Family

Here are some photos from David's last day in Georgia!

Eight Weeks

I just walked in from saying goodbye to David.

I can’t tell you how weird it is to know that I won’t see him again for eight-nine more weeks. And while we know that in the military world eight weeks is nothing, in the Callie-David world, eight weeks seems next to impossible.

We’ve had an amazing weekend of seeing good friends and spending time with family. And here is what I am learning from all of this so far:

-We have been blessed with such an amazing group of people who love us. David said he was having thoughts of “Why would I ever take a job that would make me leave these people?!”, but it’s amazing to know that “these people” will pray for us, visit us, call us, write… We love you guys.

-I don’t think I could handle a minute of this without God. I think I’d be sitting here crying and miserable if I didn’t know that there was a God who was bigger than eight weeks and who would comfort us, protect David, and get us through this.

-David is the most amazing man ever. We were talking to some family friends the other day, and they were telling us how they’d been married over thirty years and that they dated since high school. The husband said, in all seriousness, “We’re one of the greatest love stories of all time”. How great is that?! So David and I decided to go ahead and claim that too. And I think it’s true.

-We take our marriage for granted. I want to challenge all of you to really spend some time appreciating hugging and cuddling and watching TV together- everything.

We’ve decided that when David arrives in Chicago today (when he gets to make his last phone call), we’ll talk on the phone and then hang up and be happy. We can be sad until then, but after the phone call, we’re going to look to the positives of the next eight weeks.

Now I’m off to read the letter he left for me… ahhhh….

4 am

So David calls me yesterday saying, “I have good news. And I have bad news.” (You’d think he would’ve learned by now that that is not an okay way to start a conversation with a girl!)

Good news: David got all of his paperwork cleared for the Navy.
Bad news: He had to wake up at 4 this morning to go to processing and to get his new contract!

So, if all goes well, we should know David’s ship date for Basic Training today or Monday. Crazy! We’ll keep you updated…

Faithful

Back story: I have always been really affected by music, and recently I have found a huge amount of comfort and sympathy in the lyrics of certain songs. Tonight I attended what was definitely the best concert IN HISTORY- Brooke Fraser (a singer/songwriter from new Zealand) at a little venue in Little 5. I was wholly moved by just about each one of her songs (download them ALL), but there was one chorus in particular that spoke to me:

"When I can't feel you, I have learned to reach out just the same
When I can't hear you, I know you still hear every word I pray
And I want you more than I want to live another day
And as I wait for you maybe I'm made more faithful"

Buddy's sermon this past weekend was just as powerful. He spoke about storms that we will experience in our lives and how we can choose to respond to these storms (or to any situation, really)... We can choose to be fearful and to doubt. Or we can choose to be in awe, to have faith. And the amazing thing about this is that we can't do both. If you are fearful about something, it shows that you have no faith. On the other hand, if you are faithful in a certain situation, you lack fear. Both fear and faith involve us anticipating the outcome- neither are reactions to the outcome (never thought of that before!) So do you look at something and fear the worst, or do you look at something in awe of what God has done, faithful of what He will continue to do?

That night when I checked my email, I read this concerning our friend Phil in Iraq:

"We are praising God for a bomb not able to go off that was pointed at Phil in Iraq. He was helping with an attack where 2 guys were killed and 1 seriously injured . He went in, to back them up and the enemy tried to detonate the IED but God who is sovereign over all kept it from going off. Thank you Jesus. Please continue to pray for him as he is often in danger."

It would be easy to look at this and be fearful for Phil's safety, to have doubts about this war. But here is his mother-in-law, praising God for keeping him safe, holding on to her faith that Phil is under the control of something much more powerful than a human enemy.

So as we wait on the military to tell us when to go, we are made more faithful each day. We can't sit and doubt what we're doing or when we're going to do it. God totally humbled me in the midst of my doubt by taking care of our house (I still can't believe how that worked out!)

So I know I keep getting deep and serious, but I can't help but notice the lessons I am learning in the waiting. Can't imagine what we'll learn in the "doing"...

The Fortune Cookie

So, we're out of the house and into the dorm room that is my parents' basement. It's really a pretty amazing set-up though (and I get internet here, thank goodness!) Samson (or as mom calls him, the "hellhound") is loving his backyard and is doing a pretty good job at destroying everything he can get his paws on.

We decided to postpone our Virginia Beach trip (we were going to leave this morning or last night after the move- whew!), but we did eat Chinese last night, and my fortune read "Traveling at this time would be a good investment of time & money." So, we're going in complete opposition to the fortune- we'll see how this works out for us... :)

I'll post some photos soon. Now I have to go learn how to drive my new car (it's a stick... and I sold my Honda in the midst of the move yesterday... we like to do things all the way, if you haven't noticed...)

The American Dream

After our real estate agent (whom we adored) had to leave the business, I’m not going to lie- I was pretty stressed out about our house situation. This isn’t the ideal time to be selling a house you just purchased a few months ago (is there ever an ideal time to do that?). But last week, I had this amazing peace that it was time to enjoy my house, and God was reminding me that He was in control of this (I mean, He’s done bigger things).

So I came home and cleaned the house and started thinking of new ways to decorate and enjoy it. And in the midst of this cleaning frenzy, I get a phone call.

The woman on the phone had randomly driven by our neighborhood and randomly driven by "our house, and after checking out the pictures of our home online, she “fell in love” (the paint colors did it, she said- whew, that made that hard work so worth it!). Long story short, she wanted the house. And she wanted it by the end of the week.

So, praise Jesus for reminding me that He is in way more control than we are, and that He is the best real estate agent out there (and He charges way less).

Let’s also discuss how humbling it is to speed-pack your three-bedroom house… for a one-bedroom apartment in California (with a pit-stop in your parents’ basement for 6-9 months). You really start thinking about what’s important when you downsize like that. The Kitchenaid Mixer we had to have is just going to have to patiently wait on us in storage while I enjoy Mom’s cooking and free rent (can we praise Jesus for that too while we’re at it?)

So, we’re saying goodbye to the American Dream we got to live for a few short months. And while I loved my house and will miss it dearly, the chorus of Switchfoot’s “American Dream” reminds me that sometimes you’ve got to sacrifice for the real rewards:

"This ain't my American dream
I want to live and die for bigger things
I'm tired of fighting for just me
This ain't my American dream"

The house and the jobs and the dog have been amazing, don’t get me wrong, but we’re ready for the adventure…

Coming Home

So we were driving home from my parents' house on Saturday and somehow made a wrong turn (we've driven this drive hundreds of times... how we made a "wrong turn" is obviously an act of God...) We ended up taking 124 into Snellville, and as we're driving, we notice that the streets are lined with families, most holding American flags. Now it's mid-July, a full year away from the 4th or Memorial Day... we were so confused. Until we saw a sign: "Welcome Home Cpl. Ayers" So as we near Ronald Reagan, we see a police car, sitting with his light on, and some big commotion up ahead. We naturally decide to pull over and get out, to see what's going on, and a few other people do the same and join us. We're expecting that someone is returning from Iraq, and we're proud to watch this celebration, anxious to see him and his family. As the procession nears though, I notice what's leading it- a hearse.

The hearse is followed by at least 100 men and women on Harley's, some with army flags flying, all with American flags at the rear of their bikes. One rider looks at us and gives the side wave, mouthing "thank you" as we stand on the street. He didn't know what was ahead- people waiting in red and blue, holding American flags and a "welcome home" sign. These were the people to thank- those who knew the story and were here in support.

I returned to the car completely changed. I think David was scared out of his mind watching me stand there crying for a man I had never met. But it wasn't that I was sad or scared- I was proud. This man, Corporal Ayers, did something with his life, and at his death, people lined the street celebrating his service and sacrifice. And what does it say about a man to have hundreds follow behind his hearse in love and support? I knew that this was a family I wanted to be a part of- a family we are proud and excited to join.

I expected Cpl. Ayers to be older, maybe even retired army, as the bikers all seemed to be in their 50s at least. But when we researched him when we got home, we found a different story entirely. Army Cpl. Jonathan Ayers was David's age, and he graduated from Shiloh- the high school that I graduated from. He was killed in Afghanistan on Friday July 18 with eight other men in one of the deadliest attacks on US troops since the 2001 invasion.

Learning about Cpl. Ayers' death reminds me that we are given one life, and we're given that life for a purpose. It's not about survival, but living. Cpl. Ayers lived only 24 years- David's age- a time where we feel like we're just getting started. But he did big things with his time. He worked to change an entire country, to protect HIS country back home. I know that not everyone has to serve in the military to find purpose- for my friend Callie, she changes the world through nursing. For our friend Tyler, I think he'll find purpose in music. For me, I believe it's photography. But for David, I believe this is where he's finding his purpose. I have already seen a change in him- a desire to be there, to get started. I'm not scared for him (I'm sure at some point I will be!), but I am proud and excited. And so ready.

So to Cpl. Ayers, thank you for your service and sacrifice. And thank you for reminding me what it looks like to do something with the time you are given. I pray that the "Welcome Home" sign reads true- that you're home with your real Dad, experiencing what freedom really is.

"Each of these heroes stands in the unbroken line of patriots who have dared to die that freedom might live and grow and increase in its blessings."
-Franklin Delano Roosevelt