Pumpkin Festival

For those of you who think this blog is worthless without pictures of Mali, here are some to make you happy.

Latest Reads

So I was happily reading Wide Awake, by Erwin McManus when the library called to let me know that the book I requested, How Should We Then Live, by Francis Schaeffer had come in. Well, my curiosity got the better of me and I decided to just peek into the first couple pages of Schaeffer, but now I'm hooked. I can't very well read both at once and since I have to return Schaeffer in 3 weeks and I own McManus, Schaeffer won out for my current read. Sorry McManus. I love you and will return to you soon.

St. Maurice

Have you ever heard about a Roman military commander named Maurice? Yeah, neither had I until just yesterday when I happened to read about him. You know Christ's prayer that we as Christians "be in the world, but not of it?" Maurice took this to a whole new level. Back when the Roman Empire ruled the world and Christians were persecuted, Maurice was given orders to direct a persecution of Christians. Instead, Maurice handed his insignia to his assistant so he could join the Christians and be killed as a fellow believer. This took place in the Rhone valley in Switzerland under the mountains of the Dents du Midi. It is for him that the town of St. Maurice is now named. Wow, what strong faith he had! I want to be like that.

Nothing Better in the World

I was just thinking about the feeling I get when Mali runs up to me with arms wide open and gives me the biggest hug she possibly can or when I give Mali a snack or hand something to her and she says, "Choo choo Mommy" which translates to "Thank you Mommy" or at night when I'm tucking her in and she says, "luh you Mommy"or when she first wakes up in the morning and is still a little sleepy and will sit and cuddle with me for a while and let me kiss her hair, or when she sees a booboo on my leg and kisses it and tells me I need a Dora (her word for bandaid), or when she leaves a really loud toot and looks at me and starts laughing and then we both start laughing really hard, or at my soccer games when she shouts, "Go yeyo!!" (I'm on the yellow team) or when she gives me eskimo kisses . . . ahhhhh, that just fills my heart up to overflowing. There is no better feeling in the world.