Run Daddy Run!
So I was recently at the hospital with my dad, the same day as the Mister Bluebird encounter. Dad was scheduled for a test and we didn't know at which entrance to register. As it turns out, it was on the other side of the hospital down a very long corridor, around the corner and to the right---you're there! No big deal, right? Well, for daddy, it is a long walk with occasional stops to catch his breath. A wheelchair was the ticket...The attendant led us to the starting line for our race to the registration finish line. You probably can already tell where I am headed with this! Haha!
Dad mounted the wheel chair, put his feet in the foot rests, offered to hold my book bag and purse so that I could push, and off we went. We weren't late so there wasn't a dire need to rush...But as I looked at the wide, long, expansive hallway where not a soul was in site, I suddenly felt inspired to RUN!
"Hang on, daddy! We're going for it!"
I began to run pushing my daddy towards the end of the corridor past doors and over head signs. A rush of joy enveloped us as we giggled all the way towards the goal.
Daddy laughed like a little boy. "I feel the wind rushing through my hair. Are you training for your next half?"
"Yes! And you're helping me."
And just then I had a practical-safety-thought, "Oh, no! Daddy has no seat belt...Oh, well! If he falls out...NO SUDDEN STOPS!" He told me later he was thinking the same thing, but the fun was worth the risk!
"Oh, Daddy! Can you hear all the shouts from the gobbs of people cheering us on to the finish! Just imagine it now! It's awesome, breath-taking! We should do a race together! I'll race you around in a wheelchair!"
"Would they really let us do that?"
"Yes, daddy. They have teams that push wheelchairs along for all kinds of causes! We could do a team with your older grand kids and myself running you along."
"That sounds like fun . I bet we'd be in the newspaper."
"Yes! It would be lots of fun...a great memory. Who knows, we might get in the papers. Hold on TIGHT NOW!"
At the end of the hall, we came to a sudden stop (all safety had gone by the wayside) and we rounded the corner to the right where we met civilization. Our joyful glees must have reverberated through out other corridors. Nurse types were smiling knowingly and one doctor cheerfully pointed out that we were a bit out of breath.. Wonder what the cameras showed? I'll guess we'll get to see a replay in heaven someday! And may I say, that I believe this brought much pleasure to God Himself.
My daddy's adding new things on his bucket list. Maybe a race will be added. What a memory that would be, but even if that never happens we ran in beauty that day! I'll never forget his chuckling, just like a little boy. It's not often an adult daughter gets to glimpse the giddiness of her 78-year-old father. What a gift indeed!
One thing I learned is that beauty can be made in the ordinary in our lives. It requires some spontaneity, some ingenuity and risk of potential embarrassment, but so what. It's worth it! I am tired of thinking that I have to plan super grandiose ideas. It's called living life and being in the moment and making it count for beauty. And it's an everyday choice, isn't it? Like everyone else, I am still working on making the choice and learning to see the beauty around me.
Dad mounted the wheel chair, put his feet in the foot rests, offered to hold my book bag and purse so that I could push, and off we went. We weren't late so there wasn't a dire need to rush...But as I looked at the wide, long, expansive hallway where not a soul was in site, I suddenly felt inspired to RUN!
"Hang on, daddy! We're going for it!"
I began to run pushing my daddy towards the end of the corridor past doors and over head signs. A rush of joy enveloped us as we giggled all the way towards the goal.
Daddy laughed like a little boy. "I feel the wind rushing through my hair. Are you training for your next half?"
"Yes! And you're helping me."
And just then I had a practical-safety-thought, "Oh, no! Daddy has no seat belt...Oh, well! If he falls out...NO SUDDEN STOPS!" He told me later he was thinking the same thing, but the fun was worth the risk!
"Oh, Daddy! Can you hear all the shouts from the gobbs of people cheering us on to the finish! Just imagine it now! It's awesome, breath-taking! We should do a race together! I'll race you around in a wheelchair!"
"Would they really let us do that?"
"Yes, daddy. They have teams that push wheelchairs along for all kinds of causes! We could do a team with your older grand kids and myself running you along."
"That sounds like fun . I bet we'd be in the newspaper."
"Yes! It would be lots of fun...a great memory. Who knows, we might get in the papers. Hold on TIGHT NOW!"
At the end of the hall, we came to a sudden stop (all safety had gone by the wayside) and we rounded the corner to the right where we met civilization. Our joyful glees must have reverberated through out other corridors. Nurse types were smiling knowingly and one doctor cheerfully pointed out that we were a bit out of breath.. Wonder what the cameras showed? I'll guess we'll get to see a replay in heaven someday! And may I say, that I believe this brought much pleasure to God Himself.
My daddy's adding new things on his bucket list. Maybe a race will be added. What a memory that would be, but even if that never happens we ran in beauty that day! I'll never forget his chuckling, just like a little boy. It's not often an adult daughter gets to glimpse the giddiness of her 78-year-old father. What a gift indeed!
One thing I learned is that beauty can be made in the ordinary in our lives. It requires some spontaneity, some ingenuity and risk of potential embarrassment, but so what. It's worth it! I am tired of thinking that I have to plan super grandiose ideas. It's called living life and being in the moment and making it count for beauty. And it's an everyday choice, isn't it? Like everyone else, I am still working on making the choice and learning to see the beauty around me.
"A life is measured by moments like these." --Maggie Stiefvater
"The purpose of life is to live it, to taste experience to the utmost, to reach out eagerly and without fear for newer and richer experience." --Eleanor Roosevelt
"What day is it?"
"It's today," squeaked Piglet.
"My favorite day," said Pooh --A.A. Milne
Thanks for this encouragement to be joyfully spontaneous!
ReplyDeleteThank you, friend! You're the first person to comment on the official blog site....YEAH!
ReplyDeleteSimply beautiful. Glad for a new point of connection. Mum returns from Florida soon; something tells me that as I wheel her around to her various medical appointments I will never be able to look at a long corridor again the way I used to. Thanks for helping refresh my perspective. I've thought it but never dared.
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