2000 -- Surrender

May 20, 2000 -- A Saturday Afternoon

It was a Saturday, a day when Kim was working. Adam was at his dad's, so Chloe and I went to Ceasar Creek for a walk. I had purchased a rather expensive camera with a zoom lense because knew from my days with the newspaper that the best shots don't walk right within a few feet of you and say, "Here I am."

She had already played a year of soccer, and I suspected other events were on the horizon. And maybe, just maybe, I'd find a good shot during our walk.

Yep.

Click.

This is a keeper forever.

...

June 9, 2000 --"Say Hi To Mary Kate & Ashley." So John calls at 5:30 on a Friday night. "Hey, I'm working with Bob Saget this weekend at Joker's. Why don't you get the kids up here real quick so they can meet and have their picture taken with him." I think we got there about 5:45, and there he was, one of the stars of one of Chloe's favorite shows, Full House, and the TV father of her heroes, Mary-Kate and Ashley Olson, just standing outside in the parking lot, acting like some normal person. I don't think Adam was a true fan of the show, but how many times do you get to meet someone really famous. He was a great guy, and very generous to allow the photographs and to sign autographs. Thank you, my good man!

...

September 5, 2000...Day One. The bus arrived at five minutes after eight. Adam was starting the eighth grade, so Chloe knew what school was all about. She had been there, we had talked about it, and she had already been to Goddard School for a couple of years. As a result, Chloe didn't appear to be the least bit nervous about starting regular school. She was given an excellent teacher, Mrs. Roederer, and everything went as well as we could expect. If there was any "trouble," that actually occurred a couple of weeks later when Chloe and I went to her open house. I had just purchased a Jeep Cherokee and I wasn't as familiar with it as I should have been. The gas gauge said I needed gas and I figured I was good for 30 or 40 miles. But as we drove down Lytle-Five Points Road approaching Main Street, my car started to sputter. Chloe said, "Daddy, what's wrong?" I said I wasn't sure, that maybe it was some kind of mechanical problem. I thought I could bluff my way through it. But Chloe was not fooled. "You're out of gas," she said. And for years she would never get in my car without checking the gas gauge.

...

December 30-31, 2000 -- A Story Of Surrender

I grew up in church. I was a believer. But I thought God was more interested in setting rules and having us follow them, then imposing consequences for not doing so. I had never been taught to believe He just wants to walk through life with us and help us enjoy the journey. We first started attending SouthBrook Christian Church in 1995, and it slowly began to show me a new direction in my spiritual journey and the way I could live my life. On this weekend just before the New Year, in front of four packed church services totaling 1,600 people, I told my story.