Dropping the Ball

Things are a bit busy around here these days. I'm taking a lot of classes learning how to teach yoga (something that will hopefully be familiar to you and a part of our daily lives by the time you're reading this). Dad is working hard for us. He has two jobs which keep him away until midnight some nights.

We have a good life. It's interesting because we have everything in life that is truly important.

We have a safe, comfortable place to live. It lacks certain amenities we'd like... the kitchen doubles as a mudroom, the bathroom has water damage and is hard to keep clean, there aren't any windows... but we have warm comfy beds and a place for you to crawl and play when it's raining outside.

We have yummy food to eat. This is good, because these days you can't seem to get enough. You could eat all day and still reach for any food you see. You are moving all day long, so that explains part of it. You seem to have inherited your dad's metabolism and need for exercise (specifically climbing).

We have water to drink, which most days goes without much notice and too little appreciation. But this is the main shortage that keeps people in poverty throughout the world, and kills so many innocent children. We are very blessed to have abundant water.

We have each other. We play together and jabber to each other all day long. We go to the park, we play with your friends, we wait for Dad, we listen to music, we make music.

We have the gospel. This is what really puts everthing in perspective. It's what helps us realize what we have. It reminds us that most things in life are fleeting and impermanent. Things are really tight for us right now Van. It is a huge cause of concern to look in our pockets and look to the future and not really know how the two can possibly work together.

But we have a rich life. It's important to stop and see these things because they get lost in the daily rhythm of days. We are in a transition period right now. We're approaching the end of our life in New York and looking forward to a new one in California. We're sad to leave behind what we have come to love: good people, beautiful culture, and a unique way of life. But we're happy to leave the pace and excited to be close to family and to the land we love.

Transitions will happen throughout the rest of your life Van, and it's easy while they are occuring to think that things aren't good, that there's not enough. But if you make good choices, choices that will keep good things near you, like family, clean water, enough food and the gospel, you'll come out right.

Sometimes that's what faith is like.