A few years back I had a twenty-five day countdown to Christmas blog series.  It was a wonderful way to reflect upon the joy this season brings to my heart.  I decided to do the same thing again this year.  As we count down the days to the best present the world ever received, I would love to hear from you about what makes the holidays special for you and your family.

Growing up, I had never heard of an advent calendar until my brother and I acquired an adopted Grandma on the way to a college basketball game.  I didn’t learn of advent calendars that night, but I did get North Dakota roots when my mom volunteered to drive the grandmother of one of my dad’s players to an away game.  Grandma Nilsen would not dream of children not having a grandmother close by.  So right there in the spacious and roomy backseat of our Pontiac Catalina (affectionately known in our family as the S.S. Sheran), we became grandchildren to a sweet woman who had no obligation other than her own moral compass to love us.

She didn’t just pay lip service to this adoption either. There were so many ways tangible and heavenly that she showed us her love.  Today, we revamped an old tradition in our house that remembers one started by my ND grandma.  That first Christmas she gave us advent calendars.  Those drugstore calendars with fun little scenes on the front, we would punch out  the perforated boxes every night before bed revealing a tiny chocolate treat.  A few moments ago, my older daughter said, “Mom, remember those calendars we used to get? Those were the BEST chocolates ever!” I had to smile sheepishly because I knew the theme of today’s blog. Before that first calendar, I had never really heard of advent.  Oh! I had anxiously awaited Christmas morning, but I never knew there was a word for that. Advent, meaning coming or arrival, became a new and cherished word.

I love to craft, and I adore Christmas.  Each year, I spend hours that morph into days and weeks creating gifts for those we love.  This year, I merged those loves into an upcycled treasure that my family can enjoy for years to come.  Using old woolen sweaters, I created mittens – twenty-five to be exact.  We attached them to a wreath (although a garland would work well too) with clothespins.  Each night as we prepare for bed, we will remove one mitten and of course, look for a little treat inside.  All the while, I will be reminiscing on how one wonderful, giving, fascinating, intriguing, never challenge her in Scrabble, but incredibly loving woman showed us God’s love in all the ways that mattered. And isn’t that what Christmas is really about?

Our advent wreath. The background is a sneak peek of the work we have been completing in our kitchen remodel.

To my son –

I have struggled writing this “letter” to you, because there is something so final in it. I am not good with endings. But I don’t think dreamers ever really are. As a lot, we are always watching the world, and fervently hoping that our will aligns with God’s heart.

Two weeks ago, you were standing on hallowed ground. I don’t know if anyone else realized it, but I certainly did as I stood next to your adopted “auntie”. We stood cheering and hoping, hoping and cheering for our sons for whom we wished the cool, crisp nights, warmth of blanket bundles, smell of fresh grass, and glare of stadium lights would last forever.

Even though my dreamer heart doesn’t want to admit it, many good things do come to their ends. When the clock ran out of time, it was if the last sand in my heart’s hourglass poured out. Something you had fought so hard for was over. There are many who conditioned and practiced, but none that I know who went through more to be a part of the team. Even though you were often ridiculed, overlooked, and disappointed, you never gave up. Surgery after surgery, you never wavered in your dedication. You simply wanted to play the game you love. If I have never told you, I admire your courage.

Senior year – Photo by Devereaux Photography, Greg Devereaux

You might be wondering what I mean by hallowed ground since the final game of your football career was at an opposing team’s field. After waiting almost three years to be able to play again, the first step you took to play the game you shared with your brother took place on the very field where your final steps to a locker room occurred. The poignancy of that moment was not lost on me. Hallowed ground! I almost daresay it was sacred ground because Reed’s first game as a Laker was played on that very field too. Maybe, just maybe, the warmth I suddenly felt in your final minutes was one of his signature sneak-up-behind-you heavenly hugs, telling me, “Don’t worry, Mom! We are going to be okay!”

Your first step back on the field, hallowed ground. Photo courtesy of Gail Gregoire.

Letting go of a lifelong pursuit takes time, and thankfully, you eased the pain by having one more weekend as a coach for your Special Olympics football team. The joy I see in your face when you practice and coach your team is only rivalled by watching the parents of your players. I see in their eyes the respect they have for a young man who picked their sons first, something that many of them probably don’t get to experience all the time. If only my heart could tell theirs, you understand how that feels, and you pour your whole heart into making the game fun for them all. I watch as you tell them you believe in them and you are so proud of them. My heart soars. If I have never told you, I admire your spirit for how it seeks to help others.

I know you were hoping for another gold medal for your Pumas, but there’s nothing shabby about bronze, especially when you coach with honor and dignity. Just like I have watched your Granpa Junior for years, I could see your thoughts were playing out every moment questioning if there was anything you could have done differently. Let me tell you, son. There are lots of things that could have been tried, but you did the one thing that hundreds didn’t do. You showed up! You gave of your time and talents – all for the love of your game. Quietly, on the long road home, you said something that I will hold in my soul for a very long time. You were looking ahead for who could replace you as coach when you go away to college next year. It can’t just be anybody, Mom. It has to be someone with a servant’s heart.

I was trying so hard not to let you see my tears. They were a jumbled mixture of eclectic, cathartic tears. Tears of bitterness for all you have had to endure.  Tears of joy that you were made of the right stuff to overcome all of that. Huge tears for the void where football used to be. Tears of sadness that the journey has come to an end. Tears of pride. Tears of wonder that God could use your injuries to teach us all kinds of things about life and loving his people.  If I have never told you, I love your big servant’s heart. I admire the way you use it to love others.

In every definition of the word, that is a true champion to me.

Thank you for all the fun memories from flag football to varsity starter, and especially as a coach. This football loving momma will cherish them always.

Loving you from the sidelines for a long time and loving you always forever –

Faith – Family – Football

Momma

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Earlier this year, I spoke at a church in Excelsior.  It was a great experience, but when I walked into the smaller sanctuary for one of the other speakers, I stopped in my tracks.  I could hear the sounds of the speaker and other sounds at a typical women’s conference.  But, I couldn’t move.  I couldn’t speak.  I was in awe of a painting hanging in the room.  The painting was a graphic depiction of Jesus’ face.  I was drawn to it. His face was gorgeous, with eyes a piercing, penetrating blue.  I was in love that face.

At the end of the day after the long trip home, I immediately went to the computer and searched.  I found the painting and the artist in less than 20 minutes.  I learned the work was made in what is known as performance art. While looking through the website, I noticed a link for events.  Is he serious?  Was there really a chance that I could see this painting made?  I was nervously excited because we had been searching for something really big to end Reed’s Run.  Maybe, just maybe, this guy would be it.

I immediately filled out the contact sheet. I shared about Reed and his run and what I was hoping for.   I didn’t think I would hear back, because there was a disclaimer that said that Mike was really behind schedule and to be patient.  I almost drove off the road the next day when I got a call from a number I didn’t know.  It was Mike with a note from his wife that said, “CALL this lady!”

As we visited, Mike loved the idea of coming to Marshall for the last Reed’s Run.  We hold a similar belief that the gospel can be shared in lots of cool ways.  There was only one problem.  As an official painter for Women of Faith, he was already booked.  It was a great conversation, and we ended with if something changed for either of us, we would get back in touch.  I understood, but I was definitely disappointed.

On to the next big idea for Reed’s Run. Our family mulled over several less-appealing options until . . . I got a phone call.  “Kandy, I don’t really believe this, but it seems like the weekend that you are having Reed’s Run some things have changed at the Women of Faith event.  This has never happened, but they aren’t going to need me that weekend.”

This time, I did have to pull over, and I cried.  I cried on the phone. I cried when I shared what I think happened.  I cried after I hung up.  I even cried for quite a while afterward.

In my heart, I wanted something amazing for ending the Run.  I wanted something that people would remember forever.  I wanted something that blended the things that Reed loved in a way that reached people just the way Reed did in life.

I won’t know for sure until I get to heaven, but I wholeheartedly believe that one sweet little red-head has some connections in high, holy places.

Note: Mike Lewis, aka The Jesus Painter, will perform live at 7:00 pm on Saturday at Reed’s Run.  His work has been called the sermon without words. It is a unique way to worship.  Mike’s works will be available at an auction following the performance.  The event is free, and all are invited to attend.  It is strongly suggested that you bring your own chair and possibly a blanket. After watching Mike perform Reed’s Run, you will want to show his work to your friends and family. Thankfully, there is a second opportunity to see him perform the next day Sunday, Sept. 30 at 10:15 am at Christ Lutheran Church in Cottonwood. Come and be blessed at both events.

Yesterday, I received a text from our friend in charge of auction donations that said, “Call me when you get home.  There is something at your house.”  The following text raised an eyebrow.  “All I can say is my daughter said THIS is HUGE.”  We were gone to a football game, and honestly, I had forgotten about the texts until I walked in the door and saw 4’x4’ box sitting at my dining room table.

What in the world?

Then I remembered the text.  That recollection was followed by laughing aloud. They weren’t kidding when they said huge.  No hidden subtlety there.

That got me to thinking about our auction and some of the most unusual items we have had in the years past.  We have had some cool stuff, but there have definitely been some that I wondered if anyone would ever bid on that.   (My fear being I would become their permanent home.)

To my surprise, those items tend to be the most hotly contested ones.  It is good to know that I live among people with a good sense of humor.  That’s the optimistic outlook, because the alternative would be that I live among a community of people with odd decorating tastes.

The first year’s item that really took the bull by the horns was just that – a mounted set of bullhorns.  I’m telling you when those bovine trophies showed up at my house I guffawed.  But my visions of being stuck with them were over quickly because they found a new home and moo-ved (I couldn’t resist) on out at Reed’s Run.

The second item that got some good chuckles among our crew was a chainsaw carved beaver that literally was stored at one house, before moving to ours.  On the journey over, we called up our neighbors and said, “Bring all the kids out on the front lawn because you don’t want to miss this.”  Our neighbors with equally quirky senses of humor obliged and then they helped us move that buck-toothed behemoth.  That escapade was followed by a general joke fest with my favorite being, “You might be a redneck if you call up your neighbors and ask them to move a 200-lb beaver.”

So it seems that we have ourselves a genuine (got to pronounce that “gen-u-wine” with a twist of Southern drawl) threepeat here this year.  That large box, which took up half my dining room table, houses an equally as large neon sign.  Yeppers – It reads “Open 24 hours”!

Don’t exactly know where my old friends “Bull-horns” and “Chainsaw Beaver” are, but I would be interested in hearing about their whereabouts.  I am also really looking forward meeting to the new owner of “Neon sign”.  It is not, (I repeat), NOT going in my kitchen.

It never gets dull around here before Reed’s Run.

Photo by Cloie Stevens (Grand Champion Photo Lyon County Fair)

Well, apparently I need to change my passwords after Huck’s entry yesterday in our countdown.  I am not sure what else he knows, but I am guessing that Jay Bush and I had better keep closer tabs on our secrets.

I have to admit, however, that Huck did a pretty good job of explaining the heart behind the dog walk. I agree with him that Huck will always remain boy’s best friend, and the rest of us are just lucky enough to share our lives with both of them.  There were a few things that he omitted that I feel people should know.

Basic Dog Walk Facts:

• The dog walk is only $10 because the registrant is actually the dog!  (It is always good to include the person’s name too, in case we need to contact you.  But of course, strange things happen in this world, like the time Huck received mail some for a credit card.)
• Each dog receives a bag of goodies (typically homemade treats, a leash, and an official Reed’s Run neck scarf).
• There are communal water bowls available at the beginning and the end of the race. (Slobbering and spilling are not frowned upon.  Swimming in the water dish is!)
• Good canine friends are welcomed and encouraged to stay for the entire event including the movie. (Both Huck and Hiccup LOVE movie night.  Huck, of course, loves to try to sneak the popcorn.)
• There are always great auction items devoted to dogs and dog lovers.

Questions we’ve been asked:

1. Can my dog and I run in the 5k? – The answer is yes, but please register for the 5k instead of the dog walk. We considere the human as the participant then, since many dogs can run circles around their owners.  The only thing we ask is that at the starting line the runners with dogs are at the back of the pack.  We don’t want any mishaps with leashes.  (Just ask Huck about that time that happened to me when he was 6 months old.) We have had more than one dog complete the 5k each year.
2. How are the dog medalists chosen? – We have a secret panel of judges that watch the canine participants and their friends from registration until the end of the walk.  They look for how well the dog interacts with others (canine and human) and the bond  shared between dog and owner.  Because of the subjectivity, it takes the panel a LONG time to agree on the winners.  They really take their job seriously.  (But in my heart, they are all champion dogs!)

New this year:

Reed & Huck won a purple ribbon in Best Pet Trick in Reed’s first year in 4-H at the fair.  It is a good thing they only entered that contest once.  Unless you count sneaking food off a table or opening up doors (Yes! He can do that), Huck only knows one trick.  He won with the “catch the food off of your nose” trick.  In honor of that relationship and the “hallowed” ground of which we hold the run (more on that in tomorrow’s blog), we have added a new category for earning a medal in the dog category.  There will be ONE (and only one) medal given in all four years of Reed’s Run for the Best Pet Trick.

If you and your dog want to show off their talents, please let the registration folks know & at the conclusion of the dog walk, we will let all those participating sparkle and shine with their best pet trick.

Lou – if you are out there – Reed’s sister E thinks that you should dance with your owner!

Until tomorrow – enjoy this beautiful day!