thought that might be blogs some day

First off, check out PAGE A7 of the PROVINCE newspaper today and you'll see a picture related to my two previous posts about the KOOL AID CUP. That is sweet.

I wish I had some excuse besides I forgot my password for my blog, but I finally guessed right tonight. I also had some time to guess, as we finished up our volleyball season with a fourth place finish in the province, and I completed my seventh and final paper for the course I was taking towards my Master's degree. I feel quite free, although the amount of marking sitting on my desk at school tells me I am not. A few ramblings that might turn out to be blogs some day:

• Please head over to Mike Todd's blog and donate $10. And $10=$20 because the next 50 people that donate will be matched by an anonymous donor. Read all about his (Red)emption campaign. And did anyone see Bono and Alicia Keys sing on Oprah today. Okay, I did just say "on Oprah today." Click on Mike's name and donate $10 for the Stephen Lewis foundation.
• Our school that we are building in Sierra Leone has hired its principal. In other Sierra Leone news, Asher DeGroot, sweet guy that he is, is leaving the first week of January to move to Sierra Leone for the next six months. He is an architect who is going to design the school. Way to go Asher. Asher also needs to raise some money to buy a motorcycle. The cost is $2500. If you are looking for a place to help out, email me and I will let you know where to send the money. The best part: when he is done, he donates the motorcycle to the school so they have some transportation.
• Aslan is on the move...some people in Michigan heard about what we are doing with Sierra Leone. One person decided to sell all their art work from the past year and donate the money to build the school. That is one way to raise $14,000!
• Has anyone listened to Sufjan Stevens? My nephew is burning...err, buying....me his Christmas CD's as we speak. I could listen to "Holy, Holy, Holy" over and over.
• Speaking of Holy, I was reminded again this week that all of life is spiritual. I found myself in the midst of a conversation where someone kept using the phrase "spiritual life", and it reminded me of a wise man I met this summer who kept saying "Really, there is no such thing as a spiritual life...it all belongs to him." Sweet thought.
• I love it when college students come back and visit their old high school. They've slowly been trickling in at the end of last week and again today.
• I find it somewhat annoying when people go out of their way to tell me how hard they are trying not to celebrate Christmas. If hell really exists, I feel like I was condemned there everytime someone tells me how proud that they open presents on Sinterklaas Day or that they make presents for others instead of buying them. That is great. Good job. But seriously, I love giving my kids gifts at Christmas. I enjoy going out for a few hours and buying some sweet presents that will make them squeal with pure joy. I love lighting advent candles every evening at supper. I love eating chocolate letters on Christmas morning. I love Christmas music (have you listened to Transiberian Orchestra yet). I love searching out the Christmas specials that are on TV every night and watching them with my children (seriously, Charlie Brown Christmas dominates; I get good bumps every time Linus goes on stage and quotes from Luke and ends by stating that is the true meaning of Chrismtas, and I cry at the end of Its a Wonderful Life every year). Yes, Christmas specials every night!!! I love Christmas because it is about this sweet gift of a baby that came in his own wrapping paper a few thousand years ago.
• I find it hard to believe that our youngest girl was born on Christmas Day last year. I am not sure how we made it through it all...9 weeks early, 2lbs 13 ozs, 5 weeks in hospital...thank you Lord for this tiny gift that is growing up into this beautiful young girl.
• I totally enjoy carpooling with my sister Soph to work everyday. It is hard to believe we work together...it is a bit of a dream for me. We carpool together and it is a simple system. Whoever doesn't drive buys the Tim Hortons on the way to school. Sometimes we talk, sometimes we don't. It is my version of the Simple life.
• My friend Joe thinks you can get an assist in hockey without tocuching the puck. He "claims" that if you knock someone off the puck (but don't touch it) and your teammate picks it up and scores, you can get an assist through "scorers discretion." Is there anyone out there that can support Joe? Anyone? I am beginning to feel bad for him...no man is an island, but Joe is a peninsula.
• Last week I had a chance to listen to major league baseball players Adam Loewen and Chris Reitsma speak to some of our students. I am not sure how they thought they did, but I thought they were fantastic. "Confident vulnerability" is what I thought as they shared some of the tough parts about pitching, and gave several examples that showed themselves failing and finding ways to work through it as thousands of people look on.