North Shore Afternoon: Mark

Mrs. Beaver:

As I've mentioned before, our family was able to spend Thanksgiving week in Minnesota. The weather was blessedly warm for that time of the year along the shore of Lake Superior. On one of the afternoons most of the kids wandered out to explore the shoreline.

With our camera, I tried to catch a bit of personality. Last time I shared a glimpse of Lissie's thoughtful spirit. Here I'd like to share Mark's adventurous personality. He's a curious soul who enjoys investigating his surroundings. I think that's all I need to say; these photos speak for themselves. As the saying goes, our second son is all boy.

When we first met five-year-old Mark at his orphange in Russia, his risk taking scared us. He was unusually small for his age but would climb to the the height of the rusted frames that served as the children's playground equipment. He would then catch our eye, grin and dismount by doing some daring feat like a front flip. These nervous prospective parents were just certain he would break a bone before we could get him home!

Mark and Cassandra on their orphanage grounds, September 2001

As a naturally timid person, I've come to appreciate Mark's willingness to learn by trying. He has matured in his risk taking; now I rarely worry that he's putting himself in danger. I suspect that as Mark grows into manhood we'll get to watch the Lord make use of the trait He Himself built into this former orphan. He has a plan for our son -- Mark is a marvel, fearfully and wonderfully made by our great God (Psalm 139)!