Video debut, dinner at church, Thanksgiving morning

In a pleasant interruption to my daily work routine, I was asked to do some short video presentations to be added to the course I teach most often – over 100 times this year. I was scheduled to present three specific topics during the first attempt to capture the videos, so I spent hours pouring over information to ensure I was ready to speak to each specific topic. We tried staging the video shoot is several spots in the office building and finally decided on a spot virtually in the center of the building. Fortunately, there were only a handful of employees in the office. Other than the manageable background noises of onlookers watching the process and listening to the stories I was telling; it was quiet and comfortable. Other than the two new EWN employees capturing the videos, my officemates have heard the stories I was telling multiple times over the years, but they still gathered in the background to hear them again.

Once a train went by on the tracks just across the two-lane road fronting our office building. That noise halted production for a few minutes. In a little over an hour the videographers had captured about forty minutes of video. Two longer segments. One shorter one. No retakes. They were satisfied with my presentations on the first round. We will go back at some point and improve the sessions, but for now they have a “proof of concept” for the time and effort it will take to create all the vignettes I have suggested being added to the class as other instructors begin to present the class. It was fun to do. I do not mind being recorded, especially on something I have spoken about so many times. The videographers were impressed by my stories and the way they were able to capture the video so easily. For my part, I feel I could have done better, but it came off well.

Fairly late in the evening, about an hour before we needed to leave for church the missionary mom who had spent the evening with Mama on Monday came over to look at the books Mama had been reading to her boys that evening. Her boys were so captivated by the stories and Mama’s expressive reading of those stories that she wanted to note the authors and titles. Once I had showered and dressed for church, I began to get the final items ready to be transported to church. As I passed through the kitchen, I looked into the living room and see the mom with her head laid back in one of our recliners, eyes closed listening to Mama read a story to her boys. Mama has a wonderful gift for that. It mesmerizes all who get to fall under the sound of her voice as she reads out loud. It is hard to tell just how many children that gift has touched, but I am sure one day she will get to find out.

We had our church Thanksgiving dinner and mid-week service last night, so there will not be a service tonight. The dinner was attended by about seventy people. I do not know if that was the largest attendance we have had, but it was certainly one of the best attended dinners we have ever had. I was not feeling well. I have struggled with gut pain for several days now, but I enjoyed the evening. I was among the last to get in line to get some food. There was still plenty which was good because all the ladies who were serving the food had not yet eaten either. I did not get much, but I ate all of the little I did get. I got a very small serving of two desserts and made do with that.

We shared our table with the Fields family whose baby delighted Mama throughout the evening. Also, our little adopted Miller boy, Joshua, sat with us and chattered happily to me and Mama. He is six or seven and makes no secret that Mama is his favorite person in the whole church. I told him he had very good taste. Mama was my favorite person as well. He, along with his family, sang a few songs after the meal was concluded and before the sermon was to be delivered. I wish we could have heard better because Joshua did two solo parts on one song. The youngest four boys performed the song in a sort of round joining together on the chorus; “Thank God for the preachers and the Sunday School teachers and a mamma and daddy that prayed…” They did a good job, but the microphones were not picking them up very well. As the evening was concluded, help was given in cleaning up the fellowship hall, Mama worked through her extended goodbyes, we loaded our leftovers into the Sequoia and headed home. That was a little after 9:30. Not too bad.

Tomorrow will start early as I take Victoria to the airport to catch a 5 am flight to Houston to begin her trip to Honduras. If all goes well, she will be in the vehicle with Nate, Cori and the kids before we sit down to eat our dinner.

We live in an amazing world.