History or current events?
Yesterday we went for a drive after church. I actually intended for us to stop at Shek-O beach for lunch and a play on the beach – something spontaneous and different for a change but the beach was so packed the police barricaded the roads. Instead we had a leisurely drive around the island. Tess took the opportunity to ask the kids what types of holidays they'd like during the next year. Did they want a beach and adventure holiday with elephants, pools, water slides and jungles OR, did they want a big city holiday with million year old dinosaurs in museums, movies on gigantic screens, castles and dungeons and scares? We just had friends who spent the summer in London and had a great time. London, England was offered up as a possible destination. (Being from Canada I have to specify England else our Toronto friends and family will have mismanaged expectations.) After Tess and I discussed possible vacation destinations with the kids they were silent for a bit when suddenly Jasper exclaimed, "WE CAN'T GO TO LONDON BECAUSE THE QUEEN OF ENGLAND WILL CUT OUR HEADS OFF!"
With recent events in London we're uncertain if Jasper is refering to history or current events.
Above: Maureen and Jasper cuddle while at Fintry this past summer.
Jasper the Worship Leader
Friday morning I received a call at work from the Union Church head of Vacation Bible Study: Jane. I thought for sure something happened to one of the kids or they had done something very, very naughty. “JASPER,” I thought, “swimming in the baptismal pool again?”
"Everything is fine,” Jane reported reassuringly, "but I'm calling about Jasper…"
"I KNEW IT!" I thought to myself.
The kids had a fantastic time at VBS. I was surprised how much fun they had – they all wanted to go back at the end of each day. On Friday evening a VBS BBQ took place and I went with the kids. It was pure chaos, but all the kids – and most of the adults – were up singing and dancing. The evening ran late. We were pretty much the last to leave. Team Caldwell helped to clean-up enough that Jane gave the kids the VBS mascot: Crocky, an inflatable crocodile. (Pictured at left!)
Jasper had a fantastic time because he got to sing and everybody looooved Jasper's singing. Even Sebastian, Sela and Carys loved JJ's singing so much that they weren't jealous when Jane called to ask if Jasper would sing at the Sunday 11 AM service.
"That's okay with me," I explained, "as long as Jasper isn't dressed like a hobo."
On Saturday we downloaded the song Jasper needed to practise. (See YouTube version below.) I loaded it onto my ipod so we could sing it in the car. Jasper had a paper copy that he read to memorise the words. Sunday morning came. About 15 minutes into the service all the VBS kids headed to the front of the sanctuary. The final song the VBS kids sang was "God Is Always With Us". Jasper and one of the other older VBS team leaders led the song. All the kids were very enthusiastic – which was almost the best part: the kids were all excited to sing – but Jasper did an exceptional job. He has a wonderful singing voice – something we've known for a while but have never showcased. Today, once JJ worked out keeping the mike close enough to his mouth, he was absolutely superb. Hopefully this is the start of a great thing for Jasper… and those who get to hear him sing, of course.
And God will listen…
I have been meaning to share the following for almost two years. During this past summer I had a sense of a spiritual deepening, which reminded me of this story. The story happened around October 2009 when Sebastian (seven years old at the time) had a sleep over at a friend's home. He and this friend were good buddies and shared some common beliefs about God. The morning after the sleep over, Sebastian his friend and friend's mother were out for a walk and picnic when the following incident happened, as recounted by the mother in an email to Tess.
During the picnic a group of boys walked past the three picnickers. The boys were new to the area where Seb's friend lived and were "a little bit rough" in their demeanor and presence. As a result Sebastian's friend was a bit frightened by the boys and didn't feel secure with them around. The mother described the boys as having foul language such as, "Hey you! You are psycho or what?" They used the F word regularly and a tone the mom described as "certainly not a tone we use in our house." Sebastian's friend was a little scared and wanted to go home.
But then Sebastian said to his friend…
"<Name>, you are God's son and you don´t have to follow or listen. Just do what you know is right and then the good can be good and the bad can be bad and God will listen."
A beam of happiness shone on their picnic and all three relaxed.
Above: Sebastian at Fintry this past summer. Thanks, Mandy, for the great picture!
Prayers answered, July snowball fight ensues
In the few days prior to embarking for Canada, Tess asked the kids for what they were grateful in their lives and if they had any prayer requests. Sebastian blurted out, “I pray that it snows when we are in Canada.” Tess rolled her eyes, I laughed – as if that was going to happen in the middle of July.
Last week I talked to the gang who are having an absolutely terrific time in Canada. Alas, I will not be joining them this summer. I had an especially long conversation with Carys who told me it had snowed. In fact, everyone had managed to have a snowball fight. I thought for sure I was talking to fantasy Carys. Or maybe a nearby campfire rained down white ash that looked like snow. Or perhaps Granddad Blake crushed up some ice and threw it off the roof. But Carys continued describing the snowball fight from the special snow… "the large type of snow" she described, "from the rain."
Turns out the “special snow” fell from a big hail storm. Fortunately for Sebastian and his prayer, the conditions were just overcast enough, and chilly enough, that the hail stayed on the ground long enough for a snowball fight to ensue. For suspicious readers, the picture at left is proof positive that there was ice on the ground in the Okanagan Valley during the middle of July… enough to produce a snowball fight! Pretty good, God, I’m impressed again. Epilogue: since writing this post, many have asked if they can send their prayer requests to Sebastian. Sure, why not?
Good-bye 122!
The day has finally arrived when we’ll move out of our building after ten years. I remember when we first moved into 122 ten years ago. Tess was in Canada and pregnant with Sebastian. I moved us in and the first thing I did was snap a picture of the sunset then post it to our web site. This was pre-Facebook and blogs weren't big back then. Fitting, I thought, that as I cleared out of our flat this past week I'd snap this final picture of a 122 sunset. For the last two years we lived in a larger 122 flat with gorgeous views such as this one. We didn't really take advantage of those views enough, which struck me during we a we enjoyed bbq on the balcony a few weeks ago.
Regardless, we had many, many great times at 122, where I lived longer than anywhere else with the exception of my childhood home where I grew-up. One spot to remember is the one pictured at left. The last weekend in March 2001, Tess called from Canada. It was morning in Hong Kong and late in Toronto. Our flat was full of Chinese-speaking only contractors, painting and fixing the place for us to occupy. They were drilling and making a huge racket. When Tess phoned I couldn’t hear her so I went outside the backdoor of the flat. I stood in the spot pictured at left, looking down on the playground through the window. Right there on the phone, Tess read me a poem she wrote, that concluded with her telling me that she was pregnant. I was ecstatic and tried to communicate the news to the Chinese workers. I had to tell someone! They thought I was truly crazy, of course, as I charaded various signs including having a big tummy. Eventually one of them figured out what I was trying to communicate. “Awwhaw, you going to be daddy!” They were happy for me.
Thank you to all our friends at 122 for ten great years. You are a wonderful community.
Father’s Day Cancelled
This year we cancelled Father's Day… and… Mother's Day. I was away for Mom's Day. I was the Lay Director for the Walk To Emmaus. The workload leading up to the WTE was pretty hefty. Unlike other dad's at the WTE I didn't have my stuff together enough to surprise Tess with anything in absentia. We agreed a few days prior to the WTE weekend that we'd defer Mother's Day to Father's Day.
Now we're moving. I am deep into a new job. Tess is also preparing to go to Canada with the kids (another activity to which we've cancelled my attendance) and the flat we're moving into is half the size of our current flat.
The other day whilst I was sorting and throwing stuff out Tess walked into the room. "Remember what we said about Mother's Day," she asked.
"Yes," I replied, "we said we'd defer to Father's Day."
"Have you done or planned anything?"
"No, have you?"
"No."
"Shall we defer?" I asked.
"Yes, but promise me you haven't planned anything," Tess begged.
"I haven't," I assured her.
So we sailed up to Sunday a few days later and suddenly Tess said, "Father's Day isn't Sunday!"
"No it's NEXT Sunday," I explained.
"Are we still deferring?" Tess asked.
"Yes."
"Okay."
Above: with Sebastian and one of his friends, Adam, during a busy weekend. We're standing next to a "James Bond car" as Sebastian calls it: Aston Martin.
