The other night I was at a Christmas party with some friends.  I cannot recall the conversation that led to this sentence.  (This would probably be a better story if I could.)  But, at some point, one of my friends, who happens to be a dude, said something like, “Yeah, you could put this on your Five Finds Friday.”  I started laughing.  One, because it was funny.  Two, because it was odd to hear this particular guy (or any guy really I guess) use the words  “Five Finds Friday” in a sentence.

It was also strangely gratifying.

As in, “Hooray – someone is reading these posts!”

So this week’s Five Finds Friday is for you Matt!  (Which really holds almost no value, but there you have it anyway!)

 

 

FUNNY

 

Do you guys remember Mad Libs?

 

 

You know what?  They’re STILL funny.

The kids and I have been having a blast filling in the blanks and cracking up over the nonsense.

Do your family a favor and pick up a version of Mad Libs.  Pull them out at your next meal or Family Night.  (Are there families who are conquering that dreamy ideal in real life?  A legitimate designated Family Night?  Don’t bother telling me if you are.  I won’t be able to handle the jealousy I’ll feel.)

 

FASHIONABLE

 

I used to be addicted to wearing a watch.

I couldn’t get through my day without it.

Then, one day, maybe five years ago, it broke.  And I put off purchasing a new one because I just never found one I liked all that much.

Until this cute little red guy.

 

 

Should I become a watch person again?

 

FLAVORFUL

 

If you enjoy the food you serve being unappreciated, you should whip up a helping of lasagna zucchini boats.

Go ahead, friends.

 

 

It’s slightly different than the norm, sure, but it’s not octopus or squid – am I right?

Well, whatever, the vibes for the zucchini boat served up at our house last weekend were NOT positive.

I’ll spare you the painful details, but I will tell you this – I think it tasted good.  Other people that I love felt differently.

And, for the record, it isn’t so much that I mind if other people that I love don’t care for an item that I serve to them.  It IS so much that I mind the manner in which those other people that I love choose to tell me their feelings about said food.

Anyway, I probably won’t be adding lasagna zucchini boats to our line up.  Unless I feel like proving a parental point one day.

 

FAITHFUL

 

Books have played a vital role in my growth – mentally, spiritually, emotionally – you name it.

There are a handful of authors who have certainly helped shape my views and my thinking on several subjects.

C.S. Lewis is one of those authors.

This week my family and I had a rare and special opportunity to hear in person more of the legacy left behind by C.S. Lewis.  Douglas Gresham, the son of Lewis’ wife Joy, is visiting our town this week and was speaking at a local school.  The school generously opened up Gresham’s talk to the public and I did not want to miss that opportunity.

We all stood along the stage afterwards to meet and greet Mr. Gresham personally.  Piper even had a question ready to ask him about his favorite childhood games, to which he generously responded with an engaging anecdote.

 

 

Gresham is just a man, of course.  And truly, he met Lewis toward the end of the celebrated author’s life, so his years with C.S. Lewis, whom he refers to as Jack, lasted only about a decade long.  But that is a decade more than I have personally known C.S. Lewis and I was eager to hear the stories he shared and the perspective Gresham had to offer.

He was a gracious speaker and an entertaining character.  Someone asked him, as I am confident many before have done, about living in the shadow of a man such as C.S. Lewis.  And Gresham answered something to the effect of, “I have never considered it living in his shadow.”  Instead, Gresham referred to where he lives as the “glow” of C.S. Lewis.  The glow of Lewis’ love of Jesus.

My dates are often off, but I believe Lewis has been dead for more than fifty years.  What an incredible compliment.  What a magnificent legacy.  To have a “glow” that lasts practically as long as your own life lasts.

That kind of glow comes from attaching yourself to something – someone – much larger and more extraordinary than yourself.

That’s precisely why C.S. Lewis is still an author being widely read today.  Because his stories are about so much more than they appear to be about.

 

FEELS

 

Christmas can sweep you away if you’re not careful.  You can find yourself doing all the things all the time.

What I love best is being at our house with my favorite people doing regular things.

I like meal time together.  Grating cheese and prepping food.

I like baking together.  Cleaning up and making a mess.

These are my people.

They are my favorite people.

 

 

 

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