Happy 12th Birthday to our Alexander Benjamin, (Alex)!

I didn't know the roller coaster ride made a stop here but I guess it does. That's somewhat overly dramatic but it does introduce us to a brand new back-to-work Monday, on this September 18, 2017. Today I pause to recognize the 12th anniversary of the birth of our grandson, Alexander Benjamin. There's no doubt that with family like our Alex and others, we are keeping the heritage of 'characters' alive and well. Alex can give you an explanation, typically with all the vivid details, of just about anything you might come up with. He does relate a lot of his day by day living to the video games he plays. He and the rest of our clan have had to deal with the certainty of death with the recent loss of his mom's dad, his Grandpa, and my mom and dad, his great grandparents. He is a character and he does light up our lives. We pray for him and for his journey, that God will be with him, every step of the way. Amen. Happy Birthday, Alex. We love you, MiMi and Poppy.

This thing with the love bugs is getting serious. Some think Hurricane Harvey must have created conditions that are even more conducive to the little boogers doing their thing. They are for the most part harmless except maybe their ability to destroy the paint job on almost any vehicle. Our shop office is visited by much traffic every day. Because of that, the door is opened and closed dozens of times. The love bugs like to come in for a visit. They seem to like it here. They are climbing on the walls. Flying around. And, while I try to be tolerant, they cross the line when they crawl into The Cup. You know the one I am talking about. The Cup that holds The Community. I have to check it before I hit the brew button on my Keurig. I can't blame them for being drawn to the rich and full flavored aroma of my Columbian Community Coffee. However, they are now ordered to cease and desist messing with Texas. You know. Don't mess with Texas. I'm just trying to be relevant here. The good news is they will disappear just like they showed up. Hopefully, soon. I can't think of anyone who is really glad to see them each year unless it might be the Maaco Auto paint folks.

I've not been killing any of them intentionally. If I'm driving, well, so be it. And, I might have sat on one or two if they happen to be crawling around in the wrong place. With their average lifespan at 3 to 4 days, well, I've tried to show some appreciation because God must have had a reason for them being here. I'm pretty sure it wasn't so I would have something to write about today. Or, maybe even He was getting tired of the stuff I've been serving up. You do know I'm only joking. Our new fellowship of believers is located between 15 and 17 miles from our home. Our old Church was less than 3 miles away. On Sunday morning the traffic is light and there's no problem getting there. On Wednesday evening, trying to get to the mid-week service has been a challenge. Thus far, we are averaging around 45 minutes on Wednesdays compared to less than 5 minutes before. Coming back home is not too bad because most of the heavy traffic has dissipated. We knew this before we joined. We felt God's leadership in making the decision, therefore, we will be served up a heavy dose of opportunities to learn patience on Wednesday evenings. ("For you know that the trial of faith imparts to you patience." Book of James, Chapter 1, Verse 3, as rendered in the Aramaic Bible in Plain English.) I do hope you have a wonderful rest of the day and may God add His blessings to it. Amen. ....More later.