{"id":693,"date":"2013-02-23T22:29:53","date_gmt":"2013-02-23T22:29:53","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/kandynolesstevens.com\/?p=693"},"modified":"2013-02-23T22:29:53","modified_gmt":"2013-02-23T22:29:53","slug":"a-cross-country-love-the-last","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.realsweetgrace.com\/blog\/?p=693","title":{"rendered":"A cross-country love . . . the last Reed’s Run"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"amy1\"<\/a>I will be the first to admit that social networking has its pitfalls.\u00a0 I will stipulate that Facebook, Pinterest, and Twitter can be huge time drainers.\u00a0 However, with eyes open wide to the pitfalls (of which I am prone) I also believe that my life has been enriched by the somewhat instantaneous connections with friends and family flung far and wide.\u00a0 I love relationships and that feeling of connection.\u00a0 I know it isn\u2019t face to face conversation, and I agree cyber hugs pale in comparison to real embraces.\u00a0 Yet, I love that in the past few years I have reconnected with family and friends that I haven\u2019t seen in person in many, many years.<\/p>\n

Several of those relationships have evolved over the years to being some of my sweetest friendships.\u00a0 One of those sweet blessings is the deep friendship and adoration with our cousins in Washington.\u00a0 Long distance, we cheer each other on through all of life\u2019s ups and downs. Our relationship has gotten so close that we have even started our own language, recently coining the term \u201cPray-paring\u201d in relation to how we should get ready for anything life.<\/p>\n

When we first announced registration for Reed\u2019s Run 2012, these same cousins became the first to register, albeit with a twist.\u00a0 They were going to run the race remotely.\u00a0 We were open to the idea, and we happily mailed them their t-shirts.\u00a0 One of our cousins was so proud of her t-shirt; she immediately wore it to school the next day. (Again thankful for Facebook because that is where I saw the evidence.) They inspired a few more cousins and friends to do the same.\u00a0 Their willingness to participate (in whatever fashion) made our hearts soar.<\/p>\n

The night of the run, my sweet Amy, penned us the following letter to tell of how they had spent the day and how the remote run went.\u00a0 She included all the pictures here.<\/p>\n

Kandy <\/i><\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 It is with joy that I write to you to share about our Reed\u2019s Run here in Washington. <\/i><\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 It was like waiting for Christmas morning.\u00a0 The countdown began & quickly, day by day, it got closer.\u00a0 The questions began. \u201cWhere should we run?\u201d \u201cWhen should we leave?\u201d \u201cWhat do we wear?\u201d\u00a0 Then the preparation began.\u00a0 We got our light sabers first.\u00a0 (We had to have them to bring the boy in Reed, the playfulness into our home.)\u00a0 We got Gatorade ~ like it would somehow fuel our feet.\u00a0 I think it was then that I realized I had \u201cpray-pared\u201d a lot more than I had prepared.\u00a0 My heart was ready \u2013 the love overflowing \u2013 the joy and excitement contagious, but preparing physically \u2013 not so much.\u00a0 Kayla hurt a tendon earlier in the week at drill practice & Sam came down with strep.\u00a0 We wanted to do it as a group so we walked most of it & I was glad we did. <\/i><\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 I woke up Saturday morning to a grey sky & wet pavement.\u00a0 Evidence of rain.\u00a0 We have not had rain in about 2 months which, in Washington, is unheard of.\u00a0 That is when I knew it was going to be a great day.\u00a0 Courtney (Sam\u2019s girlfriend) came early with donuts.\u00a0 You need carbs to run you know. <\/i>J I asked the children to help me with our \u201cnumbers\u201d.\u00a0 Because we weren\u2019t in Minnesota, we decided to use the names of Reed, Emilee, Hunter, Jesse, and our flag as our race numbers. <\/i><\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 We drove to Ruston Way. A beautiful and most important flat<\/span> road next to Puget Sound. <\/i>J It was 67 F and sunny.\u00a0 We prayed by Kelly\u2019s truck as a group and started on our way.\u00a0 I was surprised by the number of people who stopped & asked us what we were walking for.\u00a0 (So I thank you with all my heart for the shirts).\u00a0 It was an honor to share about Reed\u2019s Run with them & everyone was touched by Reed\u2019s life & his story.\u00a0 We finished with tired feet but joy filled hearts.\u00a0 What a gift it is do something nice for someone else. <\/span><\/b><\/i><\/p>\n

Kelly & I took a few pictures & are sending them to you and your family.\u00a0 We want you to have an idea where we were.\u00a0 We wanted to bring a part of us to you.\u00a0 <\/i><\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 I know that this is the last Reed\u2019s Run, but I hope that you realize because you allowed us to be a part of this \u2013 we are forever changed.\u00a0 We will now look for simple ways to bring God into others\u2019 lives by showing others His love.\u00a0 And every time we pick up our light sabers we will remember Reed.\u00a0 <\/i><\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Memories are beautiful part of God\u2019s love & we have a beautiful memory of our special Reed\u2019s Run day. <\/i><\/p>\n

Love, <\/i><\/p>\n

Kelly, Amy, Sam, Courtney & Kayla<\/i><\/p>\n

\"amy2\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Those that know me know I was a puddle of tears after reading this letter.\u00a0 I still choke up reading it.\u00a0 Of the multitude of reasons is the fact that our cousins love us and Reed enough to want to be a part (even their own special way) of our day.\u00a0 But more so, they were an embodiment that Reed\u2019s story (which is ultimately God\u2019s story) has a far and reaching effect.\u00a0 From what seems so senseless this side of heaven, God is using in ways that we can only imagine.<\/p>\n

This time He used our cousins to help us see His bigger picture. <\/i><\/b><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n

Note \u2013 the emphasized words in Amy\u2019s letter are mine.\u00a0 However, I truly believe that is the heart of healing.\u00a0 Realizing that God has a purpose for us and often that purpose is to serve others may just be the secret to healing broken hearts. <\/b><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/i><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I will be the first to admit that social networking has its pitfalls.\u00a0 I will stipulate that Facebook, Pinterest, and Twitter can be huge time drainers.\u00a0 However, with eyes open wide to the pitfalls (of which I am prone) I also believe that my life has been enriched by the somewhat instantaneous connections with friends […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[2],"tags":[14,195,274,367,379,412,449,481,526,531,547,636,649],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.realsweetgrace.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/693"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.realsweetgrace.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.realsweetgrace.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.realsweetgrace.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.realsweetgrace.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=693"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/www.realsweetgrace.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/693\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.realsweetgrace.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=693"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.realsweetgrace.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=693"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.realsweetgrace.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=693"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}