Upload complete :) finally...

There are so many cool pictures I want to show everyone about the trip, but that would take up so much room here.   I connected with my inner techie and created a few albums on Picasa.   Mostly to prove that there were more than 6 pictures of people on  my camera.   I joked that I didn't really come along to chaperon but for the nature :):)  Click here to see the flora

Since not everyone is a fan of the floral side of nature I kept that album separate.    (Besides that...now I don't have to click through 50 other pictures to see these :)   Here is the rest of our adventure....oh the place we've seen!  Click here to see the fauna

Delight: Take 2

A few days ago,   I returned from the Grade 8 Class Camping Trip to the Bruce Peninsula National Park, Fathom Five National Marine Park, and Tobermory. This trip brought with it a lot of interesting experiences, and a range of emotions that I didn't really expect.  I full expected that I would have a great time with this group, that I would see Joe very little, and that I would receive a glimpse of a totally different part of God's creation.   What I didn't expect was how much it made me think of my Dad, how much I missed sharing this with Ray,  how we all experience God's majesty in different ways,  and how much I missed listening to music(camp songs are great...really....I like them a lot...but...um...I was so glad to hear sounds that really move my soul.)

I had a really great time.   I had soo much fun with all the kids and other chaperons.  Joe preferred I just blend in and not be his parent...and as much as I could I tried to respect that.   Once in a while a mom just has to step in, whether this is appreciated or not...mostly it wasn't.    The sound that was most refreshing to hear instead of "mom, mom, mom...." was "Mr. Wolting, Mr. Wolting, Mr.Wolting...."   It was as if we weren't even there, and certainly not needed.     Nice.

One of my favourite things about camping (and I haven't always liked camping, let alone find something that I like MOST about it!!).....is the flora.   Most exciting of all the things I saw...was this...spotted on a roadside out of the corner of my eye.  This is the "Showy Pink Lady's Slipper".   Before heading out to the Bruce Peninsula National Park I did a bit of reading on the website about the ecology and discovered that 44 of Ontario's 60ish species of orchids are found here.     Cool.    I hoped I would find time for pictures, and sacrificed a trip into town for ice cream to capture this on our way home from the beach.   Apparently, that's a geeky thing for a grown up to do, but I'm quite secure in my coolness.   I'll have to total up how many varieties of orchids I did actually spot...at least 4.  And a few other people thought it was neat too!   We did have ice cream the day before when we explored the little town of Tobermory.   It was as good as Cows Ice Cream!

I had the opportunity to go along on the hike to The Grotto on the last day of our trip.   The terrain instantly reminded me of Fundy National Park.  It was damp-ish and the stones slippery.   It felt like you were in the Canadian version of the rain forest, moss covered logs and stones, and constant drips around you.  And it just feels dark.   Being with a group reminded me of the time we spent there with our whole family in 1997. I remember  how keen my Dad was to go on as many hikes as we could possibly squeeze in, how strong and tireless he was.  Stamina honed in the potato fields in the days before roguing carts made their appearance.  On the way back to camp, I told Joe how much Pake would have loved this place, and this hike.  He loved it then.  Did I?  Will Joe someday want to take his kids to places like this?      My Dad loved to photograph nature.   He loved a great view, and the demands it usually takes to get the photograph of that great view.   To hike down to the waterfall and then back up again.  To jump onto that big rock in the middle of the stream and keep your feet dry.   It's how he enjoyed and delighted in God's creation.    I realized how much of my Dad is in me.  And then after thinking about that for a while it's also My Father in me.     How much I love to experience God's creative power in the very small things at the periphery of my vision.   The things you see out of the corner of your eye....not terribly obvious at first glance, but unmistakable with a double take.

I'm glad to have gone on the last big hike, taking the "scenic route", and make a cool discovery about life in general. I had the honour of being the "rear guard", making sure that everyone stayed the course...which we had only recently rediscovered after creating our own way for a short-ish while.  We were hiking along, heard a bird song, and I wondered out loud which bird that might be.  The other chaperon, Mr Wolting, commented that I must be a details person, because he hadn't heard it.    After thinking about that for a few moments, I realized that the things I love about being in the bush, and hiking are all about the details.  Seeing the little things, finding wildflowers that I never laid eyes on before.  And if truly the eyes are the window to the soul, then the things we see have the potential to move us, deeply.    It's how God continually reveals Himself, and how I reconnect.  It's like re-establishing intimacy with Him.   I'm a details person.  I marvel at the colours I see, the structure of plants....I like lichens (Yes, Mary I saw False Pixie Cups!), mosses, ferns...I love the colours, and the contrasts.   I LOVE sunsets. Some people are more fiercely moved by grand vistas,  and soaring cliffs.   My Dad was like that.   He loved a great view.   

One point in the grad speech was that God delights in us and our differences, and that we delight Him just by being who He created us to be.  The flip side is that it also guides the we way delight in God:  the way we worship,  the way we meet God in our everyday,  and the way we are awestruck by the complexity and grandeur of Creation.

I love those moments when you discover something new about yourself that was there all along.  When you recognize a tendency in yourself, (or when someone points out something they see in you) you understand yourself better.   A new facet of the Creator revealed in you.  We reflect these characteristics of God to those around us, and in loving and recognizing God in His people, we also see a more complete composite of God.    This is the blessing of being with God's people, why it isn't good for us to exist in isolation.

I missed being able to share these things with Ray right away...to have to wait to tell him: that he missed the initial excitement that you can't recreate in the retelling.   I'm so excited to be going to Wabikimi together!


Leaving to go home is always really hard.   I'm beginning to understand why.  It's because I have to leave a place where I have reconnected with my Creator.  Even when there are 30-some other people around.

Graduation

I had the privilege of addressing Joe's graduating class at their ceremony this evening. Sweet bunch of kids. Really great. When I set out writing some words down, I decided that if nothing came to me I would just string together my 3 favourite blog posts and call it a day. This is more or less a blog post, except that a couple of hundred people have heard it already. Giving the grad speech is really not that different than MC'ing a wedding...except I didn't wear a sparkly dress this time, or have to explain how the get the happy couple to kiss....
...

They say if you want to make an important point when you are talking to a teenager that you better make it in the first 30 seconds. This is not great news considering our kids spend HOURS at school everyday!! If there is one thing that as a parent, I would want you to remember from these years and take with you as you go off to high school...it's this:

You....are....enough. Three words. Pastors often use groups of threes in sermons to make important points easier to remember. If I only have 30 seconds I better narrow it down to just words!You are enough.

There is nothing you can do that will make God love you more. And there is nothing you can do that will make God love you less. His love is not based on performance. It's unconditional. You are enough because you are God’s child. Set apart BEFORE you were born.


God loves you even more than your mom and dad love you. When you were a little baby, crying in your crib, you were enough. And ask your mom or dad about the times they would sneak into your room, when you were a baby, just to watch you sleep. You were enough. And the nights when you wouldn't stop crying and they walked you and rocked you. You were enough.

You're enough, today:
whether you have 14 friends on FaceBook or 486
whether you got a 3rd standard on field day or a 1st
whether you are 13, 14, or 20, 30, or 40 or 70 something
and even if you never got Classic Reader II. You are enough.

I sat on my deck while I was writing this and watched a little group of gold finches dive bombing, looping and swooping through the trees, doing what they were created to do. That’s all they do all day….and God delights in them, and they're enough. And I don’t know how you feel about June bugs and jellyfish ….but they’re doing what they were created to do, and they’re enough too, delighting God.

You and I are created for God's delight: We, His children: created in His image, created for relationship with Him, created for His delight and glory. You're enough. Each of you is different and has different talents and gifts. Some talents you already know you have. Some are still hidden and you may explore and discover them when you are in high school, and some may not blossom until you're 73. Don’t be afraid to be yourself, to try new things. With your unique talents and gifts, each of you will delight God differently in your own special way. We all have a desire to blend in, to NOT stick out and NOT be different. But it’s okay to be different and be YOU because God delights in that. You’re enough.

Try new things! Sometimes trying new things is hard. But it’s also very exciting. Pray for God’s guidance in this, I can tell you from personal experience that you’ll be amazed where He might lead you. And where He calls you, He WILL give you the tools you need: The courage, the time, the words… Sometimes, when we think about God's leading, we think it's going to be really foreign to our character, but so often God's delight goes hand in hand with our delight. Doing what He created us for, our purpose, with the gifts we already have. A small example, I like to encourage people, I like to write, and I REALLY like to make cards...so I use a gift to honour God, doing something I feel called to do, that I ENJOY, and it flows naturally. All He needs is someone who is available, willing to be used, and maybe to be changed. You have already changed and grown!! I don't think any of you have to walked and rocked at night anymore!!! You change, you grow....it's good! But be yourself.

You’re enough. It means that you can accept yourself the way you are, and that you accept and love OTHERS just the way THEY are, because they TOO are God’s children. If I asked you to turn to the person beside you, and tell them they're enough, you might feel uncomfortable....but God whispers it to your heart everyday. You are MINE, you are my Beloved. You are enough. We don’t always hear that or listen for it. The world, the TV, internet ads, and even people send you messages that you aren't enough....really loudly!!! And because we're human, we put value on what other people think of us. A wise person once told me that a friend is someone who makes you feel good about yourself when you've spent time with them. A good friend will echo the whisper of their heart.

Take time to hear that whisper. Quiet time: to be still and know that He is God. We can get too busy for this but remember that you’re a human BEING…not a human DOING.

We don't know what the future holds. But…the way ahead isn't always as complicated as WE make it. WE can get bogged down in worrying about the not knowing. God has a plan and a purpose for you. Plans to prosper you, plans for hope and a future!! He who began a good work in you WILL carry it on to completion. These are God's promises in His Word, the Bible, and His promises NEVER fail. The Way is clear. Jesus is the Way and God has the Plan. There is nothing complicated or random about it. As long as you stay connected to Him, you will fulfill His purpose for your lives.

I just want to close with a couple of words from a devotion that I read a few weeks ago. In it God says, “Seek My Face, and you will find fulfillment of your deepest longings. My world is filled with beautiful things; they are meant to point to Me, and remind you of My abiding Presence. The earth still declares My Glory to those who have eyes that see and ears that hear. …I chose to pour my Light into you, so you can become a beacon to others. There is no room for pride in this position. Your part is to reflect My glory. I am the Lord. “

So remember that you are enough. Always in the palm of His hand, you were enough yesterday, you are enough today and you will be tomorrow, because of who you are, and Whose you are.