Have A Little Faith

FAITH: Pronunciation: \ˈfāth\

Function: noun

Etymology: Middle English feith, from Anglo-French feid, fei, from Latin fides; akin to Latin fidere to trust

Date: 13th century

1 a : belief and trust in and loyalty to God (2) : belief in the traditional doctrines of a religion b (1) : firm belief in something for which there is no proof (2) : complete trust


Complete trust - that's the one I have trouble with. It's hard for me to trust things which I have no control over. Well, not everything - for example...

I have no control over how diet coke is made, and I'm ok with that.

I have no control over the fact that there are no purple m&ms (the ones at Easter time don't count), and even though I think they'd be adorable, I'm ok with it.

I have control over over the tvs in our home, because I live with 2 guys and therefore am outnumbered (thanks again girls for growing up and moving out...sheesh). But I have given up trying, and I am ok with it.

But when it comes to things that really matter to me, that's when I have a problem. For example, today my Ashley is on a plane - well actually, she'll be on 3 planes on her way to Honolulu, Hawaii.

Ashley's boyfriend "L" of almost a year is a Marine and is currently doing desert training there. The poor guys are near the mouth of a volcano for many hours every day doing the training, so they can try to get used to enduring the incredible heat...can you imagine??

They just recently got word that they were going to get a 4 day break - Today, through Sunday. The only rules are they have to sleep on base, and they are not allowed to leave the island (even for day trips). He called Ashley right away and offered to pay her way to come down there, if she'd come spend that time with him.

He will have a 2 week leave in April, and he'll be back in Iowa for that, but obviously his family will have first rights to his time and attention, as it should be. So Ashley & L knew their time together would be limited on that trip. After that leave, he is leaving for Afghanistan for 18 mo.

They both agreed that these 4 days would be the only real alone time they would have together before he leaves, so they made the decision that she'd fly down there.

Some have said "Alone on a tropical island...asking for trouble!", but I know my daughter. She's a great girl with a good head on her shoulders, and wonderful morals and values to go along with that. Some have said "But they've only been going out a short time. They can't really be THAT serious." To them I say "Jay & I were engaged after 3 mo, and married within 10 mo, so yea, I do believe they can be serious in 10 months time."

One thing I know for sure is that I completely trust her.

What I don't trust is the airline pilots and the planes. Honestly, THAT is what I have the trust issues with. When you read lately about pilots falling asleep, and pilots surfing the web, and pilots doing drugs, I have major trust issues when they are dealing with "cargo" very precious to me!

Plus, I have severe panic attacks when it comes to the thought of flying, so I also have issues with the thought of the plane getting off the ground, flying properly, and landing safely.

Belief and trust in and loyalty to God - And because I have a hard time trusting those things, I pray, and I have belief that my prayers will be answered. Today I pray, and pray, and pray. I pray for each leg of her journey. Right now she is somewhere between Minneapolis and San Francisco, and I pray the mountains are bending down low....limbo low. Next I'll be praying that the waters between there and Hawaii are very calm today - no wind at all. Just blue sky and no clouds. I'll be praying for the same things when she flies back to Iowa on Monday.

Please dear Jesus, watch over the pilots and give them steady hands and sharp minds to guide the planes. Please protect Ashley from harm, and allow her to have the best time ever during her time with "L". I pray that they have the wonderful, memory creating, close time they are both praying for. May it be enough to sustain their hearts over the next few months until they can see each other again....and on into their extended time apart. Amen