Home to Daddy

This week makes a full year of ridiculously limited (5%) time with David—if Honey were reasonable she would have allowed us more time together, but she has always refused, so we are going to need to get a modified order to do that, and finally bring him home again.

We took a break from the Still Run Ridge trail on our walk this Saturday to go back to the Horsepen Knob trail, one of our favorites, since it’s a loop that can be completed during our time and has a bench that’s great for our picnic. We had some cherries this time—I brought a cherry pitter, which saves a lot of time.

We got back to Second Street Station with a few minutes left, so sat on the bench out front and read another book—The Tale of Peter Rabbit—before he was taken away again.

Someone at the “Mullens Opportunity Center” (a converted high school across the road from where I usually stay) had planted a vegetable garden a few weeks ago; we saw it on our walks around the building, along the railing, down to the water, or to sit on the tractor, but it had seemed the weeds were getting the better of it, until this week; the beans had been provided stakes to climb, some weeding done, etc., and there were signs of growth.

David observed that one of the green tomatoes had fallen off the vine; I told him it would not grow any more–how like believers; we cannot grow unless we are connected to the true Vine (John 15).

I brought David a G. I. Joe this week; I don’t spoil him with toys, and he likes the same ones; they provide, I’m sure, a sense of stability and continuity when he’s with dad, but he’s about the right age for it. It came with a couple small accessories but they didn’t cause any issues; he likes that he has a hat, but put it on and forgot about it. Turns out what he likes to do is to play with G. I. Joe on the balconies (decks), either by walking him around the floor, jumping, or mostly, pulling out the camping chair’s cupholder netting then jumping Joe into the cupholder. I don’t know why, but so long as he’s having fun!

This was also the first week David went down the enclosed yellow slide at the village playground. He had liked to go up and down the steps to it before, but would balk at even going near the opening. But I convinced him to sit in the opening, facing the platform, and then to turn and look down, and went around to the bottom and waved at him through it. He still wouldn’t go down; he insisted that “you will sit on daddy’s lap”; so I crammed myself in there and down we went. After that he was more comfortable; and I had figured we’d save him going down it for another day, but gave it a try, and he was willing to go down with some encouragement, and then it was “do it again” until we left the playground

He’s also had a fluctuating relationship with the big regular slide (smaller slides are usually OK, like the ones at Twin Falls; he’ll climb the ladder and slide down repeatedly just fine, for a while now). He’ll always climb the steps and sit down, but then sometimes it takes me climbing up the slide to get him to go down, or he even wants to only go on my lap. This week it got to “daddy will help you” which meant me putting a hand up on the side (but catching him at the end wasn’t acceptable), although I didn’t need to do anything to help him down. He got back to sliding down himself too; I even sat off to the side on a bench.

We liked the Still Run Ridge trail so much last week that we hiked it again this week (one has part of my thumb, but it’s a great picture of David so I kept it anyway):

I brought the guitar in from the trunk and we sang our two hits: Twinkle Twinkle Little Star and Jesus Loves Me, and then I played/sang a few other songs from the book–a book of hymns for guitar my dad loaned me; he enjoys listening to me play, like I enjoy listening to my father play (although he’s much better), and tries to sing along even when he doesn’t know the words. And we finished Finding Nemo–watching the fish in the credits is fun too–and started Toy Story. He asked to look at “triangle house” pictures (my house in Indiana has some triangular windows, which inspired the site white triangle logo and are in some of the rotating banner pictures), so we did; one of the security cameras points at the living room with the windows.

This week we hiked the Still Run Ridge trail at the park for the first time. We didn’t have time for the whole trail, but we made it to where the Pathfinder trail (yellow diamond) forks off; there’s a convenient “fall-down tree” there where we sit and have our picnic and read some books, then turn back (the rest of the loop is longer than turning around, and would probably exceed our limited time). There was some bright red construction tape tied to some of the trees along the way (close to the path, maybe marked for trimming?), and when David saw them he said, “Red party streamers like in Not Your Typical Dragon book!” It’s great to see him relating what he sees around him to what we read.

Mike E. was preaching at Otsego Bible Chapel this week at the Wednesday midweek meeting (it’s at the end of our time, and walking distance to kidnapper’s house, so I drive him there and drop him off, and sometimes we get a few minutes to play “catch daddy” on the grass). Since I can only see David every other week and the two Mikes alternate, it had been Mike C. for a long time, so an occasional change is nice. The chapel had a Father’s Day display with the names of fathers at the chapel (although most people still don’t make it in person on Wednesdays at least); and they had gift bags; I shared my chocolate with David.

We sometimes Skype with my parents, and did this week–at first he didn’t want to break away from Toy Story; my dad played guitar some, and mom had some addition puzzles for him.

Honey gave back her rings on the last day (Saturday after our hike); not sure why, some people think to inflict further pain; legally she was allowed to keep them. But it doesn’t change anything; I knew she was committed to destroying the family/marriage already; and I still pray she will change her mind, or at least let David come home for a time. I also wasn’t sure if her sister Emily was a Christian, but she said she was, but does not seem inclined to help us.

When I Skyped with David on Sunday (kidnapper allows 3x weekly, no more) he was good; the last time I had Skyped a week ago Friday he was hiding his face and they canceled the call, and I was concerned alienation was proceeding apace; but maybe he was just “out of sorts.” We talk as best he can–he is talking much more–and read a few books together (he can complete a lot of them).