-
Baseball, Friendship, and Bathroom Prophecy
It has been great to reconnect with some friends since returning stateside. Due to the time difference and schedules while living in Switzerland it was hard to touch base even if the desire was there. That said, it’s amazing how easily you can pick back up right where you left off with your close friends. This made me think, what makes a connection like this possible? One good friend of mine is someone that I met while playing professional baseball. We were both 18 years old and fresh out of high school. We immediately connected with the same love of music but honestly, besides that, there wasn’t much of a…
-
Happy New Year…Cheers to Cranberry Juice and Coffee
Happy New Year to you and your loved ones. There is something natural about the desire to start anew. To start fresh. To begin something with a clean slate. A new calendar year gives us an invitation to do so. Maybe we have been resisting a change, maybe we want to try something new, or maybe the new year gives us the courage to finally get serious about something that we have ignored in the past. There is a lot of grace in any and all of those things and I hope that each and every one of you have the courage to make this new year what you…
-
The Castle on the Hill
A few weeks ago the lyrics echoed through the household just as I heard them for the first time. That time years ago when driving my two sons down the narrow country road in Worb, Switzerland. “I’m on my way Driving at ninety down those country lanes Singing to “Tiny Dancer” And I miss the way you make me feel, and it’s real We watched the sunset over the castle on the hill” -Ed Sheeran “Castle on the Hill” Listening then, as we passed the 12th Century Worb Castle like we did every day, I couldn’t help but wonder what impact this song, this place, this castle would have on…
-
Bonnie Scotland
Over the course of the last two and half years, we have been very fortunate to have traveled a part of the world that we have never seen before. And I think we can all agree that these experiences are not to be taken for granted. Mainly because every time you have an opportunity to experience a new place, a new culture, or a new landscape, it brings you out of your own ego, your own perceptions, your own narrow reality. And for this, we are very grateful. We have been to many different countries and cities over the course of the last few years and each one has left…
-
Wrestling with Time
Forever Paul Laurence Dunbar, 1872 – 1906 I had not known before Forever was so long a word. The slow stroke of the clock of time I had not heard. ‘Tis hard to learn so late; It seems no sad heart really learns, But hopes and trusts and doubts and fears, And bleeds and burns. The night is not all dark, Nor is the day all it seems, But each may bring me this relief— My dreams and dreams. I had not known before That Never was so sad a word, So wrap me in forgetfulness— I have not heard.
-
Rounding Second Base
(Photo: The Charles Bridge, Prague, Czech Republic: Good Friday, 2017) This post is a bit long, disjointed, maybe a lot of rambling, and yes, it might not make much sense, but in light of the week (Holy Week) and my last post, “Finding Freedom,” I was compelled to write it. I have recently found myself thinking of a few short stories that my pastor in the States would bring up, time and time again, hoping that it would sink in. Incredibly, life usually indicates whether you can receive the intended message when it is given to you. In other words, you can’t rush the meaning if you aren’t ready to…
-
Year Two
And just like that, the second year has come and gone. It is hard to believe that we have been calling Switzerland our home now for two years. This year was a wonderful year of travel (5 different countries), many great family visits, and tremendous growth and experiences for our two boys. Although there is much that is the same from our first year (here is a link to that list), namely, the beauty of the country, the balanced pace of life, and especially making sure that we have 2 CHF on us at all times for the WC, things have definitely changed a bit during our second year. Things…
-
Domodossola, Italy
On a whim, I decided to take a 7:35 am train from Bern, Switzerland to Domodossola, Italy. The one and half hour train ride is a beautiful ride down through the Bernese Alps. Although it was cloudy and a bit foggy on the Switzerland side of the Alps, as soon as we crossed through the tunnel and came out into Italy the sun was shining. Domodossola is a quaint little town in northern Italy that has a beautiful old section to it. Once arriving at the station it is a quick 5-10 minute walk up the main street before you reach the side-street that brings you over to the old…
-
Solothurn, Switzerland
What a beautiful little city Solothurn turned out to be. Located in the northern part of Switzerland situated on the Aare River, the town of Solothurn is the capital of the canton of Solothurn and sits at the foot of the Weissenstein Jura mountains. I have been meaning to take the short 25 minute train ride to Solothurn ever since we moved here. (Solothurn is just north of the closest IKEA which we visited frequently during those early days.) I walked the streets of its old town and had a great lunch at one of its many small cafe’s. The architecture and the way the town was laid out was…
