C A P T I V A T E D

Just had to share the lyrics to Shawn McDonald's latest release - Captivated. Shawn is an awesome musician who lives here in Seattle. Be sure to check out Shawn's website: http://www.shawnmcdonaldmusic.com

When I look into the mountains I see Your face
When I look into the night sky it sparkles Your Name
The wind in the clouds and the blue in the sky The sun and the moon and the stars so high That's what draws me to You

Chorus: I am I'm captivated by You (You know that You do)
I am I'm captivated

When I wake unto the morning it gives me your sights
When I look across the ocean it echoes Your might
The sand on the shore and the waves in the sea
The air in my lungs and the way You made me
That's what draws me to You

Chorus x2

The wind in the clouds and the blue in the sky
The sun and the moon and the stars so high
The sand on the shore and the waves in the sea
The air in my lungs and the way You made me
The blood in my veins and my heart
You invade The plants how they grow and the trees and the shade
The way that I feel and the Love in my soul I thank you my God for letting me know

Chorus x2 I am... (synthesized)

The snow finally arrived

We woke up this morning to a blanket of snow covering everything -- finally. The forecast has been calling for snow for several days now. With school closed, my office was closed as well. However, now that we have remote access, I spent some time answering emails and trying to update some files.

Em is trying to catch up on her favorite anime series. She is depending on the subtitles less and will start formal Japanese classes in the fall (hopefully). I still wish she would pick up her interest in Mandarin again, but we will approach that carefully- one step at a time.

The weekend was spent cataloging photographic images taken over the last 20 years. It's a huge project with all of the photography I have done, but it will be great to have a comprehensive catalog that is easy to access by subject and keyword. Working with a film scanner helps move the project along a bit faster. As I get more images scanned, I'll be getting them added to my Flickr account: http://www.flickr.com/photos/kpeng/

We also located some family history for the Christensen side of the family. My grandfather had completed a partial family history that goes back to 1645. One of my cousin's is eager to take on the task of putting the pieces of the puzzle together. Evidently, there is also some Irish heritage on mom's side of the family and looking for information related to that as well.

Em is hoping for more snow tonight. Frankly, I am ready for spring to get here. It has been pretty cold this winter. At least we haven't had the major windstorms that we experienced last year, but flowers and sunshine would sure be nice. The perpetual gray skies we have had really remind me of China. And yes, I am beginning to miss China again -- a lot.

Remembering Grandma Walch

Saturday will mark five years since the Walch side of my family gathered together to say farewell to my grandmother. In some respects, time has flown by and yet it seems like yesterday that we were gathering to say goodbye.

There have been many people who have influenced my life, but no one comes close to my grandmother. She was always there for all of us grandkids and ready to guide us with love, patience and a rap on the head if we got out of control.

Earlier this week as I was doing the layout for our Sunday evening bulletin at church, I noticed that one of our pastors had chosen the hymn "Softly and Tenderly" as the "Gospel hymn" and memories came flooding back of the last few days of caring for my grandmother. It was one of her favorite hymns and I hope that she has many opportunities to sing it uninterrupted by the cacophony of life with the Walch kids, grandkids, great-grandkids and so on....

Yesterday even more memories of the rambunctious times I shared with my brother and cousins surfaced yet again when discussing the theme of our upcoming Easter service. Evidently, "Little Bunny Foo-Foo" was entered as a "placeholder"for the sermon-- unless our lead pastor really does think that LBFF would be a good theme. One of my friends on staff mentioned that he had no idea who/what LBFF is. When I got home I asked Emily if she remembered the story of LBFF and for the rest of the evening strains of LBFF echoed throughout the house and my memories of summer days on the swings at the farm, repeatedly singing verse after verse of LBFF with my cousins-- much to grandma's dismay. For those who know the song/story, you are sure to admit that a little of LBFF goes a very long way.

So to grandma, if you are looking down on your family tonight, may the joyous voices singing just one more round of LBFF fill your heart tonight and all the while may strains of "Softly and Tenderly" fill the hearts of those you have always held dear. I know I can speak for everyone when I say that I love you and miss you more than words can say.