Carrie's Corner

Camping.  For some of you, that word sounds like a retreat, vacation, adventure and fun.  For others of you, that word invokes fear or laughs of cynicism followed by, "My idea of camping is the Holiday Inn!"  For me, I'm somewhere in between. During our first year of marriage, David thought he needed to introduce me to the wonderful world of camping!  Oh joy! I didn't grow up going camping, but I had taken lots of road trips with family and we rarely stayed in motels.  Most of the time, my parents would drive through the night and when they would get too tired, they would pull  into a rest area or by the side of the road to catch a few hours of sleep.  It wasn't "camping", but it was similar in some respects.  One time in particular, we were driving through Yellowstone National Park.  My dad found an area to park the car.  He got his sleeping bag out of the trunk, laid it on the ground and went to sleep, right next to the car.  ...

I don't know about you, but I can't help but smile when I see this picture.  Yes, this is my baby boy when he was about six weeks old.  From the very beginning of his life, his infectious smile and contagious laughter have incited even the most serious of people to let down their guard long enough to elicit a chuckle.  He's a young teenager now, but he still has the ability to unravel the most serious of intentions and get everyone around him, at the very least, smiling. Oh what joy!  Have you ever known anyone in your life that brings such joy to you?  Isn't it delightful to just sit in their presence and bask in the glow of their joy?  It's different than being with someone humorous or someone who can crack a good joke.  It's also different than just being around someone who seems to be "happy" most of the time.  A joyful person soothes your soul. Though all of my children are treasures to me in their own different ways, this last little o...