My Dad

 

 It's March 26th.....and in the Calloway family, this means only one thing: It's Pappo's Birthday, aka Dad. He's a whopping 95 today!

Wanted to give you a few snippets about who the Man of Steel has been as we three bratty kids grew into senior citizens ourselves: 

 

My Dad - Jim JC Calloway Calloway

LizCallowaySekerke

Growing up, my dad loved Tennessee Ernie Ford, watching Saturday night wrestling and listening to Paul Harvey on the radio.

He loves old people and breakfast for dinner.

He believes in being early and always keeping your gas tank half full.

My Pappo is a thinker...an entrepreneur....always thinking about what business to start next or how to learn to sew or make rubber stamps.

His hair is always cut in a bur and anything sweet is always a treat to him.

He was a Ham Radio operator in his early years and his call name was W5FWK (and why do I still remember that??)

His favorite place in our house was in his recliner in the living room; newspaper in his hands spread open wide. His favorite place is still with a Dallas Morning News in his hands.... fortunately, in a different recliner.

Pappo always prays before meals and did the dishes on Saturday mornings before the family loaded into the Buick and went to church.

He taught me how to ride a bike, learn to drive a stick shift car at the cemetery (He always said "You can't kill anyone there, Softie") and dared me to get my first job. The next day I showed him and got a job at Wendy's! His reverse psychology always worked like a charm!

He carried blank computer cards, a pen and a pocket-protector in his front pocket at all times in case he needed to “take notes”. But now, he carries 3x5 cards and an Amazing Grace track in that front shirt pocket.

He told us kids that Coke had bat-doopy in it to keep us from drinking it, yet now, Diet Coke is his favorite drink.

He gave great big bear hugs and knew intimately how to use his belt.

Dad always woke us three kids up every Saturday morning with the annoying "Let me hear the pitter patter of those feet getting up" and brought me thick Dairy Queen malts when I was sick.

He has a truly genuine smile and has learned to cry now that he's older. As long as I can remember, he has always carried a handkerchief in his pants pocket ready to wipe our tears or nose. Dad never fails to tell me he loves me and he's happiest when he wins a controversial discussion.

We three kids are so very blessed to have Jim (JC) Calloway as our Dad and wanted to share him with you today, his 95th trip around the sun.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY PAPPO,

Love, Your Softie

 

RE-Baptism

 

The girl in the picture below is my oldest granddaughter Bella (back to camera). She is a 2nd year student at GCU this year....Grand Canyon University in Phoenix, AZ .....the largest Christian university in the world (2018 stats).

Bella has always been spiritually grounded....living out her beliefs in front of her peers. She constantly puts others ahead of herself....is a Leader in the homeless ministry in Phoenix.....and hugs my heart tightly, whether near or far, by just saying my name. Lele.

And she made the decision a few weeks ago....to be rebaptized.

I believe she was around 8 years old when she first decided to be baptized. I remember standing in the audience at Cottonwood Creek Church that day feeling enormous emotion and pride as she went under the waters of restoration , but admittedly, I was questioning whether she was too young to fully understand what she was doing.

I was wrong.

She knew EXACTLY what she was doing. She has had a light shining out of her since her head first came out of the waters that day many years ago. But now, at the age of 20, she chose to experience that once again.

And this is what that looked like. Baptized by one of the first friends she met when she arrived in Phoenix two years ago.

I encourage you, if you've read this far, to gather up your friends and head to the theatre and watch Jesus Revolution. Bella and her peers are the new Jesus Revolution we'll be talking about 40 years from now. 

 

This is one very proud Lele!!

 

 

Serving The Less Served

 

Several times a year, I get the PRIVILEGE to serve with a group of people at the Austin Street Homeless Shelter in Downtown Dallas. A lunch. A simple lunch of haystacks....fritos, ground beef, shredded cheese, etc...and a few homemade cookies and lemonaide.

Not a big deal, right? Wrong. 

 The "clients" we serve look like the person buying light bulbs at Home Depot, a lamp at Hobby Lobby or pumping gas at the local Racetrack gas station.

They look like you and me.

And the gratefulness that flows out of their mouths for this simple meal is worth more than a million bucks to us. They smile...they are grateful....they are loved by God no more and no less than you and me.

And yesterday, we had two young kids join us to serve. They interacted more with our "clients" that many of us adults did....going table to table offering them cookies, a smile and a kind word. This is an experience they won't soon forget...and will help mold them into the adults they one day will be.

Friends, the POWER behind stepping outside of ourselves and helping others is beyond any words I can write in this space. And this mother and grandmother who brought their kids to the homeless shelter and showed them how much sweeter life is when giving rather than receiving, will be rewarded greatly one day.

"I have demonstrated to you how necessary it is to work on behalf of the weak and not exploit them. You’ll not likely go wrong here if you keep remembering that our Master said, ‘You’re far happier giving than getting." Acts 20:35 (The Message)

Turn Around.....GO BACK

 

"TURN AROUND....... GO BACK"

LizSekerke

This picture of my almost 95 year old Dad is a picture I took yesterday of a man and his daughter enjoying a burger and a kids meal at Brahms together.

You see, this man and his youngest daughter Softie knows what it means to let the Lord direct their steps, even when those steps don’t seemingly make sense to us.

Almost a year ago, those steps took Dad from his home of almost 60 years to his current home an hour away. I won’t lie; he wasn’t happy about it at the time and felt he was being “incarcerated” (his words) while struggling to find his footing in this new place his kids felt he would be safer and happier in. But that smile on his face today is genuine. He would tell you he can see with clarity God’s reasoning and purpose for “incarcerating” him a year ago as he drove down Hwy 67 to his new home.

And that daughter sitting next to him in that Brahms Ice Cream booth....well, she also was taken down a God road she didn’t fully understand this past year.

After much prayer and research, Wayne and I chose the town of Mansfield a year ago to build our home in. It was Wayne’s home town of 30 years and 60 miles from where I had been living. We watched as the house grew, excited to have a home we owned and built together. We bought light fixtures....decided on flooring....and daydreamed about all the wonderful things we would do with the community that was surrounding us. It placed us closer not just to Wayne’s long time friends, but also to my sister, niece and dad who I was super excited to be living down the road from......and although we adored living in Allen and all the friends and family nearby, I was ready to recalibrate myself to a new surrounding.

But then......God placed a boulder in our path as we neared the finish line of the building of the home we lovingly built in Mansfield and clearly....CLEARLY said to us,

“I Need You To Turn Around and Go Back.”

We still don’t understand why God would have taken us within sight of the Finish Line and then u-turned us. But what we do know is, we heard Him as clearly as if He were screaming it through a bullhorn.....“TURN AROUND...GO BACK.”

So we did.

This past weekend, after 3 weeks of living in a hotel with a cat, dog and a litter box, we moved to our new home in Fairview, Texas....to mature trees, nature trails, lakes and pickle ball. Oh ya....we have pickle ball!

And we’ve discovered in this strange turn of events, the meaning of Proverbs 20:24:

“The Lord directs our steps, so why try to understand everything along the way?”

It’s not ours to understand......it’s simply ours to obey. With each passing year of my life, I find it’s less and less necessary for me to know His plan in order to know He has a plan. A plan that is far far better than our plan could ever be. And I believe His plan was to take us on this bizarre year-long journey of Excitement, Disappointment and Peace. And some day I hope to know why.

But for today…..We - Are - Home.

#Tuesdayswithpappo

Not Waffling About Giving

  January 1, 2023

Our Annual New Years tradition of Waffle House (a reminder to Wayne and I to not “waffle” in our decisions & choices as we begin a new year together) with our favorite once-a-year waitress Marie! What a true blessing she is in our lives!

 

 

How To Explain Santa

 

Merry Christmas!

HOW TO EXPLAIN SANTA......

Son: "Dad, I think I'm old enough now. Is there a Santa Claus?."

Dad: "Ok, I agree that your old enough. But before I tell you, I have a question for you. You see, the “truth” is a dangerous gift. Once you know something, you can't unknow it. Once you know the truth about Santa Claus, you will never again understand and relate to him as you do now. So my question is: Are you sure you want to know?"

Brief pause...

 

Son: "Yes, I want to know"

Dad: "Ok, I'll tell you: Yes, there is a Santa Claus"

Son: "Really?"

Dad: Yes, really, but he's not an old man with a beard in a red suit. That's just what we tell kids. You see, kids are too young to understand the true nature of Santa Claus, so we explain it to them in a way that they can understand. The truth about Santa Claus is that he's not a person at all; he's an idea. Think of all those presents Santa gave you over the years. I actually bought those myself. I watched you open them. And did it bother me that you didn't thank me? Of course not! In fact it gave me great pleasure.

You see, Santa Claus is THE IDEA OF GIVING FOR THE SAKE OF GIVING, without thought of thanks or acknowledgement.

When I saw that woman collapse on the subway last week and called for help, I knew that she'd never know that it was me that summoned the ambulance. I was being Santa Claus when I did that."

Son: "Oh."

Dad: "So now that you know, you're part of it. You have to be Santa Claus too now.

That means you can never tell a young kid the secret, and you have to help us select Santa presents for them, and most important, you have to look for opportunities to help people. Got it?"

Help each other this Christmas and...be kind

Celebrate!!

 

"Celebrate!!"

liz sekerke

Today is the beginning of a weekend of celebration!

For some reason, we think it means "family, gifts, eating, drinking, loneliness, black clouds and unrealistic dreams of a family like those we see on Hallmark movies" and wonder why we're disappointed on December 26. We set ourselves up for failure...because our focus is all skewed.

But what if instead, we concentrated on the original meaning of Christmas? The true meaning. The day we were RESCUED from this POW camp called Earth from the greatest military Soldier there ever was. He left the safety and security of His Homeland....put on His fatigues....and traveled to Earth to rescue....wait for it....YOU!!

And don't think for a second He didn't feel every hit of that hammer that placed spikes in His hands while He was trying to get you to safety! He felt the pain just as you or I would.

Friends, enjoy the family time.....eat too much...give each other gifts....and celebrate. But don't forget to acknowledge the Soldier in the room. The One who made it all possible...our Rescuer from the prison of this earth.

 

Merry CHRISTmas.......

SOLD!

 

Look who sold her house last week!!! The crazy excited one next to me is my SUPER COOL and AMAZING realtor Angie Johnson with Keller Williams who sold it in 4 days and is truly the best realtor this chick Liz has ever used buying and selling homes over the years.

The guy in the next picture is my husband upon arriving home that day and finding this sign waiting for him as he drove into the garage. 

 

 

Our home (not "his"...not "hers" but "OURS") we're building in Mansfield is just a few short weeks away from being complete!!

Merry Christmas from the Homeless Sekerke's.

Couples Adventure Challenge #8

 

Couples Adventure Challenge #8

We decided since our 1st Anniversary was yesterday, how fun would it be to do our Couples Adventure Challenge in celebration of this special day!

The Challenge said to "Go on a progressive 3-course meal adventure from 3 different restaurants in 1 night (appetizer, entree and dessert). Attempt (key word) a different accent at each place and give yourself a new name. You must give that name to the server. Film yourself."

 

 

Soooooo.....we headed to Zen Zen Wine Bistro who catered our wedding reception. We decided on Australian accents and names for this 1st stop. Wayne was "Paul" (he wanted to be Crocodile Dundee Paul Hogan) and my new name was Penelope (no stinkin' good reason). We spoke with criminally bad accents to our server using words like "Bloody" and "Plonk". She just went with it and looked at us weird. We finally told her what we were doing and shared that Zen Zen had been the caterer at our wedding the year before. She then said, "I KNEW IT! You guys looked so familiar but the accents through me off!! I was the cake cutter at your wedding!". I personally didn't know how our cake got cut...but now I do!!

We then moved on to Date #2....but not until we took some pics in front of the wedding chapel and accidentally ran into Carrie, the Chapel's wedding coordinator. As she walked towards us, she smiled big and remembered everything about us and our story. I guess when old people get married, people remember you.

We, Maria and Francisco (our new names complete with sick accents), then had a nice dinner and toast on the patio of Harry's On The Harbor as we watched the sun go down. Year 1 was in the books!

Oh but wait....we still had Date #3....Dessert! We decided to head to the movie theater and let popcorn be our dessert as we watched the Johnny Cash movie. We ended our Adventure Challenge with our wedding dance in front of the theater whether anyone wanted to see it or not. Check it out here:

https://youtu.be/OkEzhCc799I

 

I love this man MORE with each passing day. He's the real deal....he loves doing crazy adventures and he loves me with all his heart. I simply couldn't ask for more than that.

Happy 1st Anniversary to Us.

#lizandwaynesworld

#couplesadventurechallenge

 

Guest Post by Cindy Fulton

 

Happy One Year Anniversary to one of my dearest friends Liz Etheridge Sekerke and her beloved husband Wayne Sekerke! 

 

These two have a love story that only the Lord himself could think up - with both being widowed on the same day over four years ago, after having faithfully loved and taken care of their spouses during their long term illnesses, meeting two years later. They truly set a beautiful example of how to lovingly introduce and integrate two worlds of friends and families impacted by grief and the loss of a loved one in their dating relationship. 

 

 

As they moved forward towards engagement and marriage which was like a real life Hallmark movie, I often told Liz she should write a book on how they are doing this in a way that honors each family member. I’ve loved being a witness and walking alongside their journey together as they exude living life with intentionality, with grace, in Christ, and not taking their time together or moments for granted. 

 

 AND they are hilarious and FUN too, and are ninjas at the Couples Adventure Challenge! #lizandwaynesworld

 

 

One year down — a lifetime to go! Happy Anniversary!! Love you two to infinity 

 

https://youtu.be/NFFusz4hC9g

 

Happy 1st Anniversary, Chief.

It's been a FAST-PACED year.....married, sold 2 houses, built a house, traveled all over the country, and each step of the way, laughed till I hiccuped as we waited to see who God was going to drop in our path that day.

Thank You for choosing ME as your 4th Quarter partner. Life is never dull with you.....What a gift from God you are to me!

I love you. #lizandwaynesworld

 

(Click on our wedding video below)