And all I can taste is this moment...

Years ago, before I even knew of the college I work for now, someone decided it would be a great idea to plant irises right outside my building. Every spring, I am thankful for this decision.

They smell divine and have a tendency to almost appear out of nowhere if you're not paying close attention. Most of the time, that area just looks sad. I actually wonder if we shouldn't plant something else there, but I'm reminded every spring that it's fine. It's beautiful the way it is, even if it is only for a week or two. Enjoy it while it lasts. The plants are left uncared for throughout the year, but they always bloom every spring without fail.

I think that one of my favorite things about winter (though, I do love it for what it is) is the anticipation and the appreciation one has for spring. I'm not sure if you can truly appreciate spring unless you lived through the gray-ness and dull-ness of winter. These flowers to me are a reminder to appreciate things as they come since they may not last very long.

PS, 100 points if you get the title.

Life and Death

It's April. I have a hard time believing it myself. In the time since I last wrote, so much has happened. A celebration of life and death.

I spent Spring Break in the Philippines doing mission work. We were serving those who were affected by Typhoon Sendong in the city of Cagayan de Oro, which hit the city on December 17, just a few days before Christmas. The typhoon affected over 100,000 people. Over 2000 people have died or are still missing. We arrived in the Philippines on March 5 and so many people were still living in evacuation sites. Tragic if you could see their living situation. So many more were living in the tent cities, which were set up as a better temporary home base for the families.

While Filipinos are generally warm and happy people, but it still came as a bit of a surprise to hear and see them celebrate life with such joy and vigor. They were so thankful to be alive despite the tragedy they had just experienced. Not a single person that I spoke with was ever in despair about the situation they were in. So many of them lost loved ones, some in the most tragic ways, but there was a sense of peace about them. They were alive and were so thankful about it.

I wish we had more than a week to spend with them. Their joy and love was very contagious. It was one of the most blessed weeks of my life.

(Some of the women I met who were affected by the typhoon.)

~*~

Then, on March 20, just 9 days after we returned from the Spring Break, I received a phone call for an emergency meeting. Our boss informed us that our Administrative Assistant, and a friend to all, had passed away in her sleep the day before. It was a shock. Sandi was a healthy, vibrant, and joyful woman. She worked hard in our office and was well respected and liked. Her death was difficult to accept, but as it says in Revelation 14:13

And I heard a voice from heaven say, 'Write this: blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on.' 'Yes,' said the Spirit. 'Let them find rest from their labors for their works accompany them.'



I take comfort in the will of our Lord and that of His Word. Sandi spent the last 12 years in service of the students at the college and her life in service of her family. She was the warm welcome you needed in the busy-ness of life. I miss her, but I find comfort in missing her knowing that her work accompanies her as she meets our ever merciful Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.