my favorite moment of the day

i was lying in my bed this morning at 6am.

the air was cool, and the world was quiet.

the day had just begun,

but i had already decided that this moment,
is my favorite moment of the day.

all of the sudden,

my girl let out a loud shout in her crib.

bad dream?
dw went in and scooped her up
and brought her into mom and dad’s bed.


i asked janie-
“did you have a dream?”
“a dream about trains?”

janie answered
“dream about taw-mess!”
(thomas the train)


“oh- what happened to thomas?”
i asked-

“nike ba movie”
(it was like the movie)
she answered.

“who was thomas with in your dream?”

i asked-
and then janie listed off thomas the train’s friends:
percy, james, gordon, harold, toby.
and that moment, i decided:
“so far, this is my favorite moment of the day.”


and then janie crawled over
to dad’s side of the bed
and laid on my chest and gave me a hug.
and that moment, i decided:
“so far, this is my favorite moment of the day.”


i went to work at 9.
every monday i have this time
where i get together with some middle school boys
and take them out to have lunch and some fun.
dave came along

to learn how to drive a 15 passenger van.

we went to the jungle.
dave was just the right size for the rides:

dave got some tokens
and started looking

for someone to play air-hockey with.
i told him that i would play him.
dave and i have never

played air-hockey against each other.
he told me that he never loses to anyone
when its his first game against them.

he lost to me.

he was upset and reminded me that
that he never loses to anyone
when its his first game against them.
i told him that

i just never lose at all.
he wanted a re-match
to make it even,
but i declined.

and that bothered him.
and that moment, i decided:
“so far, this is my favorite moment of the day.”


the boys and i rode bumper cars,
we played laser-tag,
and then it was time to leave.


mitchell put one more token into the monopoly game
and hit the jackpot.
one-thousand tickets-
coming out at about one per second.
it took forever!

the boys were flipping out and drawing a crowd.
mitchell had painted a beard and mustache

on his face and it was smearing everywhere.
so there he was-

freaking out,
with a smudgy beard, and armfuls of tickets.

i couldn’t help it,
i was cracking up-
and that moment, i decided:
“so far, this is my favorite moment of the day.”


mitchell redeemed all of those tickets for
(surprise!) CANDY!
he walked out of the jungle
with candy falling out of his stuffed pockets.
we got back super-late.
parents were all mad at me-
but at least i had a good laugh
and a victory over dave.


but now that i think about it,
that morning-hug from my girl
was still

my favorite moment of the day.

08.04.07

yesterday was crAZY!
it began, like every saturday begins:
with daddy-daughter-day at 9am.
yesterday janie and i went to barnes and noble
to play with the train and read some stories
and then we went to the jungle
to play.

we stopped at burger king
to get her some fries and chicken fingers
and then i dropped her off at home.
because i was leaving for south lake tahoe!

whoa!
i was officiating adrian and billy’s wedding
that started at 6pm.


mapquest said that it take 4 hours to get there.
i left at 12:30,
figuring that i would get to tahoe at 4:30.
an hour and a half early!


adrian and billy are special to me.
adrian was one of the first 4 girls
to start this new college ministry, uni.
for many weeks at uni, it was just me
and those original 4 girls:
sarah, adrian, diane, and courtney.
i respected those girls so much.
they had such a deep friendship
and looked after each other.
over the years, i have logged many hours
in bible study with those girls,
and in prayer with them and for them.


last year i got to officiate sarah’s wedding to brandon,
and this summer i get to officiate
diane’s wedding to ben,
and adrian’s wedding to billy.
for all 3 of this couples,
i feel that i have had a front row seat
to their courtship, friendship,
and respect for each other.


i knew adrian and billy
before they were dating each other,
i saw their relationship begin and grow.
i remember that time during college man-time
where billy shared that he was going to propose;
and his elaborate proposal plans.
their relationship has been the epitome
of love, respect, affection and joy since it began-
and i got to officiate the wedding
on the shores of lake tahoe!


so getting to tahoe on time was a big deal.
but i took a wrong turn- like 3 times.
i took the route that crosses the benicia bridge,
which is a very slow tool bridge-
it took me an hour to cover 4 miles!
i stopped to eat in sacramento
at the world’s slowest kfc.
and it wasn’t long before
i was wondering if i was going to make it by 6pm
to the shores of south lake tahoe.


i was flying up a mountain in my little red bug.
i arrived at 5:30.
i ran into the bathroom,
changed my clothes,
guzzled a red bull,
and zoomed out to find billy.


i met with the wedding coordinator/ photographer
out on the beach-
the set up looked like this:

it was super windy-
i wasn’t miked-up
and so i knew: my hair would be everywhere-
and no one would be able to hear a word i said.


the wedding began-
the uni girls came down the aisle as bridesmaids
and in walked adrian in her white dress.
my head wasn’t really in the moment-
it was in my notes.
she and billy stood in front of me
with my hair flipping around in the wind.
they faced me
and i began to speak as loudly as i could
so others could hear me
i think i was kind of yelling their vows to them.


the ceremony was super-short
because of the setting,
but i made it even shorter-
it was so windy out-
and no one wanted to hear me go on and on.


before anyone knew it,
they were married, and walking up the aisle.
they took pictures on the shore-
and they were a picture of romance.
and i finally slowed down to remember
just how special they were to me
and how honored i was to be there.


i got back in my car at 7pm.
i listened to the giants lose to the padres
all the way to san jose.
barry bonds tied hank aaron-
driving at night when you’re tired
does funny things to your eyes.
all of those lights
and all of that caffeine
made me a little dizzy- yikes!
but i made it home about 11:30.


i was still a little dizzy for church in the morning,
so dizzy that i didn’t drink my red-bull!
wow.
here is a thought that didn’t make it into the ceremony:
earlier this spring,
lake tahoe was hit by a violent wildfire
that took a long time to put out.
at uni, of of our studies was the song of solomon
and that book mentions a wildfire too-
it compares a wildfire to love itself
saying:
“place me like a seal over your heart,
like a seal on your arm;
for love is as strong as death,
its jealousy unyielding as the grave.
it burns like blazing fire,
like a mighty flame.
many waters cannot quench love;
rivers cannot wash it away…”


love is strong.
love is undying.
love burns like a fire-
a fire that cannot be extinguished.


God bless you billy and adrian!
thanks for allowing me to be a part of your day
and a part of your story!

jane simpson

immersion

rob simpson

d'oh!

ow.

so-
yesterday i went to sky high

with some middle school guys.
my goal was to walk away uninjured.
trampolines and i have had an on again,
off again relationship since my teens.
i keep getting on them
and they keep wrecking my body.


didn’t make that goal.


i rolled my ankle.
but i kept on bouncing.
i guess the drive to bounce runs in the family.

as i was bouncing there was this moment
where my lower back jumped into my upper back.
ow.
i crawled off the trampoline.
i tried to play it off-
but there were some moments where
i did some complaining.
i was walking with a young man named austin.
i said,
“austin- i am injured.”
“sounds like YOU need a MASSAGE!”
he said.
“yeah- i’ll have to figure that out.”
i answered.
“i give really good massages!
would you like me to give you one?”
he asked.
“uh- no. but thanks I said.”
“are you SURE?

because my mom says that mine are the best!”
“yeah- i think i’ll be alright- but thanks buddy.”
i said.
“my dad thinks mine a really good too!”
“for reals buddy- i’ll be ok.”


we walked out to the bus side by side-
and without speaking,
he quietly dig his fist into my back.
i chuckled and said thanks.
it was a thoughtful gesture.


and today i’ve been walking around
with a limp and hunched over-
and trying to look cool.
trampolines!
why do you have to be so fun?
and dangerous?!

turn back the tide

chef paul

if you hang around the ministries that i lead at the church,
hopefully it won’t be long
before you meet some one that is
homeless, hungry, or hurting.
this has been sort of a theme in my circle of influence:
i feel that helping those in need
is always relevant,
and always has something to teach us.
and because of this focus,
i’ve been to all sorts of homeless shelters,
soup kitchens, women’s shelters, and recovery centers.
i’ve met some incredible people-
and i’ve served a lot of food.


tonight, i was serving the homeless and hungry
with some college students
and i experienced some things that i never had before.
when i uncovered the dish with the night’s dinner,
it smelled
good!
like really good!
my mouth was watering!
there was a whole tray of steak that was covered in spices-
another tray had roasted potatoes-
that were also all spiced up.
there were cooked vegetables
and a salad that could be served in a nice restaurant.


this is crazy- because most of the food
for the homeless that i have served
has been a bunch of leftovers thrown together,
without any real concern
about the taste or presentation.


the food looked awesome,
but chef paul thought it could look better.
he fussed over the salad
and wanted to make sure it was mixed up just right.
he wanted to make sure that every bite
had the right mix of vegetables.
he told us how to prep the plates
and when we prepped them incorrectly,
he told us,
and then fixed them personally.
he told us, “it’s very important
that the presentation is just right for our guests tonight.
I want it to taste delicious, and look delicious.”


what?
come on paul, it’s a free dinner!


chef paul cared.
and it showed.
he personally handed out the plates to hundreds of people
that knew his name.
he was thanked over and over by his guests
for making such great food-
the entire group of 200 guests applauded him at least 3 times.
one guest said to paul,
“when i strike it rich, i’m going to hire YOU as my personal chef!”
i shouted out-
"me too!"


ok- i understand him going the extra mile
if its his first year on the job-
only it wasn’t.
more like his 22nd year on the job!


after dinner, paul shared his story with us.
he was a doo-wop singer from back in the day.
he was a restaurant chef,
and when bad times hit;
he found himself in line at a soup kitchen.
but the food was awful,
so the next day he made high-end pastries
for the staff of the shelter
from the leftovers in the kitchen.
they were amazed.
and he did that every day
until they gave him the job as the kitchen chef.
22 years ago.


he said that he could have just given half effort,
thinking that “its just for homeless people,”
“its just a free meal.”
“it doesn’t matter how it looks or how it tastes-
its good food and they should be happy.”
but that food represented him.
and not just that, it was for people that he cared about,
so he gave it his very best-
and not just to feed his guests’ bodies,
but their souls as well.
he told us how he hosts monthly talent shows
for his guests- with the guests themselves
providing the entertainment.
he told us that the level of talent within the shelter
is unbelievable:
singers, poets, musicians.
again, he gives it his very best,
for a section of our city that is largely forgotten.


he is a celebrity-
not among the wealthy,
but the poor.
and they know that he cares,


because he gives them his best.
i think that a lot of us in-ministry
and out-
can learn a lot from that attitude.


speaking of attitude,
he said that his never changes-
and in 22 years, he’s never been bored;
he always looks forward to work
and he smiles all day long.
tonight, i was the preacher,
but paul gave the sermon.
and we all walked away inspired.


thanks paul, for reminding me,
and the unis
that everyone deserves the my very best.


“whatever you do, work at it with all your heart,
as working for the Lord, not for men,
since you know that you will receive an inheritance
from the Lord as a reward.
it is the Lord Christ you are serving.”
(colossians 3:23)

trapped in the park!

tonight i walked through almaden lake park to the albertson's on meridian and redmond while listening to the giants game.
barry bonds didn't hit a home run, but they've won like 4 games in a row now!
on my way home, i was wondering if the park would be open for me to walk through,
because it was dark and the park closes at sunset.
the back door was open and i walked in and through the park to the front gate-
but the front gate was locked and all of the park rangers were gone.
i was stuck inside! would i have to sleep in the park?
i walked along the fence, looking for a place to hop it,
when i saw an elderly asian couple out for an evening walk.
they didn't seem to speak a word of english, but they were trying to tell me something.
they kept pointing toward the right-
were they saying "there is a good place to hop the fence over here?"
i tried to ask them questions in english,
and they tried to answer them in their own language,
and we weren't understanding each other at all.
they kept pointing and walking to the right side of the very long fence.
we walked together on opposite sides of the fence
(they on the sidewalk, me through the park)
until we got to the end.
it turns out there was a secret exit over there!
i escaped almaden lake park-
thanks to some nice people going out of their way to help me out.
i was on the recieving end of a good deed!
it was fun!

maybe they were some more of those undercover angels i found in santa cruz...
i'm onto you guys!

rob 0, ally 1

ally may have won the battle,
but I'll win the war!
(what i really want to know is,
WHO LET HER INTO MY OFFICE?!)
you can run to pennsylvania ally,
but you can't hide from
THE SNOWBEAST!