The Doers, the Dreamers, and Me...

One of my favorite movies is the original, "Muppet Movie". No, not the highly lame, "Muppets in Space" or "Muppet Treasure Island" - uh, definitely not. We're talking where it all started. The movie begins with a wide angle pan shot of the Florida Everglades. We gradually focus in on a log with a frog, or a frog with a log, whichever you prefer. My favorite childhood green buddy, Kermit busts into "The Rainbow Connection". The final line being, "The lovers, the dreamers and me." Kermit has a dream - to go to California and make a movie. The tension throughout the rest of the show is between how some characters believe in this dream and that others don't.

I think we all live in this tension. Each of us has "dreams" we would like to fulfill and each of us has stuff that we simply need to "do". The problem is that I often find myself dreaming and then feeling guilty that I haven't gotten things DONE. Or I find myself in this frantic state of doing, so much that my soul starts to wither because it hasn't DREAMED in days. Rarely, if ever am I in a state of balance. So I guess I'm either a frustrated dreamer or an exhausted doer. I think I'd rather be the former and dream with a little guilt. It is here that I find fulfillment, even if just for a time. Even if the dream never really results in anything tangible. To paraphrase Shakespeare, "Better to have dreamed in vain, than never to have dreamed at all."

"The Muppet Movie" ends with Kermit and the gang finally getting the chance to make a movie and yet somehow Animal destroys the entire set. Even through this seemingly disastrous ending Kermit still holds onto "The Rainbow Connection" - the dream. Something about human... err... frog souls - we've gotta keep dreaming the dream.

Tandem

Riding tandem. Something about it that seems to be so metaphorical. Each person we passed as we rode around Mackinac Island would make the joke "she's not peddling you know." After about the 5th time someone made the joke it kinda lost its impact. I guess as we peddled up and down those small hills, I simply trusted the love of my life and partner. I knew she was peddling because I know she cares for not only for her well-being, but our collective well-being. Ater 10 years, we've pretty well decided that it's the collective that makes our bike go.

Just last month we celebrated our 10th wedding anniversary. We went up to Mackinac Island, where a spur of the moment jaunt from Traverse City became a most memorable honeymoon location. We had it all planned out. Honeymoon at the Grand Traverse Resort - yeah, baby! One of the most posh places to stay in Northern Michigan. We walk in our first day - massive red wine stain on the floor (alright, it looked like blood!) right when we walk in. Welcome to your stay at the Bates Motel. Pretty quickly after we figured out that bubble bath and jacuzzis don't mix,( yeah, 3 foot high bubbles) we decided to depart the next day for a short trip up to Mackinac Island. We ended up staying at the Cloghaun Bed and Breakfast on the Island. Much more quaint, and a lot less reminiscent of the Bates Motel. All that to say that Mackinac Island has become very special to our hearts. We keep going back. This trip was our 4th back in 10 years. We highly recommend staying on the island overnight. The bands at the pubs are really talented.

And so we choose each time we go to Mackinac Island to ride the tandem bike. We certainly could ride separate bikes, it might give us more independence and better steering. But, we're tandem people. We share the load. I think that's the way God made us.

Discoveries

Rob Bell, of Mars Hill Bible Church in Grandville, MI tells the story of his young son who has just waded into the water after collecting two handfuls of smashed sea shells. Now these shells were the type that are all over the beach. Thousands upon thousands have washed up and been trampled upon. The child decides to wade into the water with shell fragments in hands. After a while his father notices a beautiful starfish floating on top of the water within reach of his son. Rob yells to his son to pick up the starfish.



Anxiously the boy looks at the starfish and then looks at his fists, full of broken shells. And then back to the starfish and then again, back to his hands. Suddenly he bursts into loud sobs. Rob shouts out, "What wrong, buddy? Just pick up the starfish!" To this the son blurts out through his tears, "But then I'll have to drop these shells!" Isn't that the case we often find ourselves in. We want the broken shells that are in our hands when our Father wants to give us the coolest starfish in the ocean! We'd rather hold on to what is comfortable or what we know, rather than give up control and allow God to bless us beyond what our human minds can fathom. I learned that lesson this week. God blessed me beyond my imagination by taking away something that I thought I wanted. For this lesson and for the blessing, I am eternally grateful. May we all trust God - the giver of every good and perfect gift.

This is Only a Test

I'm checking out the new picture feature. Bear with me...

Viva la Revolution!

It seems crazy but this Jesus thing in my life continues to cause a REVOLUTION in my soul. The biggest change that seems to be coming is that I'm consciously present. I think that satan LOVES to get us distracted enough that we aren't fully present, mentally or emotionally, in any given situation. I'm thinking much more clearly and with a greater sense purpose. I am more aware of the awesomeness of God. This has also allowed me to become much more creative in the moment. So I will stop with the "wah" about not having anything clever to say. I'll just keep typing and end with... "Viva la Revolution!"