Happy New Year & A Sincere 'Thank You' (e-version)

We just want to take an opportunity to say Happy New Year and 'Thank You' for being in our lives. Whether you are in it daily, monthly or bi-annually, we love you and this is the best way we know to let you all know that you are very much thought of. We are not good ... actually embarrassingly bad at Christmas cards and any other kind of note that you can think of. We are still staring at a pile of thank you notes from our wedding ceremony from April '06. We're also staring down a pile of thank you notes for Liam's baby shower and his announcements. If I were to try to justify ourselves, I would say we're trying to go 'green' by not sending cards, paper and being e-friendly. The truth is that we get so consumed in everyday life that we don't get around to it. It's not that we don't want to. We buy the things or in one case they were given to us for a present - already stamped and addressed - and we still haven't sent them out. We're great at intention, bad at execution. Our hope is that we isolate that to this are of life. So if you're waiting for a thank you note from us for any event, please be patient, it might come one day. Until that hopeful day, please know during this season that we thank you, we appreciate you and we're honored you're in our lives.

Takers

I just watched the movie "Instinct" the other day in about 3 parts with Courtney. I think I had seen it before, but either could not remember it, or didn't care what it was about at the time. In the movie, Anthony Hopkins (Sir Anthony) plays a mute prisoner in a maximum security psych ward for having been ruled incompetent to stand trial for murder. For two years prior to committing murder, he had lived among gorillas in Africa. Cuba Gooding Jr. plays a young phychologist that wants to get through to Hopkins' character in order to get him a trial and more importantly be the 'one' that got through to him for the purposes of a book and career boost. Alas, Gooding's character does get through and discovers that the reason Hopkins killed some poachers was because he was protecting his family of gorillas that had accepted him as one of their own. Sorry if I ruined the plot, but the movie came out in '99. Here is the great part. You learn that Hopkins went to live with the gorillas after years of observing them because they lived in a relatively peaceful community, void of control, agendas and time. There was understood order and there was fighting, but no war, no extinction. You learn that those communities can survive, unless disrupted by "Takers"; those looking for control and advancement over what is really not their's to begin with. Wow, what an intriguing thought. Do you really think it is possible? Do you think it is possible that if every culture consumed only what they needed, were satisfied with the amount of 'stuff' they had on their part of world, that we could all live in relative peace. Is it really possible for any of us to not feel the need to advance and take more that what we need. I definitely don't know the answer to that. I do think as people and especially as a society, that for some reason we have a really hard time feeling content with things. When we have things, we want more. When we have more, we want again more. When we have a spouse, we still want another person. When we get to to have one vacation a year, we want to two; when we have two, we want three. When we have an SUV, we still need a sports car. When we have everything, we still want more. Discontent runs rampant in our world. Don't misunderstand me. I don't think there is anything wrong with having much or consuming much. I'm more interested in the reasons behind consuming more than what we need. If it is because we have alot, give a lot, are diligent and have a lot left over - great, get the sports car. Is it because we never feel quite content with what we already have.... I don't want to be a "taker". I don't want to be discontent. I'm fortunate enough to have the best wife (sorry all you guys out there, but mine just got the universal #1 ranking), best son (same deal) and great house that we love all 1200 square feet of (check back in two years when we have at least one toddler running around in it), at least two families that love me, friends that care about my deepest issues, a dog that is pretty cool and the opportunity to go into business for myself while fulfilling a dream of ours. All in all, I have a pretty sweet gig going on. Not that everyday is great and even with all that I have, there are days when my life for one reason or another doesn't feel fulfilled. My wife, (the #1 ranked wife) taught be that no matter what, life will never fully satisfy us; that not everyday will be perfect. I am so thankful she taught me that because being able to understand that is the first step to finding peace with what you have. She also taught me that sort of all satisfying fulfillment will only come from a higher power than anything Earth alone has to offer. If you believe like Courtney and I do, that will only come from God. Perhaps He designed us that way to remember where we came from in the first place. But regardless of your spiritual beliefs, it is important to understand that all the money in the world, all the mind bending substances in the world, all the friends in the world, all the ANYTHING in the world will not satisfy a person's core. Be thankful for what you do have for all the reasons you were thankful you got them in the first place. And do this not only this season of the year, but in every other season as well. Happy Holidays to you!