Newly Rediscovered Journal Notes (Chris and Tim's Graduation - Part 1)

The following are notes I found in one of my old journals from 2004, apparently an early draft of things I might say at Chris and Tim's high school graduation.  It's kind of long, but it gives an interesting glimpse into the childhood of these two dads who are now 31 and almost 33.  I will post these in a 3-part series.

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It has been a privilege to raise these two fine young men for the Lord.  They are gifts from God, special blessings in every sense of the word.  Like the best gifts, they came at unexpected times.  Christopher arrived exactly nine months and twelve days after Jim and I were married, and Timmy came along exactly eight months after we arrived in Guatemala, when Chris was only a year and a half old.

As the first-born, Chris shared in all our earliest memories as a family, from Jungle Camp when he was only three months old, to village trips with his dad as soon as he was potty-trained (Chris, that is).  With three younger siblings born in his preschool and kindergarten years, Chris was forced to grow up faster than the rest.  He always rose to the occasion.

Chris has overcome his earliest fears.  From his terror of the most harmless puppy to dog trainer.  From his jumpiness around fireworks on Guatemalan holidays to teenage pyrotechnician building his own gunpowder-filled fireworks on fourth of July in Mexico.  From his tear-filled first flight as a small baby to his first solo flight as a pilot at age 17.  Chris has come far.  (Note:  in 2018 he is now a commercial pilot!)

Some of his notable achievements:

• Mastering computer technology with no parental guidance whatsoever.  I can't even describe the things Chris can do.  Recently he built his own computer as each of the components went on sale.  He also designed our web page and taught me how to update it.

• Working with a grandfatherly mechanic friend at the MAF hangar, he and a friend built a go-cart, actually more like a dune-buggy, which won first prize in a technology fair for the whole state of Oaxaca.  Impressive!

• Another hobby he enjoyed was drama: from acting out songs as a baby to being cast in "Little Women" at 16.  Chris would have liked to do more.  (Note:  he did go on to be cast in several theater productions at LeTourneau during college.)

• Reading.  This is the child I could never keep busy enough.  He has read every book in our house at least once, and we own lots of books.

• Evangelism.  A dentist in Mexico used to schedule extra long appointments so she would have time to ask this then-13-year-old questions about God.  I used to give him Spanish credits every time he could keep the Jehova Witnesses occupied for at least an hour on our porch rather than on our unsaved neighbors' porches.

After that, the notes get sketchy until I must have given up mid-sentence and skipped on to Tim's story, which I will post separately.  Part 3 includes a slideshow and talks about their adventures growing up on the mission field.  Stay tuned...

The Loker family 1986