Taking a Break

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We took the boys to the Hunter's Hope Celebration for kids yesterday and they ran straight into Thurman Thomas and Jim Kelly. Doing so enabled me to look into what football stars can do for the psyche of a community.

While I signed books, I thought of my brother in the hospital bed, and it occurred to me that getting him a signed ball might possibly bring him a bit of pleasure when he was feeling better. So, Kathy did the ground work on getting Thurman to sign the ball, and Jill Kelly made sure that Jim put a second Hall-of-Famers name on the ball. For good measure, Jake also caught a pass from Big Jim, and signed a few copies of Counting on a Miracle to boot.

Yet the highlight of my night was when a few people stopped by to see me - including my longtime friends, Diane and Karl, and they offered a hug and some words of encouragement. A deaf, leukemia patient - who is now in remission - also stopped to say hello and give me a thumbs up on my books. She had visited with me last year and I had signed a couple of books for her.

Once more, I was reminded of how wonderful it feels to be a part of the human race from time-to-time, as well as how gracious the Kelly family is, and how important they are to this community.

When Jill Kelly lent her name to the House of Miracles book, I never believed that I had made a friend who would be there when the chips were down, but in the City of Good Neighbors, she is as neighborly as she can be.

Last year, Jeff was with me at the celebration and he wanted a signed football from Jim - I hadn't wanted to bother the man - this year, I bothered him, and it made my heart sing for a few hours.

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