Another May 10th!

So this morning in a meeting, our school social worker made the comment that for such a small town, some really weird things happen in Olney. He wasn’t talking to me, however looked at me and said “right Kristen?” “If anyone in here knows that firsthand it is you.” The other people in the room looked quizzically at me as he (the social worker) proceeded to tell them his recollection of what he had no idea was May 10, 1991… 20 years ago today. I told them it was indeed 20 years ago today that my life was altered forever. Here is my post from last year. Just as my mother reposted hers, here is mine.

Today I am twice as old as what it seemed that my life span was going to be on at this moment 20 years ago. I will tell you, the past 20 years seemed to have gone a lot faster than the first 20 years for some reason. I started to write about my night 20 years ago and while it always seems familiar, I remembered I blogged my thoughts about this last year. I feel the exact same way as I did last year. And even though I still have no more an indication of what God has in store for me, I still believe there is a plan. I hope with all my heart that when I am 20 x 3 that I will be blogging about all the great things that have happened and are continuing to happen in my life!

How many people can say beyond a shadow of a doubt where they were or what they were doing at exactly this moment 20 years ago? Probably a little over a dozen that I know of... me, my parents, Jenny, Keith, Jeremy, and I would say around 7 or 8 of my friends (if someone were to point out that today is May the 10th.)
20 years ago today at this very moment, my family was praying, my friends were crying, and I... well, I was dying. Yes, 20 years ago today I got a second chance at life. Not many people have to go through what me and my family went through, (and I am thankful that not many people have to) but not many people then have the testimony that I have.
20 years ago today, I was shot. It was a day that changed my life forever. It did not end like a sad movie, (thank the Lord) even though it was touch and go for a while. Instead it ended with me having a much greater appreciation for life and for those around me. It caused me to be more thankful for the good things in my life. Even now, 20 years later, when I feel like things are falling down around me, I look back and reflect on this very night 20 years ago and I realize that God has a plan and since he kept me here then I have a part in that plan.
I would love to be able to say I knew exactly what that plan was, or how it would come to full fruition, but I can't... 20 years later and I still don't know. I may never know, (at least not while I'm on this earth) but I truly believe we all have a purpose...A plan. And if we stay on the right track, God will be true to his word and give us a hope and a future (Jer 29:11)

Do you want a donut?

There was a certain Professor of Religion named Dr. Christianson, a studious man who taught at a small college in the western United States .

Dr. Christianson taught the required survey course in Christianity at this particular institution.

Every student was required to take this course their freshman year, regardless of his or her major.

Although Dr. Christianson tried hard to communicate the essence of the gospel in his class, he found that most of his students looked upon the course as nothing but required drudgery. Despite his best efforts, most students refused to take Christianity seriously.

This year, Dr. Christianson had a special student named Steve. Steve was only a freshman, but was studying with the intent of going onto seminary for the ministry. Steve was popular, he was well liked, and he was an imposing physical specimen. He was now the starting center on the school football team, and was the best student in the professor's class.

One day, Dr. Christianson asked Steve to stay after class so he could talk with him.

"How many push-ups can you do?"

Steve said, "I do about 200 every night."

"200? That's pretty good, Steve," Dr. Christianson said. "Do you think you could do 300?"

Steve replied, "I don't know.... I've never done 300 at a time"

"Do you think you could?" again asked Dr. Christianson.

"Well, I can try," said Steve.

"Can you do 300 in sets of 10? I have a class project in mind and I need you to do about 300 push-ups in sets of ten for this to work. Can you do it? I need you to tell me you can do it," said the professor.

Steve said, "Well... I think I can...yeah, I can do it."

Dr. Christianson said, "Good! I need you to do this on Friday.. Let me explain what I have in mind."

Friday came and Steve got to class early and sat in the front of the room. When class started, the professor pulled out a big box of donuts. No, these weren't the normal kinds of donuts, they were the extra fancy BIG kind, with cream centers and frosting swirls. Everyone was pretty excited it was Friday, the last class of the day, and they were going to get an early start on the weekend with a party in Dr. Christianson's class.

Dr. Christianson went to the first girl in the first row and asked, "Cynthia, do you want to have one of these donuts?"

Cynthia said, "Yes."

Dr. Christianson then turned to Steve and asked, "Steve, would you do ten push-ups so that Cynthia can have a donut?"

"Sure!" Steve jumped down from his desk to do a quick ten. Then Steve again sat in his desk. Dr. Christianson put a donut on Cynthia's desk.

Dr. Christianson then went to Joe, the next person, and asked, "Joe, do you want a donut?"

Joe said, "Yes." Dr. Christianson asked, "Steve would you do ten push-ups so Joe can have a donut?"

Steve did ten push-ups, Joe got a donut. And so it went, down the first aisle, Steve did ten push-ups for every person before they got their donut.

Walking down the second aisle, Dr. Christianson came to Scott. Scott was on the basketball team, and in as good condition as Steve. He was very popular and never lacking for female companionship..

When the professor asked, "Scott do you want a donut?"

Scott's reply was, "Well, can I do my own push-ups?"

Dr. Christianson said, "No, Steve has to do them."

Then Scott said, "Well, I don't want one then."

Dr... Christianson shrugged and then turned to Steve and asked, "Steve, would you do ten push-ups so Scott can have a donut he doesn't want?"

With perfect obedience Steve started to do ten push-ups.

Scott said, "HEY! I said I didn't want one!"

Dr.. Christianson said, "Look! This is my classroom, my class, my desks, and these are my donuts. Just leave it on the desk if you don't want it." And he put a donut on Scott's desk.

Now by this time, Steve had begun to slow down a little. He just stayed on the floor between sets because it took too much effort to be getting up and down. You could start to see a little perspiration coming out around his brow.

Dr. Christianson started down the third row. Now the students were beginning to get a little angry. Dr.. Christianson asked Jenny, "Jenny, do you want a donut?"

Sternly, Jenny said, "No."

Then Dr. Christianson asked Steve, "Steve, would you do ten more push-ups so Jenny can have a donut that she doesn't want?"

Steve did ten....Jenny got a donut.

By now, a growing sense of uneasiness filled the room. The students were beginning to say, "No!" and there were all these uneaten donuts on the desks..

Steve also had to really put forth a lot of extra effort to get these push-ups done for each donut.

There began to be a small pool of sweat on the floor beneath his face, his arms and brow were beginning to get red because of the physical effort involved.

Dr. Christianson asked Robert, who was the most vocal unbeliever in the class, to watch Steve do each push up to make sure he did the full ten push-ups in a set because he couldn't bear to watch all of Steve's work for all of those uneaten donuts. He sent Robert over to where Steve was so Robert count the set and watch Steve closely.

Dr. Christianson started down the fourth row.. During his class, however, some students from other classes had wandered in and sat down on the steps along the radiators that ran down the sides of the room. When the professor realized this, he did a quick count and saw that now there were 34 students in the room. He started to worry if Steve would be able to make it.

Dr. Christianson went on to the next person and the next and the next. Near the end of that row, Steve was really having a rough time. He was taking a lot more time to complete each set.

Steve asked Dr. Christianson, "Do I have to make my nose touch on each one?"

Dr. Christianson thought for a moment, "Well, they're your push-ups. You are in charge now. You can do them any way that you want." And Dr. Christianson went on.

A few moments later, Jason, a recent transfer student, came to the room and was about to come in when all the students yelled in one voice, "NO! Don't come in! Stay out!"

Jason didn't know what was going on. Steve picked up his head and said, "No, let him come."

Professor Christianson said, "You realize that if Jason comes in you will have to do ten push-ups for him?"

Steve said, "Yes, let him come in. Give him a donut."

Dr. Christianson said, "Okay, Steve, I'll let you get Jason's out of the way right now. Jason, do you want a donut?"

Jason, new to the room, hardly knew what was going on. "Yes," he said, "give me a donut."

"Steve, will you do ten push-ups so that Jason can have a donut?"

Steve did ten push-ups very slowly and with great effort. Jason, bewildered, was handed a donut and sat down.

Dr Christianson finished the fourth row, and then started on those visitors seated by the heaters. Steve's arms were now shaking with each push-up in a struggle to lift himself against the force of gravity. By this time sweat was profusely dropping off of his face, there was no sound except his heavy breathing; there was not a dry eye in the room..

The very last two students in the room were two young women, both cheerleaders, and very popular. Dr. Christianson went to Linda, the second to last, and asked, "Linda, do you want a doughnut?"

Linda said, very sadly, "No, thank you."

Professor Christianson quietly asked, "Steve, would you do ten push-ups so that Linda can have a donut she doesn't want?"

Grunting from the effort, Steve did ten very slow push-ups for Linda.

Then Dr. Christianson turned to the last girl, Susan. "Susan, do you want a donut?"

Susan, with tears flowing down her face, began to cry. "Dr. Christianson, why can't I help him?"

Dr Christianson, with tears of his own, said, "No, Steve has to do it alone; I have given him this task and he is in charge of seeing that everyone has an opportunity for a donut whether they want it or not.. When I decided to have a party this last day of class, I looked at my grade book. Steve here is the only student with a perfect grade. Everyone else has failed a test, skipped class, or offered me inferior work. Steve told me that in football practice, when a player messes up he must do push-ups. I told Steve that none of you could come to my party unless he paid the price by doing your push-ups. He and I made a deal for your sakes."

"Steve, would you do ten push-ups so Susan can have a donut?"

As Steve very slowly finished his last push-up, with the understanding that he had accomplished all that was required of him, having done 350 push-ups, his arms buckled beneath him and he fell to the floor.

Dr. Christianson turned to the room and said, "And so it was, that our Savior, the Messiah, Yahushua, on the cross, plead to the Father, 'Into thy hands I commend my spirit.' With the understanding that He had done everything that was required of Him, He yielded up His life. And like some of those in this room, many of us leave the gift on the desk, uneaten. "

Two students helped Steve up off the floor and to a seat, physically exhausted, but wearing a thin smile.

"Well done, good and faithful servant," said the professor, adding, "Not all sermons are preached in words."

Turning to his class, the professor said, "My wish is that you might understand and fully comprehend all the riches of grace and mercy that have been given to you through the sacrifice of our Master and Savior, the Messiah, Yahushua. He spared not His Only Begotten Son, but gave Him up for us all, for the whole Assembly, now and forever. Whether or not we choose to accept His gift to us, the price has been paid."

"Wouldn't you be foolish and ungrateful to leave it lying on the desk?"

Happy Anniversary Mom and Dad

45... yes 45 years ago, my parents, Leon Redman and Carol Cleaver, walked down the isle proclaimed their love before God and man and officially became the first of "the Redmans." I am sure they would say that they have seen a lot of good (and some maybe not so good) times in those 45 years, but they saw them together. 45 years is a long time. Obviously longer than I have been alive (way longer than I have been alive!) Even after all this time, my father still surprised my mom with a big vase full of roses. With the way this world is today and with so many marriages falling apart, it is refreshing to see two people still loving each other after 45 years. So kudos to you, my parents, for making it to 45 years. I am sure your four wonderful, always behaving children had a lot to do with the success of your marriage. Whatever would you have done without us??? Ok mom, there is no reason to bring up your 25th anniversary. That is waaaaaay in the past! :) Anyways, just wanted to say HAPPY ANNIVERSARY MOM AND DAD! May there be many more!

SHOWER DOORS

I know, doesn’t sound like a real catchy title for a blog post, but shower doors are what have really been on my mind lately.

For the past several years for every occasion that I could be getting a gift from my parents (birthday and Christmas typically) I have been asking my dad for new shower doors and installation. It may seem like a silly gift to ask for to some, but nonetheless practical and something that I, with all my heart, desire. While I realize that shower doors are not an absolute necessity, (one could make it through life without them) good ones sure do make life easier. They require a little maintenance and a little scrubbing from time to time, but they save you time by keeping the water in the shower so you aren’t cleaning it up off the floor everyday. Plus they don’t have those horrible plastic shower curtain hangers that never work right that cut your hands or break while you are trying to put them on, you don’t need to buy an extra shower curtain rod that inevitably never hangs straight, and if well maintained, they don’t get mold all over them like a shower curtain that you have to keep replacing, thus saving you money in the long run as well.

Having broken shower doors is not any better than a shower curtain either. They take time to try to keep them on the tracks, often not closing properly thus getting water all over the floor. Again, taking more time to clean up the mess and not to mention making more laundry to do, therefore wasting more time, more water and more money. In addition, if the hardware is broken on them you can cut yourself on a regular basis causing unnecessary pain and suffering, as well as time and money buying stock in band-aid bandages.

So you may be asking, “Why have I been asking for them for so many years now?” Well, because my father said he would give me shower doors and install them... and because he said it I believe him.

Despite my dad saying he will give me new shower doors and installation, I still have broken shower doors with an uneven shower curtain hanging in front of them. I am still mopping up water and buying entirely too many band-aids. And not a day goes by that I don’t long for my new shower doors. Side note: In case you are wondering why I don’t just do it myself it is because I have tried putting in shower doors once before and ended up basically collapsing the entire shower around me (I am not kidding about that) so I know better than to try to do it myself. I really do try to learn from my past mistakes as much as possible.

So here I am with another Christmas gone by and another birthday on the horizon... I must admit, I do get a little weary of waiting sometimes. I’m thinking I may need to start putting my request out there a little more frequently. There are a few holidays coming up. Maybe we could do gifts for Presidents’ Day and oh yes, Valentine’s Day is coming up, and Pulaski Day, and St. Patrick’s Day, and Easter and.............

And by the way... this post is not only about shower doors in case I was a little too cryptic in my analogy.

Good Ole Days, Flashback, or I Ain't as Good as I Once Was?

So today I did the same thing that I do every Thursday... go to work. But on Thursdays I don't stay at the elementary school. Midway through the day I have to go to ERHS... yes, my former High School. Now most days I just walk through the front doors and go directly to the room I do speech therapy in and just do my job and then leave, but today for some reason was different.

From the second I walked in the door today, it felt like I was back in high school again. The aroma coming from the cafeteria was the first thing I noticed... it smelled just like it did in the late 80s. I paused just for a second and then continued down the hall that now has carpet and a nice paint job, but the sound of the lockers opening and slamming shut once again just made me fondly (or not so fondly) flash back to all the stuff I crammed into the locker that I shared with Mike Kuenstler all 4 years of high school. We weren't supposed to do that ya know, but "K" names got a locker right in the middle and "R" names were always either down in Ag Hall or Home Ec Hall. We only had 4 minutes to get from class to class, so a locker in the middle was a necessity.

Instead of going to the room I usually do therapy in, I had to go upstairs. Walking up the stairs I again felt like a high schooler. I felt like I was out of class on a pass going to my locker or something. I walked back downstairs and went into the Guidance Office where I used to be a "guidance girl" and looked at the bulletin board behind the secretary's desk. So many of the past guidance workers (guys started working in there a lot more my senior year) pictures were thumbtacked behind her desk...including mine. (And my brother's picture too from a few years later.)

As I walked out to leave the school, feeling like a high schooler, a group of what I will call "farm boys" were coming in. One of them opened the door for me and said here you go ma'am. What??? Ma'am??? Hmmm.... even in my cute winter coat, sunglasses and stylish boots, I was not going to pass for a cute little high school girl anymore. My hopes of ever starring on 21 Jump Street were crushed. (The fact that I remember 21 Jump Street proves that I am no longer a cute little high school girl.) Back to reality... Back to work!