Sunday Wrapup December 18, 2016

Seeing my nephew Bryant Miller's name in today's newspaper listing the Anderson Concerto winners for this year reminded me that I had planned to post a link to a recording of his prize-winning piano performance.  When someone in our extended family requested the link, Bryant's mother, sister-in-law Rhoda, wrote this note in addition:  The judge liked his "great aural image and artistic idea
for performing this work" whatever that all means.
To my surprise, the winners in the other three divisions were from families I know.  One was the son of my cousin Delmar Miller and his wife Suzanne.  Another was the son of college friends, Terry and Kristen Robson, and the third was the daughter of Stutzman Greenhouse's Jason French.  Each of these winners will play with the Hutchinson Symphony Orchestra in a February concert.

The two Miller boys are both homeschooled.

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In connection with the project of featuring Perry Miller in our composition class' community writing project, we've had several guests in class at various times during the past two weeks.  Perry, Gary, and Ellis Miller each took time to meet with us.

Despite getting a little smarter each year about how to pull off these big projects, it always proves to be a daunting challenge, with a lot of angst about setup, editing, arranging for printing, and making financial arrangements--all of that in addition to gathering information, compiling it, and using good writing skills and strategies to convey it.  It's never perfect, but to me it's always felt worthwhile afterward.

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We had a local low of 14.6 below zero this morning, as recorded at my brother Lowell's place.  That's colder than it's been in this area for a number of years.  Our household wasn't the only one that woke to frozen water pipes this morning.  Ours thawed just before time to leave for church--which is when we discovered that a leak had developed in one of the pipes in the utility room.  It was a good thing we discovered this before we left, and the water could be turned off.  Hiromi had on hand what he needed to fix it.

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We had some moments of concern for our neighbors last night when fire trucks passed by here on their way to a big structure fire there.  It turned out to be a shed rather than the house.  I'm sure it was still a big loss, but at least they still had a home on that frigid night.  I said a prayer for the fire fighters as well as our neighbors.  I'm sure that warming their toes in their own home would have been preferable to leaving home to stand around or work outside instead.

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This might sound a little strange, but this cold weather has helped me be grateful that both of my parents are safely home.  Dad would have  never considered staying home from church on a day like today.  Truthfully, he would likely have managed alright, given the fact that he could have entered his vehicle in the garage and exited right outside the church doors, but I was glad this morning to see that a few other elderly church members simply stayed home today.  I would have wanted the same for my parents.  There was some snow underfoot, and the brutal cold could have become problematic in a hurry if anything had gone awry en route between home and church.

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On Friday evening Hiromi and I both got home around 7:00, long after dark.  I got here several minutes before he did and planned to stop for the mail.  It was a miserably damp and windy night and I got a little disoriented and passed right by the mailbox before stopping.  Then I had a flash of recognition.  Wait.  That looked like the mailbox and the paper box on the ground.  I wheeled right on through the circle drive and headed back out to the road where my car lights illuminated the scene.  Both boxes were bent and lying on opposite sides of the driveway, and the posts were lying on the ground near where they had been standing.  The mail was scattered about, with one piece having stayed inside the open mailbox.

We don't think it was a prank or a malicious act, and we're leaning right now toward blaming either a passing monster vehicle or a ditch mower?????  Is that even possible--that the county was giving all the roadsides one more trim before winter?  I think anything except possibly a monster vehicle or a tractor would have been damaged by the encounter with a solidly set hedge post.

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This evening I finally decided that my cold/cough was probably not a big enough problem to keep me away from my two-week-old grandson any longer.  I went over to spend the evening holding the baby and loving on Wyatt, who is almost three.  The baby's mother had a chance to take a shower and deal with some laundry that needed to be folded and put away.  Grant had a terrible time getting home with the truck, having encountered icy roads first in Indiana and then again in Missouri.  Instead of having gotten home yesterday as planned, he hopes to arrive tomorrow.

The good part is that everyone at their house is feeling better, and Clare's sister Angeleise having left for home yesterday has not been disastrous for Clare and the little boys.

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Yesterday it was our turn to clean the church.  Last night we watched Shane's boys while they attended the Coldwell Banker's Christmas party.  Shane works as a realtor under their umbrella.  There's probably a better way to word that, but I don't know how.  My pile of school work has been untouched this weekend.

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Three more days till Christmas vacation!  I may not have a chance to come up for air till then.  That's why I'm concentrating on fortifying my spiritual and emotional reserves on this day of rest, fellowship, and worship.