Double Digits

Our Lydia turned 10 on November 15.  --  TEN!!!   Has it been a DECADE since our last child was born?  Wow -- It hits me that all our kids are now in double digits...

I want to pause briefly to say how grateful I am to to the Lord to have four fantastic kids that are vibrant and healthy and thriving...

But today I want to ESPECIALLY say how grateful I am that Martha and I get to be the parents of Lydia Ann Ochoa...!!

Around our house, Birthdays are celebrated over 2-3 weeks - so this really isn't a "late blog" - it is just adding to the longish amount of time we try make birthdays last for each of our kids...  (OK - Maybe SOMETIMES it's been an excuse to buy some time because we hadn't bought any presents yet or planned a party or a B-Day sleepover...)  I think our clan enjoys the fact that the b-day cheer DOES last more than just the one actual calendar day/date.  We haven't been told otherwise...

A few (just a few) favorite/random thoughts & memories of Lydia - it seems appropriate to jot down Ten:
1)  There was no doubt when she was born that we would name her Lydia.  When we came across that name we decided instantly that would be hers - IF she was a girl!  It's a good thing she was - if she had been a boy, we would STILL be in the hospital trying to come up with a name for another son...
2)  Her nickname is "Leela" - because her cousin Rachel (about 3 at the time) couldn't quite get all the letters pronounced right in her name.  This is what would come out - and it stuck.
3)  We also called her the "DooDaa" Girl, because when she was little that was her favorite phrase to say before she was really able to talk.  It was SO cute to hear her say that - usually while sitting cheerfully in her bouncy chair or car carrier.
4)  The kid can SING!!  Loud and clear and bold and beautiful.  Now, the challenge is to get her to sing that way OUTSIDE of the shower!!
5) One of my favorite things to hear her say is "Daddy, do you want to snuggle..?"  So far - thankfully - these are words I still get to hear fairly often...
6)  She is a fascinating mixture of Sensitive and Strong / Sturdy and Sweet.  She is SO tender hearted and caring - but as the youngest of four, we are all in agreement that she can be the most strong willed and stubborn.  Probably a survival mechanism?  -- "No shrinking violet is she."  But that makes her no less of a beautiful flower...  I love that.
7)  She is always writing notes and drawing pictures.  I love how thoughtful and observant she is - and it shows as she often asks for addresses to mail letters and pictures to friends and neighbors and teachers and family.  The detail that is a part of her drawings - bugs and trees and colors and people and expressions - tell me that she notices a LOT of what is going on around her.
8)  I am astounded at what comes out of her heart when she prays.  She will pray at dinner or at bedtime - and I truly get to hear the pure and trusting faith of a child that has no problem whatsoever trusting and loving Jesus...
9)  On MY birthday earlier this year, she came downstairs and - without one word - decided to give me 47 kisses on the cheek.  She gave me a hug and a smile and said "Happy Birthday - I love you Daddy."  That will always be a cherished memory - and an example of simple Grace that will forever fuel my heart...
10)  Below is one of my FAVORITE pictures of her, taken a few years ago while on vacation in Mexico:

I love you Lydia - more than you know.  Congratulations on your first decade of wonderful and joyous life...

-Dad

That's Me: "A Soccer Pioneer!"

Whadda ya know!  I found this (mostly by accident) on the Athletics webpage of my Alma Mater - Valparaiso University...

Click on the link below - it will take you to the "VU All-Time Soccer Roster" - scroll to the second page - go to the "O's" - and there I am!!  I am a first year/charter member of our Valparaiso Varsity Soccer Program.  The year was 1983!  (Sorry - no pictures - hahaha!)

Valpo / All-Time Men's Soccer Roster

BUT - that was the SECOND year I played soccer at Valpo...

The FIRST year I played for VU was 1982 - was when all we had was a "Soccer Club".  As I look back, I am FAR more fond of and proud of THAT year...

1982 - my freshman year - was a WONDERFUL year of soccer (among other things)!  As a "Soccer Club" all we really were was a rag-tag group of guys that loved to play a sport that was just beginning to catch on in the USA.

We were not that skilled or that good - we were fair to partly sunny -- but we certainly had PURE passion to play!  We did have a strong desire to make it work - against a good handful of odds!!  We coached ourselves, organized ourselves, ran our practices ourselves - and even though we had a little support from the Athletic Dept. - we were able to piece together a season/schedule of games playing against other schools in the immediate area.  Individually and collectively, I remember everyone working and trying HARD - and having FUN!  LOTS of "extra miles" were given by just about everyone on our team that year...

There was a special camaraderie with that group of guys - there was a real sense of TEAM!!  I still really cherish those memories today...

Over the winter, a few of us successfully met with and lobbied the University AD - and lo and behold - they honored our request to become a Varsity Sport!!  Wahoo!!  What a thrill!!  Soccer was "legit" now at VU!!  We would now have some budget for gas and for small meals on our road games.  We would also have $$ for new nets and field paint and uniforms...!!  AND - we would have a real paid COACH!!  Boy, were we pumped for next season!!  I remember feeling like we were ready to qualify for the World Cup...!!

BUT- I wish I could say that 1983 was an outstanding first "Varsity" year...  It was, well -- a rough transition...  As I look back - I think it was really more of a loss of innocence...

I don't want to blame the Coach that year - but he did usher in an era that was radically different than what we had experienced before.  When our first "official" season started that fall, we seemed to be playing and practicing and working in a vastly different culture.  For lack of a better term - we started to suffer from what I will crudely call "Jock Syndrome".  Not sure how do exactly define that - but it felt like the Individual started to mean more than the Team...

All of a sudden, everyone was worrying about who would be a "starter" and who would be a "sub"- that was something we had never really worried about before.  The simple passion and joy for playing soccer began to vanish somewhat - it was more "business-like" now.  We now had more tough-minded competition amongst ourselves - "thumbs up" encouragement was a bit more scarce.

In '82, those that practiced hard and made it to most of the practices usually had an inside track to play a few more minutes during a game.  But now, there was some budding resentment: There were guys that skipped several practices - yet ended up being starters and playing the full 90 minutes.  I remember the coach explaining - in his rough Romanian accent - something to the effect that, "the best players will play".  The translation seemed to be:  It won't matter how hard you work - or how much you selflessly pour into the game and the team:  "If you are good, you will play."

I am not naive: I "get" this line of thinking in sports.  Especially if you want to "win".  However - as I look back, I do feel a twinge of disappointment.  Yes, we WERE happy to have our sport make it to the "College Big Time" in '83.  But we found out - there was a cost that we didn't expect.  It felt at the time like a less-than-fair trade.  I understood it.  Those on the '82 squad did too.  But we weren't exactly all that trilled at what we traded away for...

Yes - I got to be a starter in '83.  It actually came about because someone got injured.  I remember I felt very badly for a few of our loyal "Club Guys" - particularly 2-3 that were VERY instrumental in helping soccer make the "Varisty Leap" at VU.  They hardly played the minutes that most of us felt they deserved.  I got asked to come back in '84.  I said no.  Two years were enough.  It wasn't the same.  It didn't feel right.  Time to move on...

Yes - I am STILL VERY PROUD to be a charter member in the history of Valpo Soccer - but it was my first real taste of what happens when something "organic and passionate" becomes "institutional and professional"...

I am a Church Worker.  A Professional one.  There are insights here that are very, VERY relevant - but that will be a discussion for another day...

Today - I am coaching my 11th year of children's soccer - in our local "Recreational League" - NOT our "Competive League".

Hmmmm...  I wonder why that is??

Time Changes Us...

I am officially now "A Misser".

I never used to be one.  I could go on all kind of trips away from my wife and family and not be overly emotional about being apart from them for several days.

Well, that is no longer the case.  Man, right now: I REALLY MISS my wife and kids!!!

I have been in Dallas for a Conference the past few days - and I am SO THANKFUL for cell phones to be able to call and text my wife and children...

I haven't turned in to the "blubbering" kind of  "Misser" - but who's to say I won't be one of those in a few years...