4 Days to go

Amy-Beth and Avery have been gone for 4 days and 3 nights now. That means I have had the girls (and still the dog)for 4 days and 3 nights. No one is hungry, they have watched a bit too much TV and I have not gotten much else done, but we are surviving.

I cannot imagine being a single parent especially and as a guy. I have been able to get out each day for ½ an hour or so and I even took the girls out to dinner last night.(I’ll leave out the transportation details as grandparents read this blog as well.)

But we are making it and learning to appreciate Amy-Beth in a whole new way and even Avery and the void he leaves when he is gone.

They are at a homeschooling conference this week and having the time of their lives. They will be home Sunday in time for lunch.

How to make a 6 year old cry.

I laid in bed last night meditating and thinking about all I would like to espouse in my blog today. This morning my list narrowed further. Would it be some great point of wisdom, a story featuring sharks and rays or maybe even a humorous tale of cultures colliding. But it became obvious this afternoon that what I would need to get off my chest was how I broke my 6 year old sons' heart with one sentence. "We need to find Scoodles a new home"

His desire for a puppy began the day he could form the words in his mouth. Every birthday, Christmas, and even a few Easters; all wish list started with a puppy. So finally last November, a few weeks before Christmas, we had the opportunity to make his dream come true. A puppy(that we had never seen before) arrived with his name on it. (We don't have much to choose from out here in the middle of the ocean.) There were a list of obstacles that we had to overcome or in the heat of moment simply ignore if we were going to take this puppy home.

After a couple of months those obstacles became a little clearer. The puppy was brought home even though we have no yard, grass or ounce of earth to poddy train him on. And the second was the fact that although he was a puppy he was not going to be a small dog and we have a small house and as I said before we have no yard, grass or ounce of earth to call our own.

Avery and his mother are heading off for a week to attend a homeschooling conference and the decision needed to be made. I made it and we are finding my sons "dream", the top of his wish list, a new home while he is gone this week. My suggestions to lie to him was shot down by his mother and our afternoon of sobbing began.

Distractions seem to be holding back the tears as he heads off to bed tonight but they will return again many times I am sure. And we have decided to embrace them. The dog has to go but not his memory. We took a disk full of pictures this afternoon and while he is gone we will make a print to hang on his wall of his first puppy. He needs to remember and so do we....

Cave Diving

One of my new found passions is cave diving. One of our local caves goes down to about 60 feet and is filled with stalagmites or tites or whatever their called. Not much life in the water as it is brackish but there are a few little red shrimp that make a home in the darkness. One of the fun aspects of diving in these particulars caves is that somehow or other a large amount of pottery, mostly broken, can be found throughout boulders of limestone that cover the bottom.

Now I am all for leaving dive sites untouched but these caves are in some serious danger as a new road was recently built next to them and they are quickly becoming a dumping ground. So today I thought I would look around a find a few intact pieces to place on my shelf as souvenirs.

Several of the plates and dishes were gathered with little effort but it was the last one that nearly did me in. I could see it through some of the crevices of rocks and decided to move a few out the way so I could easily reach it. Unfortunately my flash lights beam was not a wide angled one and the avalanche that awaited my ill fated move was seen much too late. My arm was quickly pinned still clutching my treasure while my other arm was fended off other rocks from falling on my head. My flash light quickly scanned the now empty cavern and all of my dive partners had gone on to find their little shrimp or funny shaped rocks.

I have learned that a level head, not to mention a hard one, is essential for cave diving. I did finally make it out and my buddies where not all that far away. My elbow is sore but the memory will last longer and I got some really cool antique stuff. Which I will post a picture of.

My Wonderful wife

In the days of debates and late night theological discussions, as a single young man, a common discussion revolved around whether our creator had a specific life mate for each of us or were we to simply follow the guide lines laid out in scripture. Arguments were made on both sides and as a single young man the resolution of such matters laid heavily on my heart. Was I to go into the world and choose or was I to wake one morning with a Ruth laying at my feet.

I am still not sure there is an answer to this pressing matter of interest for those yet to find a match. Somewhere a long the line though I picked up on the fact that God answers prayer. In fact he delights on our dependence on Him. If he is as passionate about me as he claims he is I figured he would be passionate about choosing a spouse for me. My prayer, regardless, of how He might relate to other singles, was to “He that knows all,” to find me a life mate…And that he did.

I am simply writing this as a blessed man whom has had his perfect mate chosen for him by “He was before time began.” My wife is another gift to me by my God who spoils me daily.

I just felt like sharing this tonight, I will fill in more of my life in times to come.

Time to begin again!

I hesitate to put a date on the last installment of what use to be my blog but after much encouragement and some soul searching I thought i would give it another go. My last attempt failed not because of lack of words but bandwidth. Our internet connection all but died and became the thorn that penetrated the very soul of my sandal.

Another weight is the intent of the blog. It is obvious this can not be a diary where my innermost thoughts are on display...I don't even think I want to read those. I can't call my life a mystery due to the intrigue the word invokes but what remains might be of interest to some so I sit and write.

We still live on a small island where the Pacific and Indian ocean meet but unlike our lives a few years ago we have recruited a few others to join us in our venture including a two year old little girl named Annie who is soon to be joined by another "lovely" and I am sure as much fun, brother or sister. As "fate" would have it each of our children will have a different country of birth; Avery now six was born in the U.S.; Avonlea 4 in India; Annie 2 (next week) was born in Indonesia and the last (hopefully;prayerfully; and all we can do medically) will be born in Thailand.

I have have a short attention span and I like to assume most are like me so I will keep this short for this morning.