Catch For Us the Foxes

I am currently sitting in the house in Bell County Texas where I spent six full and very interesting years of my life. It is only when I am here that I realize my roots, as disjointed and distant as they now seem.

I returned to Temple last night after work (my 8th day of work in the past nine). I immediately proceeded to the Cool Bean Coffee Company, a place where at any given time, in the past, I would see at least three or four good friends inside. That has changed of late but last night was a return to the past. Waiting in there for me were my good friends Abel Ramos, Matt and Dan Kiniry, Mike Hagen, and none other than Jon Hagen who had just returned from John Brown University (where he plays soccer and apparently does unusual and interesting things with the locals). Jon is a great guy, the kind of guy who always seems to be high but otherwise shows no evidence of ever having smoked pot. He's the kind of guy that almost anyone could get along with and it was good to see him and the other guys. Abel is one of the funniest people I know, the dude has basically created his own expressions for things using words that I can't spell. Mike lives in Austin and goes to UT so I see him pretty often. Like Jon he sometimes has a "natural high" of his own but at other times he is not as laid back. He's one of the best friends I could ask for. Dan quickly became one of my best friends during the Spring, we have an almost identical sense of humor and we just really get along. He and Matt, his younger brother, attend Texas A&M. Dan is a Junior and Matt, a Freshman. Both used to have long hair but Dan cut his over the summer. Both guys are very unique people. It's hard to describe why, you would just have to meet them. All of us are fans of an amazing band known as MewithoutYou.

Hanging out around Temple last night was realitivly fun. After Cool Bean we did the only other thing we could do in Temple, go to Wal-Mart. Now Temple isin't a small town, it just seems like one at times. I spent the night at Mike and Jon's house and today after church I went out to lunch with their family. They are two of seven kids in what is an absolutely amazing family. I would need another entry to just describe them so I'll just leave it at "amazing". Before I driving out here to "the ranch" I stopped in at the Pac Sun in the Temple mall where I worked over the summer. It was an interesting reminder of now not so long ago my very tumultous summer was. It was not the best time of my life but God still showed his grace to me throughout it.

Now I'm just waiting to leave for my (dad's side) family's big christmas party. It's always a great deal of laughs as the family has a collective sense of humor that is astounding. For the gift exchange I put together a package from work (Mozart's) that includes a cappuchino mug, a big travel coffee thing (it's blue and awesome), and a pound of really good smelling coffee...the Mozart's blend. I ground it myself last night so hopefully that will score some points when I mention that later tonight.

Tonight will be only the third night that I have spent in the Temple area (counting tonight) since I moved to Austin in August. The time spent away has definitely dulled what once was a sharp familiarity with the place. Much that I see here now merely reminds me of a life, not long ago, that is no longer mine to live. I look foward to the new era in which I am now placed.

- Jordan