In just a couple of weeks my wife and I will be flying to Michigan to see family and friends. It has been over three years since the last time we were in Michigan. Even though I don’t make it back up north very often, these relationships are very important to me. I love being part of my family! The distance, and time, does not take away my feelings for these people. My family is a big part of my identity.

On Sunday I finished one of the goals that I adopted when I became the South District Superintendent. In my first year I wanted to worship with every church in my District. This is not an uncommon goal. I expect that most Superintendents have a similar goal each year, and especially their first year. I have the advantage that I have a small district, which makes it much more doable. When I started the position last August (I started a month late due to a pre-planned leave), I thought that this would be an easy goal to achieve. I was wrong! It is amazing how many called-charge conferences and celebrations happen! Occasionally, like Easter, Mother’s Day, and Christmas, I also wanted to go to church with my wife. Then there are the occasional conferences and retreats to attend. There are so many things that look easy—until we are in the position! 

I was a little surprised when the doctor asked why I wanted an annual physical. I told him that it is covered by my insurance, and that it is recommended. The truth is that I was about eight months over-due for my “annual” physical. I was due for the physical about the time that we were moving from Sierra Vista to Sahuarita. I was too busy to be very concerned at the time, and it made sense to me to wait until we were re-established in Sahuarita (we lived here once before). It made sense, but I was very slow in finding a doctor and getting an appointment. My previous Sahuarita doctor moved years ago, which is what finally forced me to move to a doctor in Sierra Vista.

Sometimes it’s the little things that get me started thinking, This time it was eating at one of my favorite Mexican restaurants. I love the food, but I’ve always had stomach problems afterwards. I thought at first that there might be an ingredient bothering me. Then I determined that it was just too much food being served—and eaten! I tried taking half back to my hotel room, and still had problems. Last week I determined that if I ordered just one chicken enchilada (one of my favorites!) a la carte (along with some chips and salsa, of course!), I’m fine. I can now confess that I was so happy to figure this out that I went two nights in a row! This lead me to pondering on the saying that “less is more”.