Mariposa Kisses (aka Dianne's Blog)

I must have been missed because Marlene and the gang asked how my cruise had been. Word must have gotten out that Jadan had gone on the cruise as well, which caused some minor confusion. I had to clear up some local gossip and inform everyone that Molly had also gone and that they were actually married now. You know how coffee-talk gets all out of proportion unless you clear the air as soon as you get wind of it? As I looked around, I saw Jadan hard at work, laptop open, already trading like crazy, but no Jen anywhere. She and Jared must be sleeping in today. Since she freelanced like I did, she set her own schedule and Jared’s salesman calendar was pretty open as well. They must be extending their honeymoon, how nice. I was happy for them, but just a wee-bit jealous. My life was back in full speed, no extended vow-renewal-honeymoon for me. Aw well, it felt good to be back in my own head drinking strong Starbucks coffee from my red tumbler. I needed to find a spot and noticed an open one next to Jadan. So I walked over and put my stuff down by his black, athletic looking wheelchair. After he got off of his phone-call, we started to chat.

“Long time no talk stranger,” I said reaching over for a quick hug.
“Back at ya, what’s it been, a whole twenty four hours?” he said laughing into his next sip of coffee.
“Or less, I can’t switch over to our time yet. I know we just cruised the Caribbean, so it’s not like we went to Europe or something, but I’m having a hard time adjusting. What about you and Molly? Are you guys glad we’re back?” I asked as I turned on my laptop while setting my tumbler onto the table next to the dark brown leather sofa.
“We’re doing great. It's so nice to be back and to see Ocean. She gave me the hugest hug when we got back. We were glad that Molly’s mom was able to watch her because we knew she was in good hands with her. And since we’re married now, which sounds so strange… they’re going to move into my house on the cliffs later this week. I mean, they already stayed with me last night but they’ll move their stuff over the next few weeks. Since Molly’s been living in my rental property just a few streets over, it’s not like we’ll have to get a moving truck. I’ve got some buddies who will help to move the big stuff since I’m a bit limited,” he said pointing down at his limp legs.
“Well, you know Eric and Jared can totally help as well. We’re family now,” I said punching him on his rock-hard left shoulder. It’s like the cruise and all of our fun outdoor activities helped him to bulk up even more. “Wow, you feel like the Hulk. What did you do, take some kind of special drink while we stopped over in Cozumel,” I asked jokingly with a hint of true curiosity.
“No, I just made time to work out every day while we were on the cruise and I think I just look bigger since I got so much sun. You got a lot of sun as well,” he said staring up at my rejuvenated face. It looked like I’d gotten a series of facials over the past week because my skin was clean, clear, tan, and energized.
“Yeah, I did get some sun. I decided to hit the pool-chairs rather than the stepper machine, most of the time. But I did bump into you once at the gym and up on the track, remember?” I laughed. I think the cruise was really good for all of us, don’t you think?”
“Yeah, it was great. I mean you should just go into match-making professionally. Your brilliant idea for a triple-date-cruise turned out to be a huge hit. Just think, you created two marriages, so imagine the lives you’ve impacted. That’s pretty amazing,” he said pointing to the cool platinum ring braided with copper snakes on his left ring finger.
“Yeah, I guess. If the writing thing doesn’t pick up a bit, I could look into that,” I mumbled, while opening up my inbox to investigate the morning’s new flood of junk-mail. “By the way, what’s with the snakes on your ring?” I asked inquisitively.
“Well, I saw it when we popped into those jewelry stores in Mexico. It reminded me of how sneaky Satan can be, trying to entice us out of the right choices. I think it will cause me to stick with the good stuff, you know, Molly and Ocean. Plus I just like snakes, if you want to know the truth. But it sounded so poetic. Must be from all of our hanging out. This is what happens when one of my best friends is a writer after all,” he teased.
“Ha ha. You’re funny. Looks like too much sun and relaxation got to your brain. Hopefully it won’t affect your numbers this week.”
“Hey, I got you something, just to say thanks, Renee,” Jadan said handing me a card.
“Aw, that’s sweet. You didn’t have to get me a card. We all just planned it together and I had a blast too.”
“Well, you are the one who initiated the plans and I can’t thank you enough for helping to put me and Molly back together. I know this means a whole new life for Ocean too. She’s been getting by seeing us on different days, but now I feel like she’s really going to thrive, with us together, all in one home. No more of the back-and-forth stuff,” he said wiping away a tear from his left eye with his right hand.
“You’re welcome Jadan, but I’m not really sure I can take credit for all of it. I have been praying for you guys ever since we met last month,” I said opening up the card. I couldn’t believe that it had a four hundred dollar gift card to the Charthouse. “Wow, this is too much, you didn’t have to do this,” I said feeling a bit awkward.
“It’s nothing really. I would have done more, but I knew you wouldn’t have accepted it,” he said closing the card over my right hand to ensure that I didn’t hand it back to him.
“Okay, well maybe we could double date there one night this week. We could even invite Jen and Jared too. You already know she loves their chocolate mud-pie,” I said trying to feel less indebted.
“That sounds fun. Let’s figure out which night works best,” he said feeling like he couldn’t win this one.
“Don’t you have some work to do or something?” I questioned pointing to his laptop.
“Yes, and don’t you have some to do as well? So stop talking to me already. Or I’m gonna have to roll my wheels over to a different spot,” he said teasing me like old times, well like the last five weeks anyways.

I felt really blessed as I sat there soaking in the noise around me. Within the past few months, Eric and I had made some really good friendships, had strengthened our existing one with Jen, and had really improved on our own marriage as well. We’d gotten a long break from our daily routine, but it felt so good and normal to be back to the grind, sitting here at Starbucks, writing, well mostly just talking, but about to get back to my writing. I got up for a refill when I noticed Jen walking through the double doors in her shortest pink mini-skirt ever with her long-sleeve button-up jean shirt and her black leather vest. She was looking hot, like usual. All that love-making must have put her into a sexy mood. I’d have to go over and tease her about it. I winked in her direction as I offered to get Jadan a refill on his coffee.

“No, I’m good, thanks. Maybe later,” he said as his gaze stayed fixed upon today’s NYSE and NASDAQ numbers.
“Okay, I’m gonna get a refill and go over to say hi to Jen. Watch my stuff, okay?” I requested though it was totally unnecessary.
“Sure thing. Tell Jen she can come and sit over here as well. I can move my bag and make room for her too,” he said very courteously.
“Oh cool, I’m sure she’d love that. I’ll mention the dinner thing to her as well.”

I walked over toward Jen, but didn’t realize my shoe wasn’t quite on all the way and ended up tripping over like three chairs, one after the other, assaulting two regulars who knew me pretty well. At least the last chair that caught my fall was empty so I could hang onto it and recapture my balance. Jen raced over to help me out but couldn’t stop from laughing aloud. Jadan rolled over to help me up as well. How come the rest of the planet was so much more graceful than myself? Even Jadan seemed to fall less than I did.

Labels: book excerpt from Stream of Consciousness

Okay, so I’ve got to work on this Alvin character in real life and then type it up. Maybe I should brainstorm first. Nah, I’m just gonna write what comes to mind. That seems to work well for me. I’m so glad Eric is getting some good sleep. He’s always running on low when we’re at home, like five hours a night if he’s lucky. Plus I’m getting to catch up on my writing as well, free of incessant interruptions: sticky fingers using my shirt as a napkin, whining about how someone stole someone else’s new toy, or a plethora of other urgent requests (which I do kind of miss in a mom-kind-of-way).

Next I had to gather my thoughts and figure out who this Alvin guy really was. I figured the easiest way to find his sister, if she was still alive, was to go back through the house’s history. If I could find out her last name and her forwarding address, then I could probably locate her as well. If I could discover her identity, then she could fill me in on the details of her brother, Alvin.

I decided to call my Realtor, who might be intrigued by the whole thing. She was so helpful and loved to shoot the breeze. Maybe she could just stop by for lunch. I decided to text her before jumping in the shower.

Hey Jessica. Wanna come by for lunch today? I have a few questions about one of the previous owners of our house. Thought u could help. Thx—dianne

I poured myself some more coffee and within seconds, my phone hummed about an incoming text.

Sure. How about 12:15? I happen to be in ur neck of the woods. C ya then—jessica

So I wrote back and asked if Caesar salad and pitas with hummus sounded okay. She said that it would be marvelous. And it reminded me of how much I enjoyed chatting with her. She was so light-hearted and yet so hardworking at the same time. I was really glad we were going to get a chance to catch up.

I did a few things to organize the downstairs area, took a super speedy shower, brushed my teeth (since I hadn’t even done that yet), and started preparing our lunches. And before I knew it, the doorbell rang and it was Jessica.

“Hello darling. I love your fuschia pink shirt. That jean skirt makes you look so skinny,” I said as we embraced for a quick hug.
“Thank you Dianne. Your red tank is totally cute too. Have you been working out a ton like normal?” she asked walking straight for the coffee pot.”
“Help yourself Jess,” I said, even though the suggestion was totally unnecessary.
“This is good coffee Dianne. Is it Starbucks or fresh & easy?” she questioned.
“It’s Starbucks. I like their new organic blend. It’s pretty good, huh?”
“Yeah, totally good. How can I help with the lunch? Can I chop something or get anything out of the fridge for you?”
“Nope, I’ve got it all out here on the bar,” I said motioning toward the grey and white counter-top on the island in the middle of my newly remodeled kitchen.
“You guys redid your kitchen since I was here last. It looks awesome. Who did you use for the job?” she inquired like a true Realtor would do.
“My stepdad did it. He’s a contractor and things were slow over the holidays so he came out with a small crew and remodeled the kitchen for us. He also did our master bath. You’ll have to walk up and take a peek in a bit. He does great work, but he’s not close by, so he wouldn’t really be the best contact for your clients,” I informed her.
“Well, maybe I’ll have him come by and give me an estimate for my kitchen. It’s needed a facelift for years. We just haven’t had the cash to lay down for a job that big. After we put our pool in and got our new cars, we have been trying to be good with our spending,” she announced honestly.
“I hear ya Jess. We’re trying to keep up with paying for all of the kids’ activities with school, sports, and church. It adds up fast,” I said setting out some red tumblers for iced tea, which we would get to after our freshly filled mugs of coffee.
“So, what’s with the question about the previous owner? I did call the office and JoAnn forwarded me some docs electronically so I could get you some info fast.”
“Wow, that’s incredible. I’m really grateful for that,” I said with a soft smile.
“No problem. Anything for one of my best clients ever,” she said scratching her nose.
“Well, you won’t believe this, but there’s an elderly gentleman named Alvin staying with us up in my attic. You know, the apartment that we discovered when we were doing our final walk-through? I couldn’t believe how much stuff we found up there, do you remember?” I asked refreshing her about the facts.
“Yeah, I do remember. Did you ever go through any of that stuff?”
“No, in the eight years we’ve been here, we basically just left it as it was.”
“So, how’s Alvin related to the picture?”
“Well, I discovered him up there earlier this morning. It was the strangest thing. The kids were at school. He must have been up there for a few days cuz I’ve been hearing big thuds and crazy noises. I told Josh that I thought we had humongous rats climbing around up there, which was totally freaking me out. Anyways, I noticed some broken glass, so I walked up the white rickety wooden stairs and found him lying there on the ground, looking so helpless. He obviously has a drinking problem, but for now, I just see him as this lost soul, searching for someone to help him.”
“Are you kidding Dianne? You actually have a drunken homeless man up in your attic right now and you’re okay with that?” she said acting paranoid.
“Well, he appears to have Alzheimer’s and he is really adorable. I could tell he had busted through the glass just to get into the attic. You’ll see what I mean. He just reminds you of your own dad or grandpa. I saw the glass but what really caught my eye was an opening in the overgrown vines that blocks our view of the door up there. I saw something black and as I got closer, could see that it was some size thirteen black leather shoes on the front doormat. I knew they weren’t Josh’s so I had to go up and see what was going on.”
“You actually walked up there yourself without a clue about who was up there? What if it had been a murderer or a rapist? You could have gotten killed Dianne,” she warned dramatically.
“True, I could have, but I just didn’t feel that worried. I figured I had my cell phone so I could dial 911 pretty fast. I don’t know. I just felt okay about it for some reason. So, I checked and then I opened the doorknob and… just walked in. I saw him lying there looking so helpless and my instincts just kicked in,” I said tearing up.
“You’re crazy Dianne. I can’t believe you’re letting a complete stranger stay up in your external apartment. What if he’s crazy or something? I mean, he could hurt your kids… or you… or Josh. You have to think straight on this,” she advised with a professional edge.
“I am thinking straight Jessica. He’s like seventy-five years old. I don’t exactly feel all that threatened. But anyways, that’s why I called you. I know he returned here because this is where he used to live. His sister is one of the previous owners. You see, it’s not as mysterious and dangerous as you’re making it out to be.”
“Well, that does make a little bit of sense. Let me pull out my laptop and see what JoAnn found. Maybe we could google the sister’s name and contact her for some help here.”
“That sounds great Jessica. I really appreciate that,” I said crunching on a tasty crouton. I love this new fresh & easy Caesar salad kit. It tastes so gourmet and it’s less than three dollars for the whole bag.
“Okay, I found her name. She was two owners ago. Let’s see, she owned the house for most of its history, for like forty something years. Her name is Alice Godwin. So now I need to google some info on her.”
“Great! That’s so helpful. I’m so excited to share this info with Alvin. Can you find a forwarded address for her?”
“Yes, I show one in another state, let’s see. It looks like she moved back to Texas to live with family out there. And oh my goodness, this newspaper article shows a record of her funeral. She died two years ago and it says that she was survived by her only remaining family member, by her brother Alvin Culbertson, who served in the military and in World War II.”

Labels: book excerpt from Stream of Consciousness

Summer Christopher is currently a Management Team Member and the Director of Family Ministries, which includes Flip Flops, Pipeline, and Frontside here at Sandals. Summer earned her B.A. in English from California Baptist University. She has served as an elementary school teacher for 4 years and acted as the interim principal of an elementary school for a short time. She also loves jumping on trampolines and has attended our church for the past nine years. Let's get to some questions:

1) What is your vision for the kids at Sandals?

My vision is to help kids learn to be real with themselves, others, and God as we teach them the basic truths of Christianity. One of the things I love most about this age is their ability to learn. Like no other age group, elementary children have the ability to take in huge amounts of information. That means they are able to learn massive amounts of Scripture, Bible stories, Christian truths, and more. In fact, some of what we teach them will not be fully understood until they are adults (who am I kidding, even adults don’t fully understand this stuff!). But we are laying the groundwork. If I can give students a Biblical road-map now, they can discover the depths of the way-points as they get older.

2) What do you love most about working with the kids at Sandals?

So much! Children are a blessing. They are not grown up enough to be guarded. They do not know how to hide who they are. Their faith is pure, inspiring, and bold. Most of us are in counseling for issues that developed in childhood. To make an impact on children while they are young, helping them sort out the truth of who they are in Christ is a privilege. I love listening to them pray with honesty and sincerity. I think we can learn a lot from those little mouths that are willing to ask for the moon and expect it!

3) What's your favorite way to worship God? You've mentioned that you like to hike up to the cross near church. Can you share some reflections about that weekly experience?

I love worshiping God outdoors. One of my favorite ways to connect with God is climbing up to the cross behind the church. I try to spend an hour up there each week reconnecting with God and asking him to refresh my spirit. It reminds me of all the times that Jesus went off on the hillside to pray. If he needed it, then I definitely do! God is faithful to meet me. He has spoken to me through the fear of what I might find on the path, the difficulties of reaching the top, the stillness of the quiet, the strength of renewal found via the birds in the wind, and the open sky welcoming his return.

This week had to be one of my most memorable experiences. I went up to a new spot in need of a different perspective. As I was praying and journaling my thoughts, I suddenly noticed hundreds of small shadows passing over me. At first I thought it was a flock of birds, but then realized they were too small for that. I looked up just as a few bees zoomed past me. Terrified to look up farther, I glanced to my left to see a huge swarm of bees passing over a foot or so above my head. As I grabbed my keys, my first reaction was to jump up and run down the mountain as fast as I could! But something kept me still. As I replayed images of killer bee documentaries in my head, I felt God’s hand holding me there.

If I had jumped up like I had started to do, I would have stood up right in the middle of the swarm, and who knows what harm would have come from running down the mountain? Instead, I sat, hidden in the cleft of his hand as I watched them all pass without so much as a recognition of my presence. None showed interest or even acknowledgement of me. Once they passed out of sight, I sat (thankful I did not pee my pants), wondering if now was the time to run, to panic, or even if my legs would work anymore. I was not even confident in my ability to stand since my heart was pounding and terror flooded me. Stunned at what had just occurred, I wondered what God would have me do. After all, he is the one I had come to meet with. Would he have me flee for fear of bees?

I chose to take one look at my notes and to seek God even in that moment. The last words I had written to him were, “I need your help.” At that moment I realized my vulnerability. I had no control over my fate with those bees. I could not even pretend that I knew what to do or how to act. I had no way of protecting myself. In the same way I sensed God proclaiming his protection over me, his hiding me from my enemies. My part was to remain in him. He would take care of the rest. He is faithful. My life, time and again, is a testimony to his faithfulness, blessing, protection, and love.

4) Describe your family in three words!

"Thomas The Train" describes my family. My husband, Neal, and I have been married for fourteen years. We have two sons: Aidan (3 years old) and Anselm (7 months old).

5) What countries have you visited thus far and which others would you totally like to visit someday? Why?

I have been to England, Mexico, and Israel. I would love to visit Greece for its history, architecture, and education. And I would love to visit Italy for the food. Although I have to say, going on a safari on the Serengeti sounds pretty inspiring as well!

6) Would you try any crazy food combo? If you answered yes, which would you pick of these three: a) meat tacos and chocolate sauce, b) peaches and peanut butter, or c) spaghetti topped with vanilla ice cream?

I pretty much like all food, especially if it involves meat. So a) & c) are automatically in. And b) just sounds like a good dessert.

7) If you could be the lead female role in any movie, what would it be and why?

Scarlett O’Hara – for the wardrobe.

8) If you could be an animal for a week, what would you pick and why?

Probably a panda because they like to snuggle, get lots of TLC, and bamboo can’t taste all that bad.

9) What's the verse that helps you get by the best when you're struggling with something in life?

2 Corinthians 12:9-10:

9 But he said to me, "'My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.' Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. 10 That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong."

10) A few favorites: Color? Worship song? Candy? Band?

White
“Beautiful Things”
Reeces Cups
Gungor

***If you get a minute to chat with Summer, ask her what she thinks about iPads for kids.

Labels: Summer Christopher

You know how life just surprises you sometimes? One of those occurrences happened to me about three years ago when I said, "Oh, I'll never get into one of those silly vampire series, ever..." Shortly thereafter, I fell in love with Stephenie Meyer's Twilight series. I mean, I'm literally a junkie now and can't wait for Breaking Dawn to hit the theaters.

As moms, we're shocked by very little; so it's a good idea to limit our "I'll never..." statements. We've seen everything from poop hanging out of our kids' behinds to puke resting upon our own laps in the middle of a nice restaurant. And then we've heard every other story from fellow parents who have heard it from their friends and their friends' friends. Nothing is really that crazy anymore after three kids; so basically, I'm not easily surprised.

But a few months ago, when my middle daughter caught a lizard during our day-trip at the Botanic Gardens, I ended up with a curious surprise. It was an eventful day, truth be told. First, she warned us of a rattle snake in our path during our hike; so we backed away slowly and changed routes. Then, this same daughter discovered a hibernating tortoise after she decided to go off-roading. We thought it was dead; but given the season, we came to realize it was simply taking Mother Nature's intended nap.

Then, even though we'd seen hundreds of friendly-looking lizards, my daughter chose one particular little critter to bring home as our newest "pet." At first I was a bit apprehensive, but figured, "What the heck, why not?" I mean, life is pretty short; if a pet lizard brings joy to my daughter's six-year-old heart, then I could get over the live worms and the nasty smell coming from its cage.

So, the surprise! You're wondering what this has to do with being surprised, right? Well, the thing is that Eugene Fitzherbert (yes, from Tangled) has paved a beautiful sketch upon my heart. In fact, he is resting on top of my yellow tank top at this very moment as I type. He's become incredibly social and I am his "Grammy." Each time I hold him, I do four kissing chirps so that he knows it's me. He even gets so relaxed on my shoulder that he shuts his eyes and falls fast asleep.

Awww, he just shut his cute little black eyes a second ago. I'm literally blown away that after about three to four months, Eugene is officially a member of the Bright household. He will probably even make it into this year's Christmas photo. We'll definitely have to consider some fun backdrop colors to highlight his handsome brown skin and his animated black spots.

I never realized how long a lizard's toes and fingers were; it's super cool, by the way. And he's quite resilient. He's had a couple of close calls, falling from the Sears Tower equivalent for us; but he's fine every time. And I certainly didn't expect my daughter to wash him with hand soap about six weeks ago, but it did help with his over-all hygiene in the long-run.

Anyhoot, it's just fun being a mom and being occasionally shocked by the unexpected turns along the way. My little grand-lizard, Eugie for short, is truly a blessing in disguise. In fact, I'd be incredibly sad at this point if anything detrimental did happen to him. At first, I almost hoped he would sneak away; I barely even wanted to touch the darn thing.

But when he did escape last month, I found myself praying that I'd find him while my daughter was busy at school. There I was on my knees, calling out his name into the ominous distance, as if he'd come rushing into my arms. Good thing I caught him before our Labrador, Nugget, who wanted to cradle him with her salivating mouth.

It's a good thing I never said, "I'll never love a lizard." We recently sewed Eugene his own miniature sleeping bag and pillow, so obviously he's made it into our hearts pretty big-time. Share your thoughts about parenting surprises and pets that have touched your heart. We'd love to hear from you. :)

Labels: family, pets, surprises