Diary 8/23/25

Diary entries on the summer stall, Rex’s college send-off, Ethan’s move-in, Asher’s birthday, a disappointment, college regret, and a work anniversary.

Summer stall

Hello again. I took a break from writing this summer due to several reasons. One, the travel. Our family travelled a lot this summer, which made it challenging to find time to write. When I wasn’t away, I always felt like I was catching up. The trips were excellent on their own–Maui, Montana, New Hampshire, and Jersey Shore–but together, it was a bit much. Two, escape from reality. I understand that is what travel is, but I don’t mean it that way. I mean that I knew the summer’s end would bring Rex going to college, and although intellectually that is a most wonderful thing, it also made me sad, so I didn’t want to slow down and write because it would mean facing the inevitable truth of his departure as the summer ticked, ticked, ticked away. My quiet thoughts would invariably drift to a countdown clock, which was undesirable, so I avoided writing. Call me childish or escapist, but it’s honest.

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Rex moved out

On August 15, we dropped off Rex at JMU. I made it without crying until 9 AM. What set me off was his cup. In our household, we each have an elastic band of a different color that marks our cups if we leave them out. I spotted his cup with his red band around it, and it hit me that he wouldn’t need his red band anymore because he was leaving. WAAAAAH! But we did it–we dropped him off. Years ago, when we first met Rex in person, he was carried into the adoption room, almost three. This time, he walked us out of his dorm room at 18. But you raise them to let them go. We feel so good about his new school, his sense of self, and his priorities. God is good!

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Ethan moved in

The day after Rex moved out, Ethan moved in. Ethan is a recent college graduate who joined Trinity Fellows, a nine-month Christian vocational development program. These students come in from other parts of the country to be part of this intentional community, where they live with a host family, meet with a mentor, work at a job, volunteer in the church and community, attend seminary-level classes, and go on retreats, all focused on helping them grow in a Christian view of vocation. I’m on the leadership team, and it’s one of the best things that our church does. This is our first time hosting a fellow, so we’ll see how it goes!

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Asher Birthday

August 17 was Asher’s 16th birthday, so I brought him and three friends to Busch Gardens Williamsburg. You may recall that on our last visit, I purchased tickets for Busch Gardens Tampa by accident. After the meat-selling guys demonstrated their tactics to me, I appealed to Gloria at the ticket window, and she reimbursed us for the Tampa tickets. Well, I bought the right tickets this time, but not for me, as Asher didn’t want me to come in with them! Can you believe it? So I squatted at different air-conditioned spots in Williamsburg for the day, which was fine because it was 100 degrees. Williamsburg is home to the College of William & Mary. Whenever I’m in Williamsburg, which is more often now since our company has a store there, I feel some regret. In high school, I was interested in applying to William & Mary, but since it was hard to get into, I applied to an easy school instead, where acceptance was guaranteed. I’m not saying I regret going to Calvin, but I regret not trying for William & Mary. I wonder what could have been. Later that day, I picked the four teens up from Busch Gardens, and oh, the smell. You can only imagine what four teenagers smell like after a hot day at the amusement park. I drove the two hours back holding a Christmas-tree air freshener to my nose.

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NADA Update

I shared earlier in the year that I applied to be a speaker at the National Automobile Dealers Association conference. Well, I got turned down, and I’m disappointed. There are things I could say to justify the rejection, but I’d rather leave it at that–I got turned down, and I’m disappointed.

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Work anniversary

August 21st was my two-year anniversary at Carter Myers Automotive. I never dreamed I'd be leading HR for a Top 100 automotive group with 1,200 employees and 25 locations (soon to be), but here I am. Thank you to Liza Borches and Rich Tritel, who believed in what I could offer with no automotive experience; to the People Team, who trust my leadership; to coworkers, who have become friends; and to God, whose plans are better than one can imagine. I'm proud of what we've accomplished together and what is ahead, but one thought occupies my mind today: If I had to choose to be loving or great, make me loving.