"From Tragedy to Triumph to Immortality." (I wrote this after watching the Kentucky Derby years ago)

From Tragedy to Triumph to Immortality



I was watching the Kentucky Derby race last year . Some of you who keep up with horse racing know that accidents and horses breaking down after or during a race is just part of the whole sport. It is no different than any other sport I reckon. It is just so sad to watch magnificent animals who are bred to do a certain thing end up getting hurt and having to be euthanized on the track or soon after because of some kind of accident. Unfortunately, horses are not like other athletes. If they break something, usually they cannot be saved because they cannot stay still long enough to allow their bodies to be healed.
For me, it goes way back in the 70s when the great filly, Ruffian, broke her leg in a match race and had to be euthanized. It was one of those unique stories where the filly supposedly could not run with the boys. She had been kept out of the Kentucky Derby and the other races because people did not think she compete with the guys even though she had been quite successful. But after a lot of public pressure and after her winning some races, the public outcry was too much for them to not have a match race with her and the Kentucky Derby winner, Foolish Pleasure. That was back in 1975. And because we had horses, I can remember it like yesterday. There was so much anticipation as they walked onto the track. She was a beautiful black mare and she had that arrogant walk like she knew she was going to do something special on that day. it was one of those pivotal moments in sports where the nation was watching and waiting! It is hard to get those special moments because they are so rare and because somehow it was bigger than sports. It was a drama waiting to unfold and there it was waiting for us to watch it play out. They came out of the gates and she jumped out to a lead, albeit a small one. And then Foolish Pleasure, the Kentucky Derby winner, moved ahead by a nose. But this was her day to shine. It was like watching an athlete saying "No You Don't"! She pulled ahead again and they broke the speed at the quarter of a mile post.
58,000 people were standing and 18 million were watching on television as the "Queen of the Fillies" was giving the proverbial finger to all of her doubters. And then in one brief instant, she pulled up. One of the bones in her ankle had broken. But what makes it so sad but also somehow great was that she knew she was hurt but she was still running. Her Heart was made for this. Running was in her blood. It was what she lived for and it was how she died.
You could hear the collective moans and groans from thousands of people and the millions watching on television. We were watching something so sad but so heroic at the same time. And just like last year when Barbaro was going for the Triple Crown and yesterday when the filly, Eight Belles, ran down the home stretch with nostrils flaring only to pull up lame after crossing the finish line, I'm sure there were many many people like me going back to that sunny day in 1975, when perhaps one of the greatest horses at one of the greatest moments in sports history showed us what the Heart of a Champion surely is. She was not making millions of dollars like the athletes that play other sports. She was doing what those horses do. It is the purity of true athleticism and a true greatness you can only get in sports! It is not about endorsements or contracts or even glory. It is just running because it is in your bloodline which is passed down from generation to generation. So here is to Eight Belles, Ruffian, Barbaro, and all of the other horses that run into immortality. And, in doing so, burn their heroics into our collective memories. I just hope there is a pasture in Heaven so they can run eternally!

Our Journey through Life

It is said Life is a journey that takes many twists and turns. That is true and none of us can escape it. Unfortunately, we don't have a GPS or handbook on life that will send us in the correct direction all the time. The ups and downs and the different paths we take fall fully on certain choices and decisions we make while others are things that are out of our control. Some believe it is all part of God's plan while others think it's fate. I choose to believe it's part of God's plan even if I can't understand it. And even the strongest of us question God many times wondering why and for what purpose! That's only human and maybe that's why the rest of the world finds it easier to think what happens in life is fate and happenstance and nothing else. If that's true, I can't bring myself to believe it. I have to believe that our lives serve a bigger purpose for fate or anything else to steer us.

I have to believe our lives have to have meaning and in my judgment, only God can give it that. I may not understand the endgame or his purpose just like everyone else doesn't. Maybe just maybe it's not meant for us to understand. Maybe that is the purpose. Maybe the paths we are given whether it is easy or difficult and everything in between is all about the search for understanding of what we are really meant to accomplish for his glory. To put us through things that will strengthen our metal and even through the pain build our physical, spiritual, and emotional strength so we can serve that purpose that is "Greater Than Our Own" when we face things throughout our life!

We all have read or heard of the poem by Robert Frost "The Road Not Taken". The traveler was faced with two paths and he took the more difficult one thinking he would always have time to come back and walk the easier path. It is a metaphor of life. The last phrase and most famous is so powerful;

I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence;
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I –
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.


So many of us have been down that road less traveled and it doesn't matter nor make a difference if one's person's path may seem more difficult than another. Because it doesn't matter what kinds of things you face in life whether it be physical, emotional, financial, family related, work related etc. No one and I mean no one has a monopoly on heartbreak and difficulty. Just like no one has a monopoly on good fortune and happiness! We may look at other people facing what we may think are things that are trivial but to them it is "important"! Emotions are emotions. They are oblivious to the situation. Happiness, Sadness, Loneliness, etc. are always present. So we can't be quick to judge but rather understand. I know I have been guilty of this.

We can only hope that whatever we face in life, we do so learning the entire way so as to not waste a moment that may help us in the future. I think that's all part of God's plan. To learn to be better people and in doing so, we remember that there were flowers and beauty and even blessings on that "Less Traveled Road". Those help us appreciate what we have been through and allow us to share our journey so that it will be a light for others who no doubt are watching. Because we all are making a difference for someone. Like it or not, people are always watching us and I truly believe that it's not so important what we face in life but rather, how we face it. If we learn to do so with a smile, laughter and with fortitude, that's the lesson and testimony that I believe God wanted us to learn! For that is the legacy that we are leaving and that is the example we are setting for others to remember us by so that they can walk their paths just a little easier!

Mike Hennington

Friday Night Lights (High School Football)

There is always something special about this time of year for me. Starting tonight and next week for real, high school football season will kickoff. I bet those of you who played are just like me and can still remember the smell of that leather football, the grass, the sweat, and all of the sounds from practice. I bet you all can still remember and even feel your heart beat & when you heard the sound of the band playing the fight song as we were walking to the field ready to charge through the banner the cheerleaders had made. Yes, it was high school but we felt like gladiators going in to the arena!! And that was after that special feeling of the pep rally in the gym. You know you wanted to be that football player called out to join the cheerleaders in one of their cheers. :-) It might have been awkward and embarrassing, but we were there in our jerseys eating it up!

And it's not just the football players who can relate to this. Those of you who were members of the band and cheerleaders can probably relive and remember the same moments just in a different way. All the practices during the summer leading up to "Friday Night Lights!"

Now, we are all aunts and uncles or mothers and dads watching the kids experience the special times we did. The cycle keeps turning but the spirit and the excitement and emotions are still the same. :-)

That's why we love it so much because even went so much as changed and with all of the craziness going on in the world, it's a reminder of what is "Right, Pure, and Innocent" and it brings us all together!! So for everyone out there, enjoy the season, yell and scream and treasure every moment. And just like us, the kids going through it now will be having their own memories and telling their kids and grandkids about "Remember When..." #FridayNightFootball #GreatMemories

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