Okay first a little background..... right after graduating from college, I had my first teaching job at Riverview Christian Academy in Denver, CO. During my second year of teaching there, I lived with a family from our church/school, named the Stancils. Rosalind and Larry had three children: D.J. (13 years old and one of my students)... Gregory (idk... bout 10 I'd guess)... and Jessie (my beautiful little buddy... 5 or 6). I lived in their basement, drove the kids to school each day and was D.J.'s teacher and youth leader. Rosalind is the MOST amazing woman of God you have ever met in your entire life, and I was blessed to live with her and be touched by her zeal for God for an entire year. Well when I left CO to return home to WI, I lost touch with the Stancils. Once Google came along, I started stalking them and trying to track them down. I would search all of their names.... I found they had moved to GA. I found that D.J. was playing semi-pro football (and that he had a decent career in football at West Point). I found a listing for them, but the phone number was unlisted...no e-mail contacts could be found....I couldn't reach them. Randomly over the past few years, I would think to google them again, but nothing ever came of it. Then about 6 months ago due to the amazing and practically perfect networking website, Facebook, I found Jessie Stancil! I was SO excited to reconnect with her and then eventually with her mother. We lamented about how we wished we could get together; however, finances are way too tight for the Kastners, and life is way too busy for the Stancils. The second we started planning this Florida trip, I realized we'd be driving through Atlanta, and I made plans to stop to visit my "brown-skinned side of the family".
So we left WI on Friday night at about 10 p.m. Wanda (my mother's GPS) told us we'd arrive at the Stancils at about 10 a.m. Not so.... Wanda didn't know about the 4 children riding in the back of the vehicle who would have to pee frequently. Nor did she realize that after the first 5 hour stint, the drivers of said vehicle would be way too exhausted to drive anymore than one hour stints the rest of the way.
Well we really arrived at about 3:30 p.m. (I think). Our last conversation with Rosalind went something like this:
Rosalind: Who will be driving?
Jami: I will be driving.
Rosalind: Okay because we live in a gated community, and I have to call in to the guard and tell him your name so he can compare it with your valid driver's license before granting you access.
[Jami & Kathi (to selves) - HOLY CRAP! gated community]
So we finally arrived at the Country Club of the South. Sure enough big security shack blocks the entrance. As soon as we received our security clearance, we drove through the gate and entered a wonderland. Seriously, I have seen big houses... I lived in a pretty nice brand new home... In college I babysat in a VERY affluent community.... but NOTHING in my life had prepared me for this (I promise to post the pictures after I return home). The brick walkways, beautiful paths, and OHMIGOSH look at that HUMONGOUS house! I was seriously and truly awestruck. After we arrived at the Stancils, Rosalind informed us that in their "community" were houses owned by Usher, Bobby Brown and Whitney Houston (pre-divorce), and Jeff Foxworthy. Numerous professional athletes resided here, and their son had a picture of himself with Chili (spelling???) from TLC too. So yeah here we are in our beat up old 2001 Chevy Venture stocked to the gills with dirty little travelers weary from their trip, pulling into Georgia's Bel Air... we felt like country bumpkins in the city for the first time.
Well, that short 18-hour period was one of the most amazing times in my recent history. When we arrived, we were greeted by Larry and then Jessie.... as I got to the front door Rosalind took me in her arms, and we both started tearing up... It was just too good to be true. We entered their grand piano room and started a little bit of introductions while Rosalind passed out presents she had bought my children. It was dreamy and amazing. I took a quick shower to wash of the "road," and then the real catching up began. We talked and talked and talked and talked. Ros made tacos for dinner. One of my former students (Rhonda Moore....now Slaughter) who had been a classmate of D.J.'s and was now coincidentally living in Atlanta as well came for dinner and brought her 19-month old son for us to meet. It was amazing. My children were "themselves" flipping on and running and doing tae kwon do moves amongst the grand piano, pool table, foosball table.... I pulled them aside and started lecturing them about how this was not our house, and they could not act the way they acted at home here when Larry yelled at me and told them to let them be kids... (okay let me state that yelling for Larry is a Jami whisper with a HUGE smile on his face but somehow you know that you HAVE to listen to him and obey)... from then on out, Larry chased the children around the house screaming and playing hide and seek and scaring the pee out of them.
When we arrived, Rosalind showed us around our "quarters" for the night. We had the entire upper level to ourselves... Room for Oma (with an attached bathroom)... Room for the boys with an adjoining attached bathroom to room for Jami and Hannah. WOW!
After dinner and before bed, I took a trip to see D.J.'s condo/loft [rooftop of building overlooks gorgeous site of downtown Atlanta and has a hot tub, party room, fitness room] that he had recently purchased and decorated in an impeccable fashion. Before doing this I put the children to bed with strict instructions NOT to leave the bedroom. Well come on... you know the Kastner children. I returned home to learn that Hannah had taken off all her clothes and when Ros tried to redress her a cat fight ensued. She was screaming and kicking Ros and so Elijah said, "I think she wants me to do it." So Ros handed him her pull-up, and Hannah continued screaming and kicking. Elijah proceeded to then pin her to the ground and shout, "I'll hold her. Quick! Just do it!" After that apparently the boys "rocked" Hannah to sleep by jumping on the bed she was lying on. That is just how the Kastners roll. Well, I also found all three boys chasing around the lower level with Larry when I returned home... not surprised are you???
After getting them settled back in bed and making sure most of them were sleeping, I returned back downstairs and spent some quality time catching up with Ros all by myself. It was a little slice of heaven.
The next morning Rosalind made us a BIG breakfast for our send off. As we sat there, Rosalind asked how long had Hannah been wearing glasses. I told her since she was 4 months old. Then I said, in January she has to get bifocals, and we are praying HARD that they work because if they don't then at her next checkup in the spring, they will make her start wearing a patch. Ros immediately stood to her feet and said, "Can I pray for her?"
I said, "Of course."
She went looking for her anointing oil and returned to the dining room to anoint Hannah's head with oil. Then we laid hands on her and prayed. Hannah remained uncharacteristically still through the entire thing... Praying with Ros was an awesome trip back to 1993. I remembered the zeal of my charismatic leanings, and the beauty of trusting in God for a miraculous healing. After Amen, Ros taught Hannah to say, "Thank you Jesus for healing my eyes!" and told her to walk around throughout the day saying it.
I also had a VERY tender moment with Ros when I was telling her what an inspiring woman of God she is.... then I got to pray for her.... that was great too. I didn't really want to leave, but that was truly only our first stop. So at about 9 a.m. we headed down the drive in redneck fashion (Jami rolled over the grass and then bottomed out at the bottom of the drive.... "I don't care who you are now that is funny!) And we plugged St. Petersburg into Wanda and headed on our way.
Stay tuned for more Florida blogs as time allows.....I have to go wake the troops for Disney World now.
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