missed the boat again

Laurel and I flew to Savannah, Georgia this past weekend to be commissioned as missionaries through the North American Mission Board. (This is part of the process we're going through as we plant a new church in Canal Fulton, Ohio). We stayed at the Westin Savannah Harbor Resort which was across the river from the hisoric riverfront of Savannah. We had a beautiful view from our room and the motel was one of the nicest that we have ever stayed in.

























Numerous times during our stay we took the free water taxi across to the other side to eat in one of the many local restaurants or to explore the historic district of Savannah.

It ran on a schedule (more or less) and we enjoyed it as part of our overall experience. However it became a little frustrating to us on Monday when we went down to get on the water taxi and cross over to the other side for lunch. We walked out the door only to discover that the water taxi was already pulling away, a minute or two ahead of scheule. Since it takes about 30 minutes for it to make one complete trip (there are a total of three stops) we decided to go pack the rest of our stuff, check out early and check our bags at the front desk. Then we would catch the next taxi across the river, have lunch, and head straight to the airport when we got back to the motel.

All went according to plan until we headed out to catch the water taxi again to go across and have lunch. You guessed it. We missed the boat again! It was just pulling away, once again a minute or two ahead of schedule. So we headed to the airport early and had lunch there with another couple from our group before flying to Atlanta and making our connection to continue our trip home. Thankfully we did NOT miss our flight (they were on schedule).

more is not always better

No matter how old I get, there are still lessons to be learned. One particular lesson that I am learning recently is that more is not always better. This is a common misconception among most people today.

Here is my case in point. A year or so ago, John got a box of crayons. It's not a box of 8 or 12 or even 24. I'm talking about the box of 96 crayons with the built in sharpener on the back. This is for those children who are really serious about coloring. And it comes in really handy during those moments where you need burnt umber or chartreuse. At the time we got John the box of crayons it seemed like a good idea. But here-in lies the problem.

Rose is a few weeks short of being 2 and she does not fully comprehend that crayons are for paper. No, in her mind, crayons were created to draw all over any empty space that you might encounter. The wall, the table, the floor, and most recently the front of the microwave in our downstairs kitchenette.

What I'm realizing is that it is nearly impossible to keep track of 96 crayons. Just when you think you have them all safely stored away, she finds a stray one and decorates something with it. I'm pretty sure I could keep track of 8 crayons...maybe even 12. And you can make a decent picture with those basic colors, right? The sky is blue, the grass is green, the trees are brown. In this case, maybe simple is good.