The healing journey of a widowed, unschooling badass in Delaware.
It took a few days, but I finally got moving on a treacherous hedge maze today. My sons helped pick the hazards and thought of sending Theseus back to Daedalus’s prison for the Minotaur.
Part Harry Potter, part Greek myth, this is the heftiest build so far and just busy enough to remain fun.
God bless and thank you for reading,
Jason
This one got weird.
Frustrated with a couple other builds, I thought I’d return to the relaxing mandala form. This time I chose to stick with blue tones and my son insisted I include purple (his mom’s favorite color).
As I got into a flow, it started to look more like a flower and the dark/light contrasts brought a yin and yang symbol to mind.
God bless and thank you for reading,
Jason
Each of us started a few builds today and came up with new ideas.
This jungle tree house is the result of a collaboration between my older son and a home-educated friend.
God bless and thank you for reading,
Jason
I’m a stereotypical ten-year-old when it comes to Lego building: monster trucks and spaceships most of the time.
For this month’s projects I love thinking about color and more complex forms of shape and symmetry. The mandala shape has spoken to me and I’m diving into the possibilites.
God bless and thank you for reading,
Jason
My eight-year-old is my moving target. Just when I think he’s locked on to a thing, he’s on to something else. I try to release the pressure from completing tasks as he always seems to find his own groove.
This is what happened today as he kept wanting to copy builds from the various books we borrowed from the library. I tried to encourage him while explaining that our entries had to be original works. Unbeknownst to me, each time he was frustrated by a complex build, he went back to work on his own UFO. He has a way of working secretly right in front of you, I swear I never see the process. He may ask for help finding elements, but he knows just what to do with them. His UFO evolved into a spinning top that worked perfectly on the first try and didn’t lose one piece in a dozen or so spins.
Only four days in and we’ve already broadened our building skills and strengthened our familial bonds.
God bless and thank you for reading,
Jason
Energy. My wife and I could feel it the first time we visited Aldersgate United Methodist Church. From potluck dinners and member-led Bible studies to food drives and homeless outreach missions to the countless efforts being made by the clergy and congregation, we felt that this was an active faith community. It was a community where our talents could come to use.
Mary was always a giver, volunteering at Ronald McDonald House and Sunday Breakfast Mission, organizing many service opportunities through her position at Bank of America, and donating blood to award-winning levels.
I’ve modestly continued her amazing ways by saying “Yes,” as often as I can to chances to serve our community. Fortunately, Aldersgate offers many such opportunities.
This week we were able to help deliver canned food and monetary donations to several local charities, including Neighborhood House in the Southbridge neighborhood of Wilmington, Delaware.
For me, there is no separation between “acts” and “love.” We must act, there is no choice. We choose to love. When we choose love in every possible moment we will act in love.
Mary chose love. She acted in love. Through Aldersgate I not only get to act in love, but I get to visit Mary’s resting place while doing so. Her remains are at the memorial columbarium there, a beautiful, quiet place I often visit and share with friends.
God bless and thank you for reading,
Jason
Tom Otterness’s Crying Giant is one of our earliest memories of visiting Delaware Art Museum. Driving in, it stands out in the Copeland Sculpture Garden. We have a friend who walks there frequently and I always look forward to her latest photograph of the big, sad guy.
The Museum dedicated a nearby magnolia tree to Mary and I often think of Crying Giant as her most commited mourner.
I was intimidated to build him out of Lego for his curvy limbs and round body. I was also driven by the challenge.
The pieces came together quickly as I worked from top to bottom. I may modify a couple things, or try a completely new build, but I’m very happy about capturing some of the curves and overall demeanor.
God bless and thank you for reading,
Jason
My girlfriend spent quiet time coloring a mandala the same day I picked up Abbie Headon’s Build Yourself Happy, which suggests composing mandalas made of Lego elements.
I was excited to play with different building techniques and stick to a predetermined color scheme.
I’m exceedingly pleased with the result and will surely be building more mandalas this month.
God bless and thank you for reading,
Jason
Ideas were flowing as we got to work on the first of twenty-nine Lego sculptures we’re building for Delaware Fun-A-Day.
It seems this project may be more about speed and focus than consensus as my older son ran with his inspiration for a naval battle scene in Rock ’em Sock ’em colors.
I got a head start on Day 2’s creation and we’re all excited about the number of ideas we already have.
God bless and thank you for reading,
Jason
It’s made me angry to hear those words. Of course you don’t know what to say. This is my pain, you can’t know it and have no right to comment on it.
I flipped that on myself to start to understand other people. Accepting their pain for what it is, finding the bravery to shut up and let it touch me. I’ve gotten better at listening and, on rare occasion, having something useful to say.
I’ve also discovered that bravery is the right word. This week I experienced loss through friends and it shook me. I didn’t know what to say, I could hardly listen, and the pain was so great I couldn’t think. I was, and still am to a degree, trapped in that pain.
There are moments that can’t be helped or fixed, they must be felt. That sucks. That really sucks when laundry and dishes call, when someone you love is coming to dinner, and when your beautifully nerdy sons are asking to go to the library.
So here I feel. I know the path through, I’m finding the patience and trust to continue.
God bless and thank you for reading,
Jason