Daddy's little Dolfan!

It is currently 66 degrees in Wingate, NC....this is unheard of on September first. Living in the Piedmont region of North Carolina you just miss the beautiful mountains to the west, and sandy beaches to the east, and are left with mostly heat and fire ants. So, with this very early visit from fall comes a Darst celebration.

We LOVE fall. We anticipate in all other seasons the start of this glorious and most beautiful time of year. We talk about it, a lot. For us, life is just better in the fall. There are many reasons for this preoccupation with autumn. Primarily, we (yes WE) loooove football. Clint has lived and breathed football since day one. He used to tell his dad that "yourami" was playing on TV when then Miami Dolphins were on. Rachel grew up in Belle, WV...where the only thing to do on friday night was go to a high school football game. It is ingrained in us...fall means football. And we LOVE football!

Another, more legitimate reason is that we met, and fell in love, in the fall. Appropriately, on a football field. It was August of 2001...picture day for the football team and cheerleaders at East Lincoln High School. And we certainly noticed each other. One year later we started dating...in August and proceeded to fall in love over the next few months. Thus, we love the fall. In addition, the two most wonderful gifts God has given us have been in November. On November 4th 2006, the Lord gave us each other, in marriage, on a chilly, vibrant fall day. Two years later, He gave us our sweet Eden.

Fall also means an end to the blistering Southern North Carolina heat. And with that, the need to wear Rachel's favorite article of clothing...the hoodie. And lastly, fall brings a new semester and start to a new school year at Wingate. This is the most exciting time of year for us in college ministry. The campus is bustling as freshmen get acquainted with classes and new friends. And with much planning and prayer we set out to glorify God by building new laborers on the campus. There is nothing like the first 6 weeks of the school year.

This weekend kicks off college football season, flag football season, Wingate's first weekly meeting, and the end to preseason NFL football. This, is a good week. So with this week...we celebrate. Pumpkin spice Wallflowers are installed, soup is being made, and decorations are being dusted off and hung up. Praise the Lord for this season. May it be one unforgettable fall!