A (Pewaukee) Pirate Looks at 50

© David Hartman

EDMOND, OK (UP) -- It's a nostalgic kind of day.

This afternoon I attended a birthday party for an old (and longtime) friend, Tammy Beckland. She's 50 now. She's only lived in Oklahoma a couple of years, and introduced me to all her friends as the person in Oklahoma who has known her the longest, even longer than her daughter, Ellie. I guess that was her way of trying to make me feel old, too, though I'm years younger than she.

I believe God puts people in your life at certain times for a reason. I don't believe it's simply chance or dumb luck. Tammy, then a redhead, was part of a group of kids who meant a lot to me way back when.

After my freshman year of high school, my family moved from Illinois to Wisconsin. Neighboring states; different worlds. In Illinois, we worshiped at a church with a couple hundred people that had a sizable and active youth group. The kids I went to church with were my friends. They were my social circle. I was blessed. And I took them for granted.

In Wisconsin, the church was much smaller. There was no youth minister, and not much of a youth group. For the first time in my life, if I wanted friends, I would need to make them outside of "my" church. Looking back, the Pewaukee High School classmates who befriended me were no less good, no less Christian. Still it was different, because I was drawing distinctions that weren't really there.

I hope I look that good YEARS from now when I turn 50.

In my Pewaukee days, Bible camp took on a whole new significance. Youth rallies weren't just something to do anymore; they were something to look forward to. Those were the times when I got to be with the kids from "my" church again. At that time, that meant a lot to me. I remember what it's like to end one camp session and start counting down the days until the next one started. Tammy, like a lot of other kids who were regulars at camp and youth rallies, were what made them special.

And then we all graduated and grew apart. Tammy and a bunch of others went to York College. Some went to ACU, others to Harding. I came to OC. Nearly three decades later, through the magic of Facebook, Tammy appeared on my "people you may know" list. Turns out, she had just moved to Edmond to be near her grown daughter and son-in-law to be. And an old friendship was reconnected.

Now, one of the kids who helped me grow as a teen is stretching me once again. Tammy and I don't agree on everything. We're in different places in our walk. But our conversations are refreshing and honest, and at the end of the day, we both love and serve the same God. What I've learned about Tammy today is this: I've met few people in my life with the passion to reflect Jesus to the street people -- the "invisibles" as she calls them -- as Tammy has. The work that she does , both corporately and one-on-one with those folks God loves in this city is inspiring. I'm lucky to have her back, both as a friend, and as an example. Happy birthday, girl!

...

Come on over, baby. We've got chicken in the barn. Whose barn? What barn? My barn.

OK, so I don't have a barn. Or chickens to put in it. Still, there's been a whole lotta shakin' going on in Edmond recently. We're supposed to be known out here for tornadoes. We're cool with that. We're used to it. We know the drill. But now, earthquakes are all the Oklahoma rage. 

Some blame it on fracking. Others say it's because the lake levels are low. I reckon our friends in Topeka, Kansas would tie it to homosexuality somehow. Whatever the reason, folks out here are starting to buy earthquake insurance because they're happening so frequently. Haven't had a big one yet, but you can feel them regardless, and it's a bit unsettling. Don't know that I'm going to buy earthquake insurance, but the outbreak has been enough that I've installed an earthquake alert app on my phone. No, it doesn't warn you in advance of a pending quake, but it does tell you after the fact the "where" and the "how strong." Check out the screen shot of quakes in my 'hood in just the last few days.