anything once: riding in a balloon

Last week Jeff, Eiley and I went with some friends to the Great Park in Irvine for some free shenanigans, including a carousel ride, taking in the Pacific Symphony, picnicking, and riding in their balloon.

A carousel ride on an ostrich. Or an emu. A carousel ride on an Australian bird.

The balloon is not of the hot air variety; it's helium. This is impressive both because it carries human beings to great heights and because it is huge - and all this despite a national helium shortage. No, seriously. I'm not even making that up. Google that ish.


Thoughts on the experience:


1. There are lovely views of the city lights from 400 feet in the air.
2. I wish I'd sung "One Giant Orange Luftballoon" to the tune of "99 Red Luftballons" while we were up there. 

3. Jeff felt like he was in James and the Giant Peach. I did too, I just didn't realize it until right now when he told me that.
4. I thought it would be cool if half of us stood on either side of the gondola and we alternated jumping to get it to rock. Mikkele firmly disagreed.

Some of my peeps on the balloon!

5. It's rather peaceful 400 feet in the open air.


This wasn't thrilling, but it was free, memorable, and pleasant. A first I would certainly repeat!


*This is 1 out of my 4 anything onces for my three month goals. Blam. Accomplished.

Dear Sofia, Happy Dedication

“You spoke to me through her. You spoke to me through the sky, the trees. Before I knew I loved you, believed in you. When did You first touch my heart?”
-Jack in The Tree of Life

Dear Sofia,

I count it nothing but grace, unmerited favor, that you belong to us. You are such joy to me. I have not done anything to deserve you. 


Once upon a time, when I was a little baby, my parents dedicated me to the Church. 

That means the Church and I have had lots of time, my whole life, to have all kinds of ups and downs in our relationship. The Christian Church and I have a bit of a sordid past. It has hurt, betrayed, and rejected me, and I it. 


But several years ago, God taught me that I could not say that I loved Him, and hate His Church. The Church IS the Body of Christ. It is all united as one. And so, broken, I've been working to repair my relationship to the Church ever since, to love it, as I love God. 


And what a long way I've come. Because now, here you are, and just a few weeks ago, like my parents before me, I dedicated you to the Church too. I chose to trust the Church by putting the soul of my most precious little one in its hands. 


The service itself was a bit hilarious. All the other little ones being dedicated were a matter of weeks or months old, and you were nearly a year and a half. They all lay happily, sleepily, in their parents' arms. You had me dipping you upside down and bouncing you all around to keep you from running all over, and possibly right off the stage. But we made it through, and you made me proud. 


Your Dada and I made a vow that day to raise you in the Church. And our church made a vow to support us in that work. This was a big step for me, and a significant event for you. I don't believe that I can protect you from being hurt in the Church, annoyed by the people there, offended by its history or present actions. But I do believe that what is best for you is to be a part of this body. To find community, support, teaching, accountability, and opportunities to love. 


You are already a little girl who pours out love on the people you meet. From waving hello to strangers, to comforting other children that cry, to praying for those you have seen experiencing distress. I adore witnessing how you love, and I can't wait to see all that you will contribute to the Church over the course of your life. 


I pray that you will learn to love it, faults and all, as I do. I pray that it will be kind and supportive to you. I pray that through it, God will make Himself known to you. I pray that in turn, you will come to know God, and His Son, Jesus, intimately, and powerfully, and eternally. 


Happy Dedication my Little Girl. 


Love,
Mommy

five goals for the next three months

I'm obviously still having trouble finding time to do things, like write. I continue to be distracted by television, constantly perfect weather, good friends, my awesome family. It's a rough life, people.

How can one write when weird stuff like this is going down?

But seriously, I long for motivation to accomplish things outside all of my summer frivolity and everyday work. So here's my syllabus for the next three months, for which you all should keep me accountable:

Make FIVE phone or skype calls to keep in touch with long distance pals.


Have FOUR new anything once experiences.


Write THREE posts per week.


Complete TWO works - hopefully finish the play I've started and write a children's book or even just a poem.


Move into ONE apartment, for goodness sake.


Feel free to place bets on what I will or will not finish. More importantly, feel free to harass me about these goals. I'll need the push.

Movie Review Monday: Red Riding Hood (and a little bit about Melancholia)

I've seen a few frustratingly un-entertaining movies lately. For example, I strongly warn you never to watch Melancholia. 

photo taken from here

It was apparently inspired by a depressive episode, and I think it in turn inspired a depressive episode in me. I get that there is something artistic in causing that effect, but it is really not a desired effect. Apparently part of his point is that while depressed people can be a burden, they are uniquely capable of remaining calm in extreme circumstances. Interesting, I suppose. And yet, I can't decide if that is necessarily a strength. Sometimes the appropriate reaction to a situation is fear. I do like the fact that he highlights that there is a flip side to the coin of mental illness, that the package often comes with unique advantages. I'd just prefer to have that point made in a way that does not exacerbate the negative consequences of mental illness in the process. bleh. Two claws down, Lobsters. Stay away from that one. If you want a movie that illustrates the experience of depression and even some of the strengths of those who carry the illness, I refer you to Submarine. 

image taken from here

After Melancholia, I was sorely disappointed by another movie or show or two that I tried to get into. So I was happy to watch Red Riding Hood, which I finally did find entertaining. A little drama, a little romance, a little action, it was fun. I have to steal my husband's genius new genre title to describe it, he says it was an "Action Soap Opera, a.k.a. The Twilight genre." Apt description, my love! 

My main complaint about the film is that it was obviously rushed through the channels and out the door onto the screen to capitalize on the Twilight craze. It might have gotten closer to Twilight's success if they had spread it out over 2-3 films. Actually, that's a bit about Twilight that drives me crazy, especially when their breaths are in slow-mo, and I just want to roll my eyes. But in Red Riding Hood, there were a handful of key moments that felt incredibly rushed and could have used some more time to effect their desired emotions and reactions. Also, in the end, I just couldn't quite figure out what message they were trying to communicate, and if it was one I really wanted to get on board with. She seems to end her days in near isolation, and that's not quite a goal I'm into recommending. 

One more tiny plus for the movie though. This is so weird. Amanda Seyfried's neck usually really bothers me for some reason. But wearing the "red riding hood" all the time, and whatever else the costume gurus did, really flattered her and she looked more lovely than I've ever seen her. 

image taken from here

So thanks, lovely Amanda, for breaking the long streak of duds in my viewing experience. One claw up for you!

Sabbath Sunday: Amen and Amen!

This Sunday, I am finally going to a church service for the first time in a month (travel/volunteer duties have gotten in the way). yay! I am also spending some time in prayer for friends, including praising God for my friend, Kathleen, whose story I'd love to share with you here.

I unfortunately don't feel like I have the most bold or impressive capacity for faith, even though Faith is my middle name, and one might think it would be a discipline I would have worked harder at. But I do marvel at it in others.

I am in a women's bible study where we're currently using some Beth Moore study materials. A couple of months ago, Beth challenged us to consider whether there was something we'd been praying for, for a long time, but gave up praying for just when God might have been ready to give us what we'd been longing for? This was in the context of Zechariah [Luke 1] wanting a son, and ultimately receiving one, John the Baptist.

I can tend to get dismissive about these types of bible study questions that get personal, and lean more towards focussing on the cerebral challenges. But my friend Kathleen took the question seriously. She shared with our group that when she first moved into town, she was praying for her husband to get a teaching job close enough to home that he wouldn't need to take a long commute. The close proximity would support their desired life style of using the car less and spending more time together as a family. She prayed and she prayed for a long time, and after much waiting, he got a teaching job and everyone rejoiced, and she stopped praying about it.

Thing is, the teaching job was not close to home, and he had to spend hours a day carting himself back and forth. But challenged by the study's question, Kathleen wondered if she's settled too quickly, if she'd given up believing that God had something better for her family if she could just have faith and patience. So she took her prayers up again. And she charged our whole group to join her. And she charged all the groups she knew that got together praying regularly. And we all prayed.

Here's the thing, we live in a really small town. There are not multiple schools for each age level, just one elementary/middle/high. Not a ton of teaching jobs to go around. Many of us had been involved in a group trying to address budget shortfalls the district was anticipating. We knew just how grim things looked. Millions of dollars behind, the only thing that seemed likely was more cuts/layoffs/over-crowded classrooms. There was a big part of me that was mostly smiling and nodding as Kathleen prayed, but I prayed alongside her. I mostly prayed, wondering how God would teach her to change her desires because it seemed so unlikely that He would fulfill them so specifically.

She knows God is not a vending machine. She knows full well that we don't just get everything we want. And still, she had faith that if she was honest enough to let God into that very intimate, private place, where her deepest desires and greatest ambitions lay, that God might deign to bless her in just the way she wanted. That's scary. That's bold. That's a big emotional, spiritual, and (as she invited us into the project) social risk. And she went for it anyways. Part of the process involved praying that God would give her enough faith to keep praying for this thing. 

And then this community group's organizing paid off and a new school budget was voted in. A school budget that involved hiring two new teachers for the district. One of those positions got swooped up right away. The one left was in the age group where Kathleen's husband had experience. Exactly one shot. And it was one shot more than most of us dreamed would have been possible. So he applied, and as I'm sure you're not surprised by now, we just found out, he got the job!

More often than not, when I pray, God doesn't give me exactly what I want. He molds me through the process. But had I given up believing that God wants to satisfy our desires, here and now?

I'm just amazed by my friend's boldness in prayer. I think it speaks so highly of how God is growing her faith and her heart. In addition to the spiritual triumph, I think this is also a beautiful story of marriage. I think one of the most important things spouses need to do is support one another's dreams. Even if your partner doesn't believe his/her dream is realizable, we need to keep faith, in both them and in God, that their best is within reach. Kathleen showed herself to be an ambitious wife, a visioning mother (chasing after a lifestyle that enabled more family time), and faithful daughter of God. And I just can't help but celebrate the amazing woman that she is. She encourages and inspires me, and I hope her story can inspire you too.

What long standing prayer do you need to revive and revisit with God right now? Can I join you in praying for that thing? Because I am learning to have a bit more faith now, and this prayer thing is so exciting to be a part of!

Long Distance Payoff

I've been writing for this blog about long distance friendship with Emily for over a year now. It's been great fun and a wonderful way to stay in closer contact with Emily and others. But after all this time, I start to have some doubts. My life feels rather overwhelming much of the time. Is cultivating this discipline to invest in long distance friendships really worth making such a high priority? 

My recent visit to Houston gave me a resounding "YES!" in response to that question. If you read all our posts, you've noticed me mention a long distance friend of mine from middle/high school, Libby [check out here blog over here]. By some miracle, we managed to be visiting Houston at the same time, both traveling with our toddlers alone. We only overlapped for a few days, but found a way to meet up in that tight window. It usually completely overwhelms me to think of trying to see friends amidst the millions of family events that always spring up while we're in town, but Libby's reciprocal efforts helped us overcome the challenge. 

The moment we saw each other, it truly felt as if we had been having play dates every week. But as we reflected on the last time we'd seen each other in person, we realized it had been over seven years. Since we'd seen each other last, we had both gotten married, both seen our husbands through PhD programs, both seen our husbands through the ominous academic job search, both moved cross country, and both delivered beautiful baby girls through quasi-traumatic c-sections. 

Everything had changed. And yet it felt as if the growth of our friendship had never skipped a beat. Through all that change, our long distance efforts to support one another through life paid off in the quiet comfort we enjoyed that day in that hot hot park with our girls. Not all friendships are like this, there's often awkwardness when you first see someone after a long time apart, and I don't think anything is wrong with that. AND, I was really grateful to find a friend in Houston who's traveled such a similar road and whose path I could cross with such joy. It was truly uplifting. Long distance friendships, such as this, are such a sweet gift. 

Somewhat tangentially, and mostly random, a few weeks ago, I found myself sharing a really sweet and from my perspective, photogenic moment with Sofia. My heart ached at the idea that there would be nothing but this feeling in my memory to preserve that instant. I thought to myself, "Man, the President's family is so lucky. I bet they have photographers swarming around them all the time capturing every moment like this for them." Well, after my dad gave Sofia and I a ride to this little play date with Libby and her little girl, he stayed on and took a few pictures before running his own errands. I may not have mentioned here recently how my father was a professional photographer during my whole upbringing. In other words, we got our very own personal paparazzi. Wish granted! The shots of just the girls are mine, but I am so thankful to "Big Papa," as Sofia calls him, for preserving a snapshot of Libby's and my brief but precious time together.  

photo by: Craig Stewart

photo by: Craig Stewart

Movie Review Monday: Submarine

We stumbled across this quirky flick through watching trailers to other films.

Basic idea: quirky teen boy senses that he's not quite like the other kids at school. said boy seeks out appropriate romantic partner. boy aims to convince girl to attach herself to him socially.  troubles arise, conflict ensues, growth of character develops.

The characters surprising and well played. The girlfriend is not cliche in her tastes, but also not untrue in her struggles. The way they depict the mother over the course of the film is particularly fascinating. You at first see a buttoned up mousey character, you come to realize her lost dreams and aspirations give her depth, and as you see her struggle, you realize her beauty. They accomplished this really well visually while developing these aspects through the writing. The tone was genuinely enjoyable. It had the right degree of voice of a high school boy in the making of the film, without giving way to the potential chaos that road could lead down to.

I went into it expecting a Wes Anderson-like, highly stylized film, with heavy sarcasm and cerebral wit. I think I got everything I was looking for in the viewing experience, with a whopping added dose of depth and substance. Some of these highly stylized films are so ironic, that truly dealing with any real issues is just below them. Not so with Submarine. The film tackles fidelity, illness, and depression, without breaking the light quirky format or doing a disservice to these weighty issues.

Not much else to say, but two claws up!

Have you seen it? What did you think?