went treasure hunting again and i begin the new year with some lessons i want to remember as i continue on this journey of life. most of these lessons, i feel like i learned in 2008 through failure or the hard way but God is good all the time.

when you have difficulty loving others, remember:
"The root of Christian love is not the will to love
but the faith to believe that one is deeply loved by God."
 - thomas merton

on christian hospitality and friendship:
"But when I have begun to be a person with a quiet, still center,
I can invite others to come and rest there. It is out of this place that soul friends
offer their gifts of presence, stillness, safety, and love.
- david benner, "sacred companions"

a father's love:
"for the moment all discipline seem painful rather than pleasant,
but later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those
who have been trained by it.
- hebrews 12:11

one thing i love about parenting is that you can relive your childhood through their eyes and go back and do some things that you wish your parents had done for you. being that my parents were immigrants in minnesota living life on survival mode, i did not get to do things like go to the "nutcracker ballet" when i was young. so when i got offered some free tickets, i did a grand jete (not literally) and grabbed it.

the plot was a little strange (like it was written by someone on drugs) but i loved it. the dancing was beautiful. now that i am older, i can appreciate how very very very difficult it is to get one's body to do those moves so gracefully.

the boys actually enjoyed the first half, especially the battle between the nutcrackers and the mice. if we had left right after the first half, it would have been perfect. they were very fidgety and bored during the second half. good thing i had a stash of sour patch kids and cheetos in my bag. i was prepared. well, here is what they thought in their own words:

soren: i think they are using the music from "tom and jerry."
silas: why don't they just talk? i don't get it.
seth: don't take me to the bal-way ever a-dain.
sawyer: zzzzzz (he slept through the second half)

at least they didn't make any lewd comments about the men in tights.