wonders and reflections in God's presence

I actually like geckos … they are really quite cute. I especially like moving one from the red brick house to the green trash can and watching it turn colors. Lately, I’ve been a fan, too, of the little green guy in the car insurance commercials. But, friends, I cannot say I saved a bunch on my car insurance by switching to the company with the cute little green mascot. In fact, their quote was actually higher than what we were paying with another well advertised company we were with for 16 years.

It is worth, however, doing a little comparison shopping … we, of course, are some the highest paying insured motorists … three fairly new cars and a teenage driver will do that to you. We did manage to find a company which is saving us nearly $160/mo, though. That’s right … saving us that much! And it’s not some fly by night company … we were actually insured by them years ago. They are taking on our homeowners and auto insurance beginning April 1. Giving us more coverage for less money … that’s a good deal.

So, this week was a week for finances. Not only was I busy comparing insurance quotes, I finalized our 2006 taxes and e-filed. The IRS will automatically deduct our fortune from our bank account on April 17 … my brother’s birthday. At least I’ll be thinking of you then, Mike …

I also returned the BLT box office paraphernalia I had here since the last show began. I did the accounting on that, too, a couple of weeks ago … so lately I’ve just been busy with figures and spread sheets … new churches, presbytery budget, box office receipts, investments, taxes, and insurance. yuck.

Even though I was very good at math, I never liked arithmetic much … so I’m really glad that I’m done with most of it … and I’m also sad that the gecko let me down.

Nearly two years ago my dear husband was certified for scuba diving. It’s something he always wanted to do. We had a salt water reef aquarium many years ago, so he’s always had an interest in the sea creatures. I, on the other hand, have a fear of water. Actually I love watching it, and floating in it, but always with my head and nose in the air … and I cannot jump into water. A few weeks ago I decided to give diving a try. We found a “Discovery Dive” as one of the many options available to us at Cozumel. It was only 2 hours total including 45 minutes of instruction, and we were able to walk into the water instead of falling backwards off a boat.

Well, I did it.

Yup, that’s me and Dwayne and some mighty fine fish.

I was terrified, but once I got my flippers on (not an easy feat), I was a lot better off. Unfortunately, or fortunately, depending on one’s point of view, my body has a terrific buoyancy. I probably was not given enough extra weight in my vest, and was only able to get down a few feet. The dive instructor did help me get deeper by letting me pull myself down a rope …

There wasn’t much to see, a few coral and some fish … but I wasn’t looking at anything except keeping my eye on the dive instructor or Dwayne and saying to myself the whole time, “breathe in, breathe out …”

All in all, I’m glad I went, but … well, Dwayne, I’m afraid I may be a great partner in life but you’ll need to find another dive partner.