Hero, Teacher, Friend

Maybe it was the simplicity of the talk, or the fact that what was said, was what I needed to here. Either way, President Monson's talk on change in October 08 conference really helped me.

Change is inevitable and it does not always change for the better, or how you think it should change.

In reality, I know that change comes to those we know and love. Sometime I struggle with why; why that person, why now?

Case and point. George. Some may know him, some may not. He changed my life. He changed it in ways that he may not even be aware of. He taught me how to play basketball, he taught me about life. I can't recall that very first practice but I will never forget George and his simple way of teaching me. I remember seeing George around town and his constant greeting,"there's my all-American". He has a contagious smile and sparkle in his eye. He was always taking care of me when I got injured. Even when he wasn't technically my coach I knew I could call him at home and he would take look at my current ailment. Countless times he welcomed me at his office and set up a back treatment. But the thing that stood out to me, he always did it with a smile and a joke. He always had a funny story to tell that kept me laughing for days afterward.

This thank you has been a long time in the making. It should have been said years ago but I have never known how to adequately express my gratitude. How can I appropriately tell him how much I look up to him and love him. To tell them that I never pick up a basketball without thinking of those many hours spent at the PG rec or at PG jr high.

I truly appreciate the many times George would re-explain an out-of-bounds play or a drill. The first day that I ran a practice of my own as a coach at Spanish Fork High School; I realized just what it takes to be a coach. The patience, the love, the commitment. It was in those first weeks of practice that I found out just how sick George really was.

There are not enough words in the world to explain my gratitude to George, Jan and all of their children. They were constant examples to me and I count myself lucky that I am able to know them all. There is so much still in my heart but I have been unsuccessful at putting it down on paper ... so on the Christmas eve ... let us all remember those who have touched our lives and made us want to become better people. May we all take the time to let other know how much they mean to us ...

to George, you are my HERO, my TEACHER, and my FRIEND.

May God bless you.

finals week

it is finally here ... i love it and dread it ... school is almost over ... some of my classes hang on the balance of a final test ... nothing more stressful for me (i hate tests) ... can't wait till it is over ... just have to keep my head above water ...

tag 4 : 4 : 4 : 4

Here is how it works.

1. Open your photos folder

2. Go to your 4th folder and pick the 4th photo

3. Up load it

4. Tag 4 others

< dolphin time >

From Dolphin

this picture was taken in 2006 at one of the stops on a cruise. we had tons of fun and although i really hate touching slimy little creatures it was a cool experience that i am glad that i did not miss.

tag your it ... heidi, liz, holly, kara

inspiring

i have heard this story before and every time my reaction is always the same ... i cry my eyes out. today in my institute class we were talking about the proclamation on the family and what role both the mother and the father play. we talked about how important is for the mother to be the nurturer because a lot of time they spend the majority of the time with the kids. however, this does not minimize the importance of having a father figure in your life. the our teacher went on to read a story that brought tears to my ear. she wasn't even two sentences in and i knew what story she was going to tell. i know it loos long but i promise that the story and the attached clip are worth the time. the following article was written by rick reily of sports illustrated

I try to be a good father. Give my kids mulligans. Work nights to pay for their text messaging. Take them to swimsuit shoots.

But compared with Dick Hoyt, I suck.

Eighty-five times he's pushed his disabled son, Rick, 26.2 miles in Marathons. Eight times he's not only pushed him 26.2 miles in a Wheelchair but also towed him 2.4 miles in a dinghy while swimming and Pedaled him 112 miles in a seat on the handlebars--all in the same day.

Dick's also pulled him cross-country skiing, taken him on his back Mountain climbing and once hauled him across the U.S. On a bike. Makes Taking your son bowling look a little lame, right?

And what has Rick done for his father? Not much--except save his life. This love story began in Winchester , Mass. , 43 years ago, when Rick Was strangled by the umbilical cord during birth, leaving him Brain-damaged and unable to control his limbs.

"He'll be a vegetable the rest of his life;'' Dick says doctors told him And his wife, Judy, when Rick was nine months old. ``Put him in an Institution.''

But the Hoyts weren't buying it. They noticed the way Rick's eyes Followed them around the room. When Rick was 11 they took him to the Engineering department at Tufts University and asked if there was Anything to help the boy communicate. ``No way,'' Dick says he was told. ``There's nothing going on in his brain.''

"Tell him a joke,'' Dick countered. They did. Rick laughed. Turns out a Lot was going on in his brain. Rigged up with a computer that allowed Him to control the cursor by touching a switch with the side of his Head, Rick was finally able to communicate. First words? ``Go Bruins!'' And after a high school classmate was paralyzed in an accident and the School organized a charity run for him, Rick pecked out, ``Dad, I want To do that.''

Yeah, right. How was Dick, a self-described ``porker'' who never ran More than a mile at a time, going to push his son five miles? Still, he Tried. ``Then it was me who was handicapped,'' Dick says. ``I was sore For two weeks.''

That day changed Rick's life. ``Dad,'' he typed, ``when we were running, It felt like I wasn't disabled anymore!''

And that sentence changed Dick's life. He became obsessed with giving Rick that feeling as often as he could. He got into such hard-belly Shape that he and Rick were ready to try the 1979 Boston Marathon.

``No way,'' Dick was told by a race official. The Hoyts weren't quite a Single runner, and they weren't quite a wheelchair competitor. For a few Years Dick and Rick just joined the massive field and ran anyway, then They found a way to get into the race Officially: In 1983 they ran another marathon so fast they made the Qualifying time for Boston the following year.

Then somebody said, ``Hey, Dick, why not a triathlon?''

How's a guy who never learned to swim and hadn't ridden a bike since he Was six going to haul his 110-pound kid through a triathlon? Still, Dick Tried.

Now they've done 212 triathlons, including four grueling 15-hour Ironmans in Hawaii . It must be a buzzkill to be a 25-year-old stud Getting passed by an old guy towing a grown man in a dinghy, don't you Think?

Hey, Dick, why not see how you'd do on your own? ``No way,'' he says. Dick does it purely for ``the awesome feeling'' he gets seeing Rick with A cantaloupe smile as they run, swim and ride together.

This year, at ages 65 and 43, Dick and Rick finished their 24th Boston Marathon, in 5,083rd place out of more than 20,000 starters. Their best Time? Two hours, 40 minutes in 1992--only 35 minutes off the world Record, which, in case you don't keep track of these things, happens to Be held by a guy who was not pushing another man in a wheelchair at the Time.

``No question about it,'' Rick types. ``My dad is the Father of the Century.''

And Dick got something else out of all this too. Two years ago he had a Mild heart attack during a race. Doctors found that one of his arteries Was 95% clogged. ``If you hadn't been in such great shape,'' One doctor told him, ``you probably would've died 15 years ago.'' So, in a way, Dick and Rick saved each other's life.

Rick, who has his own apartment (he gets home care) and works in Boston, and Dick, retired from the military and living in Holland, Mass. , always find ways to be together. They give speeches around the country and compete in some backbreaking race every weekend, including this Father's Day.

That night, Rick will buy his dad dinner, but the thing he really wants to give him is a gift he can never buy.

``The thing I'd most like,'' Rick types, ``is that my dad sit in the chair and I push him once.''




anytime that i fell like my life is getting a little to hard or i am thorwing my self a pity party - i just have to think about rick and the excitement that he shows when he is crossing the finishing line waving his arm. it makes me take a step back and realize every thing i have been privilaged to do in my life. it makes me want to be a better person

i go to school with 15 year olds

i swear some of the students here at uvu should still be trying to skip out of their 10th grade english class. as i walk on campus i look at some of the kids (that's right i said kids) walking around and i think "shouldn't you be over at the high school?"