I’m about to leave for vacation. I’ll be un-wired for a few weeks so I wanted to post at least one more time before we go. What a weird day. I met with some old friends around our conference table and had a bitter/sweet conversation. They have just lost their 43 year old sister to a lengthy illness. She came to a place later in her life to trust Christ. Her early death was bitter---her destination is sweet. I’ll serve them at her funeral on Monday.

I’m about to head home. I just finished something that was given me on my birthday in 2002. It’s a book…a big thick book filled with empty pages. At the top of each page is a question. The title of the book is A Father’s Legacy—Your Life Story in Your Own Words. The book afforded me the chance to tell my story in detail to my kids. They can refer to it long after I’m home. My daughter Ellen gave it to me and it’s taken me years (I’m so slow when it comes to writing) to fill the pages. What a journey to go back over time and try and articulate what life was like at 10-20-35 years old. I shed some tears over this. What do I tell my girls, son-in-law and grand babies of what I’ve learned? What an exercise to examine your past and mine the good--the bad and the ugly. I actually wrote a section to the future son-in-laws and grand babies I may never meet. Sitting with the family I started this post about made me realize afresh….each day is a gift. I’m not guaranteed a tomorrow on this earth. When I wrote the last word…I told God thanks! Thanks for all of it. Thanks for what’s to come.

Be blessed! Tomorrow….a clean slate. God has fresh things for you to relish. Be extraordinary.