Keeping Secrets

  Okay, for those of you who don't know already Jan and I will be welcoming a child in September.  It is a girl, and I'm comfortable sharing that.  What I get really anxious over though is when people ask, "Do you have names picked out already?"  Many times when people ask "yes" or "no" questions they're really not asking for a yes or no.  The implied, preferred response is that you will then provide the beautiful name that you have picked out.  Unfortunately Pilot Inspektor is already taken, so I guess we're going to have to be creative.  Mainly because I'm pretty sure that if there was more than one P. I. the universe would implode or something. 

  I'm not writing about this to shame anyone, by the way.  I know that there have been plenty of people who have innocently asked about whether or not we've found the naming process difficult or not.  And I only mention this because it's my own anxiety that gets in the way when these types of questions are raised. 

  You see, I'm horrible at keeping "good news" secrets.  In fact, I was in charge of a youth camp the week before I proposed to Jan, and every single kid, leader, and camp dog whose name didn't start with "J" and end with an "n" knew about it.  That's not hyperbole.  I'm sure that that kid, John, felt really left out.  I'm actually pretty surprised that I caught Jan off guard when it all went down.  Good job summer camp '05!

  Now, every time someone asks the question, there's always that surge of desire to blurt out a name.  Thankfully, blogging allows you to proofread and think through what you're typing.  But it makes me think about all the amazing things that are happening, big and small, that we never share because we think that no one will think it's a big deal.  I seriously can't think of a good reason for this. 

   I think that I do it because I don't think people will care.  You may do it for other reasons.  Maybe you feel like only your best friends can be encouragement to you.  Maybe you think that nothing good is happening in your life.  To your excuse and mine I say, "Skubalon!" (look it up you'll know what I mean) 

  I'll show you what I mean.  Jan and I were leaving from her latest check-up this past Monday.  As we were getting off the elevator, a very nice older lady asked THE question:

Lady: Do you have names picked out yet?

Me:  Yeah
 
Lady:  Oh, that's exciting!  You'll love your daughter, but you'll love your grandchildren even more!  When you get to be my age you remember the good times with your kids, but you cherish the time with your grandchildren.

  Can you imagine how that made me feel?  Someone I didn't even know made me think about the crazy awesome that was about to hit my life.  This is the gift that keeps on giving, and yeah, it's going to be hard, but it'll be amazing.  And if we had just put our heads down and been all, "Don't make eye contact!  Condition Blue!" we would have missed out on a cool reminder.  It's not about midnight feedings or teenage angst, but about a legacy that starts in September.  It'll be a testament to Jan and I as parents.  It'll be a continuation of our families, and one day she'll pass that on to her family.  And so on until the Lord comes back.  And I would have missed out on that mind-blowing thought if we hadn't been open enough to share a joy and blessing in our life. 

   I'd love to hear about some cool things going on in your life.  Maybe something you thought no one would care about.  Here I'll start:




I only hit my snooze button once today :D