Along with Ira, this will be my first time to blog so I hope that all of Brian's friends will be just as gracious with me as with the others and post at least one comment.

This last week my family (Amanda, Abby, and I) spent the week in the sprawling metropolis of Lyons, Colorado (2 stop lights). That is where my parents live (although 15 min out of town in the foothills, the REAL foothills) and I grew up from 3rd grade on. How often we have made this trip and not had a second thought about going back, or not seeing them again for a few months, or spending that extra time talking instead of maybe reading or something else, yet this time was different, you see, because time for those activities is coming to a pause - at least a 5 year pause.

Now I can count the number of times on one hand that: I'll drive up to the gate, Amanda will get out to open it (although with less complaining now that we replaced the 50 ton wood one with a 50 lbs metal one last week), we'll make our way up the drive-way and see my Dad has the flags out (the American and one for every state we were born in), the horses will be out grazing, and Dad and Mom will come from different directions to hug, kiss, and help us in with the luggage.

Now I try to soak all that in a little deeper, I hug a little stronger, we talk a bit longer, and my brothers wild stories (that is a whole blog unto itself, isn't it Ben!) are more interesting because soon all that will be put on hold because God has asked me to, not forced, but asked, and what little that is compared to the price we have asked for, when we ask for forgiveness.

So we will leave our earthly family to be with our spiritual and new found Vienna team family, and the new family we will meet in Vienna. Although they are not the same, I'm sure if God calls me to leave them someday I'll be just as sad and try to soak in each experience just a little bit longer as well.