Rocky

It's nearly midnight and Rocky (the original of the series) is on French TV. This brings back memories of 1978 when I went to see this film with some high school buddies in Michigan.

Since then, both Sylvester Stallone and I have aged nearly 3 decades. I haven't seen the latest in the Rocky series, which just was released in recent months. But I've heard that it shows some of the personal faith that seems to have come into this actor's life.

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Today we did the trip to IKEA that was planned for yesterday. We purchased a couple of kitchen cabinets that we now need to mount on the wall. This is another opportunity to grow in handyman skills.

Our toddler did her first real walking in IKEA. All our kids have grown up going to IKEA about every 2 months. We have memories of our now 5 year old having his first outing less than two weeks after his birth at this same IKEA store. Now we drop him off in the supervised play area right after we arrive at the store.

I had to miss the weekly Fonderie Bible study tonight because I'm the only one at full health in our household. Everyone else is in the middle of a cold. I hate to miss activities. However, my family is a priority in my life, especially at this phase of having young kids. Today while talking with a colleague named Peggy who has 2 teens, I was reminded that this phase of life is relatively short. Once it's gone, then I can't get it back. There will always be more Bible studies and other activities to attend. But my kids will only be young and under my roof once.

Some friends my age got married young and now are empty nesters with their kids at university. They now have more freedom to come and go. In my twenties and early thirties, I had the freedom that singleness allows to come and go. Now I don't have that freedom. But in general, I enjoy having young kids in my forties. Some of my experiences in my years as a single give a perspective and some lessons that are hopefully valuable for my kids.

But not it's time to rewatch the fight between Rocky Balboa and Apollo Creed.