The Adventure of a Son with his Father

My favorite place on the planet is where the salty water meets the sandy earth.

The beach.

Oh, just the sound of it makes me happy!

This year we stopped everything for an entire week and sat around where water and land meet. I thoroughly enjoyed every minute of it. But there was one moment in particular that was very special...watching our Zareb experience the beach and ocean waves for the very first time.

It was actually very emotional for me. Let me explain.

My adopted son, from a landlocked African country, finally got to put his toes in the ocean. We flew over that same ocean for hours upon hours last summer. We looked down through the tiny porthole in our airplane and talked about the ocean. We talked about the beach. I promised I would take him there--and that he would love it.

I have seen Zebby do many new things in the 9 months he's been home. I know that look of uncertainty and sometimes terror that he gets when he is unsure of something. I know that telltale shaking of his right hand when he is frightened. I know that tentative gait he takes on when he is scared. I expected to see all of that when we took him to the ocean.

But God.

In the form of my dear husband, God gave me a most gorgeous picture of how He walks me through this life.

You see, as Zeb approached the ocean with that tentative gait, his father came to him and held his hand.

Immediately, Zareb felt assured. This was going to be okay. Not scary.

They ventured out deeper.

Suddenly the water swirled up around ankles and surprised him with a shock of cold. Suddenly what was only "take me to the beach" now had depth in the meaning. It was no longer just a phrase, but it had meaning. Reality. Sensation. Hot, granular, cold, wet, rhythm...all completely unknown to him in the phrase "I'll take you to the beach soon, Zebby."

I couldn't help think in that moment how this is precisely what is going on with us--we look forward to the day we reach Heaven. We know a few things: God will be there, angels, no pain, no sadness, no sin...but we cannot truly grasp the depth of what HEAVEN itself means. We just have to wait until we go.

Just like that...Zeb had in his mind, no doubt, a diminished idea of what the beach really meant. Now he was here: touching, walking, hearing, smelling and tasting what to ocean really meant. That word came to life. And it was a swirling reality he was thrilled with!

Brian and Zeb continued to walk deeper into the ocean. Water around his knees now, he clung to his father's hand and was finding enjoyment in the waves that would come over and over again. Brian would allow him to let go and experience the power in those waves and little Zebby would topple...only to be quickly rescued by his father's strong arms.

I continued to watch the exchange, behind the lens of the camera. God was putting verses in my mind as I watched and I was thinking about heaven. It was a truly swelling moment (accompanied I am sure in heaven by great choruses of angels) when the water became too deep and Zeb's father swept him up safely in his arms and carried him.

The familiar poem "Footprints" came to mind. "...it was then that I carried you."

Emotion washed over me as I saw my husband play out the role of our loving Heavenly Father.

There was a time in our adoption process that we became frightened. That the fears of the unknown, the naysayers of this world grew loud and we were about to shut it all down and call it all off. We were going to walk away. It was too scary. Too much. We might lose control of our lives! (ha ha, I see that was a GOOD thing now!) During that very intense window of decision the same Father God spoke to Brian's heart. He said distinctly, "Let me bless you."

I continued to watch Zareb cling to Brian and point to go out further, further, further into the ocean. He had no fear at all in his father's arms. I saw them look with delight into each other's faces and I remembered God's words to Brian, "Let Me bless you." Once again, my heart burst.

I think so much happened in those 5-10 minutes that Zareb was introduced to the waters of the deep. Zareb learned again how Daddy is trustworthy and safe. Angels rejoiced over the adventure of a child. When we spoke later, Brian said he too remembered the words of the Lord to his heart and was savoring the joy on the face of his son in his arms.

Adoption is scary. But it is also wonderful. It's like having a daily picture of God self-sacrificing to bring us into His family. It is a continual picture of the wonderful ways that He cares for us as His very own dear children. We are so deeply blessed to have said yes to this major life change called adoption...I for one know I am better for it.

DQ is TWO!!!

Our little DQ is now TWO YEARS OLD!! What?!?!?!?! How can that be? Just a wee tiny bit ago she looked like this: (this is back when we suspected she was "he!")

Then out came a GIRL!!!! What????? Totally shocking to us all...she acted like a busy boy in there...but she was indeed not--just preparing for a vibrant life of a daredevil!

What? You don't think this looks like a daredevil? hahahaha!!

What a precious bundle of baby she was!! Oh! My heart aches for baby days!

Definitely tons of potential here... hee hee!

Now you recognize her!  At 4 months of happiness!

6 months old!

17+ pounds of LOVE!!

In Grandma Thomas' baby dress! 9 months old

All American Baby!

Happy 1st birthday, DQ!!!

And now, for a more REAL LOOK at life with DQ...
one of many LIPSTICK episodes:

"So sad that I did that!!"

Repentence is so genuine. She'll NEVER do it again!
(If you don't know, she ate ALL of my mail-order lipsticks that are now discontinued.
 Got to Grandma Shaw's last weekend too!)

On to HAPPIER times...
Nothing is greater than when it's your BIRTHDAY!

Now the daredevil in her can be seen! :)

Cherishing the card!

Opening the biggest present! What could it be?

This is the child whose first trip to the beach had her barrel running down to the ocean. Had she ever been to it? No. Did she know what it was? No. But adventure called. She tripped, got a face full of sand and her first ever wave crashed over her head. Did this stop her? No. She got up and began to run AGAIN into the ocean. Wow!! Don't you just want to live life JUST LIKE THAT!?!?!? 

I do.

Thanks, DQ, for teaching me how to have a zest for life, a love for adventure and the non stop curiousity that brings the flavor to life! Happy 2nd birthday!! We treasure you and cannot imagine life without you!!!

And if you are still here...why don't you take in a sweet moment before bedtime with DQ?

Inaugural post

I sit here, in my workout clothes, practically glued to the computer as I try my best to figure out all the settings for another blog. I've not done well blogging for our photography site, so I really shake in my boots at the thought of taking one another. Yet I am compelled. These things that are happening in my heart, in our lives, in our discussions need to be shared. I don't know why. Maybe you will. I hope that my efforts (and less laundry and cleaning done) will benefit someone. I pray that my words will urge you, peak your interest, whet your own appetite for adventurous living with Christ. Can God use an ordinary life? The answer is a resounding YES. The secret is that you don't get to choose what that looks like.

As every high schooler does, I dreamt about what my life might look like ten years down the line. (It's now been 20 years, so I can speak to this with authority!) I filled in my little senior book with my happy picture: I would be a newscaster in Colorado (what could be a prettier location?), have a husband, children, a Rottweiler and a Saab with a white picket fence running around my yard. Life would be so good. I would be thinner, tanner and my hair would be grown out nice and long. It was a dream about one thing: ME.

Fortunately, God grabbed ahold of me while I attended Wheaton College and did not permit me to attempt such a selfish indulgence. I actively searched for my new path in life, officially changing my major 7 times! (It was a true miracle that I graduated in just 4 years.) I couldn't seem to decide. One night as my friends and I attended a campus movie,"The Mission,"  God spoke to my heart. It was so clear, there was no avoiding it. No shushing it. God's voice was clear and succinct: "WILL YOU GO?" The Holy Spirit was speaking and I wondered who else could hear! I looked over at my long line of friends in the seats surrounding me, they were engrossed in the film, seemingly not hearing the words that were now echoing repeatedly in my head. WILL YOU GO? WILL YOU GO? WILL YOU GO? My heart began to beat faster and faster. I suddenly realized I had to leave. I bolted from the chapel and ran back to my dorm room. Every time my feet hit the pavement I could hear the words with each step: WILL--YOU--GO? I flew up the stairs to my floor and went into the laundry room. I shut the door and stood there in the dark amazed that even the washing machines repeated the words of the Lord as they did their scrubbing duty. Tears began to stream down my face and I realized what He was saying to me. My quest for a life goal! Here it was, being given me when I least expected it! I boldly answered my Lord in that laundry room, my back up against the closed door, "Yes, Lord, I don't really know what you mean, but I will go. I WILL GO!"

So began my journey following God's dreams for me. I learned over time that I could never dream bigger or better than He already had. Each time I thought I had it figured out, it would totally change and His way would prevail. But I get ahead of myself. I'll have to post again. For now, I've got a workout to get in!