Finding Balm in Gilead

Planes, Trains, Automobiles, and the Edge of Darkness, Finale

Thank you for coming back. I'll try to wrap this up and make it worth your time.

After J declined the flight offer from the AA rep and hung up the phone, all the events of the past several hours suddenly took their toll on us both, and we rode in silence for a while.

Truthfully, having already made peace in my mind that we were going to have to stay in Dallas one more night, I wanted to make the best of it. Of course, I couldn't wait to get my arms around those little ones that I knew were wondering where in the world we had gone.... but at that point, it seemed we had no other choice.

Oh, but I had forgotten about that car option. J, on the other hand, had NOT.

I love him. I love that J came out of that movie ready to go to war for the sake of getting us home to our children. I love that his mind thinks of all the options and does not hesitate to play all of the cards. I love his determination and the steely look on his face when he is trying to right a wrong, even when the world is against him.

And even though I really wanted him to CHILL (and I think I actually said this to him at one point), oh how nice it was when we drove that little compact rental car into Amarillo at five in the morning going 30 miles an hour on snow and ice. We were home. We were in the same city as our babies. We were going to get to wake them up in the morning.

Actually, it was already morning. We were going to get to wake them  in approximately 2-3 hours.

Furthermore, after the first initial half-hour of silence, the drive home became a jumping off point for some dialogue about topics that we had not been able to sit down and really discuss in detail in a while; for example, visions for our family, careers and ministry, and -drumroll please - home improvement (Yee-hah!)!

I can't believe I'm going to say this, but the 7 hour drive home was a blessing. To sleep one more night at a hotel would have been a luxury, but it wouldn't have yielded the conversation and time together that the drive home did provide. Sure, talking was necessary to help keep us both awake....particularly for that last sixty miles that took two hours because of the conditions. But our visiting throughout that time was a gift - these days we so rarely get to visit at length with nothing else to distract or interrupt us. Not even our time relaxing at the beach prior to this midnight drive in the darkness encouraged as much conversation and COMMUNICATION.

Though at one point, a train chugged by going the opposite direction and J joked that if the silence had lasted much longer, I could have caught a ride back to Dallas on the caboose. Funny.

And thus the full meaning of the title of this post.

Yes,this two-day airport/car rental debacle was a headache. Yes, our interaction with the various airline reps was disappointing and frustrating. But in hindsight, the inconvenience of it all made our homecoming all the more precious. Standing over those two sleeping toddlers and watching them open their eyes to the realization that yes, their parents did in fact come back for them....well, it was a memory I'll never forget. It was well worth the dark, icy drive home. They're my babies.

I'd go to the edge of darkness and back again to be with them.

To be with J.

God has so tremendously blessed me.

In this world, but not of this world

I'm done. For the moment, anyway.

I can not take another piece of news in this media saturated culture of ours.

It all started with Jon and Kate last week.

Ed, Farrah and Michael in the middle.

Healthcare propaganda media special not to be forgotten somewhere in there, either.

And now our favorite TV pitchman Billy Mays.

Last week could have been one of the most depressing weeks I have ever seen in the news, and in some ways, life in general....when you look at what might have been, spiritually speaking, in some of the lives represented.

However, J and I attended an event Friday night that helped remind me of how thankful I am to be married to this man of mine, and also to be living the life that we live, warts and all.

Dear friends of my family own and operate a place called The Hideaway, located on the backwaters of Palo Duro Canyon in Texas. It is a retreat for troubled marriages where the couple comes for intense therapy with licensed Christian counselors for around four days.

The Hideaway is an amazing place, people. The view is breathtaking, the atmosphere is serene, and the facilities are five-star.  J and I have had the privilege to be guests of the family before it was known as a marriage intensive retreat, and it's just beautiful.

Anyway, J and I went to this romantic dinner and concert Friday benefiting The Hideaway, and let me tell you....

I love my husband. I love our life together. And I love how God so sweetly reminded us of His blessings Friday night.

It was a much needed evening away after a week of being bombarded with all sorts of grave news in the media... and also in our very dear extended family. 

So I think I'm going to take a break from anything news related this week and just watch The Imagination Movers with my kids...and sprinkle in a little HGTV and Food Network in there, too.

Of course, when J gets home, it'll be Major League baseball, Dirty Jobs, and Ice Road Truckers.

But maybe I can convince him to avoid the news channels.

It's worth a try.

1 Corinthians 2:11-13 (The Message)

 ^10-13The Spirit, not content to flit around on the surface, dives into the depths of God, and brings out what God planned all along. Who ever knows what you're thinking and planning except you yourself? The same with God—except that he not only knows what he's thinking, but he lets us in on it. God offers a full report on the gifts of life and salvation that he is giving us. We don't have to rely on the world's guesses and opinions. We didn't learn this by reading books or going to school; we learned it from God, who taught us person-to-person through Jesus, and we're passing it on to you in the same firsthand, personal way.

Deep in my heart in Texas.

I have a new respect for all those who have gone before me in taking long road trips with toddlers. You haven't quite experienced all of life until you have traveled ten hours in a car with two little ones.

We traveled this weekend to J's brother's wedding. He got married in the woods(literally)of east Texas, just a stone's throw from the Arkansas state line. It was a beautiful, sweet wedding on a piece of land owned by the bride, complete with a wooden cross altar surrounded by daffodils and a grand white tent for the reception. Truly, the ambience was perfect for love and romance.

Which is more than I can say for the ambience in our car. 

Before I had kids, I always said I would never resort to any kind of DVD/TV combo in the car because I was going to be the mom who would always provide an educational and entertaining travel experience for my children, complete with pre-made activities, area research, blah, blah, blah. 

Never say never. EVER.

I would now like to thank every manufacturer IN THE WORLD of the DVD/TV car combo, because without it, we would have made it about two hours down the road before turning the car back towards home - and J's brother and new wife would have received a nice congratulatory gift via the old-fashioned mail service.

Really, though, the kids did pretty good considering their age and the amount of time we spent in the car. Besides the fire alarm sounding in our hotel at 5 in the morning, and a near-miss driving incident with the scooters in the Canton flea market, our trip was pretty enjoyable. It was a long drive both ways with some cries of discontent and one meltdown, but that is to be expected with any kid (or adult, for that matter).

And now that I think about it, one of the best moments was when J reached over and took my hand, nudging me to look in the back at our enthralled children singing the lyrics to the "Go Diego Go" movie. The way he looked at them, and then looked at me...well, I'll just have to amend my former statement....

Because the ambience was perfect for love and romance.