Friday, July 4, 2003

12:37 PM Marlene and I marched in our first 4th of July parade this AM. We were part of the Oak Park Christian Academy crew that marched about a half-mile or so up Ridgeland Avenue. OPCA was # 49 out of about 80 local entries. We had a big banner and waved American flags at the crowds gathered on the sidewalks. Ronbo and Jackie Feley were there, along with David and Angie Steinhart, Michael and Sherrie Crumpler, Tom and Cath Mayrant, and a small contingent of OPCA parents and kids. We saw a few familiar faces along the way. Our big cheer was pretty simple: Ronbo yelled out, “Give me an O!” And we would yell (raggedly), “O”. Then P, Then C, Then A. Then more or less together, OPCA. The people cheered our efforts at group spirit. It was hot and we were all tired and a bit sweaty and we decided that next year, we’ll try to make a bigger showing for the parade. Now we’re back home and we’re getting ready to barbecue some ribs for a few friends who are coming by tonight.

PS Oak Park is a fairly liberal community and we didn’t even start having 4th of July parades until 3 years ago. There were a number of groups from the other end of the spectrum in the parade today, including a group supporting Howard Dean for president. I did see quite a few American flags, which is heartening because a few years ago, you hardly ever saw American flags flying except in front of government buildings.

7:45 AM Happy 4th of July! Here in Oak Park a major storm system is pushing through. A few minutes ago I went to Panera Bread to buy some bagels and saw lots of people out walking. Since then thunder has started rolling through the area. It looks like we’ll have storms off and on all day long. A few notes … The OPCA enrollment countdown stands at 20… .

This Sunday I will resume my sermon series from 2 Timothy with a message called “The Life God Blesses” from 2 Timothy 2:14-26 … Still no construction permits yet, but I heard yesterday that it looks hopeful that we will have them early next week.