Top Ten of Twenty Eleven

I must admit that I am an absolute sucker for top ten lists. Or top five lists. Or top whatever-number lists. They encapsulate many things I like: listing, categorizing, prioritizing, remembering.

Top five things I want to do before I die? Own a coffee shop, live in a foreign country, publish a book, scuba dive with manta rays, play in a rock band.

Top three favorite ways to consume caffeine? Coffee with cream, plain latte, Earl Grey tea with steamed milk.

Top ten best moments of 2011? Well, since you asked...

10. Riding a roller coaster in Wildwood, New Jersey, after more than 15 years of swearing I'd never again ride one. It was definitely a breakthrough. And I even liked it. A nod to Jer for his smooth trickery to get me on board.

 

9. Making a fancy Easter dinner and enjoying it with my pastor's family. My mom and I decided to go big for this meal. We made a crown roast, which is essentially a rack of ribs rolled into a crown. We stuffed it with apricot stuffing. We made apricot candied carrots and a fancy-schmancy salad. For dessert, I made Oreo cookie salad and a frozen dark chocolate mocha mouse cake. It was a meal we were proud of, but more than that, it was a chance to go crazy in the kitchen out of love for others. Is there anything better than cooking for those you love? It is such a joy.

 

8. Urban kayaking in Pittsburgh. My friend and I paddled upstream on the Allegheny River from the 5th Street bridge, circled Washington Island, then headed downstream to Point State Park. We rounded the park into the Monongahela River and tagged the Ohio River on our way back. I truly enjoyed paddling in three rivers within two hours and seeing the striking Pittsburgh skyline from our yellow tandem kayak.  

 

7. Jumping on a king-size hotel bed with my best friend as part of her 29 Birthday Wahoos! celebration. We filled an entire weekend with wild and wacky activities--balloons, silly hats, silly string, riding bikes in Wal-Mart--but I must admit I truly, truly enjoyed jumping on the bed. It was one of those beautifully unencumbered moments where you do something for the sheer fun of fun, for the sheer delight of crumpling onto the floor in a heap of laughter with a person you love more than you can express. 

 

 

6. Fourth of July in Chattanooga, Tennessee. After experiencing a pretty intense situation in the wee morning hours of July 4, I found the beauty, food, coffee, and new friend in this charming city to be a soothing balm for my frazzled emotions. There's something about being alive when you could be dead that makes food and drink taste mighty fine. Thanks to Joel for the restaurant recommendation and the healing conversation. 

5. Dinner on the deck with two of my best friends on Labor Day weekend. Sarah and Becky are the kind of friends who fill you with joy by simply being who they are. I say their names and smile because their names are synonymous with grand adventures, uplifting conversations, and sorrows and joys shared. They came to visit me in early September, and we spent our time hiking, coffee-ing, eating ice cream, sauntering through parks, looking forward to the birth of their baby boys (both were in their third trimester), and barbecuing pizza to enjoy on the deck under a starlit Wyoming sky.

 

4. Coming in at a tie...riding B-Cycles around Denver and eating at Snooze for my 30th birthday in October. I figured turning 30 was something to celebrate in style, so I gathered some of my most favorite people in the world for a weekend of fun in D-town. It was one of my most favorite birthday celebrations ever! 

 

3. Walks and coffee with my mom. I have enjoyed being able to spend so much time with my folks this last year. I have appreciated the many moments of counsel and laughter we've shared. My mom is faithful and practical and loving, and I always enjoy being with her. 

 

2. Climbing Bighorn Peak with my dad. Ever since my first backpacking trip in Alaska, I've been itching to get some gear of my own and head into the hills. My dad joined me in this endeavor, and we enjoyed a couple great trips into the nearby Big Horn Mountains. Thanks for the adventures, Dad!  

1. Maria Alana Wiest! I became Aunt Hannah on April 3 when my brother and sister-in-law welcomed their daughter into the world. She is beautiful and sweet-spirited and oh-so-happy. I love her dearly, and I look forward to watching her grow into a woman after God's own heart. 

 

In all honesty, it was difficult to list only ten top moments for 2011. When I think about all the small wonders that fill a day--drinking coffee, chatting with a friend, praying for a missionary, sitting by the fire, gazing upon a starry sky--I feel like I should be able to write a Top 100 list for each and every day. I breathe. I laugh. I move. Even when a day is filled with loss and ache, I am held in the hand of God and can give thanks for His provision of grace. 

I hope you can say the same for your 2011. And I wish you a grand new year filled with delights, strength in trials, and an ever-deepening relationship with Jesus. Here's to 2012!

Delight in delight

I love Christmas! I like baking and hot cocoa and candlelight Christmas Eve services. I like traipsing through thigh deep snow to get a Christmas tree. I love giving gifts. Unlike the young child who gets up before sunrise in anticipation of opening her gifts, I can hardly sleep knowing that soon my loved ones will open the gifts I made (or bought) specifically for them. I enjoy the challenge of trying to give something that will make them smile, something they would never buy for themselves or have time to create. I delight in the delight of my family and friends.

My joy in giving, indeed, every person's desire to give good gifts to friends, family, and even strangers, is a beautiful example of being created in the image of God. If I love giving, God delights in it a million, billion, God-zillion times more. Though it was an immense sacrifice for God to send his son to earth to live, die, and rise to life again as a man, I know He delighted in giving the gift that would draw his creation into eternal relationship with Him. I know He delights in our delight. So may we never stop delighting. May we see with wonder the gifts God gives every moment of every day and give Him our exuberant gratitude in return.  

 

Our friend's dog, Daisy, leads the way on our hunt for a Christmas tree in the nearby Big Horn Mountains.

 

This is what happens when you don't have snowshoes.

 

Our young friends on their first trek into the woods to get a Christmas tree.

 

Put the tree and the kids on a sled and head on out.

 

This year's Christmas tree gang.

 

Hot cocoa and a fire while setting up our tree.

 

Dad strings the lights.

 

Reminiscing about my first Christmas.

 

Voila! 

 

Christmas Eve feast.

 

My pastor reads a Christmas story to the kids at church on Christmas day. 

Your best year yet

A family friend who is a missionary in Colombia ended his recent Christmas newsletter with these words: Merry Christmas, and may 2012 be your best year yet in your relationship with God! 

What a sweet blessing! 

What a bless-able prayer! 

As I grow older, I find my relationship with God bombarded by doubts, sleepiness, fear, and, most annoyingly, familiarity. 

I've been a Christian for a lot of years now--and been in Sunday School and church even longer--and I sometimes feel a sort of "been there, done that" attitude towards my relationship with God. I mean, I don't feel that way all the time--not at all--but I must admit that I too often ignore God's tugs on my heart to STOP all the puttering and striving and simply spend time with Him. And when I do stop, I too often open the Bible with the hope that something will magically "jump out at me," rather than disciplining myself to study all these passages and stories I've read so often, to think deeply about them and strive to understand in new ways. 

I am ashamed to admit this slacker attitude. I want to hunger and thirst after God and after His word. I don't want to be like those people in Isaiah 30:15 who God admonishes for refusing to find their salvation in repentance and rest and their strength in quietness and trust. They didn't want to bow before their King or sit in the lap of their Savior. They didn't want to listen to their Counselor or trust their tenderhearted Provider. They would have none of it, as it says in Isaiah 30:15. And that was their loss. 

I don't want it to be my loss. And so, I pray 2012 will be my best year yet in my relationship with God. And I pray 2013 will be even better, and so on, and so on. 

And, dear friend, I pray the same for you, whether you have yet to start a relationship with God or have celebrated decades of anniversaries. As author C.S. Lewis described this most paramount of relationships, may we all go "further up and further in" throughout eternity.  

Cream cheesalizing

I enjoyed lunch with my pastor's family today after church. There were nine of us, and we all ordered personal pizzas. The table was a buffet of toppings: Pepperoni and Italian sausage, Italian sausage and pepperoni, pepperoni and mushroom, mushroom and Italian sausage, Italian sausage and mandarin oranges (mine), mandarin oranges and artichoke hearts, spinach and roasted red pepper, pepperoni and cheese, cheese and cheese (the youngest eater's).

Each person ate differently. There were scarfers, shovers, benders, pickers, and nibblers. Crust first. No crust. Dipped in sauce. Cheese stripped like a blanket from a bed. Sauce licked off, dotting nose and mouth, making smiles extra wide.

Conversation slid the scale from serious to downright silly. Geography quizzes. Work. Travel plans. Death. Mario and Luigi and Wario and Waluigi (I learned something new today!).

Cream cheesalizing.

Verb.

The act of putting cream cheese on a bagel.

"Why not cream cheesing?" I asked my pastor's oldest son when he told me of their family's made-up word.

"I don't know," he answered. "Cream cheesalizing just fit our family, I guess. You could have cream cheesing."

Well, since my young friend offered, I think I will. Cream cheesing will be my verb. But I'll gladly share it, if you'd like. Because, you see, that is the wonder of words. On the page or as sound waves in the air, words can "just fit" whatever situation, person, idea or emotion needs fitting, much like the myriad pizza toppings at lunch today.

Of course, in writing gone wrong or speech that should have been left unspoken, words can also very much not fit. There is danger in words, too.

And I suppose that is why I like words so much. That is why I write. I like the challenge of fitting words to what needs to be said. I like telling the stories of the people around me, the stories of the world. And I hope above all hope that every story I tell and every word I speak--on the page or in the air--also tells the story of God, for from Him and through Him and to Him are all things (Romans 11:36).

Cream cheesalizing.

Verb.

Wheeze the words

To say I have a serious case of writer's block is an understatement. If there were doctors who cured the ails of writers (lack of sleep, lack of a steady job, lack of income, etc., etc., etc.), I would have to see them all...and then drive eight hours to see a specialist for a second opinion and that magic drug none of the local docs have on hand. 

To say this case of writer's block is frustrating is also an understatement. I have resorted to poorly written humor on a public blog just to make something come out, even if I must squeeze the words--

drip, drip--

coax the words--

purlop, purlop--

wheeze the words--

shew, whoo--

out of my brain and onto the page.

I don't know what, exactly, has caused my ailment, but I do know I'll do about anything to make it better. Bring on the chicken soup, clear fluids, rambling posts, blankets, Kleenex, and bad metaphors.

I will write again. And, by golly, it will be good.

(Cue inspirational music.)

I want my heroes back

I sometimes wonder if we've become a generation without heroes. And, if so, I wonder when, exactly, that happened. When did so many of us decide to turn a cynical eye toward the world and nearly everybody in it? And now that 8-year-olds have mastered the art of detached cynicism, will anyone aim to be just like...someone admirable?

When I was 8, I thought Scottie Pippen was the coolest. I entered a writing contest he sponsored and won a T-Shirt that told me in bright neon letters that I should work hard, dream big, play fair, give my all, go for it. I never once thought those encouragements were trite or hypocritical. Working hard worked for Scottie Pippen, so why would it not work for me?

Was I naive? Or are heroes truly valuable for kids...and adults, too, for that matter? And what do we do when the traditional heroes of old--sports stars, musicians, presidents, astronauts--let our kids, and us, down? Do we need to be choosier about who qualifies as a hero? Or is it better to claim no heroes and avoid the crushing disappointment when they fall?

Maybe heroes are less human and more quality. But how do you, how does a kid, aim to be like the quality of hard work or morality or generosity without seeing that quality encapsulated in a human, in a hero?

I, for one, want my heroes back. I want to have a dozen answers to this question my mom and I were tossing around at breakfast this morning: If you could invite any historical figure (other than Jesus, from ancient or recent history) who has had an impact on your life to share your Thanksgiving meal, who would you invite? Who would you want to thank for the impression, big or small, that they made on you?

I have a few heroes I would invite, but it's less than I'd like, so I'm going to start looking for heroes again. I'm going to look for everyday heroes, and I'm going to work on being less cynical about the people who could be heroes if I'd stop making snide remarks and give them a chance.

And in the meantime, I'm going to work hard, play fair, pump others up, and give it my all. I'm going to leave it all on the court, as they say. And perhaps some other day I'll blog about how much I really, really like sports cliches...

Snoozing on my 30th

My last post about turning 30 was awfully serious. True. But serious. I was able to indulge in a lot of introspection, a lot of looking back, and a lot of looking ahead, and I am thankful for that. But I also wanted you all to know how much fun I had turning the big 3-0.

My best friend met me in Casper, and we drove down to Denver for the weekend, stopping to see three more of my best friends in Douglas. On Saturday, I met up with a dear friend for coffee and two more best friends came up from Colorado Springs to tear it up in Denver with me. Then, on Sunday, my actual birthday, two more best friends (and a bonus friend who was visiting them) came down to indulge in a morning of Snoozing.

Not sleeping, mind you. Snooze is an a.m. eatery in downtown Denver that serves up the best pancakes and coffee in the world and offers more of an exuberant eating experience than just a meal. It deserves its own verb: snoozing.

We did a bunch of fun, silly things I've always wanted to do in Denver, visited some beloved favorites, and had an all around blast. But even better than that, my heart got filled to bursting with the joy of being with people I dearly love. Thank you, dear friends, for loving me in return and making me feel so special. My cheers go not to another year and long life, but to old friends, new friends, and friends-yet-to-be who give us meaningful years and full lives! Cheers!

Stopped in Douglas to enjoy lunch with Sarah and Becky and the newest addition to my circle of friends: baby Samuel. I miss you ladies terribly. Did my heart good to see you. Also enjoyed seeing my friend, Liz, for a bit. Just forgot to snap a photo.

Met up for coffee with my friend Staci and her kiddos. So good catching up!

Ben and Sarah came up from Colorado Springs. We went to a 3D IMAX. Who knew cuddle fish could cause such jump scares?

We climbed on dinosaurs.

We did lots of silly self-timed photos because I got a Gorilla Pod for my birthday from my parents. A Gorilla Pod is a bendable tripod that can shoot a photo anywhere.

We went to the Tattered Cover Bookstore...my favorite bookstore of all time. It was celebrating its 40th anniversary, so we enjoyed some cake.

Tattered Cover Bookstore. Photo courtesy Gorilla Pod.

This is something I've always wanted to do! We rented B-Cycles, also known as "those red bikes," and rode around Denver.

We pushed our bikes from 16th Street Mall up and over the river and interstate to get to one of my favorite ice cream places on the other side.

You have 1/2 hour to check your bike in at one of 52 B-Cycle stations in the city before you start accruing a larger rental fee. Makes it challenging. Here we are switching out our bikes.

You gotta go here if you're ever in Denver. (By the way, we shot this photo on a hill and I'm on the lower end... And, yeah, I'm short.)

Attached the Gorilla Pod to my bike basket and shot photos and video while riding. Wahoo!

My beautiful bestest best friend, Lindsey. So glad she could join us for this adventure. Loved road-tripping with her and miss her dearly.

Ben and Sarah rocking the B-cyles.

We went to Casa Bonita of South Park fame. Yes, it's real.

When you raise the red flag, your waiter or waitress comes running to see what you need. Raising the flag also means you want more endless sopapillas.

Lins, me, Sarah, and Ben in front of the waterfall that cliff divers dive over.

They juggle fire at Casa Bonita, too. And then they dive off the cliff into a worryingly small pool of water.

The cliff diver's waterfall.

Casa Bonita also features magicians, mariachi bands, and the haunted Black Bart's Cave.

Ahhh, how cute.

The view from our hotel room. And some frighteningly accessible ledges on the side of the hotel.

Part of the Snooze experience is sitting outside on the heated patio, drinking coffee, chatting with friends and strangers alike, and playing board games. We played Trivial Pursuit.

The hustle-bustle of Snooze.

Josh and Christi came down from Cheyenne to enjoy breakfast with us. Soooooo good to see them and enjoy a few hours together. Miss them lots.

Josh and Christi, me, Ben and Sarah, Lindsey. Best breakfast ever!

The addition of Christi's friend Stacy made it even better!

My pancake flight (blue mesa pancake made with corn and topped with chili-spiced maple syrup, blueberry lemon bar pancake, and a pancake of the day with strawberries, chocolate sauce and white mouse) came out with candles in it. Happy Birthday indeed!

Snooze! Friends! So happy!