Friends passing through...

Yesterday morning I took E down to the baseball field for the annual cleanup before the season opener. Wish I had pictures. E and his teammates, a bunch of really young t-ballers, and some adults all worker very hard. They emptied the railroad container shed, sorting through old gear and uniforms to see what could be used and what should be tossed. The coach and older boys leveled the dirt around the dugout for cement to be poured. A couple dads replaced the one wall in the dugout that had a hole.

We came home and picked up our lawn mower to take it into the shop. It's not working, and our grass is getting long.

When we got back home we had an e-mail from my old friend, Annette. I mentioned her briefly just a couple days ago. I met her at a Youth Conservation Corp in 1980. In 1981 I went to visit her in Bend. She took me to a concert with the Continental Singers, where I began my journey with Jesus. In 1982 I had no hope for a prom date. Annette was attending Southern Oregon State College down in Ashland. She made the long bus trip to Portland to go with me to my prom. A couple years later she had a bout with Hodgekin's Disease and was teaching up in Hood Canal, WA, to see her. Brother and sister, friends in the truest sense.

She visited Jodie and I in 1990 when we got married. My mom and I drove to Kirkland, WA, for her wedding. We felt like E was too young for the trip at the time.

Yesterday, Annette and Dave we driving home from Bend. We were able to meet up at Main City Park in Gresham. They have three wonderful kids. Our E is 12; they have an E who is 5. Very mechanical, serious minded little guy. And they have twin 2 year old girls -- very cute. They were born through a special embryo adoption process. Our E had a ball with the kids. He caught them as they came down the slide.

We went to Wall Street Pizza for dinner. Dave works for a computer company up in Redmond, WA...you may have heard of them. Annette has been a Spanish teacher. Her kids speak Spanish.

We had a really good time. We hope to make it up their way this summer.

And friends are friends forever
If the lords the lord of them
And a friend will not say never
cause the welcome will not end
Though its hard to let you go
In the fathers hands we know
That a lifetimes not too long to live as friends.

---Michael W Smith