For by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned. Romans 12:3

Becky and I were in Ohio this past weekend.  On the way home, we stopped at a rest area where a sign posted by the Department of Transportation offered the names of the governor and the director of the department.  Maybe we were meant to be thankful to Governor DeWine and Director Marchbanks for their kindness in placing the rest area where it was placed. It was in the perfect spot for us when we visited it last weekend.

But it seemed that Director Marchbanks not only wanted us to know of his great foresight in having the rest area right where we needed it, he also wanted to do a little bit of bragging about his academic achievements.  “Jack Marchbanks, Ph.D., Director,” the sign said.

I was tempted to google Director Marchbanks to learn more. Is a Ph.D. required of the directors of Ohio’s Department of Transportation?  In which field did the director earn his degree? Medieval Philosophy? Art History? Bureaucratic Management?  Rest Area Design?  Or maybe I would learn of the hardships and obstacles Director Marchbanks overcame to gain his Ph.D.

In the end, I decided that the details of Director Marchbanks’ degree really don’t matter. Continue reading →

Becky’s birthday in the third week of June always falls on or near Father’s Day.  This past June our children gave us joint birthday/Father’s Day gift subscriptions to something called Storyworth.  Storyworth’s promotional material says, “The recipient of Storyworth will get weekly questions meant to prompt forgotten stories. At the end of one year, Storyworth collects all the stories and puts them in a gorgeous book.”  So far we are nine weeks into our year and are enjoying the adventure.  Our questions to date include:

1. How did you get your first job?
2. What qualities do you most value in your friends?
3. At what times in your life were you the happiest, and why?
4. Have you pulled any great pranks?
5. What is one of your fondest childhood memories?
6. What is one of your favorite trips that you’ve taken? What made it great?
7. What is one of the bravest things you’ve ever done, and what was the outcome?
8. What’s the first major news story you can remember living through as a child?
9. Are you more like your father or your mother? In what ways?

Our children and children-in-law see each week’s entries, and, yes, we will have a couple of bound books to share with posterity at the end of the year.

I won’t post any of my responses to the questions here, but I can say Storyworth is living up to the hype on its webpage.  We are revisiting stories not told in a long time with new appreciation for how they may have affected us years ago – and still affect us today.

Whether or not our grandkids ever read our stories, it’s been a lot of fun.  I look forward to 43 more questions. Continue reading →

I’m always on the lookout for a good angle for the next Observations post.

Becky and I have been working with an Afghan refugee family as they settle into life in the United States.  It has been a rich and good experience for us.

Last Saturday I was at the BMV (what they call the DMV in Indiana) with our friend as we tried to resolve a registration issue with the car he had recently purchased.  How better to integrate into American life than by owning a car?  This was our second or third round at trying to solve our problem.  This BMV official was very helpful.  We would have to go back to the dealer who apparently had not filed paperwork properly.

It being a Saturday, I emailed our contact at the dealership  and received an immediate and encouraging response.  “I can supply you with an Indiana title correction affidavit form on Monday and that will be sufficient to process the title work.  We appreciate your business and your patience. We apologize for the clerical error on our end. Hope you have a wonderful rest of your weekend sir.” Wow, “back to you Monday.”  Even a real apology. So much for those used car salesman stereotypes.  The honest used car salesman. That would make for a good Observations post.

Trouble is that Monday and Tuesday and Wednesday came and went.  More emails.  Follow-up phone calls and no title correction affidavit.

Yeah, never trust a used car salesman. Continue reading →

Becky and I have just finished a three-week grandparenting marathon that took us from Auburn to Memphis to Whiteman Air Force Base in western Missouri back to Auburn with two of our grandchildren and then to Missouri and back to return said grandchildren to their parents.  Oh, and there were children and children-in-law thrown into the mix.

We are happy to be home in our quiet house, but the wave of mild melancholy was undeniable when I went into the spare bedroom and saw the stuffed animals (from our stash) left on the unmade bed as we left early for our return trip to Missouri.

We are in a good season of life. Thanks be to God. Continue reading →

Becky and I have returned from our Memphis to Missouri grandparent run (with two grandchildren still with us until next week when we make the return trip to Missouri).  It was and is a wonderful way to spend some hot summer days.

On the trip from Missouri with Esther and Gideon, we listened to C.S. Lewis’ “The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe.”  Such familiar and good words.  What joy to know of the deeper magic from before the dawn of time.

Back in Missouri the literary tastes of almost-three-year-old Micah tended toward the story of Fireman Small and, new to me, “The Little Blue Truck.”  I may have had the story of Fireman Small read to me when I was three.  “The Little Blue Truck” is one of those children’s books with a message for its three-year-old audience.  In the story, Blue, the little truck, is always a good friend to the farm animals he meets on the road.  One day Big Dump, an arrogant and proud truck with important things to do, rumbles down the road ignoring horse, cow, duck, goat, sheep, and chicken.  When he gets stuck in the mud, there is no one to help – save Blue who summons his friends to push and shove until Dump is free from the mud. Continue reading →