Dearest Rachel – Life does not work like literature, honey. Anton Chekov insisted that a gun that appears in the first act of a stage play must be fired by the third act, but that’s not how things work in real life. Your dad’s pistol, hidden (ironically) in a book with its pages hollowed out,Continue reading “Showing Up, At Least”
Monthly Archives: August 2026
Pleasure and Penance
Dearest Rachel – After Daniel passed his driving test (which I’ve never had to take a second time, so even I would worry about missing a key thing or two), I thought it would be worth going out to eat to celebrate. It’s not like either of the boys weren’t already thinking about lunch, asContinue reading “Pleasure and Penance”
from Rachel: Children of the Day
Note how Jesus referred to this continuum in John 17:20: I pray not only for these, but also “for those who will believe in me through their message.” To what location did Paul and Silas first go in Thessalonica? “the synagogue” How many Sabbaths did they serve in Thessalonica? “3” Carefully read Acts 17:2-3. WhatContinue reading “from Rachel: Children of the Day”
Take Two
Dearest Rachel – Well, considering that last week turned out to be a washout, I wasn’t expecting much out of this week’s attempt for the boys to get their licenses renewed and updated. At the same time, it’s not like we didn’t know what documentation we hadn’t thought to bring last time around, so maybeContinue reading “Take Two”
Summoned to Stand By
Dearest Rachel – I never expected to write you twice about mail in the same week. True, I call these posts that I “send” to you “letters,” but there’s no postal service between heaven and earth that can assure that they would be delivered and read – at least, not by you. Anything that happensContinue reading “Summoned to Stand By”
And You Thought I Was Bad When I Worked…
Dearest Rachel – I’m not going to lie, but my recent evening routine would probably shock you, honey. You would stay up until the wee hours of the night, after all, fighting off the sandman as if a mortal enemy. You might nod off in front of a computer while we hung out together inContinue reading “And You Thought I Was Bad When I Worked…”
Mail for Your Mom
Dearest Rachel – I don’t recall exactly when it was that you set things up so that your parents’ mail would arrive at our place. It would have been after you and I got them to agree to in-home nursing care (which they preferred to the idea of having to be placed in a retirementContinue reading “Mail for Your Mom”
Caught Cheating
Dearest Rachel – For all that Lars is a doctor, as well as a friend I walk with on a regular basis (although not as regular of late, since this past week held various scheduling conflicts between the two of us, and the week before saw me in Honduras, where I had… other issues withContinue reading “Caught Cheating”
It Would Never Work
Dearest Rachel – It was a relatively small crowd that went down to Honduras a couple of weeks ago – closer to fifteen rather than twenty, which has been the rough average of previous trips (in fairness, they are doing a greater number of trips this year, thereby spreading volunteers out among multiple weeks, ratherContinue reading “It Would Never Work”
from Rachel: Being a Ministry-Minded Overseer (part five)
In the blanks below write the two most significant statements in today’s reading assignment. Be prepared to discuss why the statements you chose were significant to you.“…‘the biggest day’ of our lives… will be the day when we all stand up before Jesus Christ to give an account of our usefulness to him during thisContinue reading “from Rachel: Being a Ministry-Minded Overseer (part five)”
At The Last Minute
Dearest Rachel – It was a good thing that I had basically finished my ‘work’ for the month (you know, the reports to be delivered to the elders and such like) by the end of the day on Thursday, honey. Yesterday wound up getting pre-empted by so much else happening at the last minute thatContinue reading “At The Last Minute”
Treeman Doesn’t Care
Dearest Rachel – I occasionally find myself wondering how much you remember of life down here, after gulping down a draft from the river Lethe. To be sure, that’s a completely mythological waterway, but given how memory fades over time down here – and you’ve traveled much further than I have in that intervening time,Continue reading “Treeman Doesn’t Care”
Indulgent Parenting
Dearest Rachel – So yesterday was a short one at the ‘office’; normally, I’d be there from at least ten until three, but I had my semi-annual dental appointment (yes, I’m far more faithful with that than my physical check-up. In fact, I’m not even sure how that works, now that Daniel and I haveContinue reading “Indulgent Parenting”
Chocolate and Soap
Dearest Rachel – This is the sort of thing you and I would share of an idle morning, or maybe talk about while we were walking Chompers around the block or two that he needed to do all the business he had to deal with. Meaningless, nonsense stuff; the sort of thing that was goodContinue reading “Chocolate and Soap”
Free to Walk Around
Dearest Rachel – Yesterday morning, after enduring two gullywashers in quick succession on Sunday (one of which knocked out the power in the house for about an hour or so), the temperature here (to say nothing of the threat of rain, although there was a high dome of clouds covering the sky that lasted throughoutContinue reading “Free to Walk Around”
The Long Trip Back
Dearest Rachel – It seems odd to focus on the flights to and from any given destination when I write to you about traveling; really, it’s the least interesting part of the whole trip. Then again, the process takes the better part of a day either way – be it the trip to and fromContinue reading “The Long Trip Back”
from Rachel: Being a Ministry-Minded Overseer (part four)
In the blanks below write the two most significant statements in today’s reading assignment. Be prepared to discuss why the statements you chose were significant to you.“Tragically, the child training responsibility is approached with the same mentality as is the pile of dirty dishes on the kitchen counter. Instead of attending to them on aContinue reading “from Rachel: Being a Ministry-Minded Overseer (part four)”
Soft Americans
Dearest Rachel – This has been quite the week, honey. Given the hardscrabble life that is common among Hondurans, it’s understandable that they would consider us Americans ‘soft’ in comparison, even if they would never say so to our faces save perhaps in jest, like guys do among themselves. On the subject of guys, I’mContinue reading “Soft Americans”
I Hate Such Dreams
Dearest Rachel – I hate dreams like the one last night, full of love and affection and false hope. I suppose I should be grateful for the fact that at this point, they don’t come around very much, but when they do, they hit hard, especially when I become aware of what’s going on, andContinue reading “I Hate Such Dreams”
Refusing the Call to Adventure
Dearest Rachel – Friday in Honduras is what’s referred to as “adventure day” by the folks at Just One for the members of the visiting “vision teams.” It’s meant to be a day of fun, a respite from and, to some extent, a reward (yes, there’s that term again) for the work put into theContinue reading “Refusing the Call to Adventure”
A Burden Lifted, A Blessing Granted
Dearest Rachel – A kilo of corn meal, a kilo of sugar, a kilo of milk powder, a kilo of salt. A bag of beans and bouillon cubes. Two bags (as opposed to boxes like we have at home) of spaghetti, and a box of cornflakes. Candles and ketchup, toothpaste and soap. You pack allContinue reading “A Burden Lifted, A Blessing Granted”
Everyone Wants to be an Entrepreneur
Dearest Rachel – It isn’t something that I expected when I started in on my class regarding budgeting (well, more like record-keeping, because how do you create a budget when you don’t know what you spent on things to begin with?), but once the kids started asking questions, so many of them had to doContinue reading “Everyone Wants to be an Entrepreneur”
No Longer Dry
Dearest Rachel – Well, the rains finally came; and when they did, they came pouring down. It would be just when I get through telling you about how they skipped past us, making a liar out of me. I can’t say that I’m looking forward to the No Hungry Home walk in this slop tomorrow;Continue reading “No Longer Dry”
The Dry Season
Dearest Rachel – Last summer, when I was in Honduras for the first time, it seemed like every night found us dealing with a rainstorm. For the most part, it didn’t interfere with our work during the day (unless you count our interactions with the students on the soccer pitch to be part of ourContinue reading “The Dry Season”
Don’t Know What To Expect
Dearest Rachel – This may be my third time down here in Honduras, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that I know what to expect from any given day. There’s a fairly regular weekly schedule (complete with the fact that I tend to be “on” on Wednesdays for my class; not sure why, exactly), and certainContinue reading “Don’t Know What To Expect”
From A Quarter to One
Dearest Rachel – I’ve been told about numerous misadventures that various groups have had en route to and from Honduras – lost luggage, missed connections, and the like – but I’ve never experienced any of them myself thus far. Well, there’s a first time for everything, I suppose. Not that this was much of aContinue reading “From A Quarter to One”
Full of Food and Doubt
Dearest Rachel – I don’t remember which one it was, but I think it was at one of the many Anime Central conventions we attended together. The dealers’ hall would always have a number of vendors selling T-shirts with funny images and sayings on them (a number of which ended up in one or anotherContinue reading “Full of Food and Doubt”
from Rachel: Being a Ministry-Minded Overseer (part three)
In the blanks below write the two most significant statements in today’s reading assignment. Be prepared to discuss why the statements you chose were significant to you.“The self-denial that must become a regular practice of life must eventually become a God-dependent self-denial. – maybe I’d do better at it that way.“You can build nothing godlyContinue reading “from Rachel: Being a Ministry-Minded Overseer (part three)”
Cramming
Dearest Rachel – It’s the sort of situation you would find yourself in (and which I occasionally find evidence of as I go through your old Bible study notes), so I’d like to think you wouldn’t fault me for this particular shortcoming. The thing is, at the briefing a couple weeks ago, prior to anyContinue reading “Cramming”
Letters to Rachel 