A Visit from the Pedouin Family On a Quint Cycle Journey

I have been following the incredible journey of the Vogel Family, as they biked from the top of Alaska to the tip of South America… along the way they posted a link to another biking family, the Pedouins, who were biking from Kentucky to Alaska on a Quint Cycle. I checked out their website, and discovered they would be on Vancouver Island in June 2010. At the time, we were living on a property that had a great layout for camping, so we offered them a place to stay, and free haircuts at Brent G Hair & Spa for the whole family. This was before they had even started their journey in August of 2009.

This week we got the call – they were on Gabriola Island! Although we were unable to put them up, another family on the island gave them a place to stay, and we booked 5 haircut appointments. The family arrived at 3 PM on Tuesday, June 8th!

Wow! A powerful surge of energy entered the salon with the family, along with Frederick, a fellow biker who also happened to be a film-maker and was shooting a documentary about the family, and Derrick, a reporter from our local newspaper, the Gabriola Sounder News.

The kids made a beeline for the candy on the front desk, and our in-house masseuse, Chalise, generously offered complimentary massages to the whole family.

Brent started by giving the three girls, Cheyenne (7), Jasmine (5), and Robin (3) a small trim. Chalise gave Bill a massage.

Then it was mom’s turn for a haircut. In her ultra-cool Dutch accent, she said “chop it all off! I’ve been waiting a whole year to go short and sporty, the way my hair was when I met Bill at the bottom of the Grand Canyon.” And short it was! But wait. Not all was right. Mid-haircut Jasmine and Robin spotted the drastic make-over and pandemonium erupted. Howls of dismay and even a (harmless) bite to Brent’s leg ensued until Bill intervened. Soon he had the girls calmed down, Jasmine left with Paul of Slow Rise Bakery to buy ice cream and peace was restored.

Then Cheyenne emerged from her massage. The howls of dismay and cries of “Mom! Put it back! I hate it!” filled the salon again. Mom, the one constant in the girl’s life over the past year, had changed. How dare she?! Fortunately mom loved the change and was able to convince the girls (eventually) that she was still the same awesome mom she had always been. (Is it okay to admit I had quite the giggle watching this exchange?! Or is that a bit too sadistic? LOL)

We are honored to have met this family and are in awe of the adventure they are undertaking. The memories they are building, the will power (over 100 bike repairs, Bill?!), the stamina, the joy, the energy…

Wow. You rock. Anytime you want to come stay with us, you are always welcome in our home.

The family left the next day, in the pouring rain…

Summer’s Allure vs Online Social Networking

Back in the late 90′s I discovered the internet. It was so COOL how you could instant message with people and I spent hours chatting online. I loved writing and getting emails… I even met my ex-husband online in a chat room…

Then came blogs… They replaced instant messaging for me (all that chatting got a bit old and felt too intrusive) and I really enjoyed reading dozens of different blogs, and leaving comments. I started half a dozen different topical blogs myself and loved getting comments and responding to them.

I’ve spent HOURS upon HOURS reading and responding to threads on four or five different forums (my post count is embarrassingly high). I signed up on My Space but didn’t really “get it”, and totally resisted Face Book… until less than a year ago… At first it was so neat reconnecting with friends, reading and responding to status updates and thinking up witty things to say… Now I have almost 400 “friends” and I struggle to remember who’s who, and quite honestly, I’m not really all that interested in what people are doing every minute of every day.

I find myself mindlessly playing Bejeweled on FB cause I don’t feel like interacting with people. I’m tired of all the online networking. I prefer my real life, and as loathe as I am to admit it, I now find the internet boring.

I enjoy having it as a resource to look things up, google calendar keeps me organized and on track… Do you know I have a BOOK of online logins and passwords? A BOOK. I have a problem, people.

A close friend deactivated her FB account recently and totally inspired me to take an internet sabbatical. I took a long internet break last year, cleared out my blog reader, shut down my forum accounts temporarily, and stopped blogging. I didn’t miss it. At all.

I don’t want to sound all self righteous about it or anything, but I think it’s time to disconnect online and reconnect in real life. Ironic that I’m posting this on a blog. On the internet.

So I say all that to say this… I’m not leaving permanently, but I am going to take a summer sabbatical… Warm weather is here, and I’m going to spend a LOT less time online and a lot more time outdoors, and interacting with the people who mean a lot to me. More time with my son… more time with my husband… and my parents… more time with new friends that I’ve neglected nurturing relationships with… more time working in my garden… more time riding a bike… more time at the beach… more time sitting outside in the cool of the evening with my family, sipping a cold drink and talking, or just looking at the stars…

If you feel challenged and inspired to do the same for the summer, go for it! You’ll like it. And the internet will still be here when the weather cools down and we need somewhere cozy and warm to hibernate to. If you need to get ahold of me, pop me an email (check out the contact page) and I’ll be sure to get back to you before winter is upon us…

A Mom’s Love

Today my son was asking to look at his baby pictures and I came across this one of me holding him when he was around 3.5 months old. I remember just absolutely delighting in this little man that God gave me. He was just so darn cute and sweet… Look at him in his little man outfit. I want to reach into that picture and kiss those little round cheeks again.

Then I remembered a picture I have of my mom holding me when I was around the same age my son was in the above picture… It does my heart good to see my mom’s delight in me as a baby, and makes me miss her all the more.  Every year as Mother’s Day is upon me, I wish my mom had the chance to delight in my son.

A GCM Statement: It is Time to Speak Out Against the Teachings of Michael and Debi Pearl

As a long-time member of Gentle Christian Mothers (GCM), I would like to publicly support the following statement released this week by the admins of GCM. (Source: Facebook GCM Page)

This statement may be re-posted in it’s entirety.

The admins of Gentle Christian Mothers (GCM) have felt led at this time, as we mourn the loss of seven year old Lydia Shatz[1], to issue a statement of disagreement with Michael and Debi Pearl and their child rearing methods. Not only are their methods extreme and outside the realm of normal and healthy child rearing practices, but the doctrinal foundation for these methods contain a level of heresy, including denial of the Christian doctrine of original sin[2][3], which leave them without biblical basis and at odds with the truth that all are in need of salvation which has been provided through Jesus alone[4].

Though the Pearls affirm the value of relationships in parenting in their attractive “tying heartstrings” message, their harsh teachings are in diametric contrast to building healthy relationships. They advocate “training” and “chastisement” of children, starting in infancy[5][6], using methods and means not described in Scripture — including using ¼ inch plumber’s supply line as a spanking instrument[7] and claiming that a “proper spanking leaves children without breath to complain”[8] — for stated purposes of absolving guilt and cleansing the child’s soul[9].

The combination of an adversarial us vs. them mindset where the parents must “win,” physically “disciplining” children until they surrender their will and show total submission, and false doctrine makes the Pearls’ methods dangerous. They present a very distorted picture to the world of what it means to be a follower of Jesus and a Christian parent in the world today. It is time for Michael and Debi Pearl to be held accountable for their teachings. We urge other Christians to join us in speaking out against what Michael and Debi Pearl have been teaching for far too long.

References

1. Godly discipline turned deadly: A controversial child “training” practice comes under fire — this time from Christians themselves, Lynn Harris, Feb. 22, 2010
2. Second Council of Orange (529)
3. Teaching tape on Romans 5:12-21 by M. Pearl
4. Michael Pearl on Original Sin: An Analysis, Catez Stevens, October 11, 2005
5. To Train Up a Child, M. Pearl, D. Pearl, chapter 1
6. “In Defense of Biblical Chastisement Part 2,” M. Pearl, October 2001
7. Ibid.
8. “Angry Child,” M. Pearl, August 1998
9. “In Defense of Biblical Chastisement Part 1,” M. Pearl, May 2001

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