 |
| I have a sort of fetish for taking pics of Sky. (Is 'fetish' the right word?) |
Christmas
has passed, and it could’ve been worse. Most Christmases find me in a rather
dour mood, but yesterday was marked with joy, peace, and kinship. I’m thankful
for that. Jessie has been sending me job openings in Illinois, asking me to
move up there and share life with her and Tony. It does sound appetizing, but I’ve
decided to stick things out here for a while. Corey and Mandy will probably be
moving to Portland this spring, and I’d like to have as much time to hang out
with them as possible (though, with working 50-60 hours a week, time is
precious, and I don’t see them as much as I would like). I’m also trying to get
involved at U.C.C., to break down those introvert barriers and stretch myself
as much as possible. I’m getting involved in the Young Adult Group and will be
volunteering to run the café on several Sundays, so that’ll help me (a) get
involved and (b) meet people. I’ve even been going on time to make sure I’m
there for the meet-and-greet (the most despised of all church traditions). That’s
really a big deal for me, even if it seems fickle to you.
My
father wrote me a “Christmas letter” that I’ll cherish for as long as I live.
It contained lots of things that stir me as I read them now, and one thing
stands out in particular: I can’t put
into words how impressed I am with your mental toughness. I know you have faced
many challenges over the past several years, and your perseverance is an
example to me—I believe you are much stronger than I was at your age.
Things have indeed been difficult over the past couple years, and though I
often feel weak, I know I’m strong, stronger than I know: I haven’t called it quits,
I hang onto hope, I keep going even when every experience tells me I should
just stop and give up. I’m a resilient bastard, I really am. And I thank God
for that.
I want you to know,
he continued, that I pray for you every
morning. I pray for your faith to grow, I pray for your protection, and I pray
for your future wife. I’m not really sure why, but that last part really
moved me. He prays for my future wife; whoever she is, she’s blanketed in
prayers by a man who loves God and strives to serve him and honor him in all
that he does, and I’m confident she’s better for it. I admire my father, for so
many reasons, but not least for this: he’s a man after God’s own heart. He’s
humble, he’s passionate, he’s devoted, he cares for others and is active in the
community. He seeks God’s will in all things and makes Christ the center of his
marriage to my mom. He stands as an example to me, and I hope that when I have
a wife and a family, I will be even half the man he is. I know he’s hard on
himself all the time, and I know he has his mistakes and sins just like anyone
else, but his heart is good, changed by Christ. He’ll tell you that he’s
entirely different than the man he used to be, and my mom will agree. I take it
as an encouragement when people tell me, “You’re just like your father,”
because in my case, that’s a cherished compliment.
No comments:
Post a Comment