Over the past few weeks I've been trying to remember a specific short poem ... it is one that my mom had written out and I had on my cork board in my bedroom for years! Today as we were spending time cleaning & sorting through all the 'stuff' in our storage unit, I came across the poem so now I know who the author is! He drew a circle that shut me out-
Heretic, rebel, a thing to flout.
But love and I had the wit to win:
We drew a circle that took him in!

-Edwin Markham "Out With It"

This poem has impacted me similarly to the Golden Rule... I don't know how many times I've rehearsed it to myself over the years! At our ladies Bible study we've been studying the 'love chapter' and this poem came to mind again. Now, I know it doesn't quote the scriptures, but if you read 1 Cor. 13:13.... the last part of the verse says "... and the greatest of these is love." Love is the greatest & strongest force on earth...... try it, it isn't easy, but you'll 'love' the results!!

It is REALLY a wonderful thing that happened yesterday! I found a middle school friend that I had lost contact with maybe 20 years ago! Not being overly computer savy, I never even thought to try that avenue, besides how does one go about looking? Where do you 'ask'? How does one search.... I was chatting with another friend in MA about Facebook and Myspace and the pros & cons of the programs. We chatted while she made herself an account and then I said to her, "You know, it is really neat to use the Facebook program to find old school friends." I proceeded to tell her when you put in your high school name & year of graduation other classmates will pop up. etc. etc. Well.... I had the flash thought... maybe, just maybe I could find Rebecca! (Naaa, I don't even know if she still has the same last name!)

I typed in her name and clicked on 'FIND FRIEND' :) GUESS WHAT? Up came 11 different Rebeccas.... all with the same last name! It is truly amazing. (and those are only the ones who have Facebook!) I scrolled down... getting excited and wondering if I'd recognize her after it's been a LONG time! It was a dumb question I guess... eyes & smiles just don't change over the years!! I FOUND HER!

I quickly & nervously typed an email asking if she had lived in NH during the middle school years and if she had a sister named Ana? Within 15 minutes I had my answer!!! "YES, YOU HAVE THE RIGHT REBECCA! OH MY GOSH... I'VE BEEN LOOKING FOR YOU FOR YEARS!" It was such an amazing moment!! :) I called my parents this morning to tell them the great news... they were just as excited as I am.... her mom & my mom were very good friends too!! I think there will be another 'reunion' with them soon too!! (Well, a reunion over the phone... they all live in CA now!)

We've exchanged a couple of emails and phone numbers and I look forward to chatting more!! :) HOW COOL IS THAT!!! Yes, as frustrating as computers can be, I AM LIKING MINE A WHOLE LOT MORE NOW A DAYS!! :)

PS.... Yes, Audrey did take these awesome pictures of the cosmos!

Audrey Got Her New Camera!!

Audrey is having a blast with her new Nikon! Nothing is sacred .... No one is safe! :) Everyone is a possible 'great photo shot'... I got her a few books on digital photography (potraits & lighting, nature & close-up nature etc.). She has been busy taking some AWESOME pictures!! I can't wait to see what she comes up with every time she leaves with her camera in hand! She has a great eye ...

Watch out!

When you least expect it...

She may be around the corner waiting to take that next 'perfect shot'!

(Now she needs to figure out how to put her name in a waterspot image form on her photos!)

We had a Blast....

We were blessed to have a wonderful Sunday afternoon on Lake Winnepasaukee with some new friends!
The kids had a blast tubing behind the boat..... the sun was shining, the water was crystal clear and new friendships have begun to form!

Wordless Wednesday... "Simply Fun"

Reflecting on Sunday's Service....

We had another awesome Sunday service at Grace Capital yesterday..... the sermon topic was being content and living with less so others could live with some. Sounds simple enough right... well, make it practical.... read Luke 3, especially focusing on verse 10 & 11. So the people asked him, saying, 'what shall we do then?' He answered and said to them, "He who has two tunics, let him give to him who has none; and he who has food, let him do likewise."

Pastor Peter Bonanno's talk can be heard here http://www.gccnh.com/ (click on Contenders pt. 3 8/31/08) How many of us have more then 1 pair of shoes? At the end of the service, the challange was to leave our shoes as a symbol of our willingness to be content. The result.... over 800 pairs of shoes were left to be donated to "Soles 4 Souls". http://www.soles4souls.org/

The service was AMAZING, THOUGHT PROVOKING, LIFE CHALLANGING... and I dare you to listen! :) It's all about being generous and thinking of others instead of ourselves!

Here's another thought provoker; I'd never thought about this before but, God told Moses to take off his shoes because the ground he was standing on was holy, it isn't recorded that he put his shoes back on. We do know that he came down the mountain with his staff... a staff which symbolized his readiness to serve his people, but we don't know if he had his shoes.

PS The church foyer will be open till Wednesday night for those who still want to donate shoes!