Church Bells and the attacks to happiness

Church Bellsby: Gungor
Let church bells ringlet children singeven if they don't know whylet them singwhy drown their joystifle their voicejust because you've lost yoursmay all jaded hearts be healed.Amen.
Let all men dancelift up their handseven if they are naivelet them danceyou've seen it allyou watch them fallwash off your face and danceMay all weary heartsbe filled with hopeAmen.

This is such a simple song with such powerful lyrics. It is liturgy that speaks to how fragile our happiness is. So fragile that someone else's happiness seems to chip at it. We start to invent excuses as to why the other happy individual is unjustly or undeservedly happy.
In "The Help" I watched a Southern Belle do everything she could to drown the happiness of another lady for no founded reason at all. It was so sad and ugly. The naive target of her jealousy was none the wiser and only made the situation worse by trying to be friendly and cordial. Strange how that was only received by an already bitter heart as disingenuous.
I felt that way a long time ago. When popularity was so ... popular. I'd try to be friendly and interested in the goings-on of other folks in different cliques only to be met with an often cold shoulder and odd glances. It saddened me then and it saddens me now as I think about it. See, every now and then, I still feel that way. And yet I pray, even for myself as I pray for others, that someday soon, all jaded hearts are healed and that the weary hearts would be filled with hope.
Amen.

San Antonio Missions

Today I finally took a few hours to visit the remaining four San Antonio Missions that I missed when we visited the Alamo.  The first stop was the main visitor's center for the San Antonio Missions National Historic Sites at Mission San Jose.

San Jose was the first mission on my trip, though it was situated in between the other missions on the map with Mission Concepcion to the north and Missions San Juan and Espada to the south.  My favorite part of the entire tour was the flour mill at Mission San Jose.  There the San Antonio River is channeled to the oldest active grain mill in Texas where the water is held in a 9-foot deep reservoir before it is allowed to power the mill stone in an outlying building.  Inside, the volunteer working at the site was actually milling actual grain into actual flour!  It was basically awesome.

The next stop was Mission San Juan, on the south end of the Mission Trail.  This mission was under renovations and it was difficult to get a decent picture with the lighting and the construction equipment in the way but I think this one turned out OK.  What is interesting about the 200+ year old missions is that they all have an active parish with regular services.  The parsonage for Mission San Juan is actually just to the right of this picture and is still serving as a private residence.  Cool.

 

Between Mission San Juan and the next stop was a slight detour to visit the Espada Aqueduct.  It's pretty amazing what cultures were able to figure out so many years ago to solve problems like irrigation and diversion.  There are very few places in the U.S. to see this technology functioning as it did then.

Here is the "Where's Waldo" moment for you... See if you can find Mission Espada...  These are mesquite trees and they are pretty amazing.  If you look closely you can see the Mission peeking through the branches.

The last stop on the trail was Mission Concepcion, a few miles north from where I began the journey.  Concepcion had amazing paintings that had been preserved on the walls inside several of the rooms.  I did not take any interior pictures out of respect for the active parishes that these buildings represent.  I also did not get any pictures today of Mission San Antonio de Valero (The Alamo) but I did drive by just so I could say that I saw all of the five San Antonio Missions in the same afternoon. And what a beautiful afternoon it was!

Top Ten List for 2011

10. Christmas Letter

The pain and suffering that goes into writing a Christmas letter is hard to fathom (we know you secretly agree!). Trust us though, when we say that getting this completed at all easily qualifies it as a "top ten" moment for our year!

9. Chapel

Despite waning numbers of families to fellowship and grow with as well as waning numbers of chaplains, along with the indefinite end to children's church, we committed to staying with the base chapel. God brought a new chaplain on staff, committed to our service and ready to work. Since then, the body has grown inwardly and outwardly, children's church has been re-established, and the Holy Spirit is moving. Praise God!

8. Dignified Transfer

The war(s) has taken its toll on our family as well as many others. This was more apparent than ever late April 28th when David stood in the rain with hundreds of other service members to honor eight fallen Airmen during a dignified transfer at Bagram Airfield. He remembers where he was when he found out about Bin Laden's death and where he was when the last Airman left Iraq, but no time stands out as poignantly as those cold moments that brought a pause to the six and a half month deployment he was engulfed in day and night.

7. Travelling/Visiting with friends

Arguably the best aspect of the military life is the potential for finding old friends just about anywhere one travels. This was certainly the case during a 4700-mile, 13-state road trip we took during October and November. Spending a week at the Sulhoff Family Cabin in South Dakota's Black Hills was a much needed respite for everyone. And seeing firsthand the devastation of Hurricane Katrina and rebuilding in New Orleans brought great perspective to us and the kids. Still, the true highlights of the trip came from visiting Rachel's Grandmother, many dear friends from our first assignment (the Rensch's, Cecilia, Leonard) and multiple families who have grown with us (the Chambers, the Eckarts, Geof and Kyle. Our only regret is that we could not visit with more!

6. Giving

Giving has always been a priority for us, but being released from the bondage of debt in 2006 provided more opportunities than ever to share our gifts with so many others. In that regard, this has been an exciting year for us as David promoted to the rank of Major, bringing home a little bit more "bacon" to share. In addition to financial gifts that will go without mention, David was blessed with the opportunity to give his time in service to the Bagram chapel as a Praise Team leader and Rachel was likewise blessed to share her time as a teacher for AWANA. This is a conviction and a joy for us and we pray that even in these lean times, your family will discover new and exciting ways to increase your joy through the sharing of your God-given time, talents, and "tokens."

5. School's In

Home education is a full time job with a crummy benefits package. There is no paid leave, no medical benefits, no additional staff to assist with the load and the hours are at best fluid and unconventional. The home educator is principal, teacher, hall monitor, nurse, lunch "lady", coach, cheerleader, and friend all rolled up in one – oh, let's not forget parent as well (makes for some interesting parent-teacher conferences…) This new year brought great growth by way of kids who have finally "bought in" to the idea and a fabulous homeschool cooperative we joined this fall. Here we met with like-minded and driven families once a week to provide some semblance of a structured schooling environment while capitalizing on the strengths and experiences of every parent to serve as subject-specific teachers.

4. School's Out!

For the first time in 28 years, David has zero school hanging over his head and keeping him from being available mentally, emotionally, and physically to the rest of the family. This happened after he completed Air Command and Staff College via correspondence, a mandatory Professional Military Education course that all Majors should complete. Halleluiah!

3. Homefront growth/healing

Rachel discovered the cause of several health issues she had been facing. God has begun healing her body through informed friends, even more informed doctors, medicine, nutritional supplements and changes in diet. This change alone has given her so much more energy and mental capacity, leading to a much more productive homeschool. After pushing a year and a half, Hannah Joy Sulhoff has finally decided to be completely potty-trained. Her parents are very relieved!

2. Family Gatherings

Over all the years and duty stations, we have only grown closer to our families. Though it is sometimes difficult, we make it a priority to spend time with both of our sets of parents and siblings. This year Rachel and the kids spent July in GA and AL visiting mostly family, but a few friends as well. Cousin's Camp was the highlight of the trip. Riding a four-wheeler, playing foosball and ping-pong in the "man-cave", shooting at targets, swimming, jumping on a trampoline, campfires, skits and just pure playing with their cousins could not be beat. BorderTown, a weekend retreat focusing on God and men/boys encouraging one another was an event this fall at which all of the male Sulhoff's were in attendance. Since moving to the southeast, we have always shared in Christmas traditions with both of our families and will this year as well.

1. Reunion

Living months on end without your spouse is difficult. Sometimes, living with them is difficult, too, and we (like everyone else) are not exempt from miscommunication or arguments. However, being together as husband and wife/father and mother and operating out of the same home, is the best thing in the world. Our family has begun a new chapter and David being home with us daily, being the man he is, has changed everything for the better. His homecoming was unequivocally the best moment of our year.

Distance

"Distance makes the heart grow fonder."

Hogwash.

I'm currently far from the woman I love most, and the limitless temptations surrounding me and the many other Type-A males in the same position are only increasingly facilitated because of the distance.  See, the distance is merely a facilitator for growth or decay.  Some choose to grow, others do not. Regardless, the choice to grow is often the by-product of a heart that understands that thru Christ, all things are possible.

As I mentioned, the temptations are fairly limitless - even in a training environment.  Today we have media and images freely available that are a magnet to a wandering eye.  Additionally, the mind itself is constantly seeking some satisfaction and infidelity can occur without any notice given to peers or passersby.  This, Christ said, was equal to the physical sin.

The shame shreds self confidence as a sinful life lived internally gradually moves outward, breaking through the masquerade.  Soon, there is nothing left and the mind is exposed.  Relationships crumble and reputations are built.  The "A" may never be visible, but its burden on the broken family will be impossible to ignore.

On the contrary, there is a moment when God calls to satan and says, "Consider my servant....(fill in your name)...he will not be shaken."  Although the struggle continues in the mind, the successes of overcoming temptation taste sweeter than the greatest fulfillment imagineable.  This success develops into a deep longing for the wife of one's youth and the joy unspeakable that comes with reunion - on God's terms.  Then, the soul is not lost (as before) with nothing to show for it in the end, but freely shared.  This is a great hope.

So, in reality, distance does not make the heart grow fonder.  Distance does, however, facilitate the growth or decay of a heart hanging in the balance.

Hooded Sweatshirt

Every once in a while, an article of clothing comes along that is of very little consequence at the time but ultimately becomes a cherished item.  That is the case with regards to a gray hooded sweatshirt that we bought at a small local dive in Northern Canada.  We were driving through the Yukon Territory on our way to Alaska when we stopped to stretch our legs at a small diner/gas station at one of many continental divides throughout North America.  The sweatshirt was hanging and seemed like a fitting purchase to remember our trip as it not only bore the embroidered logo of the place we had stopped but would also keep me a little warmer considering the more northern latitudes we were entering.  So, I bought the shirt, put it on and we went on our way.  That was the summer of 2003 and seven years later the sweatshirt is still keeping me warm and casual.

You may have seen the above picture in the slideshow on the right but there is really a lot more to the story that meets the eye.  Yes, I'm in the photo with Rachel (my wife) and I am wearing what I now call my "concert shirt" - the aforementioned sweatshirt.  From the picture you can tell that we were probably at a concert and we left with a few souvenirs.  This is all true.  What is not shown is that it is a Third Day concert - the first one ever in Fairbanks, AK and the second one ever in the entire state (the Anchorage show was two days earlier).  We bought front row tickets the minute they went on sale without knowing we would be hosting the band themselves for a base tour on the eve of the concert.  The tour went well and it was a real blessing to give back to a group of men who have given us so much.  The pick, drumstick and program with guitar chords to "Cry Out to Jesus" were tokens of appreciation from the band that we'll always cherish.

The sweatshirt has accompanied me to several other concerts including Jeremy Camp, Bebo Norman and the Music Boat.  I wish I could hear the stories of those days and nights from the sweatshirt firsthand - I imagine it would have a slightly different perspective.

In Him,

Bye Bye Afghanistan

It is almost surreal.  I feel the gravity of the last year may never really hit.  So much has happened that there is a distinct possibility that getting home will seem strangely like just another return after a busy day at work.  I have met umpteen-million Airmen, Soldiers, Sailors, Marines, Civilians and Afghans and been to so many places I never dreamed to visit that it may pass as a blur.  I hope it isn't.

I hope that I can truly rejoice being back with my family and friends.  I hope that my emotions are not too much in check that I can't respond like I should to my three small children who are bouncing off the walls awaiting my arrival or my freakin' amazing wife who gives me a refreshed perspective of a true hero.  They deserve everything of me and I hope to provide.

I left Afghanistan two days early thanks to a surprise C-17 that was not being tracked except by a few folks at KAIA.  Originally I was going to spend the night at KAIA, fly to another base, spend the night there, fly to Manas, spend several nights there, fly to the States, spend the night at our stateside destination and then finally fly to beautiful Montgomery.  Instead, I'll be arriving home two days early!  Praise the Lord. 

Manas is OK but it's really cold.  The bays where we sleep are huge and this morning several hundred Soldiers left, waking us up at about 4 AM.  And yet, I am thankful.

A Whole Lot of Love

I am weeks away from coming home now and the year has been amazing! Still, there is a lap left and I would be remiss to not ask everyone to continue praying for my safety as well as Rachel and the kids during these remaining days.

Still, I am thankful. I am thankful for the prayers more than anything else. They have sustained me through some very difficult and dark times since getting to training in November, 2008 and I know they will continue to sustain us as we prepare for a much longed-for reunion.

I am also thankful beyond words for the generosity poured out to Rachel and the kids while I have been away. Everything from lawn mowings to surprise baby-sitting just for Rachel's sanity has been more than we could have ever asked for. Thank you.

I would also like to say thank you to anyone who sent anything over to me. In some ways its a hassle - you gotta fill out the insurance/customs papers for the USPS and you gotta pay for the items and then pay for postage. And in a lot of cases you knew full well that the only thing I could really do was relish in the love that was sent over seas and then send it straight back to the house! Regardless, you sent it - and you sent a lot of it! The above picture shows only a fraction of the packages and letters I received over the last year. I debated over whether or not to publish a list (I've kept a pretty good one so far) of everything I've received and who sent it, but I know that no one sent anything hoping for any special notariety or privilege so I will let those who sent stuff know who they are and instead relish in the joy that comes from giving in love.

A few more weeks and (Lord willing) I will be on my way home. Thank you all again!

In Him Always,
David

The Parlor Effect

Here is one of my favorite designs. However, the "Parlor Effect" quickly set in and many camp residents experienced a strange bulging at the waist just a few days after it opened. The gentlemen working it are local nationals who gladly scoop and serve with a smile, two meals a day.

You might live in Afghanistan. . .

If your daily ride is a Fordotari,
you probably live in Afghanistan.

If your wall electrical boxes look more like a never-ending pasta bowl,
you probably live in Afghanistan.

If you heat the inside of your two-year old office building with a wood stove,
you probably live in Afghanistan.

If your KFC serves mexican pizzas,
you probably live in Afghanistan.

My tummy hurts!!!

OK.  So, I'm still kind of new to this whole "working out" thing and today I did something completely moronic.  I was visiting Camp Phoenix to drop off some mail, pick up some mail, get gas, etc. when I decided that I couldn't pass up a chance at a Snickers Blizzard - something I can't get at my home FOB, Camp Dubs. 

I should have known that God was trying to tell me something when the ice cream machine was at least five minutes from being ready but I didn't listen.  SO, I consumed my wonderfully-yummy small Blizzard and went on my merry way.

I have been working out every other day for a little over three weeks now and I wasn't going to miss it today.  I also try to do so prior to dinner so I can use that as an incentive. 

Anyway, near the end of my crunches (after already doing 90 situps and 40 inclined situps at various other points during my routine) I started getting a slight cramp.  Right now it feels like my entire gut is going to cave in and I've missed the dinner hours completely.  Ugh.

I guess it's another night of dinner a-la-sandwich bar for me.

Que cera, cera.

Out with the old, in with the temporary

We are building a new wall here (as you've read about in other posts) and I needed to build a temporary wall to make room for the new wall (confused?) Well, this excavator is doing the heavy lifting to make it happen and I thought it was pretty cool how it framed the Queen's Palace in the background. Sweet, huh?

Pro-Bono Work

This is my most recent work as the defacto FOB engineer. I draw up the designs and the operations and maintenance folks at the camp do the rest.

I thought of it after watching how many folks liked eating from the Ice Cream Parlor I had designed several months back. I guess I had about ten pounds of added guilt watching everyone enjoy the new dessert digs that I felt a produce stand would help me feel a little better . . . . unfortunately, a lot of space on our new "produce stand" is taken up by cakes and cookies as well. C'est la vie!!

In Him,

Christmas Away From Home

The banners were flying high and plenty in preparation for the big day at the DFAC.

Employees placed sparkling grape juice on ice to make the occasion even more festive and tasty.


Just as at Thanksgiving, the center tables were full of goodies from special cakes to "gingerbread" houses covered in hot dog buns and bread slices.

We enjoyed the Holy day by watching Christmas classics on T.V. and in between meals I worked. Go ahead and scroll down to Rachel's pics of a much more exciting Christmas. God Bless you all!

In Him,

Christmas Time is Here

This is the lovely tree that was sent to me by some dear friends in Montgomery. I decorated it and put it in my office much to the delight of my office mates also longing for home.

These mountains are just outside our base and they have been dusted with snow for a couple weeks now - we are slowly seeing the white creep down towards the base and soon we'll be in the thick of it! That building in the middle on top of the shorter hill is an old Russian officer's club with a pool and a lot of marble. It's pretty fun to explore but a little cold to venture out to these days.

Real-world Engineering

One of the perks of this deployment is that I get to actually build stuff! This wall is an example of some of the construction I've been doing over the last nine months. Of course, most of my work was at other locations so I travelled quite a bit. Thankfully, that has waned some and a very large project started at my base, so I finally get to monitor a project from the beginning - it is a good feeling!

The wall required a span that went over a small open culvert so the contractor proposed the shown design for a concrete beam on two piers that had to be approved. And, for the first time in my Air Force career I had to go to the drawing board (literally) and calculate the moments of deflection for the wall and the nominal moment capacity of the designed beam. I also had to determine the force per square foot on each of the piers and the transferred force to the ground to determine what possible settling issues we may face.

I can't lie. It was hard! It took me about five hours to determine everything, going back to Civil Engineering handbooks and the web for equations, coefficients, and standards. But it was actually fun, too. Who said those five years at Tech were a complete waste?

Where to start?!?!? Gifts in the Mail or Tampa?

OK. I will start with the totally awesome care package I received today from my office back in Alabama. Besides an assortment of food goodies specially selected to meet my tastes, my office (and I can take a good guess who specifically) decided it would only be more perfect by plastering half of the items with the face of a personal hero - David Hasslehoff. Yes, the "Hoff" made it all the way across the Atlantic and several continents to bid me a Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays! Does it really get any better?



How about this? We had to take a detour through a portion of Kabul we rarely frequent due to serious traffic issues and lo and behold, there's KFC! That's "Kabul" Fried Chicken, in case you were wonderin'. . . .

Finally, I'll leave you with this shot. The 2008 ACC Player of the Year consoles the 2009 ACC Player of the Year on the sidelines shortly after the clock ran out. The ACC Championship Game in Tampa proved to be a lot more exciting the the SEC Championship Game and brought out the very best in both teams. Thankfully, Tech's best of 39 points was better than Clemson's best of 34 points. How about them Oranges?

Groovy tunes to surf by - Pandora

http://www.pandora.com/

I know that I am a little late in the game with this but I've got to say that Pandora rocks my world! Just put in your favorite artist and it automatically creates a streaming radio station perfectly atuned to the stylings and message of said artist.  Try it out - you'll get hooked!

Ode to Skype

Andrew & Elizabeth crowd the screen while Skyping with dad

Skype, Skype!

Why so much hype?

'Twas suggested by friends

Now the fun never ends!

Chatting with R

would seem so far,

but this app keeps us close

better than most.

Before Skype I found

other programs around.

Windows Live, ICQ,

and DSN to name a few

just do not compare

when checking on the home lair.

A, E, and H. J.

love spending the day

watching dad on the screen

and boy their smiles gleam!

I'm thankful for Skype!

(There's nothing left to type)

Wouldn't it be great?

The Psalmist proclaims in Psalm 46:9 that the Lord "makes wars cease to the ends of the earth; he breaks the bow and shatters the spear, he burns the shields with fire."

It may put me out of a job, but wouldn't that be a nice?

Happy Thanksgiving!

           God Bless America and God Bless the American taxpayer who made sure we had an awesome Thanksgiving, 7,000 miles away from Plymouth Rock. The spread was awesome! Every table had sparkling grape juice and carved food items for decorations was all over the dining facility. We had a great time as a team enjoying this welcome slice of home in the middle of Afghanistan. For dinner I had turkey (of course), prime rib, sweet potatoes, potato salad, green beans, shrimp cocktail, Coke, water, and sparkling grape juice. It was a "kingly" fare and I am very thankful. Here are a couple pics from the festivities.