The trip was for Mike's brother Ed's 40th birthday and close to his Mom's 65th so we were celebrating with a mini family reunion. Mike's sister Deb and her husband planned it all and we enjoyed the ride. We stayed in a great hotel in Tribeca, ate amazing food, saw the sights and enjoyed family time...all of us together...which doesn't happen very much.
I thoroughly enjoyed The Addam's Family on Broadway. I laughed until my sides hurt at the woman who played Grandma. Lurch was ginormous and hilarious with his grunts and groans. Nathan Lane was amazing as Gomez...as expected...and he didn't disappoint. Bebe Neuwirth (Frasier Crane's wife) was Morticia and wow...she looks great for 52. The show was an updated version based off the characters from the comic created by legendary cartoonist Charles Addams. Wednesday Addams (the daughter) is growing up and she met a "normal" boy and they are in love. She is happy and no one in the family is pleased with her new found chipper attitude. One scene in particular struck me. It was the scene where she was arguing with Lucas, her soon to be husband and love interest causing all the chipperness, and she breaks out in song "I'm crazier than you!"
Well the word Crazy has come up a lot lately. Michael read Crazy Love by Francis Chan this summer. He was reading it for school. All the faculty and students in the high school were asked to read it as summer reading. Francis talks of having a crazy love for God and putting away the lukewarm ways of most Christians these days. Watch this video and get a glimpse of Chan and his book that is sure to change the Christian world as we know it...if you can even read the book. He calls us out and many don't like what he has to say. Well it came at a time when our family was on a mission trip in the Dominican Republic. Michael was there for the 3rd time. I had already said to myself that I could see us spending more time in the DR at some point. Maybe after we retired, when the kids were grown and on their own. While we were there Michael did go look at a facility that was a possible place for Fellowship of Christian Athletes to branch out in the Dominican. As I was there I imagined how it would be to live there. I loved the people. I loved their way of life. There wasn't so much STUFF. There weren't that many distractions. The kids who had nothing were thrilled to get a silly band and some candy. The girl's were excited to just get their toe nails painted.
This weekend in New York I observed 2 things. People (of all ages) are constantly in contact with something. They walk around with Blackberries and iPhones in their faces, texting and watching...barely watching the cars, taxis and buses that are whizzing by the busy streets. Talk about not texting and driving...well I think walking and texting can be just as dangerous! I know I love facebook and I am constantly on my computer researching something or editing photos. The people of the Dominican don't have that constant contact. They play baseball...a lot of baseball. They spend hours hitting bottle caps with sticks and using old milk cartons as gloves. They play in fields of sub-par conditions so no wonder they play like they do when they get to the US to play if they have played previously with poor replacements of equipment.
The other thing I noticed while watching planes take off...lots of planes, since we waited through 3 plane flights trying to get home. As I watched the planes take off I thought there might just be more people that believe in flying in planes than believe in Jesus Christ. They have more faith in the technology that flies a plane than having a relationship with Jesus Christ. Although this is sad, what am I doing about it? What can I do? Anything?
Am I crazy? Is it nuts for my husband to walk away from a wonderful job at a prestigious Christian school. Is he a fool to leave after winning 3 state championships in the past 3 years? Is it obsurd to take our son from that beautiful school and subject him to a possible inferior education in the Dominican? Is it silly that I will give up my passion for photography and a budding photography career? Is it crazy? To give it all up, sell pretty much everything and walk blindly...well fly since you can't walk to the Dominican silly...and serve our Heavenly Father? I think it is crazy to stay where I am. I think it is crazy to have all this stuff. To be in constant distraction. To never know what would happen if you were brave enough to go. Crazy to ignore the calling...to ignore the need of the people of the Dominican. Call me crazy....because I am going!!
FCA Dominican Republic Baseball Ministry from Michael Mann (edgewarevideo.com) on Vimeo.
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