February 5

I suppose the day will come when this date no longer seems significant to me. But for now, it still rings a solemn note, although it seems 10 years ago instead of just 2...


The tornado. I forget that for people who don't know me and don't know Union, those words don't really have context. What a crazy few months were to follow that night. Some of the most challenging of my life - mentally, emotionally, spiritually, physically, professionally... every -ally you can think of! A couple weeks after the tornado (see, there I did it again) was when we started watching the TV show Lost - it was somehow comforting to watch others who had it worse (fictionally) - stranded on an island with smoke monsters - yeah, it could be worse.

And this seems 5 years ago instead of 1...

The one-year anniversary event. Running around taking care of details, keeping the secret of the tiny little life I was carrying!

My how times change. I hear there's an event at Union today also. But Benjamin is upstairs napping, and I'm in my sweatshirt, roasting carrots after the morning's Bible study, and blogging.

After such a little taste of disaster, comparatively, I'm praying for the people of Haiti today.

Go Bulldogs! (and our 1st snow)

This is Homecoming Weekend at Union!

I realized today that I have been at Union's Homecomings for the past 10 years straight, so part of me feels a little left out not to be there this year! In honor of the festivities, we put on Benjamin's "Young Alum" hat ... he's not too fond of hats...


... but I keep telling him he's gonna have to get used to them, because it's cold up here!! As a matter of fact, today we saw our first snow. It didn't accumulate at all, but it snowed pretty hard and pretty steady for a couple of hours. As much as I'm not looking forward to braving the winter in the Frozen Tundra, I really expected to write a post about our first snow in September or something, so I'm grateful that it waited until November!

The Closing of a Chapter

So, our blog begins with the closing of a chapter. After spending nearly 10 years of our lives at Union University, God is calling us on "to a land we know not" as I've taken to calling it. I know we could not be embarking on this new adventure without the preparation our time at Union has given us. Between the two of us, we have earned 3.5 degrees (i never did finish that graduate degree - something to work toward in the future), lived in 8 different dorm rooms (including my 7 semester residence in dear E-31), been to approx. 240 chapel services, written over 500 pages of papers and essays, and helped clean up after 2 tornadoes.

Thank you to our Union family for your consistent encouragement, support, and guidance. Your influence has made us who we are today and we are grateful.

The bad news is that we have to say good-bye to so many people and even places that have been milestones in our lives. The good news is that the closing of a chapter means the beginning of a new one - with new lessons to learn, memories to make, friends to meet, and ways to see God at work in our lives.