Month: October 2008

The week is beginning with a beautiful day. Today is the date for Jerod and Blake tonsillectomies. We will be looking after Meredith and Grayson while Tanya and Dan attend to Jerod and Blake. It is Fall break for the schools here so we are hoping to we can do some thing special this week, at least with Meredith and Grayson.

The last few days have been rich with happenings. I enjoyed playing golf on Friday with Adam and Bubba. It was the first time I’ve played golf in a couple of years and my game proved it. However, it was a beautiful day and the course was really nice and I really appreciated the opportunity to be with Adam and Bubba. The Okolona church men’s retreat was Friday evening and Saturday and we went down early to play golf. 

Tim Woodruff spoke on the subject of the Holy Spirit. His presentation was challenging and was a catalyst for a lot of discussion among the us. A most rewarding part of the retreat, for me, were the conversations. It was really good to have meaningful exchanges with several old friends. 

Ann visited with the Gabehart’s while I was at the retreat. After returning to Louisville on Saturday we headed back to Wilmore. Sunday was full with church and class, lunch with the Crockett’s and a drive over to Berea for an arts and crafts show. We visited on the front porch with our neighbors for a while. I spotted some feral kittens that have been around the house and we were able to capture them. Meredith and I will take them to the animal shelter today.

This morning I awoke to rain. It is not raining hard but it is raining. We have not had an appreciable rain fall in two months. It is lovely. I plan to bundle up, get a cup of coffee and retire to the front porch to read.

I am grieving that cold weather is coming and will limit my time there. It is amazing what you can learn from from the vantage point of our porch. I have learned more in one year about my neighbors and the community sitting on my porch than I learned in the nine years we lived in our previous house. I am able to discern the rhythm of people’s lives and recognize when there are changes and/or disruptions. It is interesting how relationships evolve slowly and almost imperceptibly. What the front porch provides is proximity. The issue for me is how I will respond. Will I just be an interested observerer?