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The blessings and curses of nocturnal living……….

If I just heard a fog horn, could see a light house, or had a guide dog, I might be able to get through all this fog!! I hadn’t been sleeping correctly, and the new doctor has scheduled a new sleep study on Wednesday and changed when I take some meds, but suddenly I am not sleeping hardly at all! I feel like Father Chuck who is up at all hours watching old movies! Not that they are bad, it’s just killing me during the day. I often feel as if I have turned a corner, yet find myself on the wrong street!

I have a full Sunday scheduled nonetheless. Two services and two hospital calls, and no, none of them are me! I am hoping (and praying) that by the time I get home I am exhausted and can get back on a “non-vampire” schedule. Don’t get me wrong, I love our cat, but I do not want to be up walking around at three with my eyes all dilated looking for something to do with her. I just want to sleep like a normal bloke.

Anyway, I am going to bed to pretend I can sleep. At least I will be in the right place. And if by some miracle I am able to go out, I will spend Sunday being quite thankful……as I am sure my family will do as well!

Goodnight and God bless!

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Of the joys and pains of fatherhood……..

Tonight Scotty and I practiced lacrosse in our backyard. Scotty is going to follow in his sister’s footsteps and play for the high school this year, and I thought it would be great fun to get out there with him in the yard and mix it up a bit. After all, I am a former long-time ice hockey player, and certainly know and enjoy how to dish it out. I thought it would be good exercise for us both, and a great lesson for him to work to get by me.

So we got out there and went at it…..Scott in full lacrosse gear, and me in an old facemask-free hockey helmet. Scott 15 and determined, and me, 47 and a legend, apparently only in my mind.

I really shouldn’t be that hard on myself. He acknowledged that I gave him a real battle, particularly when he said I “fouled.” Apparently driving him into the fence and/or the bushes is considered “illegal” in men’s lacrosse. What a whiner! In neighborhood hockey all was fair….no penalties. But what went around came around!

Of course his 31 year advantage came to light quite a few times over the course of our practice, particularly when he launched me with a check that I would be envious of at any point in my life. My helmet (though unstrapped) stayed on, but I was in the air and came down hard! How I LOVE this game! I only wish it were around when I was younger! We are going to practice again tomorrow too! I will take some Advil prophylacticly however.

It is always a blast though. I coach my daughter and the women’s high school team, but I know very little about men’s lacrosse. I am however, trying to learn. I do know quite a bit about ice hockey though, and so I try to fake it when I mix it up with Scott. I may need some x-rays, but I believe it is all worth it. Ben best beware, by the point he is ready for me, I probably will be pretty wicked with my walker!

I love being a dad more than anything else in the world! What a blessing!

Goodnight my friends and God bless!

Tom+

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Happy Birthday Sarah, I miss you…….

Today I have been remembering my sister Sarah, who would have been 43 today. She died in 2004 from cancer caused by a rare genetic disease that she and my sister Stephanie both had, Bloom’s Syndrome. It is a disease that causes cancer. Stephanie died in 2001.

Sarah and Steph were both pretty good people, I mean as much as sisters can be. Because of the Bloom’s they were both exceptionally short at 4’6″ and weighed maybe 70 pounds as adults soaking wet. Though through the majority of both their lives I was better known as their chief antagonist, I really do miss them. Steph had a heart of gold and Sarah was one of the funniest people to ever walk this earth. When we were younger she often wore bunny ears, and she once even gave an instructional speech for school on how to do the “Bunny Hop.” I understand she got an “A.”

One of my favorite memories of Sarah was one night very late when she and I were watching TV. It was about 1 in the morning. I was a senior in high school, and she was, I think, in 8th or 9th grade. A commercial came on for this scary movie with this killer-type guy staring right out at us. In a great panic she covered her eyes and started shaking and said “tell me when it’s over, tell me when it’s over!” So I did, but before I said it was okay, I opened my eyes just like the guy on the screen, and moved right in front of her face! It was too good to pass up, and I thought it was a riot.

Needless to say, there was A LOT of screaming at that point! Sarah went berserk and screamed her brains out and then leaped at me and tried to take my eyes right out of my head with her own hands. By the time my mom came out of her room, both of us were screaming! She had scared me probably more than I her….after all, I was just kidding around, she however was really going to kill me I am sure. But live and learn….I never messed with her again!

Sisters can sometimes irritate you beyond belief, and most days I really wish they were still around to do it too because I miss them. I usually have a Margarita on Sarah’s birthday (her favorite) but tonight I just forgot that part so writing will have to do. If heaven is a perfect place, which I believe it is, she is probably having one right now for me! And I hope to have one with both of them, many many years from now, when I get there myself!

Here’s to ya Sarah. Happy birthday……I miss you.

Tom+

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Oh those dwarfs……Stephy, Scotty, Mandy, the little monster, and Sleepy Doc……..

Today I had a follow-up MRI. MRI’s are not that difficult for me anymore, particularly since I am extremely claustrophobic and they Xanax me up to take them. I seem to always be awake for the test. I suppose even the power of the pill can’t take away the underlying reality of what you are going through. But afterwards everything catches up and sleep ends up getting the best of you. Not that I mind……I enjoy sleep. But I spent the first hour of that time trying to convince Ben that he did too when he apparently did not. The old, “Come on Ben, daddy is tired. Just lay down and take a nap with me,” fell on deaf ears. I am not his sleeping buddy, I am his jungle gym. So Ben had to head to his room alone!

The good news is that they are not expecting to see anything unusual on this MRI other than to compare it to my first one. I have had problems and struggles that really should not be there, and this test will give a baseline of right now. I will go back to a different neurologist tomorrow to talk about some of these other struggles, and hopefully we can get them all worked out sometime soon.

But tonight, though quite tired, I am finishing this up on the back porch with “Jenny” our oldest female Golden. This explains why the cat is not out here with me…..she is not too fond of the dog invading her space. Right now however, we are not too fond of the dog invading ours. You see, last night Jenny got out into the corn field behind our house and found some “fertilizer” that the farmers put on their field and rolled all over it. And though I know she feels quite attractive, all polls indicate that she is dead wrong. She is still kenneled out here on the porch until her bath in the yard in the morning. Typing out here, though quiet, is a lot harder. She is a cutie, but only if you do not breathe.

So with that, I am off to “cleaner pastures.” I will keep everyone up to date with the results and progress like always, but I do appreciate your prayers.

Goodnight my friends and God Bless…….

Tom+

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The looming sound of a steak knife…..but the question is who’s?????

It has been a busy week so far, and sadly it is just Tuesday. Our weekly clergy meeting is moving to tomorrow to accommodate an MRI and a doctor’s appointment for me to hopefully put this long drawn out mess behind me. So tonight Puddy and I will write and then I will head to the Kroger to pick up lunch for tomorrow. Our clergy team does not have a “team-mom,” so they just have to deal with what I get.

I will say we are coming up on not just the anniversary of Deacon Dan and Deacon Morgan’s ordinations, but also the finish line of a bet we made last year…..who would lose the most weight by September 29, 2009. The prize is pretty twisted considering the bet….it’s a fattening steak dinner! But surprisingly we all seem to be leaning toward continuing it for another year. All three of us have been down and up, and though we are better than we were, we all would like to be better than we are.

I guess the point is that though clergy are often put up on that pedestal, even we have real life struggles and problems just like everyone else. Our jobs are long and hard, and they often are sown deeply with the seeds of stress. And when you travel and cannot always be around a healthy meal, convenience is not always your friend.

In a couple of weeks, Deacon Morgan and I will be walking and then officiating at a service for the American Diabetes Walk in Indianapolis. We are taking pledges for our walk, and do it because it is a good cause. My mom is in a nursing home (initially) because of it, and my grandfather had it as well. Being better with our personal struggles will help us avoid it ourselves! Your prayers would be appreciated, as well as your support for the walk. And of course, if Dan or PT decided to not put off the bet, your prayers for me to win it are welcome as well!

Seriously, and in truth, the Lord wants us to be healthy in body, mind, AND spirit. The Bible tells us that the body is actually the temple of the Spirit, so we should all do our best to take care of it.

Tonight I am doing my part. Though the cat is eating bugs, I am drinking a diet soda. Hopefully I can continue to move down a healthy path.

Anyway, off to the Kroger I go! Pray for a healthy mind and choices at the store!

Goodnight my friends and God bless.

Fr. Tom+

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No proof needed…..God exists….

I am a classically trained priest, and even my undergrad degree is in Religion. And as I have studied, I have found there to be many different arguments for the existence of God….arguments from design, moral arguments, arguments from miracles, and even arguments from the religious experience of rational people.

But how about the most compelling argument to date……the Chicago Cubs have clinched their division and will be heading to the playoffs, which they will win on their way to winning a World Series in October. As a life-long Cubs fan, and therefore a perpetual loser and perennially depressed during baseball season, this has clearly caught my attention. Could it be that after 47 years and 48 if you count my time in the womb, that the Lord has indeed finally decided to answer my prayers? That’s what I am thinking (no, not that I am nuts, but that the Lord is finally taking the Cubs out of the wilderness!)

My friends, I grew up a Cubs and Bears fan…..it was part of my heritage and though I wrote about the wedding I did yesterday, I knew I would write on this as soon as I could. Pray for me and my beloved Cubs (and Scotty’s Cubs too….and Ben’s though he does not yet know it). We have a few games to win before popping the cork on the old champagne (and sparkling apple juice for the kids) BUT at least we are finally there!

The following are the words to a hymn where I come from….I hope you find them as moving as I do.

Baseball season’s underway
Well you better get ready for a brand new day.
Hey, Chicago, what do you say
The Cubs are gonna win today.
They’re singing …
Go, Cubs, go Go, Cubs, go
Hey, Chicago, what do you say
The Cubs are gonna win today.
Go, Cubs, go Go, Cubs, go
Hey, Chicago, what do you say
The Cubs are gonna win today.
They got the power, they got the speed
To be the best in the National League
Well this is the year and Cubs are real
So come on down to Wrigley Field
We’re singing now …
Go, Cubs, go Go, Cubs, go
Hey, Chicago, what do you say
The Cubs are gonna win today.
Go, Cubs, go Go, Cubs, go
Hey, Chicago, what do you say
The Cubs are gonna win today.
Baseball time is here again
You can catch it all on WGN
So stamp you feet and clap your hands
Chicago Cubs got the greatest fans.
You’re singing now …
Go, Cubs, go Go, Cubs, go
Hey, Chicago, what do you say
The Cubs are gonna win today.
Go, Cubs, go Go, Cubs, go
Hey, Chicago, what do you say
The Cubs are gonna win today

AMEN!!!

Fr. Tom+

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Of weddings, of friends, and of marriage…….

What a glorious day! I had the opportunity to marry two of my friends this afternoon at a ceremony at their home on the lake. It was a great blessing to see them so happy, and a real privilege for us all to be able to be a part. Shelly and Eric are a wonderful couple and clearly a couple the Lord has brought together. I am certain He has great plans for them both in the future as well.

Weddings are always such a blessing. It is a time to gather with family and friends before God and ask His blessing upon the couple. Their relationship at that point changes…..as the Bible says, the two become one flesh. The enter two people, and leave husband and wife.

What we know in this day and age however is that too many people make the wedding the big thing rather than the marriage itself. The wedding is just the event…..the marriage is to last a lifetime! Even right now, though they may look the same and feel the same about each other as they did at 4:30, in fact things have changed and are changing! People in marriage become something new, and when they realize that and take the very One who brought them together along in that new relationship, what they find is that blessings abound even more!

Congratulations this day to my good friends Shelly and Eric Wetzel! Thanks for letting me be a part of your lives and your special day! May your marriage be a blessing to you and to your family. And may all marriages grow and be strengthened by the Lord Himself, who calls men and women together to be one in His Name!

God bless you my friends!

Fr. Tom+

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Of the struggles of diet and recovery…..

It seems as if some days I do quite well, only to spoil it at the end! Tonight for instance, I stayed with my diet till about 9pm and then blew it with a vengeance! Why? I do not know.

But today has been an odd day all around. I slept until noon, though I was up at 6 like normal, intending to start the day. This stupid recovery irritates me at times! I really missed out on six hours that I could have used, yet all the work I have gets to be moved elsewhere and that just adds to stress! It is probably a contributing factor to the blowing of my diet, yet my prayer each day is for the Lord to just help me get through each day sensibly! Perhaps tomorrow He and I can do a better job!

But now it is 9:30, and Ben is in bed, the kids are at the ballgame and nine and one half hours appears to be enough! Keep me in your prayers though. I have a meeting at 8:30 tomorrow and then a wedding at 4:30 (plus a few sermons to complete). I feel like I have a handle on it now, but of course my body may have other ideas! Let’s hope not though! God willing, I will end tomorrow accomplishing a lot and accomplishing it all successfully! The meeting is not as vital, but I would hope to not goof up a wedding!!! Who wants to end up on America’s Funniest Videos anyhow?

So off to bed I go! My 75% success rate today body and I hope to get some sleep! Maybe tomorrow I can keep my hand on the wheel the entire day. It would be nice……everyone deserves a victory when they can get one!

Goodnight my friends, and God Bless!

Tom+

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Not children of the corn, but corn of the children……..

I really was expecting Amanda to be writing this blog tonight, but as I went up and picked up the laptop next to her sleeping, I noticed it was not there. So I guess I am on my own! I do not fault her one bit either. She said she would, but I also knew she was not feeling well. She has a pretty good excuse!

So it is now quite late, and I am once again typing. I am certain if it were earlier I might be able to conjure up something quite spectacular or even profound. But tonight we will just need to go with what we get.

I was out for a bit tonight and did a lot of driving on my way through the country. Driving through tall fields of corn on both sides of the road is something that really reminds me of home. I know that people often define home as where they live, but I also define it as where I grew up. My hometown, though it still exists, has clearly disappeared from how I knew it. Mishawaka, Indiana was a small town when I grew up, but now it must be ten times as large. And Goshen, where I spent many a weekend and summers with my grandparents has changed a lot too. Progress and development doesn’t always mean what people sometimes think it means. I valued where I grew up, and I still do……but progress and development have made those two great places disappear from how I knew them. To me, it is a sad tale.

But when I get out on a country road and drive through the corn I feel pretty good. I roll my windows down and don’t just take in the sights, but also the sounds and the smells. It takes me back to a very important time. And though I have no regrets about where I am at now, the feelings that well up in me as I reminisce on these drives, do my present day self a whole lot of good. They not only give me a glimpse of my past, but they give me a real shot in the arm too. They are truly a gift from God.

I am pretty tired and will go to bed, but I am hoping for a dream about running out in the corn like we did as kids! Those were such great times. And dreaming may be the only way I get to do that again.

My wife has made it clear…….she doesn’t like it when I act like a lunatic!

Night my friends and God Bless!

Tom+