Sunday, August 8, 2010

Back When My Hair Was Short

Back when I was growing up, children of all ages played together. Many of our moms could not drive, and we were too young to ride our bicycles very far.Ann Marie and her little brother lived just down the road from our house. I would go by their house and look at all the hunting dogs her dad had. In later years, her mom worked at the high school, and would sometimes give me a ride so I did not have to stand out in the cold waiting for the bus.My dad painted for the Naval Weapons Station during the day, then did other painting jobs at night and on Saturdays (NEVER on Sunday, that was for church) One day, a customer asked dad if I would like a "little car" that he had. So, a few nights later, we emptied our dad's work wagon and hauled it home.It was red and white, and as you can see in the picture, it REALLY was a little car. The engine was pretty well shot, so it was in the garage more than on the roads. In those days, we all rode mini-bikes and go-carts on the state roads, and nobody complained.I drove the car down to Ann Marie's and took her for a ride around the neighborhood. As you can see in the picture, my dog, "King" followed us all the way.Years later, it was Facebook that helped us re-connect. Good times

Thursday, August 5, 2010

Homeward Bound

Sorry it's been a while since I've posted. Sometimes I just get "blogger's block".
In just a few weeks, I will be heading back to my hometown, Mathews County, Virginia.
I don't get back very often anymore, so I am looking forward to it. My college friend and seminary roommate has even invited me to preach at his church there while I am in town. It should be a really fun time. I love to go back and see everyone, and sometimes it seems like I just left yesterday, even though I moved away over 25 years ago.
When I got sick last year, I was amazed at the number of cards that poured in to the hospital room. They came from all over the United States, even some from other countries. A large number came from Mathews. The surprising thing about those Mathews cards was that many of them were from people I did not know that well, or from folks I had not talked with in years. This year at the Mathews Relay for Life, I was honored that several participants listed me as one of the persons they were walking for. Through Facebook, I have also gotten to know some people much better than I knew them before.
If you are near Mathews, I would love to see you when I come back in August. I will be preaching at 11:00 a.m. on August 22 at Locust Grove United Methodist Church.
I'll try to post more often, too.
Have you ever wanted to just be "good enough"?