Everybody's Free to Have a Quiet Time

So, sometimes when I am looking for something blog and I know I have to not only be up in about 7 hours for work, meaning I'll need to be in bed in an hour or so... and so tonight, I found this little gem.  Well, to me its a gem, to you it might just be something to skim on your daily check of Clouds in My Coffee

...which I've noticed I'm getting alot of traffic daily, probably due to The Summer of Blogging--so... thank you so much...

...anyway, its the lyrics to a version of "Everyone's Free to Wear Sunscreen", done by Baz Luhrmann from 1999. 

It originated in 1997, when Mary Schmich of the Chicago Tribune wrote a column entitled "Advice, Like Youth, Probably Just Wasted on the Young".  She described it as "a commencement speech, were I asked to give one".   Over the years, it has been erroneously attributed to Kurt Vonnegat, though it became truly famous when, in 1999, Australian film director Baz Luhrmann used the entire essay in a spoken word song entitled "Wear Sunscreen". 

And by 2000, this song was everywhere.  So, on January 9th, 2001, I did my own version.  And I thought I'd give it to you...

"HAVE A QUIET TIME (EVERYBODY'S FREE)"

Ladies and gentlemen of The Deuce... read scripture.

If I could offer you only one tip for the future, a daily quiet time would be it.  The long term benefits of The Word has been proven time after time by God and joy in your life that comes with Him, whereas the rest of my advice has no basis more reliable than my own meandering experience.

I will dispense this advice...

...now.

Enjoy the power and beauty of The Deuce.  Oh, never mind, you will never understand the power and beauty of The Deuce until it has disbanded.   But trust me, in twenty years, you will look back at photos of Deuce Christmas and an old DeuceFest shirt and recall in a way you can't grasp now how much fun you had and how fabulous the Deuce guys really looked.

They are not as lazy as you might think.

Don't worry about the future or worry, but know that worrying is as ineffective as McLeod trying to be entertained by watching Jason Takes Manhatten.  The real troubles in your life are apt to be things that never crossed your worried mind, the kind that has a Mercedes blindsiding your insuranceless car at 10:30pm on a random Tuesday.

Bring one new person to Common Ground, even if it scares you.

If you are Stephanie Campbell, sing.  Unless you are Rebecca Glassco.  Then act.

Don't be reckless with other people's hearts, don't put up with Delta Zetas who are reckless with yours.

Use coasters.

Don't waste your time on jealousy... if she likes you, great, if she doesn't, being jealous will only turn her off of you even further.  The race is long and though you may never reach the end, enjoy the run.

Remember compliments Michael gives you, forget his insults.  If you succeed in doing this, you aren't Sarah Hasha.

Keep your old movie tickets.  Throw away any bills.

Slam.

Don't feel guilty if you don't know what to do with your life. The most interesting people I know didn't know at 20 what they wanted to do with their lives, some of the most interesting 25 year olds I know still don't.

Get plenty of Hamburger Helper.

Be kind to the Nipp family... you'll miss Sunday lunch when its gone.

Maybe you'll get a date, maybe you won't.  Maybe you'll go out twice, maybe you won't.  Maybe you'll go stag at Deuce Date Party, maybe you'll eat cheese fries on your 2nd anniversary.

Whatever you do, don't congratulate yourself too much, dont berate yourself to much either.

God's will is going to happen, whether you like it or not.

Enjoy the Deuce.  Visit every chance you can, don't be afraid of it or what other people think of it.  It has some of the greatest fellowship you'll ever know.

Watch the History Channel at least once a week, even if there are others things on.

Don't worry about the directions, just shove them behind the DVDS.

Do not read Shawn's Better Homes and Gardens, it will only make you feel gay.

Get to know Factor 7's music.  You'll never know when they'll break up for good.

Be nice to your roommates.  They are the best link to paying rent on time, and the people most likely to stick with you when everyone else won't.

Understand that friends come and go, but a precious few you should hold on to. Work hard to bridge the gaps in geography and gender, for as the older you get, the more you'll need somewhere to go and just relax.

Visit Hunter Street once, but leave before it makes you hard.

Visit Brookhills once, but leave before it makes you soft.

Accept certain inaliable truths... Daniel will have his palm pilot,  and Ty Coffey will own Samford and Mike Williams will try to date Rebecca.  When you get older, you'll fantacize that when you young, Daniel used an ink pen, Mike was meeting girls at Ropers and Ty was merely a Senator.

Respect Wookiee, Sybil and Jimmy, for they are your elders.

Don't expect anyone else to pay your bills.

Maybe you have a trust fund, maybe you'll have a loaded roommate, but you'll never know when either one will run out.

Don't mess too much with your hair, or by the time you are 40 you will look like you are a minister at Valleydale.

Be careful where you buy your used cds and movies, but be patient with those who supply them. 

Know that advice is a form of nostalgia.  Dispensing it is a way of sharing your opinions without seeming like you are telling the other person what to do.  Usually its recycled advice spoken for more than its worth.

But trust me on the quiet time.

The Summer of Blogging Day Forty One

The Prayer of Chantal

Another entry into d$'s Random Emails of Encouragement Series...

This morning at KidStuf, my character (Marshall) was learning how to say "Merry Christmas" in different languages... this included Milad Majid (Arabic). Feliz Navidad (Argentine). God Jul (Norwegian). Bo Nada (Galician). Sretan Bozic (Croatian)... and it made me think about God's love, and how it translates to all languages... which made me think about this, written on June 11th, 2002.  Chantal is gone, I haven’t heard nary a word from her since she left for Pretoria, South Africa, a few years back. That makes me sad, because her accent… whew.

The Prayer of Chantal

It never sunk in how much I Americanized my God until last night.

Chantal Els is an au pair (fancy word for Nanny) from Pretoria, South Africa. She's been in this country since last summer, and though I haven't spent as much time with her as I would have liked to, I've gotten to talk to her a lot in the last 12 months. For that, I'm thankful. She's 20, maybe 21, short blond hair, big smile, and of course, an accent that can make you swoon. And her love of Christ and how much it’s grown in the last year is so evident... this isn't an email to glorify Chantal, though, this is an email to glorify God in what He's doing in her. Meeting her back then and talking to her now, there is a huge difference.

Many, many months ago, Chantal and I were having a conversation about prayer, and she mentioned how she really wanted to pray in her language, which is Afrikaan. I asked her why she hadn't done it, and she said she didn't know how anyone would feel about it. I told her I thought the group would be totally receptive, plus, she wasn't speaking to us anyway, so what did it matter what we thought? God would know.

So, last night at Sybil's, during prayer, I hear Amy Vos pray... and Sarah Hasha pray... and Drew Morris pray... and out of nowhere, is this accented voice in the back. And she's saying things that I would have no idea how to even repeat, much less understand. It was Chantal, praying in her native language. Apparently, she prayed for friends, because I managed to pick out "Josh", "James", "Meredith" and "Jimmy", with dialect in between. I didn't understand a word of it. But it hit me... God did. And He loved every word.

Then I began to think about how Americanized my God is to me. My God knows English. My God lives here in town. My God knows words like "y'all", "Coke", "possum", "sweet tea" and "Peachtree Street". At least He'd better know them... I've used all of these terms in conversation, sometimes in prayer. Though it seems like common sense, really, I never thought about the fact that my God also knows French. And Filipino Sign Language. And Bengali. And Sanskrit. And Portuguese. And Russian. And Zulu. And, of course, Afrikaan.

Even more than that... He SPEAKS these languages. He's not flipping through an "English to Whatever Language" dictionary to reveal Himself to people around the world... He's not speaking extra slow so that kid in Nigeria who barely knows English will understand Him. He is powerful enough to hear and speak the words of His children, from all races, from all countries. Heck, American English isn't even the original language of the Bible, and yet sometimes in my small mind, all I know is a Savior who speaks only southern dialect. Thank God He's bigger than that.

You and I hear God saying, "I love you".
The French hear God saying, "Je t'aime".
The Saudis hear God saying, “I love you”
The Icelanders hear God saying, "Eg elskta thig."
The Navaho hear God saying, "Ayor anosh'ni"
The Welsh hear God saying, "Rwy'n dy garu di."
The Malaysian hear God saying, "Saya cintamu".
And Chantal hears God saying, "Ek's lief vir jou."

Afterwards, Chantal and I sat and talked on the Common Ground couch, and she told me she'd been wanting to pray out loud like that for so long, but she never could... but finally, the words just came. Not only did God understand what she was saying, He was longing for her to say it to Him! He was urging her to speak, to call out to Him, until finally, she couldn't hold it in anymore, and not only was God pleased as His daughter spoke to Him in love, the rest of the room was totally encouraged and blessed.

Anyway, this whole email is just to remind you of how big our God is... how awesome He is... and how much He understands that we never will. Thank you God for a friend like Chantal, and using her to remind me of your wisdom over everything, every language, every voice. The next time you think God does not understand you, know that He not only understands what you are saying, He understands what everyone is saying.

Romeine 3:23... Almal het gesondig en is ver van God af kyk na uself aanmoedig,

ps... I used an English/Afrikaan translator, so there is no need to email me back and tell me how I goofed up in spelling and writing. =)

The White Oaks, with Friends

So, Friday I met up with Mikey, The Rev'rn Ty and Big Tom for lunch, at our favorite waterin' hole, Johnny Ray's BBQ. I don't really know why we still meet there, to be honest, because its really only convenient for Mikey.

When I worked at 106.9 The Point and then NBC13, I was right down the street, so Mikey and I both abused our location power to The Rev'rn and Big Tom, forcing them to come to us. Now, with The Rev'rn living outside of Birmingham, and who knows where Big Tom is coming from, and I'm all the way down Highway 280, we should make Michael travel farther. But for whatever reason, we don't. That's neither here, nor there really.

Found out The White Oaks were playing Friday night at WorkPlay... Now, I'm not really connected to this band other than I know one guy in it, and sorta, kinda know of another guy, though I know his mom more. Matt Jackson is a worship leader, and I have been on many, many retreats and conferences where he was leading worship, both on a stage with hundreds of people, or in a Bible study with nine people (along with Michael Warren). He's married to Mollie, who is the daughter of Sybil Johnson.

Sybil Johnson is the leader of Undivided Ministries, and in my top ten all time Most Influential People, Like, Ever. When she was at Valleydale Baptist Church, she lead The Ministry Formerly Known as Common Ground, and when she left Valleydale, she formed (or continued, not sure which) Undivided, including mission trips to Washington, more Bible studies, discipleship groups and more. She's a neat, neat lady, and one of those that when she goes Home, Jesus will meet her and say, "Hey, good job. Really well done."

All that is to say that Sybil is the mother of Noel Johnson, who is the lead singer of The White Oaks. And its a band that I'd never seen, and honestly, I don't go to that many clubs anymore. Not that I ever did, but I had really forgotten what a cool place WorkPlay is. Oh, she's also friends with THE Al Denson. I celebrate his entire catalogue. I'll be honest with you. I love his music. I do, I'm an Al Denson fan. For my money, I don't know if it gets any better than when he sings "When a Man Loves a Woman".

I was going to call up Little Sister Ashley to see if she wanted to grab some dinner, as The Lovely Steph Leann is in The Ay Tee Ell with her mom, sister and niece on a girls weekend. Turns out, Lil Sister Ashley was actually having dinner with The Rev'rn, at his new house... so I talked to Lil Sister Ashley, and the two of us made plans to go to the show later that night.

As the night wore on, part of me didn't really want to go. Maybe its the new house, maybe its because I'm slowly leaving "early 30s" and heading into "mid-30s", or whatever, but I really like being at home lately. Plus, The Last of the Mohicans was on (currently residing in the #11 spot on the Dave100), so if she called to tell me she was on her way, I might have said, "Uh... go without me." As it turns out, I was able to see Chingachgook take care of Magua, avenging Uncas' death, and the credits were rolling before she called.

We headed to WorkPlay, a little club & bar, but also a small theater that is becoming quite the popular stop for rising stars or well-established stars looking for an "intimate setting". Amy Grant played there about a year ago, and I heard that it was an amazing show, and Kathy Mattea played a few weeks ago, both shows I would have love to have seen.

The theater is kind of "in the round" with the stage set back a little bit, and a small area in front that can be used for a dance area, or in the case of The White Oaks show, just an area where people can be close to the band. The seats are in a U-shaped area, surrounding the stage on three sides, and there's even two stories. I would be surprised if they could get 150 people in there, though there's probably some re-configuring that goes one with bigger shows like Amy Grant. You can see a scan of the lobby by clicking here.

WorkPlay was co-founded by Alan Hunter, one of the original DJs, and also contains a recording studio, a film studio and a full service bar.

We get there, and each pay our $10 to get into the show... apparently we missed the first act, which I heard from several people was not very good. I don't even know the name of the band, but somebody pointed out a saw on the stage and said, "you see that saw? They played that saw. Seriously. It was bad."

Being a The White Oaks show, and the attachment of Sybil, there were lots of people there I knew, including:

• The Good Doctor Earl. He was sitting at a table with a girl named... Latika? Lateeka? Either way, apparently her parents thought she was black upon birth, but for whatever reason, white girl don't have a white name. She was really nice, though.
• Tommy McL. He was sitting with The Good Doctor Earl, but ended up at another table. Amy McL and Baby Sophie were absent, understandably. Little Sister Ashley ended up sitting with Dr. Earl and Laquisha.
• Mikey and his wifey Ashley. They were at one of the booths, sitting with...
• The Rev'rn Ty, and his friend Brooke. I think it was Brooke. I only know her as Amanda's roommate, not that I've ever met Amanda. I really don't know what I'm talking about here.
• Drew, who sat down at the end of the booths, though I didn't get much of chance to speak to him. He looked in good spirits, though.
• Heather Rowland, whom I haven't seen in a couple of years. I think she might have been with Drew, but don't quote me on that.
• Sybil, of course. She was with her boo Dan, who I think I could count on two hands the number of times I've heard him speak.

And of course, Amy V, whom I just love and adore. You know how you have friends who you don't see for a while, and after a while, you think "Ya know, I guess we're just acquaintances, because I never see this person," only you see them just before, maybe days or even minutes before they make that transition from friend to acquaintance? That's Amy. I randomly see her at random places, but it always makes me happy when I do. She's awesome.

Also saw Abbey Gore, the wife of Matt, who also spent some time leading Monday/Tuesday/Thursday night Bible Study at Sybil's (it bounced around days from year to year). Once again, I hadn't seen her in a long, long time. Later I looked at Mikey and said, "Ya know, I don't think I ever noticed it... but Abbey's kinda hot..." and he said, "Yeah, I think your right." Don't tell anyone I said that, though.

Up walks this chick I'd never seen before, and she spends a few minutes talking to Mikey, The Rev'rn, Sybil, and the others at those two booths that were side by side. I had sat down at a table in front of Mikey's booth, and though I was alone at my small table, I was right next to where Dr. Earl, Laquinta and Lil Sister Ashley was sitting, so I wasn't lonely.

The waitress came by, and I ordered myself a Ginger Ale. She said, "Two dollars" and I said, "Pay up front, I guess?" She nodded, so I handed her a 10. A few minutes later, she came back with a 16 oz plastic cup of Ginger Ale. And no change. I figured that they were just keeping a running tab at my table, so I shrugged it off.

Sybil taps me on the shoulder, and when I turn, she asks, "Is it okay for Nancy to sit here with you?" and I replied, "I would love for Nancy to sit here with me!' She asked, "Have you met Nancy?" and I replied, "Not a clue who she is." The girl who had spent time talking to The Rev'rn and his posse turned to me and Sybil, who said, "Nancy, this is David Dollar... there is a seat here, if you'd like." So Nancy stuck her hand out, we exchanged pleasantries and she sat down.

Turns out, she has a boyfriend who is taking the CPA exam and is buried in books studying. I told her The Lovely Steph Leann was in Atlanta with the women of her family, and from there, we had great conversation the whole concert.

The White Oaks started and really... they sounded good. Really good. They have a hard sound to peg, as the first few songs made me think of The Wallflowers and The Goo Goo Dolls, but later they had a song that reminded me of The Soggy Bottom Boys, and still another song made me think of either Vedder or The Crash Test Dummies. I think Noel's voice sounded like Vedder, but the song sound was of the Dummies. Overall, though, it was a great show.


It was hard to concentrate on the music when Noel Johnson looks so much like Judd Nelson. I kept looking around for Ally Sheedy, eating a potato chip sandwich in the corner. Yes, most of you won't get that, but some of you will, I just know it.

Nancy and I both compared musical tastes, and she agreed with The Wallflowers/Jakob Dylan assessment, and we both laughed repeatedly at the sound guy. The sound booth was in the clear area, directly in front of us, so we could look down into it. The sound guy had a tv there, and at the beginning, the concert was on the screen. Turns out, though, the had DirecTV, and he flipped from the Lakers/Jazz game to Sex in the City to something on WE to finally setting on Bravo, showing "Training Day".


The amusing sound guy, and his multitude of channel options. Including one that actually had the concert on.

I wanted another Ginger Ale, and Nancy had piped up that that was a good idea, so I ordered two. The waitress came back with our drinks and said, "Three dollars," and I gave her a bewildered look. "You never brought my change back." She got wide-eyed and said, "Ohmigosh, I'm so sorry! I totally forgot! Like, I was wondering where in the hell this money came from! I'm so sorry! I'll be back with your change!" Nancy and I both laughed. I looked at her and said, "It's been a long time since I bought a girl a drink. You don't tell your man, I won't tell my chick," and she laughed and said, "Deal!"

Actually, I think the last time I really bought a girl a drink was in 1993, when I bought Deann Westin a Rum & Coke in the bar on the cruise ship. Another story, another day.

Down in the Standing Room Only clear area, I spotted Joel & Angela Blount, who would probably be a little creeped out at how excited I was to see them. See, Joel wrote this song called "Sunday Afternoon", its one of my favorite tunes on my iPod (at least 6 or 7 plays) and she looks like Paige Davis, who is 2nd to only Samantha Brown as Reality Show Host I'm Overly Obsessed With.

We all have this happen to us: There are some people you run into, and let's be honest, you don't really care how they are doing. That sounds mean, but they don't really care how you are either. I mean, they'll share sympathy over a recent tragedy, or be genuinely happy if something big has just happened to you, but for the most part, its like "I'm good, you're good, let's part ways and not see each other for another few years, and tomorrow you won't remember (or care) how I'm doing, just like I won't remember (or care) how you are."

Once, I saw a guy I knew in college while in Barnes & Noble. To avoid the conversation above, I literally hid on the opposite side of the store. He found me anyway, and we spent five minutes catching up, and all I could think of was, "This might the most we've ever talked, and there's a reason..."

Seeing Amy V and Joel & Angela Blount in one night? The polar opposite of that very thing I just talked about. Its more like "Wow, I just want to stand here in your presence and talk about whatever, because I don't see you nearly enough and you probably think I'm a dork but I really am excited you are here!" Which, yeah, is sorta creepy and uncomfortable, so I'll move on.

You know, I hope I wasn't the guy that Joel, Angela and Amy would avoid in Barnes & Noble just to keep from talking too... I might have a complex about this now.


Me and Amy V! Moments after this, Amy V filed a restraining order, and I spent the rest of the evening stalking Joel & Angela outside their kitchen window.

Overall, it was a great night of music and fun. Heck, if this were 1995, I would have asked for the phone number of the chick sitting with me at the table--and gotten it. As it is, 13 years later, I enjoyed telling Nancy about The Lovely Steph Leann, and how great she is. Maybe I'm just getting older in my happily married ways. Next time, I'm bringing her with me. I might even get her hammered just so I can take her home.

Click here for The White Oaks myspace site, also to be added to the links on the right. The song "Hey Julie" has been heard on Reg's Coffeehouse on 94.5

A Love Story in Three Acts: Act 2, Scene 4

Exposition
Act 1: Cindy
Act 2, Scene 1: A Chance Meeting
Act 2, Scene 2: Summer of Love
Act 2, Scene 3: "Tuesday's" Night

"Reunion"
The last time I saw Amy, it was January of 2000, which was 17 months from the last time I had seen her, that being August of 1998. So, with that in mind, lets skip ahead another 7 months to August of 2000.

By this time, I was rooming with Michael, Shawn and Tom in The Deuce. I had already kinda sorta gone out with Leslie Cordell (which Leslie, nor even Stephanie, doesn't know how God worked in that situation)...) earlier that year, and hadn't really done much on the dating scene. I had also been sending out what I called Random Emails of Encouragement, a little God-inspired essay I would write from time to time. Amy was on my Encouragement email list, don't ask me how, and in one particular one, I had mentioned Sybil Johnson's Bible Study...

Let me 'splain. Sybil Johnson is a lady here in town that has a deep heart for high school and college kids, and opens her home up once per week for a Bible study. I had been going for a while--Michael took me--and its where I had met the likes of Tommy McLeod, Amy Vos, Jill Berthon and Shawn Sharp, who eventually became one of my Deucemates.

...and drew the writing from whatever had happened that night. I'm sitting in my room at The Deuce, and randomly, the phone rings. Its Amy. I sit up, and smile, "Well, hey, how are you?" and she says "Hey" back. We chat for a moment, all the while I'm puzzled as to why she's called me now. This is not someone I expected to hear from, like, ever again. Of course, I laughingly ask the question that I ask all girls who have been dating awhile... "You married yet?"

Silence.

Suddenly, there is uncontrollable sobbing and crying on the other end of the phone. "Hey hey... calm down," I say softly. "Amy, what's wrong?" She tells me that she and Craig have broken up. My first question should have been "Why are you calling me?", but I knew the answer to this question already. I simply say, "Calm down... talk to me. Tell me what's going on."

She starts telling me the story of how she and Craig had split, and it wasn't pretty at all. I do remember details, but honestly, its not important here... I ask her if she is in Tuscaloosa, and she says yes, and then I ask her if she wants me to come to her. Initially, she says yes, and I'm already putting socks on, but then she stops and says, "No... don't do that. Its too late tonight. I just wanted an ear to cry into." I ask her if she's sure, and she says yes... then she asks me about Sybil's Bible study, and if we can bring guests. I told her, "Of course. Would you like to come?" She says she would, and we set it up for her to come to Birmingham in a few days for Bible study.

I hung up the phone and collapsed into my pillow. You have to be freakin' kidding me, God. You have to be kiddin' me.

I have butterflies the size of Hyundais when she pulls up in The Deuce parking lot. I watch her walk down the sidewalk and disappear in the doorway to our building... I take a deep breath and open the door before she can even knock. My heart melts and flies at the same time as the only girl, at the time, I'd ever loved stood before me.
We go to Bible study, have a good time, I mention in prayer requests that "I have a friend who's really having a hard time with her life right now" (to which Amy smiles and squeezes my hand--she knew I was referring to her) and we come back to The Deuce.

As I walk her out, we stand in the parking lot and she begins to open up about Craig. Finally, we sit on the curb, as we talk for about three hours, 'til early in the morning. I finally ask her two questions... first, why call me? She answered like I thought she would... "Because I knew of all the people in the world, you'd be there for me, David. Somehow I knew you would."

Then I ask the killer question... "Why did you drop me? Why, after all we had that summer, did you just leave me in 1998? Amy, you broke my heart."

She had a sad look in her eye, and simply said, "I'm sorry. I'm sorry for all of it. You were perfect. You were everything I needed, everything I wanted, but I was just stupid, and I didn't know how to handle it. I figured the best thing to do was just not talk to you anymore, and it would all go away. I'm so sorry I hurt you... I'm so, so sorry."

I looked at her. "I want to be your friend, Amy. I want to be here for you." She smiled and said, "I really need that. I really need you to be there for me, more than anything right now." The smile left my face and I continued, "But if you leave again, if you drop me again, if you decide that you don't want me anymore, even as your friend, don't ever come back. Don't call me anymore. I don't know that I could take it." (truthbeknown, at the time she could have dropped me and returned a year later, then repeated this process five times over and I still would have been there for her... again, at the time)

Yes, yes, this sounds like a script from a movie. Or a cheesy romance novel. But this is what transpired in The Deuce parking lot in September of 2000, right around the time my future wife Stephanie was about to turn 23.

I had never been to a real college football game, or at least one that didn't happen in Troy, so Amy decided to fix that. She took me to the Alabama-Ole Miss game, and I got to sit in the student section--and it was awesome. I was rooting for Alabama because I picked them in this football game we started that same fall, The DFC, though I didn't let her know thats why I was cheering them on.

All through the fall, we hung out several times, had phone conversations that lasted until early morning time, and generally, it was a good fall. While I wasn't dating Amy--I didn't feel right about moving in so quickly after Craig left her, so I was being patient--I didn't go out with anyone else either. There was this cute girl named Stephanie Campbell that came to Sunday School one Sunday, but she never came back. Mostly, it was just hanging out with Amy.

The 2000 Election was that November, and Amy was there with myself, Shawn, Tom, Mikey, Drew, Ty and a few other people, and I was about to pass out. Shawn had started talking to Amy in his room, and it kind of agitated me--she was my guest, darn it--so I just went to bed. About 2am, she knocked on my door and came in. "Sorry about that... Shawn was just talking away..." she smiled. I let my frustrations be known, how I understood that all the guys liked her here, and she liked all the guys... but I really wanted her time. She smiled and said, "Don't worry... you and I have a history. Nothing's going to come between that."

She also got us tickets to the Iron Bowl, my first one. Michael, Wookiee, Tom and Shawn all came for $50 per ticket, but Amy covered mine... hey, we had history. Auburn won a cold, miserable 9-0 game, and we cheered, even in the midst of the Bama student section. Looking back, its a wonder we didn't get shot. Amy was quite frustrated with all of us, especially me, for doing this... I couldn't help it.

Finally, in January, I was watching television. We were still recovering from the 50+ people we had in our apartment for the first Deuce Christmas Party, one which Amy couldn't make, so the place was still a mess. Amy had emailed me something, I don't remember what, but something snapped in me. This was it. I was tired of dealing with it, I was tired of thinking about it, so I just picked up the phone.

"Hello?"
"Hey Amy"
"Oh, hey Dave, whats up?"
"I gotta talk to you for a second"
"Is everything okay?"
"Yes, just listen."
And with that, with Shawn thumping the bass two rooms over and Mikey and Tommy watching tv in the next room, I said the following:
"Amy, I love you. I've been in love with you since that night we had dinner at Ruby Tuesday's. Maybe even before that, I dunno. I just know it broke my heart into a thousand pieces when you suddenly quit talking to me in Summer 98... (she started to say something, but I cut her off)... no, let me say this. It broke my heart, and I thought I was done with you, but when I saw you that night, I knew how I felt. And when you called me last September, it all came back. I almost don't care what you'll say to this... I actually want you to tell me its never going to happen, just so I can stop hoping and move on with my life, but there. I'm in love with you. I said it."

Silence.

"Wow... I don't know what to say...I..."
"Well, you can say that its never going to happen between us, for starters. Then, I can move on. Anything else, though perhaps welcome, would be really complicated."
"I... I, uh... you caught me off guard, David...."

Now, with that, the conversation ended pretty quickly. She was stunned. I was stunned that she didn't know any of this. Was she that blind?

I hung up the phone and smiled. I had said it. To me, it was over. If she loved me, she would have said so, right? I could move on, marry, make kids and live a happy life. She called me back a few days later.

And she said the following:
"David, I've been thinking about what you said, and I wanted to talk to you for a minute. (I started to say something, but she cut me off)... No, you said your piece, let me say mine. It makes me smile that you love me. You have been so amazing. You have loved me more unselfishly than anyone I've ever met. Not my friends, not my parents, certainly not Joel or Craig or any other guy. Even when I treated you like crap, you were there for me... that's true love, and I thank you for it... even love you for it... But... its not there. And its so hard to say that its not there, because I want it to be so badly... I've prayed to God that He would help me feel that way about you... I want to. I know you would treat me like a Godly husband should and be everything I could ever want or need... but its not there. I've thought about this, I've prayed about this, I've... I don't know. I don't think its going to happen, but not because I don't want it too... but because God doesn't want it too."

You would think that that statement would be a daggar into my heart, much like the one I had experienced years before... but it wasn't. It was a weight that sudenly fell off of my shoulders.

With that statement, I knew two things... yes, I loved Amy Wible, but I knew that I finally had total peace over the fact that it was not meant to be. And secondly, I knew that our friendship was close to running its course. After almost five years, the Season of David and Amy was over.

Though we spoke again on the phone, the calls became less frequent, until finally, they just went away. That February, she was my date to the first Deuce Date Party, and later on in summer, she did come to the WalkAbout Dinner Theater (middle school drama team) that I had directed... what was funny was that she and Stephanie Campbell sat at the same table, and later, with some other people, came to the Deuce. I had Amy and Stephanie in the same room for about half an hour... looking back, it was almost like Amy could have said "Hey, I've had him for five years... now its your time, Stephanie"

Amy did invite me to her going away party--she was headed to Texas to seminary, now that she had graduated Alabama. Both Shawn and I went. As the party wound down, I gave her a hug and a kiss on the cheek--the first time I'd ever kissed her--and said goodbye. And that "goodbye" was not for the night... but for all.

And though I spoke to her a few times after that, that night was the last time I ever saw Amy Wible.

Next: Act 3, Scene 1... "The Campbell Connection"

Encouragement Classic... Stephen

Hey... I thought since I had the blogsite up, I would put my Random Emails of Encouragement in syndication. So, here is the pilot episode, called "Stephen"

So, this is it. The first. I wrote it up, erased it, and rewrote it better, went through my address book, emailed to about 28 people, and let it go. Now, through the power of God utilizing what’s been called a “talent” (I just write like I talk, so I just feel like it’s me talking), you can read what God lets me write:

Stephen

(September 1999)

I go to several different places each week where the Word is shared in one fashion or another, from Sunday mornings at church, to the Bible study I regularly attend, to other odds and ends here and there where I show up, and each week there is always something said during at least one the events that makes me think, encourages me and/or challenges me, so I thought that maybe every now and then I could pass along those encouragements and challenges to you, as my brothers and sisters in Christ, to maybe..... well, encourage and challenge you....

Enjoy.

My friend EJ was speaking and he said something that really made me think. He said one of his favorite characters in the Bible is Stephen, and EJ recalled in Acts the passage about Stephen's death. Stephen was a radical character in the eyes of the Jewish leaders, and his claims that Jesus was in fact the Messiah made the leaders angry enough to yank him outside and stone him.

Check this out, this is awesome... Its says in Acts 7:55, "But Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, looked up to Heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God"
We've always heard about Jesus being seated at the right hand of God. But Stephen saw the Son of Man standing, and EJ smiled and said he likes to think that Jesus was giving Stephen a standing ovation.

Can you imagine... the Son of our God, the creator of the universe, giving someone else a standing ovation? And as awesome as Stephen was, he was a sinner just the same, and Jesus was standing FOR HIM!

I tried to think of the last thing I've done, short of dying for my beliefs, that would warrant a clap from Jesus, much less a standing ovation, and I have to tell you, I came up kind of short there...

Here's the challenge. Although it seems highly unlikely that we would have to die for our faith like Stephen did, we should be vocal in words--and especially in actions--about our faith, like Stephen did. And who knows... somewhere in the background, you might hear the hand clap of His only Son.

Have a good week!
Your friend, Dave