the future

Yep, we got Engineer James and RN Lindsey married.  I don't know exactly what their future will be but it looks good.  I know they are NOT ne'er-do-goods!  Oh no!  I asked their parents to describe them.  James' parents describe James as self-reliant and hard working.  Lindsey's parents described Lindsey as tender and persistent.  The dude driving the car is my brother-in-law (i.e. Lindsey's papa).  Ya that's his car.  I think he refurbished it all himself.  He likes cars let me tell ya.  He's a regular car nut--but a good, nice nut!

My sisters were like little Annas (i.e. our Mom) to me.  They treated me soooooo gooood.  Spoiled me rotten.  I felt like I was 10 years old and Anna was taking care of me again.  I'm starting to see these Anna qualities in all of their girls and in our daughter and daughter-in-law.  Yes I am.  The future looks good.  Lindsey has two nice sisters and both are pregnant sooooooooo there is the future folks.  Rachael, one of her pregnant sisters, told me that their other sister, Sarah, is the most like their mom.  Much more than Lindsey or her. 

I gave some ranger boots to one of my niece's three boys to share (i.e. William, Abrahm, and Nickalos Erivn).  Well the boots fit Ab.  He really liked them I think.  He wore them to the wedding.  All of our great nephews sure seem to be great guys.  The future looks good folks.  Ab and Will rode with us to the reception.  We stopped at a conveience store and I bought them any treat that they wanted.  I told them " the sky is the limit"!  Now you know why they are all smiles (i.e. sugar).  Such is life.

The little guy is Nickolas Ervin.  He's a good little guy but really wasn't much impressed with the wedding.  The guy with the Micky Mouse tie is Chapin.  He's a straight A student and seems to take after his dad as he is very good with the computer.  His future looks good.  The other pic is of the ring bearers (i.e. our great nephews).  BigCousinWill is teaching Ben and Sam stuff.  As cute as they are, their future looks gooooood too!  Remember the story I wrote about maybe 6 or 7 or 8 years ago about when I went for a bike ride from Grandville to Byron Center with my niece Sarah and had breakfast?  We talked about her life and she said she would really like to meet some guy.  I told her I would pray that some guy would come into her life.  She met this guy and his name is Guy!  That's right.  These boys are their children.  Such is life.

The reception was in Holland, MI.  And that means Dutch folks.  It was in a civic building that was once a school.  It was neat.  ANYWAY when the dance was almost over, I went out and to the bathroom.  There was sorta kinda a sitting area soooooo I sat down and was trying to figure out the writing on the wall.  It said--So teach us to number our days that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom.  ANYWAY  As I was reading it a guy from the wedding dance came by.  I asked him if he believed that.  He read it and said--I can agree with that but I can't agree with all of the Bible--Really, what can't you believe of the Bible.  It's not logical and some of it makes no sense; you can't take it literally--really--I don't want to talk about it--I'm interested; I won't argue with you.  I just want to hear what you have to say--ok then, let's go outside; I'm hot from dancing.  We step outside and he really vented about how his uncle is gay and his grandfather doesn't love him (i.e. what kind of Christian love is that).  Gluttony is one of the 7 deadly sins and no one complains about that but they complain about gays.  Sooooo what do you think--he said to me--I said I wasn't going to voice my opinion.  Ok, how can God let innocent kids get killed and drug dealers and users live?  He started to really get excited now (i.e. used the f word quite a bit).  He said--I have little kids and can't understand how God would let terrible stuff  happen to them and let crazy guys go on--I know the Bible as I went through all my education in Christian schools sooooo don't think I don't know the Bible.  Sooooo what do you think.  I told you I was not going to argue with you but just listen.  But, I want to tell you this.  A week or soooo ago I was in Littleton, CO and went to buy a mindless novel at the GoodWill Store.  There was another book beside it that caught my attention.  It was the Ideas and Opinions of Albert Einstein.  I paraphrased what I'm going to write from the book.  "The most beautiful experience we can have is the mysterious...A knowledge of the existence of something we cannot penetrate, our perceptions of the profoundest reason and the most radiant beauty, which only in their most primitive forms are accessible to our minds--it is this knowledge and this emotion that constitute true religiosity; in this esense, and his alone, I am a deeply religious man.  I cannot conceive of a God who rewards and punishes his creatures, or has a will of the kind that we experience in ourselves...I am satisfied with the mystery of the eternity of life and with the awareness and a glimpse of the marvelous structure of the existing world, together with the devotes striving to comprehend a portion, be it ever so tiny, of the Reason that manifest itself in nature."  When I got done, he said, I can agree with that (i.e. I was telling him in erv's way about faith).  What the future holds for him?  I don't have a clue.  Such is life.

On Friday afternoon I had the opportunity to play golf with my other bother-in- law Jack and one of his son-in-laws, my nephew-in-law.  I like all my nephew-in-laws.  They are great guys (i.e. the future looks good folks).  The one I golfed with is in the pic.  He was the Mister of the Mister and Mistress of the wedding.  I called  him the flower boy.  ANYWAY  he makes a living by being a teck boy.  I asked him about the battery in my lap top which will only hold a charge for about 15 minutes--how old is it he asked--maybe 3 to 4 years old--You need a new computer; putting a battery in that old computer is like putting lipstick on a pig!  Soooo there you go!  Dallas doesn't seem to understand that I'm retired and on a fixed income!  After he and my niece Lauren first got married, they were traveling to NW Iowa from MI.  They stopped at my office on that hot summer day.  It was about a 100 degrees.  He had the windows open in the car as he wouldn't run the AC in order to save money.  I gave him $5 soooooo he run the AC!  Such is life.

Friday night we had the opportunity to go with my sister and brother-in-law to see their grand son Hugh perform with his middle school jazz band at Hastings, MI.  They have a jazz festival started by a band guy in the school some years ago.  Many bands come in and play (i.e. 56 this year).  Hugh's band played 4 songs (i.e. Arlene said they were very good) and then a music professor from Hope College worked with them to encourage them and went over a few things to make them better.  The kids really seemed to enjoy it.  I asked Hugh if he is going to continue jazz band next year as a freshman--no, I'm going to marching band.  Why not continue--two reasons:  one my friends are going to marching band and second, I don't want to do a solo!  It's toooooo stressful.  Hugh did a solo the next morning in competition and got a 1.  I told him he could do it.  His future looks good!  Soooooooo,  a Hastings merchant told me that the weekend of the jazz festival is their best business weekend of the year.  Maybe it's all about the money! 

I asked Grandma Kuipers to say something about the future of James and Lindsey.  This is the wisdom she gave me to pass on the the newly weds:  These are my thoughts for Lindsey and James...ENJOY LIFE  Enjoy life. Savor each precious moment  For it is God's gift to you. Enjoy those that surround you For they have been put in your life For a purpose.  Whether it be someone entering for but a moment Or those who daily make an entrance into the life that is you, Be aware of their presence. Have joy. Be at peace. Share that which God has given you to share.  Listen ~ And then shall you receive that lasting and fulfilling blessing Which comes not from the demands that things make on our lives But from giving that commodity we call time To people ~ God's crowning creation. 

Oh the future!  What will it be?  When we were in CO, Heather used our car (i.e. sooooo we could use hers with the infant seats in it while we took care of the grand kids).  When I used our car the next day, she had the radio tuned to her station and this song was playing.  Sooooo I called the radio station and got the song's name.    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=40zNC-6aISk  We all affect the future of others.  Yes we do.  Saturday question--How are you affecting the future of others?

Have a FUN day my friends unless you have other plans. (-:

erv

MyFriendJean says--The man told his wife that a husband is like a fine wine--he gets better with age.  So she locked him in the cellar!

There are only two ways to live your life. One, as if nothing is a miracle. Two, as if everything is.
~Albert Einstein~