Anniversary

Today is the first (of hopefully many) anniversary of the day that April and I promised our lives to each other on this beautiful day down in south central Virginia. I can say without any hesitation that it has been the the best year of my life, and I look in anticipation to what the future holds for us.

Happy anniversary!

Drama at Citizens Bank Park

We had the honor of hosting 42.85% (that's 3/7 for those of you who can't do math in your head) of the Cook family here in Philly on Tuesday night. Darrell Cook was (and still is) the campus minister at the Virginia Tech Baptist Collegiate Ministry while April and I were in school, and the Cooks are good friends of ours. Darrell also performed our wedding for us. We were very excited to hear that he and the two oldest Cook kids (Rachel and Andrew) were making a stop in Philly for their annual summer baseball tour.

We all headed down to the ballpark to see the Phillies take on the Brewers. The place was packed out due to $1 hot dog night (which was amazing), but Darrell still managed to score tickets about 20 rows back on the third base line. The game was close and tense; Adam Eaton pitched a great game for the Phillies, but they wasted a lot of chances on offense, which led to the Brewers tying the game at 3-3 in the top of the ninth. Thankfully, with two outs in the bottom of the ninth, Carlos Ruiz hit a solo game-winning walk-off home run. The crowd went nuts and uneaten hot dogs began to rain down from the upper decks in celebration.

All in all, it's hard to beat going to an exciting baseball game on a beautiful night with good seats and good company.

TV

During my four years of college there was never really a TV show that I got super into, unless of course you count Alias which my freshman year roommate and I did watch religiously every Sunday night at nine; however, my life with TV this past year has drastically changed not only did Nic & I discover the wonderful world of TiVo, but I have much more free time to enjoy it. I have three favorites: House, The Office, and Scrubs. This morning on my way to church I found myself engrossed in a conversation about Thursday night's episode of Scrubs and how I thought JD was an absolute moron. Then I expressed my extreme delight that one of my new favorite artists, Jon McLaughlin had his song featured in the closing scene. A few weeks back I cried when Laverne passed away, not a small cry either, I'm talking five minutes of giant crocodile tears running down my face. Yet thirty minutes before that moment I was laughing my butt off at Michael, Dwight, Jim, and the rest of The Office staff, which may I add is the only show I go around quoting, which Nic with his kind and patient heart, puts up with during the following week leading up to the next episode.
So you may be wondering, as I am myself now, why I just posted an entire blog about TV. I used to make fun of people who were obsessed with TV shows, all those Survivor fans, Grey's Anatomy junkies, and Seinfield nuts, but I guess my mom was right, "Never say never."

Wedding Season

A couple of weekends ago, April and I traveled down to Winchester, VA, to see my old roommate Steve marry his beautiful bride Mallory. This is a picture of us from the event. We ended up driving a total of 8 hours in one day to spend about 4 hours at the wedding and reception, but it was definitely worth the effort. Not only did we get to celebrate Steve and Mallory, but we got to see a lot of my old friends from my days of living in Fairfax, VA. I lived down there for almost two years after I graduated from college (while April was still at VT).

Steve was a part of a Bible study group through McLean Bible Church of about 10-12 single guys that I was involved in while I lived there. I had moved to the area after graduation with two of my friends from college (Todd and Micah), but I didn't know a single other person in the entire Washington DC metropolitan area. We started hosting a Bible study at our townhouse soon, and the guys that came quickly became great friends. I was dating April then, but most of the guys were single and very eligible bachelors, so there were many attempts at hanging out with groups of girls and dates and so on. Stories of dinners and coffee and late night talks and break-ups and "DTR"s were often part of our weekly meetings. These guys were the ones who helped me pray about, plan, and execute my engagement to April. Three of them were groomsmen in my wedding, and many of the rest came down to Danville to celebrate with us.

When I moved to Philadelphia in March 2006, there were maybe two guys with steady girlfriends. Five are now getting married this year. I'd like to think that I was a leader and I inspired the rest of the guys, but I'm pretty sure they would have gotten along just fine without my example. What it all really means for me is a busy wedding season that will take me (if I can afford it all) to Ohio, Delaware, Virginia, and even Alabama to celebrate with these guys. So Steve, Nathan, John, Micah, and Steven, God bless you guys and your weddings and marriages, and thanks for all of the chances for reunion parties this summer!

A Year

Nic has been hinting at my lack of blogs lately, so I guess it's about time I get down to it. A lot has happened since the last blog. I realized yesterday (why it didn't register till then I'm unsure) but I've been out of college a year now. Wow! Nic and I have almost been married a year, wow again, we've been in Philly a year now too, my goodness.
And don't get me wrong there have been moments over the past year when time seems to move so slow, but for the most part my mom was right, time flies. I was reflecting today about my time out of college and I've discovered there's so much I miss about it. I miss the people, Blacksburg, having my summers off and surprisingly enough I miss learning. Now make sure you read that sentence well, I don't miss tests and papers and writing lab reports, but I do actually miss learning. I remember listening to a sermon once in college about enjoying the moment you're in and not always dreaming about how much greener what to come will be. Now don't get me wrong there's nothing wrong with getting excited and dreaming about the future, but we have to learn to experience the joy of the present and what God has given us now. I feel like I'm learning to live that out now. I'm loving being a newlywed, having the freedom of no kids =), and believe it or not living in Philadelphia (including our church and new friends, Wissahickon Gorge where we take my wonderful puppy hiking and swimming, and so much more). So as I close I'm reminded of what John Piper says "God is most glorified in us, when we are most satisfied in him."

Hokie Pride

People associated with Virginia Tech really love the university. That has been clear to me over the past two weeks as we have interacted with others and watched the community through the lens of the news media. People who have been interviewed on TV (including President Steger and other officials) have represented the spirit and pride I've always felt among the Hokie community. I feel proud to be a part of that.

It's good to know that Virginia Tech will survive despite the horrible act of a student who was hurting and dangerously disconnected from reality. Times like this seem to make our community even stronger. Sometimes I wish that feeling of closeness could last, but it is already starting fade as the wounds heal and things start to return to normal. I spoke to a close friend about the incident on the phone the other night. It was the first time I had discussed it in a couple of days, and the feeling of heaviness returned, making me realize that it had already started to dissipate in the midst of my normal routine.

I don't want to be misunderstood - Virginia Tech is a special place, but it isn't any better than any other university out there. With all of the attention that was focused on us, I don't want people to get the feeling that we are better or more important than anybody else. The support I've felt from members of other university communities has shown me that there are many places out there that could overcome and grow from an experience like this. Even schools like UVA and WVU who have at times been our bitter rivals have shown us love - I have a lot of respect for that. It shows that all of us understand what is truly important and what is merely different colored shirts that we wear.

So to all my fellow Hokies, be proud of your university. Support it and talk about it as you go through the process of grieving and healing. But don't let your pride turn into superiority or condescension. We needed our time in the spotlight and the attention and support of the nation, but don't feel like the rest of the world owes you anything more.

And to the rest of you, thank you so much for your support. We need it. We appreciate it. Know that if you go through trying times (and we pray that you don't), you will have a nation full of Hokies on your side. You aren't our enemies or rivals when it comes to the things that truly matter. But don't think that we'll take it easy on you if you bring your football team to Lane Stadium.

4-16-07

Until a few days ago, all of my memories that involved both great tragedy and Virginia Tech were focused on one day in the beginning of my Sophomore year. I remember coming back from breakfast at Dietrick to my dorm room in Pritchard hall to news of disaster involving an airplane and the World Trade Center. The residents on my hall and I watched CNN as another plane slammed into the other tower and the two buildings eventually crumbled, throwing our whole country into a state of terror and confusion.

Now, five and a half years later, I am dealing once again with an unimaginable tragedy happening a couple of hundred miles away from where I currently am, but involves a place and a community that I love and feel deeply connected to. Again, all I can do is watch the around-the-clock news with undivided attention, hoping for just another clue to figure out why somebody could feel so much hate toward something I hold so dear that it would drive them to murder and destruction.

At first, I didn't think this would affect me very much. I graduated almost three years ago, and I thought that maybe my ties with Virginia Tech were starting to loosen. Even though I visited often in the two years following my graduation, I've only been to Blacksburg twice in the past year. I only keep in touch with a handful of people that still live in the area. Then I found out that Brian Bluhm, a friend that I knew through church and the BSU, was among the victims. I started to read the biographies of the other victims on the news websites. The effect of each one of their deaths is felt far and wide. I mourn their early passing, and grieve for the family and friends that are left behind to deal with the loss.

I remember once making fun of Michael Vick when he came back to a football game to receive some sort of award. His acceptance speech consisted of about three poorly formed sentences, the last of which was "I'll always be a Hokie in my heart." Let's face it - public speaking isn't the reason he'll be remembered as an important alumnus. I remember mocking his words in the days following, and even now I'm not sure if he was being genuine or just trying to get some words out to please the crowd, but today, they resonate with me in a new and deep way.