Monday, July 25, 2016 1:30AM

I just found out that Rose was sexually assaulted by the man she cheated with. Mrs. Izzy
was writing down some of the details of what Rose was revealing had happened as they
talked on the phone. As I read each detail I could feel a deep anger grow stronger in me. I
took a moment to let it all sink in and began to pray. My anger is under control, but my
heart is heavy with grief over the wickedness that has happened to someone I can
honestly say I love. Not the western “love,” but a biblical love of great care and desire to
protect and nourish. I’m still trying to find better words to use for such things. A deeper
word study on biblical love is needed.

Since, I’ve been reflecting on what has transpired. I am angry at how wretched the world
is. At first I was simply furious at the assailant and burned against the sin in his heart. I
soon began to think of my own wretchedness and how merciful God is on me. My sins
may not be as vivid and criminalizing as this man’s, but I am wretched indeed. May this
man know the graces of my King and be transformed.

I would now like to reflect on a day from last week. Friday, July 22, 2016

We spent the night at Rose’s house again. We came more prepared this time so we
actually made it through the night without Mrs. Izzy forcing us to head back home in the
middle of the night. The night before was fun, but nothing too special. Prior to this log I
have began building a relationship with Bill and have now met him in person a couple
times and gotten to know him a little bit. He is a bit ambitious and wants to be a pastor,
but he does seem to take the scriptures seriously. My interactions with him have been
good so far and I’m fairly certain he doesn’t feel threatened by me even though he knows
that I know everything that has transpired. He even stayed the night at the house last
night and was very welcoming to us.

So, we all woke up around the same time and went to Subway for brunch. It was a nice
visit and we got to play a Q&A couples game for a bit before Bill had to head home to
get ready for work. I did notice that Rose was a little stingy about sharing a couple
cookies with Bill. It kind of seemed like a bit of a joke, but Rose nonetheless still was
adamantly opposed to sharing her sweets. Rose does not eat healthy at all by the way.
This situation seemed like a normal issue with them and I don’t believe reflects the nature
of their relationship as of late. I do think that situations like this may be making Bill feel
disrespected or unloved. Mrs. Izzy has made the comment that their relationship looks a
lot like a relationship Rose would have with a younger sibling. I hope we can make a
difference here regardless of what is going on. Grace to them, as we can only speculate
such things.

After Bill left we proceeded to a local dollar store that had some strange items. Rose had
the idea of all three of us joining in a bit of a relay race of sorts. Her and I worked
together to come up with ideas as Mrs. Izzy roamed the store. She kept calling the stick to
whack piñatas with “javelins,” which I thought was adorable. We decided on some
challenges we would complete as we ran around a park’s parking lot that would end with
a sword fight over who hits a piñata first and then takes turns until it broke. We
purchased all the stuff we needed and went to the park. Laughs were had, water balloons
were thrown, batons were twirled, and silly string was sprayed. Mrs. Izzy was in charged
of giving us strange spontaneous challenges throughout the race and throwing water
balloons at us. We took a break because we were both exhausted and used the window
paint we bought to write something on each others cars. Rose wrote, “Just Married” to
commemorate the recent marriage of Mrs. Izzy and I. I wrote, “Friends With The [our
last name]s” Rose really enjoyed that and told us how much she liked it the next day.

We decided on an intermission before the finale that would include video interviews of us
talking about how the competition is going and a dance off to a mildly inappropriate but
hilarious song. Mrs. Izzy filmed (no you can’t see the video) and Rose & I danced our
butts off in competition. I won that event, which we decided after reviewing the footage
that night at Rose’s place, but Rose was most definitely the cuter dancer as Mrs. Izzy
observed.

So we move on to the final event of this hot and exhausting day. Rose and I get into
character and get some photos taken of us posing by Mrs. Izzy before the battle. The
sword fight begins and it is pretty even for quite a few strikes. It was more like fencing
and the first to get a lunge to connect wins. We both had really close calls, but she finally
got me on my shoulder and was the victor. She then proceeded with her first five whacks
at the piñata and slugged it pretty hard. We took turns at five whacks a piece until it burst
open on Rose’s turn. Another win for her! I proceeded to help bash the piñata in unison
with her until all the candy fell out. What a wild day. We concluded photo of her in a
victory pose plunging her sword into my falling back body.

Afterward Rose heads home to meet us there. Mrs. Izzy & I decide to help her learn how
to cook more and hopefully encourage her to eat healthier foods. So we go to a local
grocery store and pick out fresh ingredients for a Chipotle inspired burrito bowl. During
this time I remember Rose mentioned off hand that she had close to no cookware and her
pan was garbage the other day, so we decided to bless her and bought a 2 pack pan set for
her.

After shopping we surprise Rose with the pans and ingredients. I proceed to work on
dinner while Mrs. Izzy and Rose chat a bit. After finishing dinner Rose offers us a bit of a
Bahama Mama alcoholic beverage. I have recently been tasting some alcohols and never
found one that didn’t taste like poison, but this one was actually alright and I was able to
have a small glass. Still not a fan of buying alcohol for myself, but I am encouraged to
continue trying what others offer me in modest portions.

We spend the rest of the night chatting a bit and listening to music together until 11pm.
Mrs. Izzy wasn’t feeling so good so Rose and I end things by watching the video of our
dance off and coming to a final verdict of the winner. It was a blast watching it all over
again. Rose curled up next to me on the couch as we watched the video together and I felt
very close and comfortable to Rose after everything we’ve been through together. I look
forward to building a deeper friendship with Rose over the coming years.
I do want to note that Rose does seem to be hiding just how important our visits are to
her. I caught a glimpse of this when she said goodbye to us. I mentioned how we might
need to miss next Thursday for work and she hesitantly but casually told us that it’s okay
as long as we keep coming at least as often as we have been. Something about her facial
expression and body language made me think that she really needs us to be there for her
as much as we can. It doesn’t help that she has post traumatic stress from terribly abusive
friendships she’s had in the past and how she recently moved and now knows no one
where she lives. May God use us to bless her family in any way we possibly can.