Another Monday dawns with anticipation

Another Monday dawns, and the Florida air is so moisture-laden that there's heavy condensation on the outside of all the windows. The garden is lush and beautiful after several weeks of good rains, and it's sunny with the promise of hot - I can almost see the grass growing.

Yesterday was a good birthday celebration for Rebekah. She says Scout Labradoodle (four years old now) is still her best birthday present ever, so of course the great galumphing over sized puppy had to be in the birthday portraits. You can see one of the shots as my blog banner photo for the time being. Scout is now four years old and just about the best dog ever.

We went out for seafood at Stingrays then The Cheesecake Factory for a shared dessert. Rebekah got to speak with Naomi in Connecticut and then Skype with Andrew in Bahrain.

We tend to evaluate our lives on birthdays and anniversaries, and we both agreed we're in a good place right now. We're 54 years old, our children are happy, our work is meaningful and we know we're making a positive difference in the world.

But at the same time we're committed to not standing still. We want to keep the ball rolling. We both feel very clearly (yet without a sense of specific urgency) that there is a tremendous amount for us still to accomplish, and we're definitely in agreement that the last thing two creative middle-aged people should do would be to ease back and say, "Well, we're certainly on top of things, we can pretty much coast from here on out...."

So it's Monday morning in Florida - humid air, growth soaked into every pore of the Earth - and with this tingling sense of anticipation in our spirits too.

Here's a good reading to go with such a day - DEREK

"Since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you and asking God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all spiritual wisdom and understanding. And we pray this in order that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and may please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God." (Colossians 1:9-10)