Cap’n Jim’s Logbook

Last week I ran into my friends Steve and Peggy Brown at church, they were down from Sacramento visiting kids and grandkids. So, Peggy and I do the meet and greet, then see asks me how I’m doing, so I tell her that basically I want a “do-over” for 2007 but with the suck setting turned way down. So she tells me that she keeps checking my blog regularly hoping for an update but is disappointed there is nothing new. Peggy is a retired 5th grade teacher, and she has that teacher vibe down solid! I’m 52 years old, and all of a sudden I felt like a 12 year old explaining to my teacher why my homework is late. I don’t ever want to hear Peggy Brown tell me she is “disappointed” with me ever again!

Today is a red-letter day! We finally got the Erbschein from Germany. What that means is that the German government has finally recognized Martina as Erika’s only heir. Getting the Erbschein is the critical first step to being able to finally manage Erika’s estate. So far we have been unable to do much of anything with her house, bank accounts, or bills. Thank God most of her regular bills were set-up for auto-debit and that she had a decent balance in her checking account or we would’ve been paying her bills all this time. 5 months to get a single type written page with 3 lines basically saying, Erica died in Spain, Martina is her only heir, she gets everything. After all the hassle and red-tape I was expecting something with at least a gold seal and a little red sealing wax. Nope, this is the most un-impressive very important paper I have ever seen, I’ve gotten fancier certificates for company training classes than this. But, thank God it is here.

Break – Break new topic.

As I have reflected on the events of this year I have come to 2 conclusions: 1) Having relationships in your life is messy. What I have discovered is that the more people I get to know, care about, and love, the opportunities to get hurt go up exponentially. Right now some of you are going “well Duh!” Okay, so I came to the relationship game late and slow. Gimme a break! I’m just now starting to figure this whole “relationship stuff” out. I’m an engineer for crying out loud, I deal with volts, amps, and ohms, not emotions, feelings and oh my God, other people’s viewpoints! What I’m prattling on about is the discovery that when other people hurt, I hurt. For example, right now my oldest son is in the midst of being divorced. I grieve for the death of my son’s marriage, and I pray that God will resurrect it, but I know that it will take three people to do that, Jeremy Christina and God. I know that 2 of the 3 are in favor, but right now Christina has chosen a different path. Please pray for my son, his wife Christina and their daughter Adelaide.
The other thing I have decided is that being “refined” sucks! Not very theological sounding I admit, but I think it conveys what I feel. I believe that this year has been about God convincing me to get serious about being deliberate in my personal sabbath with Him. My personal trial has been to find a way to connect with God regularly and in a way that re-fills me with Him. I am a service kind of guy down to my bones. It is very difficult for me to sit still and relax. Reflection and contemplation do not come naturally to me. So it is very difficult for me to “be still, and know that He is God.” But this is what I think God wants to teach me. So far I think I’m doing ok on the theory, but the lab blows.