Count it all joy

I should begin with a brief update about the past five years.

I did figure out tonguing; I mastered it in Spring, 2007, while playing in the Lubbock Symphony for a week. As far as the oboe goes, everything came together, including reedmaking. But two weeks prior to achieving oboe mastery, the LORD impressed on my heart that it was time to start "trying" to have children. I shared my thoughts with Roel, and he was also ready; he said that he would have been ready to start "trying" anytime, even from the beginning of our marriage. So, three months later, we conceived, and my oboe playing faded into the background of my life. Today, I hardly play at all, although I strongly suspect that, in a less-demanding season of parenting, I will again be able to play regularly.

In April, 2008, one year after I had felt the LORD leading in my heart that I should delay having children no longer, Audrey Joy was born. Then, in September, 2009, Lieve Daniela entered this world. (Lieve's name is Dutch; it's pronounced "lee'-veh"). Finally, three months ago, in April, 2011, we welcomed Peter Zacharias into our little family. So, now, I find that life has taken a dramatic turn; my daily life now consists of serving three very needy, but absolutely delightful, little people. But, as I serve these little ones, I am really serving my husband and, most of all, the LORD, who created these amazing creatures and entrusted them into my care.

But onto the reason for today's post.

On Sunday, our music minister gave the message at church, and it has challenged and encouraged me more than any message I can remember in the past few years!! I am reminded of how I viewed life when I first surrendered my life and will to the LORD, at age 21 (11 years ago). The simple truth is that the LORD loves me so much that He sent His only Son to die for me - even though all I had ever done was to sin and live according to my foolish and selfish desires. So, even though I had rebelled against Him, He still loved me, and He completely forgave all my sins. He washed me clean. Life doesn't have to be a drag, anymore. Life is ravishingly wonderful!!! And He lives within me, having given me His Holy Spirit, and I enjoy fellowship with the God of the Universe, every moment of every day of my entire life (since making Him my Lord and Savior).

And every little thing that comes against me in life just pales in comparison to the joy I feel - yes, even feel - because He is my Lord. When the children drain me, and drain me, and drain me even more, I remember that I should count it all joy when I encounter these trials, because I know that the testing of my faith develops perseverance. And perseverance must finish its work, so that I may be mature and complete, not lacking any good thing.

It's all in how I look at things - and if I am looking at things in the light of the overwhelming spiritual realities of God's wonderful work in my life, then these trials actually don't even seem troublesome, at all.

O LORD, may I have the faith to walk through life rejoicing in every trial, every suffering, because I glory in You, and in Your purposes for my life!

If you'd like to hear Richard's message, too, and I highly recommend you do, click here.

Starting Over (Again)

I have no auditions on the horizon, so I'm learning how to tongue. Right, I'm 27 years old, been playing the oboe for 14 years now, and I'm just now learning how to tongue. But this is how it goes. You learn things wrong, so you have to relearn, from the beginning.

This has been an issue Mr. Barr (my teacher) and I have been more or less putting off for a couple years now. But now we have some time (with no orchestral audition looming in the immediate future). So a couple weeks ago, Mr. Barr spent about an hour working on nothing but tonguing with me. And sent me home to train myself to do it the right way consistently (undoing 14 years of tonguing).

1. I need to use the very tip of my tongue to tongue. I was taught by a former teacher, in short, that I should NOT use the very tip of my tongue to tongue. Crazy, but true.

2. I need to tongue the corner of the reed, not the middle. To be truthful, one of my former teachers did suggest this (the same one, in fact). But, looking back, her reasons were more like, "It's easier for some people," and she really made it sound optional. And tonguing way over there is so awkward, that given an equally good alternative, why bother? Whereas Mr. Barr pointed out that there is a dramatic difference in the sound of the articulation.

3. I also need to keep my tongue, when not tonguing, really close to the reed. But that's not so hard.

It's a lot like going through embouchure change. And I've done that so many times, it doesn't even scare me anymore. So, I'm quite enjoying learning this new technique! And, this is the really cool part, I think that once I get this nailed, that my technique will be first-rate, in every area. I mean, absolutely first-rate. Okay, you have to understand that I have had so many teachers, and every time I get a new one, they have to explain to me all the things I'm doing wrong (and change my embouchure), and how far behind I am. But I kind of think that my embouchure is (finally!!!) quite excellent. And my tone. And my technique (well, at least it's dramatically better, and still improving). For a (very) little while now, I've been feeling like if only I could master the correct tonguing technique, that I would have all the tools in order! Of course, then would come the matter of learning each piece excellently. But that's a much more attainable goal when you have the tools to make that possible!

Anyway, so I'm excited about learning how to tongue. I think it'll take a really long time to master it, but I'm really excited about it, anyway. :)

Meet Olivia!!!

Two weeks ago, a new addition to our family arrived: Olivia, the basset hound!! I am very proud to tell you that she is the sweetest thing we have ever known, yet playful, and quite smart. And, the best news is that today (so far!!) is our third accident-free day in a row!!

Wyoming Creatures

Okay, so Roel and I spent 9 days in wonderful Jackson, Wyoming. It's nestled below Grand Teton National Park, the north side of which is a mere seven miles south of Yellowstone. The town itself is a modern Old West town. Get out your cowboy boots and hat. It was so great to go in the off-season, when we didn't have to fight (other) tourists, and we could meet the locals in their more natural state. You get the feeling that most people know everybody else, and a love of the wild and nature prevails above all.

One of Roel's and my favorite parts of the Tetons and Yellowstone is the animals. We are now quite familiar with moose (the plural of which, I have finally learned at age 27, is moose), elk (the males' bugling sounds like an eerie monster in the woods!), bison (turns out that buffalo were called buffalo because the first explorers knew about the water buffalo in Africa and Asia and thought, "Oh look, they have them, too," but not so. Therefore, what we have known as buffalo, modern biologists call bison.), pronghorns (the 2nd fastest animal in the world, they can run up to 70 miles an hour; formerly known as antelope (see note on bison), these are the cutest little guys, with pure white bellies and rear ends!), mule deer (another ADORABLY sweet animal with the biggest ears!! Roel and I came upon 4 of them (2 fawns!) while hiking, right there next to us in the woods - our favorite part of the whole trip), ravens (did you know that, in addition to "caw, caw," they also say, "pikkuppikkuppikkuppikkuppikkuppikkuppikku"?), magpies (look like beautiful black and white birds from a little distance, but up close you see green and blue in their black feathers!), uinta (some sort of Rocky Mountain gerbil - REALLY cute; seriously, he looks like some kind of japanimation character or something), not to mention the Rocky Mountain red squirrels and chipmunks (the smallest I've ever seen!). And I haven't even told you about the scenery!

Vacation Overview :)

Roel and I got back from our vacation last night!! On our actual anniversary (9/17), we flew from Shreveport, LA (where I had played 2nd oboe in their symphony) to Charlotte, NC (where I would audition the next day). But that night, since it was a Sunday and, therefore (prayerfully), not a day for practicing, we went to a Japanese Hibachi steakhouse! Yum!!!

Anyway, that Wednesday (post-audition, didn't win) we flew to Jackson, WY!! We stayed at Mr. Barr's condo - for free! We hiked in Grand Teton National Park, saw the deer and antelope play, and the buffalo roaming; we saw Yellowstone in so many of its glories, saw Old Faithful erupt, of course, and became very familiar with elk and moose. What a trip!! We even saw a bald eagle fly overhead!

We spent Thurs-Sun driving home (rental), and saw our first dinosaur fossils, and The Great Sand Dunes!! AND, Fri and Sat nights, Roel and I stayed at Bed and Breakfasts for the first (and second) times!

We still haven't eaten the wedding cake topper, though...

First Day in Grand Tetons

Roel and I are on vacation right now! A kind of second honeymoon. We want to do that every year, to keep our love fresh and exciting. :)

Anyway, we're in Wyoming, in the Grand Tetons, which is nestled under Yellowstone. Yesterday (our first day), we had a yummy pancake breakfast, then ended up driving around exploring. We tried to get on this one mountain, but couldn't find a way. Eventually, we headed back home. But Roel (the "oe" in Dutch works like our "oe" in "shoe") missed our turnoff, so we thought, "why not keep going and see Idaho?" (which is just down the road). So we kept going and ended up going through the most beautiful mountain pass! The whole thing is laden with clouds so thick they look like milk, except misty, maybe like dry ice except thicker and MUCH more of it than you can ever imagine! I wish you could've seen it. Anyway, we made it through the pass and into the valley on the other side - Teton Valley (formerly known as Pierre's Hole).

After debating whether or not to turn around immediately, we thought we should see a bit of Idaho, as long as we were there. So we came to the first town - Victor (pop. 800), and saw a sign for an Elk Ranch, so we turned toward it. When we got there, the business was being run by a young mother and two tikes eating Doritos! She told us they give hay rides (in the summer) and sleigh rides (in the winter) through the elk, and they also lead horseback riding expeditions. She ended up letting us see the elk up close (but we couldn't go amongst them because it was mating season and they might get fiesty) from the other side of the fence, and then her husband (cowboy hat, boots, AND chaps!) took Roel and me for a horseback ride up in Targhee National Forest! What a treat! What a great way to start our vacation! And we haven't even been into Grand Teton or Yellowstone National Parks yet!

We wandered back to Mr. and Mrs. Barr's condo (we can't believe we're staying in this fantastic place for free!!), after getting groceries for the week, had a wonderful roasted chicken dinner (mostly courtesy of Albertson's), then picked out trails and read our un-putable-downable books until we couldn't keep our eyes open in front of the fire.

God is so good!!

Day 21 of Marriage :)

This is copied from an email I was writing a close friend (Esther). After I wrote all this, I thought why write it all over again?...

The honeymoon was WONDERFUL!!!! We LOVE Hawaii (of course, right?)!!! If God is gracious enough to us (and we are frugal enough), we're talking about going there for our first (and possibly subsequent) anniversary!! The Hilton was every bit as luxurious as it makes itself out to be!! We had the cheapest room in the joint, and it was huge, wonderful, and it had a balcony with an ocean view!! Oh, and it was a corner room, so we also had a view of downtown!

The first morning, we woke up at 6 (jet lag), so we walked to the beach and napped there all morning! Walking through the Hilton Hawaiian Village (on the way to the beach), we saw areas where there were flamingos, Chinese ducks, ibises, and many other exotic birds and fishes. And they even had the little signs like at the zoo telling you what they were and about them!! Then, we saw that they had peguins!!! They looked a little strange to us, though. And after awhile, we saw on the sign that they were African Black-Toed Penguins. They're just like the ones from Antarctica, but a little smaller, and they hold out their arms a little all the time, looking a little funny. :)

Well, the second day we were there, we were visiting the penguins again, and a lady was there telling some people who were filming some 2nd rate soap opera update TV show at the Hilton about the penguins, and she was calling one of them, Mana, with this "Hoo" call and telling the people that he was the youngest one and that he was the only one that had been born there and that yesterday he had been letting people pet him! And I stored all of that away. So then the next day, I called him with the "Hoo" call and calling his name and running my hand in the water, and after a bit he came to me!!! And pretty soon he let me pet him!! And so every day for the rest of the trip, we'd call him and he'd come, and soon he was letting me hold him in the water and pet him and play with him and pet his head and everything. And all the other hotel guests would gather around whenever we were petting him and be so jealous! Honestly, I LOVE Mana!! And I want my own African Black-Toed Penguin!! They are the cutest things in the entire world!! You wouldn't believe it!!

And the Sunday we were there we went to Lanakila Baptist Church, where I got saved when I was 5, and got baptized a few months later! And it was SUCH a blessing!!! It's just a little church, but the pastor was GREAT! And he loves the Lord!! And the congregation was really loving and friendly! And their AWANA program (which I was in 2 decades ago) is still going strong!

And then after that we visited my old house (base housing; the guard let us into the neighborhood :), and the 3 schools I went to! And I remembered it all!! That was really cool!!

And we took a surfing lesson, and it was us and 2 japanese girls, and the teacher was FANTASTIC! So on my first try, I actually got up and surfed!!! We both surfed a few waves that day! We can't wait to do it again! And I taught Roel how to snorkel, and we went snorkeling twice, and loved it!! And we went to the Arizona Memorial, of course, and to the Honolulu Aquarium, and to the Iolani Royal Palace (the only palace in the United States of America), and we really enjoyed all of that.

But we also, if we felt like it, did nothing, or watched a movie, or bought a game and played it at Starbuck's. We drove all over the whole island and really got to know Oahu. We also went hiking up in the Waimea Falls Audubon place, which was the most beautiful place I think I've ever seen on Earth, over in the Northwest side of the island. And driving on the East side of the island, heading North, the mountains reminded me so much of the Scottish highlands!!! Did you see that part? Did you think the same thing?

Anyway, God is so good to us!!!

And I wasn't sad at all when it was time to come home, because it was so exciting to start our sweet married life in our sweet suburban house!!! And this past week has been WONDERFUL!!! I started practicing again (praise GOD!!! It feels SO GOOD to be playing again!!! I am just SO thankful to the Lord that I'm an oboist!!!)!!! And i LOVE fixing all the meals for Roel, and taking care of the house and laundry and errands and everything. The funny thing is, it all feels completely natural! I'm spending the whole day at home, and it doesn't feel strange or anything. I go out in the middle of the day and all the other housey-wives are out doing their errands, too, and it just feels totally normal and right and great to me! It's so cool!!!

And I love Roel! More all the time!!

God is SO good!!

Roel took me (he surprised me) the other night after dinner to a nearby Methodist Church (of course not a Baptist church) because they were selling pumpkins!! And we picked out some pumkins for outside the house and some little ones for inside!! And we'll get candy for the kids and dress up for them for Halloween night! It'll be so much fun!! And then we'll get to put up a tree and lights for Christmas (much better than Halloween!)!!!

Anyway, God is so good, and I'm SO EXCITED all the time!!! Today, we're going to the State Fair!! Woohoo!!!

Roel and Robyn

I brought over Roel's and my story from our www.theknot.com wedding website. :) Enjoy!


ROBYN OAKES & ROEL VAN ECK

SEPTEMBER 17, 2005


ABOUT ROBYN

Robyn just finished her Master's in Oboe Performance this past May at Meadows School of the Arts, Southern Methodist University, Dallas, Texas. The day after graduation, Roel whisked her off to Holland to meet his family and friends, and to see his beloved homeland. During those two weeks, God showed both of them that this was it...

ABOUT ROEL

Roel is a software engineer with IEX, a Tekelec company. Born and raised in The Netherlands, he obtained a Bachelor Degree in Computer Science at the Hogeschool Utrecht, where he graduated in 1993. Roel moved to Dallas, Texas, USA, in May 2000. After 29 years of living with his parents (!!), he decided to move out... He was making up for lost time. :)

HOW WE MET

At the Heights Baptist Church, in the Young Professionals group!

WHEN WE GOT ENGAGED

June 25, 2005

HOW IT HAPPENED

On the weekend of June 25th, we were visiting Robyn's parents in Memphis for the weekend. The preceding Wednesday, Roel had told Robyn (after a morning in prayer) that he wanted to marry her. "I still have to ask your dad, and I still need to officially propose, but... I want to marry you..."

We'd already planned (God had planned it out!!) to go to Robyn's hometown of Memphis that weekend, so we got in Friday night and spent some time with Robyn's folks that evening. First thing Saturday morning, (wasting not a moment) Roel took Robyn's dad out to breakfast. At the Cracker Barrel, in between the waitress interrupting to offer coffee refills, Roel asked Mr. Oakes for Robyn's hand in marriage!! Mr. Oakes responded that he would be honored to give Roel Robyn's hand, and welcomed Roel to the family!

They came home and told Mrs. Oakes (whose response was "AAAAAAAAAGGGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!! :):):):):):):)") And immediately, Robyn's parents commenced wedding planning.

Robyn didn't know exactly how to feel, since (as far as she could really tell) she wasn't REALLY engaged. But as far as the other 3 people in the room (Roel and Robyn's parents) were concerned, it seemed to be a done deal.

Robyn's mom suggested gown shopping for the afternoon's activities, and--let's face it, official or not, what girl's gonna turn down wedding gown shopping?--Robyn agreed. Roel and Mr. Oakes decided to go see the IMAX Fighter Pilot movie.

Well, the gown shopping started out as browsing, but it soon became clear that a final decision would be made that very afternoon! After an hour or two, the ladies decided Mr. Oakes must come and help choose between the final selections. Meanwhile, the men had missed their showing of Fighter Pilot, and wanted to see the next showing. The girls (of course!) gently reminded Mr. Oakes that the choosing of the right bridal gown was more important that an airplane movie, and Mr. Oakes was persuaded to head toward the bridal shop.

Mrs. Oakes and Robyn continued bravely forging through the other possible gowns to narrow down the selection, and 3 finalists were finally selected.

As the final narrowing down was being completed, Mr. Oakes called to explain that the were having car trouble, but as he was on the phone someone with jumper cables drove up. The men would soon be on their way!!

By now starving and quite exhausted, Robyn and her mother waited in the bridal shop... Finally, the men arrived. Roel waited in the car, and Robyn and her parents were able to choose the perfect gown!!!

As the gown was being purchased, however, Robyn couldn't help but feel a little hesitant... She still wasn't actually engaged, regardless of what everybody else thought... Could this (absolutely perfect!!) gown be returned if she and Roel didn't get married?...

Exhausted and hungry but still quite excited, Robyn suggested the 4 go to Cozymel's Mexican Restaurant for a long-anticipated dinner. After they sat down and ordered, Roel told the Oakeses that he wanted to tell them all a story, that even Robyn didn't know. Roel told about a camping trip that he and Robyn had gone on together in November 2003, before Roel and Robyn had even had their first date.

That camping trip had been really special, and Robyn chipped in to help Roel tell her parents about it. Our friends had gone on in the evening, but Robyn had been in a Wind Ensemble concert that evening, so she couldn't leave town until quite late, and Roel had decided to wait for her and drive her, so she wouldn't have to drive alone. We had a wonderful evening, stopped for Starbuck's for a bit on our way out of town, and drove 2-3 hours to get to the campground. It was one of those wonderful evenings of fantastic conversation, and excited feelings; it flew by...

When we arrived at the campgrounds, well after midnight, we had to get out of the car to open a gate to get in. The stars were shining beautifully, and we gazed at them together.

At this point at Cozymel's in 2005, Roel said to Robyn, "Well, there's something about that night you don't know... You didn't see it, but there was a shooting star that night. And I saw it, and I wished on it that I would marry this woman."

Then he got out of the booth, and asked Robyn to scoot out to the edge of the booth. He got down on one knee and pulled out a GORGEOUS, unbelievably sparkling diamond solitaire, set in a gold band (EXACTLY what Robyn had always dreamed of!!!!), and he asked Robyn if she would marry him.

Of course Robyn said yes!!

It turns out that there was no fighter pilot movie, no car trouble, no jumper cables or anything else. As soon as the men got in the car to go the movie, Roel said to Robyn's dad, "I think I should get Robyn a ring today," to which Mr. Oakes replied, "I think so, too." The two of them spent the ENTIRE day driving all over the city of Memphis to NUMEROUS different jewelry stores to find the perfect ring for Robyn. Mrs. Oakes was in on it the whole time, too!! They kept calling to get her advice, and she kept pretending she was talking to different friends, "No, I don't think Sue will want to go there..." One of the greatest blessings of all was that they got to witness Roel's proposal to Robyn!!! Mr. Oakes took (fantastic!!!) pictures of the whole thing, and Mrs. Oakes kept trying to get Robyn to turn so she could see Robyn's face; at one point she reached over and pulled Robyn's hair back to see her face! Neither Robyn nor Roel even noticed! :)