Category: Uncategorized

First Date

In April of 2008, I was training to ride my bike 100 miles for Reach The Beach on May 18th. During one of those training rides, my thoughts wandered and I found myself praying for a wife – maybe a blonde, brunette, or redhead – any of those, really. A few minutes later, my seat post (a metal rod almost the size of my thumb) broke. The mechanics at the bike shop had never seen that before. A part could be ordered, but I wouldn’t be able to do 60 (and then 80) mile rides to get back on my training schedule, and so gave up on doing RtB that year.

Later that weekend, someone on OKCupid messaged me. We messaged back and forth, and that led to calling each other for an hour or three almost every night. She told me that her hair could be blonde, brunette, or red, depending on lighting. After some time of doing that, we decided we’d like to actually lay eyes on each other. We lived 250 miles apart, so we decided to meet in the middle – in Tacoma. I had May 18 free (because of that broken seat post), so we decided to meet on Mt St. Hellens Day.

So we each drove 125 miles and laid eyes on each other at Point Defiance – near the zoo. She had brought a picnic lunch for us. We explored the zoo together (but we cut short the Reptile House, because she did not like to look at snakes.) I kissed her in the zoo’s parking lot. We went to a theater and watched Prince Caspian, and then ate dinner at The Old Spaghetti Factory. In various lighting, she did indeed look blonde, brunette or red headed. We agreed that this had been the best first-date ever, and there should definitely be more. We shared some additional kissing, and then each drove 125 miles home.

That best first date is now fifteen years ago.

I miss Jeanette

I miss Jeanette

  • I miss her feet.  I miss rubbing them when they were sore with lotion that smells like Lemon Pledge.
  • I miss her lavender body oil.  (I burn candles to remember, but they just aren’t the same.)
  • I miss the smell of her skin.
  • I miss her red heart-shaped mirror sunglasses.
  • I miss her gap-toothed smile,
  • I miss her long and beautiful hair.  I loved when her mom would braid it, but my braids never looked as good.
  • I miss her light blue eyes, and the compassionate knowing they showed.
  • I miss her breasts — her huge “Tracts of Land” and the best stress relievers ever.
  • I miss her playfulness.
  • I miss her compassion — to me, to Asimov, and to every child and floofy dog she met.
  • I miss her curative intelligence.  (For music playlists, our book collection, comics, movies, Pinterest, and everything else)
  • I miss her love; I miss our love.
  • I miss her inclusionary acceptance for anyone who was just hanging on to the edge of our circle of friends.  
  • I miss her connecting me more broadly and deeply to a wide circle of friends and friend-family.
  • I miss our dreams together.  Of being parents. Of growing old together.
  • I miss our life together.
  • I miss watching TV with her.  Especially something like Master Chef Jr.
  • I miss how God knit us together.

I miss Jeanette.

Kite Poem

Once upon a time there was a little kite without a string.
Untethered she was caught up by every passing breeze, and met more than her fair share of kite eating trees.
Her creator helped her get untangled and patched her up, and though he knew there was a better way
He decided to wait until she got tired of blowing off course and asked her Creator for help.
Meanwhile there lived a string, on the ground, flat and straight, he got very bored.
The string did his very best to grow long and stay straight and to be a Very Useful String,
but he was still on the ground, bored and not accomplishing as much as he could.
His creator knew this and knew how much the string would like the view from above, but decided to wait until the string asked to fly.
One day the kite, decided enough was enough and grounded herself until she had permission to fly from her Creator.
Around the same time the string decided he was ready to fly, and asked his creator for help.
So the Creator saw the time was right, and joined the two together.
At first it was hard, the kite was restricted in her movements and the string was stretched further than he thought possible, but as time went on they adjusted and learned to love it.
The kite was glad to be safe from the kite eating trees and flying with purpose, following the wind as her creator intended her to, and the string was amazed by the beautiful and exciting possibilities he saw.
Both of them are so grateful to their Creator for joining them and directing them through life with purpose and joy.

Jeanette Louise Burns

 

On September 20th, 2018, Jeanette Louise Burns- age 43, while surrounded by her loving husband (and their dog) at their home, suddenly left this earth to worship at the feet of our Lord Jesus in Heaven.  Even as we grieve, we know that she is smiling down on us, and our hearts are filled with the warmth of her loving memory.

Jeanette was born on March  16th, 1975 in Oak Harbor, WA.  She moved often as a young adult, living in Arkansas, Oklahoma, Texas, Massachusetts, and then back to Washington where she met her dear husband, David, in 2008.  They were married on May 1st, 2010 in Tacoma’s beautiful Point Defiance Park — the very same place where they had their first date. She then lived with her husband in Portland, OR where she loved her life as a “city-girl”.  

Jeanette had a passion for loving and teaching children.  Often referred to as “Mary Poppins” by the families she worked with, she cared for and loved these children as if they were her own.   She was also a volunteer advocate for court cases involving children. She loved to fill the details of anything she planned with symbolism, intention, and care.   

Jeanette is survived by her dear husband, David Burns, her dog-child, Asimov,  her mother and step father, Ken and Janet Mann and her Father Jackie Barrett, her brother Jeremy and his wife Angie Barrett, step brothers – Shawn and Alicia Mann,  Kyle and Darbi Mann, and step sister – Megan and Sam Howat. She will be greatly missed by all of her nieces and nephews whom she loved: Kalysta (Kalli) Barrett, Jeremiah (Myah) Barrett, Treasure (Tessa) Barrett, Mary Lite, Darby Lite, Elise Mann, Evelynn Mann, Elijah Mann, Oliver Mann, Moli Rose Mann, Greta Mann, Kelsey Stealey, and Daniel Stealey, along with her very large extended family of uncles aunts, and cousins.  

She is also survived by all of her many adopted family members (of whom there are too many to list.)  She was always collecting more family wherever she went. She truly was a “kind-hearted” woman: a safe-place to be yourself.  Seeking to love those around her on a level of deep intention you don’t often find. An encouraging, caring, thoughtful, crazy, adventurous daughter of God.  She was a voracious reader, proud geek, and loving wife. We look forward to the day when we will see her again in Heaven.

A memorial service was held at River View Cemetery Funeral Home, and another in Jeanette’s home town of Oak Harbor.  She was also remembered by family in Arkansas and friend-family in Boston.

A plot was selected adjacent to the road marked for bicycles through the cemetery, and across from a section of children’s graves.  This seemed very fitting of who Jeanette was and who she and David tried to be as a couple.

A favorite quote of Jeanette’s:

“The only people for me are the mad ones, the ones who are mad to live, mad to talk, mad to be saved, desirous of everything at the same time, the ones who never yawn or say a commonplace thing, but burn, burn, burn, like fabulous yellow roman candles exploding like spiders across the stars and in the middle you see the blue centerlight pop and everybody goes ‘Awww!’ ” – Jack Kerouac “On The Road”.

In lieu of flowers:

Jeanette liked a charity supporting an orphanage in Kenya.  https://rehemaforkids.org/