatted about this today) when I see those 4 extra pieces per bag just laying there taunting us as if to say, ‘Oops, you missed a step.’ Not a fan.

Of course, CJ was uber-impressed with his LEGO-prowess and declared himself smarter than any nine-year-old that ever lived because surely not one of them could’ve built the same ship in 6.5 hours like he did. Oh yes, I missed noting that the set was designed for 9-14 year old LEGO maniacs.

Then, Saturday, after his last basketball practice, I took him to an indoor rock climbing place just south of Grand Rapids. I’d found a deal for a couple day passes and I thought it sounded like something he would really like. We had climbed last summer an an outside wall at Ropes Course, Inc., but this was his first time inside.

We were equipped with our harnesses and I was taught how to belay. Tip for future visits: Belayers (I have no idea if that’s what they’re actually called) should wear gloves. The burn on my thumb is a reminder. Connor made his way up the first climb. The staffer was pretty impressed and just commented, “He has no fear.” He certainly does not.

[61.365] going up

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That was the first of three routes he would finish (multiple times). He even found on a subsequent trip up that particular wall had an easy button. He said, “Mom, there’s a button up here. Should I push it?” Immediately, my response was, “No, it could be a fire alarm!” Wait, why would the fire alarm be up that high? He said, “Well, it says something. E-a- .. easy.” I chuckled. “Yes, you may push it.” He then pressed it multiple times to hear, “That was easy.”

Connor climbed for two straight hours. The last couple of times he went up I could tell he was wearing down. A couple times he would hang back from the wall to take a break. I reminded him that meant I was holding him up. “Oh, sorry Mom.” I asked him if he wanted to come down and he just responded each time with, “No, I’m not gonna quit.”