Ye'll tak' the high road, and I'll tak' the low road... and I'll be in Scotland afore ye...

Today I breathed a sigh of relief.

Because we have been out of town all week, I had to take the final exam for both of my classes this morning... suffice it to say that last night wasn't happy. But, I think I did pretty well. I am quite confident, actually. I finished the first in 25 minutes and the second in an hour and 15. Could I have done better? Of course. Do I really care? Not really.

One of the essay questions I had to answer is why knowing a nation's history is important to its citizens. I am absolutely fascinated with this subject. My brother posed the same question to me earlier this week in another context. Why should we be proud of our Scotch-Irish heritage? he asked.

I am very proud to be Scotch-Irish- and I intend to find out more about them... just think- it may have been my ancestors that were monks who preserved the written word during the Dark Ages! It may have been them who sat under St. Patrick (my mom's maiden name is actually McCool) and spread Christianity on the island. The Lennoxes (Jon's mom's maiden name) were descendants of the Stuart Kings- the castle they owned (this picture was taken by Jon's brother Ben) is still there today- near Loch Lomond in Scotland. I find this fascinating!

I read a book last year called The Surprising Power of Family Meals: How eating together makes us stronger, smarter, healthier, and happier. In it, the author related a conversation she had had with a colleague who was a college professor. He had done a study on his students and found that those who knew thier family's heritage- recent and ancient- seemed to have more success in school and beyond.

The book asserted, and I agree, that knowing what "your people" have been through- whether it is the trials of the ancient celts, the journey from the isles to America, or the stories of my grandparents in the Great Depression, this connection to the past empowers people to have the strength to succeed.

Keep in mind this is not always a cognitive decision. When faced with a hard time, I don't think, "Wait a minute! I have ancestors who survived the Potato Famine- I can get through this!" No. I don't.

I do think, though, that the subconscious knowledge of what your family- or nation- has been through can positively affect an individual.

Jon and I have begun compiling information we know so that, someday, we can pass it on to our kids- the book suggests that the dinner table is a great means for that.

What do you think? Do you feel a connection to your past? Is passing family history on to your children important to you?

And an even more pressing question: Do you want to buy a used Western Civilization book?

Homes for Our Troops

Last night Jon and I met a man who is a plumber with Homes for Our Troops. This is a group of homebuilders who build new homes (or upgrade existing ones) that are handicap accessible for troops who return home in wheelchairs or otherwise impaired. It seems like a great program- I never would have even thought of that need!!

Kids' Church

I began a new ministry today. Well... the ministry isn't new... I'm just new to it.

Anyway, I'm helping out with Kids'Church at Ft. Stewart.

With so many of the chaplains deployed, these ministries are severely lacking in volunteers... and with the surge and accelerated deployments, it is all happening quite quickly... as in... last week.

There are about 80 kids Kg-5th grade who come on a Sunday morning- this is one of those ministries that is all the chapels on post, plus unchurched kids that the bus picks up or whose parents drop them off. In that way, it's more like an AWANA program than a Children's Church. It only lasts about an hour, though, so there's barely enough time to realize what's going on before it's over! This morning they took a count of how many kids have a parent deployed right now- about 75% of them do. As you can see, it's vital that we keep reaching out to these families right now.

There is actually a possibility that I could be hired as a contract worker for the children's ministry. There's a bit of a process that has to happen, but it would allow me full reign of the ministry- and get paid for it!! From what I know of the position so far, it seems perfect for me! I won't know anything for a few weeks, but it looks promising!

Since the gospel service continues well after Kids' Church, I was able to go and be with Jon for the last half hour or so of the service. And... I didn't have the urge to cry AT ALL! Improvement... (funny sidenote... I was talking to one of the other KC volunteers who attends the gospel service, and she comes from an Anglican background- she said she was entirely caught off guard her first time!)

Anyway... I'll keep y'all posted... happy Sunday!

amazing grace?

we saw it tonight. today was the opening day of the amazing grace movie. my parents went to see it earlier in the day and had given it good reviews, so i was quite excited. i won't comment on the movie for now except to say that you should go see it! Christian cliches were kept to a small minimum... and after googling them when i came home, i realized that john newton (who spoke them in the movie) actually originally penned them!

that is all i shall say on the movie... for now...

no, coming home at close to one in the morning, there is something else pressing on my mind: the woman who sat next to me at the theater. she was the epitomy of what you don't want the person sitting next to you to be! She talked through the entire thing... it seemed like every thought she had she vocalized. any moderately emotional part, she responded with "mmm... how cool..." or "that is so cute" or "good for him!" or "that's just great"- it drove me crazy. i digress.

the point is that, between the previews and the movie, a coke commercial celebrating black history was shown. this woman, the SAME one who sang the praises of william wilberforce and the abolitionist movement, she said during this commercial, and i quote, "blah blah blah."

BLAH BLAH BLAH?? you're at a movie celebrating abolition of slavery and you "blah blah blah" the black history commercial?

so what... we should abolish slavery but supress the race after that? we should avoid any contribution they have made? it's a 30 second coke commercial... you are bored with history after 30 seconds? you glorify the "amazing grace" of God (and rightly so), yet you are unwilling to extend his grace in your own life by recognizing what a particular race has accomplished?

blech.

if there was anything i could have changed about the movie, it would have been that woman.

i am so stinkin high-tech.

here it is, folks...

getting annoyed with trying to remember to stop by?

not stopping by much because you don't remember?

i have solved your problem!!!

all you do is enter your email address in the top right column of this page, and you will get an email notification every time i post. no more wondering when in the world i'm going to post or if it's worth your time to check.

happy subscribing!

just in case you were wondering...

tomorrow's expected high here in hinesville is 78 degrees.

armyspeak

i have realized that, in spite of my valiant efforts to make what i say make sense to civilians, there are some things that need to be explained. keep in mind that everything i'm about to say brings with it about 5 other things that should be explained, and if you have military experience, you'll look at this and will want to add several exceptions and specifications- this is not an exhaustive explanation, but hopefully it will help this life we now lead make more sense for most of you!

each installation (for our sake, an installation is a fort- like fort stewart- it is the geographical location) has a chaplain that stays there and runs the chapel ministries at the installation. each brigade has a chaplain, and each battalion has a chaplain. there are typically several battalions in a brigade. in the active duty world, the first several years of your career are spent as a battalion chaplain. (this is what jon was in iraq and will be after this year of being a trainer.) battalion chaplains serve their unit (battalion) AND usually a post chapel.

ft. stewart currently has 5 post chapels. these are basically church buildings and are run similar to a large church that has different campuses across town. each faith group (protestant, catholic, islam, wiccan, etc) has access to these chapels. for example, at ft. stewart, there is catholic mass; protestant traditional, contemporary, liturgical, and gospel; as well as other meetings for varying faith groups.

when we say that jon is the "associate pastor" at the gospel service, that is not his full-time job- he is still a chaplain trainer. however, he also has responsibilities at this church service. the gospel service has about 300 people who regularly attend and has its own small groups and ministries- just like any other church. the difference is that some of the ministries are post-wide- for example, the youth group is the post youth group- regardless of what service you go to on sunday morning (or if you go at all), the youth group meets at one of the chapels on sunday nights. ladies Bible study (pwoc), single soldier ministry, and kids' church are other examples of this.

i've also had the question- "what is the gospel service- aren't all services gospel?" a post gospel service is predominantly african-american; the music is the style of gospel music you may hear on the radio (NOT southern gospel, mind you!).

i hope that clears things up a bit!

comfort zone? what comfort zone?

i'm drained.

if you read my husband's blog, you know that he was assigned (and gladly accepted) the associate pastorate at the gospel service here on post. if you know anything about me, you know that i am not exactly "gospel service" material.

in my background, "expressive worship" means you smile. and... that's about it. during songs, you probably fell into one of four categories:
1) stood there and looked grumpy
2) stood there and looked pleasant, sometimes mouthing the words
3) sang (most people were in this category)
4) smiled while you sang
those in the fourth category were the charismatic expressive folks. they may have even raised their hands on occasion, but you brushed it off because, well, they came from a different background.

if you are like me, you also attended a service that ended by the designated time (either noon, or possibly 12:15) to allow for the lunch crowd to get to their favorite restaurant- and if you weren't out by that designated time, the pastor probably heard about it. you may have even had a burnt roast on those sundays because the longevity wasn't expected.

fast forward to february 18, 2007. picture me, with the afforementioned religo-cultural background (i may have made that word up), standing (even swaying sometimes!) in a service, a quite expressive (putting it mildly) service... for two and a half hours... suffice it to say it was a different experience.

i have to admit, i enjoyed it. the people were loving and friendly, welcoming us into their congregation with open arms. i am quite excited to get involved in the group and get to know these dear folks better. the senior pastor (a chaplain) and his wife seem like really neat people that we will benefit greatly from working with.

there were times during the service that i just wasn't quite sure what to do. each tradition of worship has its own mores and norms... and this was not my tradition. i'm sure that the more i attend there, the more comfortable i will become with it. in "prepping" me, jon had encouraged me to just do whatever i felt like doing, and not try to make myself be someone i wasn't. on the other hand, i didn't want to look disapproving (my resting facial position, i have been told, looks "mad" or "stern"). so, this morning, i decided to stretch myself... i smiled.

long, but worth it...

in honor of black history month, i thought we should take a moment to think of the slavery that still is happening worldwide.

there is a movie coming to theaters next friday called "amazing grace." it is a story of true events that led to abolition of slavery in england. i have been excited to see it ever since i first saw the trailer a month ago... i would encourage you to check out the amazing change campaign - it is a website dedicated to helping slaves- both literal and economical- worldwide. look around there to see some of the things that are happening globally.

yesterday at pwoc (the army wives' bible study i have been attending), there was a special speaker who worked in vietnam and northern thailand for several years as a missionary. one people group he talked about especially stuck out to me- the shan living between myanmar (burma) and thailand. this people group (300,000 in number) were forced from their villages in burma and told that they would be killed if they returned. however, thailand won't allow most of them into their country, either- most of them are literally living in the jungles between the guarded gates of both countries. children are often either abandoned or sold into slavery or prostitution (which are really synonomous...)

have you heard of the dalit? they are a people group whose name literally means "untouchables"- 250 million people who have been told by the upper castes of india that they are less than human. if even a dalit’s shadow falls on an upper caste person, that person is polluted according to caste rules. (that description comes from this website.)

if you want more information that any of these sites have, just do a google search- you will be amazed what you come up with.

if you are like me, you will look at this information and say, "so what? what in the world can i do about it? nothing." you know, in some ways i agree. i don't believe that signing a petition will honestly end slavery- it is a much deeper issue than american popular opinion. however, i do believe that we do the body of Christ good to be informed on these issues, to at least KNOW what is happening. to pray over these people groups. to do what we can to help the truly needy in our world.

keep in mind, too, that these people also have little to no Christian witness- some are persecuted horribly. we have brothers and sisters who are suffering in chains even today.

and honestly, i think that many churches and Christians- not wanting to be named among the social gospel movement- have gone too far in neglecting the physical needs of those around us. yes, you will get taken advantage of. yes, you may feel like it's just a drop in the bucket. is that what you would tell Christ? you didn't contribute to the food pantry because people take advantage of it? that you didn't give to a charity because you think it's probably some grand conspiracy to take your money?

maybe so. i know that i would rather err on the side of showing love. isn't that what Christianity is all about? helping the poor, the widows, the orphans... showing love to those who would never see it otherwise...

here are some practical suggestions if you'd like to get involved. this is just the tip of the iceburg. if you can't give, then pray. pray for these people to know Christ, and pray also that they would be free from the physical torment in which they are currently living.

World Vision
Samaritan's Purse (they have a cool catalog at christmas that you can actually buy "gifts" for someone in a third-world country- gifts like chickens, bibles, school supplies, a well, farming equipment, etc)
Amnesty International
Peace Gospel
Compassion International


if you know of other groups that focus on enslaved, displaced, or impoverished people groups, feel free to list it in the comments section.

where in the world is hinesville?

so for all you northerners who aren't really familiar with georgia geography, here is where we live. as you can see, it's near the tip of south carolina.

by the way, last night at 9:00 when i was driving home from class, the bank sign said it was 59 degrees. nice.

on this day in history...

a baby was born.

he would grow up to be an incredible man.

he would be thoughtful, sensitive, fun, and driven.

he would also be my husband.

happy birthday, darling!

(go over to chaplainfisher.com and tell him happy birthday!)

only in the military...

is the background "music" of your ladies' Bible study artillery and such going off at a nearby field, shaking the entire chapel...

(by the way, we can hear it booming loudly at our house- miles away...)

an open letter to customer service reps

if you are a customer service representative and you ever get me on the phone, please, i beg of you, do not call me "hun." or "sweetie." or any other term that makes me feel like an 8-year-old.

actually, unless you are my husband or a very close friend, please do not use any sort of term of endearment whatsoever. i am NOT endeared to you.

i may sound like a teenager on the phone (and look like one in person...), but i assure you that i am a grown adult.

i am not "playing wife." the account i'm calling about is real.

and especially, ESPECIALLY, if you can't give me any information because my husband's is the only name on the account, ESPECIALLY then i am NOT AT ALL endeared to you.

never mind the fact that i can spout off his social and date of birth faster than i can my own (when people ask me for mine, i have to think a minute- his comes to mind first these days).

unless you want me to start paying my bills with pretend money, please start treating me like an adult.

pwoc

i went to my first pwoc meeting today. pwoc is protestant women of the chapel- it's a national Bible study at military installations. i wasn't really sure what i expected, but it ended up being good.

it didn't start out so hot... i called the installation chaplain's office for directions for the specific chapel it was at. i got lost (long story) and arrived to the chapel 20 minutes late... only to see a sign on the door that today's meeting got moved to another chapel- one i am familiar with and is much closer to my house. i got there 30 minutes late... but apparently all i missed were songtime and announcements.

there were probably 35 women there, of all ages. everyone was incredibly friendly... actually, people were more friendly here than at any of the churches we've visited. the very nature of a military installation-based group is that there is CONSTANT turnover- every two to three years, everyone moves. so, unlike a church that has had people who have been there for the past 40+ years, anyone who has been there longer than about 6 months is an "oldtimer"- new people are the spice of life.

of these women, the overwhelming majority of them said good-bye to their husbands (most of them for the 3rd or 4th time since 9/11) just a couple weeks ago. the 3rd infantry division (located at ft. stewart) is in the process of deploying... unlike last year, I am the one who has a husband at home while everyone else is alone. it made me very thankful that we're together, yet at the same time, the feeling that one day very soon I will again be the one dealing with stateside life alone loomed in the back of my mind.

it is great to have a group like this, though, in those times. a group that laughs at the same "you know you're a military spouse if..." jokes, that cries just as much (if not more...) than you, a group that asks not what your husband does, but if he's in the country or not (because really, that's all that matters).

have a good day, and keep the troops in your prayers...

new house pics

here they are! the house is still a work in progress (especially the wallpapered kitchen...), but it looks great already. there's also a formal dining room and spare bedroom that i didn't deem it necessary to take pictures of. (the dining room is our next project, but right now still has cardboard boxes as the decor...)

enjoy!

(sorry for the double- the pictures are represented as text in my "edit" box, so I can't figure out what to delete!)

fixing the unbroken

i'm sitting in a motel room bored out of my mind.

okokok, so that may be a slight overstatement... but just barely. jon is at drill, and i am waiting for him. i briefly considered staying home this weekend, then i remembered what it was like the time i DIDN'T go with him...

anyway, this time on my hands prompted me to make a change to my blog. i attempted doing this a few months ago, but when the template changed, it did some crazy things to the site- it was like the new one was on top of the old one. i quickly changed back to the original and took it as a sign that i shouldn't try to fix something that isn't broken.

then, i went to josh's site... and realized that blogger beta is equipped with new template options- woohoo! (what? copying him? no. not at all.)

i'm not so sure i agree with that statement anyway- "if it's not broken, don't fix it." i think that just because something is still functional, that doesn't mean it can't get better.

and... with all of these new changes in life, i suppose my blog needs a lift too. (side note- i found the camera this week, and jon found the cord- pics soon I PROMISE!!) i have realized that i am, in many ways, a completely different person than i was two years ago...

two years ago next weekend (why do i remember these things?), jon gave me a ring. i was already starting to plan a wedding, calling friends and family to let them know the news!

i view life much differently now than i did then. two years of marriage- one spent with a spouse in a war- will do that to you. i have joined a new family, gotten to know my own in a different way, met new friends, and gone through things i never imagined. i'd like to think i'm much less critical and judgemental now. i feel that i am. i realize that if i expect people to accept me for who i am, i must in turn accept them for who they are- even if it is very different from me. i have learned to be much more gracious and much less harsh. i have realized that i don't know as much as i thought i did.

i hope you enjoy the new look...

mmmmm.... pudding....

here's another of my favorite things: cook 'n serve chocolate pudding.

i hadn't had it since i was a kid, and when i was at the commissary (military grocery store) the other day, it looked darn good.

and let me tell you, it was.

jon even crushed up hershey cookies in it for me!

if you have never experienced such a delectable treat, i suggest you get on it right away!

a change and an answer

first of all, suffice it to say i'm not president bush's biggest fan right now.

now that that's out of the way...

i have, once again, changed my educational mind. after looking into the degree programs columbia offers a little more thoroughly, i discovered that the teaching minor is only available at their home campus- in missouri (i thought it seemed a little too good to be true...). without that teaching certification, i'm not all about a degree in history... so... (drum roll please)... i am doing sociology. i have always been interested in it; i was just never sure what i could do with the degree. after looking through the program, i realized that i am much more drawn to it than to history. it's in a way a ministry degree through a secular worldview. it fascinates me. i brought the idea up to jon, who got more and more excited about it the longer we talked about it.

rhonda- since you asked, the bedroom is slate blue- two adjacent walls are a darker color, and the other two a slightly lighter color. i love it. the living room has an oak chair rail- white below, and a slightly-bluer-than-sage green above. the ceilings are vaulted in there. the study has a deep chocolate brown on three of the walls and a lighter brown on the other one. that room has a huge top to bottom window that lets in a lot of light, so the dark looks really nice. :-)

did you all see that lost is going to start coming on at 10 instead of 9? boo.

i will soon post pictures... have a good weekend!

from monday night

i felt like i could vomit.

the sky was starting to darken. it had been quite sunny today after a heavy rain last night. i have had increasing feelings of emotion about this evening- anticipation mixed with fear, doubt, and excitement. i walked into the building, not quite knowing which of those feelings was the strongest.

i have taken the plunge. four years since i waved good-bye to moody bible institute, i find myself enrolled in more college classes. this time, i’m attending columbia college, and will major in history with a minor in education.

so here i sit. the professor is talking about the city of ur (sidenote, i have jon’s laptop, which happens to contain an 80-slide power point of ur- i’m looking at pictures of what she’s drawing on the white board…)

now that i’m here, i feel much better. students in front of me are furiously writing every word the professor says. the woman in front of me is working out the cramp in her hand. that i can see, i’m the only one with a laptop. nice. i’m sitting in the back corner (close to an outlet) with no one next to me. there are probably 25 students, most military. some are adorned in ACUs, others just have the distinct haircut.

it is certainly and odd feeling, going back to school. I haven’t completed an assigned reading- let alone written a paper- in years…

i have now been in class for an hour and 45 minutes- only three hours and 15 minutes left (yes, for those of you who are math-impaired- that’s FIVE hours!)

this is going to be a long night…

to everything turn, turn, turn...

sorry i disappeared. i have been living in the dark gloomy world of no-internet-at-home.

yes, we're back. we moved. to a climate that demanded i actually turned my air conditioner on in the truck in january. yes. it's wonderful. (just don't talk to me come june...)

we ended our time at grace christian academy on a tuesday, closed on our house on wednesday, and headed to michigan on thursday. i enjoyed this trip much more than thanksgiving, for we could actually spend time with people instead of on the road back-and-forth! unfortunately, i got sick the night before we went to be with my family, and didn't get feeling better until the day we left... suffice it to say i was a bit foggy the whole time.

we got back into fayetteville late on friday, packed on saturday, and loaded the truck on sunday. thankfully, rocky and carolyn were there to help... and help us unload... and help us paint...

yes, the day after we moved in, we got the bedroom and living room (complete with vaulted ceilings and a chair rail) painted. we really couldn't have done it without rocky and carolyn. their experience and willingness to help went miles in getting us moved in and feeling at home.

we've now been here for a week. i start classes tonight- eek! haven't been to school in a while... this is weird... i'm taking western civ I at a local campus (from 5:30-10:30 pm) and western civ II online. fun fun.

that's as much of an update as i can cram into this post... i promise more interesting thoughts are to come!!

peace in the storm

december 23, 2001. five years ago today.

when i woke up that morning, i was in a hurry. it was a sunday, and i had decided late the night before to stay over at my friend sara's house, instead of trying to brave it home in the typical michigan blizzard. being that it was a sunday, i had to leave her house quite early in the morning to make it home to get ready in time for church.

the alarm sounded, i grabbed my sweatshirt and headed for the door. i stopped to get my keys from the counter, but they were not there. i must have left them in the car, i thought.

i headed out the door to a still-dark december morning. the chill in the air was biting, and i headed quickly for my car on the opposite side of the parking lot. i saw a man walking near my car, and thought to myself, now i have someone to say 'good morning' to! (what can i say, the spirit of christmas affects even me in the wee hours of the morning!)

what happened next will never leave my mind. it has greatly impacted my life over the last five years, and i am sure it will continue to. glimpses of that morning come back to me; i am aware of things i never was; i will never be the same person.

that man, that seemingly innocent man across the way, approached me. he made me get in my car, wanting me to drive somewhere... but i didn't have my keys. come to find out, in her habitual cleaning the night before, sara had moved them. God only knows what would have happened had she not done so. after he realized that, he took my wallet, and throughout the course of our 15-minute encounter, threatened to kill me several times. he then took me back behind the apartment building, where the morning only got worse. thankfully, he never touched me... physically anyway.

in the midst of what was going on, my cell phone fell out of my purse, and he didn't see it. after he left- again, threatening to kill me- i saw it there on the ground, and called sara for help. we called 911, and the police came... and didn't believe my story. no, instead, they spent the rest of the morning telling me that it's criminal to falsely report a crime. it didn't make sense, they maintained, that i could be at such peace after such a horrific event had happened to me. what they didn't understand was that i was not alone that morning- the Prince of Peace was with me the entire time. i was thankful that what could have happened didn't, but more than anything, i had the peace of Christ in me.

i don't say this to imply that it is inappropriate to ever react to circumstances, that the peace of God protects us from emotion. it certainly does not- God created us to be emotional creatures. but what it does mean is that, in the midst of the trials, in the midst of the emotions, we have been promised that Christ sent us a Comforter- and that the Holy Spirit indwells those who belong to him. He has promised us peace, not as the world gives- as only He can give.

i really don't know how to put that in more practical words. i don't know what "having God's peace" means to you, how it makes you feel, how it changes you. i don't know how to say it without sounding cliche. that is certainly not my intention.

but what i do know what i felt that morning. i know that, sitting outside, freezing cold, wondering if i would ever see my family again- that somehow, in some indescribable way, i felt at peace.

so this christmas, i pray for you to feel that peace. like i said, it may look differently in your life. whether it's a deployment, a debilitating disease, a family crisis, a traumatic event- i know that Jesus offers his peace, which passes our understanding.

merry christmas.

at the end

as i sit here at my desk, i feel a strange sense of deja-vu. this morning i gathered with the same teachers in the same room that i did 5 months ago as school was starting... i have the same fear of the unknown... i now stare at the same empty classroom.

except this time, things are different. this time, my desk is piled with gifts from students. (thank you so much to all of you students and parents who were so thoughtful... we appreciate it immensely...) a stack of graded exams sits next to me. students come in to say good-bye, not hello.

this is our last day at grace christian academy. jonathan was called up to train other chaplains who are getting ready to deploy. we close on our new house near ft. stewart tomorrow, then after a week up north for the holidays, we'll be packing up the uhaul and heading south... yet again...

i will miss the students, interacting with them. they all have so many unique qualities, and when they weren't making me pull my hair out, they made me smile with joy! :-)

so, this is it. the final day of this journey. it is bittersweet... every time one journey ends, another begins.

love you all...

the first of my list

i have decided to start sharing some of my favorite websites. or foods. or movies. or whatever. here's the first. (well, the second if you count joyeux noel- which, incidentally, if you haven't rented- or bought- yet, you really need to get on that!)

this is a total and unabashed plug for a website i have come to love. i am in no way personally connected to them, but if you're looking for a good company to go through to print your digital pictures (and tons of other cool stuff), try out winkflash.com. the website is quite user-friendly (you can upload entire folders of pictures at once as opposed to one-at-a-time), they have great products, fast shipping, and reasonable prices- plus, you get 50 FREE 4x6 prints the first time you order!

the most wonderful time

so a certain realization has hit me this week: final exams are as much of a pain for teachers as they are for students.

*sigh*... it has been a long week of entering grades, writing exams, copying exams, making grading sheets... and soon to be actually grading these things. my first hour class is working busily on their 5-page test right now. i see a girl in the corner of the room trying to get the cramp out of her hand, another boy staring at the ceiling, hoping to find an answer written there. ah yes. the most wonderful time of the year, right?

it has been busy, but i have been enjoying myself of late. i happen to absolutely love christmas and all it entails... cookies, trees, decorations, music, movies (i even got jon to watch elf!... still working on a christmas story, though) i also- with the help of my loving co-worker/husband- took the 7th and 8th graders to see a stage play of a christmas carol at the shakespeare tavern. even now, i'm nibbling on some wonderful white chocolate peppermint bark a student made and gave me.

it is wonderful that jon is home for it this year! i was reflecting earlier about my breakdown last year at meijer shopping for decorations for him... then leaving up the tree until the end of january when he came home. not this year, not me!

the thing that i do miss this year is cold weather. and snow. yes yes, i know- i HATE cold weather. but it just doesn't seem like christmas when it's 65 degrees outside!

ah... i need to get back to making the spanish answer key... soon it will be over!!!

joyeux noel and a view on normalcy

"you will only be able to see your husband for one evening. is that really worth it?"
"it is much longer than one evening, sir."
"how is that?"
"our minutes are longer than yours."

so said a movie jon and i watched last night (which i highly recommend, by the way). the movie is called joyeux noel (merry christmas) (you'll need to click "english version"), which is about the famous christmas eve fraternizations that took place in 1914 on the battlefields of WWI. in this movie, which was a compilation of many testimonies from the actual event, soldiers from france, scotland, and germany all declared a truce on christmas eve for the purpose of gathering together to celebrate the holiday. the whole thing started because a chaplain from scotland pulled out his bagpipes to lift the spirits of his men. the sound carried to the other camps, and soon, everyone was singing along. it gave me an even greater appreciation for the work of my husband.

back to the introductory line...

it is so true. jon and i have often talked about the differing definition of normalcy held by military families. moving every three years is normal. having to stop at the guarded gate upon entering your "city" is normal. spending time apart is normal. cherishing every moment together more than other couples could probably imagine is normal.

it might be different, but it's not bad. yeah, normal looks different to us... but that's ok. i'm not saying there aren't down-sides - there definitely are (ie- the aforementioned time apart)- but you know what? our minutes are longer. our time together is precious.

and i wouldn't trade that for anything.

Where's the Gravy?

This was written by my dad...


Where's the Gravy!?!

As I was pondering the great issues of life while sweeping up the crumbs from last night's youth meeting, I was overwhelmed by a sense of laughter and joy by the memories of my family at Thanksgiving. And the world instantly became a better place. You would have to know my family. My grandparents were immigrants. Granted, it was just from the mountains of Tennessee to the factories of the Midwest, but immigrants just the same. As with most depression era families in Appalachia, times were hard for my grandparents. They, like untold numbers of other families, lived off the land and squeezed every drop they could squeeze from anything that could be squeezed. And what comes out when you squeeze is called gravy. Yes, the very nectar of heaven, itself. Sauce to be savored. Syrup to be saved. Juice to be enjoyed. The foundational and single most important element of any and every good and descent meal - animal squeezings mixed with flour. Gravy. Just the sound of the word makes me hungry. I was an adult before I learned you could actually eat mashed potatoes without it. Who knew?

Our family Thanksgivings always included football, plenty of gossip, a good nap or two, usually an argument, and a celebration of God's goodness around a table filled with food. And the centerpiece was never a turkey, for most of my family doesn't even like turkey. But we always had a turkey, because we needed something out of which to squeeze gravy… usually in various colors, viscosities, and flavors. However, my favorite Thanksgiving- and Thanksgiving story- was different. As we sat around the festive table at my aunt's house; and after whoever was considered the most spiritual that particular year offered thanks to God; and after the mashed potatoes had made the rounds and were neatly piled on everyone's plate with the traditional divot-for-the-gravy expertly carved on top; and after several people asked for the gravy to be passed; and after someone impatiently asked "Who has the gravy?"; and after my aunt nervously, and with fear and inquisition in her tone, said, "Who made the gravy?"; and when eye met eye and neck hairs bristled; then and only then did we realize the world, as we knew it, had ended. And the gravy gods cried. There… was… no… gravy!

To this day, my dad won't admit that it happened. Says he doesn't remember it that way. Apparently, it's too painful. The animal drippings were wasted that year, and the cycle of life was broken. There weren't very many family Thanksgivings after that. Many of the cousins moved away. The grandparents - who loved us with all their hearts, by the way - were soon to pass into eternity. The younger generation began to marry and gravitate to their own family traditions. But we went out with a bang! Isn't that the way we are? We live in the most affluent society the world has ever seen. God has granted to those who believe an eternity with His Dear Son in Heaven. And yet, we seem to desire more. But what could be 'more' than God's gifts of blessing? Everything else is but gravy… the worthless juice of an animal whose goose is cooked.

Enjoy your Thanksgiving. Remember to be thankful for the gift of God's Son. And don't worry about the gravy.

troilus and cressida

we went to a shakespeare play friday night. it was a showing of troilus and cressida- a controversial and little-known play. the first act was quite dull, but the second one picked up quite a bit.

it is a comedic retelling of the trojan war. a son, troilus, of the trojan king falls in love with a girl named cressida- whose father has defected to the greek camp. the greeks capture a trojan commander, and give him back only upon the return of cressida to her family.

it is not a tragedy, though it definitely has some rather tragic themes to it.

we went with rocky and carolyn, to the shakespeare tavern in downtown atlanta. because they show mainly shakespeare, the auditorium is permanantly constructed in that setting.

if you live around here and have never been, i would highly recommend it!!

another year older...

my birthday was saturday, and it was lovely. oddly enough, i woke up bright and early. don't really know what happened there...

anyway...

jon made me breakfast, then we enjoyed a morning of watching movies and hanging out. it was marvelous and relaxing. he was going to make lasagna for dinner, but we ended up going out for indian food instead. it's only the second time i've been to an indian restaurant, and the first time was a buffet- definitely the way to go with food you're unfamiliar with. fortunately, we both loved what we ordered- he had lamb curry, and i had chicken in a soupy spinach sauce. it was absolutely fantastic! we came home and had cappuccino pie, which my mom has made for my birthday every year since high school. she had sent jon the recipe so i could enjoy my tradition!

i have to say, though, the best part of the day was my gift from jon. earlier in the week we had borrowed a friend's gun to go to the range, and i fell in love with it. it was a .22 mini-revolver that folds up into a cute little concealable package. we had talked about me getting one, but i wasn't expecting it for my birthday! he had wrapped two packages; the first one was a small gun case. i didn't even open the case, because i wasn't expecting the gun. the next gift was rounds, which clued me in that maybe i should actually unlock the case... and it held my new gun! it is exactly the same as this picture- a .22 magnum revolver. i am so excited.

we ended up having the lasagna yesterday... and today... and tomorrow... and possibly wednesday...

come to think of it, i mispoke earlier. the gun was not the best part of the day. the best part was the fact that jonathan was home for it. i did miss being with my family, but having my husband here was priceless.

weekend trip

here are some pics from this weekend- we went back to the lakehouse in north carolina with rocky and carolyn. the colors aren't quite as bright as in michigan, but very beautiful nonetheless- especially in the mountains. we rode motorcycles through the smokies to gatlinburg (hence the warm clothing!)- we had a great time! the first picture is off the deck of the house we stayed at, and the others are on the road. in the one of us on the rocks, there is a stream flowing through the rocks- it was gorgeous.

disclaimer

i just wanted to add another update to yesterday's post, for i have felt badly about the way i portrayed my students.

in her defense, pbf said some of the most intelligent things in class yesterday- there were some things in our lesson that none of the students knew of, but she used context to correctly guess what the term meant. she is delightful and fun.

and, apf has one of the top grades in my class and is a bright student.

yesterday wasn't a banner day, but hey, everyone has their moments...

all in a day's work

me: "since we're studying the middle east, we're going to learn about islam today."

pretty blonde freshman: "why do we have to learn about her? and who is she anyway?"

(me staring dumbfoundedly at pbf)

(pbf sees look on my face)

pbf: "j/k mrs. fisher, j/k! ['just kidding' for those of you out of the 15-year-old lingo] but... for real... where is that place?"

(realizing i have more work to do than i thought)

me: "try again. not a girl, not a place..."

pbf: "COUNTRY! it's a country!"

(other students start putting their heads in their hands, shaking them in disbelief)

me: "nope. a country is a place."

pbf: "building?"

finally another student says, "[pbf], it's a religion."

pbf: "oooohhhhhhhh....... that's right...."

me: "so can anyone tell me what people who follow this religion are called?"

one student answers, "muslims."

me: "that's right."

another pretty freshman: "i thought they were arabs."

me: "no. that's their ethnicity, if they're from the middle-eastern region."

apf: "oh. so don't they speak muslim?"

me: "no. muslim is an adherant of islam."

apf: "so what do they speak?"

me: "well, if they're arab, they would speak arabic. if they're american, they would speak english."

apf: "so what do arabs speak?"

me: "arabic."

apf: "i thought that's what muslims spoke."


this led into a conversation about how, as one student pointed out to another, we don't speak american; we speak english (apparently new information). i used the example of how people from mexico- mexicans- don't speak mexican; they speak spanish. this led into a conversation about the differences between spaniard, mexican, hispanic, and latino.

apf: "so what do latinos speak?"

me: "spanish."

apf: "so who speaks latin?"

me: "no one. latin is a dead language."

apf: "WHAT???? how can a language be dead? and why are they called latinos if they don't speak latin?"

i quickly answered the question and moved on to the lesson on islam. about half-way through, the notes containted some text unknown to the students.

pbf: "what are those squiggly lines?"

another student: "that's arabic."

pbf: "ooohhhhh...... so that's what muslims speak?"


update: pbf just came into my classroom to ask me a question about her grade. just to prove what she had learned, she said, "islam is a country... NO... i mean... religion." she sighed proudly. "good job," i said. "and what are the people who follow islam called?" "arabs." "no." "oh...uh....muusssllliiiiims?" what a feeling of accomplishment.

guest speaker

we had a great day in geography today. there is a student here at grace whose parents are from nigeria- his mother came in and spoke to the class today. i found it quite intruiging. she talked about religion, food, tribes, and culture. she spoke of how the entire continent used to be pagan and animistic, worshiping carved images. she went on to tell us about how grateful the african christians are for the missionaries who first brought the gospel to their land. she talked about how, because of disease and climate, many of them got sick and some even died. "but," she said, "when you love God, you must continue the work of God." it was encouraging to hear such passion.

she then went on to speak of the community of believers, and how the christians in africa worship the same God the christians in america do. they may do things differently, she pointed out, but they are all the same within. this also relates to her view of the missionaries-that the commitment of those who first brought the gospel to africa over a century ago has opened doors for her belief in Christ now. our christian community not only transcends space, but also time... i wonder if david livingstone or robert moffat had any idea the impact they would make on the world...

some pics

last week i looked through carolyn and rocky's wedding pictures. they were taken at the farm of the people we rent from and jon lived with before we met. this gave me ideas... so, saturday night i drug jon and his brother ben over to tromp around the farm with me, and ben took some magnificent pictures... here are just a few...

southern beauty

we had a wonderful weekend. carolyn, a good friend and teacher at grace, has a beautiful house on a lake in the mountains of north carolina. i didn't actually take the picture above; i dare say that where we were at was even more beautiful. we drove up late friday night and came back sunday morning- i think even being there was so relaxing it felt like a 4-day weekend. it was fantastic. we have been really fortunate to meet carolyn and her husband rocky. we have "clicked" from the beginning, and they have made the transition much easier for me. carolyn's parents and grandfather we also there; i felt totally at home and relaxed the whole time. it actually reminded me of being at my grandparents' a little- what a warm feeling!

oh, ye jigs and juleps!

jon and i had a lovely day yesterday. after a breakfast of waffles & eggs (made by jon), we set out on the motorcycle to find a used book store or two. i was a little disappointed when i first walked into one (the first one we went to had shut down)- it was mostly romance paperbacks. i did find a small classics section, though, which is where i spent my time.... and stumbled upon the perfect used-bookstore find. this small hardcover book is a collection of essays written by virginia cary hudson, a 10-year-old-girl, in 1904. virginia attended an episcopal boarding school (note her denominational observations), and she is a witty and delightful child. the essays were found in 1960 in a locked chest in an attic and published. she has thoughts on all sorts of topics, though her writing shows how easily a 10-year-old mind is distracted! here are some excerpts:

on etiquette at church:
"Before I go into the house of the Lord with praise and thanksgiving, I lift up mine eyes unto the town clock from whence cometh the time to see if I am late. It is not etiquette to be late...
"The Baptist church is next door to our church. They sing as loud as they can all the time we are trying to pray. I bet the Lord can't hear one word we say. The Baptists sing about plunging sinners in a bloody fountain drawn from Emmanuel's veins. We sing about Crown Him Lord of All. I think it is much more ladylike to crown the King than to be plunging around in a bloody fountain. I took the cotton off my sore finger once and stuffed it in my ear on the Baptist side. But just once. My mother attended to that."

on everlasting life:
"When you are dead as a doornail, God gives [Everlasting Life] to you, and you can't get rid of it. You can't buy it, or sell it, or trade it. You have to keep it whether it suits you or not... Bishop Jordan told me Everlasting Life was God's precious gift, and I told him if it was just the same with God, I could think of things I would like better...
"Heaven is sure far away, and hard to get to. You don't hear much talking about Heaven... But you sure hear plenty about Hell at the Baptist Church. When I go with Darthea, that preacher hollers himself red in the face about Hell. When you go to Hell with your Everlasting Life, the devil waves his pitchfork and turns it into Everlasting Damnation, and he builds a fire under you, and you will wail and gnash your teeth. If poor Mrs. Columbia Stonington ever goes to hell, the devil sure will be surprised when it comes her time to stand up and gnash her teeth, because her dentist pulled her teeth out. He just kept on pulling and pulling until they were all gone...
"If I have to go to Hell, I sure hope I go to the one for Episckpalians, and don't, by mistake, get pushed in that horn punching, and tail wagging, red hot blazing on the Baptists are going to have."

and last but not least, virginia's thoughts on education:
"Education is what you learn in books, and nobody knows you know it but your teacher. I asked Mrs. Harris when we were plaiting rags for her kitchen rug what good Marco Polo would ever do me, and Mrs. Harris said education gave you satisfaction, but I had rather be ignorant and have fun than be educated and have satisfaction."

after a few more thoughts on education, she ventures off to tell the story about how she needed tutoring in math, but the woman who was to tutor her wasn't home. she instead enlisted the help of the woman's mother, who, from all descriptions, seems to be the old spinster type. the woman tells virginia to make herself comfortable and help herself to the crumpets... and the wine... we'll pick up there...
"And the wine was in the most beautiful frosted bottle with purple grapes hanging down the sides, and when I poured the wine in the glass, it ran down in the stem and looked so cute. And I drank it all and the crumpets were good, but the wine was better, and by the time I poured me out four or five glasses so I could watch it run down in the stem, Miss Fanny and Maxwell sounded so far away, and the chair seemed so soft and I leaned back and thought about poor little Romulus and Remus having to build Rome on seven hills without any help, and then I heard Miss Fanny say, 'The child is almost asleep, it is time for her nap, drive her home.' And he did.
"And I said to Edith, she's our cook, 'Send for the Doctor,' and she did, and Doctor said he would come, and he did. And Edith said, 'Get in bed,' and I did, and when Dr. Reddings came I was so glad to see him, I just love Dr. Reddings, and I said, 'Cross your heart and hope to die if you ever tell,' and he crossed his heart and hoped to die, and I said, 'I am drunk.'...
"When my mother got home from Middleton on the trolley car, she said plenty. And when I thought she had said everything there was to say, she still had plenty left. And the next day after school she said, 'Put away those roller skates and sit down,' and she reached in the book shelves and blew the dust off of her Women's Christian Temperance Union book and she said, 'Read it every word' and there was a big picture of a green snake wrapped around a wine glass with his tongue sticking out, and I read all about whiskey making people have wild fits so they have to be locked up, and I didn't see why I should have to read all afteroon about whiskey when all I drank was a little wine.
"And now Hallelujah and God forbid. Amen."

monday, monday

another monday.

a couple weeks ago my 7th graders chose between several topics to write a paragraph on. many chose "why i hate mondays".

ah well. it was a good weekend, but busy. jon had a soccer game on friday, which unfortunately i didn't get to go to. it was an hour and a half away, and since two teachers were already out that day, and jon and josh (the assistant coach) were also leaving (at NOON in order to get to the game on time), i had to stay and hold down the fort. a loud, bouncing, hormone-crazy, pushing-the-envelope fort. the team did win, though; they are now 3-3! this is the school's fourth year with a soccer team; the first three seasons combined they won only one game. i am very proud of them all- coach and players! :-)

we also began the house hunt this weekend. our realtor had emailed us info on about 60 houses (not exaggerating), which we narrowed down to 15 that we drove by on saturday. we narrowed those down to 7 that we walked through with the realtor last night, and a couple of them look like definite possibilities! the nice thing is that we have no date that we HAVE to be out of our current house (it's a month-by-month rental), so we don't have to settle for anything we don't love.

we had two couples from church over for lunch yesterday. that was fun. just like at kent city, jon and i contribute to the oh-so-small population of "married-with-no-kids"- fortunately, we aren't the ONLY ones, so it's nice to hang out together. one of the wives works here with jon and me, and she and i have become good friends. the other couple has been married only a few months, and she is from england- they met while he was working there with Operation Mobilization (a missions agency).

well, i best be going- our morning teachers' meeting begins in one minute. and so it begins again...

having a ball

i’m sitting at starbucks right now, sipping on my african red bush green tea. the bakery display case is advertising pumpkin cream cheese muffins… ah yes, the tastes of fall are approaching…

jonathan had drill this weekend, which included a military ball last night. it was lovely. the dinner was excellent, the company at our table was enjoyable, and meeting the men he served with- and their wives- was unforgettable. jonathan wore his dress blues- something he hasn’t had occasion to do since our wedding. If you want to see pics, go to jon's site- www.chaplainfisher.com- he has a couple posted there.

a friend of jon’s asked me last night how i’m enjoying georgia so far. you know, when people ask me that question it kind of takes me aback- it’s like i forget that i’ve moved to another state somehow. i look at my move as being one to be with jon, not one to be in another state. how do i like georgia? well, i like my new job. i like the house we live in and the friends we’ve made. i don’t like being so far from family and friends, i miss my old church, i freeze in the perpetual 60 degree air conditioning. but, i absolutely adore living with my husband. is that the state, or is it just the state of life? i don’t know. i always answer the question with “i love it!” if for no other reason than to make the inquirer feel proud to live in the south. i do have to admit, though, i have gotten used to chick-fil-a, brewsters, and a waffle house on every corner. i am starting to identify with “fayette county,” not just fayetteville (did i EVER say i was from “kent county” up north?) and i’m getting used to “y’all” being both plural AND singular.

don’t worry, though. i am sticking my ground on “pop” as opposed to “soda” (i actually had a high schooler ask me what a “pop machine” was after hearing me say it), and i have even held up my hand proudly to point and say “i lived here” a few times (okokok, so maybe that’s something i should actually STOP doing, but hey, i have to keep my heritage!)

ah. the last sips of my tea. it’s cool now, but i don’t mind. it’s a great way to wrap up a perfect morning.

georgia pics

here are a couple pics of our backyard- the people we rent from own a large farm, so our view is absolutely beautiful...

some pics

a few pics for your viewing pleasure... i'll get some up from down here soon....

week 2

i'm now into my second week teaching. i have to say, i love it. i have great classes, and enjoy my students. i'm getting into the swing of how it all works too, feeling out the cirriculum, adding my own spin to it. it is fabulous. i think my favorite moment so far was yesterday. i had had my 8th grade english class write a 1/2 page compare/contrast of two characters from their literature book. one student did an exceptional job- not only in content, but even more so in writing style. i don't think he even knew how great his structural and syntactical dynamic were- but he is genuinely a gifted writer. yesterday i pulled him aside to tell him this, and his eyes lit up in wonder as he said, "you mean you liked what i wrote?" his smile after that was irreplaceable.

in other news, jonathan and i went to savannah this past weekend. it is about 3 hours away, and is a lovely city. we went on a "ghost tour" on a trolley, with a man with a forced goulish voice telling us about legendary deaths in the town. we also went to see these two guys on "dueling pianos" who played anything the audience requested.

by the way, it has been rumored that i am a tough teacher. some of my students would agree (as would their parents...)- but what can i say? when you look younger than your students, you have to do SOMETHING to maintain authority! :-)

almost there...

today i sit at my desk with a mix of confidence and fear. the syllabi are copied, the lesson plans are written, the class lists are in the book, the desks are neatly arranged. now all that's left to do is this actual thing called teaching.

the class i'm most excited about is the 9th grade geography class... the only one i specifically asked for. "geography???? that is the most boring class ever!" many of you are saying...

well. that's true. though, i have to admit, i have always found geography fascinating- i still have the books i asked for for christmases in elementary school on u.s. and world geography. but even as a child, my interest in it was not for the map alone...

to me, the christian should be MOST interested in geography, for it is not about places on a map, it is about the people throughout the world who need to hear about Christ. it is about our brothers and sisters in persecuted countries, suffering for their faith under a regime that disallows it. it is about the community of believers, the body of Christ, the spreading of the gospel, and ultimately, the glory of God.

my main source for the missions emphasis of the geography class will be Operation World. if you don't have it, it's worth the buy. it is an incredible book compiled by Patrick Johnstone and Jason Mandryk- it is a catalog of EVERY country in the world, including not only the geographical facts, but also what is taking place in missions, specific prayer requests for that country, and challenges to the faith.

as the semester goes along, i hope to post some of the things we discuss in class- feel free to share your thoughts in the comments section (i just set it up so that you don't have to have a blogger identity to comment).

"Declare his glory among the nations,
his marvelous deeds among all peoples...
great is the LORD and most worthy of praise!"

the winds of change

here i sit, behind a desk. i glance up to the front of the room. "Mrs. Sara Fisher" it reads. underneath that heading is a list of 5 classes and 2 study halls including every grade from 7-12. how did i get here???




monday afternoon we arrived at our new home. jonathan had done a lot- i mean A LOT- of work those 2 weeks he was here without me, getting it ready. everything about the house far exceeds my expectations- he did an excellent job cleaning and decorating. i will post pictures as soon as i find my cable! :)

tuesday morning he started work at the school... long story short, by wednesday morning i was agreeing to help fill in some holes in teaching. i have an excellent schedule with classes i am quite comfortable in, and i am blessed with a very helpful faculty. yet, the knowledge that in a few days- 5 to be exact- this very classroom will have the energy of dozens of teenagers... well... it's just a bit unexpected.

all in all, i'm excited. a new state and a new career, all in one week. i have to say though, so far i'm loving it!!

(oh, and for all you in michigan who are saying, "she's FINALLY warm enough down there!"- yeah... not so much... i have had goose bumps more down here in the frigid air conditioning than i have in MONTHS!)

feelin' groovy!

this is a jon and me at a 70s-themed party we went to last month in honor of some friends' 25th anniversary. it was a blast!






here is josh and amy at the same party- as you can see, they got even more into the 70s theme than we did!

georgia on my mind

well, it's been a while. i think it's one of those things that the longer you stay away, the harder it is to come back. i have had much on my mind to blog about though, so the best way is to jump right in.

for now, though, an update. jon is now in georgia with all of our earthly possessions, save what i need to survive for the next two weeks. he had a drill (drills are a one weekend/month commitment to the national guard) this weekend... the same weekend as i was a bridesmaid in sara's wedding. whatareyagonnado; being apart is kinda par for the course.

he'll fly back up in about a week and a half to get me; we'll drive back down together. we do have a house that we're renting from some close friends temporarily; that is a real blessing.

i will use this blog as a mode of keeping you updated on our lives- be sure to check back!

the bike

it is saturday, and a beautiful saturday at that. after getting used to the 80s the south offered, the 40s we returned to in michigan were an unwelcome change.

we went for a drive this afternoon... well, rather a ride. yep, jonathan got a motorcyle. it's a 2006 suzuki v-strom, for those of you that means anything to. if you're like me, the pertinent information is that it is a sleek black and dark silver.

i had been on a motorcylce once before, but only for about a 20 minute drive. the 2 hours today was a very different experience! it was lovely though, as we rode through small towns (and villages) north of where we live, admiring the rolling farmland and old houses. it was quite charming.

look back soon for pics from vacation! (maybe if i post they're coming i will be more motivated to get them done...)

chillin out max and relaxin all cool...

i'm tired. it is saturday night, and we spent the day on the boat and jetskis out on the atlantic ocean off the coast of georgia- we explored an uninhabited island and saw several dolphins playfully jumping in the water.

we spent last week in pensacola, florida, hanging out on the beach and spending time with jon's family. i have eaten more seafood in the past 2 weeks than i think i ever have- eel sushi, oysters (twice), talapia, mahi mahi, shrimp, and crab/lobster crepes.

there have been a couple events happen that will require separate postings, but i have not as yet had time to write them...

this weekend we are at andrew (aka "mac") and lori mcdonald's house right outside savannah, georgia, with sean and tracy emery (and their two incredibly adorable sons)- it has been really cool to get to spend time with two people who have meant so much to jonathan over the past year- and their wives! (thanks to lori for her incredible hostessing abilities! :)

that is as much of an update as i can cram into one post- i apologize to those of you who have been asking how we're doing because i haven't posted... i haven't had internet for the past week, but i'll try to catch up- i promise! :)

full circle

i apologize for the delay in updating this site. much has happened...

right now, i am in hinesville, georgia, about a mile away from ft. stewart. it is amazing to me how much of a different connotation "fort stewart" has in my mind now than a year ago! last year it was the place at which i said good-bye to my husband of one month. yesterday, it afforded us a very sweet hello.

i have had the opportunity to meet several people over the past couple days who have been involved in jonathan's life. today i was at taco bell with a friend of jon's and his family (jon wasn't able to come)- a soldier brushed past me, and i heard another say to him, "watch out- you just ran into the preacher's wife!" they turned and smiled at me, and i returned it. later this afternoon, i was looking for some patches for jonathan's uniform at the px. i inquired the help of a soldier standing nearby, who just happened to be his commanding officer. when i introduced myself, he proceeded to share with me how great of a chaplain and a man jonathan is. on his way out of the store, he even said to me, "you are authorized to tell your husband i appreciate him." (only in the army, right? :) it filled me with great pride to hear such a dedicated officer talk of my husband in such a way.

for our entire marriage, jon has been an email in my inbox, a screenname in messenger, an address to which i send packages. now he is home. now we will live together. that thought wells up within me countless emotions...

so this is the end of my journey as a "wife of a deployed chaplain," as the top of my blog says. it has been a long, painful, yet sweet journey. thanks to all those who have walked it with me...

'til death do us part

one year.

one year ago today, i became a new person. sara nave vanished into the past, and sara fisher began life anew.

i'm not really even sure what to say... the emotions that come along with this event are entirely surreal.

of the past 365 days, i have spent 28 with jonathan. it has not been an easy year. he comes home very soon, and for that i am thankful. many people say that our "real" marriage is about to start... and in some ways, i agree. we have not lived together, we have not shared in daily life experience together. but we HAVE walked through one of the most trying experiences any couple could go through... and we are coming through much stronger than we started. how can you get more "real" than that? one year ago, we had no idea what the next months would hold. we could not even imagine what deployment would look like, nor the frustrations and challenges it would bring. we knew it would be hard, but there are things you don't know until you walk it. all things considered, i think we have done well. i look forward with excitement (albeit mixed with some fear) to his homecoming and the new challenges and joys that will accompany it.

i celebrated our first wedding anniversary by getting a massage and having dessert with some dear friends. sadly, it is likely our second will be the same way. but in the middle will be some time that we will cherish more than others would, for we know that time is fleeting. my heart beats for those times.

for better or worse, jonathan, til death do us part...

wherefore art thou, spring?

last week it was in the mid-sixties.

the last couple days, the mid-fifties.

this morning it rained.

now, it's snowing.

i hate michigan.

the word

i had an amazing victory today.

there is one word that invokes fear and trembling into every military spouse (well, there are a few, "deployment" and "pcs" probably being the top two...). but the word of today is a necessary evil. it is something the civilian world thinks they understand, but they do not. the word is: tricare (can you hear the thunder in the distance as you read this?)

tricare is military insurance, and is notoriously worse to deal with than even regular insurance companies. i have never had to use their services and have been dreading the day since i began hearing the horrific stories about this establishment.

i have never had to use them... until today. and i have to say, it was not nearly as bad as i have anticipated (though i have been warned that this was simply a fluke). i had a rather complicated question, and though it took me over a half hour on the phone, i finally discovered the answer... and the answer was much much better than i had hoped for. (for one thing, the primary care manager they had assigned me was TWO HOURS away from me... i asked if there were any in grand rapids, she typed for a bit, then said, "how far is cedar springs from you? we do have one there." cedar springs happens to be my little town of a few thousand people. fantastic. though, i have to ask... why not assign me the one in cedar springs from the BEGINNING?)

i am glad my first experience was a good one... it calms my fears for the future. baby steps, baby steps...

i won.

i won.

our office has a group on espn.com's tourney challenge. josh and ken each had 2 brackets filled out, plus amy (josh's wife) also did. keep in mind, the only basketball i have watched this season was the last 9 seconds of the duke/lsu game- and that's just because i happened to flip there. that 9 seconds is more basketball than i have actually watched... like, ever. wait, no, i think i watched the final game last year at josh & amy's house. i think. who knows... i went for the social interaction.

anyway... they asked me to fill out a bracket, i think just to have one more name beneath theirs on the list. but guess what? i, who know oh-so-little about basketball; i, who filled out my bracket based solely on either seed or which team i had actually heard of; i, who thought i was filling out a bracket for the nba...

i won.

this is much to the dismay of my male counter-parts (and to add salt to their wounds, guess who came in 2nd? amy. how's that for battle of the sexes?) nationally, i am in espn's 96th percentile as of now. right now, i have 730 points. josh's and ken's brackets range from 330 to 540, with amy at 570. and i have 280 points that i could still possibly earn. they all have none.

silly game.

oh, and can i say it one more time? i won.

i have a new man!

jon's dad and siblings came up for a visit last week... andy told me i am now "his girl"!!

another new chapter

today's post is in honor of ashley. she is the one in the middle, along with amber and sara.

ashley and i first met at the moody bible institute. i remember the first time i talked to her. it was her junior year, and i was a freshman. i was taking the south shore train to visit my grandparents, and i had never ventured out in the city alone. she was wearing a black dress with a gold necklace (wow... the random things i remember...) she gave me instructions- and confidence- to get to the train station.

within a couple days, she and a few of the other upperclass girls sat me down on a couch and read to me what would become one of my favorite books: a small red one called "i like you." it lists all the fabulous reasons why people like ashley and me are friends. ("i like you because you are a good person to like." "if i had a broken arm, and you had a broken arm too, then it would be fun to have a broken arm!" "I think i'm funny, and YOU think i'm funny too. i say something funny and we both laugh. 'ha ha!'")

i never would have thought that night that ashley would indeed end up being one of my dearest friends.

we spent countless hours in her *single* room together laughing, crying, eating, talking about deep things and mundane things. we even discipled each other for our infamous "busy work" class. ("as 'the wheel' illustrates...")

oddly enough, my friendship with ashley became much deeper AFTER i left moody. one summer we were both lonely and bored... so kept each other sane with endless phone conversations.

she is one of the few people with whom i can be entirely honest. when i don't feel like talking, i tell her. and her me. it is a fantastic thing in a friendship.

we went to hungary together. we enjoyed oodles of nutella... hungarian coffee... milka... and even some non-edible things :) - like talking with missionaries whom we came to greatly respect. we walked the streets of budapest and spoke of the great history of the country we strolled. we cried when we said good-bye.

i don't often see ashley anymore. i have seen her only 4 times since we left hungary in january 2003. the last time we saw each other, she read me "i like you."

and tomorrow she leaves. she leaves for a place where most people have never heard the name of Jesus. she will be thrust into a culture that is not her own, to share with them the Love that has changed her life. she will stay there for 4 years. she will grow and change, she will weep and she will laugh. she will rejoice when she sees God working, and continue to have faith when she doesn't.

it is spring for ashley. she is going to a new world, unknown: it is lovely and frightening and horrible and beautiful all at once. she is going to bring it Light.

ashley... you are not going alone. i am praying for you. lots of people are praying for you. this is the last time i can tell you this for a long long time. take heart, my friend, be of strong courage...

go in peace.

well on my way...

i just got it. the official word on my degree status from moody. they were actually pretty generous with me (as they should be... seeing how the majority of my credits are moody credits...) and are telling me i am lacking 16 credit hours for my associates degree (leaving me 7 credits they did not apply). very doable.

the annoying thing is 2 of the courses- a 1 credit hour "ministry internship"-um... heeellllooo.... welcome to my life! the frustrating thing with that is that who knows when i'll actually be able to accomplish it, what with moving and all...

the other one is basic computer skills. i can guarantee you i have more than basic computer skills. i wish there was a way to test out...

i'm rather looking forward to the other courses: hermeneutics/bible study methods, the church & its doctrine, educational foundations (ok... that one not as much...), and intro to literature. if we are somewhere near a community college in the fall i may just do the lit and/or computer there. we shall see.

riding the clouds

i love the rain. i always love it, but especially an early spring storm such as this.

i can hear the thunder rolling, the humidity in the air. the slight breeze, still chilly at this time of year. i just opened the window to allow the smell of rain to filtrate through my apartment...

the high here was supposed to be 62 today... tomorrow, 34. welcome to michigan, eh?

spring can't come soon enough... i am ready for the winter of life to be over and for new things to start happening...

you know, i started this blog in the fall, and that theme was centric to the premise of this entire site. and really... it still is... spring and fall are but opposite sides of the same coin...

the clouds are quickly racing through the horizon... even as one set disappears, a new one enters in from the west... oh to see what they will bring along...

giving to caesar

so today i'm working on the taxes. i abhor doing stuff like this, but today i'm moderately in the mood to tolerate it. although, i think it's more the anticipation of having to do it that i hate than the actual doing of it. turbo tax is also rather military-friendly, so it isn't as bad as i had feared.

this past weekend was that of the annual grarbc (yes, there is an extra "r"- it is the grand rapids association) church ministries conference. it is the third year i have attended- and the third year we at kent city have done the music for the general sessions. busy, busy, busy. i quite enjoyed the whole thing actually. the music was MUCH less stressful this year than ever before (which is probably in part that we're getting the hang of it, and in part that i tend to get stressed about such things much less these days :) ), i actually got useful information out of the workshops (i went to 2 on promoting missions in your church and one on using different mediums in worship), and the general sessions were even good! i came home saturday night after many many hours of mental over-stimulation from the previous two days, and sat on my couch in absolute silence for about an hour. days like that i am glad i am not yet a mother. :)

ooohhh... sad story. i dented a pad in my flute. had the ol' girl for 12 years and never a problem. i dropped it the other night, and quickly realized she was not quite the same afterward... it is easily fixable, fortunately- like i said, one of the pads under a key (an oft-used one, at that) has a little dent in it- so i have to push that key down quite hard to seal it. made for an interesting time playing this weekend... though i have to admit, it forces me to have better posture (which i readily confess to abandoning ever since i quit band many many moons ago) than i typically have.

all for now...

"what dat girl's name" part dos

so earlier THIS week i went to my brother's house, and saw my two nephews: jake, 2 1/2; and caleb, 1 1/2. (pictured with their mom, carrie)

i had brought with me a copy of my wedding dvd for matt. he showed it to jacob, who stared at the front. it has on it a lovely picture of jonathan and me from our wedding day.

"who is in the picture, jake?" i ask.

"dat uncle jon." he says clearly, pointing at jon.

"and... who is the other person?" it was like he was searching the entire photograph for another face he recognized.

"dat uncle jon." he points at jon once more.

"who is the GIRL in the picture, jake?"

jake blankly stares at the photo.

"jacob, come on, who is the GIRL?"

"aunt sara." he says sweetly and quietly.


good. it may take some prompting, but at least somewhere, in the back of their minds, they know who i am. sheesh!