Another year

Another year is gone. Another one about to begin. Of course, this is true every day. Every day ends a period that is one year long and starts another one. But when a calendar year comes to an end, it's typically a time for reflection and looking forward.

I've got to say, the thing that strikes me as 2013 comes to an end is how fast the time of this present age is rolling by. 2013 was another remarkable year, but it really doesn't seem like it could be a whole year. It seems that life unfolds like a roll of toilet paper. The closer you are to the end, the faster it unrolls. It truly won't be long before my time in this life is done, and I need to make the most of it.

Of course, it's easy to focus on the big events, and they were memorable.

Alabama winning its 15th national championship only 7 days into the year:

Traveling to London with my awesome nephew and nieces:

Serving God with an amazing team of friends, old and new, in Ethiopia:

And, afterwards, a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for a little sightseeing in nearby Tanzania:

All very exciting, and times I will never forget.

But 2013 was defined just as much by daily life, the little moments that emerge a day at a time. The ones that are part of doing life with family and friends. Things like:

• Weekly Monday night gatherings at my sister's house with family and a couple of close friends,
• Getting to see my dad almost every day as I pick up my dog from his house after work,
• Getting together with a small group of close friends to eat pad thai, talk, pray, and even watch a little TV,
• Lunch after church on Sundays with family,
• Going to work each day, looking for ways to glorify God through my work and working relationships,
• Going to football games in the fall with my family, allowing us to spend a whole day together,
• A weekly Wednesday morning small group, challenging each other to live out our faith,
• Weekends visiting good friends and family, and being there for each other in times of need,
• And sooooooooo many more that I don't have time to name.

It's this daily march toward the future, loving God and others in work and leisure, that really defines a year. And I am so grateful for every person that God has put in my life, making those days seem to fly by.

So, for events big and small, 2013 was another fantastic year.

And now it continues, just with another number at the end of the date. Hello 2014. Let's do this.

A moment of wonder

Today I was walking along the South Bank of the Thames River with four of my favorite people. It was a gorgeous day with absolutely perfect weather, and we were on our way to ride the London Eye. It was a perfect day to be lifted high above the city and get some great pictures.

It was packed! Today was a British holiday, school was out, and there were a ton of people there from other countries. There were people everywhere. People of all cultures and backgrounds.

And suddenly I was overcome with a sense of awe. In the midst of trying to get through all those people and spend as little time as possible in the "queue" for the Eye (yes, I can use the correct local term for a line), I somehow noticed all those people and thought of them as individuals. Like me and my family. I thought about how the God of the universe who put all the stars and galaxies into place knows the story of every single one of those people. And he loves each one of them deeply, whether they know it or not. I looked at person after person and thought, "What's his story?" "What's her story?" And I realized that in every single case God knows the answer.

It was a moment of wonder in the midst of chaos. We serve an amazing God. And I am so thankful.

Does it show?

Tonight here in London, there was apparently a pretty big soccer match. Two German teams were playing for the Champions League championship, and from what I could tell it was THE game for this soccer-crazed culture. The equivalent of the Super Bowl or the BCS Championship (Roll Tide!). All day long there were fans in the colors of both teams everywhere we went. and several people asked me if we were going to the big "football" game tonight. (Don't worry, I didn't tell them that football season doesn't start for another 96 days.)

And then the oddest moment of the day occurred. We were standing outside the Hard Rock Cafe waiting for a table and a guy dressed in his team colors came up to me. He asked, and I do not lie, whether I had any tickets for sale to the game?

I was like, what?? What was it about me that led you to believe I had extra tickets to a soccer game?

So apparently, the sports fan in me just radiates. Somehow people look at me and think, "He has football tickets!" Even if it's not what I would call football.

And so now I know. Interesting.

Loving it

It's got to be my favorite city. I'm talking about a city as a city. Does that make any sense? There are other destinations more majestic due to creation (e.g., Rocky Mountains) or that have it beat because of people there I love (e.g., Ethiopia). And of course, home is home - nothing like it. But for the sheer joy and energy of being in a great city, it's London.

Everything I love about New York - high energy, great theatre, awesome food - London has it. Then you throw in the fact that it's like, more than a thousand years old and has the architecture to prove it...well, you can't beat it.

We have worked hard while we've been here. But that's why we're here, and even that is pretty cool. And, well, when I step out on the streets of London as the sun goes down, energy pulsates through my veins. I was just walking down Shaftsbury last night saying to myself (and those with me, to their chagrin), "I love this city!"

What a place.

Work is done, and there's one more night before catching a flight home. And the sun is setting...

Yep, I love this city. Time to soak it in.

Hi from London

My first international trip was in 1994. It was a doozy, one that can never be topped - I went with my church to the Holy Land. Three days in Galilee, four in Jerusalem. What an amazing thing to have walked where God walked when he took on flesh.

But the reason I thought of it today is the fact that it was so difficult - and expensive - to stay in touch with home. There was a hotel phone with extremely expensive rates and a sequence of numbers to remember that was confusing. I talked to my family twice, and both were brief. It felt like I was a million miles away.

Then came Russia in 1999. This one was truly surreal. We spent 10 of our 12 days with no phone anywhere on the property. And the two days in Moscow where we did have a phone, well, considering the language barrier we almost never got through.  It really felt almost like I was on another planet.
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So skip to today. Hi from London, everyone! It's still not close to the same as being at home. I have to be real careful to use wifi when it's free so as not to accidentally pile up a big bill. And there are places I travel (like parts of Africa) where the connection is either unreliable or non-existent. But I'm so thankful that right now - at this moment - I can let my friends and family know how I'm doing. So....hi!

And yes, it's me. I offer two pieces of evidence...I think you'll recognize me:

• We were getting in our car at the airport today and I was the last one to get in. So the one seat remaining was the front passenger seat. But noooo - I had to try and get in the driver's seat.  Dummy...the passenger seat is on the left side of the car in England!

• I ordered lemonade at lunch; it was listed as one of the soda choices. When the server brought the clear liquid out, I let it sit there 'til she came back and pointed out that I wanted lemonade instead of water. Dummy...apparently they refer to a Sprite-type soft drink as lemonade. Drink your soda, Donnie!

It's been a great day, glad I could tell you about it. Maybe you'll hear from me again while I here...because I can.