The Shinn Digs

Where do I start??? It’s my 38th birthday … remember last year’s birthday antics? Well, I’m another year older today … probably no more mature, but, my … how things have changed in a year! A year ago Garth Shinn was just a name on our church phone list … a year ago my 3 other house mates had just moved into our beautiful new house, and my challenge in life was to convince them we should all live together forever and call it "The Family" … a year ago gas was $4.00/gallon (ok - not much has changed there!)

But today, as I sit in my "quiet time chair" reflecting on being 38 years old, everything seems different … and I mean EVERYTHING! You see, last night the phone list guy, Garth, presented me with an early birthday gift in the form of a request … actually, more of an exchange really. He asked me to be his bride … for a lifetime! What a gift! In exchange, he presented me with the most beautiful diamond ring I’ve ever seen! I mean really … there couldn’t be a ring that is more perfect for me! I know … some of you want details … you know I’m not that good at details, but I’ll do my best …

I returned from an overnight trip with friends up north on Saturday afternoon. Garth had asked me earlier in the day via a text message if we could "hang out" later that day. Great! I don’t turn down too many opportunities to be with the man of my dreams! He asked if I wanted to go to a restaurant or a picnic … it was beautiful, so I voted picnic (I don’t know what would have happened if I had said, "restaurant," but his ploy to be discreet was definitely working!)

He picked me up and we went down to Shoreline park, which is a great place to watch the evening sun go down. We walked over to a cool look out area, and my foggy memory began to be stirred. "Is this where we had our first date? No … wait, yes it is!" Garth just smiled, willing to forgive my inability to remember these romantic details! He said, "Let’s take some pictures," which is not unusual … he always has his camera and we have many pictures taken of the two of us either holding out the camera in front or using the timer feature. After he reset the timer again, he strolled over for what I thought to be another photo session, but he announced, "This one is a video." I promptly responded by smiling and waving to the camera and probably saying something goofy! But I quickly realized there was a plot already written for this film!

Knowing how much I love Deuteronomy, Garth did some remembering with me … he remembered when we had our first date (not counting the "pre-dates!") at that very spot. That was the night some things really clicked for us as we both remembered and recounted God’s faithfulness in our lives to that point. Remembering is such a powerful discipline, and I know our life together will be blessed as we move back and forth between remembering God’s faithfulness in the past and anticipating a journey with the Lord in the future. Oh … he asked me to be his bride, and after a few minutes of tearful crying, I remembered to say, "Yes!"

Somewhere in the next 10 minutes of crying, talking, and just loving being together, I asked if anyone else knew he was going to propose. He said, "Just one person, Trevor Young." Immediately I knew I’d find Trevor behind a camera lens snapping pictures of the special occasion … pictures that will help us remember.

That’s really one of the keys to remembering … memory joggers that bring us back to times and places and relationships and emotions and promises. God knew we would have short memories. Just this week in Homegroup we studied Deuteronomy 6:4-9, my absolute favorite passage of the Bible. It’s about God’s instructions for the spiritual amnesia He knew we’d suffer from and some preventative treatments. Really, I think that’s the purpose of this ring I’m wearing today … to help us both remember … remember that we have promised to love and serve each other … remember that our relationship is a gift from God meant to glorify and honor Him above all and be a reflection of His love for us … remember that the way we love each other is one of the most important ways we can love Kinsley and Keaton … remember that regardless of the circumstances of life, we have committed to journey through them together … remember that we have given each other one of the greatest, most precious gifts ever … the gift of our lifetime together.

I love coffee … this is not news to anyone. I especially
love coffee shops. I love the environment, the smell, the opportunity to escape
my familiar world and get alone with my books, reading, homework, or  God. I
love the chance to meet with friends in a casual environment that promotes
conversation (you can’t do anything else but look at each other, talk and drink your coffee … no
waiters interrupting every 10 minutes, etc). These are things that I love in
life!

I especially love Starbucks. I think it stems from about 7 years ago when I
read the story of the making of Starbucks, Pour Your Heart Into It: How
Starbucks Built a Company One Cup at a Time. (Click the link to read the first chapter). It’s a fascinating book if you love coffee, but it’s really a story of a man’s passion. Howard Schultz, founder and CEO of Starbucks has literally changed the face of America with his dream. You think I’m going overboard? Think about he changed the dating world … a great first date is now, "let’s meet for coffee." It’s casual, it can be a realtively short time, and there is not a huge out of pocket investment in case the date is a shamble! Seriously … when I entered the dating world (22 years ago … my parents were a little lenient by letting me date a 15 … I don’t advise it!) no guy ever asked me to join him for coffee. Pizza … that was the first date. If it went well, follow it up with a movie.

Schultz has also changed ministry. I spend about 4 hours each day in a Starbucks, meeting with students over a cup of coffee or a frap. If you are part of Santa Barbara Community Church you know our pastors, elders and other leaders can often be found at Peet’s Coffee in Santa Barbara. Where did our pastors meet prior to the coffee revolution? Probably Denny’s! [I don’t know for sure, but it would be funny to ask them!] By the way, as a side note, many coffee purists would say Peet’s Coffee is better than Starbucks, and they may be right, but here’s a little piece of trivia for you: Did you know Peet’s Coffee was the original Starbucks corporation? That’s right … Howard Schultz first entered the coffee world as a Peet’s employee. At that time, Peet’s sold only beans and tea leaves … no drinks. You just bought the beans to make in your machine at home. After a trip to Europe where he experienced the wonderful culture of the European cafes, Schultz wanted to introduce drinks to the Peet’s store. The Peet’s founder said Americans would never stop in the middle of their busy days for a cup of coffee, so Schultz broke away and followed his own dream! Today there are over 10,800 Starbucks world wide … Peet’s Coffee has 118 stores, mostly in California. I’ll say it again … Schultz’s dream changed America!

So, while experiencing a piece of this dream may cost you $4.00 a visit (or my favorite drink for $1.85 if they don’t charge me the extra $.30 for the carmel flavoring!) it will be worth your time! I’m a regular … in fact, because I hold a First Edition Starbucks Duetto Card, the company regularly sends me gifts of appreciation (I’m really not kidding … about every month I get something in the mail from them … sometimes they add $15 to my Starbucks card, sometimes they send me a mug, a bag of coffee, or even a board game.) How can I not love this company! This week I received a bag of coffee with a thank you note for the 3rd anniversary as a Duetto Card holder (by the way, if you use the credit card, you get money back, just like a frequent flyer program!)

By the way, it’s noon … I’ve visited two different Starbucks with two special people today … it’s a good day! The day is young, it’s G’s birthday, so there is potential for an egg nog chai with her later this evening in celebration! So you don’t worry too much about me, I’ve never been to more than 4 different Starbucks in one day … that would be signs of a problem.