Category Archives: Kupono

An Artist’s Notebook Post #4757

It has been 6,052 days since August 9, 2006. 16 years. 6 months. 24 days. Since I first posted something in this little experiment known as “An Artist’s Notebook”. 145,2485 hours. 8,714,800 minutes. 522,892,800 seconds. Which is to say, it has been a minute.

There are some very important people in my life that I didn’t even know 16 years, 6 months, 24 days ago. There are people that I thought were important in my life that have come and gone in that 864 weeks and 4 days. It has been a journey. Some good. Some bad. Some of it ugly, I’m sure.

6,052 days ago I started this journal with the following words:

So here is the first journal entry. I felt like having as pretentious sounding name as possible for my journal. I have a few goals about this journal. My main goal is just to actually write in it. My second goal is to be as truthful as possible towards my true thoughts and feelings. I have another journal on another website, but it is really just a collection of sarcastic statements and cheap jabs at open faced sandwiches. This journal is meant to be about what my achievements and failures are in the world of art. What projects I am working on and what I have accomplished and what I have failed to accomplish. What I am photographing and what I am thinking about entering in photo contests. What I am thinking about. It might not always make sense. It might just be things I need to write down because they strike me as poignant or inspirational. This is in a small way an online “idea box”.

Since those words, I have posted 4,756 journal entries. (Normally I would do this little exercise on post #4,750, but I was in Vegas at that time.) This website is still something of an “idea box”. Sometimes I’m just working stuff out here. I don’t know why, sometimes I need to work stuff out in public. But this website is definitely more than just an “idea box”. It is a place where I post a few thoughts and a ton of pictures. I’ve gone through a few photo projects on these pages. From THE TOWN SIGN PROJECT to the 9 EMOTIONS PROJECT to THE SELFIE PROJECT to the POSTCARD RECREATION PROJECT to name just a few. This website has also created a community with THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE. Which is one of my proudest achievements. Even if it sputtered and spit and barely survived in its first few years.

4,757 posts. We’ve been through some stuff. I hope to keep going through some stuff for many, many, many more posts. 4,757 posts and I feel like I’m just getting warmed up.

On these reflective posts, I like to publish a bunch of statistics that me and Joe Duff find interesting. So I might as well get to it.

Every post in “An Artist’s Notebook” is tagged with at least one Category. It is one of the easiest ways to navigate around the website. They are listed at the top of each post. Here are some statistics about Categories:

THE TOP 10 MOST USED CATEGORIES (RANK IN POST #4500 & INCREASE SINCE THEN)
10. Macro – 495 (NR)
9. Teresa – 525 (#9 – +70)
8. Carla – 530 (#8 – +54)
7. Shannon – 539 (#6 – +39)
6. Road Trip – 569 (#7 – +92)
5. Art – 622 (#5 – +116)
4. Jesse – 630 (#4 – +51)
3. Animals – 735 (#3 – +37)
2. Flowers – 881 (#2 – +62)
1. Black and White – 992 (#1 – +74)

Dropped from the rankings was WPC – Submissions

THE TOP 10 NON-HUMAN CATEGORIES
10. Photoshop – 389 (NR)
9. Nature – 437 (#9 – +41)
8. Formal Portrait – 447 (#10 – +66)
7. WPC – Submissions – 493 (#6 – +38)
6. Macro – 495 (#7 – +54)
5. Road Trip – 569 (#5 – +92)
4. Art – 622 (#4 – +116)
3. Animals – 735 (#3 – +37)
2. Flowers – 881 (#2 – +62)
1. Black & White – 992 (#1 – +74)

Dropped from the rankings is PORTRAIT. I’m trying to eliminate it as a category, so it should eventually drop to zero.

NAIMA and CANDID PORTRAIT have a shot at cracking the Top 10 in Post #5,000.

THE TOP 10 HUMAN CATEGORIES
10. Willy – 318 (NR)
9. Logan – 329 (NR)
8. Derrick – 330 (#7 – +10)
7. Kim – 342 (#8 – +45)
6. Jay – 348 (#6 – +11)
5. Mom – 458 – (#5 – +5)
4. Teresa – 525 (#4 – +70)
3. Carla – 530 (#3 – +54)
2. Shannon – 539 (#2 – +39)
1. Jesse – 630 (#1 – +51)

Dropping from the rankings was Jen and Vest.

Micky, Vest, and Jen have the best shot at cracking the Top 10 in Post #5,000.

If you are wondering what is your best way to improve your Photography 139 Score and crack the Top 10, it is simply to be active in THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE or go on trips with me or participate in various other photo projects or be related to me. Now these aren’t necessarily the 10 people that have influenced my photography the most, but these are the 10 people that have made the largest imprint on this website.

I can tell you the people that have influenced my photography the most, but that is a tale for another time. But I’m pretty sure you can guess who.

If you have spent any time on the Photography 139 website, you know that on the left sidebar, the “Top 100 Categories” are listed. I thought I would give a little bit of coverage to the Bottom 10 of the Top 100. There are currently 200 categories used on the website. I could cover the Bottom 10, but they are mostly people that either very recently came into the life of this website by birth (Jonah Kahler) or another way (Nathanial, Mindi, Fran). Or people that I thought would be a bigger part of my life and then weren’t. No need to cover those people. The Category that is #200 probably needs to be purged.

THE BOTTOM 10 OF THE TOP 100

#100. Kelly – 71 (NR)
#99. Commercial – 72 (#97 – +1)
#98. Self-Portrait Project – 73 (NR)
#97. Andree – 75 (#94 – 0)
#96. Flat Earth Joe – 75 (NR)
#95. Lowell – 79 (#93 – +2)
#94. Photo Journal – 79 (#92 – 0)
#93. Suzie – 80 (NR)
#92. Pastor Sarah – 86 (#95 – +12)
#91. Becca – 87 (NR)

The following categories have either fallen out of the Bottom 10 of the Top 100 or climbed out of it:

Jaycees, Vacation, Mark, Life, and Birthdays.

Now something I should explain is that I used to put Flat Earth Joe and Joe Duff under the same Category of simply “Joe” out of laziness, but in the last 250 posts, I split them.

Of these categories, I think Pastor Sarah and Suzie have the best chance to climb out of this list. Since I’m not doing the Self-Portrait Project his year, it could fall out of the Top 100. And I’m not sure what part of my life Flat Earth Joe will have in the future. He has taken a hard turn down the path of terrible decision making and has been in jail for over a month now. I hope he gets sorted at some point in the future. But quite frankly, I can’t make a prediction on his future. I can barely make a prediction on my future. So it is hard to say what will happen to that category. As for the category of Andree, I talk to Andree regularly, but he rarely makes an appearance on this website.

The categories that are closest to falling into the Bottom 10 of the Top 100 are Faust, Birthdays, and Joe Duff. But I think at least Birthdays and Joe Duff are pretty safe. I talk to Faust now and again, but he rarely makes an appearance on the website. I still someday need to go visit the Godzilla statue in his town. But I also need to visit Nate and Bethany and Becca and Bill and Sarah and well it is quite a list. When I think about it, I have to sit down on the couch and watch another episode of THE LAST OF US.

That categories that are closest to cracking into the Top 100 are Mark, Layla, and Vacation. But since Mark isn’t really part of my life anymore, I don’t see that busting through. I also can’t see a vacation on my horizon any time soon. But I like Layla’s odds. A lot of spunk in that one.

“An Artist’s Notebook” is part of Photography 139. The 139 comes from Psalm 139:1-12. The Photography part comes from the fact this website is supposed to be filled with photography. So, what are the most popular photo galleries on the Photography 139 website? Glad you asked:

TOP 10 PHOTOGRAPHY 139 PHOTOGRAPHY GALLERIES (LAST 365 DAYS)

To View the Gallery, Click on its Representative Image
Computer Mine Convention - 2023
10. Las Vegas – 2023 – 42,941 Views

Alexis Pregnant with Anela
9. Alexis Pregnancy Photo Shoot – 2020 – 47,269 Views

Jayton Poole
8. Jayton Poole – 2022 – 47,464 Views

9  Emotions Project - Bethany
7. 9 Emotions Project – 51,763 Views

Miami Beach Work Trip - Day 5 - May 2022
6. Miami Beach – 2022 – 53,087

Party - Alternate
5. Christopher D. Bennett – 112,907 Views

Day 240 - August 28, 2022
4. Selfie Project -2022 – 162,595 Views

Kossuth County - Lone Rock
3. Town Sign Project Auxiliary Images – 184,949 Views

Ackley, Iowa
2. Town Sign Project – 201,352 Views

WEEK 357 - WORK - CHRISTOPHER D. BENNETT
1. Weekly Photo Challenge – Year 9 – 223,723 Views

At post 4,500 these were the 10 Most Popular Galleries:

10. Iowa
9. 9 Emotions Project
8. Weekly Photo Challenge – Year 8
7. Weekly Photo Challenge – Year 9
6. Selfie Project – 2022
5. Alexis Pregnancy Photo Shoot – 2020
4. Christopher D. Bennett
3. Town Sign Project Auxiliary Images
2. Selfie Project – 2021
1. Town Sign Project

The galleries that are right outside the Top 10 that have a shot at cracking the Top 10 in Post 5,000 are:
+ Drone
+ Daisies
+ FatMumSlim 2022

But considering I’m done with the FatMumSlim project, I don’t know that its gallery will maintain any popularity. I only know one person that definitely loves my daisy pictures, but I don’t think they poke around my website much these days. However, perhaps the Era of Rodan139 is nearly upon us. I could live with that.

But what are the most popular single images of the last 365 days? Don’t worry, I’m gonna feed you baby birds.

Top 10 Photography 139 Images

Dexter, Iowa
10. Dexter, Iowa – 1,964 views

Badger, Iowa
9. Badger, Iowa – 1,967 views

Day 73 - March 13, 2021
8. Selfie with Mom – 1,993 views

Coon Rapids, Iowa
7. Coon Rapids, Iowa – 2,146 views

Moingona, Iowa
6. Moingona, Iowa – 2,190 views

Alexis Pregnant with Anela
5. Prego Alexis – 2,415

Howards - 2022
4. Saydie and Kyle – 3,231 views

Baby Got Rack - 2022 - Boone County Fair
3. Baby Got Rack at Boone County Fair – 4,423 views

Miami Beach Work Trip - May 2022
2. Miami – 6,039 views

Day 30 - January 30, 2022
1. Selfie at Bellevue – 6,864 views

That selfie at Bellevue was the most popular picture on my website at Post 4,500 as well.

The final statistic I want to share with everybody before riding off into the sunset and not boring you with these statistics for another 250 posts is the 5 people with the highest Photography Subscriber Loyalty Scores.

1. Kio Dettman – 100%
2. Aaron Barnett – 99.7%
2. Angie DeWaard – 99.7%
2. Mary Green – 99.7%
5. Joe Duff – 99.5%

There are a lot of people in the 90% range that could break into this list next time. Jeanette, Jesse, Sarah, Logan, Tamara, Frank, Michelle, and Andy.

To be honest, I don’t know how this number is figured. I believe it is the percentage of emails from the subscriber list that you open within the first 24 hours of getting an email from me, but I really don’t know if we are being honest. But thanks for doing what it is you are doing!

If you are interested in checking out some of the milestone posts of the past, I got you. Click on any of the links below to check them out:

Post 1
Post 750
Post 850
Post 1,000
Post 1,101
Post 1,200
Post 1,447
Post 1,718
Post 2,500
Post 3,000
Post 3,252
Post 3,751
Post 4,000
Post 4,250
Post 4,500

I think that is enough for now. We’ll check in again in another 243 posts.

Kanoa’s Party

Pushing off the next Formal Portrait Sunday another week. Instead, I’m going to share some pictures from Kanoa’s birthday party from a few months back. We had ice cream and cake at Alexis’ and Kupono’s apartment and then went to the park to play.

Here are some of my favorite images:


Kanoa's Birthday Party

Kanoa's Birthday Party

Kanoa's Birthday Party

Kanoa's Birthday Party

Kanoa's Birthday Party

Kanoa's Birthday Party

Kanoa's Birthday Party

Kanoa's Birthday Party

Kanoa's Birthday Party

Kanoa's Birthday Party

Kanoa's Birthday Party

Kanoa's Birthday Party

Kanoa's Birthday Party

Kanoa's Birthday Party

Kanoa's Birthday Party

Kanoa's Birthday Party

Kanoa's Birthday Party

Kanoa's Birthday Party

Kanoa's Birthday Party

Kanoa's Birthday Party

Kanoa's Birthday Party

Kanoa's Birthday Party

Kanoa's Birthday Party

Kanoa's Birthday Party

Kanoa's Birthday Party

Kanoa's Birthday Party

Kanoa's Birthday Party

Kanoa's Birthday Party

Kanoa's Birthday Party

Kanoa's Birthday Party

Kanoa's Birthday Party

Kanoa's Birthday Party

Kanoa's Birthday Party

Does this old man good to watch all the little ones get together and play. Might have been the only time it happened this year. I guess it happened again for a bit on Thanksgiving.

Baugher Family 2022 – Volume 3

It is time for another Formal Portrait Sunday. This is the last collection of formal portraits I took over a certain period of time. Therefore, this might be the last Formal Portrait Sunday OR in might be the last Formal Portrait Sunday to look like this OR it might just be another Formal Portrait Sunday in a line of Formal Portrait Sundays.

I don’t do a lot of Formal Portraits, cause that sort of thing ain’t my bag, baby. However, I am more than willing to do it for friends and family and people that pay me because I’m not opposed to money. I just don’t want to become so rich that I have an opinion on capital gains taxes. (Other than they should be taxed like all other forms of income.) Therefore, I don’t do a ton of formal portrait work. That being said, I do still have a couple formal portrait sessions in the can, that I haven’t shared. I just haven’t figured out how I’m going to share those yet. But it will probably be different than the way I have been sharing formal portraits recently. You will find out next Sunday… or you won’t. The world is a mystery.

So this collection of the Baughers… is the last from their photo shoot:


Baughers - 2022

Baughers - 2022

Baughers - 2022

Baughers - 2022

Baughers - 2022

Baughers - 2022

Baughers - 2022

Baughers - 2022

Baughers - 2022

Baughers - 2022

Baughers - 2022

Baughers - 2022

Baughers - 2022

Baughers - 2022

Baughers - 2022

Baughers - 2022

Baughers - 2022

Baughers - 2022

Baughers - 2022

Baughers - 2022

Baughers - 2022

Baughers - 2022

Baughers - 2022

I don’t know about you, but I’m looking forward to what happens here next Sunday!

Four Thousand Five Hundred

It has been 5,795 days since August 9, 2006. 5,795 days since I first took keyboard in hand and started the blog portion of the Photography 139 website. The portion I pompously named “An Artist’s Notebook”. The part I started with the words:

So here is the first journal entry. I felt like having as pretentious sounding name as possible for my journal. I have a few goals about this journal. My main goal is just to actually write in it. My second goal is to be as truthful as possible towards my true thoughts and feelings. I have another journal on another website, but it is really just a collection of sarcastic statements and cheap jabs at open faced sandwiches. This journal is meant to be about what my achievements and failures are in the world of art. What projects I am working on and what I have accomplished and what I have failed to accomplish. What I am photographing and what I am thinking about entering in photo contests. What I am thinking about. It might not always make sense. It might just be things I need to write down because they strike me as poignant or inspirational. This is in a small way an online “idea box”.

Over the years this website has transitioned less from an “idea box” and more into a “show and tell”. I keep my idea box more private these days. I didn’t even publish a picture on “An Artist’s Notebook” for months.

In fact, it wouldn’t be until October 20, 2006 that a blog post included an image. This image to be exact:


Groundhog Steve

It is a picture of “Steve” the Groundhog that lived behind the Computer Mine for years.

While the format and what has posted on An Artist’s Notebook has changed several times over the years, its main goals of “actually writing in it”, “being truthful as possible”, and of course the goal of having produced something worthy as being as “pretentious sounding as An Artist’s Notebook” have remained intact.

On these periodic check-ins I like to overwhelm those that stick around this long with a ton of meaningless statistics. Today’s post should be no different. Every post in “An Artist’s Notebook” is tagged with at least one Category. It is one of the easiest ways to navigate around the website. They are listed at the top of each post. Here are some statistics about Categories:

The Top 10 (Most Used) Categories (Rank in Post #4250 & Increase since then):
9. WPC-Submissions – 455 (#9 – +38)
9. Teresa – 455 (NR)
8. Carla – 476 (#7 – +41)
7. Road Trip – 477 (NR)
6. Shannon – 500 (#5 – +42)
5. Art – 506 (#10 – +92)
4. Jesse – 579 (#4 – +50)
3. Animals – 698 (#3 – +33)
2. Flowers – 819 (#2 – +65)
1. Black and White – 918 (#1 – +99)

Top 10 Non Human Categories:
10. Formal Portrait – 381 (NR)
9. Nature – 396 (#9 – +17)
8. Portrait – 435 (#4 – -15)
7. Macro – 441 (#8 – +51)
6. WPC – Submissions – 455 (#5 – +38)
5. Road Trip – 477 (#7 – +83)
4. Art – 506 (#6 – +92)
3. Animals – 698 (#3 – +33)
2. Flowers – 819 (#2 – +65)
1. Black and White – 918 (#1 – +99)

Top 10 Human Categories:
10. Jen – 286 (#9 – +9)
9. Vest – 294 (#10 – +20
8. Kim – 297 (NR)
7. Derrick – 320 (#7 – +9)
6. Jay – 337 (#6 – +8)
5. Mom – 453 (#4 – +31)
4. Teresa – 455 (#5 – +50)
3. Carla – 476 (#3 – +41)
2. Shannon – 500 (#2 – +42)
1. Jesse – 579 (#1 – +50)

If you have spent any time on the Photography 139 website, you know that on the left sidebar, the “Top 100 Categories” are listed. I thought I would give a little bit of coverage to the Bottom 10 of the Top 100. There are currently 194 categories used on the website. I could cover the Bottom 10, but they are mostly people that either very recently came into my life by birth (Dahlia, Anela) or another way. Or people that I thought would be a bigger part of my life and then weren’t. No need to cover those people. The Category that is #194 probably needs to be purged.

The Bottom 10 of the Top 100:

#100. Jaycees – 65
#99. Vacation – 67
#98. Mark – 69
#97. Commercial – 72
#95. Pastor Sarah – 74
#95. Life – 74
#94. Andree – 75
#93. Lowell – 77
#92. Photo Journal – 79
#91. Birthdays – 80

Some of these are bound to slip out of the Top 100. For example, there will never be another Jaycees post. Ever. I also apparently don’t take many vacations. Mark, not really part of my life any more. Life, is a broad category that I’ve tried to eliminate over the years. Photo Journal, a project I have completed, so there will never be another post on that. Birthdays, I currently don’t wish people “happy birthday”, but maybe I will again someday.

So what has a shot at cracking the Top 100? These are the 5 that are the closest.

+ Self-Portrait Project
+ Dae Hee
+ Kelly
+ Layla
+ FNSC

So, you might be wondering, how do you improve your Photography 139 score?

The easiest way is simple. Participate in THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE. You don’t even have to be around me and most people will tell you that being around me isn’t all that great. I mean look at Shannon. She is still #2 on the Big Board and I haven’t seen her in person since October 22, 2021. It can be done!

Other ways to increase your score:
+ Act as a Photo Assistant
+ Show up in THE SELFIE PROJECT
+ Go on TOWN SIGN PROJECT road trips with me… that one to Scott County is going to be epic!
+ An underated way is to assist with the FatMumSlim Photo a Day Project.
+ Doesn’t hurt to be related to me, but most of those slots are taken.
+ Doesn’t hurt to work with me, go to the same church as me, or otherwise engage me socially.

That is probably enough Category nonsense. I bet at least Joe is still here with me though.

“An Artist’s Notebook” is part of Photography 139. The 139 comes from Psalm 139:1-12. The Photography part comes from this website is supposed to be filled with photography. So, what are the most popular photo galleries on the Photography 139 website? Glad you asked:

TOP 10 PHOTOGRAPHY 139 PHOTOGRAPHY GALLERIES (LAST 365 DAYS)

To View the Gallery, Click on its Representative Image
Loess Hills Road Trip
10. Iowa – 35,595 Views

9 Emotions Project - Nader Parsaei
9. 9 Emotions Project – 69,259 Views

WEEK 311 - PEOPLE - CHRISTOPHER D. BENNETT
8. WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE – YEAR 8 – 74,730 Views

WEEK 343 - GRATITUDE - CHRISTOPHER D. BENNETT
7. WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE – YEAR 9 – 77,929 Views

Day 134 - May 14, 2022
6. SELFIE PROJECT – 2022 – 84,763 Views

Alexis Pregnant with Anela
5. Alexis Pregnancy Photo Shoot – 2020 – 95,358 Views

Abandoned Photomosaic
4. Christopher D. Bennett – 104,433 Views

Shelby County - Elk Horn
3. Town Sign Project – Auxiliary Images – 108,873 Views

Day 282 - October 9, 2021
2. Selfie Project – 2021 – 120,185 Views

Bradgate, Iowa
1. Town Sign Project – 176,664 Views

At post 4,250 these were the 5 most popular galleries:
5. Gorshe Family
4. Town Sign Project
3. Weekly Photo Challenge – Year 8
2. Selfie Project – 2021
1. Alexis Pregnancy Photo Shoot – 2020

But what are the most popular single images of the last 365 days? Don’t worry, I’m gonna feed you baby birds.

Top 10 Photography 139 Images

Coon Rapids, Iowa
10. Coon Rapids, Iowa – 2,319 Views

Pufferbilly Days
9. Carla and Teresa – 2,379 Views

Dexter, Iowa
8. Dexter, Iowa – 2,426 Views

Scranton, Iowa
7. Scranton, Iowa – 2,484 Views

Moingona, Iowa
6. Moingona, Iowa – 2,770 Views

Howards - 2021
5. The Howards – 2,842 Views

Miami Beach Work Trip - May 2022
4. Miami – 2,920 Views

Alexis Pregnant with Anela
3. Alexis Pregnant – 3,458 Views

Day 73 - March 13, 2021
2. Me and Mom – 4,134 Views

Day 30 - January 30, 2022
1. Bellevue – 14,629 Views

The final statistic I want to share with everybody before riding off into the sunset and not boring you with these statistics for another 250 posts is the 5 people with the highest Photography Subscriber Loyalty Scores.

Top 5 Photography 139 Loyalty Scores
5. Frank Meiners – 97.0%
4. Michelle Haupt – 98.6%
3. Angie DeWaard – 99.5%
2. Joe Duff – 99.7%
1. Mary Green – 100.0%

People right outside the Top 5:
+ Linda Bennett
+ Tamara Peterson
+ Jeannette Duff

To be honest, I don’t know how this number is figured. I believe it is the percentage of emails from the subscriber list that you open within the first 24 hours of getting an email from me, but but I really don’t know if we are being honest. But thanks for doing what it is you are doing!

I think that is enough. Here is to the next 4,500 posts!

The Baughers 2021 – Volume 3

Happy Easter! The Easter devotional is the preaching notes from UMC Discipleship. I’m not sure who wrote them:

There are, of course, lots of directions to take when preaching on Easter. No doubt you’ve done quite a few. As discussed in the Planning Notes, this is a day for tradition. It is a day for telling the story as powerfully and dramatically as you can. Whether you choose John’s gospel account with the 100-yard dash between Peter and John or Mary’s tears in the garden or Luke’s account with the women “perplexed” over the loss of a dead body and the two men dressed like Las Vegas performers—either way it is a story worth telling again and again.

Perhaps, however, this year you’d like to try something different—not to neglect the story, but instead to consider what the story did to those who first heard it. What if we were to consider the impact of the story on those who were witnesses and lived their lives bearing witness to that story? What if we were to turn to the Acts of the Apostles and reflect on how to be a witness to Easter, not just on this one glorious day, but every day? Sometimes you tell the story best when you see what the story did to those who heard it—like Peter. Acts 10:34-43 is the Easter story borne witness through the life of one who heard what happened that day when God raised him. “We are witnesses to all that he did…” Acts 10:39

My daughter Maddie was for a time involved in competitive ballroom dancing. So we ordered her a dress online through my account since I was paying for it. And for years after that I would still get emails and posts and ads running on Google and Facebook, assuming that I wanted to buy more dance dresses. You know how we used to worry about the government keeping eyes on us and knowing more about us than they should? Well, George Orwell, it isn’t the government; it’s the Internet. Google and Amazon and Facebook remember what I bought a lot longer than I do. And they want to sell me more.

Dance dresses, for example. I’m pretty sure I wouldn’t look good in the kind of dresses they’re trying to sell me. Not as good as Maddie anyway. A little too slinky and smooth and feathery and slit open and flowing for my use. Preachers should stick to the little black number that we sometimes wear. Right? Mind you, I’d love to dance like that. Some Sunday mornings seem to call for it. Light and airy, the good news is about lifting us, like we could float, walking on sunshine. Easter is a dancing day, don’t you think? On the other hand, some days are dark and heavy, weighed down by sinfulness, brokenness, a dirge, a lament longing for a Savior who could come and set us free. Or confident, a waltz or rumba reminding us that we are loved and capable of loving. Or a square dance that’s all about changing partners and including all, from one to the other and back again, enriched by the whole community as we dance together. Yeah, that’s what we need in worship, a little more dancing.

If any of the disciples had two left feet, it was Peter—always tripping over his own shortsightedness, stumbling around in his misguided certainties, leading with his sense of self-preservation instead of following the lead of the one he called Christ in a flash of grace that surprised even Jesus (“flesh and blood didn’t reveal this to you”; i.e., there’s no way you figured this out on your own, Peter!) No, Peter wasn’t Lord of the Dance; he was a back row chorus line member at best. Yet, here he is, leading, headlining, finding the spotlight and trying to follow the lead of the Spirit, who still has new steps for him to learn.

Peter was preaching. Actually, he was giving his testimony, giving a witness to what he knew was true and how it had changed him. It was his own story that he was turning into a sermon that day. Back up in chapter ten of Acts and you’ll see the story that he was telling. The vision on the rooftop that seemed to be about the dietary laws, but actually was about who was worthy of the gospel. Peter was a good Jew. He knew who he could hang around with and who he had to avoid. (We’ll come back to this later in the series—stay tuned!) Sure, Jesus kind of messed with his head for a while there. He was still processing all of that. But he knew where the lines were. He could follow the steps in this dance he knew from his childhood. But now his foxtrot thinking didn’t fit the salsa music he was hearing.

“I truly understand,” Peter preached, in what turned out to be a bit of an overstatement, “I truly understand that God shows no partiality!” What was wrong with that? Well, the “I truly understand” bit. He didn’t. Not yet. In the moment, yeah sure, he was swaying to the beat. But later, he’d want to sit this one out; and Paul would beckon, and they would have a dance off, to re-teach him what he truly understood for a moment. That’s later. Let’s give him his due now. He’s got it down. That flow from the Spirit that takes him farther than he thought he could go.

He says that he was commissioned to preach to the people. He was commissioned by the life and death and Resurrection of his Lord, the living Christ, the Son of God, Jesus of Nazareth. Oh, yes, he knows the name now. He was reclaimed from his doubt and fear. He was gathered up from his denial and disappointment. He was called to preach to the people. What he still had to learn was who the people were.

See, he thought it was his people—the people like him, the people who looked like he did and spoke like he did and danced like he did. But Jesus opened his eyes to the people—all the people, the wonderful panoply of people, the glorious, created collection of people and traditions and languages and dances that there would be no way he could master without throwing out a hip! But he could watch and then learn and laugh and clap his hands as he welcomed them into the family.

Christ is risen!

+++++++

Time on the Formal Portrait Sunday to once again to share some pictures from the Baugher Family Photo Shoot:


Baugher Family Photo Shoot - 2021

Baugher Family Photo Shoot - 2021

Baugher Family Photo Shoot - 2021

Baugher Family Photo Shoot - 2021

Baugher Family Photo Shoot - 2021

Baugher Family Photo Shoot - 2021

Baugher Family Photo Shoot - 2021

Baugher Family Photo Shoot - 2021

Baugher Family Photo Shoot - 2021

Baugher Family Photo Shoot - 2021

Baugher Family Photo Shoot - 2021

Baugher Family Photo Shoot - 2021

Baugher Family Photo Shoot - 2021

Baugher Family Photo Shoot - 2021

Baugher Family Photo Shoot - 2021

Baugher Family Photo Shoot - 2021

Baugher Family Photo Shoot - 2021

Baugher Family Photo Shoot - 2021

Baugher Family Photo Shoot - 2021

Baugher Family Photo Shoot - 2021

Baugher Family Photo Shoot - 2021

Baugher Family Photo Shoot - 2021

Baugher Family Photo Shoot - 2021

I have one more collection of pictures from this photo shoot to share. Next Sunday’s formal portraits will be another collection of pictures from Jayton’s senior pictures.

The Baughers 2021 – Volume 1

Looks like Sundays are going to be formal portrait time for a little bit. I haven’t shared really any formal portraits I took last year, so I better start doing that now. This collection is from pictures I took of Alexis’ family back in June. Carla was the baby wrangler or at least she tried to get them to look in the direction of the camera.


Baugher Family Photo Shoot - 2021

Baugher Family Photo Shoot - 2021

Baugher Family Photo Shoot - 2021

Baugher Family Photo Shoot - 2021

Baugher Family Photo Shoot - 2021

Baugher Family Photo Shoot - 2021

Baugher Family Photo Shoot - 2021

Baugher Family Photo Shoot - 2021

Baugher Family Photo Shoot - 2021

Baugher Family Photo Shoot - 2021

Baugher Family Photo Shoot - 2021

Baugher Family Photo Shoot - 2021

Baugher Family Photo Shoot - 2021

Baugher Family Photo Shoot - 2021

Baugher Family Photo Shoot - 2021

Baugher Family Photo Shoot - 2021

Baugher Family Photo Shoot - 2021

Baugher Family Photo Shoot - 2021

Baugher Family Photo Shoot - 2021

Baugher Family Photo Shoot - 2021

Baugher Family Photo Shoot - 2021

Plenty more to share from that photo shoot!