Lincoln

As many of you already know, one of our 7-year old twins, Lincoln, suffered a serious skull fracture yesterday after falling from a tree and striking a concrete sidewalk headfirst. He was air lifted from Banner Gateway to Phoenix Children's when doctors determined the extent of the fracture and the existence of intercranial bleeding and air pressure around Lincoln's brain.

Lincoln is doing remarkably well and should be downgraded from ICU tomorrow if he continues to remain stable. Lincoln faces a long, difficult rehabilitation in the months ahead, but the doctors are confident that he will make a full recovery without any significant long-term consequences or permanent impairments.

We appreciate everyone's love and support and know that many of you have been praying on our behalf. Your prayers have been critical to our feelings of peace. These feelings have only been repeated throughout the day through your expressions of love and concern.

We love all of you,

Patrick and Natalie

The Band's Visit

The Band's Visit certainly deserves the overwhelmingly positive reviews it has recevied on Rotten Tomatoes. The film represents the debut work of a young Israeli film director, Eran Kolirin, who does a wonderful job exploring Middle Eastern social and cultural tensions albeit in a remarkably understated--and even humorous--manner. Kolirin diffuses the tragic stories behind many of the characters through highly clever and subtle comedy, starting with the film's opening narrative caption: "Once--not long ago--a small Egyptian police band arrived in Israel. Not many remember this...It wasn't that important." The irony, of course, is that the police band's visit ultimately becomes an extremely important event for everyone involved and demonstrates how art, especially music and film, can connect all humans through universal emotions and experiences like love and loss. For me, The Band's Visit provided a much needed respite from my bleeding political ulcer.