The Tournament

This week has been one crazy emotional week! I've been a basketcase and even started sobbing one day this week when I saw an ambulance drive by. I'm sure my kids thought I was losing it, but it was just a really busy week of therapy, medicines, blood draws, trips to the hospital (nothing major) and the usual day to day stuff.

(At Physical Therapy)

But with all that, tonight took the cake. Let me just start out by saying that Ben and I went to high school with some of the most generous, caring, kind and loving people that I have ever met. Since graduating high school, Ben has always played in the Todd Morrison Alumni Basketball Tournament with lots of different teams from our high school competing against each other. It's always fun to see people we haven't seen forever and it also serves as a fundraiser each year for a family with special medical needs.

Well about a week ago we got a call saying that they would like to sponsor our family this year. We were very hesitant to accept because we felt that surely there was someone more in need than us, but then we just felt like this would be a great blessing for us and so we said we'd be honored to be the benefit family.

Tonight was the end of the tournament and during halftime we got to come out on the court and Ben talked a little about Lizzie and her condition, etc. Then they explained that each team's registration fee is a certain amount, but the teams often donate much more to help the family out. We are so deeply touched at the amount of money our class of 96' and the other classes raised for our family - it was a significant amount and we were absolutely blown away. It just made me weep to think that people could be so giving, so kind and have such open hearts. I'm actually just glad they could look past all the idiotic, immature, rude, stupid things we did in high school because let me assure you, they were in abundance!

(Part of the presentation...right about the time I started sobbing into Ben's shoulder)

Lizzie of course had no idea what was going on even though we had tried to explain what we were doing there, but tonight in her prayer she said, "Please bless the basketball people who gave us money." Throughout this whole thing when anyone brings her a gift or does something for our family, Lizzie will turn to me and say, "why are they doing this mom?" And I just tell her it's because people love her and want to help her. She always gives me this little satisfied smile like she's glad that people love her even if she doesn't understand why.

(Lizzie laying down on the bleachers waiting for the presentation...she was so tired!)

We very much want to visit a specialist in San Francisco who is fighting to find a cure for some of the problems that affect kids like Lizzie and now we have the means to make that trip and pay some of the bills that have accumulated in the weeks while Ben hasn't been working.

I can't explain this in words, but we are different people than we were a month ago. Other people's kindness and the miracles we have seen have changed us. We just want to be such better people and to give more and to have more open hearts towards people.

(Lizzie with the championship teams)

Thank you to everyone who participated in the Tournament - we can't wait to pay it forward!