Daddy, What Are You Doing?

DADDY, WHAT ARE YOU DOING? This morning as I was getting ready for work, my little boy asked me about every thirty seconds, “What are you doing, daddy?” After answering him about twenty times in twenty different ways, I finally started just tossing a towel over his head and saying, “Covering you with a towel!” He would laugh, pull off the towel and say, “No, Daddy, you are putting your socks on!” No task was too small or too insignificant to matter to him. Choosing a shirt, finding my shoes, looking for my keys – every detail of my day matters to him. Especially when he knows that soon I’ll be leaving for work. I once read, “To the world you may be one person, but to one person you may be the world.” And that’s my little boy. Now at the office, still smiling and remembering the morning, I realize I too am a little boy – my heavenly Father’s son – and I too should be asking throughout the day, “What are you doing, Daddy?” No detail of my day is too small or insignificant to God, my Abba Father, and my life ought to be revolving around…

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2008 Christmas Letter

Sara did such a great job on our 2008 Christmas letter! If you didn’t get one in the mail… here is a belated Christmas letter! ENJOY! Bastian Christmas Letter 2008 (676kb PDF)

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Air Dad – UPDATED

As I have mentioned before, (like here and here), I was blogging before there were blogs. Before Blogger or Type Pad or WordPress, I journaled events online to share with the other few hundred people online who knew what the Internet was. Sadly, many of those posts are long gone (with their respective hosting companies) but a few poss I had saved to floppies, which is how I restored the ones linked in the posts above. (Others I will save until an appropriate reminder.) ANYWAY – the point of this post is less about blogging, and more about my dad and how proud I am of an accomplishment he just made this month: his first solo flight on his life long quest to become a pilot. He just sent the family the poem below to try and answer the oft asked question, “WHY FLY?” I love the poem and am proud of my dad, but I teased him that he left out the time he took me up for a flight, and he replied that he doesn’t remember it, and to send some “proof.” Which is why I mention the ancient blogging, as I blogged the adventure was back in…

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The Original Karl Bastian

FAMOUS IN GAS CITY, INDIANA It might surprise you that I am famous in a town that I’ve only been to a few times. Well, Karl Bastian is famous anyway! In fact, if I go around town and mention my name, people stop in their tracks and say, “Really? Are you really?!? Nice to meet you!” and shake my hand! Me at the source of my Indiana fame Here I am at the source of my fame… the Gas City Fire Station. Why am”I” famous here? Let me tell you the story in a fun way… a few years ago, I was in Sweetser, Indiana to visit a friend, Ryan Frank’s, church for a Kidology seminar. (which was really just an excuse to visit Ryan, a guy who shares my passion for reaching kids and encouraging and equipping others who minister to kids, just check out his magazine, K! which he started a year ago for that very purpose.) But I degress… Ryan with a collage of his kids When we had a few hours of free time, I told Ryan I wanted to go for a drive, but I didn’t tell him where or why. And I shold mention,…

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A Quiet But Wonderful Thanksgiving!

Big Turkey, Little Turkey This was the quietest Thanksgiving I’ve ever experienced, but I liked it! For the first time ever, neither of us had parents nearby and all our other local relatives had special plans so it was just the three of us. At first we were kinda bummed being used to big noisy family gatherings… but it was a nice change. Yesterday we dug out the Christmas stuff and got the tree up and started the always difficult task of figuring out how to arrange the furniture to accommodate Christmas. We have one of those front rooms where no matter what you do, something ends up awkward. I’d had a long nap so when Sara went to bed I was still full of energy. (Also in part due to some medicine that tends to put my metabolism into overdrive!) So I stayed up super late and got the whole front room all set up and decorated as a surprise for the wife, so she could just enjoy preparing the meal without the hassle of the dysfunctional house! Anyway, all that to say, the day started out wonderful as the little boy got to come down and see the…

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