Abee Quotes

Quote 1:

After reading a few Bible stories about the Holy Spirit & Jesus living in our hearts, Abigail looked puzzled, held up her fingers, and asked, 'Does that mean there's one, two, three, four, five. . .Jesus's?' To which Melis had the priveledge of explaining that there's just one Jesus who can be everywhere.

Quote 2:

Trying to use everyday situations to teach Abigail, I tried to seize the moment when she was eating grapes. I took a break from reading World Mag, where I was on a page that had a chalkboard with calculus on it. She asked what is that? I said, 'math.'

'What's Math?'

To demonstrate, I grabbed two of her grapes, and held one up. 'How many is this?'

'One.'

'Good.' Holding up the other one, I asked, 'How many is this?'

'One, Daddy.'

'So then if I put them together, what does that make?'

'Math!' She said excitedly.

Quote 3:

'I have boobies. Brenna has boobies. Mommy has big boobies. But not Daddy. He has nibbies.'

Life's Brevity and the Seattle Airport

I don't often enough snap a wide-angle lens on the camera of my mind and look at my life from afar. From an eternal perspective. We can only look two directions in time - backwards and forwards. Of course, there's that third dimension, that razor-thin span we call the present, that vanishes as soon as it appears. The present is all we can act in; affect. Sure, I make all sorts of grand plans for the future, and I don't want to downplay the importance and wisdom of that. But we're not guaranteed anything tomorrow.

God has reminded me often over the past month how brief life can indeed be. It would have been my cousin Michael's 28th birthday tomorrow. But he only made it to 19 before he received his calling Home.

A 39 year-old physician in town died of a heart attack earlier this month. He had recently run a half-marathon and was training for another. He left a wife and three young kids. These things aren't supposed to happen. But they do. Life happens. And life, at some point, it inevitably ceases.

As I read Psalm 90 tonight, it has reminded me of life's brevity: 'Return to dust, you mortals. . .as brief as a few night hours. . .like dreams that disappear. . .like grass that springs up in the morning. . .by evening it is dry and withered. . .soon they disappear, and we fly away.'

I was hit most acutely by the shortness in life in the Seattle Airport Sunday night. As my sister Kristin & I came down the escalator I saw a gray-haired man, probably in his early 70's, fall backwards to the hard floor. My initial thought of 'what a klutz,' was quickly replaced by the true gravity of the situation. As I threw my bags down next to some chairs and hurried toward him, I was thankful that Kristin, who works on the cardiac floor in the hospital, was right behind me. As four of us (an off-duty EMT, a nurse, Kristin & myself) bent over him, two other tall men called 911. It's amazing how the world around ceased to exist in my mind as the focus was on this man. And his wife. His wife, who stood there with one hand over her mouth, said very little, other than a simple 'No', when I asked about any history of heart problems.

Try as I might, I could not find a pulse. The nurse said she was able to feel a femoral pulse, and the EMT said he had a faint carotid pulse. As difficult as it is to judge time, that ever-passing blessing of the present, probably around two minutes had gone by when it became very apparent to me that his lips were turning blue, and he wasn't breathing despite his airway being opened by the off-duty EMT. I thought of his wife, and I thought of his brain tissue. Dying. 'Seventy years are given to us! Some even live to eighty.' My inaction was becoming an unacceptable use of his time. What time I still had with him. What little time. Although the other two Good Samaritans said they could feel a pulse, when Kristin said she couldn't find one either, she & I agreed that chest compressions needed to be started. Again, I was glad she was there, having administered CPR numerous times. As she mercifully pumped hard on his chest, quite possibly cracking ribs, I was able to feel for the first time a pulse in his wrist, but only the artificial one that Kristin was creating. However blood was circulating. Another couple of minutes went by before paramedics arrived with their arsenal of tools & skills. A quick assessment by them confirmed he had no heartbeat of his own.

It took three times shocking his heart, intubation, an IV, and a central line directly into his heart to bring him back. And 25-30 minutes. Like grass that springs up in the morning. But his heart started to beat on his own, and his breathing even started to fight the intubation. He never regained consciousness that we saw, and we left some time later. We'll probably never know how he has or hasn't recovered.

As I look backward and forward in my life, it is very apparent that life is as uncertain as it is brief. A single adjective could precede most events we'll face in our earthly future: 'unexpected.' Unexpected surgery, transfer, change, accomplishment, loss, benefit, sickness, promotion, demotion, gift, death. But as life is indeed uncertain, it is also filled with challenging adjustments. Could those seemingly unsolvable problems that we too often face be in reality wonderful opportunities in disguise? Maybe that's part of what God meant when He promised abundant life. Abundant with challenges. Abundant with uncertainty. Abundant with problems. Abundant Life, brief as it is here on Earth, with Him. 'My purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life.' That's what I want so very badly - abundant Life, Heavenly Father-style.

I pray that you can savor these words, from Psalm 90, as I have tonight: 'Teach us to realize the brevity of life, so that we may grow in wisdom. . .Satisfy us each morning with your unfailing love, so we may sing for joy to the end of our lives. . .let our children see your glory.'

We have no greater joy than to hear that our children are walking in the truth.

Overdue Brenna Pics

We celebrated Brenna's 4 month birthday a few days ago.

For more on the meaning of this, come to the OCRC Youth Group Fundraiser Film Festival at church May 22nd. Tickets won't last long for this red carpet event!

Don't Worry, Be Happy

Every week or so, Abigail and I will watch YouTube videos on various subject matters, ranging from cows mooing to monster truck crashes. Today, after watching Eric Habermeyers fantastic original, we clicked on a few Bob Marley videos. She was enthralled. After our third or fourth song, she came right downstairs, picked up her guitar, and performed the following. I think even her hair looks like Bob's. . .

The Chillin's

Just a few pictures (ok. . .lots) for the last little while (ok. . .couple of months). For us, this blog is a way to share life with friends & family, as well as to document life for us to see God's hand many years from now. This will probably bore the dickens out of everyone except the Grandparents. View at your own risk.

Abigail pumpin' it up!

Our jungle safari ballerina girl.

Movie night!

This is one of her first times riding her bike around our neighborhood. She loved it. By now, she's a pro.

She took good care of her new bunny from Mike & Marilyn nextdoor.

Happy birthday Daddy!

Lookin' for kitties.

Abigail Joy loves to play 'store'. We'll 'order' milkshakes, burgers, or soup and she'll merrily gather bark and 'make' our orders for us. We pay by handing her something (anything), which she swipes (like a credit/debit card), and hands it back to us. Truly a girl of the 21st century.

Here's from a recent trip with Melis, Abee & Brenna at Burfoot Park.
Brenna has been a joy, too.

She's gaining strength & stature daily, and in the last couple of days has blessed us with a few much appreciated smiles!

'Cheese', said the tattoo & graffiti artist caught in the act.

It amazes us daily how much we love our girls.

Sailboat Symphony

We're just going to take a moment to brag on one of our friends, Eric. Amazing what you can do with a one-man band, creativity, a little know-how, and a boat.

True Grit

Forgive me for blatantly stealing the blog post title from a John Wayne movie, but I couldn't help but share some findings from this fascinating compilation taken from centuries of findings of people much smarter than I. I think this is another example of science (in this case, psychology) complimenting some pretty basic Biblical principles. This gets long. . .but show a little grit and keep reading. . .

Here's an excerpt from the article:
'it appears that praising children for their intelligence can make them less likely to persist in the face of challenges, a crucial element of grit. For much of the last decade, [some people with a lot of time on their hands] have tracked hundreds of fifth-graders in 12 different New York City schools. The children were randomly assigned to two groups, both of which took an age-appropriate version of the IQ test. After taking the test, one group was praised for their intelligence - “You must be smart at this,” the researcher said - while the other group was praised for their effort and told they “must have worked really hard.”

[They] then gave the same fifth-graders another test. This test was designed to be extremely difficult - it was an intelligence test for eighth-graders - but [they] wanted to see how they would respond to the challenge. The students who were initially praised for their effort worked hard at figuring out the puzzles. Kids praised for their smarts, on the other hand, quickly became discouraged.

The final round of intelligence tests was the same difficulty level as the initial test. The students who had been praised for their effort raised their score, on average, by 30 percent. This result was even more impressive when compared to the students who had been praised for their intelligence: their scores on the final test dropped by nearly 20 percent. A big part of success . . .stems from our beliefs about what leads to success.'

While we all want ourselves and our kids to naturally be the smartest, strongest, or prettiest, it seems that perseverance, and the encouragement to do so, is of greater benefit than raw talent or inborn aptitude. A number of Biblical characters who demonstrate perseverance/grit come to mind - Nehemiah, Daniel, David, and nearly all of the New Testament players.

Galatians 6:9 begs to be quoted: Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.

But I think my favorite (at least at this time in my life) is II Cor 12:9-10: My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness. . .I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

The nice thing, as Christ followers, is that our grit doesn't have to come from within our own week, feeble bodies & intellects. We have within us One whose power has already overcome. Therefore, as it says in Heb 12, Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

Puts long nights awake with an inconsolable baby in proper perspective.

Abigail's take on Daddy

Last week:
Abee: 'Where's Daddy?'
Mom: 'He's at work.'
Abee: 'Oh. . .playing basketball'
(my daughter thought I was an NBA star!!!)

Today:
Abee: 'Where's Daddy?'
Mom: 'He's at work.'
Abee: 'Oh. . .yada yada yada. . .eyeballs'
(my daughter now knows the truth. . .I hope she's not too disappointed. . .I was kinda hoping she'd keep thinking of me as an elite athelete for at least a few more years. . .)

Community Vision Clinic

The Olympia Gospel Mission Vision Clinic recently received a HUGE donation, as outlined below. I've found that one of the biggest challenges is getting enough quality frames - we need ideally new frames that will stand up to the beating of everyday use, hopefully lasting for years, in a wide variety of styles so that the people we serve can get adequate cosmesis (I know. . .people who can't afford eye exams shouldn't be worried about this, but it's a real factor in many people's minds, and glasses only work if they're worn) for men, women, and children. And ideally for free (though we're more than willing to give a tax write-off!). We've been very blessed the past few years since operations started to not have any big concerns about where the next frames, monetary donations, or volunteers will come from. God provides. It's fun to see it happen in such real ways. Please pray that not only will people's physical eyes be given clarity, but that also that this Clinic, and more broadly the whole Gospel Mission, would be used to open people's eyes to see the great Provider & Savior we serve. And thank Him for 295 lives affected by this clinic in 2009.

Haiti

The news of the earthquake - mostly the human suffering because of it - has made my heart ache the past couple of days. Watching the images of ravaged buildings, rampant looting, and rising death counts in the midst of the world's deepest poverty literally has brought tears to my eyes. Those dead, dying, maimed and suffering are someone's sons, daughters, husbands, and wives. Loved. Maybe my soul aches because I've seen the Dominican Republic, the 'rich' country on the island, and have seen its' physical poverty. Maybe it aches because I feel guilty, undeserving, that somehow I've won the lottery and was born in the US. But as much as my heart aches, I know God, who Knows each person affected, aches infinitely more. He aches not just for their temporal physical well-being, but for their eternal well-being. He sees this blood & sin stained world as worth rescuing. He proved it - not just on the cross, but in my life. Thankfully for the Haitians, and for all those who realize they need Rescuing, as Yancey said, Grace, like water, flows to the lowest part.

Thanks Mal

Last weekend we thoroughly enjoyed having Mal come over to work her magic on lil' Brenna. Not only does Mal have an adroit photographer's eye, she has a remarkable ability to mold small baby bodies into whatever position she chooses. Judging from the way she effortlessly worked with our daughter, she either slipped Brenna some sedatives or somehow cast her into a hypnotic trance. No matter. Well done, and thank you Malissa! (this is not a paid advertisement, although we would highly recommend her for any of your creative photography needs!)

Click here to see a sneak peak

Welcome to our home, Brenna Marie

The events of Sunday, December 27th, will be remembered with great fondness and just a tinge of fear in our hearts for the rest of our days. Five minutes after the conclusion of church, where Melis played the piano, she felt a big goosh. After abruptly ending her conversation without explanation or excuse, she walked nervously to the bathroom where an impromptu meeting of her Mom, Michelle & Kristin was called. It didn't take long to assess the situation and quickly stop at home to gather some clothes, then head off to the hospital.

At the hospital, we waited. And waited. After Pitocin was started, we waited some more. And did a 300 piece Austria puzzle. And watched the movie Earth. After a new bag of Pitocin and some uncomfortable membrane stripping by Dr. Burtner, finally by 9pm, things were rolling.

Things got rolling so quickly, actually, that Melis nearly delivered in the middle of getting her epidural started - they barely got around to getting the drip going. As she was getting it, the contractions got intense enough that the pushing started. One push after getting laid back down on the bed, a head full of dark hair popped out. A first year resident made the catch, and the doc mosied on in a few minutes later.
Brenna Marie weighed in at 6lbs 14oz, at 19" long. Because she was four weeks early, I had a feeling she might face some difficulties early on. Unfortunately that hunch was right. After spending an hour or so getting acquainted with Mom, it was determined that her blood glucose was abnormally low, so they took her to the Special Care room for monitoring. She was strongly encouraged to drink formula as she waited for Mom's milk to come in (ok, I pretty much force-fed her). After a few hours there they released her back to Mom. But a few hours later her glucose fell again, and after four failed attempts to start an IV (poor girl), they decided to simply keep monitoring her & keeping her well fed. It took a few more hours, but she came around and stabilized. One of my most memorable two hours of the last few days were sitting in Special Care with our nearly naked baby under the heat lamps as I watched, read & prayed. She was attached to monitors that periodically started honking when her oxygen saturation, breath rate, or body temp would drop too low. Melis was getting some much-needed & deserved sleep, as I looked on nervously - helplessly - trusting that this delicate life was going to be used by our sovereign God who loves her. There's a lot of comfort in that.
This is the same hat that Abigail filled out very nicely. Brenna will need to do a little growing before it fits her. Compare to this similar pose of Abigail Joy.
Abigail has been a very loving, gentle, & curious big sister.

One Tuesday the pediatrician went back & forth in the decision of letting her come home. They were worried about jaundice (common in preemies who have had quite a bit of bruising), but she let us go about 44 hours after birth, and seems to be doing great.

Christmas pics on New Year's Eve with Grandpa & Grandma Utah.

Little stocking stuffers.

How do you have a baby and look this good four days later?!?

Check out Brenna's sour apple face ;-)Here's to a pleasantly unexpected & amazingly blessed Christmas & New Year in the Koning house.