a different type of anniversary.

today marks my 40th blog post. in a way i feel accomplished i made 40 posts before easter and i'd have to say that i wanted to do something special for this "anniversary". when i think of anniversaries i think of love and relationships. today i'm not going to get mushy on you, but i'd like to honor a family that i have a great relationship with.

that family is the hertl's. i have know the hertl's since before i can even remember and for those of you who don't know they're moving in august. the talk of moving had been imminent for years, but the reality is finally here. it's taken me sometime to be okay will it and so today i'd like to honor each of you and thank you.

michael, there are so many youth group memories that involve you. there are too many to name. when i look back on those years i think that you're one of the main reasons why i enjoyed youth group so much. you are an awesome person and i am continually amazed by your creativity and patience. you've always been there to change the light bulbs (among other things.) you change the church. you helped the church develop and i don't think the church even knows how much you did and still do. michael, today, i'd like to thank you for helping to shape my faith journey and for all of your help throughout the years.

steph, you're one of my best friends and i wouldn't trade you for the world. we've had some great times, and even greater ones are to come. you're complex and multifaceted, yet live simply. you're extremely creative and gifted. as you know i'm not a fan of people saying that you can give over a 100%, but i think you do. you've never left me hanging. you'll always go until the lifts stop. and you are just amazing. you have always kept me on my toes. and i never know what's coming next. i'm excited to see where life takes you because i know that wherever you go you'll be successful. thanks for all the times you've helped me create something, make something better, or just quote the brady bunch movie. thank you for being such a great person. always dedicated.

becca, we've had some interesting experiences together. from our late-night-drowsy camp talks i've concluded that you're someone that i could go to with a question about life and you would listen and talk through it with me. when i think about you all i can think about is your positive attitude and how always makes me want to smile. it's rare for me to see you in a bad mood and you're positive attitude is always refreshing. it makes me love life. it makes me appreciate every breath that i take. every day. every drop of rain. just life in general. you're more complex than meets the eye. i believe that you're are someone who appreciates a time that works your brain. a time that makes you think. yet sometimes you can be frustrated by the fact that the thinking doesn't stop. becca, you're interesting in a good way. and that's what i love about you.

bryanna, i think that this picture describes who you are. you are unique in so many ways, and have so many awesome quirks. i'm so glad that you share them with me. from your pregnant belly to your accents to our man voices to our hand motions. everything you do makes me laugh. but you aren't just a joke-ster. you are very talented. you play piano which is something i wish i could do. i admire people who can play as well as you. i think that you are one of the quirkiest and coolest people i know. don't be afraid to show people who you really are because i believe that no matter where you go people will find you just as awesome as i find you.

sam, when we've actually talked i've enjoyed those experiences. i think that you're a strong person. you've been pushed around a lot throughout your life and i think that when you're older you won't take any crap from anyone. so sam i want to thank you for being a good sport and the butt of way too many jokes.

thank you hertl family for being such a large part of my life. you've each had an individual impact on me. best wishes to all of you as you prepare to embark on a new journey. i love all of you!

much love and peace, dmaloney

what's on t.v tonight? joy or suffering?

this came up in bing images when i typed in nj hspa. haha! hspas are finally over. and i'm relieved. i'm pretty sure that i've mentioned how much i despise standardized testing. and after 3 days i was done. and i'm done complaining now.

as i was watching the baby office tonight i was thinking about the gift of children. it's scary and i think that even though the office demonstrates the beginning of parenthood in a fun and laughing matter that it was really true. and after the office was the premiere of the marriage ref. now, i don't know if you're think what i am but does that even make sense.

welcome to the world baby. then bam why do you keep your ex-husband prosthesis in the closet? hmm. what are our priorities? what do we as americans value? do we value the birth of a child and the beginning of a new life or others problems?

this:

or this:

are there more shows on television about suffering and pain or about love and new life?

we need to refocus our views. focus on the joys of life. maybe watching suffering keeps us from realizing our own problems, but let's enjoy life. have fun. laugh and celebrate the day that new life enters your family.

much love and peace, dmaloney

n-a-n-a

i love my nana. end of story.

this a picture from the harlem globetrotter's game tonight that nana took me to. i don't want it to seem like i'm saying that i love her because she took me to the game. i'm saying because i really do love her. and i don't know what i'd do without her. much love and peace, dmaloney

endurance is the name of the game

so the olympics are underway in vancouver. and it's pretty crazy all of the events. the other day i caught a glimpse of the men's biathlon and some long-distance. both of the those are all about endurance. in the biathlon it's more than just setting a pace and sticking to it. the participants need to brave the elements, find a pace, work hard to pick up their skies, and fire a gun. it's hard work and it showed at the end of the race.

i think, just maybe that this is what we will look like when we finally get to heaven. happy to have been successful in completing the race. and pleased to finally be in the kingdom of God. as followers of christ, our marathon is long and a great endurance is needed. some of us fall short. and fall short too often. but that's why there's grace. but that's another story for another day. we're all running a different race. in nineteen-ninety-three only four months after i was born my mother was diagnosed with acute myelogenous leukemia an extremely aggressive form of leukemia. when many mothers are enjoying the joys (and struggles) of having a new baby my mother was running the race. the cancer has a survival rate of only about twenty - thirty percent. many fall short in this race. this race is not an easy one to finish. my mother attributes her survival of this horrible aliment to prayer and the hope of seeing me walk, talk, go to school, and simply live. it's hard for some people to believe in miracles but i do. the life i live is a miracle and the fact that i can even know my mother is an inspiration. it's an inspiration to want to finish the race. endure the elements. find a pace. cross that line.

quote of the day:

"happiness depends upon ourselves" - aristotle

joke of the day:

What happens if you get scared half to death twice?

picture of the day:

endure the elements. today. tomorrow. and the day after tomorrow. much love and peace. dmaloney

through the eyes of a child

when i think about faith. i can't help but think of the innocence of young children. their naive nature. there inability to worry. last night was one of those times. my brother is eight years old. and last night we were updating the youth board at church and as we were finishing up he said "do you think brian will be proud of you?" and i replied "yeah, i guess bud." he then said "ya know, he's lucky he got sent here." i find the mind of of child interesting. their thoughts. their cares. and their worry-free attitude. kids aren't afraid of roller coasters. driving fast. swinging higher than the sky. or running until they can't breathe. i wish we could all live like that. live without worries. care-free and without doubt. though the reality of that isn't always possible it's a nice idea to entertain. some of us think that being carefree would look like this..

but living out faith out like children is described wonderfully in one of my favorite songs "like a child" by jars of clay. it's about the faith of a child and that the child believes he can climb mountians. he can do anything. that's how we have to live. believing that with our faith we can do anything. we won't fall. we won't cower. and we won't have doubt. doubt is scary. it clouds our judgement. it puts a clear wall between you and God. you can see him but you can't get any closer. his words are faint. so what can we do? well, we can start by living our faith actively and with innocence. doubt-free. give it a try. take a lesson from the children you know. look at their faith. their faith is pure. undisturbed. try looking like this...

curious of what the future can bring, yet perfectly content with you life. not rushing the future.

Quote of the Day:

"a three year old child is a being who gets almost as much fun out of a fifty-six dollar set of

swings as it does out of finding a small green worm." -bill vaughn

Joke of the Day:

this is a clip from community, enjoy.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ryb2WawuV4g

seize the day. and love. much love and peace, dmaloney