Five on Friday (June 29, 2018)

Hatred stirs up quarrels, but love makes up for all offenses. -Proverbs 10:12

1. Our lives changed pretty dramatically Sunday, when 180 Church offered Brian the job of pastor. This means he will no longer be teaching but will instead be a pastor and part-time bus driver (in order to keep our very excellent insurance through the school system). Way back in 2004 when we brought home an adorable 8-month old Camden, I was devastated to return to work and leave him in daycare. We decided there would be no more additions to the Lewis family until we could figure out a way for me to be a stay at home mom. At the time I was working at a college (our alma mater) and Brian could take classes tuition-free. So he returned to college for an additional 2 years to complete requirements for certification to teach in Tennessee. He taught his first class in fall 2007, and I will always be so grateful for the way God provided a way for me to stay at home with the kiddos. When he started the process of becoming a teacher in 2004, there was no way to know about Rory coming into our lives, about cancer, or about 180 Church.

Eleven years later, and he has been the best teacher. But ministry has always had his heart. I am overwhelmed with the ways the Lord has been so faithful to provide for us throughout the years. Brian is studying hard to take the CDL test and will begin 4 weeks of driving instruction before receiving his own route. All of his personal days and sick days will transfer over to this new job (which is only 20 hours a week and half of those hours are before 8:30 a.m.), and we continue with the same excellent insurance. Truly a blessing. All of it.

2. The kids have settled into summer and are enjoying being together, which just makes my heart sing. Listening to them giggle and tease and screech in laughter is so much fun. Loud, but so fun. As you know, peace among siblings can be as rare as a unicorn, but Camden and Rory are currently in a delightful phase and I love it.

3. We went to see Incredibles 2 as a family Monday night (Movie Pass continues to be so fun, even though flexibility is a must). Later in the week, they watched Jurassic World from home during an incredibly gloomy, stormy morning, and I thoroughly enjoyed seeing how they intensely watched. Brian and I hope to go see the newest Jurassic movie tomorrow (again, Movie Pass). So lots of movies this week.

4. Mom accompanied us to the Frist Museum this afternoon, followed by a trip to Trader Joes. The Frist is always on the summer bucket list but Rory was still in a stroller when we last marked it off our summer list. The current exhibit is contemporary art called Chaos and Awe. The museum also has one hallway devoted to telling the story of Nashville's part in the civil rights movement from 1960-1967. As we were browsing through this section, an older black gentleman was just ahead of us with a young man who I'm assuming was his grandson. He was telling his own stories from that time period and I (1) nearly burst into tears and (2) really wanted to follow along and learn from him.

5. I have read several good books in the last 10 days. The Ensemble is the story of a professional string quartet ensemble; despite a few 8 uncomfortable lines (via Modern Mrs. Darcy), I could not put this book down. The book explores what it's like to work your entire life to be the best in your field and the relationships between such a tight group. I immediately looked up string quartets on YouTube when I finished the last page. A Place for Us was also a great story and look into not just an immigrant's life but also the Muslim culture. If You Only Knew by Jamie Ivey was a fast read with an important message. I'm on a long streak of 4 and 5-star books, and it's wonderful.

Happy Weekend, Friends. May it be full of ice cream and air conditioning.