Feb 22
I was tucking Darla in before naps. When she hugged and kissed me she said “Oh, Mom! Wow- you smell soooo good!” I stepped back to leave and she asked, “Please, one more hug so I can smell you?”
Feb 22
You know you work with teenagers when you come into the room to find your pre-schoolers with their hats cocked saying, “Students look like this.” “No, students have their hats like this.” “Some students have their hats backward but girl students wear their hats the front way.” So here you have it- Darla & Hudson posing like the middle school & high school students they spend so much time with.
Feb 21
Feb 18
To add another interesting twist in the Taylor story…I am sitting amidst boxes, packing tape, and sharpie markers this evening. S. is at the 48; the youth ministry here at Mount Vernon CTK, to share that he is stepping down as pastor for the time being (see below letter). He’ll still be working part time there. While all of this job stuff, soul-searching stuff, family time stuff has been going on, we never have been able to sell our Lynden home. It’s been vacant for a couple months and we are to the end of being able to make double payments. We decided last week that if it didn’t sell by this past Monday then we would pack up and move back. Well, Monday came and went without an offer. Here we are Wednesday knee high in boxes with plans to get a truck within the next week to load up.
Feb 18
As you know, Shilo and I have been on sabbatical for the last several weeks due to anxiety, stress, and spiritual duress. A few years ago I had a severe anxiety attack as the result of years of fast paced ministry and unhealthy habits formed by my overworking, driven, undisciplined nature. For the past two years we have sought health and healing through our faith, better boundaries, counseling, and medication. In moving to Mount Vernon last summer we hoped the slower pace and new job would bring to completion the restoration we prayed and hoped for.
In October I encountered a spiritual attack that was more debilitating than I realized at the time. In one day I had calls from 3 separate people regarding being woken in the night and told to pray for this battle I was facing. Regardless, I lost fight and resolve. Over the next two months I battled isolation, apathy, depression, and anxiety. Without realizing the depths of my wounds I continued to bleed with the infection of poor choices and an unhealthy pace. Ultimately I had another severe anxiety attack in December that left me debilitated, left my wife wounded, and my family a casualty.
Feb 15
A package came in the mail a few weeks ago, for Darla and me. It was from the queen of party-throwing, my childhood friend Jayena. (She throws sophisticated, stunning, personal parties for people. I remember she had a knack for it in the 8th grade when it was about a good sized sheet cake and the cutest boys. On a slumber party scale she was always off the charts.)
