Where life is

Today was one of those crazy ones.  You know, the weekends that you have ZERO time for yourself, or to recover from the week, or even to prep for the next one.  I was up at 6, in my office by 7 to meet with some friends to discuss a book we are reading, “The Tangible Kingdom.”  So until 8:30 we were kicking around ideas about how “church” (as we have come to know it) just isn’t cutting it, how Jesus is still alive and beautiful, but sometimes we get in the way (with the best of intentions, even) of letting people see him.  FANTASTIC discussion, even better friends.

I was home by 9 to make waffles for the family.  Isaiah and Joshua ONLY wanted powdered sugar on them.  I figure syrup is really just liquid sugar, so what’s the difference.  And it makes a great after-breakfast face for little boys.

Maya and Joshua were off by 10 to get over to her mom’s house for the baby shower.  I took Isaiah shortly after that to his final Upward basketball game so it could become official; Isaiah is the ONLY kid on our 10-kid team to not make a shot this year.  To be fair, he has only shot the ball about 5 times all season, hit the rim 3 times, but only one was ever in any danger of going in.

So today I told Isaiah a couple of times during the game, verbatim, “I don’t want you to pass.  I want you to go all the way to the basket and shoot.”  This, mind you, is in DIRECT contrast to what I have been coaching the whole team the entire year.  We have so many ball hogs that I had to make a mandate that they pass the ball (didn’t work for most of them).  

So Isaiah tried once early in the game and hit the front of the rim.  In my mind I was praying for it to drop.  In the last quarter of the game I knelt down and told him to do it again, so he did.  He ran right up to the side of the rim, the only place where, using all the strength he possesses, he can get the ball above the rim.  So he poised to shoot, and out of nowhere a kid (not the one who was SUPPOSED to be guarding Isaiah) knocked the ball out of his hands.  That kid (who had scored seriously at least 20 points by then) was cheered by his coaches and parents, even though he was ONLY supposed to defend against one specific player.  Isaiah looked back at me and I could see his spirit leave him.  

Isaiah then came to me, tears welling, and said, “Daddo, every time I try someone always takes it, and I pass it to everyone and they never pass to me.”  All I could do was hug him and say, “I know.”  

So then over to the baby shower…Carina is now less than 3 weeks from an appearance, and I think today that really hit me.  Seeing so many baby girl clothes made it real, I guess.  I have no doubts that in 20 days I am going to be in love, once again.  I didn’t believe that once; when Joshua was born I honestly was worried where he was going to fit in my heart.  I loved Maya and Isaiah so much that I was worried.  I’m over that now.  I know that love ONLY increases, expands, and does so exponentially.  It has no bounds, no limit.  Thanks for that, Jesus.

After that was Maya’s great uncle’s surprise party.  To sum it up briefly, AWESOME.  I’m beginning to believe that a good Mariachi should be required at most social functions.  Weddings, bar mitzvahs, church, St. Patrick’s day parties…you name the occasion, I promise mariachis can make it better.

I watched as generations of family came to celebrate Ed’s life.  To laugh with him, to remind him of the ways he used to discipline grandchildren (hang signs around their necks that said “I’m wearing this sign because I’m stupid”…seriously!), to hug and take pictures, to drink beer and then coffee, to sing and dance.  There was so much life and joy in that backyard.  

At one point I was dragged in front of the mariachis to dance with Maya’s great aunt WeeWee (don’t ask about the name).  She is at least 75, but forces every male member of the family to dance with her.  It is at once hilarious and beautiful.  She and I danced to “Sabor a mi.”, and as Isaiah and Joshua laughed their faces off at me, this gentle old lady whispered to me, “It’s good to dance, isn’t it Matt?”  I almost cried right there in front of 80 relatives, because in that second I realized she knew so much more about life than I do.  And she was 100% right.  Life is meant to be celebrated with friends and loved ones and family and strangers.  And it is good to dance.

To top the evening off, I got to go over to some friends’ house whose daughter was having a 12-year-old-birthday slumber party.  My invitation came late in the evening as a special guest who would scare (as best I could) this group of girls.  I parked around the corner and decided to sneak up in stealth mode.  These girls were armed with glow sticks, in the middle of the street, swinging them and singing and dancing and laughing.  They had no idea I was there; there was nothing in the world in that moment that was more important to them than what they were doing, and I could hear the joy in their voices, pure and wonderful.

I scared them anyway.  It was awesome.  They screamed and ran, then laughed and beat me with glow sticks.  

I realized today even more that Jesus is never far, even from people who don’t recognize him or give him the credit for the absolutely amazing life that is all around.  ”I have come to give you life, and life more abundantly.”  That just might mean that we have to put ourselves in situations where we can get hurt and be vulnerable, dance and eat good food, and laugh like 12-year-old girls.  

Thank you, God, for the abundant life you have given me.  May I give it out as freely as it was given to me.