Music City Bowl - Clemson/Kentucky Prediction

I'll do my best to keep any disappointment out of this post. As any Tiger fan will vehemently tell you, Clemson had the talent, experience, power, and leadership to make the ACC their own personal playtoy this year. Even more maddening was the fact that the big guns of the conference - Florida State and Miami, obviously - suffered the inevitable down year at the same time. Even lost coaches, head and assistant, in its wake. We had the best backfield in the league, possibly the country. A potential first-round pick at defensive end. A Lou Groza post-season and pre-season finalist. The ascension of a heralded 2005 recruiting class into the lineup. An even stronger class coming in. A stable coaching staff for the first time in a fairly long time.

But such was not to be.

We can point the finger at anyone or anything we want. Be it Tommy Bowden's coaching or Will Proctor or blown calls or injuries. But it's an exercise in futility. Right now, all that matters is the present. And tomorrow at high noon (or today, depending on when you read this), the Fighting Tigers will work to salvage their wounded pride and deliver a knockout punch to the inflated dreams of the Wildcats from Kentucky.

I've been in Nashville with Anna Kate, her Dad and step-Mom the past two days. Sadly the UK fans have us outnumbered. I once spent 10 years of my life in this city, and except for my three old, treasured homes in Franklin and Brentwood, the place seems foreign. You'd think we made a wrong turn and went to Memphis with the color blue so prominent around these parts. Oh wait, that's South Carolina's bowl site. Never mind.

We attended the Battle of the Bands in downtown Nashville this evening. One of the preliminaries in the ancitipated matchup between the schools is to pit their bands against each other, where there shall be bayonets drawn, horses trambling people, arrows flying...okay, maybe not. Just both bands pumping up their respective crowds with a selection of fight songs. It didn't help that one of the announcers was just blatantly a Wildcat. Nor did it help that such a gathering in the streets made the disparity in our crowd sizes that much more evident. Heck, it didn't help that UK's band marched down a minute early and fired up the larger blue/white contigent before we could even set our feet. Nevertheless, Tiger Band, the Clemson cheerleaders, and the Rally Cats showed their stuff and matched the Kentucky squad blow for blow. Or I should say beat for beat. At least the female announcer supported us gracefully.

But now, all preliminaries are finished. Like it or not, this is the capstone of our season right here. It's not the one we envisioned back when we sat in the Top 10 at 7-1, fresh off a 31-7 stomping of the nerds from Bumble Bee Tech. But it is what it is. All that remains is one last hurrah. A final chance to show what we're made of.

I like to think that our team plays best away from the spotlight. When we're as good as written off, which we are. Every media mongul save for our faithful state papers has turned their back on the Tigers. We're last month's news. Merely the latest in a series of choke jobs. So when there's nothing to lose, that's when we tend to shine. Because let's face it. The outcome of this bowl game will not determine the success or failure we'll have in 2007 and beyond. It has few long-term implications save for giving our benchwarmers extra practice time and a few extra weeks to get healed from nagging owies. We can go with a clear head and still feel good about what's to come.

Then there's Kentucky. Playing in its first bowl game in several years. Saddled with a postseason losing streak dating back to 1984 (including a 14-13 loss to Clemson in Tommy West's first game in the Peach Bowl). Kentucky may very well have a motivation edge going into this match because their season, once a lost cause, has quietly done a Cinderella and become a sleeper success. They can punctuate it with a huge victory over the Tigers, but if not, no big loss. Kentucky too has little-to-nothing to lose.

I've only seen the Wildcats in action on one occasion. South Carolina defeated them 31-24 earlier this year, but it was a game the Chickens appeared to have in the bag, only to see UK claw its way back and to come within a Hail Mary of forcing overtime.

I have to believe (and hope) that the stats on paper will (for once) determine what the outcome will be. That the Tiger offensive line will return to form and play like the veteran senior front they are. That James Davis will shake his late-season slump and bust the huge runs we're used to seeing. That the return of the Incredible Hulk, a.k.a Rendrick Taylor, will not only give us another big-play receiver to compliment Chansi Stuckey, but fill the blocking void left by Thomas Hunter, lost to our latest foot injury. That C.J. Spiller's ankle is completely healed. That Reggie and Ray Ray will see significant action for a morale boost. That Will Proctor will complete the vertical pass to someone. Anyone in an orange jersey.

To say we should win this going away sounds hauntingly familiar to other games we've played this year. This is shaping up to be a reversal of the 2003 Peach Bowl. We had major momentum on our side while Tennessee came in the jaded, jilted team that felt it deserved better. Are we that team now? I really hope not. So I say when the chips are down and they are, we'll finally see the best of our 2006 Clemson Tigers as they send the Frostbitten Felines back to Lexington in a steaming bucket of Kentucky Fried.

My prediction?

Clemson 28
Kentucky 17

GO TIGERS!!!

Coming April 2007...

The horrors of the Tribulation are over, and Jesus Christ has set up his perfect kingdom on earth. Believers all around the world enjoy a newly perfected relationship with their Lord, and the earth itself is transformed.

Yet not all is well in utopia. Evil still lurks in the hearts of the unbelieving. People who are born every day must still choose Jesus as their Savior. Not all do.

Those who have returned from heaven with Christ never age.

Believers who survived the Tribulation never die, but the ravages of time affect them.

The saints of the ages — heroes from the Bible — help rule.

As the Millennium draws to a close, the final generation of the unrepentant prepares to mount a new offensive against the Lord Himself--sparking the final and ultimate conflict from which only one side will emerge the eternal victor.

While those who choose not to trust Christ are accursed and die young, devotees of The Other Light—Lucifer—conspire to populate the end of the millennial kingdom with a massive army. When Satan is loosed for a time to once again tempt the nations, he leads this force to the ultimate conflict of good versus evil, and the result ushers in the new heaven and the new earth.

Reunite with favorite characters and see how they fare in this capstone final title of the Left Behind saga.

Post-Christmas Recap

I would be remiss if I didn't post some sort of roundup of how my Christmas, as well as the days leading up to it, went down.

As you might expect, Anna Kate and I have had lots of fun times together over break. Our first Friday out, we went to eat at Sticky Fingers (because every so often, you just have to give in to the hankering for chicken tenders dipped in Carolina Sweet) and saw The Holiday at the theatre. A fun, even charming, holiday romp, and I'll certainly take it over the latest Tim Allen Christmas movie we have every year. The following Sunday she came over for our family's Christmas luncheon. I showed her the Clemson highlight video I put together (it's a little ways down if you'd like to view it for yourself) and also endured a couple hours' torture when we broke out the home video collection. Let's just say I was first cousin to the Mexican jumping bean as a child and leave it at that. Of course I balanced the scales a couple days later and saw some of her videos :) No one can look so irresistable back into and emerging from a Christmas tree the way she can. And so good with lyrics at such a young age :)

Last Tuesday, I visited AK's school, Waterloo Elementary, near Laurens, to help her unpack her new classroom supplies and assemble some furniture. Learned a few things about myself in the process. Turns out I'm not half bad at basic carpentry, and I'm easily frustrated by stuff wrapped in heavy plastic. Oh well. Made for a few laughs. We hung out at her Mom's house the rest of the evening where we had KFC for supper, followed by the Clemson/Georgia Southern basketball game. We won, of course. 72-60.

Wednesday evening was especially nice. I went with AK's Mom, step-Dad and grandma to see the Greenville Symphony Orchestra. The musical selections were excellent despite the fact that they didn't do the theme from The Polar Express as promised, much to AK's disappointment. The childrens choirs were great, but the ballet dancers for the Nutcracker sequence were something else. You might be surprised how much leg strength goes into standing on your tiptoes for minutes on-end. After dinner at Stax Omega, we got to see AK's step-Dad bring his huge Polar Express display to life. Fun times, indeed. Be nice if my family had the patience to assemble something like that.

On Friday night, AK again joined us for our annual family gathering in Due West. We had an exceptionally full house this year which made things even more exciting. My aunt made her usual breakfast dinner, and I got to see my three cousins that are now living in Georgia. They are just adorable. Especially Maddie :) Every few minutes it seemed, she was giving me hugs and wanting to ask me something. So precious. After a ride home with my sister at the wheel (and my Dad making the same wrong turn he does every year and taking us through Anderson), Anna and I had our own Christmas time at my house. Among the highlights of the terrific gifts she got me were Shrek 2 on DVD, a digital camera (I'm a Johnny-Come-Lately with technology), a cute little bear that we named Reggie, and two orange shirts. I loved each one of her presents, and I hope she loved hers as well :)

As for Christmas Eve and Christmas...when you know and love the real meaning of the holiday, you try to look for the finer pleasures. Things that are not wrapped up in boxes or packaging. One of mine was seeing my granddad back home again, and looking in better spirits than I've seen him in awhile. He was much more animated and tried to be involved in every facet of the gathering; he was proud to announce that he did nearly all of the Christmas shopping on our side of the family. It was so awesome to see him up and about again. Even had a nice effect on my grandma, as she too seemed more talkative and engaged. So that was definitely a gift from God. Thank You, Lord. We had our snack supper (cooked weiners dipped in marinara sauce taste surprisingly good) and present time afterward. Baxter did a nice job playing Santa (with the hat to match). Without a doubt, this year's gag gift was the peppermint pigs. Hard, pig-shaped peppermint candy that you have to chisel pieces off with a mallet to suck on. Interesting choice. Then we shot off fireworks in the backyard, and likely disturbed all of Whitmire in the process. Fortunately, no one has ever called the police on us and really, who says you can only shoot off fireworks once or twice a year? Honestly?

Christmas Day, the highlight was my sister's new (relatively speaking) Land Rover. I knew it was coming a couple weeks in advance; that's the advantage of being home for that long. And Baxter got the skating rail that he's been wanting (he was a bit too nosy for his own good when he spotted it a few days ago in the bushes, but he didn't say a word until yesterday morning). I'm beginning to wonder if I'm chronically slow when it comes to opening presents. I still had 11 gifts to go by the time my brother finished. Susannah's begun to catch on to my method, though. So I didn't feel quite as awkward opening my last few items when everyone else in the room was all through. Naturally, not long after my Dad's Christmas breakfast (delicious as always), it was back to bed for me. Mostly because we began at 4:30 AM. My siblings' fault, not mine.

Anyway, I headed out that evening with Anna to her grandparents' for their meal and presents. That was also fun. She tried to warn me ahead of time about what I was in for in the company of her extended family, but I enjoyed myself very much. And they even got me a few items like a Rick Warren devotion and candy bag. That was nice :) We had a bit of an adventure coming back with our vehicle low on fuel and nearly all of the gas stations closed early, but we finally lucked out in Fountain Inn. Whew :)

Hope your Christmas holiday has been full of warmth and good cheer! God bless!

Keep Christ in Christmas III

Worst case scenario time. Imagine if our so-called opposition succeeded. Imagine if Jesus Christ, the Son of God, was truly taken out of Christmas. What would happen?

What do I mean? Probably not what you automatically envision. I'm not merely talking about outlawing the mention of the Christ-child in favor of a "Happy Holidays" meet-n-greet. I don't just mean tossing people in the slammer for handing out candy canes because of what they actually stand for. Or taking sledgehammers to Nativity scenes. Those scenarios are pretty bleak, but trust me, there is something worse. Far worse.

By worst-case scenario, I mean: what if there was no controversy? What if we didn't have yearly death duels between Christians and retail stores? What if Happy Holidays vs. Merry Christmas wasn't even an issue?

How can that be? It's very simple. Take away the root of the controversy. Knock out the one who knocks over the apple cart, and what do you have? An upright cart loaded with apples, of course. And Jesus knocked over quite a few apple carts in His time.

The advent of the Most High was hardly pristine. He didn't arrive surrounded by the decorum of a palace and regal trappings. He entered our corrupt realm as one of us. The spotless Lamb in wolf's clothing. Everything about Jesus defied our expectation. Instead of building Israel's backbone to resist its oppressors, He taught people to love and pray for their enemies. Instead of supporting the authorities who ruled at the time, He spoke of a standard greater than theirs. Forgiveness and reconciliation over eye-for-an-eye, you-spit-in-mine-I'll-spit-in-both-of-yours.

Matthew's gospel specifically paints Jesus as the head-turner, the cart tipper, the living paradox to the way things were supposed to be. Not only for the law system in place, but for the people's predictions of the Messiah. The Sermon on the Mount rams this home. Nearly every passage follows this pattern. "You have heard it said ...but I tell you..." Who did this guy think he was? Claiming to be the only outlet to God? Not just performing miraculous signs, but bestowing forgiveness of sin? Isn't that a bit over the top? Why couldn't this Jesus play by the rules and be safe? Why did He have to constantly endanger himself and his followers by repeatedly tipping the cart?

But Jesus didn't enter the world with any intention of playing it safe. If He was, then He never would have picked the reign of the most heinous, conniving, and cold hearted ruler of Israel to show Himself. It was a sure bet Herod and Jesus were not going to be bosom buddies. The king ordered every male infant in the land to be put to death in a vain attempt to satisfy his paranoia and get this Jesus off his back.

Turns out King Herod's paranoia wasn't entirely unfounded. Jesus was a threat. The biggest. He didn't look like it. In all likelihood, he wouldn't have cracked a pre-ministry Top 25 poll, so unassuming and...non-military ruler he appeared. But that was part of the whole plan. To disturb hearts. To trouble people. To make them turn their heads incredulously. Mission accomplished. They killed him for what he taught, only to learn that not even death itself could hold him back. And his followers grew.

Two thousand years later (roughly), very little has changed. It's not yet unlawful to mention Jesus in public or to wish someone a Merry Christmas, but it's certain to turn a few heads or rub some people the wrong way. The controversy has entered our retail stores and local markets. It's a hot button on the talk-show circuit, sports interviews, and just about every media outlet you can think of. Dr. Samuel Lockridge was on to something when he proclaimed Jesus to be "the supreme problem in higher criticism." Jesus and everything (and everyone) about Him continues to tip the cart.

So what if Jesus was never born? You'll excuse me for borrowing the overused concept from "It's a Wonderful Life." But what if the prophecies went unfulfilled? What if a Savior never entered the world? How might things be different? Would the controversy simply dissipate, as if it never existed? What would be left of our world?

Well, I'm pretty sure I'd still be here. You too probably. And your family. Friends. Neighbors. But what's changed? A world without Christ is a dark, decrepit and sinful abode. A place without Yahweh in human flesh is Galatians 2:21 - we still try to be upholders of righteousness through the law. By removing Jesus Christ, we remove our Divine Intercessor, the one who goes before God for our favor, enduring the painful death of a religious zealot in doing so.

Without Christ, our whole defense dries up. We wouldn't last a second in a court of law. We may profess to be Christians, but upon what do we base our beliefs? More to the point, where's the evidence? To use a song by Steven Curtis Chapman, "what about the change? What about the difference?" Without a spotless intercessor, there is no change. All that remains is our basic sinful nature. That will never win over a jury no matter how smooth or convincing we sound.

No Salvation Army. No Red Cross. Women might still be property in the eyes of men. Mass infanticides like Bethlehem's wake. Cannibalism. Slavery. Removal of political influence by the people. Science losing its roots steeped in a Divine Creator Being. Again, we may profess to be Christians and argue that such things are wrong, but on what grounds? Who intercedes on our behalf? If all the proof that we can lay on the table is our own view, it's bankrupt. Because it's no different than anyone else's.

And perhaps most stark, death truly is the end. I'd hate to be a pastor and live in a world without Jesus. What do you say to the elderly, the infirm, the dying? What words of comfort can you possibly offer them without hope everlasting as embodied in Jesus' death and resurrection? Words are empty. Once they pass, they truly leave us.

I don't write this to encourage others to go burn down Wal-Mart or Target for saying Happy Holidays. I have friends who work there and hey, they sell things that I need. That's not my point. It is my hope this worst-case scenario fuels our determination. If we want people to see the living Christ in us, we must embody Him in all that we do. Take His words and hide them closely in our hearts, then live them out. Hold to His teachings of love, of mercy, of compassion and forgiveness. Before we rush ahead to condemn our fellow man, remember that Jesus Christ interceded for us in the most unexpected of ways. Before we try to claim the moral high ground, recall the One Who descended to the lowest of the low, in life & death, for the salvation of our souls.

In short, make an impact in whatever way the Holy Spirit leads. Even if that means tipping over a few apple carts along the way.

Taking the Hits: A Review of 'Rocky Balboa'

My sister was surprised to learn I was a fan of the Rocky movies. And I am. But not for the usual reasons.

Like any typical male, I enjoy the boxing, the fights and the training montages. One of the most inspirational tracks I ever listened to was "Hearts on Fire" from Rocky IV. If that doesn't compel you to hit the weights and start pumping some iron, your pulse needs to be checked. I'm no body-builder; don't get that impression. More of a treadmill/endurance runner. But having that song in your head, and visualizing Rocky pulling that weight of boulders and climbing the mountain just makes you want to hit your task, climb your own mountain, with the fire and determination that he displays.

The original 'Rocky' captivated me, along with the rest of its 30-year audience, on the strength of more than the fighting. Much more. It possessed heart. Desire. Will. Courage. Taking your shot and giving it your all. For some people, like Rocky, it's a once-in-a-lifetime chance. The question is, when it comes, are you ready to accept the challenge? More importantly, are you prepared to face the obstacles life throws your way? Can you handle the defeats that will blaze your trail to victory? Can you turn those setbacks into triumph? Let them mold you into a better, wiser person?

Much as I enjoyed the sequels to follow, I felt that they began to lose the spirit of the original Rocky. Despite the overwhelming odds against him, he was no longer the underdog. He became more of a glorified cartoon superhero, facing competition that defied reality (Ivan Drago comes to mind). Oh, I still loved him, still rooted hard for him. But I think those films robbed Rocky of some of the 'everyman' charm that attracted me to him in the first place. In some cases, the stories came off as more comical than thought-provoking. I can't help it. The first Rocky made me think. What's the harm in holding its successors to the same standard?

(For that reason, I disagree with most people who bash Rocky V. In reality, it told a far better story than III and IV combined. But I respect and understand Sylvester Stallone's reasoning that the series deserved a better sendoff).

'Rocky Balboa' is not 'The Italian Stallion's' glorified return to the ring that he departed years ago. It's a character piece, an age-old story about life. We reunite with Rocky back in the neighborhood he grew up in. Long retired from boxing, he is living out a simple existance. He feeds his pet turtles, does chin-ups in his yard, and visits his wife Adrian each morning (she died from cancer sometime after Rocky V). He's a celebrated patron of a corner restaurant called Adrian's where he regales customers with stories from his days in the ring. His son Robert (Mike Ventimiglia) has grown distant with him, unable to escape the long shadow of his father. His old friend Paulie (Burt Young) is frustrated that Rocky is "living life backwards," not able to grow apart from memories of the past, grating on him with his reminiscing.

Then an ESPN simulated boxing match changes all that. Pitting Rocky (in his prime) against current heavywight champ Mason 'The Line' Dixon (Antonio Tarver), the show ignites a storm of controversy. Dixon reigns as the undefeated champ, but he can't buy a fanbase on account of his record. He's beaten nobodies, not any real fighters. People question whether or not he has the heart of a warrior, or could face the kind of odds that Rocky faced. Naturally, this frustrates Dixon, who doesn't want to busy himself with an aging fighter that he claims he could take with both hands tied.

This stirs something in Rocky, however. Despite his absence from boxing, he doesn't feel as though he's given it all that he can. There's "still some stuff left in the basement," he confesses to Paulie. Maybe part of it stems from Adrian's death, or a desire to show that, at his age, he can still go out and grab what he wants. All of a sudden, Rocky shows up at a local convention center to acquire a boxing license. At first, the panel is relucant to grant it, and they make a thinly veiled attempt to explain why, but Rocky passed their tests, and he is persistent. The next thing we know, we have the most celebrated exhibition match in history: Rocky vs. Mason.

I won't spoil any more of the plot for you, or tell you the outcome of the fight. I will say, though, that I went into this film with rather low expectations. Like many I thought with skepticism, "Another Rocky movie?" But as I said, this is more than just another film about Rocky. This is a character piece first and foremost. It's a tapestry with life lessons that are as vibrant today as they were three decades ago when the Italian Stallion first ascended those famed steps and raised both hands in triumph. It's far more than a fight-flick, I can promise you.

The fight is there, of course, with Rocky in his element. The training is there. We have "Gonna Fly Now" at the beginning, end and in-between. But they are reserved for the last 20 minutes of the film. Short but sweet. The important stuff comes first.

Sly Stallone reminds me all over again why I love the character of Rocky. Even after 15 years, he slips Rocky on like a comfy coat. I love his mannerisms, his gentleman-like aura, his way with words, and his easy-going but determined approach to living. Sly's acting has never been better; he really breaks new ground here as he not only brings us up to speed on who Rocky is, but grows and develops him at the same time. The scenes with Rocky petitioning the panel of trustees to give him the license and with his son outside Adrian's are the highlights of the movie.

The screenplay is fantastic. Dialogue flows naturally and rarely feels contrived or false. The pacing for the most part is solid. There are a few scenes that you wish would hurry up and move on to something else, along with others that cut away a bit too quickly, but it allows for the characters to come to life before our eyes. Some may fall asleep until the last 20 minutes, but that's their loss, in my opinion.

Like I said, this is not a boxing film. It's about life, what it does to you, the successes, the failures, and how you react to them. Life is full of hits, and just like a boxer, it knocks you to the mat, bloodies your face, and beats you senseless time and again. There's no preventing it, no way to avoid it. The question is, how do you respond? Rocky encourages us to take the hits and keep on moving forward. Now whether that sounds cliched in today's world or not, that makes me smile. Because in this day and age, accountability is disappearing faster than the pictures in Rocky's mind. More and more, we see and hear of people getting knocked about by the trials & struggles of life. Many times they'll either give up and take an easy way out, point the finger at someone or something else, or wallow in self-pity. They think it's not worth fighting back, showing life what for, or reaching out to grab what they want, even in the midst of overwhelming obstacles. Like money, poverty, illness or old age.

The point of 'Rocky Balboa' is that you won't always knock down those obstalces with the ease that Rocky knocks down his competition. Sometimes you will lose, or come up short. Or you'll succeed, snatch victory from the jaws of defeat. What counts is the way you handle it, how you use it to define the way you take the next round of hits from life coming your way. Do you become scared? Complacent? Angry? Confused? Your actions will determine your destiny. Your foundation will determine those actions.

Grade: A

Clemson Football 2006 Highlights

Stabs of Joy: 2006

1. Anna Kate
What can I say that hasn't already been said? Not only does she make me laugh and know just the right words to pick me up, she loves the Lord Jesus Christ with all her heart. And that love comes out in our relationship as well as her teaching of pre-schoolers for a living (try doing that sometime. it's really not as simple as you think). My love for this girl has only grown stronger with time, and she continues to knock my socks off with how she shows that devotion in thought and deed. She is a blessing for a life that doesn't deserve it. I love you, darling :)

2. Interning at First Baptist Simpsonville
I owe Anna Kate for directing my attention toward this job for the summer. Never could I have imagined how God would use me to reach children in so many outlets that I never saw myself taking an active role in. G-Force, VBS, Creative Arts Camp, White Oak retreat, Paint With Me Mommy, and Music & Me were just a handful of the many enjoyable activities that I was involved in. So many great relationships with awesome people, too many for me to name here. Could God have a role for me in church ministry sometime in the future? Who knows?

3. Living the call
I had two major opportunities to reach people with the gospel this year (there were others, of course, but I want to touch on these). One was a student in my Special Ed. class who had thought off and on about God, but didn't have a relationship with Jesus Christ, and another was a longtime friend of mine that I knew online, but didn't get to meet face to face until this past summer. She knew Jesus, but had fallen out of touch with His Word. It blesses my heart to say that as of last contact, she's begun reading the Bible more on a daily basis, and it's having a really positive effect on her. More than anything, this shows just how important the call to witness is. You never know when God is going to put people in your path who need to be reached with the truth, some who may be a close friend or classmate, and you have to be on call at all times. When you are, the results bear fruit for both of you. :)

4. Hannah Sobeski
I have to admit that I never even met this beautiful senior of Dorman High School who died of high grade round cell sarcoma last month. Yet I can't think of many other people that have moved me the way she has. In reading her story on her website managed by her parents, I read a journey of hope, despair, struggle, faith, and triumph. While most of us spent our summer lounging and goofing off on the beach, Hannah spent hers in an intensive care ward, receiving five rounds of chemotherapy to fight a tumor in her stomach, getting countless units of blood and hemoglobin treatments, and fighting off bouts of nausea every single day. She couldn't sleep comfortably, had to go through weeks of intense physical`therapy just to use her legs again, and was reduced to a diet of crushed ice and gelatin. Days when she could lick a grape-flavored frozen pop clean were exceptional. Yet as a believer in Jesus, Hannah had a firm grasp of the big picture. Rather than dwell on her predicament, she used it to show the love of Christ to everybody - the doctors, ICU staff, hospital patients, her own family - that she came in contact with. She gave out little crosses to every person who walked into her room, whether it was a visitor or one of the many nurses coming by to do bloodcounts and change her bedding. Hannah believed, knew right to the end, that God was in control and that whatever was to become of her, He would receive the glory. Her final moments on this Earth were in a bed surrounded by family and friends, singing praises to God, asking Him to take her by the hand and receive her unto Him gently. I wish I had gotten to meet her. What an incredible girl.

5. Journey to teaching
It's been a tough road. And it's not even halfway over. This year, I've been educated about children with special needs, read more books on the state of education than I thought possible, took three English classes during one semester to keep my major on track, began student-teaching at Mauldin High under a wonderful mentor teacher, did a horrible job on my first day of solo-teaching (but those are the best learning experiences), got exposed to a laundry list of adolescent literature that I never knew existed, had fingerprints done, and sent off my applications for teacher certification. The next big challenge will be student-teaching over the winter. For her part, Anna Kate has already begun filling my head with all kinds of horror stories from her own experience (just kidding, sweetie). I'll need lots of prayer and God's strength to make it through. But He's gotten me this far. I trust Him for this also.

Other Stabs of Joy:
- Annie Ruth Yelton
- FBC's addition of the West Campus
- Vacation Bible School
- Charles McCombs
- Eating macaroni & cheese out of a pickle jar
- Nightly prayer walks around Furman
- SupeReaders' Book Club
- Ruth Harrison
- Meeting a dear friend for the first time
- "Christmas is Forever" cantata
- Fellowship of Christian Athletes at MHS
- Talks with Chandler McLean in English classes
- Andrew Kinard
- Bob Holland
- Jon Dees & Dawn Snyder's engagement :)
- Law & Order and Liar, Liar with Anna Kate
- WinterJam, Casting Crowns, Building 429, & MercyMe live
- "Surprising" Anna Kate at her graduation
- Ray Ray & Fahmarr McElrathbey
- Working with the puppet team at FBC
- Doug & Karen Blackburn
- Tuesday night Bible Studies at the Rock
- Six month anniversary at Jack-in-the-Box
- My Dad's return to teaching
- Susannah's graduation from Shannon Forest Christian
- Spur-of-the-moment trips to Zaxby's & Firehouse
- Baxter pitching wins for his baseball team
- Watching Lost with friends on Wednesday nights
- Tiger baseball in the College World Series
- Tiger basketball 10-0 to start the season
- Sitting in the Bell Tower and talking to God
- 1st anniversary at Soby's and strolling downtown Greenville
- Spill the Beans :)
- Throwing frisbee in the summer when it's warm

I hope your 2006 was also filled with joyous moments! God bless.

To view Anna Kate's stabs of joy, go here: http://mybloodrunsorange.blogspot.com/

Warning: Ramble Alert

Is it just me, or is blogging starting to go the way of the dodo? Where do dodos go anyway? I don't know why a lot of people use that expression. It's up there with healthy horses and fit fiddles in terms of metaphoric mysteries.

Well, fall term is past. It lived up to its epic billing all the way to the end. I don't know how I would've been able to survive without leaning on the everlasting arms of my Lord Jesus Christ. He is forever faithful, and just when I think I've hit the breakdown point and teetering on the verge of collapse, He gives me that last surge of energy to finish the work He began in me. That's just like our God, though. He never starts something that He won't finish.

Environmental Science class...the one and only class in which I had an actual written exam (not to worry; I had plenty to do for the others). I really enjoyed this course. In terms of content, it wasn't much different from typical Earth Sciences here at Furman, but in terms of execution, we did something different. We watched disaster films to help get the main points across. I liked that approach, and I think most others did as well...even if some of the films made a laughing-stock of scientific credibility. Anyway, the first two tests...my scores were decent enough, but I wasn't too happy. I've tried to content myself with making Bs here and there when I know I've performed the best I could, but I wished I could've done better. So I was sweating a bit once the final exam rolled around. Fortunately, our class notes are almost all PowerPoint slides. One of my favorite study techniques that I came up with in the fall of sophomore year is to compile all of my slides together and play them constantly with Christmas music in the background. Unconventional, maybe, but it's worked every time I've tried it. So I used it once again this time, and we had our final on Tuesday. I walked out feeling much better. I rarely feel good after taking a test, but this time it seemed like everything fell into place, and I could dredge up more facts at will rather than sit there and scratch my head much of the time. It's gotta be the music, I tell you. In fact, I finished the exam and turned it in with just over an hour to spare. Which in retrospect turned out to be a God-send. Because that brings us to...

Adolescent Literature...I had to sweat and rush on this one more than I thought. The end product was a portfolio compiling all the work we had done up to that point, including a presentation and inquiry essay, along with online journals on all our readings. Easy, right? Not when you don't have a printer in your room. So this turned into lots of rushing back and forth to the library to attach files, load, and print them out. Not to mention I had to add on a few more items at the last minute in the hope of improving the overall product. There was also lesson-planning to turn in. My winter block lessons that I'll be using for my five classes at Mauldin High (English II and IV Honors). I've been working on those for months now, but I kept adding stuff up to the last minute before printing them out. Dr. Thomas will have to go through about 25 pages per class, but hey, that's what we have Livetext for, isn't it? So after compiling my objectives, evaluations, resources, and daily procedures into separate documents, along with finishing my portfolio, I headed to the Education Department with two binders tucked under my arm. Only to discover a horrifying reality: the office was closed. For a second, I felt like dropping the binders at my feet and screaming out all my pent-up frustration for any late-night crammers to hear. Hey, we all need distractions, right? But after a moment of panic, I decided to check the rooms first. Maybe somebody would have a key and let me in. To my immense relief, an amazingly kind ED professor (I think it was Dr. Ritter) was in Room 102, just about to leave for the evening. She let me in to drop my stuff off outside Dr. Thomas' office. What a blessing from God she was. After that, exhaustion hit me. I needed a Gatorade to boost my energy. I still had one thing left to do...

English-South Asian studies...Interesting course, to say the least. There were only six of us by the end. We spent most of the time trying to stay with Dr. Bhati, our professor who had a tendency to lose us whenever he lectured. But I liked him all right. He's unbelievably intelligent and very insightful...maybe a little too smart for us at times. I mean that in a nice way. Some professors who are extremely bright don't quite have the mental software to bring their insights down to a level we can understand. Not as easy as you might think. Anyway, we had a final paper. I thought I had that one in the bag when I turned in a draft that was intended to be the final, but as it turned out, it had a few significant flaws. So after I turned in my portfolio and downed some Gatorade, I headed to the library for some serious paper work. From about 8 PM until past midnight, I chugged away. I polished it the following morning and finally sent it off to Dr. Bhati. The final was a full page shorter than the original version, but oh well. Still safely within the acceptable page length standards. Hopefully, he'll be nice since he has to read these quickly.

What a semester. Tested me like no other. But it's over, and I'm still alive to enjoy the holidays with family and friends. Speaking of friends, I managed to attend TNT at BCM last week for the first time all year. Definiely an awkward feeling. I walked in, and fortunately they were all watching A Charlie Brown Christmas. Classic movie. So while their attention was mostly riveted on the screen, I slipped in and knelt down near the back of the room. And then Karrah Leary got up, came over, and hugged me, whispering how good it was to see me. Wow. What a child of God. I ended up praying with her and Will Swinson after TNT ended. She informed me that our family group was planning an intervention on my behalf, plotting to kidnap me for some activity of theirs. Haha. Best of luck tracking me down next semester. I didn't talk with too many people because I had to catch up with Karrah and Will, but I congratulated Dawn on her and Jon Dees' engagement. Cute couple and wonderful people. Jessie Rolland came by and said hello, as did Rodney. I later learned that Liz Fulmer got accepted into dental school so I sent her my congrats as well. But it was great to see old friends again and to sit in on TNT. Don't know if I'll be able to do so again, at least in the near future. Lauren Harris and I had a nice chat in the P-Den. Her internship at Advent Methodist (?) is going well. I also ran into Cara Morgan at the bookstore while I was purchasing my two binders. We didn't get a chance to talk then, but I caught up with her online later.

I warned you that I was going to ramble, didn't I? I guess I'll close it off here and give you a break. Hopefully I'll update some more over the holidays. Have a blessed day!