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22 Days to go: We’re in the Club. Now what? Make New Memories.

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One of the things you often hear in groups of bereaved parents is “We joined the club that no one wanted to belong to.”  That is the UNDERSTATEMENT of a lifetime.  If it were pledge week, this group would be the one that absolutely no one would attend the social.  But now that I am lifelong card-carrying member, I have discovered that many other “members” share my wishes and desires.

Recently one of those wishes has been to hear Reed’s voice.  I feel like I am forgetting what he sounded like.  So one night I dug out his old MP3 player and listened to all the crazy antics that he and his siblings recorded. Through my tears, I got to hear his unmistakable voice.  Another of those desires is to make new memories with that child.

In recent weeks, one of my grief journey friends shared her discovery.  It was an artwork collection that a teacher found and hand-delivered to their home.  She was practically giddy when she shared with me.  My eyes welled with tears because my friend received the greatest gift – a new memory.

Sometimes the “voice” is revealed at what I believe is the exact time God knows that our hearts are ready to receive it.   One of those moments for me came at Reed’s Celebration of Life service.  At some point, Pastor Don shared a poem written by Reed that he was given just moments before.  I sat there on the gym floor stunned because I had never heard those words.  That new memory of sweet words quickly became a soothing balm for my soul.

This summer I was able to be God’s instrument in finding hidden words of a sweet young man and family friend, AJ Maag.  Following AJ’s death, there were so many questions.  Were we all going to be okay?  Days later, a few of us had the honor of packing up AJ’s apartment.  As I was standing in AJ’s room, there on his bedroom wall right where he would first look when he woke up was a life list.  I stood in that bedroom and bawled. His “creed” was the answer to my question.  AJ’s words, penned on cardboard, were like God’s way of telling me we were all going to be okay.  I had the joy of sharing his precious words – a new memory for his parents – at his memorial service.  They were words to make us all proud and words to remember.

Until spoken about at his services, very few knew that this quiet, personable young man was the one who built the four benches around the Lakeview pond.  One bench was made in memory of Jesse, Hunter, Emilee, and Reed.  That’s just how AJ was, generous and unassuming.  The one thing I never understood was he didn’t want any recognition for the benches, because in his words, “It’s not about me”.

But for two moms, making new memories is just one of those things we really want to do.  We want to remember AJ’s gift and memorialize those he remembered as well as himself.  We have copies of AJ’s creed which will be available for a free will donation at Reed’s Run. The proceeds of which will go to make bronze markers for each of those four benches that will have each child’s name right alongside the name of the builder.

This time it is a new shared memory.  Somehow it just seems fitting.

23 days to go: Let their little lights shine

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Some of our ideas come from the heart, but come to our minds in all kinds of places.  So it was with the “Let their little lights shine” luminary service that we have each year.  If you aren’t familiar with the luminaries or the remembrance, then you have missed my most favorite part of the evening.  My heart soars when the luminaries are lit.  The bags are in remembrance of any child who has died.  Each name is said aloud followed by a family member or volunteer placing the bags in the designated area for the evening.

Last year the bags twinkled throughout the outdoor movie.  When I look out at a field of faces at the movie, I am always moved by the faces that are not there, because I know what the bags mean.  Each flicker is a loved one that isn’t here with us enjoying this time.  Our family alone has four of those bags – one for each of our children (Reed and our 3 babies) in heaven.  But also represented by those bags are friends and friends’ children.  Some of those are for children that I deeply miss having at our  lives.

So it was in the summer of 2009 (a few months before the first Reed’s Run) when Erin and I were running in the hospital’s 5k race.  At some point I connected with a mom of young lady who had passed away about 7 months before Reed.  That young lady was Erin’s swim coach who made her feel like she was the most important swimmer in the world.  She encouraged her, challenged her, and supported her.   Erin was only seven years old when she died, and she still has her pictures in her room/  She still dedicates swims for her each year.  She brought so much light to my little girl’s world.

During the race, the mom and I chatted only briefly. All I could think about was how her daughter’s light was extinguished much too early. It hit me that while Reed’s name might be on the event, I wanted it to be a place where all children could be remembered.  I wanted to remember her daughter who meant so much to mine. I know how much candlelight services mean to our family, and that was the idea that popped into my head as I jogged along.  As the concept mulled over in my head, I was committed to having each name read aloud.  Mostly I felt so passionately because after losing a child, one of the greatest fears is no one saying their name again.  I ran across a poem last year that succinctly said what my heart feels regarding Reed.

The mention of my child’s name may bring tears to my eyes,
But it never fails to bring music to my ears.
If you are really my friend,
let me hear the music of her name!
It soothes my broken heart and sings to my soul!
~Author Unknown ~

It also explains why the luminaries are my favorite part of the night.  I get to sing to someone else’s soul, and by doing so, it helps my own heal.  In that healing, I carry a little piece of each of their lights with me. With that remembrance, they are never truly forgotten.

Special note: We always have extra bags, candles, and room to add another child to our list.  If you would like a child added to our list, please contact us or come to Reed’s Run where we can provide one for you.  If you would like a child remembered but are unable to attend, simply forward the information to www.reedsrun.com and we will make a luminary for you.

24 Days to Go: Where are they now?

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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.

25 days to go: Family Movie Night

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If you had called my house five years ago on a Friday afternoon and asked what we were up to for the weekend, your answer would have been that I was going to keep all the “chickens in the coop” to just hang out as a family.  Our favorite way to do that is to make a great snack and have movie night.  We would often retreat to the basement and pretend the rest of the world didn’t know where we were holed up.  In our perfect cocoon, we have laughed, cried, and laughed until we cried over some of our favorite movies.  We have revisited favorites from mine and Daniel’s past, as well as introduced our kids to some of the classics (think 12 Angry Men or To Kill a Mockingbird).

 

While cuddling up under blankets, kids, cats and of course, dogs is comforting, the best part is really the memories we have made doing that.  Sometimes we have opened up our sanctuary for a friend or two, but that isn’t typical.  Last year following a varsity football game, we did just that.  We went all over town until we finally found a movie that we had wanted to see for a long time.  That movie was The 5th Quarter.  If you haven’t seen it, it reminded us so much of ourselves and it brought to the surface so much hurt and healing that we all bawled.  Our friend “G” simply held our hands.  He knew that it was hard for us to revisit but the message was worth it.

 

That is how it goes with really good movies (or books).  The message they carry can transform your life if you allow it to your heart and soul.  (Not all movies do that for us, but sometimes a movie comes along that blows your socks off.)  So it was with this year’s movie choice for Reed’s Run.

 

We had heard a little bit about this movie in 2006, and we went to great lengths to get it.  We had it on our Netflix queue for months.  Finally it was in.  Reed was in the 6th grade when it arrived in the mail.  There are several powerful scenes in the movie (which I won’t give away), but the one that I poignantly remember is the one where an older gentleman is walking down the hallway praying for each kid’s locker.  All was quiet in the basement, when out of nowhere Reed bolted up from the floor yelling, “NO WAY!”  I was so startled by his reaction that I sent a whole bowl of popcorn flying.  After regrouping my sensibilities, I asked Reed what in the world was wrong with him.  In typical Reed fashion, he simply said, “I thought I was the only one who did that.” Did what? Walk in the hallway? He explained, and suddenly the popcorn on the floor didn’t seem so important.  “I thought I was the only one who walked by a bank of lockers and prayed for each one, Mom.”

 

Did my sweet little boy really just say what I thought he did?  A quick look around the room confirmed that he did because everyone in the room sat there mouth agape looking at our redhead.  Yes, movies do change your life.

 

The movie choice for this year’s Reed’s Run has been prayed and talked about since last year’s movie.  While Star Wars will always be a Reed favorite, this movie shares more about Reed and his life motto – “Faith, Family & Football” than any other.  Reed LOVED this movie!  If you aren’t familiar with the film, there is a trailer on our website (www.reedsrun.com), and it is from the same group that made the movies Fireproof and Courageous. If you are familiar, this is definitely one worth watching again.

 

The movie will start on 9/29 at roughly 8:00 pm.    It is advised to bring your own chairs and blankets.  Refreshments will be available as a fundraiser for the Lakeview Football Family.

26 days to go: Doggone it!

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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!

 

 

 

27 days to go: Who let the dogs out?

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Photo taken by Lulu Bell (evidence that she was NOT the one on the couch)
That’s Me, Hiccup, and Andy
(No, we don’t have laser eyes. This place has gone to the dogs.)

Mom has left the computer open.  She doesn’t know that the remote isn’t the only thing I can operate around here.  I will say it’s a good thing she is gone because this typing without thumbs is NOT easy. I see why she always says, “Huck-y if only you had thumbs you could help out around here.”  Well, I am going to help her out and pound out today’s blog.   (Do you know that she reads all of her work out loud; so, I have been an editor more than once.)

I don’t think they realize how much I notice when they think no one is looking.  Like I know what happens to all the missing cups and glasses, and I know why some people’s laundry baskets never seem full in this family. I also know which person to sit next to at the table for a little snack.  But I am like my buddy, Duke, I’m not saying anything.

It’s pretty obvious why my family chose to have a dog walk for Reed’s Run, but it is doubtful that anybody understands how much my boy meant to me.  Very few know that I came into Reed’s life because he had been diagnosed with an eye condition causing him to go blind.  My puppy energy helped him remember he was still a little boy.  Soon he forgot all about those big medical words that I couldn’t understand anyway.  All I know is that I would sit at the end of the driveway waiting until my boy got home from school every day, and then the two of us would be off on adventures.  Those adventures were everything to me, and eventually it got to where Reed talked Mom & Dad into to taking me everywhere.  (Just don’t ask the rest of them about our first camping trip.  Let’s just say Reed & I were seriously in the dog house!)

This weekend Mom invited over two of my good friends to hang out with my little puppy brother, Hiccup, and myself.  One of those dogs is my buddy Andy.  Andy is younger but I get it. He has a big heart too.  Somehow I think he understands that we have a bigger role than just friend now.  We carry a piece of our boys (Reed & AJ) in everything we do. Mom has met lots of nice people who have told her similar stories about their canine friends. Believe me, our Mom can talk.

Simply put dogs matter! Maybe not to all people, but we really do to grieving people. I feel when their hearts are hurting because I miss Reed as much as they do.  When I see them down, I try my best to snuggle up, but that is getting harder for me to do these days.  I know this is the last Reed’s Run, and even though I have had a few bouts of being down this year, I am going to make one last trip to the place where Reed and I earned those purple ribbons to remember my boy.

I am not sure that Mom is going to like that Hiccup and Andy just  licked her keyboard.  Pups! When will they ever learn to cover up the evidence? Trust me, I will act like I was never here.

PAWS OUT – Huck

Miss Kandy to the Rescue – 28 days to go!

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Photo by Lil’ Sprout Memories by Alyssa Francis

I have known my whole life (okay since 2nd grade) that I wanted to be a teacher.  I love learning, but more importantly I adore kids!  I have earned many different names over the year from Adjunct Professor to Ms. Stevens (my Lakeview name), but the name I cherish the most is the one given to me by my Sunday School kids – Miss Kandy.

I will never forget the time when my family was vacationing in the Twin Cities and we were taking in the “fun” (and I use that term loosely) at the Mall of America.  We were camped out at the Legoland play area, when I heard a faint shout out. “Miss Kandy!”  I thought I was hearing things.  But the sound began to crescendo like a blue shift of wavelengths suggesting the sound-maker was running toward me.  “MISSSSS KANNNNNDDDDDDYYYYY” I turned just in time to see a sweet little “L” from my Sunday School class running across (with her parents in hot pursuit) across the indoor amusement park.  How in the world she saw me through all those people is beyond me.

So it came as no surprise to me how I ended up in the place where the kids run earned its beginnings.  Reed’s Run aficionados will remember that we did not have a kids run in the first year.  The origin of the run came from the summer before the second run.  While helping chaperone the Lakeview junior high football team attending Chad Greenway’s “Day to Reach” camp in Hutchinson, I took a passel of younger siblings to Burger King to the play land.   After playing for a while, we all sat down to enjoy our snacks.  It was during that conversation that the idea was hatched.

One of the sweet girls started the ball rolling by saying, “I love Reed’s Run, but I just wish I was big enough to run in it.”  I explained that anyone, any age, can run.  “S” and her friend, “E” explained that wasn’t the problem; the problem was that 5k was too far for some little legs.  Oh really?  Well what if I put together a shorter run just for kids?  Their faces beamed over the top of their treats.

Since it was to be a kids run, it needed to be designed and organized by kids.  Within a week, we had two sweet 7th graders from Marshall on board, and the rest is, as they say, history.  True to Miss Kandy form, every child who runs in the race is rewarded for doing their best.  (Yes, there are medals awarded for top runners, but the emphasis is on fun.)

So in the end, a couple elementary kids planted the seed, a couple middle school kids got it organized, and a whole lot of kids have enjoyed their ideas and work. Thank you to “S” and “E” for sharing your really great idea over ICEES with me.  God definitely knew what He was doing when He gave me a heart for kids.  Reed’s Run was improved for the better, but the best part is that I am truly blessed because of it.

Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.”  Matthew 19:14 (NIV)

Greatness – You CAN do it! ~ 29 days to go

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Photo courtesy of Lil’ Sprout Memories (Alyssa Francis)

I recently saw a Nike commercial that features sweet Nathan Sorrell of Ohio.  That commercial has been often discussed with all kinds of dissenting and differing opinions.  I will admit that when I saw the commercial for the first time, I cried.  It was a really emotional moment, because I saw a young man who tried.  I saw a young man who didn’t let others define his value or self-worth.  In subsequent weeks, I have seen an interview with Nathan and his mom who have walked through a whirlwind of commentaries – some regarding the ad as genius and others who liken it to child abuse.  In the end, Nathan admitted that his critics only fueled his desire to work-out more.  Good for you, Nathan!  I am sure that run was not easy, but he did it.

His spirit reminded me of another young man who embraced life fully and who never gave up.  I don’t think there was an activity in life that he pursued that he didn’t at least give it a passionate try.  Yesterday, I shared that Reed kept on running.  I am sure it was hard and I am sure that he was pooped, but he did it.  His determination to support a friend kept him going, and he did it.

It was that perseverance that fueled me to wake up one morning and finish the journey that I had started with the boys in January of 2008.  That journey was to complete a triathlon as a team.  Well, the plans changed and I worked for one year to get into shape to do it.  It wasn’t easy.  It was time-consuming. My teammates weren’t able to compete; so my work load tripled. I wasn’t going to set any impressive records. Yet, I worked and worked some more.

One of my personal favorite memories from my triathlon was the surprise I got after completing the swimming and biking to see my family and dear friends waiting to cheer me on.  Sweet little M had made signs.  Many read, “You can do it!”  But the one that caught my heart was written in her best 1st-grade penmanship said, “Can you do it?”  I also doubled-over from laughing so hard.  In reality, I was thinking the same thing, because after a half-mile swim and 17 miles biking, I wasn’t sure I had 5k of running left in my legs.  But with one of my friends (pulling a Reed – running alongside of me), I just kept going, and I did it.

Yes, there are serious and competitive runners at Reed’s Run as it is a certified and sanctioned event.  But we have moms and dads with babies in strollers.  We have grandmas and grandpas who go for a nice fall walk.  We have families that go for an evening stroll.  Whether you come to win or come to walk, in the end both extremes cover the same distance.

The best advice I ever got from one of my college professors (who in this case happened to be my dad) was, “The first key to success is to show up.”  Thank you to all who have showed up in the past; you are the key to our success.  If you are considering this year’s run, I promise – “You CAN do it!” And who knows you just might, “Find Your Greatness” because just like Nathan, we are all capable of it!  I know because your greatness has been a big part of my family’s healing!

Reed’s Run – 30 days to go

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ImageI have never felt the need to do this before, but somehow as the reality that the end is coming soon, I suddenly have a desire to share the “behind the scenes” decisions and reasons for what we do.  I ask that you as you read these posts that you share them if you feel led to do so.

How did this run come about in the first place?  In the wee hours following Reed’s death, a dear friend (who is coming from California to this year’s run) planted the idea that we needed to start a scholarship because Reed LOVED to learn.  We adored the idea, but had no idea how we would fund the thing.  Additionally, we didn’t want to give a small scholarship – we wanted ONE that would make a significant impact in the lives of students.  With that in mind, how in the world were we going to do this?

Throughout this part of our journey, we received cards and letters of support and encouragement from everywhere.  One day, we received one, from another now friend who has walked in our shoes (who will also be at Reed’s Run), that told of the run they do for their son.  We saw their website and were encouraged, but run – seriously – Reed was emphatically NOT a runner.  Golf tournament – art show – Star Wars movie marathon: all seemed more our boy’s style.

About this same a few sweet boys in Reed’s class and on his football team shared stories that our redhead NEVER told us.  I realize we were just beginning our grief journey, and any story was like precious jewels. But these stories opened up our eyes to just how much Reed never tooted his own horn. Apparently during football conditioning, Reed encouraged others when they thought they had nothing left to give.  One story told of how they were laying on the ground doing leg lifts.  The boy next to Reed was about to give up.  Reed told him, “This is going to make us better.  You can do it.”  The boy shared that gave him just enough to keep going.  The second story became the inspiration behind Reed’s Run.

In all honesty, Reed was still in the “husky” stage of life.  If you have boys or men in your life, they know which jeans section I am talking about.  So for 12 years old, he hadn’t outgrown that stage yet.  Additionally, he wasn’t the quickest or best runner by far.  The boys told us of how Reed would run his required laps, but here is where the story gets interesting.  Instead of quitting, he would cut across the field and run alongside the boys who were behind him (I am guessing there weren’t many).  He would run the rest of their required time with them, encouraging them, telling them he wasn’t going to leave them behind.  INCREDULOUS – a kid who didn’t enjoy running – did THAT!  That kid was MY boy!

We confirmed the story with the coaches, who added that it caught on and that others started doing it too.  We knew then how we were going to raise funds for his scholarship.  Last night I saw a video that caused me to sob.  I am including the link below.  I never got to witness Reed’s “Run”, but I have to imagine in a small way it was like this.

Even though we never thought Reed’s Run would become as big as it has, we are glad that we get to share that small piece of our boy with everyone. The world always needs friends who run along side.  Thank you to all the people who continue to do that for us and who give of their time, money, donations, love and support to make this dream (Reed’s Run) a reality.

http://www.godvine.com/The-Inspiring-Story-of-Matt-Woodrum-Can-Bring-Anyone-to-Tears-1990.html

Please note:  We have amazing admiration for the tenacity and spirit of Matt Woodrum and all that he has taught his community, and now, the world.  Apparently, God has placed young men (and women) all over the world to teach us a lot about ourselves.   Thank you Matt for teaching more about what you CAN DO than what the world tells us you can’t. Since Reed’s death, I have learned that, indeed, God can use young men to change the world.

3 Things – 8/13/12

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I have had many things this last two weeks that have brought big smiles to me and my family; so, I’ve had a difficult time choosing how to narrow this down to just three items.  But I think that I have finally figured out which three I want to share.

1.  Revisiting the past – not all things bygone are worth a mention and no, not all of the things I remember growing up would bring a smile.  Think rainbow sweaters that go from sleeve to sleeve or pinning your blue jeans.  But on a road trip with some friends, I came face to face (well sort of) with an old love from my past.  Actually, my old friend was relegated to the top shelf in the convenience store cooler. You know the shelf where store-brand colas, Yoo-hoo’s, and that milk product that doesn’t actually need refrigeration sit.  There among the other “less popular” beverage choices sat a blast from my past – Pop Shoppe sodas.  I was immediately carried back to when my family first left the South and moved to Valley City, North Dakota where you could mix-n-match of case of sodas. Of course, now the pop has its own website www.popshoppe.com, unlike when our friendship began in the early 80’s. If you have a few minutes, check out the website and have yourself a chuckle at the humor found within.  I enjoyed every sip of my root beer thinking back to the days of playing balloon volleyball in the basement for hours on end.  With every memory that came flooding back from those days, my face was carrying a great big smile.

2. Visiting old friends– this is actually a play on words.  Last week I was able to return

Huck

(FINALLY) to my volunteer position at the Minneota Manor (nursing home) with my faithful sidekick, Huckleberry.  Actually, I am the sidekick (because he is much more popular there than I am) as Huck makes his rounds and visits his friends.  I love to see the spring in the old boy’s steps as soon as he sees me get out a bandanna scarf (of which he has quite a collection).  Huck has his favorite people and as soon as we arrive he has to go visit at least one of them. He has always been a special dog, but I think as he gets older he recognizes a kindred spirit when he sees one.  I am glad that Huck takes me along because there is one special grandpa there that has held my heart for a long time.  On his good days (when the dementia isn’t so bad), he recognizes me (or at least, Huck), and then even my heart smiles!

3. Taking a last minute vacation – last Friday, our family took a last minute vacation to go to the zoo and to go back-to-school (shudder) shopping.  We had made a promise to the smallest Stevens to let her see dolphins this summer.  Sadly, we learned that the dolphin bay at the zoo would be closing down soon due to lack of funding.  Nonetheless, we enjoyed the dolphins, but we relished our time with the dinosaurs’ exhibit.  Gladly, the dinosaurs were life-sized recreations that were robotic and somewhat interactive.  All of my kids have taken strolls through the “Land before Time” series, and we have shared a love of dinosaurs for many years.  I am certain this won’t be our last foray with dinosaurs (having dug for mammoths in South Dakota and visited Sue in Chicago’s Field Museum).  Somehow just being together sans technology (thank you Minnesota Zoo for having terrible cell phone coverage) was what this momma’s heart needed.  Watching our little Sally Gal have the same reactions to the dinosaurs that our once little red-head did at a similar dinosaur attraction brought tears to my eyes.  Knowing that that same red-head had to be looking on with pride from Heaven – definitely made me smile!

Whatever it is, BIG or small, find the things that make you smile!  It’s definitely worth it!