“Because things are the way they are, things will not stay the way they are.”
Bertolt Brecht

Once a year, in mid-July, I am removed from my usual role in Construction Services here at Messiah Village and join the Maintenance crew for a week.  We head down to Mount Joy Country Homes to perform preventative maintenance on the cottages, reuniting with old friends and meeting some new ones as well.  We perform maintenance on the HVAC units, clean dryer lines and gutters and follow an extensive checklist to help the cottages run efficiently and smoothly.  As I reflect on the week gone by I am reminded of the maintenance that is so often required in my own life.

Home ownership can be a grueling task; the honey-do list never seems to end while the projects can become costly and time-consuming.  Between yardwork, urgent repairs and the “that would look cool” list I can see that, well, my work here on earth is not nearly complete.  It almost makes me wish I could retire at Messiah or Mount Joy Country Homes and have that all taken care of by someone else.  But enough of the propoganda…….

Then I reflect on myself as a person; the spiritual, relational and physical aspects of life.  If I did nothing to build (or maintain) my relationships with my friends and family I would soon find myself quite lonely and in need of repair; “no man is an island.”  And now that the beloved 20’s have come and gone I notice that my body requires healthier fuel and exercise to achieve the desired outcome.

I guess the point of my ranting is to remind myself, and perhaps even you, to take the time to evaluate your current “maintenance needs.”  A checklist, even some goals, might help your life run more efficiently and, Lord-willing, a little more enjoyable.

Many, if not all of you, are aware of the tragedy that befell the Clouse family in Perry County this past March.  The news that a local family lost 7 of their 8 children in a house fire was hard to comprehend or imagine.  News spread quickly that the mother of those children was a sister to Lynford Sauder, a weekend security guard here at the Village.  Many employees and residents quickly responded by generously donating food and finances to help support the family.

Last week Mel Miller and I had the opportunity to serve the Clouse family as they built a new home.  Messiah Village donated our time to help install a good portion of the stained doors and trim on the first floor of this beautiful home.  I was greatly encouraged by the hard work and unity I saw from all of the workers on the house.  There were roughly 20 carpenters present  each day we worked and, despite the confined workspaces and frequent interruptions, I have never seen a group that large work so efficiently and with a sense of purpose.

Although we met Ted and Janelle Clouse both days at lunch, I was completely at a loss for words to say that might encourage or bless them.  I left with a hopeful feeling that somehow our hard work would bless them in ways that our words could not.  And I was also vividly reminded that while parenting can be challenging and frustrating, our children are a gift from God and we should never take that gift lightly.

Snowbirding……yes, I believe I spelled that correctly.  For those of you under the age of 30, I am not referring to a hip, snow-loving activity spent at high altitudes.  Quite the contrary, I am referring to an activity often enjoyed by those over the age of 60 in warm, sunny climates.  And, although I am a rookie at this snowbirding thing, I think I am beginning to enjoy it.

I am thankful to be spending several days in sunny Sarasota, FL.  My wife and I are joined by my sister and her husband and my parents.  Our “agenda” (which is always subject to change) includes a Phillies spring training game, some beach time, shopping and perhaps a few holes of golf.  One of the best parts of this trip is being able to spend quality, uninterrupted time with my bride without our children.  If you’ve read any of  my previous posts you know we do love our children but I must admit that sometimes time away is good for the soul.

I was hoping to maybe rub shoulders with some “snowbirding” residents from Messiah Village but have not found any of them yet in my travels.  Perhaps in years to come I will return south to get a reprieve from winter and become a snowbird once again!

One of the sayings you will hear this time of year is that “Jesus is the reason for the season.”  While I wholeheartedly agree with this tribute to our Savior, I ponder if, in this time of economic and global uncertainty, that we should also see this as a “season of reason.”

Several days ago on the drive home from work I heard an intriguing piece on NPR.  Apparently the U.S. Postal Service reads all of the letters written and mailed to Santa every year.  They noticed this year that a higher percentage of letters written by children were requests for simple things, the necessities in life.  Examples included winter clothes, socks and shoes contrasted against the normal requests for Barbie dolls, video games, and computers.

If you believed the Christmas hype created by television and its endless marketing, you would be convinced that we are all entitled to a brand new Lexus wrapped in a red bow in our driveway.  Our endless pursuit of “stuff” turns us all into little, whiny children believing we are entitled to everything we want.

And trust me, when I say we, I am certainly including myself in the mix.  It is far too easy to become engulfed in the “enjoy now, pay later” mentality our society has embraced.  Yet, in the midst of it all, there are continuous reminders that our souls were created for something else; something of more value than the entire world combined.

So my present to you this year is a reminder; our Lord and Savior came to this earth to serve, not to be served.  What can we learn and embrace from this example?  Perhaps we can learn that by becoming servants ourselves, we will find and appreciate the greatest gift of all.  The gift of a smile from a stranger or the look on a single mother’s face when she realizes her kids will finally have gifts to open on Christmas day.

So what will the season of reason mean to you?  Whatever it is, I encourage you to embrace the things in your life that are priceless; family, friends and giving to those who need far more than we want.

On behalf of my family, I wish you a Christmas full of hope, joy, peace and love.  Merry Christmas!!

As a young(er) man I dreamed of the day when I would come home from a hard day at work and be greeted by a beautiful wife and precious little children.  Now, as an old(er) man I dream of the day when I will come home from a long day at work and be greeted by my beautiful wife and a home full of silence.

Don’t get me wrong, I love being a father.  I am grateful for the many people who have shaped me into the person and father I am today.  And during times away from the kids I often think of how boring my life would be without their joy and energy.

The lesson that fatherhood has taught me most is that children truly can be a reflection of their parents, for good or bad.  The things that annoy me about my kids usually annoy me about myself; impatience, selfishness, greed….okay, you get the point.  On the flip side, their passion for life and love reminds me of how truly blessed I am to be in the role of a father.

My wife and I were always convinced God would bless us with little boys.  Daddy wanted boys to hunt, fish and play sports. And Mommy really didn’t want to deal with teenage girls and all the emotions they bring.

So God, in His infinite wisdom, blessed us with two beautiful girls.

And to make life even more interesting, he gave us polar opposites to keep us on our toes.  Our oldest is passive, a people-pleaser and aspires to be a cheerleader one day.  The youngest is a spit-fire that will most likely be the first female NFL player!

I’m not always sure what to expect in life or how to measure success whether it’s as a father, worker, husband or friend.  Life keeps me on my toes that way and to be honest I find that refreshing.  So to end my rant I will quote the great Ralph Waldo Emerson……

“To laugh often and much; to win the respect of intelligent people and the affection of children; to earn the appreciation of honest critics and endure the betrayal of false friends; to appreciate beauty; to find the best in others; to leave the world a bit better, whether by a healthy child, a garden patch or a redeemed social condition; to know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived. This is to have succeeded. ”

I am an avid sports fan; despite several intervention attempts by friends and family I still find most, if not all sports a valuable departure from the stresses of day-to-day life.  I must admit, however, that today’s athletes tend to be overpaid, selfish and occasionally even criminal.  That’s why I found great intrigue in the events and reactions to the MLB game between the Detroit Tigers and the Cleveland Indians on last Wednesday, June 2.  Let me set the stage for you….

A perfect game is an extremely rare occasion to say the least.  To quote Wikipedia, “Over the 135 years of Major League Baseball history, there have been only 20 official perfect games by the current definition. For comparison, more people have orbited the moon than have pitched a Major League Baseball perfect game.”

This past Wednesday night a perfect game was nearly executed if it were not for a blown call on the final out of the game.  A close play at first base involving the pitcher, Armando Gallaraga, was called incorrectly in favor of the runner by first-base umpire Jim Joyce.  But that’s just where the drama started…..

The grace and composure shown following that event was incredibly real and uncommon at the same time.  The pitcher, having every right to complain and argue, simply smiled and walked to the mound.  The umpire, upon seeing instant replay of his blown call after the game was moved to tears and apologized immensely not only to the media but also personally to the pitcher.  And the Detroit Tiger fans honorably provided the umpire with a lengthy standing ovation at the beginning of the next game.

It’s not very often that the reaction to the action speaks louder than the action itself.  In this case, however, I believe many people, both sports fans and haters alike, were left pondering their own responses to such an event.  I applaud Armando Gallaraga and Jim Joyce for personifying grace, humility and forgiveness in the midst of the public and scrutinized arena of sports.  May we learn from their examples ……..

Hmm what’s going on here?!??

I can’t count all the times I’ve been approached about what my job in Construction Services entails……many friends and family members are convinced I do maintenance, grounds or a hodge-podge of both.  Many are surprised to hear that at Messiah Village we have enough work to keep 5 guys in Construction Services busy all year long.  Perhaps I should keep a copy of the recent Echoes newsletter in my back pocket as convincing evidence of what keeps us busy day to day.  My good friend Nathan Shields took the time to highlight some of the statistics and projects that keep Construction Services humming:

• Last year we completed 93 renovations, varying in size and detail
• We renovated 13 cottages in the average time of 61 days
• 13 apartments were renovated in the average time of 50 days
• 61 assisted living rooms were revamped in the average time of 4 days

I love the variety of tasks that we perform on a daily basis; plumbing, electrical, framing and the always popular painting.  But what I love most is the look in a new resident’s eye when they see the finished product……..        we’re not just transforming spaces, we’re enhancing lives!

I have recently found myself echoing the somewhat famous quote from the 1989 movie Field of Dreams, “Is this heaven?”  My kids have become increasingly humored by the question and always answer, “No, Daddy, it’s (insert location here.)

I attribute my mostly optimistic outlook on life to my parents who did their best to teach me to hunt for the simple, enjoyable things in life.  My “heaven” moments and locations include awe-inspiring sunsets, getaways at the hunting cabin or simply seeing my young girls find joy in life.

I also consider myself blessed to have experienced several “heaven” moments while working at Messiah Village.  Many times a word of encouragement from a resident or employee has confirmed my belief that God thrives in the simple joys of life.

So, how about you?  I encourage your feedback; describe some of your “where’s, what’s and who’s” that have brought you to reflect……..

“Is this heaven?”