A Friendship Established

It was the year 2000. I had just moved and was attending a new church. As is the case with every church I've gone to, I've tried to make a connection with the pastoral staff. Breakfasts, etc. Just to get to know them. So when I started going to Bethany I did the same thing. The difference here was that the senior pastor had just stepped down six months previous for personal reasons.

Jerry Keranen (the only remaining pastor) was a good guy. I didn't know him well but from my observations he seemed cool enough. So, as has become my habit, I poked my head in his office one day and said to him, "Jerry, if there's anything you need me to do, just let me know. I work nights so I've got a little more time then a lot of people." My thinking was that I would be able to help out with youth and for a time I did. I helped on Wednesday nights and at different activities. One time we went to a lock in on the other side of the state. I got up at 6pm on Thursday night and went to work at 11pm. Friday morning we left for the lock in. My intent was to sleep on the way down. It didn't happen. So from Thursday night at 6pm until Saturday at around 1030pm I had 3 hours of sleep.

Because the senior pastor had stepped down there was a search committee formed to look for his replacement. During this process I wanted to help as much as possible to take some of the burden off of Jerry as he was the only pastor at the time. After some time we met with a pastor out of Cleveland, OH. He was a nice guy with a nice family and he was voted in. Unfortunately, we were not thoroughly complete in the research we did before hiring the new pastor. This eventually came back to bite us. I honestly don't remember much about the first year or so at Bethany. I remember helping to clear snow off the roof of a friend and then I went sledding off the roof. I worked with the youth and met with Jerry for breakfast occasionally. It was a fun and interesting year.

Christmas Day 2001 the newly elected senior pastor stepped down.  Two men were elected as temporary deacons to help with the life of the church. At this point I had decided that not only would I become a member of the church but I was going to help out in whatever way I could to take some of the burden off of Jerry as he was our only remaining pastor. Plus, he seemed like a cool guy. Who doesn't want to help a cool guy? I collaborated with some fellow sponsors and suggested to the deacons that we take over the youth group with Jerry as an advisor.  I'll never forget that Wednesday night. It was after church and we were meeting with the deacons and Jerry to discuss the future and how we could help. Jerry was asked what he needed to help him. He said that he needed someone to come along side him, encourage him, keep him accountable, and to just be a friend. As he was saying this I thought that he would most certainly be asking one of the other youth sponsors. I had barely been there two years and wasn't even a member of the church yet! One of the other sponsors had grown up in the church and another had been there several years. They seemed much more qualified then I did. However, God's plan does not necessarily require lots of experience. Jerry said he wanted me to be that person. He said he wanted me to stop working with the youth as I was much more suited to help him. I was to become a Barnabus (son of encouragement). My jaw hit the floor! I was stunned. I got home, called Mom and said "Help!" She suggested I send him a verse via email and maybe a quote that could encourage him. So I started immediately. I was very disciplined about it and from what I was told he was very encouraged. I had a couple people share with me privately that he had said it was really helping. I was happy about that. Thus started one of the closest relationships I've ever had with anyone. One Sunday I was in church and Kendra, his then two year old daughter, ran up to me and gave me a hug. To this day I don't know why. Jerry told me it was because I was such a nice guy but couldn't there have been another reason? I know I'm nice but up to that point what did I do for his family that would merit a hug from his daughter who just knew me as this guy at church I will never know.

As the months went by I would meet him for breakfast and one weekend when the wife and kids were gone he had a couple of us over just to hang out after church.

In 2002 the Detroit Redwings won the Stanley Cup. I'll admit that I've never really been an avid hockey fan. I always like the fights. However, I was trying new things and they were in the finals so I stopped by Jerry's house to watch game 3. The game was on June 8, 2002. It was a Saturday night. It was a tight game and it went into triple overtime (the third longest finals game ever). By the beginning of the second overtime Jerry and I were the only ones left and Jerry said he was going to bed. If I recall correctly, he asked me to turn off the tape. I'm probably wrong but that's what I remember. Anyway, it gets to the final OT and I am really trying to keep quiet. I know I was doing a good job because no one was downstairs. Everyone was asleep. I remember thinking that I probably should've left. However, the game was almost over so I decided to stay.

At 2am (or whatever time it was) the Redwings pulled it out and I whispered a "YES!!", turned off the TV, and quietly made my way to the door. I carefully opened it so as not to make any noise and then slowly closed it behind me. What I didn't realize was that the door would stick. It stuck just enough that I didn't notice it but still pulled a little harder. BOOOM!!! That door slammed and made a very loud noise. It sounds so much louder when there is silence. However, I know it was big. Thankfully, I didn't wake up any children. The next day at church I asked Jerry if he had heard me watching the game. He said no. Then I asked if he had heard me leave. I'll never forget what he said. "Everybody heard you leave!"

That story dovetails with the story of an anniversary present. On October 29,2002 the Keranen family added another girl to the bunch. Her name was Kristie. Funny thing now that I think about it. I don't know her middle name. For that matter, I don't think I know any of the kids middle names. Huh. Go figure. Anyway, the Red Wings won the Stanley Cup and as is always the case special edition sports magazines and memorabilia were sold. I'll be honest and say that I really had not paid much attention...actually no attention to hockey before that year. However, my mom being the giving person that she is thought I'd like a Sports Illustrated Collector's Edition issue on the Red Wings and their season. As much as I appreciated the thought, I knew it would end up getting thrown away so I came up with a plan.

One day Jerry handed me a a recording of his wedding back in 1987. He told me I'd get a kick out of it. It was actually pretty good. Jerry actually sang! I'm not sure if that was more shocking then disturbing. The jury's still out on that one. The music they chose to use were from Steve Green's album "Find Us Faithful." The songs talked about cherishing each other as well as the work God was starting with the Jerry and Karen's marriage. The two songs they used were, "Cherish the Treasure" and "He Who Began a Good Work". The focus of both songs was the beginning of something special. Now fast forward 15 years. It's 2002 and four awesome kids later. I wanted to do something for their anniversary. I had just watched their wedding and I decided to take the lyrics of the songs used in the wedding and put them on paper and frame it.  So I typed up the two songs used in the wedding and then added "Find Us Faithful."  This song talks about those coming behind us.  I thought it fitting as they looked back on 15 years of marriage.

Now,  I had gone to Walmart and purchased some paper that had a sunset backdrop. I typed up all three songs and printed them up on that paper and then framed it. Before I wrapped it (and when I say "wrapped" I mean I put it in a box) I put the Sports Illustrated issue on top of the picture. When Karen opened it it looked as though the SI magazine had been framed. Karen's initial reaction was "Oh. This is for Jerry." Oops! Quickly, I picked it up and removed the magazine. Handing the magazine to Jerry, I said "This is for Jerry but this (the original gift) is for both of you." I'll never forget that. 

The First of the Beater Cars

The first of the beater cars was a 95 Escort Wagon and I bought it in October of 2004. My mom had been up for a week and I'd been driving her car to work as mine was gone. I was talking to her previous to her arrival she asked me if I still wanted her to come despite my accident.  I told her I needed her to come because I'd probably need her car. (Nothing like using someone for what they have!) In the meantime I had talked with a close friend Jerry Keranen about the possibility of buying his car (the escort) as he and his family were moving to Maple Rapids, MI and he needed to get rid of it. I was in dire need of a car and after he talked it over with his wife they sold it to me for $300. I drove it until May of 2007. Since trouble seems to always know where I'm at I had some unique experiences with that car. One winter I was at a friend's house and we had just had a heavy snowfall. I went to leave and backed into a drift. I stayed there most of the afternoon until someone could come to pull me out. I got stuck a lot. It got to the point when I'd go out to a friend's house and when I walked in the door Bruce would ask "Are you stuck?" I was even given a tow strap one year for Christmas.

During the summers I mowed lawns and I usually kept my lawn mower in Eagle River because all the lawns I mowed were there. However, one time I had brought my lawn mower into town and it started to rain. Because I didn't have a garage I called a friend and asked if I could just stick the lawn mower in his garage. He didn't have a problem with it so I went ahead and stuck the mower in his garage. The next day I went pick it up. He wasn't home and so I went to his garage and got the lawn mower.  I had put the middle seat down so I could get the lawn mower into the car. The thing about Escorts though is that the middle seat doesn't lie flat. It lies on a bit of an angle. I was in a hurry so I picked up the lawn mower and put it into the car, pushing it as far up as I could and then proceeded to close the hatch. I didn't count on a roll effect. When I pushed the lawn mower in it didn't stay where I had pushed it so when I closed the hatch the handle was where the back window was supposed to be. So when the back window and the handle met there was a bit of a falling out...of the window. I was going to fix it but since it only rained twice that summer (once at the beginning at once toward the end) all I did was buy plastic to put over the window in case it rained and that temporary fix lasted the summer.

I added some racing stripes to the car that summer as well. It was not my intention. I was crossing the bridge between Houghton and Hancock and I encountered a thirty foot RV trailer being hauled by a Suburban. To put it simply we both were in the same lane and didn't know it. He had a wide turn which blinded him on the left side. I was passing on the left side. When he straightened I found out he was in my lane as he pushed me into the median. It was the first accident I've ever been in that wasn't my fault. What a feeling!

At some point  a note was left on my car offering me a new hatch for $50. I was about to go out of town to see my brother in Washington, DC so after I bought the hatch a friend put it on for me.

That winter I put a snow scoop in the back of my car.  It wouldn't fit and I tried to force the hatch closed.  Bad idea. The hatch jammed and eventually I had it rigged so that a wire that was hooked up to the handle on the inside could be pulled from the outside thus making the door usable. However it was hard to reach into the back seat to pull on a wire and push a door open from the inside. Well that was nothing a walk down the beach of Lake Superior couldn't fix.  I got a piece of drift wood that I used to push the door open enough so that I could go around and just open it from the back.

Then the hood latch broke on a trip to Wisconsin and had to be tied down with baling twine. Eventually I got it tied down with actual baling wire. It was worked very well until the wire froze and broke. After that it was zip tied shut.

At one point the key broke off in the ignition so I kept a spoon on the console.  I had bent it in half and could just stick the flat end in and start the engine.  That was a great car but it's probably a good thing that it's off the road.  I never did figure out why it was overheating.

The Beater Car Legacy: 87 Celebrity

In the Fall of 2007 one of the pastors at church sold me an 87 Celebrity in mint condition for $50. The car had actually been passed around quite a bit and was a very reliable vehicle. I think the engine had been restored and so it ran quite well. It had three owners before I came along and I was the last. I was coming home from work and it was 7:45am when I reached the top of Quincy Hill (the main route for traffic in and out of Houghton). As I came up over the top of the hill I must've been going 40 plus mph. I'm not really sure. Quincy hill doubles as M26 and in that particular spot one of the lanes is a turning lanes as well as a traveling lane. I came over the hill and there was a Dodge Neon waiting to turn left. I had just switched lanes to pass a Ford Explorer and when I saw her I had about 30 yards and all I could do was hit the brakes. Traffic was heavy coming from Calumet so I couldn't go into the oncoming lane which would've been suicide anyway. I backed up 119 cars between Calumet and Hancock (a 12 mile distance) all I could do was hit the brakes. I totalled both vehicles. If you're wondering, a Dodge Neon doesn't react too well to being slammed into by an 80 anything car. My car actually had the neon's trunk in its grill!   Sadly though, the car was no more. In reality, I should be dead. God really must have something special for me given the amount of times over the years I've come close to losing my life. It'll be amazing to see what He has in store!

A Unique Perspective about a Dearly Loved Woman and Her Passing

There are so many different types of experiences and challenges we face. This is the first of many I would soon be facing. It was the beginning of a spiritual awakening in my life. I'm hoping that those who remember Sonny and Dorothy will appreciate this as much as I did.

Several years ago now I was facing some pretty big trials. Financial debt and car issues (pretty much intertwined) as well as the death of a parent of each pastor in my church. Eric's (the assistant pastor of the church I attended in Michigan) Dad died unexpectedly in April of 2008 and Brian's (the senior pastor) Mom died May 12, 2008. The latter I want to focus on as I really didn't really know Eric's Dad. He didn't go to our church and I really only remember seeing him once or twice.

Brian's Mom, Dorothy Knight, is a different story. I knew her and she was a good friend. She was in my small group and I would give her rides to and from it as well as church. I remember her sitting in the back seat on the passenger side because the front passenger side door had a mind of its own and would open at will. So it was like I was chauffeuring her around Calumet and Traprock Valley. She had to spend a lot more time with me some nights because I would turn the wrong way on Traprock Valley road and end up in Kearsarge which for those who don't know is about fifteen miles out of my way by the time it's all said and done...I think anyway. I know it's at least ten. We always laughed about that. We also went out to eat at least twice. Once she was asked by one of her grand kids if she was coming over to their house for lunch after church. She said, "No. Paul's taking me out on a date for lunch." :-) Again. We laughed about that. A lot of laughs.

We had serious talks too. I can't remember many of them but I know they were there. She talked about her husband a lot and that she missed him. He did a lot for her. Maybe too much. That's okay though. He took care of her. I know he was a good father and husband because I can see it in his son.

On Monday (May 12, 2008) a friend called to tell me of her passing. No one expected it.  Everyone was shocked.  

Now  I want to add something in regards to terminology and death. Prior to this theses events a good friend's mother passed away and after Eric's (a pastor at my church in Michigan) Dad passed away she told me a story about how her mother "left." She didn't die.  That was the way she described her mom's passing. I didn't realize it then but that was going to really help me deal with the events to come.  

Working nights at Walmart gave me opportunity to do a lot of thinking. On Monday, all day (and night) I was thinking about Dorothy and her family. Something came to mind while I was working in the juice isle. Sunday was, of course, Mother's Day. To hinir the mothers, during the service they were ran a power point presentation with pictures of different women in the church.  There was one picture in particular that stood out to me, only momentarily at the time,  but came back full force on Monday night. It was a picture of Dorothy.   Interestingly enough, Sonny (her husband who had passed on two years ago) was also in the picture.

With this as a backdrop, I want to share something that God used to help me work through Dorothy's "leaving". 

God brought Sonny home to be with him two years prior to Dorothy. so he has enjoyed two years of being on God's presence. On Friday, May 9, 2008 God called Sonny into His office. After some pleasantries were discussed God said, "Sonny, there is a specific reason I wanted to talk to you. Dorothy is planning a trip to Scotland and she is supposed to leave on Tuesday. However, I've got different plans. Scotland is a great place, but it's time for her to come Home." Well, needless to say, Sonny was elated. God continued, "I know what you're thinking and so I need you to do something for me. I want you to escort her to the home I've prepared for both of you and I thought that Mother's Day (even if it was a day created by card companies to make money) would be a good day to do it." You thought Sonny was excited before! He was almost jumping out of his seat with excitement. God then explained the logistics of it and how it would play out.

On Mother's Day 2008 Sonny left for the Keweenaw Peninsula. (It was a short walk down the street). During the offering there was a power point presentation with pictures of all the mothers and ladies in the church. Dorothy's picture was among the pictures shown. Sonny arrived at church about the time the power point was going to start. He walked up the middle isle and up to the platform just as a picture of Dorothy, a couple grand kids, and Sonny appeared, and for a brief second he was visible, sitting at the head of the table, smiling at the congregation. Brian got up to preach and Sonny sat down next to his wife and once again had the privilege of listening to his son preach.

Church ended and the family spent time together with some friends at a restaurant. (Incidentally, God made sure that they were once again, very briefly, alike in human form. Of course it was one sided but still the same. Two years prior on the night before Sonny "left" he sat and ate next to the same man that Dorothy sat next to the day before she "left". Some might read that and think that they need to reconsider who they sit next to. I would've been honored to be that man. The man God used to be the human link that connected Sonny and Dorthy one last time on earth.)

After lunch and possibly some more family time, everyone went home. That night Sonny tucked Dorothy into bed and then sat in his favorite chair listening to some of his favorite gospel music. I'm sure he chuckled because I'll bet he had been hanging out with the very men he was listening to just a couple days before. "They definitely sound better on the streets of heaven," he said to himself.

Then came time to leave. Sonny walked into their room. "Dorothy," he said softly, "It's time to go Home." She had fallen asleep, so he picked her up and carried her to the car waiting outside. It was an '86 Delta Eighty Eight with a bad front passenger side door . :-) He got behind the wheel and chauffeured her Home. As he drove up the street to the pearly gates of Glory he eagerly told her about all the people they had known together on earth, gospel singers and the like who were already Home. He said that he couldn't wait for her to get to know them...in their new bodies. "It's amazing how much better all the gospel songs sound coming from perfect voices!", he said excitedly.

I can't help but think of this as God's way of allowing Sonny to once again be Dorothy's Knight in shining armor, brand new shining armor. Sonny and Dorothy are now reunited for eternity and I couldn't be more happy for them. I hope she tells my Great Grandma Roberts I said hi. :-)

In closing, it doesn't matter how Sonny and Dorothy got to Heaven, they are there and that is comforting. To know they are together now and in the presence of the Almighty God, that is truly amazing!

Again, I trust that all those who knew Sonny and Dorothy will appreciate this entry for what it is, just one person's thoughts about Dorothy's last day here. After all, she visiting anyway.

Side note:

The above events were so real to me that when I shared this with someone they said "that's a nice story" it was almost a death blow.  How can this not be real?  Now whether or not it is real or not I will never know on this earth.  What I do know is that God used it to help me to get through a very rough time.

Being an Uncle

While being an uncle certainly isn't new to me being an uncle to twins is. I suppose it's really no different then being an uncle to just a single niece or nephew.  But having just become an uncle for the seventh time in ten years I'm taking a moment to pause and contemplate it. 

One of the reasons I moved back to the Midwest was to be closer to family. I remember being at my brother Matthew's wedding reception and watching my nieces.  I realized then that I had an opportunity to be a part of their lives. Unfortunately, I can't be a part of all my nieces' lives as two live in North Carolina but I'm still closer then I was when I was in Colorado.

When I saw that Abby and Emmy had been born I'd be lying if I said tears didn't come to my eyes. To see in front of me two answers to so many prayers brings tears to my eyes even now.

My First Broadway Show

    While I certainly wasn't in New York City watching "Wicked" on Broadway I was at the Benjamin & Marian Schuster Performing Arts Center in Dayton and that's about as close as I'm going to get.  At least right now.  Sitting in that theater was thrilling.  I think the difference between something you'd see on stage verses on screen is that, even though in both cases you are sitting and watching, in the case of watching something on stage I think that because you are interacting with the cast on stage (applause, etc) your brain is more engaged.  Whereas in a movie people have a tendency to just sit.   That said, both venues can cause a similar response.  I think though that seeing anything in person is better. The one thing that impressed me the most about Wicked as the talent of the cast. One part in particular I remember. The actor who played the wizard was speaking and dancing around the stage while he did so. At one point he swung his foot up keeping  in time with the music.  It reminded me how much of a character the music is.   It will carry you from scene to scene and the fact that a dancer can keep in time with it is amazing.  At the same time, actors in any given movie can give performances of a lifetime.  I will never forget seeing Heath Ledger playing the Joker in "The Dark Knight", Sean Connery in Hunt for Red October, or Robin Williams in Dead Poets Society, just to name a few.  That's why I'm really looking forward to "The Dark Knight Rises" coming out in July. 
    I will say though that the whole production really was amazing.  The sets, the costumes, the writing, the dancing and the music.  Not surprisingly, the character of the witch that I remember watching in The Wizard of Oz was nothing like the one they portrayed.  There was much more depth to her.  And to feel the power of music in a story was something I hadn't forgotten.  There are two things I think I will do though.  Read the book The Wizard of Oz as well as Wicked as I am now very curious about both.  I know that The Wizard of Oz is nothing like the movie and now I'm really curious about what they left out of both The Wizard of and Wicked!  And next time Broadway comes to town I'll be there!

Side note:  There are 14 books in the Wizard of Oz series. All written by L. Frank Baum.  The Wicked book is a series of  four  books written by Gregory Maguire.

Wicked:  The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West
Son of a Witch
A Lion Among Men
Out of Oz

The Longest Day

    I rode my bike to work Friday night so I got there early to beat the sun.  It's always fun to watch the sun set anyway.   One of the highlights of my day. 
    My responsibility before I start in the cooler is to stock the pop.  The other guy working last night was responsible for the water.  At nine when I punched in and Chris (the team leader) wanted to try something different to see if we could get into the freezers faster.  We were down a guy last week and so he wanted us to do the pop and water together because he thought we'd get through it faster.  I come in thirty minutes before Shelton and had most of it done before he got there.  There wasn't much let so Chris sent Shelton to the freezers and I finished up the water.   I  had just started the pop (which wasn't in really bad shape) when the milk showed up.  Fifteen racks of milk had to go into an already full cooler.  The standard rule is no pallets on the floor.  When I left on Wednesday morning I wasn't able to do much so all  I left all that they would've needed on the floor.  It was still there as well as the truck that came Wednesday night when I was off.  About ten pallets. In order to get all the milk in I had to do the daily routine of pulling all the empty racks out.  (As I was puling the milk off the dock the freezer truck was waiting in the parking lot for me to unload it)  After I got all the milk in, a co worker had started unloading the truck and leaving the pallets on the dock, I jumped on my forklift and started running the pallets out to the freezers.  Both freezers were in the same state of disarray as my cooler.  I ran what  I could in but had to leave most of it out because I needed to pull out the freight that was already in the freezer so the new freight could go in.  Since this was all freezer/cooler merchandise there was a time limit on it so I couldn't let it sit out  So before I went to lunch everything had to be inside.  The freezer stuff was easy enough.  Then it got interesting.  After pulling out the old cooler pallets,getting the new ones in, and the old ones back in  I bumped a rack of milk and two gallons fell off.  Praise God it was just two gallons and not eighty!  Hence, it was a quick clean up.  That said we had to pull out six or seven racks of eggs and milk to run the scrubber.
    I got to lunch at just before two (about an hour late).  When I returned from lunch, I quickly finished the pop, fronted the cooler and tried to get as much done as possible in the very limited time I had.  Chris left at seven am.  I left ten minutes later.  It's the longest day I have worked at this club.  On a funny side note.  You know how there are those things that happen to you in life that seem to circle back around and repeat themselves?  In 1999 I was in North Carolina, was working at Sams in Raleigh, and lived right across the street.  I left work, got home, and realized I'd forgotten my keys.  They were in my forklift, which of course was at the back of the club.  Thankfully I just lived across the street.  Fast forward twelve years. I'm digging through my back pack in the parking lot looking for my keys.  I walked to the back of the club and there they were.  In the ignition.  What a great way to end the longest day! With a walk down memory lane!  Plus, since I was off the following night I was able to enjoy a day off, some amazing weather, and just an overall awesome day!  Good times!