Memorial Day 2012

The S. family had the college crew over to their place for a Memorial Day cook-out this year. Actually, they pretty much turned over their place to the college crew for a Memorial Day cook-out this year :) ! Bro. S. was at work, and Mrs. S., Abigail, and Piper all went to the beach, so Archer and Law were the hosts. Trissy and I got there just as the ladies were leaving, and the girls jumped out to show us how the house was coming along (very well! The siding is on, sheet-rock up, bathroom's finished, washer and dryer in, doors hung, and I think all of the painting is done.) and the color of their freshly-painted room (teal).

It was a wonderful, simple, wholesome, fun day!

For a big part of the time, about half of us sat around on the wide, welcoming, wrap-around porch, some swinging lazily in the hammocks, some scooted back and leaning against the house where the shade was, some unable to resist the fun of sitting on the edge in the sun and swinging their legs over that nice height.
The guys grilled hamburgers and deep-fried potato slices and onion rings down by the pond. There were coolers filled with ice-cold cans of soda and bottled water, plates of cookies, brownies, cupcakes, and a dirt cake. There was potato salad, and of course, the hamburger 'fixings'.
It was hot and humid, but there was a welcome breeze blowing off the pond, and mist from the sprinkler cooling the air.

As we got hungry, we'd go down to the folding table set up beside where the boys were grilling, fix a burger or grab a bag of chips or some desert, and then stand around or sit on the ground eating. The ants loved it ;) .

Russell and Toby helped Archer spread out a plastic tarp on the little hill leading from the house down to the pond, turned the sprinkler on it, and Aron put liquid soap on it to make a 'slip-and-slide'!

One of the S. family's favorite family activities is to go kayaking together, so they have their own little fleet.
Several had brought fishing gear and were standing around the pond fishing. Russell got out in one of the kayaks to do his fishing, and after a few minutes Law dove in and swam out to where he was, keeping Russell company while enjoying a swim himself.
Others began taking turns getting out in the kayaks and/or swimming in the pond, and eventually I think almost everyone was out on, in, or beside the water at the same time. Trissy and I got to kayak for the first time, and - country kids that we are - I guess it was our first real swim in a pond too, though we've done plenty of splashing and wading in our neighbor's cows' watering holes!



I think just about everyone that has ever been part of the college group in any way was there. Only Oliver, Landon, Bro. Mike, Lora, Andrea, 'my brown-eyed boy' and Julia were missing. There must have been 25 or 30 of us there.

I love people. I love these people. I notice things about people I love. And I notice the brilliant and beautiful details God programed into them.
A few from today: Hair ruffled in the breeze. Red happy faces glistening with sweat and water drops from the sprinkler. Huge grins. Arms brown under the summer sun. Strong legs and nimble feet chasing a soccer ball. Shining eyes. Good-natured laughs. Observant personalities. Humility. Compassion. Contentment.

At one point I was sitting on the porch in the sun, swinging my legs over the side, and I suddenly noticed and became keenly aware of the importance of this seemingly trivial moment in time.
I was surrounded by friends. Christians. Archer had hooked up his laptop to some speakers, and music that praised God was filling the yard. Some were playing soccer, some were sliding on the slip-and-slide, some were fishing, some were spraying or getting sprayed with the water hose, some were sitting around visiting. It was totally peaceful. No fear. No stress. No pain for this moment. And my mind sort of took that moment and paused it as a slice of the day - a sample of the best of summer times - and as I soaked it up, the thought *involuntarily came to my mind, "This is a taste of what Heaven will be like."

A drop of ocean water is still part of the ocean. Though of course it cannot even begin to describe the ocean in it's entirety of size, content, color, or temperament, it nevertheless represents a tiny part of what the ocean is like.
If someone who has never seen or experienced the ocean were to be given access to a drop of ocean water, they would be able to touch, see, smell, and - in a sense - 'experience' the ocean. But if they were to be taken to the ocean, the experience would be much different.
So, I think, it is with moments like this one in the lives of Christians. These moments are drops of water from the great Ocean, Heaven, that the Lord gives to us in order to sharpen our craving for Home.

I thank Him for them; and for Heaven to come.

*I specify 'involuntarily' because I think that trivial earthly experiences are compared to Heaven (i.e. "This chocolate cake is heavenly!" or "Living here is like heaven.") so many times, that it becomes irreverent. Heaven is a real place people! A holy place, the home of God and those who have believed on His Son - indescribable beauty, pure happiness, complete health, glorious freedom, and total focused worship of the One Who made it possible.
I want to stress that in no way did I intend to compare a fun day with a group of friends - wonderful as it may be - to that glorious Place in a flippant or irreverent way.
But - based on Biblical descriptions of what Heaven will be like - in this case, I believe the comparison is quite acceptable.