I really admire the President of Ukraine, even if he’s not going to be in power (or alive) much long.
Spring break is around the corner. The stupid divorce decree states I get to keep the kids on even-numbered years. Since my daughter is going through a rough time, I’m toying with the idea of taking her and her brother to Harry Potter fan to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter for spring break. A loyal reader works for a travel company and reached out to me with a great offer..
My daughter has her very first softball game this Friday. It’s an all day tournament, with one game in the morning, another in the afternoon, and another in the early evening. I wouldn’t miss it for the world, especially since it’s her first ever softball game. However, when she first told her mother of the event, she stated she could only make the evening game because of work. My daughter told me that disappointed her, and I understand why. I guess her mother sensed it and followed up with, “I can take the day off and go, if you want me to?” That brought back some hurtful memories. There were a lot of moments throughout our marriage that I wanted my wife’s support with her simply attending a function or event of mine. I hoped to have a supportive wife who would want to be there to support me on her own without being asked. But she always made it sound like her attendance was a burden or hinderance by qualifying, “If you want me to?” I mean, what does she expect either me or my daughter to say? That puts a person in an awkward spot. I’m sure she had well-meaning intentions, but she’s always been oblivious to how insincere and cold-hearted she comes across.
Ninety-nine percent of Americans couldn’t tell you the color of Ukraine’s flag, much less what it looked like, before last week. It’s yellow on the bottom to represent its wheat fields (they are a major wheat exporter) and the blue on top represents the sky.
CBS Sunday Morning had two great segments on Ukraine. This first segment, around the 21-second mark, will tell you why they don’t like being called “The Ukraine”, a common thing I used to say, and its long history with Russia. In short, they find it patronizing to use “The” as they are their own independent country (well, at least for now) and you wouldn’t go around saying “The Germany” or “The France”. They also had this four-minute segment, which is a Putin biography and his rise to power.
My best friend and I watched the re-release of The Godfather at AMC Theatres in Grapevine on Saturday. At first, I was hesitant, since I’ve seen it a plethora of times on television, but I’m glad I did. There’s something about the cinema experience that makes it special, and I noticed several visual things I missed even watching it on an 60-inch HDTV. Also, it’s fun watching it along with a fellow movie trivia buddy and being able to quietly chit-chat about it in the almost empty theater. I also went because, well, I had nothing better to do. It was my weekend without my kids. I call those my “empty weekends.” So it was just a good way to get out of the house and eat up three to four hours.
Marlon Brando was 46-years-old when he starred in The Godfather. I’m currently 46. I know Brando had makeup on, but it feels weird being the age of someone who was supposed to be “old” in the film.
For the longest time, I held a grudge against Ryan Reynolds. I shouldn’t have. He’s a good man and actor. I mention him because I watched Deadpool for the first time on Friday evening. Thanks to him, I literally caught myself laughing out loud at something on television for the first time since my life turned upside down. It was a moment of growth, a sign that I may actually be getting better emotionally. What was it I laughed at? This end credit scene, a great homage to Ferris Bueller’s Day Off. Specifically, the very last thing he does/says. It was just that little bit extra nostalgic humor which did the trick.
For a while after our separation, my ex would continue to attend our church and we’d sit in the same row with the children between us. Later, she emailed me saying she wanted to set some boundaries, and for me to no longer sit in the same row with them, and the children would choose who they wanted to sit with. I didn’t like the idea whatsoever. I thought of all places, we could get along together in church, and just sitting in the same row was a simple sacrifice for the children as we show them that two adults can get along even if they no longer are married. She feared giving the kids and church members a false impression. I didn’t like the idea of literally making the kids choose a parent. But my children’s therapist told me how important that particular church was to them, and for me to compromise by sitting elsewhere, so I complied. She only brought the kids for a handful more visits. Our daughter always preferred sitting next to me, and our son would alternate. The last time I saw her at church was when the children were staying with me on that weekend. She was sitting alone in church, and when one of her favorite old hymns played, she felt it was too much and left. I haven’t seen her in the church since and they have been visiting elsewhere telling the children the church held too many memories. We’ve been attending for about 15 years. Yesterday at church, to my surprise, my children showed up and sat to the left and right of me. It was such a pleasant and delightful surprise. But my daughter said she felt sorry for her mother who was sitting by herself and how she and her brother made a bee-line towards me once they entered the sanctuary.
As harsh as it sounds, and I am judging, but I don’t understand why she attends church but doesn’t apply basic Christian principles in her life. Sometime the kids will flat out tell me they are confused by it. One of the last sermons they heard while visiting a church was about divorce, and my kids were wondering what she was thinking but felt too scared to ask her.
During the sermon, my kids will doodle and color. My ten-year-old son and I play and talk Wordle often. As a matter of fact, right before they entered, I was playing Wordle during the praise (singing) part of the service (forgive me, Father, for I have Wordled in thy own house). I’ll be honest, I felt like I was slightly cheating, looking for five-lettered words in the song lyrics displayed on the projector screen. My son cracked me up because he created a Wordle puzzle on the church bulletin for me to play during the sermon. The word ended up being “ALERT”.
