On the Banks of the Narnia Sea

Dear Katie, 

This story is well done!  We are proud of your perservance and hard work in writing.  We know this doesn't come easy for you, yet.  But this story is worthy of publication!  Who knows...maybe C.S. Lewis would have added this little bit to an 8th book if he was still around. Good job, Pippers!

"On The Banks of the Narnia Sea" -by Katie Hime

It was a beautiful morning in England, the Pevensies we're going to Digger Clerk's house for lunch. Lucy and Edmund got there a few minutes before the others. Where have those other Pevensies got off to? The scent of lunch drifted out of the kitchen. Where are those two other Pevensies? I'm so dreadfully hungry and it's time for lunch.

Susan and Peter arrived a few minutes later very hungry. They dove into a marvelous lunch, with fruit salad, and eggs, and toast with jam and honey. "Edmund don't pinch me like that it hurts,” said Lucy. “It wasn't me. Oh ouch” defended Edmond. Then all of the sudden the walls and table disappeared. “Well bother, I was just starting to get full, and I didn’t have a bite of bacon yet,” Peter said to Susan. “We seem to be in some sort of type of wood on a very tall hill... Very much overgrown that's for sure. Oh Peter, I'm still hungry,” commented Susan.

Peter jumped up, “Come on then, Aslan what has brought us here for a reason. I'm sure of it!” So off they went. Let us go back a few days ago and see where a little friends were called here.

A few days ago something quite mysterious had happened. All the rivers in Narnia had overflowed their banks and the water had magically encircled all the talking animals, men of earth and men of Adam. The king whose name was Kalmar Glower, had said, ”this would be the perfect time for someone to take over the kingdom.” As soon as the words were out of his mouth he wished he hadn't said them quite yet.

For all of the sudden, a giant beast rose out of the water around them in a circle and said, “I am the dragon of everman's bluff.” Then he just disappeared. He came from out of nowhere and went back into that nowhere. It was quite sudden for sure.

Take over the kingdom he did, he took Cair Paravel, the ford of Beruna, and many other places. It was an awful sight to behold, truly awful… till the kingdom was little more than a big lake.

This is where our little friends come in. The beast visited the circle everyday. It just happened that they got to Narnia a few minutes before the beast visited the circled. Susan and Lucy decided to do a little exploring while the boys started a fire. They walked a little bit away and then the land started to slope down to the water. They were very much surprised, for what did they behold? It was water, tons and tons of water. A few yards away there was a circle of land completely surrounded by water. Lucy quickly jumped and ran back to get the others. When she, Edmund, and Peter got back they beheld a most awful sight. A giant beast slowly rose out of the water. All of the sudden Peter heard the twang of an arrow and the dragon fell. Susan had the second arrow on the string, and sunk it into the heart. The water immediately started to go down and Edmund ran down the hill followed by King Peter. Suan kept the arrow on the bow string.  Edmund then sliced off the dragon tail, and high Peter came up and said, “In the name of that Aslan's mane I hear by kill this dreadful creature,” and slashed of the head of the dragon.

A cheer went up from the crowd. The men of Adam and the men of Earth came up to congratulate the King and Edmund.  Lucy and Susan immediately went to the animals to make sure they were all okay. King Glower invited them to Cair Paravel for a glorious lunch, of course they accepted this at once. It was even grander than the one they were going to have at digger Clerk's house... This is where our story comes to an end, and I'm sorry to say that you will never know what quite happened. But someday, you yourself might find yourself in Narnia we’ll never know…

                     The End

Journaling: Believe Also the Works

Many people believe. They believe in themselves. They believe in the system. They believe in their spouse. They believe in their children. They believe in God. They believe in Jesus. They believe in the stars or a pastor or the trees which grow majestically around them.

Jesus, in John 14:11 tells us to, "Believe Me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me; otherwise believe because of the works themselves".

The above passage startled my thinking this morning, probably because I had never connected "believe because of the works themselves".  I'm assuming I had read the above sometime before, but this time it stuck out to me. Jesus wasn't just calling us to belief. He was also leaving us with evidence in the works themselves FOR belief. I know belief in Jesus is simply that...by believing we are saved. But as I read the Scriptures this morning, I gleaned there is more Jesus gives us then what some call Blind Belief. There are the works. There are the ones recorded in the Bible. There are the stories of ancient times which point us to Christ. There are the many which currently fill our library. Stories of faith, God's victory, God's provision. God's work..and they help us believe. They give us the evidence to believe.

Making what seems a 180 degree move, let's turn the tables to education. (which is where my mind mostly lately wonders). What do we believe about our schools? What do we believe about our kids? What do we believe about ourselves when it comes to learning? And what works do we believe are shouting loudest? From all that I have read-which is few compared to the books out there-education is a wonderuful idea. I believe no one will disagree.  Education allows oneself to see a larger picure of the world, ourself, each other. But what do the the works themselves show us? Are we listening well to wisdom when it comes to education? Are we listening to our children-the very ones we are "educating"? Are we as adults still being educated? Are we trying to teach our children one way, all together, with very little time to let them put down roots in the soil the Lord has given each one of them? Are we unconsciously going from one subject to another without much thought as to the bigger picture? Are our students the same plants, needing the same nutrients, same amount of sunlight, each being watered just the right portion and they, we believe, will yield beautiful flowers all at the same time? Right? Humbly, wrong and the works show us this. Will we couragously believe what the works are telling us?

I believe we are ignoring the works to blindly believe in something which does not produce the desired outcome we so much want for our children. We want a system, a pattern to follow, a nice easy step by step algorthium to produce a nice easy answer. But we know it doesn't work like that and its scary to say that outloud.

Teaching is a challening profession. But teaching is challenging for more then keeping a group of seven year olds all on task for 8 hours a day. Its challenging because 20 children come into a room, all as different plants with different flowers to bloom at different times with different instructions for those flowers to bloom! Ahhhhhh, the craziest thing, teachers have to keep learning themselves how to inspire, challenge, grow, tend, shape each little life. What a calling!

There are different ways to do this. We could ignore the differences. We could put the kids through a program which reflects the way a part makes it way through a factory. We could put them into a room and tell them to grow themselves. We could line up each child with a stake for growing up and with support and then let them try it out. We could spend the time and energy to get to know each child and tend them along the way, pruning and trimming, pushing and nurturing their individual growth patterns. Each takes time. Each is hard. Each will yield something.

But what do we believe and what do previous works tell us. What is wisdom in this arena? Doing what is hardest isn't always the best. Doing what is easiest isn't always the best. Doing what is wisest is always the best. What is true, right and LASTING, I believe is the calling of the parent-walking in wisdom is the best.

I put before you, the wisest answer is to spend our energy getting to know our children. Spending the huge amounts of time to check the soil of our children's roots to see what they need and to have the courage to give it to them when they need it. This is no picnic. This is work. This is hard. This is the joy of the parent to their child. Education is not about teaching our child a set of standards at the right ages. Education first is about the parent. Humbly stepping back to observe the works and strive to believe the Lord what HE has made them exactly how HE wanted to, for their good and HIS glory.

Observe the works of your children, for they teach you great and mighty things about our God. And in the process you might also learn about your child. Believe in God and HIS works, so that we can believe in our child and the story God is writing for each of them.

Journaling-The Glasses Are Clearer

In lots of ways I still feel in my teens.  The age where everything feels like it is coming at you fast and furious and its hard to catch what must be caught and dodge what must be dodged.  It's a full and fun and adventous stage. Then it's an overwhelming, senses-filled time too. But I'm getting better, albit slowly.  Being 40 now seems impossible.

Wasn't I just playing high school sports, or in my sorority in college -standing up in the bed of a pick up truck as a Senior encouraing all the incoming Freshman? Or what about the nights which seem so close, being up at all hours with little ones and desperate for a few hours of uninterupted sleep-weren't they just yesterday?

It's interesting, I still have this feeling which follows me around, what am I DOING?  How do I make THAT decision?  What did I miss in THAT conversation? Why CAN'T I wake up more refreshed? Why can't I keep my eyes open past 10 pm? Where do I GLEAN more patience or gratitiude?

Justin and I say often, we are looking for corners in a round world.  It's the feeling of, if I could just turn a corner then I'd know something, then I'd understand, it would click, we'd get it.  But we're learning it doesn't work like that.  Life, like many say, is many ups and downs. It's getting back in the arena to face the giants one more time. It's the fight of faith, daily. There are not magic shortcuts, but there are beautiful views.

And, in this past decade my glasses have gotten a bit clearer.  I can see the world better.  I can see myself better. I can see my God better.

I see my need of a soverign Father carring me through each battle I face and I am quicker to see His hand at work in my life.  I see His grace upon grace. I see his hand giving me my daily allotment of patience and it never running short of character building me into His likeness. I see His steady hand. I see myself clearer as His child.  I see my need to stay moving in His direction.  I see my need to listen to His voice and act upon that truth come quicker. I realize my voice needs to be heard by others and not just in my head and yet I clearer see I'm just a vessel and it's all about Him and not me. I see my need for space and time as a time to listen better to the Holy Spirit, not just take a break from the "world".

The glasses I'm wearing are clearer. Thank the good Lord for His never leaving, always loving, refinement in my life. I like seeing Him better.