When a Stranger Calls

This past Monday evening we had a very interesting experience at the old Blue Lagoon. Hazel and I had just come home from work and settling in with the kids when there was a knock on the door. I answered the door and there stood a pretty large man with a long shiny pony tail and some rather large silver balls in his ears. He asked if he could use the phone to call our on again off again neighbor across the street. Her story is a tragic tale that is a complete story in itself.
I brought him the phone and he dialed a number only to get a answering machine. He kept calling her baby throughout his message and the thoughts running through my mind were who the heck are you and what are you doing in Shelbyville looking for my neighbor. I asked him how he knew my neighbor and he said they met online. I told him he might want to walk inside my neighbors house if its open just to make sure she wasn't there. I knew she had a history of drinking until she passed out and I thought maybe she just was not answering. Anyway this at least got him off my porch and I could continue to perfect my spaghetti dinner I was working on.
After I had just stuffed the last Italian turkey sausage meatball in my mouth there was another knock on my door. Hazel said "he's back" (kind of like right out of a horror movie) and I answered the door. He said that my neighbor never showed up and wondered if I could give him a ride partially back to Grand Rapids. I looked at Hazel and I could see in her eyes that we both knew what was the right thing to do, but neither one of us wanted me to get in a car with this guy and go somewhere. I looked at Hazel and by this time Iris and Lily had come into the room and greeted him and I just said: "OK I will give you a ride". I asked him his name and where he was staying and before I walked out the door I told Hazel which way I would take to Grand Rapids and if she didn't hear from me in an hour to call the police. This sounds kind of harsh but that's just the gut feeling I got from this guy. We got in the car and for some reason I just said to him: "you know you are really freaking my wife out right now". Actually I was the one who was feeling a little nervous. I am not sure what was going on through Hazels head. As we headed to town we passed the local McDonald's and I asked him if he was hungry or wanted a coffee and he said he was fine. I found out he took a bus here from Flint to meet my neighbor and he gave his last $10 to a guy for a ride as he hitch hiked out to Shelbyville from Grand Rapids. I was still a little nervous and kept thinking to myself that what if this is the last time I see my daughters and my wife. I could picture him robbing me and leaving me for dead along the highway. The joke would have been on him because I had $2.00 in quarters and a Ppay pal card with probably $15 on it. He was staying at a cheap hotel on South Division and 36'th street and for small talk I asked how much the room was. He said it was $38. I said I guess you should have used price line dot com in my terrible William Shatner voice. He should have killed me just for my smart ass remark. Well to make a interesting story (or not) to a close we reached the hotel and I dropped him off. I immediately called Hazel to tell her all was well. Then I proceeded to drive home feeling pretty good about myself for doing a good deed finally. (see my last blog). I guess it was one of those thank God moments and just a reminder of cleaning the spaghetti my kids throw on the floor isn't really that bad.

The Angel and the Demon were sitting at a corner

No this is not the beginning of some lame joke. Last week I had an experience that I just cant get out of my head. It keeps tossing around inside me like a load of dirty laundry stuck in the spin cycle of my washing machine of a brain. I was heading over to Byron Center to pick up Iris and Lily after a long day of work in Midland and Mount Pleasant Michigan. As I approached the corner of 76th st and Clyde Park I saw in the distance a man with a sign in his hand. As I got closer I saw that the sign was asking for help to feed his family. Unfortunately for me the light turned red. As I began slowing down to a stop I saw the man set down his sign and begin to walk toward the Family Fare Quick Stop across the street. A well dressed lady was standing there calling and motioning him to come over. She had a grocery bag in her hands and I assume she was going to give it to him. The light stayed red long enough for me to watch what was happening. Of course I thought to myself what a good deed that lady was doing. I started thinking what I might have done if this lady wouldn't have bailed me out. Would Dan the deacon at his church actually helped this guy out? I probably would have sat at the corner trying not to make eye contact with him and then quickly sped away to get home to make dinner. It sure seemed that God was purposely keeping this light red long enough so I could sit and observe and start thinking about what was going on. I remember looking down at the floor of my car and seeing the subway sandwich wrapper from the 12" sub I had previously eaten. I wasn't hungry enough to eat the whole thing but a $5 foot long was a better deal then getting a 6 inch. I ate it anyway. I remember while driving home I was wondering about what I was going to cook for dinner that night. I also heard a few radio promos for places to drop off a frozen turkey's to donate for Thanksgiving and thinking how cool that is. Of course I didn't do that either even though I was planning on stopping at the grocery store on the way home. I guess I felt guilty enough at the time not to stop. to pick up groceries but to go home and cook with what we had available. For over a week now the would haves, should haves and could haves have filled my brain. That experience of a week ago is still playing over again in my brain. That afternoon I saw a Angel at work helping out a person in need. I also saw a demon at work. He was in my rear view mirror as I checked traffic to drive away. I think its kind of ironic how this event happened over a week ago and I finally have time to sit and write about it on Thanksgiving morning.

Goodbye Aunt Ann

This week I received a email from my father saying that my Aunt Ann DeVries had died.
I knew she was weakening in life but did not know she was in a hospice praying for the day that Jesus took her hand and took her home to heaven. Typical DeVries communication. This had the usual sad moment in my busy life and then it went on to worrying about my job and Hazel's job and raising the kids. Later I had time to travel down memory lane and think about my past relationship with my Aunt. The first thing that I recalled was how way back in Orange City Iowa (go Hawkeyes) was the beginning of my earliest memories. Aunt Ann lived down the street or streets and was the only close relative we had. My best memory is that on a few Saturdays she would bring me to Unity Christian High School and open up the gym door and let me shoot baskets for awhile. She was my local Grandma and always had a gift for me on birthdays and Christmas. After we moved to Byron Center Michigan I am not sure what road she traveled.
The next prominent memory is going to Ft Lauderdale Florida and visiting her there. I had the experience of going on one of those boats with big propeller on the back and visiting some of the Florida tourist traps. This is also the first time I tried skateboarding. Not a great experience for a big clumsy dutch kid. I guess this is my memories as a youth. Kind of sad I think. After that I was busy going to junior high and high school and then college and the rest of my life. I believe that all I knew of Aunt Ann during that period is that she was in Arizona. Probably wearing some rainbow shades. I know through doing taxes that she relocated to Cadillac and was with my Uncle Bert. The DeVries family has kind of went their separate ways and if it wasn't for facebook I wouldn't know squat about what is shaking the family tree. And this is also just as much my fault for not paying attention or being involved in any family functions. It started me thinking about some of my other cousins and what was happening in their lives. I guess I should go to the funeral and find out. That would be a great place to start. Anyway I know that my Aunt Ann is in heaven and hopefully talking to my mom about her two newest grandchildren and how darn cute they are. I just wish I had a little more story o tell.

christian daycare

This coming Monday our 2 year old Iris begins a new journey by attending a new daycare.
When researching a new daycare we looked for obvious things like cleanliness, curriculum
location ect. We narrowed down to two choices. I mentioned to one daycare my choices and they
said "well were a christian daycare" and the other is not. This started the wheels of my mind turning and I said: "I guess it depends on your definition of "christian". She kind of looked at me funny like this was a conversation that she wanted no part of. I started to wonder if maybe I would be better placing Iris in the "unchristian" daycare so I could mingle with the unchristians. Besides I really do not think my daughter cares if we celebrate winter solstice or christmas as long as she gets some presents. Well I selected the christian daycare because I liked the overall set up and thought it would be best for my daughter Iris. I'm still having second guesses, but it makes for good blogging on a total crappy weather day.

rockin to Todd Agnew

Last Sunday my wife Hazel and I were late to church as usual and luckily got to sit in the third rowe. The worship band was just ending a song and proceeded to sing "grace like rain" by Todd Agnew. Our new worship leader Robert Morton had this song whipped up so nicely that It just blew me away. I know this will be added to my I pod shuffle ASAP.