Diverted
We’re about halfway into the milestones I mentioned in the last update. The last big one was October 17th and the next is the Tuesday before Thanksgiving by day, or 11/24 by date. Every day for the past two and a half weeks, Jennings has set a new record for the longest he’s lived cancer-free since his diagnosis. Records are made to be broken, right? Lord, let it continue to be so.
Ok, quick aside if you’ll allow it. I like numbers. Maybe you can tell. Words are hard; numbers make sense. It’s all I did in college, for crying out loud. This record of the longest cancer-free living got me thinking. I checked his exact age at diagnosis - he was just over two and a half years old - or 970 days old to be exact. So, in just a few days, on 11/6, he will have lived longer cancer-free than he ever has. Period. How is that for God’s goodness? The quick part may have been a stretch, but I thought that was neat.
Alright, back to it. October was full and November is shaping up to be the same. Here’s a few of the kids 👇
We took them all to their first NASCAR race. Henry loves racing, must have gotten it from his mama who worked in the industry once upon a time as that’s only the 2nd race that I’ve been to. One of Lauren’s friends got us infield passes and even got us down on pit road before the race. We had a blast, especially watching the kids scream every word at each other with their ear protection on. The second on top may be the last time we can get them all to sit in a pumpkin patch for a picture…at least Henry and Caroline nailed it if it is. The little years are almost gone. That’s Jennings and his momma after the Cardinals lost in extra innings in the playoffs to end the season. There were tears of sadness and maybe a few of joy at the prospect of having Saturday mornings back. And finally, we have a 5th grade safety patroller. It even comes with a Be-at-School-30-Minutes-Early award! So proud of our little leader.
The adults have had their own fun, too.
I love finding the occasional Saturday to sit around the patio and watch mediocre college football while the kids turn the trampoline into an octagon. Next up, someone else had a milestone birthday! We blew it out with a great party that she got to plan - all her favorite people with all her favorite things: taco mama, margs, a DJ with karaoke, lots of denim, and lots of sparkle. Last and least, saying good riddance…I mean bye…to Patricia the Pacifica. Adulting 👎
I have occasionally found moments to be quiet over this crazy month. One of those was a recent Sunday night by myself on the patio reading one of my favorite magazines, Garden & Gun. A line jumped out at me from an article about a fort built in a useless location outside of New Orleans in the 1800s. The article is by Wayne Curtis and the line, speaking to the ineptness of the fort, is this, “If nothing else, humans are very good at fighting the last war.”
This really rang true to me. I think Lauren & I are prone to that this time of year. Our guards go up, we make random connections with bits of unconnected information. We prepare to have to fight the last war again. When reflecting on the busyness of this last bit, that’s what has stood out. Whether it’s been planned or unplanned, joyful & fun or hard & difficult, our circumstances have diverted, distracted, and just flat-out overwhelmed us from having the margin to dwell on the last war. Whether that’s God’s intent or just a byproduct of His plan for this season, I will not presume to know. But, I am thankful that it has kept us, in some measure, from going to the dark places of our minds.
Please continue to lift Jennings up in prayer. We go back to Memphis in a couple weeks for his next check-up. We’ll be back around (or after) Thanksgiving to report on that. Before that trip though, and in keeping with the spirit of diversions (kidding), we are surprising the kids with a trip to Disney next week!
“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit that you may abound in hope.” Romans 15:13
#allinforjennings