I just came back from confession... and I'm not sure if I am committing some confession faux pas by revealing this... but one of the things I confessed was that for the past two days, I have been hoping that my will be done... and not His. I am guessing that God is not a big fan of my questioning Him. Sometimes it is hard to understand.
For these and all my sins, I am heartily sorry, and I ask for forgiveness.
A good friend of ours, Dave McGee, lost his battle with cancer this past Tuesday. If you are a regular reader of Funny Guy Friday, you may remember I wrote about Dave before, here.
He passed away the day after his 45th birthday.
The previous two-and-a-half years were rough on him and his family as he underwent various treatments. It seemed that with every step forward, there would be two steps back. Through it all, he and his wife, Maura, persevered with grace and dignity.
Being a good friend was a sidelight to Dave's main roles as a great father to six wonderful kids and a faithful, loving husband, son, and brother.
We will miss him.
Having said that, I was driving down the road today thinking about Dave, and I broke out in laughter. I started thinking about a story that Cheryl heard from a friend this morning. They were talking about Dave, and our friend recounted a scene from a party that Cheryl and I had last summer. A group of kids, including this woman's 11-year-old son, found themselves out on our deck with Dave and several coolers filled with icy cold drinks. Dave challenged them to see who could keep their hand in the freezing ice water the longest.
Who does that?
Dave, of course.
And of course, Dave won.
Did I mention that he was competitive?
The King of Corn Hole... and the master of Corn Hole smack talk! The family retreat Corn Hole games were classic battles. When he would beat me, he would tell me... You used to be such a good athlete! ...or my personal favorite... Your brother would have never let that happen!
Fortunately, I am not competitive, and that kind of teasing never really bothered me... although I personally think that if he doesn't get into Heaven it is because of those thoughtless taunts and jabs... at me. And besides, those things he said weren't true... I am still a good athlete... and I was always better than my brother. I don't care what he said! And Corn Hole is not even a real sport!
Whatever!!!
Dave was also a great story teller who could impersonate just about anyone. Friends... family members... no one was above it. A personal favorite of mine was his impression of one of the priests at our church: He died for our sins. For our sins. He died for our sins. Think about that... He died for our durned sins.
This was a retreat tradition that never got old.
When something like this happens to a friend, I struggle as to what it is that I can do.
I want to do something!
I have, of course, been praying.
Like many, I had been praying for a medical miracle. This morning, I read a Facebook post from another retreat friend who had a bit of a revelation. He, too, had been praying for a medical miracle, when he realized that perhaps he needs to pray for Dave's wife and children... for the grace to stay strong in their faith throughout this agonizing process.
It was that post that got me thinking about my own thoughts and led me to that aforementioned confession.
I will continue my prayers for my own acceptance of His will. I will pray for Dave's soul, and I will pray for Dave's family... but I also have a little project in mind.
I help run the Labor Day Festival at Sacred Heart Church, in Bowie. This past year, Cheryl and I went a day early to post some signs. Ironically, Dave and Maura pulled up to offer some heckling and some help... mostly heckling. We wouldn't have had it any other way. While the gals gabbed, Dave walked across the little field to help me hammer in our signs.
Each year, when Festival time comes, Dave and his family are always one of the last to leave, staying to the end to help out with the clean up. Even when his body was beaten down by chemotherapy, he was out there moving tables and trash cans.
If you have ever been to Sacred Heart, you know that there is a Grotto down the hill in the back of the church. It is, perhaps, the most beautiful part of the church's property.
The entrance of the little lane leading to the Grotto? Not so beautiful. There is a chain linked fence with a red No Trespassing sign... a red Employees Only sign... a red Turn Back sign... and a red Surrender Dorothy sign.
I exaggerate a bit... but not much. It's really not very inviting.
Not to throw Cheryl under the bus or anything, but last year, in order to make the place feel more welcoming to visitors, she cut two of the signs down and threw them into the woods. She is a bad assistant, and I would replace her if I could get anyone else to give up their entire Labor Day weekend for me!
I digress.
Anyway, I started thinking that it would be nice to create two stone columns and a pretty stone fence that match the outdoor Stations of the Cross that are on either side of the little lane leading down to the Grotto. I mentioned this to our parish priest and he thought it was a good idea... a really good idea... he thought it was a durned good idea. I call this permission!
I mentioned it to our priest, then I promptly forgot about it. Now the idea is back!
I have no idea how much it is going to cost to clear out the area and then build the stone entryway, but I want to make it happen as soon as I can, and I want to dedicate it to Dave.
So, now I am going to ask for your assistance. You can help with prayers, ideas, encouragement, or donations. We may hire a crew to clean out the area and haul away the existing broken chain link fence and debris... or, if we have enough volunteers, we may do that ourselves. You can also help by passing this along to folks that knew Dave, Maura and the kids. Or if they didn't know Dave... but wished they had... we would love their involvement. The more the merrier!
If you have any interest in helping out in any way... contact me or Cheryl... and we will let you in on the details... just as soon as we know them. Any donations can be sent to Sacred Heart Church, Bowie, with a note that it be dedicated to the Beautification of the Grotto project.
I have never done anything like this before... and maybe it's a dumb idea, but I want to do something; this is the best I could come up with. My other idea of dedicating a trash can to Dave seemed kind of silly.
It is important to me to have a tribute in memory of a good friend whose example of obedience, humility, and faith touched so many.
Perhaps even a plaque would be cool:
~ In Memory of Our Good Friend ~
~ Dave McGee ~
~ Loving Father ~
~ Devoted Husband ~
~ King Of Corn Hole Plus He Could Hold His Hand In A Bucket Of Ice Water Longer Than Any Other Kid ~
We can work on the wording of the plaque. Like I said, I have never done anything like this before.
May God bless you, Dave McGee.
You didn't lose your battle. You are the victor here! You ran the race and fought the good fight. Just as you always did! And you won the ultimate prize.
You are in a Better Place... and doubtless... that was His will.
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| Dave and Maura |
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| Camp Maria ~ several years ago |
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| The McGee kids |
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