ann kiemel

the close of another Sabbath.
a day set apart.
different from all other days in a week. God's day.
how was your time with Him?

oh, it thrills me to be with my children.
not the easiest with these
two feet wrapped...and a walker...
but all the laughter. the stories of
four sons, a widowed mother, and
adolescence. my children recall
it all.

every sunday morning on the front
row. making sure they heard the
messages clearly. picking one or
the other up from school. taking
them, unexpectantly, to be drug-tested.
brandt told kristi, brock's girlfriend,
"my mother, I swear, was
the FBI!"

tonight, one of them had alittle too
much beer. "mom, we're just having
so much fun." he and I are going
to have to talk this out before our
good-byes. I have never believed
in too many absolutes...but more
negotiables. but absolutes build
the foundation. the mortor between
the bricks.

i've succeeded and failed...but
four, honest, loving, 'i've got your
back' sons I have. and colben is
the beautiful, happy doll-baby in
the middle that melts all our inhibi-
tions. his fly-away ringlets and beautiful face of joy invite healing
in all the cracks we so desperately
need in.

tomorrow, I want to tell you how
I have fallen in love with kristi.
tattoos and all. i am not a cheerleader of tattoos, but kristi's
heart is another deal. and jasmine,
my daughter-in-law, is an anderson
to the core.

family time is magical.....and it
reminds me that my greatest
mission in life is to keep my children
in the Race. straight for the Celestial City. to the Finish Line.

am I what I need to be to get them there? my soul hungers and longs
for more of the King. our glorious
Savior. until tomorrow...and a one-day trip to san francisco. loving u.


taylor, brandt, kristi, brock


ann & colben