We finally meet David!

My mother and Cookie have been married for over a year now but I just today met Roy's son, David ... and technically he is my step-brother, but that feels pretty weird at this time in my life ... I know! I have been part of a blended family now for close to eleven years ... but this is different!

David comes to Grand Rapids this same weekend each May to take advantage of some flower sales for his own house in the Chicago area and to help Roy plant all of the annuals in his big yard. Mr. Jones and I invited ourselves over to meet him tonight! We all went out to dinner and had a real enjoyable time getting acquainted. My first impression was that he was a very serious and rather intimidating person, but he isn't either of those! He has an engaging personality, is very intelligent, and we liked him a lot.

Would you like to hear a little about him? David is a year younger than I am. He was in ROTC while studying at Wheaton College, was called to service in the mid-70's and ended up serving in the first Gulf War. Early on in his Army career, he was stationed in Europe (Italy and Germany) for about ten years. He retired from the Army in 1995. He presently teaches Ethics, Leadership and Business at Judson University. He and his wife have one son (Jonathan David, age 24) and one daughter (Alyssa, age 22).
This is one perfectly beautiful rose, isn't it? It was in a pot that Roy's son is taking home to his wife tomorrow. I think roses are perhaps my most favorite flower, but I can't say for sure because there are just so many amazing kinds of flowers that God made!