It has been a little while since I’ve given a full update on my law school selection process. So you won’t mind waiting a little while longer, right?

We have heard back from five schools now: Arkansas, Mississippi, Tennessee, Florida, and Pepperdine. We are still waiting to hear from three: Virginia, St. Louis, and Missouri.

I have a pretty good idea what the three remaining will say now (based on the first five), so with that in mind, and believe it or not, things are finally beginning to come into focus. We won’t know for sure where we’ll be going for another month or so, but give us just a few days to sleep on things, and I think we’ll be comfortable telling everyone what we’re shooting for…

Thanks for caring.

Today was my daughter’s school spelling bee. Hillary was a late addition to the 30 spelling competitors in this school of about 400 kids. There were two kids from each of the fifteen classes, and though Hillary came in 4th in her class competition, two students ahead of her did not want to compete. She did.

When I arrived, Hillary and Alexa were headed toward the competition, and I stopped them long enough for the pretty picture above. The students gathered in the library where the competition was broadcast over a school-wide television system for everyone in the school to see. All of the classes watched in their homerooms, while the parents were herded in the cafeteria, which is as safe a place to put thirty sets of nervous parents as any.

By luck of the draw, Alexa and Hillary went first. They looked a little nervous, but I WAS A LOT NERVOUS!!!!. They did good, and after the first two rounds, the field had been cut in half. In Round 3, it was cut in half again, including my favorite speller, Hillary.

Okay, you’ve watched “Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader?” right? So let’s play along.

Spell the following word: alot.

(Play the Jeopardy music.)
(Take your time.)
(No hurry.)

How did you spell it?

WRONG!!! It’s actually spelled “allot,” but Hillary spelled it with just one “l.”

She was fine with it. I thought she spelled it close enough, but they’re really cracking down on spelling bee rules now-a-days, so they made her go back to her class after Round 3.

I walked her back to her room, gave her a big hug, enjoyed her beautiful smile, and when she opened the door to go in her class cheered for her.

Too cool.

I couldn’t wait to pick Hillary up this afternoon. She said her buddy, Alexa, came in 5th place – going out in the 7th round. She said the class cheered extra loud for Alexa when she came back, led by her friend, Hillary.

It has been a good day so far. And one thing I know: I love my little girl ALOT!

Been busy, busy, busy, busy, busy…

* My great friend, David Watson, closed down his dental practice and came to Ocean Springs just to spend a couple of days with us, and we had a GREAT time with him. He arrived Thursday evening, and we spent all day Friday and all day Saturday together. He worshipped with us this morning before heading home. He’s Dr. Watson to lots of folks, but Big Dave to me. We have been friends for just about as long as I can remember. He was the best man in my wedding, and my Cardinal/Cowboy/Razorback buddy. He came to Ocean Springs specifically to help me with my Ocean Springs photo-project book, and let me tell you – HE’S A GENIUS!!! We’re only a little over halfway done now after two days of work (you can see us hard at work last night in the picture above), but we’ll be able to do the rest via internet exchanges. It will be too cool, but cost prohibitive for people to buy. But it will be a special treasure for me and my family as we remember Ocean Springs – and an even greater treasure because it was created with a wonderful friend.

* On the law school update front, I received an acceptance letter from the University of Florida yesterday!!! Four acceptance letters so far (Arkansas/Mississippi/Tennessee/Florida), and four to wait on (Pepperdine/Virginia/Missouri/St. Louis).

* This afternoon was really enjoyable. I had the chance to go to Pascagoula and attend a farewell reception for the Dobbs family. John Dobbs has been a special friend of mine here on the Gulf Coast, and he will continue to be forever and ever – mostly because John is the undefeated king of the internet. If you haven’t run across John Dobbs on the worldwide web, you just haven’t been paying attention! John will begin work next weekend as the pulpit minister for the Forsythe congregation in Monroe, Louisiana. He will be GREATLY missed on the Mississippi Gulf Coast. He has been the preacher at the Central Church of Christ in Pascagoula for the past sixteen years.

Okay, gotta jet everyone. The weekend has been great, but busy, and I’ve got lots of catching up to do still…

Jon Coleman

Jon was built to be a fullback, or a wrestler. Maybe even a boxer, but not a basketball player. By basketball standards, he was short. By any standards, he was thick and strong.

I was 21 years old, fresh out of the University of Arkansas, and too young to be coaching high school basketball, but there I was in August of 1992, holding my first practices, and checking out my team. Jon was 17 years old, one of four seniors I would eventually start that year, alongside his classmates, Rusty, Daniel, Jeremy, and a talented junior named Rob.

Jon had the odd mixture of playfulness and intensity that made him a team favorite – and a scourge to the opposition. If there was ever a star opponent that needed to be bothered endlessly – and there often was – I would sic Jon Coleman on him. Jon relished those opportunities.

If our school was big enough for a football team, or in those parts of the country where wrestling is the dominant sport, he would have been a star. We just offered basketball and track, so Jon made his way to the starting five through hard work and determination, and found a place in track throwing the shotput and running relays.

Jon graduated high school and moved on to my alma mater, the University of Arkansas. He graduated with a bachelor’s degree, and then law school to follow in the footsteps of his father. He returned to Jonesboro to practice, and though I lost touch with him completely, I can imagine he became one heck of a lawyer. I can picture his bulldog intensity, along with his mischievous grin, endearing himself to clients, and frustrating the stew out his adversaries.

I called my mom yesterday, and she told me the news. Jon died Sunday morning at his home of natural causes. He was 32 years old.

In less than an hour, visitation will begin at Emerson Funeral Home in Jonesboro, Arkansas. I am five-hundred miles away, but my heart is there with the mourners. Tomorrow morning, Jimmy Adcox will deliver a tender eulogy I’m sure, but I will be at work in Ocean Springs. I have to attempt my bit of dealing with the news by typing out words on a keyboard tonight.

Jon’s father preceded him in death, so the burden lies heavily on his mother, Jan, and his younger brother, Kyle. I cannot imagine how they feel tonight. I left my message on the guestbook at the funeral home, and already there are seven pages filled with condolences. I hope those help in some small way.

Of the fourteen or fifteen guys I handed Falcon basketball uniforms back in 1992, two of them are gone now: Jarrod left us at 19, and now Jon at 32. Death is sobering, and as the years pass, it grows more sobering still. We posed for a team picture back then, and two of those faces have faded away now. Over time, one at a time, we’ll all have our turn.

You don’t know what you have in a moment of time. The flash blinds us, the memory is secured, but you just don’t know that this moment will never be replaced. It is an irredeemable treasure.

I shared part of one year with Jon Coleman, and I hadn’t seen him in close to fifteen years, but all of a sudden I miss him tonight.

I hope he knows now, if not before, just how many lives he touched along the way.

Tom & Laura Tonight

So my friend, Tom, whom some of you may remember from the legendary building of my deck, calls me yesterday and invites me out for a cup of coffee at Coffee Fusion. Hillary was out of school for the holiday, so Hillary and I turn it into lunch while Tom enjoys his coffee. After just a little time for casual pleasantries, Tom says he has something to tell me that, although good, may shock me. This is usually where my heart momentarily stops beating (my preacher friends will understand). Then Tom tells me that he wants me to baptize him.

The rest of the lunch conversation was one of the best conversations I’ve ever had as a preacher. Tom’s wife, Laura (who also happens to be my secretary), has been praying for Tom to make this decision for fourteen years now, and over the course of lunch, he told me how piece by piece the wall fell during his time in Ocean Springs.

He told of how past churches seemed to be filled with people who had it all together, and he thought you had to have it all together like that to be baptized. We, on the other hand, are an obvious bunch of losers. (LOL! He didn’t say that at all! But it is the truth, and my saying so just provides dramatic effect!)

He told of understanding baptism as the final step in a process, but coming to see it here as the first step instead.

He told of a past preacher who cornered him every week to pressure him about being baptized, and how each time led him further away from making that decision.

He told of how church had just been something he went to in the past, but that our men’s group going to baseball games and out to eat wings for fun led him to have real relationships and see people as “people” – not “church folks.”

He told of how he struggled with the reality of his job in the military – ultimately training to kill people – and how one of our teachers (Keith) helped him come to terms with his job.

He told of how our elders impacted him by seeing him as someone that behaved like a Christian leader, and how that helped convince him that he really can be part of this Christian group.

It was a wonderful conversation.

I thought it was cool that he said he kind of wanted to wait until summer so he could be the last person I baptized here, but he knew the time was right now. I told him at the rate I go, he very well could be the last person I baptize here anyway.

So Tom emailed several people, specifically those that have helped him come to this decision, and invited them to our church building tonight to share this occasion with him. And I had the honor of baptizing my friend.

What a terrific way to spend an evening.

Probably the most dramatic sight to see post-Katrina in my town was the wreckage of the Biloxi-Ocean Springs Bridge. Most everyone who came to volunteer ended up standing at the bridge, snapping pictures, trying to capture the unbelievable scene. Today, driving to Biloxi to visit a nursing home, I snapped a picture out my front windshield from close to the spot where many of you out there have stood. It is good to see progress, no?

We shared a great lunch at our house yesterday with Judge Sharon Sigalas, Jackson County CASA Director, Frances Allsup and her family, and fellow CASA volunteer, Dana Mitchell, and her kids. Great food, great conversation, and great people.

Well, I’m two for two in the lunch department. Hillary is out of school for Dr. King’s holiday, and we shared a great lunch at Coffee Fusion with my friend, Tom. I suspect I’ll tell you all more about it a little later on.

* Erica called to say it was snowing in Hattiesburg today!!! Here, it was just 37 degrees and rainy…

* Much of today was focused on Hillary and the Science Fair (pictured above). I don’t know if her project, “Colder Than Ice,” will set the scientific community abuzz, but we found it interesting. Did you know that adding salt to ice water makes the temperature of the water colder? Tell the truth now, you didn’t know that either, eh? The best news is that our procrastination did not bite us on the rear end. We researched this project a few weeks ago, then did the whole thing in one day (today). It’s due this Wednesday.

* The other focus of today was cleaning house. Not fun, but we did it together, which is the way to go. We have company coming over tomorrow (you knew there must be a reason for house cleaning, right?).

* I checked the mail today, and though I didn’t receive any law school notifications, I did receive notification of jury duty! The weird part is that I’m pretty excited about this – I’ve always wanted jury duty. Of course, I’m sure either (a) the fact that I’m excited about jury duty, or (b) the fact that I’m planning to go to law school next year will get me disqualified somehow. I’ll be the only disappointed disqualified juror.

* I read a book today, too. Mitch Albom’s “For One More Day.” Good book, and easy read (200 pages in a coupla hours), but not as good as either “Tuesdays With Morrie” or “The Five People You Meet in Heaven.” According to me, that is…

* Jody, Hillary, and I braved the uncharacteristic Gulf Coast cold weather and went to Applebee’s for dinner tonight. Good folks, Jay and Glenda, gave us a gift certificate for Christmas, and we used it tonight (and appreciated it, too!).

At Least – by Raymond Carver

I want to get up early one more morning,
before sunrise. Before the birds, even.
I want to throw cold water on my face
and be at my work table
when the sky lightens and smoke
begins to rise from the chimneys
of the other houses.
I want to see the waves break
on this rocky beach, not just hear them
break as I did all night in my sleep.
I want to see again the ships
that pass through the Straits from every
seafaring country in the world -
old, dirty freighters just barely moving along,
and the swift new cargo vessels
painted every color under the sun
that cut the water as they pass.
I want to keep an eye out for them.
And for the little boat that plies
the water between the ships
and the pilot station near the lighthouse.
I want to see them take a man off the ship
and put another up on board.
I want to spend the day watching this happen
and reach my own conclusions.
I hate to seem greedy – I have so much
to be thankful for already.
But I want to get up early one more morning, at least.
And go to my place with some coffee and wait.
Just wait, to see what’s going to happen.

The Duck Crossing at the Singing River Hospital

* My daughter called from college this morning just to say Good Morning to me
* I engaged the smartest people I know on the Hungry, Hungry Hippo blog in an important conversation on the meaning of life
* I went to the hospital in Pascagoula to pray with a dying woman and her grieving family
* I ate 4 Krystal burgers and french fries, one of my favorite lunches
* My wife and I unexpectedly met at our house in the early afternoon, and she gave me a kiss
* I talked for 30 minutes to the associate dean at the University of Arkansas law school, and he upped his scholarship offer. More importantly, we had a wonderful conversation.
* I picked up my youngest daughter from school, and we laughed together in the car
* I am about to head to a board meeting for Habitat for Humanity of the Mississippi Gulf Coast

How does one person get hold of such a wonderful day?

BLOG-SERVATION #1: I spent the afternoon in Youth Court (pictured above) concerning my CASA case. Our director’s office is adjacent to the courtroom, so standard procedure for a CASA volunteer is to sit in there and chat with Frances while we wait to see if we’re needed. If we’re needed, there is a knock on her office wall, and we enter the courtroom. When the knock came and we entered, Judge asked me about my law school application process, and she and the Guardian Ad Litem compared LSAT scores with me. Judge, ever with a clever comeback, remembered the saying, “Those who make A’s get to be professors. Those who make B’s get to be judges, and those who make C’s get to be RICH!” Anyway, court, as always, was interesting, and though I cannot go into any details I can simply say that my legal education continued today by learning this truth: if I think I will go to law school and learn how to sort out the messes in this world, then I’ll be sadly mistaken.

BLOG-SERVATION #2: It is a cold, rainy day, which makes me wonder how many people will actually show up for our mid-week class tonight. I’ll be teaching 1st Corinthians 5 to the adults, a chapter on the need for disfellowshipping brash sinners from a church, which is always a fun topic for all. One of the thoughts I’ve had is that I wonder if anyone has ever seen a “disfellowshipping” work. By work, I mean accomplish its supposed purpose of leading someone back to the fold. I haven’t, but maybe others have. If not, then maybe we should be honest enough to admit that there’s something wrong in our whole approach to the subject.