I took piano lessons from first grade up till it just fizzled out sometime during my junior year of high school. My late piano teacher was also my Bible Quizzing coach (and pastor's wife) and she said I could be forgiven for letting piano slide since I was memorizing so many Bible verses.
So I had a rather prolonged break from piano, lasting from around 1994 till the summer of 2016, when I bought Dawson a keyboard so he could start his own lessons. The first song of which I downloaded the sheet music was "Sur le fil" from the "Amelie" soundtrack, which might be the most amazing soundtrack in the known world. Enjoy. As a side note, one of my favorite things to do on this planet is to wander through the Northern arrondissements of Paris where "Amelie" was filmed while listening to the soundtrack, highlighted by a walk through the energetic and colorful Gare du nord. Paris, tu me manque, but I digress...
In case you're wondering... sitting down at a keyboard again, after 22 years, is a bit more complicated than remembering how to ride a bike. I had to Every Good Boy Deserves Fudge and FACE for awhile, but it did eventually come back to me. Now, it's one of the great pleasures in my life, challenging yet rewarding, difficult yet therapeutic. Here are a few of the songs I've managed to record, along with some explanations and apologies. It took me a couple of months to become even partly proficient at that "you've gotta be kidding me, that's fast" section toward the end.
The videos aren't quite embedding correctly, so I'll share the actual links, too.
Video
This next video really shows the top end, as well as the limits, of my piano playing ability. I've never been one who can play a piece perfectly. I guess I just lack the finger dexterity. 90% proficiency is usually the best I can manage. While I simply can't avoid mistakes, I'm at least creative in finding new ones to make each time I play a song, the exact same song, mind you. I also get a bit nervous playing for a camera, which is evident in this video. I'm copying in some advice from a good friend who is both a concert pianist and a travelling ninja. I've had moments in which I've played with the joyful abandon Denise describes below, but certainly never in front of a camera.
"...Another thing I'd say is to just play, worry less about making mistakes :) Hard to do I know. But sometimes if you just go with it, amazing things will happen. Remember, Robert Schumann said "When you play, never mind who listens to you." Beethoven said "to play a wrong note is insignificant. To play without passion is inexcusable." Of course, another interpretation is that "to play a wrong timidly is a mistake. To play a wrong note with authority is an interpretation." :) Don't remember who said that but I like it."
Video
"And now for something completely different." Pop music
It's amazing how much more difficult it is to play pop music than classical music.
I'm slightly hesitant to share this one for several reasons. First of all, it's not great, not at all. I was able to get a few parts down but I could never get the timing right in certain sections, particularly on the bridge. I eventually got tired of working on it, though and wanted to get it recorded so I could move on, which I did, actually throwing the sheet music in the recycling and washing my hands of the song.
Which leads to the other reason this song isn't great to share, it was meant to be a birthday present but it never got delivered to the intended recipient. Just as an interaction with that Intended Recipient prompted me to do some writing on this blog, another brief interaction with said Intended Recipient prompted me to work on this song. It's as if some emotions were working themselves from my heart, through my arms, out my fingers and eventually into the previously mentioned recycling bin.
I made the video, though, so I might as well share it.
Video
The good thing about the above video is that the little bit of singing I actually do in the video resides much more in my vocal sweet spot than the next video I'm going to share. I'm going to share it anyway, though as it's one of my all-time favorite songs, even if it pushes (let's be honest, it exceeds) my vocal range.
The particular arrangement I'm going to play comes from the musical Moulin Rouge but the actual song predates that musical by several decades. I don't know of any other song that captures the aching beauty one experiences while wandering Montmartre late at night. Or maybe in a broader sense, it captures the maddening pleasure of a city that (to paraphrase another old French songwriter) is like a lover who tantalizes you while you're in her presence but forgets your face as soon as you leave. But there I go again, missing Paris...
Maybe it's my voice cracking or the lack of an accordion but my playing of this song won't illicit anything near to the depth of feeling brought out by the original. Nonetheless, I still greatly enjoyed learning this song as it's the first song I've been able to both play and sing.
Also, I apologize if my introducing the song in French comes off as pretentious (is it ever possible to speak French and not come off as pretentious?), but I couldn't resist.
Video
Finally, please allow me to be a braggy dad for a minute. My son is quite the piano player, when I can actually get him to practice. He has a musical ear that I simply don't have. Not only can he play a song by ear after just a few tries, he even composes his own short songs. Of course, that's no surprise, as his biological uncle is a recording artist and his biological grandma is herself a piano teacher. Dawson fights me on piano but he's too talented for me to let him quit when he's this young. As the parents of my above mentioned concert pianist friend would tell her as a child, "no adult regrets being made to learn piano as a child."
Video
Video
Showing posts with label adoption. Show all posts
Showing posts with label adoption. Show all posts
Friday, March 30, 2018
Wednesday, March 21, 2018
10 Years Ago
March, 2008. I'd been praying for a way to get involved in the community and for direction regarding the fertility struggles we were having. Both prayers were eventually answered by an audition flyer I found crumpled up on on the pavement of the entrance to the Gardner Walmart. I believe that fateful half-sheet of paper said something like, "Tryouts for Gardner Community Theatre's summer production of 'The Music Man', this Saturday from 12-4 at Gardner-Edgerton High School. Come with a prepared selection or simply sing 'Happy Birthday.'"
Growing up in a river city in Iowa, I'd always liked "The Music Man."
Fun Fact: In addition to "The Music Man," Meredith Wilson also wrote my all-time favorite song.
I thought to myself, "I might have a shot at making the chorus, maybe even an outside shot at being in the quartet." But I wasn't convinced I wanted to do it, so I decided that if I got the lawn mowed in time the next day, I'd drive over to the High School and sing "Happy Birthday" to the directors. Which I ended up doing. Which lead to me being cast as the lead, Harold Hill. Which was a huge surprise to me and likely even to the director.
It's really amazing how your life can be dramatically altered due to simple decisions or seemingly random events. My life, as well as the lives of many other people, were changed for the better thanks to that crumpled-up audition flyer in the Walmart parking lot. Here are a few of the things that came out of that summer of helping Gardner Community Theatre put on a pretty dang good rendition of "The Music Man."
1) Life Long Friends
You can't spend several summers together putting on shows and not become close friends with fellow cast members.
2) The answer to the question that would run through my mind anytime I'd watch a musical, "what would it be like to be the last person out for the curtain call?"
I'll likely never be cast as the lead again, but man was it a thrill to experience it at least once in my life.
3) A marriage and three children
Kinda a long story, but we met two nice young ladies and decided to set them up with two nice young men from our church. All four are married now and two are actually married to each other. I had the privilege of performing their wedding ceremony, complete with tears and a serious foot-in-mouth incident.
4) A Godson
I became (and still am) close friends with the lady who directed "The Music Man." In fact, we just auditioned together for a show this summer. After knowing her for about a year, she asked me to be the Godfather for her son, which included baptizing him.
5) The adoption of my son
The first time I announced the adoption was here, but I've told many other stories about his adoption as well. It was a cast member who called us up in October to announce her niece was pregnant and looking to place the baby in a Christian home. It was the director who convinced us to at least talk with the birth mom. It was a member of the quartet (now a professional singer) who's role as Horton in Spring Hill High School's production of "Seussical the Musical" convinced us that "a person's a person, no matter how small"; which we interpreted as a directive to adopt that yet-to-be-born little boy. Finally, it was another connection through Gardner Community Theatre that linked us to the charity that helped us pay for the adoption.
"All Because of a Flyer in a Walmart Parking Lot"
I believe that might make a great wooden wall plaque like the ones sold in those crafty stores.
I've done a few shows since that magical summer of 2008, some minor roles in larger productions and larger roles in smaller productions. I've never, however been cast in (or even auditioned for) a role in a production as large as Theatre in the Park. To quote my friend Franci (also the mother of my godson, pictured above), "there's something magical about the stage at TITP; something special about performing in the outdoor amphitheater, in front of thousands of people, while the sun is setting behind the hill."
I've experienced that magic many times while sitting on the hill. I can't wait to experience it onstage. Which leads to the pronouncement that I'll be doing exactly that the last two weekends of June, as a cast member of "South Pacific." The role is perfect for me; minimal acting, no dancing and a lot of singing. In fact, I won't even have to change my hairstyle to play the role of a sailor (though I'll have to shave off my very short beard).
We start rehearsals mid-May and it's gonna be an intense five weeks. I'm pumped, though. Who knows what life-changing relationship could form among this particular cast.
Growing up in a river city in Iowa, I'd always liked "The Music Man."
Fun Fact: In addition to "The Music Man," Meredith Wilson also wrote my all-time favorite song.
I thought to myself, "I might have a shot at making the chorus, maybe even an outside shot at being in the quartet." But I wasn't convinced I wanted to do it, so I decided that if I got the lawn mowed in time the next day, I'd drive over to the High School and sing "Happy Birthday" to the directors. Which I ended up doing. Which lead to me being cast as the lead, Harold Hill. Which was a huge surprise to me and likely even to the director.
It's really amazing how your life can be dramatically altered due to simple decisions or seemingly random events. My life, as well as the lives of many other people, were changed for the better thanks to that crumpled-up audition flyer in the Walmart parking lot. Here are a few of the things that came out of that summer of helping Gardner Community Theatre put on a pretty dang good rendition of "The Music Man."
1) Life Long Friends
You can't spend several summers together putting on shows and not become close friends with fellow cast members.
2) The answer to the question that would run through my mind anytime I'd watch a musical, "what would it be like to be the last person out for the curtain call?"
Kinda a long story, but we met two nice young ladies and decided to set them up with two nice young men from our church. All four are married now and two are actually married to each other. I had the privilege of performing their wedding ceremony, complete with tears and a serious foot-in-mouth incident.
4) A GodsonI became (and still am) close friends with the lady who directed "The Music Man." In fact, we just auditioned together for a show this summer. After knowing her for about a year, she asked me to be the Godfather for her son, which included baptizing him.
5) The adoption of my son
The first time I announced the adoption was here, but I've told many other stories about his adoption as well. It was a cast member who called us up in October to announce her niece was pregnant and looking to place the baby in a Christian home. It was the director who convinced us to at least talk with the birth mom. It was a member of the quartet (now a professional singer) who's role as Horton in Spring Hill High School's production of "Seussical the Musical" convinced us that "a person's a person, no matter how small"; which we interpreted as a directive to adopt that yet-to-be-born little boy. Finally, it was another connection through Gardner Community Theatre that linked us to the charity that helped us pay for the adoption.
I believe that might make a great wooden wall plaque like the ones sold in those crafty stores.
I've done a few shows since that magical summer of 2008, some minor roles in larger productions and larger roles in smaller productions. I've never, however been cast in (or even auditioned for) a role in a production as large as Theatre in the Park. To quote my friend Franci (also the mother of my godson, pictured above), "there's something magical about the stage at TITP; something special about performing in the outdoor amphitheater, in front of thousands of people, while the sun is setting behind the hill."
I've experienced that magic many times while sitting on the hill. I can't wait to experience it onstage. Which leads to the pronouncement that I'll be doing exactly that the last two weekends of June, as a cast member of "South Pacific." The role is perfect for me; minimal acting, no dancing and a lot of singing. In fact, I won't even have to change my hairstyle to play the role of a sailor (though I'll have to shave off my very short beard).
We start rehearsals mid-May and it's gonna be an intense five weeks. I'm pumped, though. Who knows what life-changing relationship could form among this particular cast.
Thursday, February 2, 2012
My Prayers for 2012
Now that I've pretty much recovered from a season of loss and stress, I've now entered into a season of praying, waiting and preparation. In fact, my good friend Joe Kumor even told me in a message the other day that he was excited to see the next adventure God had for me.
I recently read a book by Mark Batterson, The Circle Maker, that talked about praying circles around important people and our future. In response to that book, the three circles I've made for this year are: My family/ adoption, justice/peace and teaching/ preaching. While I was already thinking and praying about those things, this book helped me focus my efforts. Here is a bit of info on where I am now with each circle and where I hope to be by the end of 2012.
Family / Adoption I've made more an effort lately to be praying for my wife and my son. I'm also praying about where to begin our next adoption process. Dawson basically fell into our lap, so I'm guessing the next child will take some effort on our part. I have a list of some agencies we can look into, I just need to actually do it. I'm also encouraged by the fact that my employer, Farmers, has a $4,000 adoption credit.
Preaching / Teaching teaching and preaching the scriptures is a gift that God has given to me. Not being in a regular pastoral role, however means I'm not in a regular rhythm of using those gifts, but I'm working into a new rhythm. I will be preaching at IC Gardner every six weeks or so and will be starting a discipleship group for new Christians.
But how will this move ahead in the future? I've been thinking for a couple of years that I'd love to start a ministry that educates people on Jesus' nonviolent teachings and example. I've been thinking lately that it would be great to teach some college level ethics classes. So it might be time for me to pursue some sort of doctoral degree. Yesterday morning, a life-long mentor of mine, Randy Beckum, gave me some great ideas for a doctoral program.
Peace / Justice Clearly, I have a passion to help make this nation slightly less war-hungry (at least among Christians) and slightly more just. Randy Beckum also told me that my alma matter, MidAmerica Nazarene University is starting a Center for Social Justice. I'd love to work for something like that. The educational ministry mentioned above would be a part of living out this passion as would some teaching opportunities at another initiative of MNU.
In the present, however, I'm continuing to read war history and nonviolent Christian teachings and sharing those on my blog. I'm also volunteering, and trying to recruit more volunteers, for the Urban Scholastic Center in Kansas City, KS. I'll write more on that later.
So those are my "prayer circles" for 2012. If you'd like to occasionally join me in those prayers, I'd greatly appreciate it.
I recently read a book by Mark Batterson, The Circle Maker, that talked about praying circles around important people and our future. In response to that book, the three circles I've made for this year are: My family/ adoption, justice/peace and teaching/ preaching. While I was already thinking and praying about those things, this book helped me focus my efforts. Here is a bit of info on where I am now with each circle and where I hope to be by the end of 2012.
Family / Adoption I've made more an effort lately to be praying for my wife and my son. I'm also praying about where to begin our next adoption process. Dawson basically fell into our lap, so I'm guessing the next child will take some effort on our part. I have a list of some agencies we can look into, I just need to actually do it. I'm also encouraged by the fact that my employer, Farmers, has a $4,000 adoption credit.
Preaching / Teaching teaching and preaching the scriptures is a gift that God has given to me. Not being in a regular pastoral role, however means I'm not in a regular rhythm of using those gifts, but I'm working into a new rhythm. I will be preaching at IC Gardner every six weeks or so and will be starting a discipleship group for new Christians.
But how will this move ahead in the future? I've been thinking for a couple of years that I'd love to start a ministry that educates people on Jesus' nonviolent teachings and example. I've been thinking lately that it would be great to teach some college level ethics classes. So it might be time for me to pursue some sort of doctoral degree. Yesterday morning, a life-long mentor of mine, Randy Beckum, gave me some great ideas for a doctoral program.
Peace / Justice Clearly, I have a passion to help make this nation slightly less war-hungry (at least among Christians) and slightly more just. Randy Beckum also told me that my alma matter, MidAmerica Nazarene University is starting a Center for Social Justice. I'd love to work for something like that. The educational ministry mentioned above would be a part of living out this passion as would some teaching opportunities at another initiative of MNU.
In the present, however, I'm continuing to read war history and nonviolent Christian teachings and sharing those on my blog. I'm also volunteering, and trying to recruit more volunteers, for the Urban Scholastic Center in Kansas City, KS. I'll write more on that later.
So those are my "prayer circles" for 2012. If you'd like to occasionally join me in those prayers, I'd greatly appreciate it.
Tuesday, November 22, 2011
A Lingering Legacy - Part II
This is part two of a tree part series on some of the lasting legacies of Trinity Family Church in Gardner. Of course, TFC still lives on in midtown Kansas City.
Guido called me the other night excited to share a story with me. After playing phone tag for awhile, I finally got to hear his story.
Guido is now working with a club in Topeka. There just so happens to be a large church near that club. That church has taken the relational approach of most Conservative Evangelical church in interacting with groups who don't share their morals; they don't have a relationship and try to use power overcome that group. Guido says despite his offer to get together with the pastor, the church refuses to talk with them and have used the Christ-like approach of picketing the club.
While the employees of this club have been complaining about the judgmental Christians, Guido has been passionately assuring his co-workers that not all Christians are like that. He then went on to tell them about how much TFC and Love Wins changed some of his views on Christians and even on God. "You guys had a really big impact on me, more than you know." A ministry like Love Wins, however was not just in Guido's past, but soon to be in his present.
A little while later, some timid looking ladies knocked on the door of their club and nervously explained they were from a church in town and wanted to pass out gifts to the dancers in their club. Guido burst out laughing, instantly shattering the confidence of the ladies at the front door. Guido quickly built their confidence back up, though by telling them all about his experience with the ladies from TFC. He shared the positive impact we'd had on them, shared with them the address to this blog, how the TFC ladies had become comfortable in the club and even how they'd thrown us a baby shower.
It looks like there's about to be another positive relationship developing between some church ladies and some workers in the adult entertainment industry. And because this pastor and wife are adopting, there might even be another baby shower.
Wednesday, May 11, 2011
Is God to Blame? Beyond Pat Answers to the Problem of Suffering
I just finished (less than 3 minutes ago) Greg Boyd's book of the same title as this blog post.
So much good stuff in this book, done with Boyd's typical thorough attention to biblical and philosophical detail, that any attempt to summarize would end with me reproducing the entire book. But if I were forced to summarize the book, I'd do so with this statement: "Our all-powerful and all-loving God chose to create a universe in which physical and spiritual beings had the freedom to choose for or against good. While God does seem to occasionally supernaturally override the laws of this universe he created, God's desire that his creation freely choose to love him means that beings will often choose evil, leaving creation to deal with the fall-out of that evil. While God may bring good out of evil, God is not the author of evil."
Just for kicks, here's a quote from chapter 7:
"One of the reasons why we like simplistic answers to difficult questions is that we don't like ambiguity. As Job insightfully saw, much of the abusive theology his friends were hurling at him was motivated by their own fear (Job 6:21). They hated the way Job's suffering called into question their God-in-box theology and they feared that what happened to Job might happen to them. Hence, despite all appearances they insisted that the universe was a fair place, that fortune and misfortune are God's just rewards and punishments, and that Job's suffering must be his own fault.
A central point of the book of Job is to denounce this theology. But this means that the universe is not a fair place. It means that we ultimately can't know why a righteous person like Job suffers. And it therefore means coming to terms with our fear of living in a sea of ambiguity."
People want simple answers because they're afraid of ambiguity. So they will say simple, dumb and hurtful things and hold onto those misguided beliefs. We learned this first-hand during the whole struggle to become parents. If we heard "God has a reason" one more time, we were going to punch the person who dared say it. While the failed attemps at pregnancy and the failed adoptions are almost distant memories compared the joy of being Dawson's mommy and daddy, a wholistic interpretation of scripture reveals that God was not the author, nor the one to blame, for those terrible events. But he is to be praised for bringing an incredible blessing out of those painful events. In choosing to create a world with open possibilities inhabited by free moral agents, God has allowed for the possibility of evil such as infertility while at the same time, bringing good out of even the worst circumstances.
In addition to Boyd's great answer (or attempt to answer to the best of the ability of a smart, but non-omniscient dude) to the question "why do bad things happen," Boyd also gives a great rebuttal to the Calvinistic "blueprint" view of the world and to the unfortunate view of Divine Election that comes from a misinterpretation of Romans 9. You can buy this book cheap on Amazon and it's worth the money just for the last two Calvinist-refuting chapters.
So much good stuff in this book, done with Boyd's typical thorough attention to biblical and philosophical detail, that any attempt to summarize would end with me reproducing the entire book. But if I were forced to summarize the book, I'd do so with this statement: "Our all-powerful and all-loving God chose to create a universe in which physical and spiritual beings had the freedom to choose for or against good. While God does seem to occasionally supernaturally override the laws of this universe he created, God's desire that his creation freely choose to love him means that beings will often choose evil, leaving creation to deal with the fall-out of that evil. While God may bring good out of evil, God is not the author of evil."
Just for kicks, here's a quote from chapter 7:
"One of the reasons why we like simplistic answers to difficult questions is that we don't like ambiguity. As Job insightfully saw, much of the abusive theology his friends were hurling at him was motivated by their own fear (Job 6:21). They hated the way Job's suffering called into question their God-in-box theology and they feared that what happened to Job might happen to them. Hence, despite all appearances they insisted that the universe was a fair place, that fortune and misfortune are God's just rewards and punishments, and that Job's suffering must be his own fault.
A central point of the book of Job is to denounce this theology. But this means that the universe is not a fair place. It means that we ultimately can't know why a righteous person like Job suffers. And it therefore means coming to terms with our fear of living in a sea of ambiguity."
People want simple answers because they're afraid of ambiguity. So they will say simple, dumb and hurtful things and hold onto those misguided beliefs. We learned this first-hand during the whole struggle to become parents. If we heard "God has a reason" one more time, we were going to punch the person who dared say it. While the failed attemps at pregnancy and the failed adoptions are almost distant memories compared the joy of being Dawson's mommy and daddy, a wholistic interpretation of scripture reveals that God was not the author, nor the one to blame, for those terrible events. But he is to be praised for bringing an incredible blessing out of those painful events. In choosing to create a world with open possibilities inhabited by free moral agents, God has allowed for the possibility of evil such as infertility while at the same time, bringing good out of even the worst circumstances.
In addition to Boyd's great answer (or attempt to answer to the best of the ability of a smart, but non-omniscient dude) to the question "why do bad things happen," Boyd also gives a great rebuttal to the Calvinistic "blueprint" view of the world and to the unfortunate view of Divine Election that comes from a misinterpretation of Romans 9. You can buy this book cheap on Amazon and it's worth the money just for the last two Calvinist-refuting chapters.
Tuesday, February 15, 2011
Adoption is Complicated
An open adoption, like the one that exists between our adopted son and his biological family, is a bit complicated. It is complicated in that it brings unique challenges not normally found in families based solely on biology. I must say however, it also brings some unique blessings.
Well, we’ve got another potential challenge and blessing. Dawson’s biological mother is pregnant and due to give birth to a baby boy the end of May. Initially, she was considering adoption and had asked us to consider to again be the adoptive parents of the boy she’s carrying. She wasn’t sure what she would do. Over time, she chose to parent this child. The excitement of becoming parents again gave way to the loss of another failed adoption. From our perspective, it’s like a miscarriage – but a miscarriage where you actually watch the baby grow up. With that grief acknowledged, we also need to share that we’re excited for her. We’re excited to watch her experience the joys of motherhood. That little boy will never lack for love!
For Erin and me, it’s another sinking sense of loss to which we’ve become all-too-acquainted. We’ll work through it though, we’ve done it before and we’ll do it again. But what we’ve never worked through is the complication this brings into Dawson’s life. There is soon to be another human who is Dawson’s biological brother but not a part of his immediate family. What is Dawson’s relationship to be with this little boy? We’re just not yet sure.
We know we want to avoid extremes. For one, Dawson is geographically so close to his biological brother that his sense of identity could lose its equilibrium. He might wonder what his “real” family is. We also want to avoid the extreme of keeping Dawson from knowing another person who shares his blood. Honestly, it’s not likely that either of those extremes would become reality. Both of those extremes are based in fear. And I know, in my heart more so than my head, that fear is not the basis on which we should live.
For Erin and me, it’s another sinking sense of loss to which we’ve become all-too-acquainted. We’ll work through it though, we’ve done it before and we’ll do it again. But what we’ve never worked through is the complication this brings into Dawson’s life. There is soon to be another human who is Dawson’s biological brother but not a part of his immediate family. What is Dawson’s relationship to be with this little boy? We’re just not yet sure.
We know we want to avoid extremes. For one, Dawson is geographically so close to his biological brother that his sense of identity could lose its equilibrium. He might wonder what his “real” family is. We also want to avoid the extreme of keeping Dawson from knowing another person who shares his blood. Honestly, it’s not likely that either of those extremes would become reality. Both of those extremes are based in fear. And I know, in my heart more so than my head, that fear is not the basis on which we should live.
“There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear." - 1 John 4:18
Dawson’s birth mother is a part of Dawson’s story, even though her part is still developing. Even tonight, while pushing trucks across the couch, he repeated her name when he heard it. We’ve always wanted Dawson to know her significance, to love her for who she is and to respect her decision to place him with parents who love him for the Divine gift that he is (writing that brings tears to my eyes). Now there will be another character in Dawson’s story. We don’t know how that boy’s role will develop nor do we know how the interaction between the two boys will develop. There is no advance-script for this open adoption. We’re trying to write the script out of love, even as we live out the complicated plotline.
Monday, November 8, 2010
The End of a Journey... Almost
Erin and I started our pre-marital counseling in the spring of 2000. The first exercise our pastor gave us was to share 10 goals for our future. Sitting at that McDonalds in Olathe, I shared with Erin my newly decided upon goal of watching the Hawks play in every Big 10 stadium. In a way, I pulled that dream out of the air but it stuck with me.
In November of 2001, the brother of a close friend of mine got me cheap tickets for the Iowa-Wisconsin game in Madison, WI. The tickets were so bad, we could only see 1/3 of the playing field, but we were in the stadium and I crossed the first road-trip off my list. The next year, I drove with a close friend to see an Iowa team that finished the season with a perfect Big 10 record, hand Michigan its worst homecoming loss ever. In 2003, my brother-in-law, who is an Ohio native drove me to Columbus for a great game between two top ten teams. In 2004, I went with another brother-in-law to Champagne, Ill and then some other friends to the Metrodome (nick-named "Kinnick North" because Iowa fans fill up half the stadium)in Minneapolis, MN. The Minnesota game came down to the final play, helping Iowa earn a share of the Big 10 title.
In 2005, Erin and I capped off a weekend in Chicago by watching Iowa blow a 13 point lead over Northwestern in the final 2:30. In 2007, Erin and I enjoyed a beautiful October Saturday driving through gorgeous countryside and walking the Purdue campus in Lafayette, IN. In 2008, Erin and I cashed in some free airline tickets to travel to East Lansing, MI for the game against MSU. I've always loved the look of MSU's stadium and their campus is the prettiest in the conference. Last year, one of my best friends and I drove halfway across the country to see Adrian Clayborn block a punt, then run the ball into the endzone for a great win in the rain and deafening noise of Penn State University's "white out" on ABC's Saturday night football. Walking through State College and seeing the Appalachian mountains in the fall was an incredible sight.
The last stadium to visit was Indiana. Indiana is the Kansas of the Big 10, they'll follow football when the occasional good season happens but basketball rules. The atmosphere is so sub-par that I couldn't even convince anyone else to come with me, so I made the trip alone. While the football atmosphere leaves a lot to be desired. Evidenced by the fact that I paid $15 under face value for a seat on the 45 yard line. But even more amazing, while walking into the stadium, I found a ticket lying on the ground, meaning I could've walked into Memorial Stadium for free. After asking people around the area whether they'd lost a ticket and considering trying to sell it for some cash, I turned the ticket into a ticket-taker.
But what the Indiana campus lacks in enthusiasm for football, it makes up for in scenery. The drive through southern Indiana was gorgeous and the neighborhood around the football stadium is the epitome of wooded and quaint college-town. The weather was perfect for November football, mid 40's, no breeze and sunny. As I stood listening and watching the IU drum line perform outside Assembly Hall, I was loving the autumn college football experience.
As I was walking into Memorial Stadium, I thought back to the spring of 2000 and the list I shared with Erin. Just when I felt the satisfaction of accomplishing such a great feat, I remembered that Nebraska will be joining the big boys of the Big 10 next year, so I have one more trip to Lincoln, NE coming up next Thanksgiving weekend.
The game itself left a lot to be desired. While it's exhilarating to beat a good team on the final play of the game, to do so against a bad team is simultaneously frustrating and relieving. But a W is a W, as they say. I moved to the Iowa section for the game's final drive and shot video of the play in which the IU receiver caught, then dropped the game-winning TD pass. I was hoping to get video of either the entire stadium, minus the Iowa section, or the Iowa section itself, exploding in cheers. But since no one really knew what happened until the ref announced the result of the replay review, all I really got was footage of some stunned fans. I missed recording the official's announcement, which is when the Iowa crowd did explode with cheers of relief.
One final story about the trip, I got to talk with the dad of DJK, the receiver who just broke all of Iowa's receiving records and is about to get drafted into the NF - #15 in one of the above pictures. DJK grew up in a rough home but started hanging around the house of a classmate. This eventually lead to this classmate's family adopting him. DJK's adopted dad, who is a doctor, told me he kept telling his son that while he had a dream of playing football, the odds were against him. Well, he's about to beat the odds with this different version of The Blindside story. His dad and I talked a bit about adoption, it was a good conversation.
Wednesday, July 21, 2010
Full Circle
In the darkness of the GEHS auditorium during one of GCT's final dress rehearsals, I held my son in my arms and let my tears flow down my cheeks and into his curly blond hair. I was overcome with a sense of gratitude in realizing that this story had come full circle.
I guess I should provide some background information.
Annie is the story of an orphan girl hoping her biological parents will come rescue her from the orphanage. The opening song of the show is entitled Maybe and it's Annie's longings to be someone's little baby.
I think the line that hits me the most in that song is "Betcha he reads, betcha she sews..." Since Erin and I do both of those things.
But after a nation-wide search and a large financial reward fail to bring Annie's biological parents back to her, she agrees to Oliver Warbuck's plan to adopt her into his family. A massive adoption party ensues at the Warbucks' mansion, complete with a Supreme Court Justice on hand to sign the papers. But before Judge Brandice can sign the papers, Annie's "parent's" show up. The following is a combination ("mash-up" to Gleeks) of the disappointment of both Annie and Warbucks.
With the Tony Award worthy acting of Jim Hurd, you can see the pain of losing Annie on Warbucks' face.
All of this to explain what happened to us in 2007. We were seriously considering adopting a baby boy and were spending time talking with the potential birth-mom. But then, the baby was still-born four months premature. You can read the more about it here.
A couple weeks after that event, we were watching some kids in the Culture House production of Annie and were blindsided by painful emotions of loss when Annie sat on her suitcase and sang "I was almost his baby." We had been so close, only to have it torn away form us in a tragic manner.
Now you can probably understand why hearing Annie sing "won't you please come get your baby" as I hold my miracle baby - you can read all about the miracle of Dawson's adoption here - would cause me to cry tears of gratitude, thankfullness and joy. I wasn't the only one, either. After one of the performances, Dawson's biological Grandma came up to me, with tears in her eyes as well and thanked me for "taking care of my baby."
And if you'd like to learn how to become adoptive or foster parents of other "babies", check out the Adopt Kansas Kids website.
Oh yeah, Annie ends with the realization those "parents" were fakes and Annie is adopted into the Warbucks family and the orphanage is adopted by the Warbucks estate.
I guess I should provide some background information.
Annie is the story of an orphan girl hoping her biological parents will come rescue her from the orphanage. The opening song of the show is entitled Maybe and it's Annie's longings to be someone's little baby.
I think the line that hits me the most in that song is "Betcha he reads, betcha she sews..." Since Erin and I do both of those things.
But after a nation-wide search and a large financial reward fail to bring Annie's biological parents back to her, she agrees to Oliver Warbuck's plan to adopt her into his family. A massive adoption party ensues at the Warbucks' mansion, complete with a Supreme Court Justice on hand to sign the papers. But before Judge Brandice can sign the papers, Annie's "parent's" show up. The following is a combination ("mash-up" to Gleeks) of the disappointment of both Annie and Warbucks.
With the Tony Award worthy acting of Jim Hurd, you can see the pain of losing Annie on Warbucks' face.
All of this to explain what happened to us in 2007. We were seriously considering adopting a baby boy and were spending time talking with the potential birth-mom. But then, the baby was still-born four months premature. You can read the more about it here.
A couple weeks after that event, we were watching some kids in the Culture House production of Annie and were blindsided by painful emotions of loss when Annie sat on her suitcase and sang "I was almost his baby." We had been so close, only to have it torn away form us in a tragic manner.
Now you can probably understand why hearing Annie sing "won't you please come get your baby" as I hold my miracle baby - you can read all about the miracle of Dawson's adoption here - would cause me to cry tears of gratitude, thankfullness and joy. I wasn't the only one, either. After one of the performances, Dawson's biological Grandma came up to me, with tears in her eyes as well and thanked me for "taking care of my baby."
And if you'd like to learn how to become adoptive or foster parents of other "babies", check out the Adopt Kansas Kids website.
Oh yeah, Annie ends with the realization those "parents" were fakes and Annie is adopted into the Warbucks family and the orphanage is adopted by the Warbucks estate.
Saturday, June 19, 2010
A Bit Too Much
Erin and I have always been very involved people, being involved in a lot of activities and spreading ourselves out in the lives of many people. I think this summer, we've finally over-stretched ourselves.
I'm trying to get used to my early morning package-handling job at FedEx. I'm still pastoring TFC, obviously and I'm also taking a French 200 class and a Spanish 100 class. From the time I wake up till the time I go to bed, it's almost a non-stop effort to get it all done.
It should be easier in the summer because Erin is home, right? Well, Erin is tutoring some kids during the week and she has Annie rehearsals EVERY single day in June (except for three off days). The good thing about Erin being gone so often is that I'm forced to pay attention to my son. Not that I don't love being with Dawson but my wife can tell you that I easily put tasks before relationships. I need other tasks to force me to change my priorities sometimes.
I've gotta support my family with this second job but I'm also trying to open up new directions in life/ ministry in learning these languages. But somehow we've gotta strike a better balance. Annie ends in mid-July and it will be a much-needed reprieve.
Thank you to Kim Gordon, Dawson's Grandma for coming here twice a week so I can go to class and Erin can go to rehearsal. And to the other people who pitch in here and there to help us.
Don't be surprised if I'm not able to blog much these days...
I'm trying to get used to my early morning package-handling job at FedEx. I'm still pastoring TFC, obviously and I'm also taking a French 200 class and a Spanish 100 class. From the time I wake up till the time I go to bed, it's almost a non-stop effort to get it all done.
It should be easier in the summer because Erin is home, right? Well, Erin is tutoring some kids during the week and she has Annie rehearsals EVERY single day in June (except for three off days). The good thing about Erin being gone so often is that I'm forced to pay attention to my son. Not that I don't love being with Dawson but my wife can tell you that I easily put tasks before relationships. I need other tasks to force me to change my priorities sometimes.
I've gotta support my family with this second job but I'm also trying to open up new directions in life/ ministry in learning these languages. But somehow we've gotta strike a better balance. Annie ends in mid-July and it will be a much-needed reprieve.
Thank you to Kim Gordon, Dawson's Grandma for coming here twice a week so I can go to class and Erin can go to rehearsal. And to the other people who pitch in here and there to help us.
Don't be surprised if I'm not able to blog much these days...
Friday, May 7, 2010
My sweet wife = Grace
It was exactly two years ago, on a Saturday afternoon, that I was trying to decide whether I should mow the lawn or go to the audition for Gardner Community Theatre's summer production of The Music Man. I quickly mowed the lawn then headed over to GEHS to "just see if I can get a spot in the chorus." Well, a progression that began with Dan Naden convincing me to go sing "Happy Birthday" in the audition room to the director, Franci pulling me out of the callbacks crowd and asking "will you take any part I give you," I ended up being cast as the lead.
Here's my first post on that surprised casting and here's the list of all the GCT related posts. From making some great friends to adopting our son, Dawson the flyer I found in a Walmart shopping cart that lead me to tryouts and to the GCT family, our involvement with GCT has greatly changed our lives - for the better.
Two years later, at the auditions for Annie, a similar casting experience happened to my wife. Erin and I were at PRMS, helping with auditions. Erin was pretty sure she wasn't going to audition but during a slow time in which no one was auditioning, Judy Sass helped Erin learn a song and she decided to sing before the directors. She was called back the next evening and read for several parts, one being Grace - Warbucks personal secretary and eventual love interest and eventual adopted mother for Annie.
The next day, Erin got a call from the Annie director, Annette. Annette asked a similar question of Erin that Franci asked of me two years ago, "are you willing to play Grace?" Erin was hesitant and nervous but she bravely accepted the role. Annette told Erin that when she was reading with the eventual Warbucks and Annie, she could see in Erin's eyes her love for an adopted child.
That's not too surprising, when we think back on our story. In the fall of 2007 we watched some friends in another production of Annie. We went to this show just after the terrible experience of Erin spending all night at the hospital as the baby boy we were considering adopting was still-born, story here. There's a scene in Annie in which Warbucks' plans to adopt her fall through, prompting Warbucks to sing "You were almost my baby." I remember the ache in our hearts as we listened to that song.
And now we're parents of a wonderful little boy who we know to be a specially-delivered gift from God. So whatever amount of love Annette was able to see in Erin's eyes for an adopted child, it's just a fraction of what exists in both of our hearts. adoption posts
And let me just add, I'm very proud of my wife for this casting. She's a wonderful singer and has a great stage-presence. Really, I'm not surprised she was given this role. I'm going to enjoy watching her spread her warmth and talent throughout this production. Should be another fun GCT summer.
Here's my first post on that surprised casting and here's the list of all the GCT related posts. From making some great friends to adopting our son, Dawson the flyer I found in a Walmart shopping cart that lead me to tryouts and to the GCT family, our involvement with GCT has greatly changed our lives - for the better.
Two years later, at the auditions for Annie, a similar casting experience happened to my wife. Erin and I were at PRMS, helping with auditions. Erin was pretty sure she wasn't going to audition but during a slow time in which no one was auditioning, Judy Sass helped Erin learn a song and she decided to sing before the directors. She was called back the next evening and read for several parts, one being Grace - Warbucks personal secretary and eventual love interest and eventual adopted mother for Annie.
The next day, Erin got a call from the Annie director, Annette. Annette asked a similar question of Erin that Franci asked of me two years ago, "are you willing to play Grace?" Erin was hesitant and nervous but she bravely accepted the role. Annette told Erin that when she was reading with the eventual Warbucks and Annie, she could see in Erin's eyes her love for an adopted child.
That's not too surprising, when we think back on our story. In the fall of 2007 we watched some friends in another production of Annie. We went to this show just after the terrible experience of Erin spending all night at the hospital as the baby boy we were considering adopting was still-born, story here. There's a scene in Annie in which Warbucks' plans to adopt her fall through, prompting Warbucks to sing "You were almost my baby." I remember the ache in our hearts as we listened to that song.
And now we're parents of a wonderful little boy who we know to be a specially-delivered gift from God. So whatever amount of love Annette was able to see in Erin's eyes for an adopted child, it's just a fraction of what exists in both of our hearts. adoption posts
And let me just add, I'm very proud of my wife for this casting. She's a wonderful singer and has a great stage-presence. Really, I'm not surprised she was given this role. I'm going to enjoy watching her spread her warmth and talent throughout this production. Should be another fun GCT summer.
Wednesday, September 2, 2009
Some missing videos
I finally figured out how to compress video files using Windows Movie Maker, allowing me to finally share some videos that have been sitting on my computer unavailable to the larger world.
Enjoy
Enjoy
Tuesday, July 14, 2009
We Love You Dawson
We had a lot of work to do after the show on Sunday. The crew was busy working to put away props, reorganize costumes and tear apart the set (which I heard guys were doing until 9:30 Sunday night). Those of us on the GCT board counted ticket money and then paid expenses, although I did spend a little time helping put away props.
Erin was busy working on costumes while I was fulfilling my responsibilities, so our friend, Annie, volunteered to hold Dawson. I thought, "good, I can get a little work done before I need to hold him again." And then I started working, occasionally looking back to check on Dawson. At one point I asked "it's been awhile, is Annie still holding Dawson?" I turned around to look and no, Annie was not holding Dawson. I had nothing to worry about though, because some members of Dawson's birth family were holding him. After they were done holding him, some other people volunteered. Dawson spent his summer evenings at rehearsal but Erin and I were able to work on our responsibilities because there was always such a long line of people wanting to hold Dawson, or dance with him even.
Naturally, part of that is because everyone likes holding cute babies. But another big part is that Dawson is a GCT baby. Were it not for GCT, Erin and I wouldn't be Dawson's mommy and daddy. You can read the whole story here.
Speaking of that story, we got a good picture of Alex and Dawson. Alex is the young man who was wearing the elephant ears and singing "a person's a person no matter how small for Spring Hill HS's Suessical the Musical, through which God told us to adopt Dawson.
Here are some ladies from the show singing a slight variation of a song from the show. This particular version was what Erin and I sang over and over to Dawson when we first took him home from the hospital.
Our first takes of the video were on Saturday night and Dawson was just too tired to appreciate all those cute girls singing about how much they love him. He was in a better mood on Sunday afternoon.
Erin was busy working on costumes while I was fulfilling my responsibilities, so our friend, Annie, volunteered to hold Dawson. I thought, "good, I can get a little work done before I need to hold him again." And then I started working, occasionally looking back to check on Dawson. At one point I asked "it's been awhile, is Annie still holding Dawson?" I turned around to look and no, Annie was not holding Dawson. I had nothing to worry about though, because some members of Dawson's birth family were holding him. After they were done holding him, some other people volunteered. Dawson spent his summer evenings at rehearsal but Erin and I were able to work on our responsibilities because there was always such a long line of people wanting to hold Dawson, or dance with him even.
Naturally, part of that is because everyone likes holding cute babies. But another big part is that Dawson is a GCT baby. Were it not for GCT, Erin and I wouldn't be Dawson's mommy and daddy. You can read the whole story here.
Speaking of that story, we got a good picture of Alex and Dawson. Alex is the young man who was wearing the elephant ears and singing "a person's a person no matter how small for Spring Hill HS's Suessical the Musical, through which God told us to adopt Dawson.
Here are some ladies from the show singing a slight variation of a song from the show. This particular version was what Erin and I sang over and over to Dawson when we first took him home from the hospital.
Our first takes of the video were on Saturday night and Dawson was just too tired to appreciate all those cute girls singing about how much they love him. He was in a better mood on Sunday afternoon.
Friday, June 26, 2009
My 30th Year
Year #30 ended today as I was born 31 years ago, today, at 3:45 AM. Ironically, I was awake this morning at 3:45 (since I drank several glasses of pink lemonade while celebrating my birthday with GCT friends at Austin's), so I acknowledged my birthday on the exact minute.
My 30th year was one of, if not the, best year of my life. To demonstrate how great year #30 was, it must be compared to year 29. During my 29th year, I was diagnosed with infertility, had a potential adopted son stillborn and had another potential birth mom stand us up. At Christmas that year, I had a meltdown watching Facing the Giants. On top of everything else, I spent my 29th year mourning the loss of my 20's. Erin said I basically turned 30 a year early, since I spent that entire year calling myself a 30 year old man.
My 30th year didn't start that well, though. 30 isn't really too old, not to me anyway, but it felt really old to still not have kids. My biological clock was ticking as loudly as Edger Allen Poe's Telltale Heart. But things started to change that September, when I got a call from a friend in the theatre telling us her niece was pregnant and wanted to place the baby in an adoptive family. To review the entire story, click on the adoption labels.
My 30th year was the year in which I received the greatest gift I could ever be given, the gift of a child. Dawson's the best birthday present I could ever ask for and he makes me feel younger. It's not that my knees don't still ache after I run or my hair isn't getting progressively thinner, it's just that I'm a dad now and that makes me feel quite youthful. Dawson did also give me a special birthday present - two full diapers. He's such a thoughtful kid.
I can understand why the Hebrew people in the Old Testament believed eternal life came through having children (they didn't have much of an idea of heaven, not like what we see in the New Testament). But I digress...
I spent the 2 months of my 30th year anticipating fatherhood and the last 4 months of my 30th year as Dawson's daddy. Of course, we had some other great things happen this past year, too but combined they still aren't as great.
Bring on year # 31.
My 30th year was one of, if not the, best year of my life. To demonstrate how great year #30 was, it must be compared to year 29. During my 29th year, I was diagnosed with infertility, had a potential adopted son stillborn and had another potential birth mom stand us up. At Christmas that year, I had a meltdown watching Facing the Giants. On top of everything else, I spent my 29th year mourning the loss of my 20's. Erin said I basically turned 30 a year early, since I spent that entire year calling myself a 30 year old man.
My 30th year didn't start that well, though. 30 isn't really too old, not to me anyway, but it felt really old to still not have kids. My biological clock was ticking as loudly as Edger Allen Poe's Telltale Heart. But things started to change that September, when I got a call from a friend in the theatre telling us her niece was pregnant and wanted to place the baby in an adoptive family. To review the entire story, click on the adoption labels.
My 30th year was the year in which I received the greatest gift I could ever be given, the gift of a child. Dawson's the best birthday present I could ever ask for and he makes me feel younger. It's not that my knees don't still ache after I run or my hair isn't getting progressively thinner, it's just that I'm a dad now and that makes me feel quite youthful. Dawson did also give me a special birthday present - two full diapers. He's such a thoughtful kid.
I can understand why the Hebrew people in the Old Testament believed eternal life came through having children (they didn't have much of an idea of heaven, not like what we see in the New Testament). But I digress...
I spent the 2 months of my 30th year anticipating fatherhood and the last 4 months of my 30th year as Dawson's daddy. Of course, we had some other great things happen this past year, too but combined they still aren't as great.
Bring on year # 31.
Monday, June 1, 2009
A Twist of Fate
We had our monthly GCT board meeting last night at Austin's and part of the meeting was spent discussing our process for choosing our summer shows. It was casually mentioned that GCT was denied approval for last summer's first choice, Annie so they went with their second choice, The Music Man.I've told the story hundreds of times by now, how Erin and I started praying last spring that God would provide the opportunity for us to get more involved in our community and that God answered our prayers just one week later when I found a flyer for The Music Man tryouts crumpled up in the bottom of a Wal-Mart shopping cart. I went to the auditions thinking I'd find a way to be in the chorus and ended up being cast as the lead. That whole story is documented throughout this blog and if you want to read more, just click on the "Gardner musical" labels.
But when the reality of the simple statement from last night, "Music Man was our second choice" hit me last night, I had trouble getting to sleep. What if GCT had gotten permission to do Annie as their summer show? I know I wouldn't have bothered to audition because not only is The Music Man one of my favorite shows but I really don't care much for Annie. And had I not gotten involved in GCT, the following wonderful blessings would've never came into our lives.
1) The experience of playing Harold Hill My co-lead from last year, Caitlin is my "wife" in one scene in this show and as we stood toward the back of the stage yesterday watching the two leads for this year's show, Joe and Celia, working on their lines, a smile crossed my face as I thought of how much fun they're going to have. Even though it was a thrilling experience at the time, I think one year later I have a deeper apprecation for what a privilege it was to play the lead in such a great show. Whenever I watched musicals in the past, I'd see the leads come out at the end of the curtain call and think, "how would that feel." Well, last summer I got to experience it. I have a feeling that as the years go on, I'll cherish this memory even more. Of course, I'll always know the words to 76 Trombones and Trouble.
But when the reality of the simple statement from last night, "Music Man was our second choice" hit me last night, I had trouble getting to sleep. What if GCT had gotten permission to do Annie as their summer show? I know I wouldn't have bothered to audition because not only is The Music Man one of my favorite shows but I really don't care much for Annie. And had I not gotten involved in GCT, the following wonderful blessings would've never came into our lives.
1) The experience of playing Harold Hill My co-lead from last year, Caitlin is my "wife" in one scene in this show and as we stood toward the back of the stage yesterday watching the two leads for this year's show, Joe and Celia, working on their lines, a smile crossed my face as I thought of how much fun they're going to have. Even though it was a thrilling experience at the time, I think one year later I have a deeper apprecation for what a privilege it was to play the lead in such a great show. Whenever I watched musicals in the past, I'd see the leads come out at the end of the curtain call and think, "how would that feel." Well, last summer I got to experience it. I have a feeling that as the years go on, I'll cherish this memory even more. Of course, I'll always know the words to 76 Trombones and Trouble.
2) Community I like to joke that GCT focuses upon "putting the community back into Community Theatre. Erin and I have been able to build some great friendships within GCT. Yes, people know I'm a pastor and I have opportunities for spiritual conversations (see below) but there's not the same pressure (very likely self-imposed) that I feel in pastoring TFC. Though I'm a pretty down-to-earth guy among my congregation and though most people don't have me on any type of pedestal, I still never take off the "pastor-hat" among TFC friends. In GCT, I'm just "Donnie" and not "Pastor Donnie" and I'm thinking only pastors can really understand what I mean by that.
Hours and hours together in rehearsals really bring a group of people close together. And you realize how close you've gotten to people when you're reunited after several months. From the baby shower GCT threw for us in February to skiing with the Sasses, we've made some wonderful friendships through GCT and it's hard to imagine our lives without these friends.
Hours and hours together in rehearsals really bring a group of people close together. And you realize how close you've gotten to people when you're reunited after several months. From the baby shower GCT threw for us in February to skiing with the Sasses, we've made some wonderful friendships through GCT and it's hard to imagine our lives without these friends.
3) Some amazing conversations The spiritual conversations started about halfway through rehearsals for last summer's show and I was still having them last Sunday. Even though it's different than being among my congregation, GCT friends still know I'm a pastor and occasionally look to me for spiritual, relational and life guidance. I spend hours and hours hanging out with people, they come to view me as a "normal guy" and when they need some direction, I'm the one they call - or email or text or Facebook.
4) A Godson Erin and I have become close friends with last summer's director, Franci. Several months ago, Franci asked us to be her son's godparents "so when he grows up and has questions about following Christ, you'll be there to teach him." No one has ever given us an honor like that before and we take it very seriously; we've prayed for Ryder (and his mom) every night for the past 7 months and he sometimes spends the night here on Saturday nights. Ryder is a very special boy and we hope that as he grows up we really will be able to teach him what it means to live for Jesus, just as his mom wants us to do.
4.5) Young Love I've added this in response to Valerie's comments below. I've got a habit of trying to create love connections between unmarried friends. Sometime during last summer's rehearsals I realized, "Valerie's a great person (I got to know Val through the show), Zach's a great person (I've known Zach almost my entire life), I wonder if they'd be game for a blind date?" They were game and they eventually hit if off (Zach's a bit shy) and now Erin and I smile at the two young lovebirds. I joke that I like to "spread the misery" but seriously, I enjoy seeing great people create a great relationship. I know that Zach and Valerie and Valerie's mom are very glad I auditioned for The Music Man.
5) Dawson As great as the above blessings are, they don't compare to the privilege of being Dawson's mommy and daddy. You can read the entire adoption story here but the short version is this: Our IVF attempt failed about a week before last summer's show, Karen called in September to tell us her pregnant niece was looking for an adoptive family, at Ryder's birthday party in October Franci convinced us we should meet with Brianna (though we didn't think we were ready for adoption), Alex's role as Horton in Spring Hill HS's Suessical the Musical was how God told us to adopt this little boy and Dale and Judy got us an adoption grant that covered a large part of the adoption expenses. We met all of those people through The Music Man.
Erin and I went through several painful years trying to become parents and when I realized that our prayers were answered through such a small thing as GCT's request for Annie getting denied, I had trouble keeping the tears out of my eyes.
We pray and pray and pray and cry and pray some more, then we're just amazed at the coincidences that work in bringing God's answer to the cry of our hearts.
Monday, May 4, 2009
A Real Man
Saturday night, Erin and I spoke at the annual fundraising banquet for LifeCare, the crisis pregnancy center that supported Dawson's birth mom. As much as I didn't want to, several times I did exactly what I knew I'd do while talking, I broke down in tears. Afterwards, a lady came up and told me "it takes a real man to do what you did."
The night was a collection of skits illustrating all the ways in which LifeCare serves those facing a difficult pregnancy. The final skit was about our adoption. It was a little weird to see myself portrayed on stage and "Donnie" even had a small mullet. At the end of this reenactment of Dawson's adoption, Dawson's birth mom, Brianna was introduced to the crowd. Of course, she cried pretty hard while explaining how hard it was/ is but that she knew she made the right choice. Brianna got TWO standing ovations, when she was first introduced and when she was finished talking.
Then the three of us got onstage and shared our story. I did make it through, I just had to stop several times to regain my composure. I HATE showing emotion in public, being that vulnerable is very uncomfortable, but I just couldn't help it. It all started about 15 minutes before we were scheduled to get up and talk, when they put up a picture of an aborted baby with the quote from Dr. Suess, "a person's a person no matter how small." Everyone was quite surprised when we shared how God spoke through Horton the Elephant (Suess' character), telling us to adopt Dawson.
The night was a collection of skits illustrating all the ways in which LifeCare serves those facing a difficult pregnancy. The final skit was about our adoption. It was a little weird to see myself portrayed on stage and "Donnie" even had a small mullet. At the end of this reenactment of Dawson's adoption, Dawson's birth mom, Brianna was introduced to the crowd. Of course, she cried pretty hard while explaining how hard it was/ is but that she knew she made the right choice. Brianna got TWO standing ovations, when she was first introduced and when she was finished talking.
Then the three of us got onstage and shared our story. I did make it through, I just had to stop several times to regain my composure. I HATE showing emotion in public, being that vulnerable is very uncomfortable, but I just couldn't help it. It all started about 15 minutes before we were scheduled to get up and talk, when they put up a picture of an aborted baby with the quote from Dr. Suess, "a person's a person no matter how small." Everyone was quite surprised when we shared how God spoke through Horton the Elephant (Suess' character), telling us to adopt Dawson.
I had been trying to think of the right way to say "thank-you" to LifeCare. I'm so glad we were able to share our story. I have a feeling that our tearful stories moved people to giving more than they'd originally planned.
My little Horton is sleeping in the bouncy-seat setting on top of my desk as I write this. 2 1/2 months into this and I still get teary eyed with joy when thinking about the wonderful gift given by both God and Brianna.
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