If Life were a donut shop, Soren would be in Heaven, though I’m sure his life here in the Lundquist home involves more “sweet toys” than sweet pastries. Saving his hard-earned paper route money for “Black Friday,” he just added 3 weapons to his Nerf gun arsenal. I did take him to “ABC Donuts” after putting out flags on Main St. for Veterans Day (a Boy Scout fund-raiser). He wisely chose a dollars worth of “holes.”
If Life was a mountain . . . Kaleb would be saying “no sweat” as he summits yet another peak. He’ll complete his climb up Airman Leadership School before coming home for Christmas. Soon his climbing gear will include Staff Sergeant stripes.
If Dreams were made of cotton candy and clouds were solid stuff . . .
Katie would be riding on the clouds eating the sweet sticky stuff for breakfast
and sliding down the nearest rainbow to a pot of gold.
The “golden” boy is Cole Harmon, who currently resides in Redding where they both are studying hard and worshipping even harder at Bethel School of Supernatural Ministry.
If mountain goats could talk, they would say to Amanda . . . “I’ve seen you before,” on the rocky crags above Glacier National Park! But that was long ago when she was but a child. Now this grown daughter has multiplied love and blessing in our family and to everyone she meets, where-ever she goes, around the world. As the wife of Joel Le Maire, she has multiplied her joy in the husband God brought. How strange to gain a son who is mature, full-grown (bearded even) and a world-traveler! He is “grafted in” to our family tree, a branch full of green leaves and bearing good fruit!
If Life is a Tree, Carrie is a blossom, fragrant and beautiful on the tropical Isle. At home on the beach, living like a local but loving it like a tourist, she is no stranger to hard work. Two or three jobs pay the rent and buy food, but there are always free mangos! An artist at heart she has never put down the palette and brushes and hopes to see some of her paintings selling in a gallery on Maui in the very near future.
Since Life is definitely an Ocean, Susi’s grasp of the wind and tides often remind me of the QE2! Her multi-tasking skills as she keeps in mind an absent-minded husband and children in five states makes me feel like I’m body surfing in Santa Cruz without a wetsuit! She still assists the “grown children” with everything from nutritional advice to on-line shopping, all the while home-schooling the younger boys and tracking Ben’s progress through High School.
If Life were a High School football game, Nate would be moving on to coaching the team, having given 100% to the game for so many years. His playing field is a restaurant in Hawaii, where his roles as busboy, cook, dishwasher and server led to becoming a manager who knows and cares about every aspect of customer satisfaction. When he’s not working he spends time with books and a few close friends.
In the Construction Site of Life, Matt is “back to the drawing board,” realizing that the excavating, foundation, framing, plumbing, drywall, painting, etc. is not as suited to his gifts as the drawing up of blueprints. After all, someone has to envision the possible structures, or stand back and describe it to the world once it’s finished (see pics of “The Lodge” on FaceBook). The building experience was productive and profitable, and he learned a lot, notably how much he loves and misses the opportunity to write! Now he can focus on becoming a “Wordsmith,” crafting sentences and paragraphs to build understanding, develop insights, and create inhabitable worlds for seeking souls.
Haddon’s Life is clearly a Symphonic Performance, though we’re currently trying to minimize the cacophony. He really can “make a joyful noise” when his heart is in tune. But, like our guitars, which need frequent re-tuning, it’s an ongoing process. In addition to guitar, drums and keyboard, he plans to pick up bass soon, as he moves full speed ahead in Home-school co-op worship class. Legos are an important component he is building into his life. So he was disappointed when, on Black Friday, with no Legos on sale, his paper route earnings nearly incinerated the pocket of his Levi’s.
If Life was a Chicken Coop, we might say Ben’s relationship to it was kind of “Love-Hate.” There are chickens, who need food and water and who fill their beloved home with fertilizer for the garden, and all of this Ben looks after, while we encourage due diligence in each task. But when he has “flown the coop” to the High School or to church on Sunday, Ben much prefers to observe and explore the outside world, his mind gathering interesting information. He might be considered a typical teenager in that chores and responsibilities also “Fly the Coop.” These must be faithfully gathered like the eggs that Ben brings up each day after tending to the chickens.
You’ve probably noticed that Life is also a Garden, and after careful attention to tilling and planting and weeding and watering, it’s time to “reap what we’ve sown.” Tears and laughter, joy and pain accompany us as we bring in our harvest. Our souls are enriched by daily bread and refreshed by the home-made raspberry jam we spread on it. We eat the vegetables that make us strong and have a moment of silence for the rows that did not yield. Plants we envisioned nourishing our spirits lie wilted by drought and heat or eaten by destructive pests. Our disappointments are keenly felt, reminding us that Life will not be all that it should be until we come at last to that Garden remade.
Yet through every season of Growing and Gathering there is Sunshine and Rain and our Creator is working it all to our Good. Because He is Good, and it is good for us to praise and thank Him. And good for us to trust Him as well.
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year from the Lundquists
If Life was a mountain . . . Kaleb would be saying “no sweat” as he summits yet another peak. He’ll complete his climb up Airman Leadership School before coming home for Christmas. Soon his climbing gear will include Staff Sergeant stripes.
If Dreams were made of cotton candy and clouds were solid stuff . . .
Katie would be riding on the clouds eating the sweet sticky stuff for breakfast
and sliding down the nearest rainbow to a pot of gold.
The “golden” boy is Cole Harmon, who currently resides in Redding where they both are studying hard and worshipping even harder at Bethel School of Supernatural Ministry.
If mountain goats could talk, they would say to Amanda . . . “I’ve seen you before,” on the rocky crags above Glacier National Park! But that was long ago when she was but a child. Now this grown daughter has multiplied love and blessing in our family and to everyone she meets, where-ever she goes, around the world. As the wife of Joel Le Maire, she has multiplied her joy in the husband God brought. How strange to gain a son who is mature, full-grown (bearded even) and a world-traveler! He is “grafted in” to our family tree, a branch full of green leaves and bearing good fruit!
If Life is a Tree, Carrie is a blossom, fragrant and beautiful on the tropical Isle. At home on the beach, living like a local but loving it like a tourist, she is no stranger to hard work. Two or three jobs pay the rent and buy food, but there are always free mangos! An artist at heart she has never put down the palette and brushes and hopes to see some of her paintings selling in a gallery on Maui in the very near future.
Since Life is definitely an Ocean, Susi’s grasp of the wind and tides often remind me of the QE2! Her multi-tasking skills as she keeps in mind an absent-minded husband and children in five states makes me feel like I’m body surfing in Santa Cruz without a wetsuit! She still assists the “grown children” with everything from nutritional advice to on-line shopping, all the while home-schooling the younger boys and tracking Ben’s progress through High School.
If Life were a High School football game, Nate would be moving on to coaching the team, having given 100% to the game for so many years. His playing field is a restaurant in Hawaii, where his roles as busboy, cook, dishwasher and server led to becoming a manager who knows and cares about every aspect of customer satisfaction. When he’s not working he spends time with books and a few close friends.
In the Construction Site of Life, Matt is “back to the drawing board,” realizing that the excavating, foundation, framing, plumbing, drywall, painting, etc. is not as suited to his gifts as the drawing up of blueprints. After all, someone has to envision the possible structures, or stand back and describe it to the world once it’s finished (see pics of “The Lodge” on FaceBook). The building experience was productive and profitable, and he learned a lot, notably how much he loves and misses the opportunity to write! Now he can focus on becoming a “Wordsmith,” crafting sentences and paragraphs to build understanding, develop insights, and create inhabitable worlds for seeking souls.
Haddon’s Life is clearly a Symphonic Performance, though we’re currently trying to minimize the cacophony. He really can “make a joyful noise” when his heart is in tune. But, like our guitars, which need frequent re-tuning, it’s an ongoing process. In addition to guitar, drums and keyboard, he plans to pick up bass soon, as he moves full speed ahead in Home-school co-op worship class. Legos are an important component he is building into his life. So he was disappointed when, on Black Friday, with no Legos on sale, his paper route earnings nearly incinerated the pocket of his Levi’s.
If Life was a Chicken Coop, we might say Ben’s relationship to it was kind of “Love-Hate.” There are chickens, who need food and water and who fill their beloved home with fertilizer for the garden, and all of this Ben looks after, while we encourage due diligence in each task. But when he has “flown the coop” to the High School or to church on Sunday, Ben much prefers to observe and explore the outside world, his mind gathering interesting information. He might be considered a typical teenager in that chores and responsibilities also “Fly the Coop.” These must be faithfully gathered like the eggs that Ben brings up each day after tending to the chickens.
You’ve probably noticed that Life is also a Garden, and after careful attention to tilling and planting and weeding and watering, it’s time to “reap what we’ve sown.” Tears and laughter, joy and pain accompany us as we bring in our harvest. Our souls are enriched by daily bread and refreshed by the home-made raspberry jam we spread on it. We eat the vegetables that make us strong and have a moment of silence for the rows that did not yield. Plants we envisioned nourishing our spirits lie wilted by drought and heat or eaten by destructive pests. Our disappointments are keenly felt, reminding us that Life will not be all that it should be until we come at last to that Garden remade.
Yet through every season of Growing and Gathering there is Sunshine and Rain and our Creator is working it all to our Good. Because He is Good, and it is good for us to praise and thank Him. And good for us to trust Him as well.
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year from the Lundquists
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