Before the Closing of the Day

I have been angling for a moment at the computer ALL DAY to congratulate my dad (without his permission) on his ordination today, in Nairobi, to the deaconate.
I googled him just now and found this nice picture.

Congratulations Daddy. Joyce stood up in church today and told everyone all about it at the 10:30, and she's had everyone sign a card, which I have unfortunately misplaced. As soon as I find it, I'll send it to you. We look so forward to you coming back and doing an extensive time at Good Shepherd while we (and by that I mean I) go on vacation (just kidding).

In honor of you we've had a normal and unremarkable Sunday. E continues sick and so stayed with her favorite person in the world while the rest of us went to church. After church, having missed all the festivities, she sat with us on the couch while we debriefed about the day, offering strong and basically sound opinions about everything.
"If people don't come to choir practice" she said, "than we should go to their houses and practice them there."
And
"Everyone should come to church. Its an important and meaningful thing to do."
And
"Everyone should love God."

I am watching anxiously for signs of sickness in the rest of the brood. R looked pale this afternoon and A complained of a light tummy ache. Matt, OF COURSE, will be gone all week on some vital, if badly timed, affair. I can see it already-the long nights, the unannounced projectile vomiting, the weeping and moaning. "When are we going to die?" asked A this afternoon.
"I have no idea" I said, "Hopefully Jesus will come back tomorrow and we won't have to think about it."
"But if we do, we'll go to heaven for a while" he said.
"Yes, we'll go to heaven until he comes back to earth and gives us all our bodies back" I said.
"My tummy hearts" he said.
Well, a tummy ache can be bad. Hopefully not THAT bad.