Citizenship

2009 so far, has been a Twilight Zone type of year in regards to politics. There are so many stupid and downright wicked policies becoming law that my head reels everyday when I read the news.

First let me point out that God is Sovereign and in control over all the nations of the earth. I should not fret when wicked men succeed, because fretting leads only to evil. I need to commit my way to the Lord and wait on Him, for "the salvation of the righteous is from the Lord; he is their stronghold in the time of trouble." (Read Psalm 37) And praise be to God, I belong to a kingdom that can never be shaken! (Hebrews 12:28) These truths stand out as an anchor for my soul in times of trouble.

Though my ultimate citizenship is heaven, I do have certain responsibilities as a citizen of the country in which God has placed me. Though increasingly in name only, this nation is a republic. The government is to be limited and is to protect the liberties of the people. We have a Constitution that is supposedly the law of the land, but it is getting increasingly ignored and trampled. I realize that the degradation of the Constitution began long before 2009, but I'm not willing to see it completely slip from our collective fingers without a struggle. The struggle always needs to begin on my knees, but can still involve raising my voice, and taking action as allowed a citizen.

This is what I'm contemplating today...

Apparently many of our current lawmakers on both sides of the aisle have never read, or have forgotten the 13th Amendment of the Constitution which states: "Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction."

I say that because this morning, I read the text of: H.R. 1444 which seeks to establish a Congressional Commission on Civil Service, including the Duty to determine "Whether a workable, fair, and reasonable mandatory service requirement for all able young
people could be developed, and how such a requirement could be implemented in a manner that would strengthen the social fabric of the Nation and overcome civic challenges by bringing together people from diverse economic, ethnic, and educational backgrounds."

Our blind leaders have already passed the GIVE/SERVE Acts, which in these economically troubled times pours $6 billion dollars into getting government more involved in national service. The mandatory aspect of it was taken out of the Senate version of the bill, but is coming up again in H.R. 1444.

These days, many people, including a majority of our current political leaders think that people exist to serve the state, instead of the state existing to serve the people. If our lawmakers are willing to consider enslaving our chidren to the state in even the smallest degree, it is another sign that this nation is on a slippery slope to fascism.

This oxymoronic idea of "mandatory volunteerism" threatens inalienable rights given by God and outlined in the Constitution of the United States. In this idea are the seeds of slavery.

As a citizen, I have the duty to stand up for the Constitution. However, I realize, as a Christian, that those rights are actually a blessing from God, and I and my family eventually might have to lay down those "rights," suffering for the sake of Christ, and entrusting ourselves to Him who judges justly. I praise God that all things work together for good for those who are called according to His purpose! (Romans 8: 28)

Baby Steps:

Red Envelope Campaign

If you are on Facebook, click here: Great Tea Bag Mailing Campaign

Tax Day Tea Party

Good Reading:

Non-Homeschool Related Testing

The Gift of Suffering, Part II

Ancient Egyptian Geography Show and Tell

Last week we made a salt dough map of Ancient Egypt. Being a perfectionist, I wanted the shape of the land and water areas to be as accurate as possible. In order to accomplish this, we used an Artograph Tracer Projector which I purchased prior to having children. In order to have the map fit inside the tracing field of the projector, I first had to shrink a blackline map of Ancient Egypt by 50% on my copier/printer. I then used the projector to enlarge the image to the needed size on a piece of plywood that we had lying around in order to trace it. (Sometimes James' pack rat tendencies come in handy! ;-) We also projected the image onto some newsprint to trace the shape of the Nile to use as a pattern.

Matthew and Sophie willingly plunged their hands into the sticky ingredients to knead the salt dough but were soon making faces when the too wet dough stubbornly clung to their fingers. We had to add more flour to make the dough manageable.

Evan, Matthew and Sophie all worked at smoothing the dough out and molding it to fit inside the outline. They didn't complain too much about working together in close quarters! :)

Evan transferred the river outline to the salt dough by poking through the newsprint pattern with a bamboo skewer.

Evan and Matthew used a Dymo label maker to print out tiny labels which they affixed to toothpicks broken in half. They added ten extra spaces to each label to have enough paper to fold around the pick to make a flag. They were heartily tired of the process by the time they finished!!

Sophie and Matthew painted the map with acrylics. James looked up the great pyramids on Google maps. He zoomed in and out on Egypt to get an aerial view of the land for painting inspiration. Amazing! We all enjoyed the bird's eye view of pyramids and mastabas.

Here is the finished project:


While making the map, I asked the kids to point out the geographical features which protected and isolated Egypt from other ancient cultures. I told them that partly because of Ancient Egypt's unique geography, its culture lasted for thousands of years. We talked about how difficult it would have been to invade Egypt due to the marshy Delta, the dry deserts, the mountains, and the cataracts of the Nile. We talked about the way the Nile brought life to the land. I told the children that the Egyptians thought that they were blessed by the gods because of these features.

God used the land of Egypt to preserve his people at two different times. In the Old Testament, He sent Joseph ahead to prepare Egypt to save Jacob and his sons and their families from famine. They grew in to a great nation in the delta region of the Nile. In the New Testament God sent another Joseph, along with God's own son into Egypt to protect him from bloodthirsty Herod. But both times, He called His people out of Egypt, the land of literal and figurative slavery. When God commanded Pharaoh through Moses to let His people go, He brought about deliverance with plagues that judged the gods of Egypt and brought glory to Himself. Later God called His own Son out of Egypt to save His people from slavery to sin.

In talking about the geography of Egypt, I also briefly contrasted it with the land of Canaan, the Promised Land. As pointed out in a recent sermon at our church, we noted that famine actually often struck that land. Abraham sought relief in Egypt during a time of famine, though his decision and lack of trust in God at that time proved troublesome to his family. Isaac also considered taking shelter in Egypt during a later famine, though God kept him from going that far.

The Promised Land is the "Crossroads of Civilization", a land coveted by many and surrounded by great and threatening nations at all times, but without the same natural protections as the land of Egypt. I told my children that it seemed to me that God used the geography of the Promised Land to force the lesson of trust ~ trust in His promised protection, even in the midst of threatening circumstances! I hope to return to this theme again in our Bible study and further study of ancient times.

And we all enjoyed seeing this blast from the past:

Evan, age six, and his model of the Nile

A Walk in the Providence of God

During the two years that I taught at a middle school, I had the privilege of spending two summers with my grandparents who lived in Colorado at the time. Grandpa and Grandma owned a big blue Dodge van which they used for hospitality on wheels. They loaned the van out for church use frequently and also loved to take visitors up into the glorious Rocky Mountains.

As a frequent recipient of blue van hospitality, I wanted to reciprocate and take Grandma to the mountains during her visit last week. At first, she said that she did not want to go, that she had seen the mountains enough, but Aunt Beth whet her appetite with a short jaunt to Boulder Canyon. When we brought up the idea again to take a trip to Sprague Lake, Grandma was game.

We prepared our gear the night before to be ready to hit the road at 8 a.m. Our departure was delayed first by trying to figure out Grandma's medication and then by troubleshooting malfunctioning oxygen cannisters. Thankfully, James had the day off, and being blessed with "The Knack", he was able to fix the regulator. We left about an hour and half "late".

Driving into Estes Park, we realized that it would be better to eat lunch before going on into Rocky Mountain National Park. We parked near Lake Estes and had a picnic while watching rainstorms surrounding us. Lighting flashed in the dark clouds hovering over the surrounding mountains, but we lunched in the one bright spot of the landscape.


Aunt Beth questioned whether it would even be worth it to venture into Rocky Mountain National with the rain. I pointed out that we could still take a short scenic drive in the park, and she agreed. I silently asked the Lord for good weather so that Grandma would be able to get out and enjoy the mountains. We pulled into the parking lot near Sprague Lake and helped Grandma into her wheelchair while she donned a rainhat, jacket and grabbed her umbrella. As we started walking, the sun broke out of its cloud covering and spread its rays over the lake.

We enjoyed strolling with Grandma around the lakeside path, while the kids climbed boulders and chucked stones in the water. Baby ducks, seemingly without parental supervision, entertained us by darting in and out of the grass at the water's edge. Grandma got out of her wheelchair and walked a third of the way while holding on to her chair. We all soaked in the sun and the beauty of the scenery.

After circling the lake, Grandma said that she thought we should head home. As we walked to the van and the car, the clouds rolled in and started sprinkling. We drove out of the park in a downpour. Aunt Beth and I both said, "Thank you Lord!" as we realized how he had timed our trip. From our perspective, it had seemed like hassles arose which made us "late" in starting our trip, but God, as always, by His Providential care brought us to the lake at just the right time to bless us with a lovely lakeside walk. (Click here for yet another example which I blogged about. Why don't I recognize and praise God for His Sovereign Providence every minute of every day?!)

For I know that the LORD is great,
and that our Lord is above all gods.
Whatever the LORD pleases, he does,
in heaven and on earth,
in the seas and all deeps.
He it is who makes the clouds rise at the end of the earth,
who makes lightnings for the rain
and brings forth the wind from his storehouses. Ps. 135: 5-7

Homeschool Blessings

This past school year has been a rather difficult one for me personally. I have struggled with a lack of overall focus and my own low energy has often made this year's homeschool journey feel like a trudge through the Slough of Despond rather than a mountaintop experience.

This week was dreary, overcast and rainy, corresponding to my own emotional landscape, but the sun shone again on Friday, bringing with it some rays of encouragement.

I took the children for a walk to our local pond, not planning on making it a nature hike or learning experience, but just to provide a breather in our day before finishing the afternoon school work. The kids, on the other hand, seemed to consider the walk a naturalist expedition. They each packed gear and supplies in their backpacks. Evan brought a monocular and they each packed their nature notebooks. I grumped to Sophie that she'd better think twice about complaining if she got tired walking with a backpack and that I would not end up carrying it. However, the kids' preparations did inspire me to bring my camera just in case of photo-ops.

As we walked, the kids checked a field for garter snakes and took detours to investigate some ditches for frogs, crawdads or other interesting creatures. As we strolled around the pond, we spied a dark waterfowl with a white bill swimming jerkily out in the middle of the water. I thought to myself, "I have never seen a black duck with a white beak." Evan claimed that it was a loon, but I argued that loons were much more calm and smooth as they glided across the pond.

A solitary yellow-headed blackbird in a tree claimed my attention and I snapped pictures. It flew away to a stand of willows waving in the wind. The bird perched for a length of time with such poise in spite of the bobbing branches. I switched my camera to an action setting to attempt to shoot the moving target.


(Please do click on these to see them larger!)

We circumnavigated the pond (not on water) and walked homewards. The boys stopped a few times to pick a few flower specimens that they wanted to try and identify (nothing rare or endangered I assure you).

When we arrived at home, the children finished their assigned schoolwork then went about what they wanted to do. Matthew put the flowers in a vase, sketched them in his nature notebook, then looked them up in our guide to wildflowers of the plains and foothills. He identified the sprigs as Alfalfa, Copper Mallow, and False Flax and labeled them in his book. He also excitedly pointed out in the guidebook several different weeds wildflowers growing in our own backyard.

Meanwhile, Sophie looked up from thumbing through a Colorado bird guide and announced, "The black bird that we saw swimming was an American Coot." Skeptical, I looked in the book at the picture of a black bird with a white bill, but was fully convinced that she was correct when I read the the description "the only dark waterbird with a white bill." The book also noted its bobbing movement when swimming. Sophie proceded to sketch the bird into her nature notebook with colored pencils and began to write a summary.

Evan had to get in on the activity and pasted his drawing of a yellow-headed blackbird into his notebook and began a rough draft narration. As suppertime drew near, I actually had to insist that the children put away their work for the time being. We all felt exhilarated with our discoveries and investigations ~ the best kind of treasure hunt! I could not have planned a more inspiring educational experience! (The children will most likely post some of their work on their own blogs to share later.)

I write this late on Saturday night now after yet another unplanned enrichment activity. I have been finishing up reading aloud The Story of the World Volume 4: The Modern Age by Susan Wise Bauer to the kids. This evening, James turned on PBS and found a show on the race to space between the U.S. and the Soviet Union. Since we read a chapter about that last week, we watched the documentary with added understanding and interest. The show focused on the Apollo 8 voyage, the first to orbit the moon. We were thrilled to hear the first-hand accounts from NASA scientists, the Apollo 8 crew of three and their wives concerning the events of the historic flight. (I was impressed with the risks that all involved were willing to take to accomplish such a venture.) What an awe-inspiring experience the astronauts had to see the earth from thousands of miles out in space and to view the moon up close. My heart swelled to hear their broadcast as they read from the creation account in Genesis and I praised God for His wonderful works that they had the privilege of beholding from a new-to-humankind vantage point.

I thank the Lord for these experiences we have enjoyed this weekend and for the much-needed reminder of His good gifts and the evidence of His hand in our lives.

Bedtime Conversation

It has been a little over two weeks since my kids' good friend Michael died. Sophie told me a couple of times over the past week that she felt sad and missed Michael. I couldn't tell as well what the boys were thinking or feeling. Last night, when the boys went to bed, I asked Evan what he was thinking about Michael. Right away, his tears came. He told me that his best memory of Michael was the fort that they worked on together. Both he and Matthew cried for awhile and I stood up and bent down between the two bunks, giving hugs. After a while, remembering how Michael's dad sang Psalms to Michael on his last night, I sang Psalms 23 and 139 out of the Psalm book by the light of the boys' night light. The Psalms quieted our hearts and we talked for a little longer before the boys went to sleep.

As a homeschool mom, I spend a lot of time with my kids during the day, but I need to remember that bedtime can often be a time of deeper reflection and personal conversation with my children.

And we all miss Michael.

Sermon Reflection

At one point in his sermon today, Bob reminded us of Andy McCracken's sermon at Horn Creek on the book of James. Andy said that good works are useless for our salvation, but necessary for our chief end. The Westminster Shorter Catechism words it this way: "Man's chief end is to glorify God and to enjoy Him forever." Andy gave an historical illustration which I'll tell here in my own words...

Donald Cargill was a Covenanter minister in Scotland in the 17th century. He was born around the time that the Pilgrims journeyed to the New World. He was a minister at the time of the Restoration in 1660, when Charles II was restored to the throne (after the time of the Commonwealth under Oliver Cromwell). Charles II had promised to adhere to the Solemn League and Covenant which declared the church of Scotland to be Presbyterian. As soon as Charles ascended the throne, he began to go back on his promise, declaring himself to be the head of the church and installing his bishops over the Church of Scotland. This was repugnant to the Covenanters who stood for King Jesus' rights as the sole head over His church. Charles offered an Indulgence to the Scottish ministers, allowing them to remain in the church if they acknowledged his authority over the church. Many of the ministers refused to compromise and began preaching in conventicles, which were secret open air church services on the moors of Scotland. Cargill was one of the ministers who would not compromise. This was a time of great persecution for the Covenanters who were fined, pursued, imprisoned and martyred. Cargill himself died a martyr's death.

When one of the ministers who had accepted the King's Indulgence heard of Cargill's rejection of the same, he asked, "What needs all of this ado? We will get heaven and they will get no more."

When Cargill heard it, he replied, "Yes, we will get more; we will get God glorified on earth, which is more than heaven."

Revelation 4:11 says, "Worthy are you, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they existed and were created."

Salvation is important; the Christian life begins there. But as Christians we need to continue on, getting God glory by our lives.

I also want to include here one comment that Cargill made before he died. He said, "I have been a man of great sins, but He has been a God of great mercies; and now, through His mercies, I have a conscience as sound and quiet as if I had never sinned." What a testimony!

Michael's Funeral

A week ago, Evan's close friend (and the friend of Matthew and Sophie as well) died unexpectedly. Michael suffered from a form of muscular dystrophy. Not quite two weeks ago, he had surgery to straighten out his feet. Three days later he passed away, probably due to a blood clot in his leg which broke loose and travelled to his lung. I wrote two entries remembering Michael in my former blog.


Earlier this week, Michael's dad, Eric, called me and asked me to represent our congregation at the funeral, by compiling and reading stories/memories/thoughts about Michael which were significant to his church family. Michael's funeral was this morning, and this is what I read:


Michael was an important member of the Westminster Reformed Presbyterian Congregation. We had the privilege of watching him grow up in our church family. Our last enemy, which is Death, dealt an unexpected blow in separating us from this child of our congregation. This is a time of mourning for us, but also a valuable time of reflecting on the love God has poured out upon us through His precious promises of the resurrection and eternal life in Jesus Christ. It is a time of remembering how God has blessed us through the gift of knowing Michael.

Michael was still a young boy when God chose to bring him home. The children of the congregation counted him as a friend. He enjoyed the company of even the youngest. The A_____ family remembers one year old Makara getting up on Michael's lap and warming up to him quickly which he seemed to enjoy as well.

We will always treasure the memory of Michael whizzing around the church property in his wheelchair with an entourage of boys. Many of the boys even call Michael their "best friend." They would search together for interesting rock specimens and sometimes they would pretend that a cement platform was their workbench. They'd smash open the rocks to examine the insides and smash leaves to make "paint". The boys also liked to play army together, and Michael drove the tank, of course! A year or two ago, the boys liked to pretend that they were hunting aliens and monsters. Michael enjoyed the colorful life of the imagination which is unique to childhood.

The highlights of the boys' playtime centered around their forts. For the past two years, the boys have constructed different structures behind the church parking lot with varying degrees of success. The boys had as much fun working as they did playing in what they built. Michael became the project director, telling the others where to put the boards. The boys also elected him fort president. A fort was never completely finished on the church property while Michael was alive.

Two weeks ago, however, Michael attended the Horn Creek conference and without debate, his favorite activity was the building of a fort behind the Mini-Lodge. Evan, Michael and Matthew found a circle of scrub oak with open areas inside. Eric and Shannon helped the boys turn it into a large fort with walls and a roof. They tied ropes to the front board to create a door and hung a horseshoe over the entrance. Eric also fixed a board across the crooks of two oaks, making a small bench. They found a stump to use as a table. They even made some ink out of soot and water and wrote "The Fort" over the entrance. The most wonderful aspect of this fort was that Michael could drive his wheelchair inside. What a blessing that he was able to enjoy the fulfillment of his plans!

Last Sunday after the church service, the boys of the congregation assembled yet another version of the every-changing fort project. On their own accord, they created the beginning of a memorial to Michael by hanging some pictures inside. May they ever treasure his memory.

Michael's family has been an example to us over the years of patient love as they cared for his needs. The family, and Michael himself, never displayed anger at his handicapped condition. Instead they had an attitude of humble reliance on their Heavenly Father whom they knew loved Michael more than they even could. Joanne wrote the following about the family: "One of my first memories of Eric and Shannon was at one of our church camp outs. Michael was probably two and running around keeping them busy. They were taking him to the doctor in the next week or so to see if he had MD. They seemed to know he had it, but they were so calm and matter of fact about it. That was my impression throughout Michael's life. His parents were thankful
for their son, they loved him as he was, and they trained him in the ways of the Lord in the hopes that he would be with Him one day. I admire their courage and strength."

We will also always remember the time and effort that Eric and Shannon put into extremely creative costumes for their children for the Reformation Day Parties. Remember Michael as the world? as the Star of Bethlehem? as a mad scientist? as the owner of a hamburger stand, complete with the stand? Eric and Shannon made sure Michael had fun like everyone else.

Michelle has always been close to Michael and a loving older sister. Robert recently recalled a time when Michael was still walking, but would soon have to be in a wheelchair. The kids of the congregation were called up front for a Christian Education presentation, but though Michael tried to step up onto the platform, he could not do it. Michelle quickly came alongside him and helped him up that step. This is just one example of her love in action.

Cheryl taught Michael for the past two years in his Christian Education class. She remembers that during the first year of class, Michael was easily distracted and sometimes had a difficult time paying attention as is the case with many boys, but last year she noticed a new maturity in him. He showed an increased interest in God and His Word and participated more in discussion with good and thoughtful comments. Josh, his classmate and friend noted that Michael knew a lot about God's Word, undoubtedly in great part from the faithful teaching of his parents.

Other people noticed an increasing maturity in Michael, especially in recent months. Bill, Michael's grandfather, shared with me that Michael did not usually sing in the church service due to his shyness. Lately, however, Bill was very pleased to hear Michael quietly singing Psalms with the congregation. Eric also shared with me that Michael always slept with the light on...until he came home from Horn Creek On his first night home, Michael told his dad to turn the light all the way off, because he was no longer afraid of the dark. Finally, Shannon, with her mother's heart, told me that she rejoices in the knowledge that the youngest member of their family is now the most mature and complete, filled with the knowledge of God in heaven!

We may miss the whirring sound of Michael's wheelchair navigating around our church building, but we would never wish him back in it. When Conner heard that Michael had passed away, he prayed, thanking God that Michael is now dancing in heaven instead of riding in an ambulance. T.J. drew a picture of Michael, imagining him playing soccer in heaven. We all miss him, but we look forward to the day when we will be worshiping Our Lord alongside Michael in the New Heavens and the New Earth.

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I would like to thank those of you who prayed for me concerning the writing down of these memories and also the reading. I sensed God's guidance in the composition and also His peace as I read. I cry easily about small things since becoming a mother, but even more so about something of the magnitude of the death of a twelve year old boy. This morning, however, God helped me to keep my tears in check for the most part so that I was able to read clearly. Thanks again for your prayers.


Michael's aunt made a nice program for the funeral service. She scanned in some of Michael's drawings to decorate the front cover:

On the back cover, Eric and Shannon wrote the following:


As we look back, we don't remember Michael ever having one favorite Psalm, because he loved to hear all of the Psalms. When all of our children were little, Dad would sit in the living room singing the Psalms as the kids lay in their beds adjacent to the living room. As time passed and the kids got older, Dad stopped singing to the kids in this manner. The night before Michael passed on; he was still in much pain from the surgery on his legs. After getting settled into bed, Dad once more sat out in the living room and sang the Psalms to him. Dad's desire was to comfort Michael and ease him off to sleep. Michael had told his sister, Michelle, that he liked it when Dad sang the Psalms. We chose to sing the Psalms at Michael's service because we wanted to share with everyone the Psalms that were a special part of Michael's life especially when we gather together each Sunday morning. Each psalm has a special meaning. (Click on the Psalm title if you'd like to see the Scripture.)


Psalm 116A was chosen because it gives us a picture of one who has been overcome by death on every side and yet is freed from the bonds of death and now walks with God. Just as God saved his only begotten son from the grave, He now saves us who call on Him. We believe this to be true of Michael, and now he lives and walks with God.


Psalm 104 recognizes that it was the Lord who created the earth and all that is in it and it was He who placed it in order. We chose this Psalm, because Michael was always very curious about all of creation. From the creepy crawling bugs and spiders to the majestic heavens, Michael would always ask questions and then try to answer his own questions followed with the words, "Huh Mom?" or "Huh Dad?"


Psalm 45A is a victory song. It pictures Christ as King going forth in victory over all who fight against the King. We picture, that as Christ had victory over death and rode forth, we see Michael, in Christ, having victory over death and he too riding forth, not to be king, but to live with the King of Glory.


Psalm 146A is a Psalm that gives praise to God and shares the hope and blessings of those who choose Jacob's God to be their aid. Michael chose Jacob's God to be His God, through Jesus Christ, and our hope is that as we share Michael's life with you, that you too will be moved by God to put your hope and trust in the the Lord Jesus Christ. May God bless all of you and keep you. Amen.

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It was a blessing to sing those Psalms, so full of meaning.


I don't have the text of Pastor Bob's sermon, but it was a hopeful gospel message challenging us to trust in Jesus for our salvation and for the hope of the resurrection. He quoted again from Psalm 45: 5 "Thine arrows sharpened are, Men under Thee to bring, To pierce the heart of enemies Who fight against the King." (from the Psalm book) He pointed out that we all were/are enemies of Christ the King, fighting against Him, and denying His Lordship in our lives. Christ came to earth with arrows, not poison arrows as it were, but life-giving arrows to pierce our hearts with the knowledge of His gospel, the message of salvation from sin and death.


I praise God that His Name was glorified in Michael's life as well as in his death and I wanted to share this with you.

President Reagan

I wish I had more memories of President Reagan when he was actually president. From what I understand, I respect his convictions, his attitude, and his leadership abilities, especially his ability to communicate his convictions. I have been very moved by his funeral today and have thanked the Lord for his life and presidency. I am glad that the funeral spoke of the gospel and brought glory to God in that way. As a Christian, I am aware that President Reagan was not America's Savior, but God did use him in some ways to bless us and the world.

Partly, this funeral also represented to me a continuing farewell to my grandparents' generation. I am fortunate to still have three of my grandparents here. When they are gone, I will miss their wisdom, and example, and most of all their prayer. Will our generation provide as firm a foundation for our children and grandchildren as they did for us?