Perspective

I haven't shared the entire story of our ups and downs here.  Pretty much daily we have gone back and forth between being in love with this island and being painfully aware of what we were missing at home.  Our life here is so special.  It's something that I wish everyone could experience once with their family, a chance to be set aside and rest.  A time to explore new places and spaces together, to develop new mutual interests.  A time to create memories that are unique only to your own family.  A chance to depend on one another in a way that you can't when you are surrounded by a network of people who love you.

All these things and so much more have made this time here an absolutely incredible experience.  So, although we know in our hearts that it's the right thing to go home this summer, there is still some bitter to the sweet.  I think we've all changed alot and it will be interesting to see how we weather the confines of security and comfort.  It will be a new way of experiencing the old and I'm so looking forward to it.

But to ease the sting a little bit of constantly talking about "one last time before we go" and "I'll sure miss....", I cut up a bunch of paper and made a countdown chain.  70 rings to count the days until we get home.  I gave each person in the family ten blank strips of paper and had them list the things they most miss or are most excited to re-experience when we get HOME!  And all of a sudden, the days left seem like a countdown to something wonderful rather than an hourglass running out of time.

 I will try to share a few things along the way that we pull off the chain (the one you can see says "Downtown Franklin". ) But I can tell you that the first thing on every single persons list was our dog, Vince.  I will tell you this much, I will NEVER leave home again without our dog.

The other big excitement of the day was making Easter cookies with Meg.  I don't have any photos of the cookies because they were eaten too quickly, but I do have a shot of the little bunny that helped decorate the cookies!  

"Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it.  But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus."  Phillipians 3:13-14