An Epic Weekend

You ever have those weekends that are all fine and dandy as they are happening yet two weeks later you can't recall a single thing that had happened? I certainly have them all the time and this past one certainly was not one of those, in fact I think this weekend will be etched into my memory for quite some time. It was so eventful that it motivated to actually give this blog thing a go one more time. So with that, let me jump right in.

The start of the weekend was a grueling Saturday, from 9 AM to 10 PM, volunteering for my fraternity. I know what you're thinking, typically when I tell people that I still volunteer for my fraternity they give me a confused blank stare that screams "you volunteer your time to 'serve' a bunch of beer drinking frat guys"? Why yes I do, because my fraternity is different. I feel strongly that fraternities can be a critical asset to a college student and can be a huge asset if done correctly. Our fraternity has morphed into one that focuses more on personal development, leadership building, and providing an environment where the fraternity is a tool to grow a man instead of a beer drinking, pledge hazing distraction. Unfortunately though, there was a particular chapter that was desperately trying to hold onto their Animal House ways and several key SigEps alums from chapters all over the nation met to strategize on the fate of the chapter and their members. It was a grueling, yet fascinating day, with some pretty incredible leaders in their particular field. Plus we spent the day on the 61st floor of the Sears Tower in the office of a Law Firm that overlooked Lake Michigan which is pretty inspiring all to itself. There's something about spending a day with a motivated crew that just gets my blood boiling.

Then Sunday came and we headed to church to dedicate our little girl. We stood up in a beautiful room in the downtown DePaul Law Center filled with stain glassed windows in front of several of our friends and a dozen families in our Church and dedicated to raising our daughter in a house that honors the Lord. As always happens with these sort of life events, I'm the one with tears streaming down my face while my wife manages to stay completely composed. What really got me was Beth's explanation of why we gave Harper her name. She went on to explain that we chose Harper because we thought it was a beautiful name and Grace because of the true gift she was to us, an undeserved one at that. She spoke about her difficult entry into the world yet her bubbly, smiling personality which reminds us daily of the true Gift of God she is. It was a great reminder to me of how special this little girl is, how thankful I am that God entrusted her to us, and the responsibility I have to raise her in a God honoring household. It was truly a special day and it was great to have our friends up there with us, particularly our nanny who we adore. It really felt awesome to know she was there making the same commitment right along with us. Just wish our fam was a little closer to share the day with us but it was special none the less.

From there the day took a bit of a turn. I need to give a bit of background before I dive right into this one. You see... I've been mentoring a young man for over a couple years now, spending roughly 6 or so hours a week with him. He lives in one of the most notorious public housing projects across the nation, amongst some indescribable circumstances. Despite all that, he truly has become a great young man. He's destined to be an incredible leader if he can stay out of the mess that's out his front door. Unfortunately though, he got caught up in it as things, which has a tendency to happen for Chicago youth as they flock outside for the summer, which landed him in jail. I picked up his brother and headed to Cook County jail to visit him. We pull up to the monstrosity that is Cook County jail, waited for a couple hours to see him, and then were ushered into this long skinny room with a glass wall and dividers for each inmate. He came out and began speaking into the tiny circular microphone in the glass which you had to lean over and literally put your ear on just to hear him. He was in good spirits despite being on complete lock down in a 3x7 cell for a week. He expressed remorse for putting himself in the situation and I was glad to hear that he was praying all day long to God about the situation. Sometimes it takes hitting rock bottom before a person can realize the true need for God and I hope this is just what is happening amongst the awful situation.

That being said, there is also quite a bit of injustice going on amongst this mess which just makes me sick. He's being falsely accused for a portion of what he's being accused of and has been sitting in jail for a week because of it without even been given the opportunity to speak to a lawyer, or even his family for that matter. I'm doing what I can to help ensure he receives the same support and resources a rich, white suburban kid would get in his circumstance but it's tough amongst this broken system. Whoever says racism no longer exists needs get out of their comfort zone into the environments that our poor are faced to live in. It's our role as the hands of feet of Christ to "seek justice and encourage the oppressed" and I'm appreciative for all the folks I have the privilege of volunteering with who are helping and supporting me during this most awful situation.

All that said, there was a pleasant end to the evening, knocking back a couple cold ones with my wife and close friend watching the Mavs upset the "most talented team known to man". I went back to work today, feeling like I needed another weekend to recover, but also reflecting on the lessons I learned... that it's important to surround yourself with a talented crew from time to time for inspiration, that my daughter is a wonderful gift that I should treasure daily, and that there's a lot broken in this world that I hope to do my small little part to fix. Here's to sitting on my butt next weekend and doing a whole lot of nothing! :)