On a sunny day in Mexico back in 1999, we—along with our friends Charlie and Nancy—stepped into a small store where masks were made out of leather. Almost immediately, our imaginations took over. We pictured ourselves attending a masquerade ball, laughing at the whimsy of it all. Before long, we were laughing at ourselves. Still, just in case that imagined evening ever became reality, we bought a few masks and carried them home as a reminder of that playful moment.
That sense of play has always mattered deeply to me. Looking back, it has woven itself through every stage of my life. In high school, it showed up in drama club, journalism, and youth group. Later, in college, it took the form of modern dance club and ROTC Sponsor Corps. Each season brought its own version of creativity, movement, and shared experience.
As life unfolded into marriage, that same spirit simply took on new expressions. Children, church, the United States Power Squadron, traveling around the world, and sailing all became part of the adventure. From the beginning, I wanted a life marked by exploration, and by the grace of God, that is exactly what I have been given. I will never be a scholar, nor do I aspire to be one—and that is perfectly okay. Instead, I find myself content now to write, to pray, and to discover adventure within a purposely smaller, quieter area of life.
And so, with that spirit, welcome to the New Year 2026. Great things God will do.
“This does not mean that we are to be perpetually solemn. We must play. But our merriment must be of that kind (and it is, in fact, the merriest kind) which exists between people who have, from the outset, taken each other seriously—no flippancy, no superiority, no presumption.”
—C. S. Lewis
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