Never Finer

“This town of churches and dreams; this town I thought I would lose myself in, with its backward ways and winding roads leading to nowhere; but, I found myself instead." ~Kellie Elmore

A tiny white church sitting at the top of a hill overflows with people.  Men standing outside in cowboy hats and boots.  Women sitting in the pews with their hair poofed and their pearls on.  Flower arrangements fill the window sills.  Old, familiar songs drift out the open door.  How Great Thou Art.  Old Rugged Cross.  Amazing Grace.

Most Sundays, the people inside go to various churches.  But today, no one notices the differences.  Methodist or Catholic, Baptist or Mormon, Epsicopalian or Assemblies of God.  Today, everyone sits together.  They hug each other as they walk in and say the Our Father in unison.  Differences matter not.  They mourn together, they pray together, and they remember together.

Photo via

And then at the quiet, country cemetery, everyone gathers around a grave.  The sun beats down and the ranchers talk about rain, or the last basketball season, or the last time that they all stood in the same cemetery around a different grave.  Because this same community has been here before and will be here again.  Together.

Once the prayers have been prayed and Taps has been played, they load up into their pickup trucks and drive to the old school building for lunch.  Because if there is one thing that small town ladies do right, its a funeral meal.  A spread big enough to feed an army sits out on tables that span the width of the basketball court. And here, people recognize the different dishes based on the cooks.  "Oh, that's Mary's chocolate cake" or "Those look like Pam's enchilladas."  And before the meal, the men remove their hats, the kids put down the basketball, and the priest blesses the food.  Because that's how you start a meal.

Small towns are not for everyone.  There are no fancy restaurants.  You have to drive two hours to the nearest Wal-Mart.  A lot of people there have never flown on an airplane or seen the ocean or owned a passport. 

But they know the meaning of neighbors, and of community, and of love.  And they show it when times get hard.  And if you ask me, small towns are never finer than in these moments.

*Linking up with Rural Thursday.

Notre Dame Trip #4: Lifelong Dreams and Lifelong Friends

"Whoever leaves Notre Dame hopes to see it again." ~Timothy Howard

I read that going to a football game at Notre Dame is one of the 101 things every sports fan should do in her life. I couldn't agree more.

My Notre Dame trip was one of the coolest experiences of my lifetime. And I was lucky to share with with several lifelong friends. So, I think those two concepts summarize my Notre Dame Trip: Lifelong Dreams and Lifelong Friends.

Lifelong Dreams

Going to a football game at Notre Dame had been a dream of mine since I was a little kid. I remember watching the games on tv. I remember hanging a pennant in my room, while most other little girls had pictures of princesses. I remember crying my eyes out watching "Rudy." So, understand that for me, this weekend wasn't just a great trip. It was the fulfillment of a lifelong dream.

And I'm not the only one. ND Friend said that she was on campus a few weeks ago when a man asked her to take a picture of him and his two kids. Somehow, my friend managed to get her thumb in the way of the photo, but didn't realize it. She told the man to look at the picutre to see if it was okay. He asked her if she would mind taking it again. Of course, she said would. Then the man said words that sort of give me chills. "I've waited 57 years for this picture and I just want it to be right."

I get that. And I got mine after waiting 27.

I'm sure that going to a Notre Dame game is cool for anyone, whether you are 7 or 27. But I think that it's even better when you have waited for it, dreamed about it, worked hard to save up the money to go.

And you know what? I think that's true for just about every dream. Part of what makes dreams great is the waiting and hoping and working towards them. So even if your lifelong dream has nothing to do with Irish football, I hope you are still somehow motivated to act on whatever it is after reading about my Notre Dame experience. Dream it, work for it, and do it!

Lifelong Friends

A huge part of what made the trip so amazing was getting to share the experience with several lifelong friends. ND Friend, High School Buddy, his dad, Mr. FFA (and The Bride in Chicago!) are all people who hold special places in my heart.
ND friend and I met through FFA when we were both in high school. After she graduated almost 10 years ago, we sort of lost touch. There was the occasional facebook message, but that was about it. But last weekend when we got together again, it was like nothing had really changed. We had the best time and have vowed that there will be no more 10 year spans of not seeing each other.

High School Buddy and I (obviously) went to high school together. Not only did we have that connection, but our families became really good friends through showing pigs for years at all of the fairs. Our families have been through good times and bad times and pretty much everything in between together. So getting to see Notre Dame with him and his dad was like seeing it with family!

And here is your "Family Farm Friday" tie in. I've written before that I think that growing up in rural America creates a type of family. Well the Notre Dame trip was a prime example of that. ND Friend and I went to school 2 hours apart, and we probably never would have even met had it not been for FFA speech and judging contests. Mr. FFA and I would never have met through Little Brother had they not both been State FFA Officers together. And High School Buddy and I might have known each other, but I would not have been nearly as close to him and his dad had it not been for showing.

When you grow up in a small school (blogged about this before) and are involved in FFA (blogged about this too), I don't think you even realize the lifelong benefits of being raised this way. It's only years later that you really start to appreciate them. The Notre Dame trip game me a great opportunity to be thankful for the lifelong friends that I have been fortunate enough to make.

Fulfilling a lifelong dream with lifelong friends. It's pretty hard to beat that!

Notre Dame Trip Week Day #3 - Here Come the Irish!

"We went to Notre Dame because we loved the place. We didn't go because of a coach. We didn't go to win championships. Because we loved the place, we always felt we had an opportunity to win. We were the University of Notre Dame and we belong here. We truly believed we'd win every time out." ~Former ND Player

And then, after all of the campus touring and pre-game festivities, visiting with my friends, and almost losing my ticket, it was finally time to walk into the stadium. As we were walking around the outside of the stadium to get to the correct gate, I told my friends, "This is just like Rudy when he was running around asking people for tickets in the movie!" It was awesome.

Walking into the stadium was unreal....I can't even describe how exciting it was! We, of course, had to get our first photos inside Notre Dame Stadium!

Just about the same minute we started walking to the entrance of the stadium, it started to rain. And it was cold (which necessitated hot chocolate number 3......so much for swearing it off the day before!) I was told by friends watching on tv that it looked like a monsoon.

Once while trying to clean the rain off my glasses, one of the lenses popped out. ND Friend was worried---I said, "It's okay, I can watch with one eye if I have to!" Yes, I am hard core. Luckily, I was able to fix the situation and got to see the game with both of my eyes in tact.

We had awesome seats on the 50 yard line. We were at the very top of the stadium, and I honestly think that those were the best seats in the house. Not only did we have a great view of the game, but we could also see the Bascilica steeple, golden dome, and Touchdown Jesus. It was like a movie. For the pre-game at the stadium, the band played the Notre Dame fight song again....Da na na na na na na na na.....you get the point. The bagpipers marched. The Leprechaun danced. I ate it all up. Then they had Senior day presentations where each of the Seniors was recognized with his parents on the field.
And then.....it was time. The gold helmets started to emerge from the tunnel. And then, the moment I had been waiting for.......the announcer says......"HERE COME THE IRISH!" and they burst onto the field! You'll notice that the pictures are blurry. I was so excited, my hands were shaking!
Many went to the end zone to say a quick prayer. (And this is why I need to marry a former Irish football player....they love football, gave flowers to their mama's on senior day, and pray before the game! Sigh.) Now I won't play by play the game for you (although I could!), but let me just tell you that Notre Dame KILLED Utah. It was a huge upset. The first time since 1996 an unranked ND team beat a ranked team. High School Buddy and I like to think that we are the luck of the Irish. We'll be informing Coach Kelly of that in hopes that he'll see it necessary to buy us season tickets.
The Irish won in extiting fashion. There was a great blocked punt, an interception that led to a touchdown, a fumble recovery on the first half kickoff.....it was just amazing! Utah only scored one field goal (which was in the first 7 minutes of the game) and the rest of the afternoon was all Irish!

The final score was 28-3. And the students rushed the field. They ran and danced and did zig zags in between the band members. It was great. And, I'll confess, had I been sitting anywhere near the student secton, I would have totally joined in! Luckily, Mr. FFA took part and I lived vicariously through him! And there would be more pictures, but my second set of batteries died at this point....
Oh, and one final thought. There were several guys sitting near us who had terrible attitudes the whole time. When ND had a good return on the opening kick off, the guy next to ND friend said, "It'll all be downhill from here." The guys next to me hated every play call. Anything that Notre Dame did that was good was "lucky" and anything that they did that was bad was the dumbest move ever made on the field. If you are going to have that attitude, stay home. Gripe at your tv. Be lucky we didn't smack you in the head, because it was discussed. Instead, we settled for ND friend looking at the guy next to her and responding, "So that wasn't really downhill now was it?" at the end of the game. Jerkface.

But don't you worry....these guys didn't ruin our fun. The game could not have been better and it was a once in a lifetime experience that I will never forget!

Notre Dame Trip Day #2: Game Day Festivities

"I really believe that Our Lady watches over this place. I feel I ought to stop in and say thanks, and also pray that she keeps watching over it." ~Father Theodore Hesburgh, former Notre Dame President

You know how sometimes when you are so excited about something, you build it up so much in your head that it can never live up to what you expect? Well, I was really worried that 27 years of dreaming about game day at Notre Dame would ruin the experience. I was so wrong....it was better than I could have ever imagined!

ND Friend and I woke up super early and made the drive from Chicago to South Bend. Then we arrived, and I got my first glimpse of Notre Dame! I tried to keep reminding myself to breathe so I would not pass out.

Anyway, even though we got on campus around 8:30, there were already a lot of people milling around. Our first stop was the bookstore, where I loaded up on Notre Dame gear for myself and the family for Christmas (family: at surprised when you open your gifts). You will notice a quick wardrobe change in the following pictures...I purchased my official ND hoodie at the store, but in the end, I think I like the one the ND friend lent more more. Go figure....buyer's remorse!

Then we just walked around and toured the beautiful campus. The campus itself is smaller than I expected, but is more beautiful in person than on tv. The buildings are all made of a yellow-ish brick color. It's surrounded by trees and two lakes, St. Mary and St. John.
This tour even included a stop at the building where Rudy lived while he was in school...which brought another reminder to myself to "keep breathing!"
I think my favorite place on campus was the Grotto. If you've seen Rudy, this is the outdoor area where Rudy goes to light a candle and pray to get accepted into Notre Dame. It's very peaceful and quiet and moving there. There are two quotes that I think bear sharing.

First, Father Hesburgh said, "Every university has a place where students hang out for their social life, libraries where they study, and playing fields where they play sports, but how many have a praying place?" I love this idea. While I was there, students would come in from running around the lake and stop in quickly to light a candle, say a prayer and be on their way. People come as they are---in running shorts, in suits, in football jerseys.....none of that matters. They simply come to pray.

If you ask me, we need more Grottos in the world.

Second, there is a plaque reciting a beautiful letter from a former student, Tom Dooley, who wrote from his death bed: "But just now . . . and just so many times, how I long for the Grotto. Away from the Grotto Dooley just prays. But at the Grotto, especially now when there must be snow everywhere and the lake is ice glass and that triangular fountain on the left is frozen solid and all the priests are bundled in their too-large too-long old black coats and the students wear snow boots . . . if I could go to the Grotto now then I think I could sing inside. I could be full of faith and poetry and loveliness and know more beauty, tenderness and compassion." After lighting my own candle and kneeling to pray myself, I understood this letter much more. After the Grotto, we headed to the Bascilica of the Sacred Heart. It was absolutly beautiful. The football team all comes over for Mass prior to heading to the stadium for games. Love that!
One of the most recognized landmarks at Notre Dame is the Golden Dome that sits atop the Main Building. Definite photo op on my list!
As we walked around the crowd started to build. But what was different than crowds at OSU on game day was that these people were as excited to see the campus and take pictures at various places as they were about the football game. It was like being in Times Square or some sort of tourist attraction rather than at a tailgate. The bagpipers and the band wondered around campus and played for all of the visitors. It was awesome.

We also went past the law school building. As I said on facebook, I was just one BIG scholarship from going there myself! Sigh. I suppose my life has worked out nonetheless.

We ended our tour at Touchdown Jesus. Another classic photo op.

And this was where we met up with the other New Mexico folks who were visiting! My friend, Mr. FFA, is a current student at Notre Dame. He and Little Brother were State FFA Officers together and he's one of Little Brother's best friends. So I was excited to catch up with him! Also in South Bend for the game was my friend High School Buddy and his dad. So we all got to chat and catch up and spend the day together.
We grabbed a quick steak sandwich for lunch (we're all ag kids from cattle ranches you know!) and headed to watch the Notre Dame band plan on the steps of Bond Hall. Turns out this was a game day tradition.

After that, we rushed to the Main Building to stand under the golden dome. All of the trumpet players from the band filed in the levels going up into the dome and played several songs, including the Notre Dame fight song. It was awesome.....if you ever go to a game at Notre Dame, this is easy to miss, but it's something you have to do!

And then....it was time. We headed over to the stadium for the football game. On the way, I dropped my ticket. Thank goodness some nice lady saw me do it. I would probably have had a nervous breakdown had I missed the game. Not having a heart attack was added that to my list of things to be thankful for that day!