Games with Friends

“Hmm,” Jill mused thoughtfully, surveying the landscape before her, the colorful birds, the verdant grassland, the berries that were both for us and the critters. “I think I’m going to lay eggs,” she said decidedly. Nobody blinked. We watched as she reached into the container holding all the colorful eggs and retrieved one pink and one brown one and plopped them both on the card displaying the Black-eared Wood Quail. Then it was my turn. I took no time at all in playing my Fork-tailed Swift, even though it cost me one berry and one worm, and just like that Ellen was up. She eyed the birds that were available for the taking, and I held my breath. Don’t take the Trumpeter Swan; don’t take the Trumpeter Swan,” I muttered under my breath. Almost as if she heard me, she swooped in and grabbed the swan to get a closer look. Due to my involuntary groan, she smiled slyly and kept the card, messing up my plans for the next three turns.

If you haven’t played Wingspan before, it’s a competitive, card-building game in which you collect birds for your various habitats and try to gain the most points using said birds or eggs or your bonus challenges. But what really makes the game stand out is the beauty of its design. The artwork is nothing less than exquisite as each bird seems to have been meticulously painted. Getting to roll the food dice through the creative bird feeder is everyone’s favorite action, and Amanda has a particular fondness for the pink eggs. But one of the best designs, in my opinion, is that you can choose one strategy for yourself and stick with it all game long, and it’s just as valid of a strategy as any other. In one game, Ellen chose to focus on Bonus points, Missy collected eggs, and I aimed for the most bird feathers. Our final scores? Missy - 56, Ellen - 55, Katrina - 55. So close! That’s a mark of a well-designed game.

Jill straightened the food tokens in front of her while Ellen tried to partner her Trumpeter Swan with a Northern Loon. I was nervously counting out rounds to see if I’d actually have a chance at making my Bonus challenges when Suzanne came out of nowhere and whooped us all. But we laughed and marveled at the names and colors and beauty of Wingspan. “How about next month again?”

My Love for Chrysalis

I’ve written in the past about how much I love the Chrysalis program. “Everyone grows,” one dad said to me once about it. The Middle Schoolers grow in unity with one another and are challenged in their faith. The Seniors also grow in their walk with Jesus (hopefully) as well as their confidence and experience in leading well. And the adult leaders? I have grown immensely, both in my ability to organize a program of this scale and in the crafting and shaping of talks, especially planning out their long-term progression.

The Middle School students, from my viewpoint, usually come to absolutely love their Senior leaders. I have a picture of one of them about to cross the finish line at a track meet, and in the background you can see three of his MS guys, their faces all clearly cheering and screaming him on. On our Karaoke Night, Eric ended with a solo, and the applause from the Seniors and thus the crowd was deafening. There’s an adoration and a connection that is naturally built up when someone invests in you over the course of 9 months, but even more so because these Seniors actually love the younger ones and are consistently trying to point them to Jesus. They aren’t in it for the fame and glory, but for the relationship and the faith journey.

Last night we played “5 forms of Tag”; they included Hot Dot Tag, Freeze Tag, Tunnel Tag, Mob Tag, and Toilet Tag. Guess which is the Middle School favorite? And from there we went into our version of MS worship, which involves youtube songs and TONS of jumping and actions. I looked around the room last night and saw Seniors screaming louder and hopping higher, and the young kids love them for it. Even if they roll their eyes at first, by the second verse, they’re right there with them.

This loving relationship has been extremely evident these weeks as the Seniors take over giving all the talks. Wow, have I been floored by the depth of conversations we’ve had in my office as they prepare and process. They genuinely want the kids to benefit. And the best part is when that happens, when the kids come away with thoughtful responses or repeating the phrases they heard. “Worship isn’t an action; it’s a lifestyle.” “When Ashley talked about how hard it is to forgive someone, I could totally relate!” “How do I actually hear the song of the King?”

The reality that love can never be repaid hits me hard as I write. There’s not enough chocolate or paper for Thank you cards with which I can express my gratitude to these Seniors for helping to love and serve these younger kids. I suppose the best repayment is simply to emulate them, to pray that the growth they’ve experienced as Chrysalis leaders carries them forward into their next phase of life and to pray the Juniors (who start applying today - yay) will equally grow in love and service as we look forward to a new class of Middle Schoolers.

Track Day with cheering Middle Schoolers

Eric's Solo