jen was standing onstage at our high school the first time i saw her. it was my junior year. her freshman. and she was being crowned royalty during our homecoming ceremony. she had the most incredible smile i had ever seen. dressed in a pink gown, she lit up the entire stage. i later told my mom that God had made that smile just for me. i didn’t know jennifer before that day, but i made sure i knew her shortly thereafter.
we began dating my senior year of high school, and we quickly became best friends. i told her i loved her. and i did. we dated through college. even doing the long-distance thing for a couple years. and two months after i graduated from college, we were married. it was the single happiest day i’ve ever known.
a piece of the american dream
everything seemed to come together for us after that. i got a great job at a local marketing firm. helping businesses tell their stories through creative ads and engaging web sites. each day provided new opportunities to learn about different businesses and meet established business owners. it was dynamic, challenging and fun. all at the same time. i loved it.
jen wrapped up her schooling and then she got a great job teaching preschoolers. two-year olds. usually between five and seven at a time. i still don’t understand how that’s physically possible, but she too loved her job. we both thought we were where we were supposed to be. we even started looking at homes. preparing ourselves to buy a little piece of the american dream and start a family.
that’s when things changed. . .
but then things changed. an itch began to grow inside of me. i had fell in love with c.s. lewis’ writing in college. his non-fiction stuff. mere christianity, and the like. and i had started up a blog, about a year into my job. handsnfeet.wordpress.com. a place to dig through what i was reading. and a place to share ways in which i saw Him revealing Himself in my life. and that is when things started to change. it was then that i had this overwhelming desire to somehow integrate my faith with my work. even though i didn’t really know what that looked like.
my dream was to study at oxford. which was about the opposite of my wife’s dreams of settling down and started a family. graciously, she told me she was willing to pursue this crazy dream of mine, if that was where we were supposed to be. so, after some encouragement and prodding from close friends, we went to england. to visit the school. to see if this was even a possibility.
turns out it was. after months of working on applications, personal statements and interviewing, i was accepted on christmas eve of 2009. and we spent the good part of the next year preparing to make this change.
Ryan&JenGoToEngland
this blog is our story of how we left all we called home. in hopes of telling a different story with our lives. a beautiful story. a story about how a couple of kids from the northwest corner of the states fell in love and then decided to do something crazy. in pursuit of sharing Him with the world. a story of how He worked through our step in faith to share Himself with others. when the credits roll on our lives, our hope is that this experience would be used to help tell His story.
thanks for reading.
-ryan
I love your writing! And Jen is coming soon!
Thank you, Matt. That really means so very much. So thank you. And yes, Jen will be here one week from tomorrow! Cannot wait. Thought I was going to have to change the name of the blog…
Thank you so much for sharing this adventure through your blog!!! I look forward to each new post 😉 you have a real talent Ryan. Can’t wait to see where God takes you with all of this! So glad to see that Jen is finally there with you!
Oh wow… Thanks for very generous words, Megan. That means so much. Really glad to hear you’ve been enjoying following along. And yes, I am so glad Jen is (finally) here as well. Now I can settle in.
Thanks again, Megan.
Ryan
Ryan, you don’t know me; Jennifer won’t remember me–I was her preschool Sunday School teacher many years ago at NVBC–what a beautiful little girl she was! This is such a wonderful opportunity you have to expand your worldview and explore your faith during this time at Oxford. It’s been a while since I read CS Lewis–I’ve read most of his writings–and he was instrumental in my gaining a deeper insight into what was important in Christianity and in practicing my faith. So store up wonderful memories to last a lifetime! My best wishes to the whole Blankers clan on the birth of this new great great granddaughter.
Thanks so much for taking the time to read, and for your warm comments of support. I’m sure Jen would remember you, if she heard your name. Yes, this really is an incredible opportunity, and we’re doing our best to enjoy every moment of it. So glad to hear you’re also a CS Lewis fan, as well!
Thank you for the congratulations re the upcoming birth. We’re definitely excited about it. And yes, that will (officially) make Darryl & Dorothy great grandparents.
WoW–does this make Darryl and Dorothy GREAT grandparents?
Proud of you and Jen!
Thanks, Katrina!
Thanks for your blog…I run a study center in California called Narnia. I always find it interesting to see how Lewis still touches our lives and directs us to Christ.
Hi Gary,
Thanks so much, both for taking the time to read our words, and for taking the time to post your thoughts. Yes, Lewis has truly touched my life, helping me see Christ more clearly, and it hasn’t been the same since.
Thanks again for reading. Best to you and yours.
Hello Ryan and Jennifer! It’s wonderful to read of your ties to Lewis’s home and that you are both working part time there. What a great experience! I hope that when you get back home you will come for a visit and tell me all about it–I live in Nooksack. I would like to give you some books I have about CS Lewis, not ones he wrote, but books others have written about him. Continue to enJOY! RIG ( aka Rena Guerin)
Hi Rena,
Thanks for the note, and thank you for reading. Yes, it really has been a great experience for us both. Thank you also for the invitation to come visit when we’re back in the neighborhood, and for the books. What a thoughtful gift. That sounds like a great time!
Best to you.
Hey Ryan,
You might not remember me, but we briefly met a few weeks ago at the C.S. Lewis Society. In trying to learn learn more about Jason’s work after hearing him talk tonight, I happened upon your blog. It’s wonderful! I look forward to reading more of it in the coming weeks. My journey with Lewis’ non-fiction works is just beginning, but it’s one I’m very excited to embark upon, so thank you for posting!
Best wishes,
Ellie
Hi Ellie,
Thanks for the note. Yes, I do remember meeting you at the Society a few weeks back. I’m glad to hear you stumbled upon my words in search of Jason’s work (as, I’m sure, will he!). I appreciate you taking the time to give them a read, and thank you for your kind words.
Wishing you all the best on your journey. I’m sure it will prove to be a thought-provoking, life-enriching experience.
Ryan