A Story by Aaron (10/12/07)

THE SILLY SISTER AND BROTHER
by
Aaron Vanderschuit
(with help and typing by Daddy)

Once upon a time there was a mirror that seemed like it has another world in it. Along came a girl that was really silly. She thought that the mirror was another world with her friend inside it. She went to try to hug her, but it wouldn’t work. She thought her friend was stuck in solid ice. And she knocked on the glass (she didn’t know it was glass) until it broke. And then she was ashamed of what she had done.

And then along came some other girls, and they saw what silly girl had done. And the girls watching nearby said, “You silly girl! Why did you even think that was solid ice? It was glass! You could have hurt yourself real bad.”

Silly girl answered, “I just didn’t know that. I thought there was another world inside it. I thought, ‘What’s my friend doing in there?’”

The girls said to her, “It was actually you! You should have known that was your reflection! Didn’t you see that she looked just like you, was wearing the same clothes as you, the same belt as you, the same eyes, the exact same hair? And what about all of the moving? Didn't you see that she was moving exactly the same as you?”

“I just thought that was my friend doing the exact same thing as me, that’s all. And I thought there was another world in it, or maybe another world that does the exact same thing as this world. Even the trees. Even my globe looks the same when I put it up to a mirror. I did notice all of the words were backwards on my shirt that said ‘EXPLORATION KID.””

The other kids made fun of her, teasing and singing, “You thought it was solid ice, but it was your reflection! You thought it was your friend, but it was your reflection!”

Silly girl felt bad and said, “Maybe I should be more careful next time I see myself in a mirror.” And then she remembered that her mommy had told her not to play with the mirror. And her mommy also told her that the mirror cost $500.

And then also in her house was her silly brother who did the exact same thing as his sister. He looked at the reflection in the mirror and thought it was his friend and tried to hug him but it was too hard. So he knocked on the glass, and he knocked until it broke, and he remembered that his daddy told him not to do that, because they were really poor. And the Daddy said it costs $1, and they didn’t have any money. They had no pennies, no nickels, no quarters—no nothing. The Dad had spent his last $500 buying his wife the first mirror for her birthday.

THE END

First Soccer Game of 2007

It was actually Sammy's very first game, and and the first game of Aaron's second season. I coached again. Very different from last year's "all star" team. Aaron was the only kid with experience. As the season unfolded I began to see that most of the time it was going to be "Aaron versus the other team". His teammates played a tiny bit of defense, if only by just so happening to be in the way while picking flowers or chasing their shadows. Actually, it's a blast with the little kids because it really doesn't matter since there is no score keeping and they really are just having fun.

For the Sammy footage, if you look closely, you can see that he does this "wind up" thing with his arms before he starts running. A real crack up. He later said he was trying to go as fast as Bugs Bunny (note to self: remove Looney Toons from training videos). Watch him instead of the ball, since by the time he gets wound up the ball is far away from him, and then by the time he gets there the play is over. He does make one run with the ball, only to get stopped, and then he gets down on himself (Elisa stopped the video literally a second before he got down in the fetal position in the middle of the field. Play on!)

For the Aaron footage, I was amazed at the ball control he manages. For the "play of the day," watch him go the wrong way--intentionally--gather his poise (and some teammates as if by some magnetic force), and then Aaron's fireworks begin: body shielding, body feints, quick cuts, and ending with a goal. Enjoy!

Castles in the Sand

[We originally sent this out as an email exactly one year ago. Elisa's mom happened to comment on this today and reminded us about it, worthy of posting here. Photos were from my camera phone.]

It's man against nature as we build a fortress to protect us from the wind and the waves--built close enough to the water that we know it will be put to the test at high tide. This one lasted the longest of all the ones we've built so far (three of 'em this summer, probably about 2 hours against some good sized waves once the tide rose. (UPDATE: exactly one year later this is still our best fortress). It also helps the kids to keep warm from the wind so I won't be bothered to leave earlier than I want to. Actually, the boys keeping those wet life vests on is part of what makes them so cold, but they don't want to part with them. Fear of the waves, I guess (they take after their mother).


Sammy prepares for action as Aaron stands
guard against a rogue wave. There's actually
a tunnel under the blue boogie board.



So far so good, but where's Daddy?



Ah, there he is! Probably doing maintenance
from all the sand we kicked in (on "accident").
You skeptics should note the wave line left
in the sand (upper left) for proof that this wall
was really withstanding the waves. You can
actually see how the water made it to the very
top of the wall also.

In case you're wondering, Elisa just watches while we work and then walks over to take a few easy pictures. Hmm. And before you start lining up to give me awards for Dad of the Year for all of this (I know, I know), please note that I do spend most of my time in the water, so this is the kids' consolation prize. Keep 'em warmified and occupied so I'm justified on the surfside. Can you dig? (Pun intended).

Blaine

Phil Keaggy - Great Guitarist

Phil is one of my favorite guitarists. Here's a great Irish tune of his (part of it anyway), called Shades of Green. He's more than just a guitarist, but a great songwriter and all around good guy. He's sort of like a Jimi Hendrix on Jesus. Very entertaining, and he never does a song the same way twice. Been around since the late 60's.