chicken coop heroes

well, we just returned from our annual trip to the suwannee river & we had a blast!  we spent 2 weeks at camp & both weeks were fantastic.  then we went to "hog heaven" (the folsom river house) & here is where our story begins...

grandaddy bought a fishing boat after they bought the river house.  it's been a great boat, but in recent years has seen more repairs than actual water time.  however, this trip our boat was in prime shape & we had some awesome boat time.  we had our friends (the peacocks - "ca-caaaaaw!") over the first day & we did tons of boating and tubing from the boat.  it was super fun.  our boating/tubing continued for the next 2 days. the boat started every single time (something that was not in its recent repertoire), ran smoothly, & much enjoyment was had by all.  so we decided to take a longer boat ride downstream to the santa fe river.  in the past, this trip would be risky because should the boat choose to stop working, you would have to get home upstream - something we would NOT want to do.  but with our boat being faithful all week, we took the trip - not even considering it a risk...and it was great.  we took in the sights & sun & did tons of tubing as well.  it was a good day. 

as we neared our house, jonah was tubing & we noticed that the sky was growing black & a storm was a brewing.  good thing we're only a minute or two away from home.  thinking that it would be easier to dock the boat with jonah & the tube inside the boat rather than out, chris stopped & pulled them in.  and now, for the first time all week, the boat would not start.  it wouldn't turn over.  nothing.  we were at a loss as we sat floating away from home with a storm creeping up on us.  and in the midst of this challenge, hero training began.

chris grabbed the 2 paddles that are always in the boat (i told you that it has a history of unreliability) & we began paddling upstream.  after only moments, one of the paddles broke in half & sank in the suwannee.  we realized very quickly that this method was going to get us nowhere.  so chris directs us to the opposite shoreline (closest to where we were) & formulates a plan.  after a few possibilities, he decides that he is going to take the tube & paddle himself upstream & across the river to our house, go up the dock & retrieve the kayak & some extra oars, paddle back to us, tie the boat to the kayak & then all of us would row, row, row the boat back home.  his plan worked & was executed well.  it was HARD!  it was now pouring rain.  we had been in the sun for hours before & were hot, tired, & hungry.  tension & pressure were mounting in me & the boys as we waiting & fear crept in...but chris stepped up & not only rallied us to victory, but showed our boys how to be a hero. 

the definition of a hero is:  "a man of distinguished courage or ability, admired for his brave & noble qualities."  this is chris.  he models JESUS.  & i pray this will also be jonah & winston.  we are folsoms.  and although its meaning may seem lowly ("owner of chicken coop"), we are striving to be what GOD made us to be - chicken coop heroes.  "ba-baaawk!"


(stay tuned for the follow up saga of how we got the boat off the river.)

deer God

so i'm spending some time at camp suwannee for a couple of weeks again this summer.  and i don't think you can be here for any amount of time without taking notice of creation.  i find this especially true when i go running early each morning.  i watch the sun rise, view a visible layer of mist/dew along the fields, hear the birds chirp their morning tunes, & witness deer - up close.  ya see, i'm a city girl.  i grew up in miami where i really thought that meat just came from publix.  somewhere in the back of my mind i knew that there were animals involved, but i surely never saw them.  and now i live in nashville, where animals are around - but not usually in my neighborhood  (unless we're talking about annoying dogs...but i'll post on that another time). anyway, i often pray as i run & ask GOD to reveal himself to me.  as i've posted earlier, He has shown up in the pink sky & the beautiful trees.  but this week, i have seen Him in the deer. 

on several occasions i have witnessed a family of deer (a mama & 2 young'ns) run right across my path.  they seem pretty close to me - for wildlife - but they are skiddish as soon as i get anywhere really near them.  they run for cover & find themselves instantly camouflaged as they hit the tree line.  that is, until yesterday.  as i was running through a more isolated area, there was a young deer standing in my path ahead.  i looked at him & he at me.  i thought "GOD, he's so cool.  it's awesome to see him so close."  but, i am assuming that as i draw closer, he will flee.  however, maybe he was as curious about me as i was about him, he just stood there.  i got closer & closer & at one point he took a step backward - but no running.  i actually got to within a couple of feet of him before he decided he should go.  it was pretty amazing.  and that's when i was reminded that my GOD is also the deer GOD.  He is LORD of ALL creation & whether GOD put the curiosity in that deer's mind to check me out or just told him to stand still where he was, that deer & i shared a moment with our GOD.  i am in awe that the GOD of the universe makes moments like this possible for me...& the deer.