Eric Holen

Today, Yvette and I climbed Enchanted Rock and I couldn’t be more proud of my wife for her accomplishment.

The trip grew out of a plan of Yvette’s to keep me from going back to work for two days when we returned from El Paso on Wednesday. That day, we had stopped at the visitor information center in Ozona for a break and lunch. There we picked up some travel brochures including one on Enchanted Rock. Yvette knew I wanted to go since I had previously downloaded a copy of the park map. So when we hit the road again for the last leg home, she threw out the idea of going to the park on Thursday or Friday. Thursday ended up being a sleep late and catch up on grocery shopping, so Friday became the day.

This morning started out with me making a good breakfast to get us started before we hit the road for the 134 mile drive to the park.

We couldn’t have asked for more perfect weather for climbing. It had been raining and overcast so it was relatively cool for a summer day.

After checking in at the park, Yvette and I started our climb up the summit trail. It wasn’t long before she realized and started to vocalize how difficult the climb was for her. I tried not to laugh at some of the comments that came out of her mouth.

When we were about two thirds of the way up, it became pretty steep and we had to zig-zag up the slope. We would take about 20 or 30 steps and stop so Yvette could rest. I could tell that her will was starting to break down when she hinted that I should go ahead and that she would catch up. Instead, I stuck with her and we continued slowly up the rock face. It didn’t help that I never broke a sweat or showed any signs of exertion during the climb.

We finally reached the top and it was then that I could tell how proud Yvette was of herself.

Yvette’s struggles reminded me of the time that I tried and failed to climb Grouse Mountain in Vancouver during a business trip in 1997. I failed because I was severely overweight and out of shape at the time. I have vowed that when Yvette and I take our Alaskan cruise out of Vancouver, that I will attempt and succeed at climbing Grouse Mountain.

Yvette has her own struggles, but today, she really showed how she overcame to reach the top.

Today, Yvette, her mom and I spent the day hunting down and buying school supplies for one of Yvette’s co-workers. It was interesting for me on two levels. First, last year I spent a day with two young girls getting them school supplies while their mom was away on a trip and their dad was laid up at home due to a cardiac condition. Second, it reminded me of the financial struggles I went through during my first marriage.

Yvette had found out that one of her co-workers, a mother of two, was depressed because she didn’t know how she could afford school supplies for her two children. Yvette took it upon herself that she and I would purchase most of the school supplies for the two children. I didn’t have any augments since we do not have children of our own and after having bought (and reimbursed for) school supplies the previous year, I know how quickly they could add up.

I remember the financial struggles I went through during my first marriage. At that time, our local supermarket would not run your credit card unless you charged more than $25. So my then wife and I would make several passes through the supermarket charging just under the limit to ensure that we had food to feed ourselves and our daughter Megan.

While I have some of the worst buyer’s remorse, I did not have any problems spending money on school supplies. Even Yvette’s mom jumped in and bought some supplies on her limited budget. It was nice to be able to give back and give thanks for what we have been blessed with.

Sometimes, life’s decisions need a cooling off period. Thinking back to when I was a young adult, there were many decisions, which if given a cooling off period, might have gone differently and hopefully better. Some of the more common decisions that need a cooling off period are purchases.

Just a couple of days ago, and due to the Republic Of Texas Biker Rally in Austin, I was sharing a story at work about how every 2 or 3 years I drag Yvette through a “should I or shouldn’t I” purchase a motorcycle. After 13 years, she has come to expect it and even know the process.

It starts with me mentioning to her that I am thinking about getting a motorcycle. That follows with me researching motorcycles on the Internet, even though it always seems to come back to the Honda Shadow. Then I drag her to see the motorcycle. We discuss finances, insurance and storage, since we would have to pull one of the vehicles out of the garage. Then I look for used motorcycles as an alternative. Finally, a few weeks go by and the whole idea drops off the radar, at least for the next 2 years.

As Yvette will attest, I have the worst buyer’s remorse, but it only occurs when I am buying something for myself. I think that comes from living in a big family and needing to make do with what we were lucky to have. It also came from some of those buying mistakes that I made when I was younger.

Today, I take time to think about a purchasing decision, and really try not to be caught up in the excitement. That helps me actually think about the decision. Yvette says I can sometimes take it to extremes. For example, I will think twice about picking up a $7 video game at Half Price Books, but not about spending $25 for the two of us to go out to dinner.

Are there purchases that you wouldn’t have made if you had taken extra time to think about it?

In a previous post, I wrote how I had been away from the church for some time.  I also teased that I would write about my ideal church.

Church is such a personal commitment.  While we are giving our lives and heart to the Lord, we are giving our time and money to a church.  Yes, I know that our money is doing the Lord’s work, but it is the church that serves as the conduit for the Lord’s work.  We need to have faith in our church, its leaders and the message that they preach.

In my life, I have attended several churches.  I was baptized Catholic, went to parochial school, and served as an altar boy.  I have attended my fair share of Catholic churches.  I attended a Methodist church for several months because the girl I was dating went there.  I attended a non-denominational church while I was trying to turn my life around after some missteps.  Then I attended a Baptist church, again because the girl that I was dating attended services there.  After that, I went on a long break until Yvette and I found another non-denominational church that we fell in love with.

We attended The Connection Church for well over a year, until some missteps on my part caused us to break away.  Mind you, I didn’t do anything wrong, it was just that as I tried to get more involved in the church, I didn’t keep Yvette involved.  Once she decided to stop supporting and going to church, I quickly followed.

Lately, I have been thinking more about getting involved in the church again, really for selfish reasons.  I miss the “pump” that a good sermon gave me to kick off my week.  It didn’t hurt that attending church helped solidify, at least in my mind, that I could be a good person.  In the last couple of months, I have received two offers to attend church with different friends.  Yvette and I need just need to take them up on their offers.

So, what is my ideal church?  First, let me preface this that The Connection Church spoiled me.  They, out of all of the churches that I have ever attended, was my most ideal.  If you are ever in the Buda/Kyle/San Marcos area, I strongly recommend checking out The Connection Church.

Accept Everyone – This is probably my most important criteria.  I don’t care if you are single, married, cohabiting or gay, you should be accepted.  Everyone is a child of God.  Some churches may preach that they are open to everyone, but then they slide in those sermons that knock a lifestyle.  Yvette and I cohabited before we were married.  We were married by a justice of the peace.  Thirteen years later, we are still happily married.  It’s what’s in our hearts that matters.  God loves us and everyone else no matter what.

Preach To Me – A good bible story is just that, a story.  Take the time to translate it to me and my life.  Show me how I can take the sermon and, either that day or on Monday, translate it into my daily life.  One of my favorite sermons, that I can remember, involved Zak White, some credit cards and a blender.  Use the sermon to help me be better in my daily life.

Recognize Me – I don’t expect a pastor to know everyone by name, but it’s wonderful when they recognize you.  What’s even better is when the pastor acknowledges you before church, because all of them try to speak to you after church.  Furthermore, I want to be able to talk to the pastor, not a deacon or someone else.

Be A Big Church in a Small Church Body – Some of my favorite services occurred when The Connection Church met at an elementary school.  They had the heart of a big church wrapped up in the body of a small church.  The services were small, based on the size of the room.  It didn’t feel like a church, it felt more like a get together with God and me.  Yvette and I agree that The Connection Church lost some of that feeling when they moved to a much bigger facility.  I didn’t real pick up on it until a power failure forced us to move services off of the stage and into the lobby and it felt like a small church again.  However, they recently moved back to an elementary school which means that the small church feeling is probably back.  One of the other things that I loved about The Connection Church is that our lead pastor, Cole Phillips, was there at 6:30 AM to perform manual labor and help setup the church.  That said a lot to me about his commitment.

Music – This is something that The Connection Church excelled at, to a degree.  I have listened to more hymnals than I can remember.  The music should pump me up and prepare me for the Lord’s message.  From the very first day, The Connection Church excelled at music.  The band that they have put together, led by Micah Petrea, rocked me and God’s word.  My only comment is that the four songs that preceded the service could be a little long.

Whatever your ideal church is, I encourage you to try it out.  Don’t put it off like Yvette and I have.

Yvette has been following the Olympics and occasionally updating me on results and medal counts, when I will listen.  This got me to thinking about whether I would medal in certain areas of my life.  After giving it some thought, here are my results.

Myself – Bronze Medal:  While I have lost over 30 pounds in the last year and have kept the weight off for the last six months, there are areas where I am falling behind.  For example, I keep telling myself that I need to take my GRE and register for Graduate school; however, here it is almost 5 years after getting my Bachelors degree and I am still not back into school.

Marriage – Silver Medal:  I am doing a great job.  Yvette and I are a team.  She loads the dishwasher and I unload.  But in other areas, I could be a better husband.  As Yvette will say, our marriage is great, but not perfect.  That leaves us something to strive towards.

Spiritual – Did Not Medal:  This is the area of my life where I am really falling behind.  As much as I want God to be a part of my life, he is not first in my decisions.  That’s not to say I am not a good person.  I have tried to read the bible in a year, but as soon as I hit a dry section, I stop.  I have been away from the church for over a year.  In another post, I hope to write about my ideal church.

Work – Bronze Medal:  While I am doing my best as an individual, I need to step up my game when it comes to motivating my employees and getting them to perform at their very best.

There are no gold medals this time around.  How would you medal if you evaluated yourself?