Wrestlemania

28 years ago...

March 27, 1987.... was one of the happiest day of my life.  My mom was going to bring my brother and I to go watch Wrestlemania.  Hogan vs. Andre the Giant!  WHOA!!! That's impossible!! She hates wrestling... she hates us watching wrestling... we're poor and we never spend money.  But she automatically shot up to be the best mom in the world!  

So my mom... my 70 yr old grandma... Big Bro and I took the bus from the safe havens of Chinatown alllllll the way to the outskirts, unexplored world of San Francisco... the infamous Cow Palace.  I've heard of this place before.  Only the coolest things in the world take place in Cow Palace.  And now... I'm here.  

I vividly remember being in the lobby.  My heart pulsating cuz I get to see Hulk Hogan... my hero, my idol.  I'm going to see Randy Savage... the guy who broke Steamboats throat - almost killing him.  I am now moving from poor Chinese immigrant... to a regular American boy.  

"Go buy the tickets already!" I remember thinking.

Mom walks over to the box office with grandma.... grandma, who's deaf in one ear and blind in one eye.  Big bro and I look around... hoping to see a superstar.  Then mom comes back. "OK!! Let's go in!!"  Except... that's not how the story ends. 

Mom says, "Ok... let's go home."

No.... she did NOT just say that.  She's suppose to be the best mom.  Why is she doing this??? Why is she being the worst mom??

Mom then says, " And it's not watching real people. You're watching TV"

No... I don't care.  I'm here! I need to go in.  

The next thing I remember.... we were sitting on the bus.  Big bro and I were flipping through a program.  We came all the way from Chinatown... came within two doors of Wrestlemania... and we go home with a program.  We cried on our way home.  This wasn't fair.  This isn't how the story ends. I was suppose to be a regular boy.  I told all my friends I was going to Wrestlemania.  How can this happen??  

Flash Forward.... 28 years later...

Mom did everything right.  She didn't know how much Wrestlemania would cost.  She didn't know it was a simulcast.  She was one woman...who barely spoke English... with a 70 year old blind/deaf woman... and two rambunctious boys.  She laid down the smack down... and did everything by the book.  If I was her... I'd do the same.

Flash Forward... 28 years and 2 days later.... March 29, 2015.

Levi's Stadium - me and my two best friends fulfill this child hood dream.  This void that was left, not just empty, but cold... can finally start to heal.  I can finally be a regular boy. And the first thing Geoff did... he ran and bought me a program.

Wrestlemania... isn't about me, or big bro, or any childhood dreams and ambitions.  In the end... Wrestlemania will be a memory of my mom... I wish I still had that Wrestlemania III program.  So I can give it to my mom and said.... "Thank you for being the best mom."

Great American Homerun

Appropriately named... the Great American Ballpark... the Cincinnati Reds announced today they will have an area for new mothers (and fathers).  A padded room with an area for nursing / changing / babies and toddlers to play.  Long gone are the days of suit and tie for a baseball game... or where the men and their bros hangout for peanuts and beer.  Can't wait for AT&T to have this too...

New Church

Always see new Christian churches being built and planted... But when's the last time there was a Catholic Church being built? With the statues? Marble? Mosaics..?

A bad week...

Had a bad week this week.  This week was one of those weeks where my heroics were not recognized, but my flaws were magnified.  Really humbling... quite belittling.

Times like this... I just want to quit.  Then I remember the message at Deeper Life Conference.  "Eternity."  What does it matter now? What does it matter in eternity?

And with that... I found peace.

Slow down

Ended yet another 21 day fast.  And once again... I fasted "speeding." 

Trying to drive below Speed Limit.  That's excruciating hard!  You're in the Carpool lane with 4 miles of free space.  The car behind you is riding on your bumper.  But I can't go faster than 65.... cuz I'm fasting speeding!

Slowing down... that's the biggest problem we have today.  We can't slow down. Everything is fast fast fast.  If we can all just slow down.... smell the flowers... and reflect on what matters.  Wouldn't life just be a little more wonderful??

Of course... now that the fasting has ended... back to my usual self.

Malware

Spent the whole weekend fixing moms laptop. It's sooo infested with malware and spyware I was on the verge of a reformat or system restore. Spending $30/year on mcafee... Useless!

If anything the malware uses mcafee on itself and just hogs up the CPU.

Will return the laptop to mom... And I bet within 3 months I'll be back here again. Time for a Mac???

Sandy

Rarely do I dedicate a post to anyone but my daughter and son. And even more rare would I venture to talk about another woman. But Sandy isn't just another woman. She's family.

The other day she asked me to help her write a recommendation letter for her new ministry with PCS. She and I both knew this is a formality. Sandy is someone who doesn't really needs recommendation but rather deserves recognition. How honor and privileged I felt!!

Where to begin? How to write this?

Going back into memory lane... Sandy was the first CS person to greet us.  She was the first to follow up with an email inviting us to fellowship.  She was our Wedding Task Force lead.  She taught us how to pray for our home. She never ends any conversation without praying. Her smile can only be equated by the bounce in her step.  For over 10 years... her passion and calling has always been "Bringing prayer to the nations." Aside from YC/Vivienne, she's the only other person that can turn any conversation to "the love of Jesus." 

Where to begin?.... more like Where to end?
How to write this?....more like how can I stop writing.