Rescued from the Past and Future

I'm somewhat embarrassed to admit this, but here goes: when I'm at the beach with my two toddlers, I live with a persistent, low-grade fear that they're going to get swept up by a wave and drown.

Granted, we've been to the beach several times with our girls, and neither of them have ever come close.  But even when they aren't in the water, the prospect of it lurks in my mind.

Renee on the beach

Sometimes, in my imagination, I see myself scrambling to find one of them in the water, or I see a crowd of people quietly watching from the beach as rescue workers try to resusitate my daughter.  It's not real; it's not going to happen - but it stands guard over my mind, ensuring that I'm not fully present, that I don't enjoy the moment.

Aside from my fears about the girls' mortality, I'm regularly correcting them, making sure they're sharing the beach toys, or I'm harping at one of them for pushing the other's face in the sand.  Then later on, after we've left the beach, I find myself wishing I could go back in time and just be with them.

I Got an iPhone Infection

I thought I would never purchase an iPhone. I figured I didn't need it (I had a perfectly functional cell phone), and I was afraid if I got one, I would end up like those annoying iPhone users who were constantly checking their phone like they were looking for their own vital signs. But it was the camera that got me.

credit: idownloadblog.com

I was tired of using a substandard cell phone camera to capture my daughters' unexpected adorable
moments. And I figured if those memories were priceless, then — you know, maybe $250 wasn't too much to pay for a cell phone.

The next thing I knew, I was signing a two-year contract for a phone I had once shunned as unnecessary. And when I held it for the first time — appreciating the simple, sleek design — I felt proud. After all the years of owning dumb-phones, it felt good to finally own the best of the best — but what I didn't expect was that it would end up threatening to own me.

Check out the rest of the article at Boundless.org, where it is today's featured article. 

A Little Girl Screamed, God Listened

Last Monday, my friend Paul Perkins was standing on a street corner in Washington, DC, breathing hard and feeling very annoyed. 

He had just run after a taxi, which he was afraid was carrying his keys, but the driver didn't stop when Paul ran after him.   

Paul decided to go back to his office in hopes that maybe, just maybe, he left them there.  But rather than blow another $15 on a taxi ride back to his office, Paul hurried down into the Metro.

A few seconds later, he heard the sound of a little girl screaming.  The further down he got, the louder it became, and finally, when he reached the platform, he was shocked: a grown woman was taking her open hand and forearm and pummeling the head of a little girl.  No one was stopping her. 

And that's when Paul forgot about his keys.

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