Homeward Bound

Yesterday was a spectacular day!

I spoke on the topic of leadership, delegation, and legacy to student leaders on campus at Grove City College.  Overall, it went very well.  I’ll try to post a video of my presentation when it becomes available.

I interviewed engineering students in the morning campus, and it reminded me how well Grove City does at selecting and educating students to contribute in a major way to this world after college.

I enjoyed a fabulous dinner at Rachel’s Roadhouse Grille with my wife.  This was a favorite spot of ours while we were students at Grove City College.

Today, we’ll enjoy breakfast in MAP Cafeteria before we head home.

As I was thinking about our journey home and about all the things that await us when we get there, I was reminded of this post from a few months ago.  I think it applies today just as much as it did five months ago.

We have a chain in our backyard.  We use it to keep our dog from running away when he is outside.  One end of the chain is attached to a stake in the ground, and the other end is attached to a metal loop on his collar.

The other night, I put Iso (our forever dog) on the chain.  He likes to go out in the backyard to take care of his business and to sniff around for a while.  I came back in the house for a few minutes while Iso was doing his thing.

When I went outside to bring Iso back in the house, he was gone.  The chain broke, and Iso was wandering in the dark of the night.

My heart sunk as I feared I would struggle finding him in the dark.  I quickly ran inside the house view the back patio door, and I quickly ran to the garage to get my shoes, a flashlight, and the box of Milk-bones.  These are the tools necessary to go on a hunt for your runaway dog.  Before I opened the garage door, I quickly looked out the mud room door.  As I turned on the light, I was relieved to see our black dog standing at the side door steps with the other half of the chain following behind him.

I can remember panicking as a child whenever our family dog, Snickers ran away.  She was a beagle, and her instinct to chase rabbits made it challenging for my parents to contain her even when she was tied to a stake in the middle of a fenced in backyard.

It’s amazing how dogs can capture our hearts.

I’m thankful Iso knew to come to the side door.  He knew where is home was.  He could have run around the neighborhood or even run away, but he desired the safety and comfort of home.

We all have a yearning for home.

Sometimes we don’t realize it.  We run away.  We chase after things that lead us temporarily away from home.  But after our running and chasing, our instincts call us home.  And when we get there, our loving Father is standing at the door waiting to welcome us home.

Are you wandering?  Are you running away?  Are you chasing after things that lead us away from home?

Turn back now.  Your Father can’t wait to welcome you home!

Where is your home?

Ice Breaker – Are You Ready For Some Football?

Each week on The Stretched Blog, we ask an ice breaker question.  The questions are designed to help us get to know each other here in The Stretched Community.  I’ll provide my answer to the question here in the post, and then you can leave your response in the comments.  While you’re in the comments section, see how others answered the ice breaker question.

With fall comes football – high school football, college football, and professional football.  It can be a fun time of year especially if your team is doing well.  This week’s ice breaker is all about football.  If you’re not a football fan, it’s okay.  Give us your best answer anyway

My college intramural football team after a muddy game and an amazing victory!

Question: What is your favorite football team – college or professional or both?

My Answer: I’ve lived in the Philadelphia area since the summer of 1980.  The year we moved here the Eagles went to the Superbowl.  It was hard not for me to become a fan of my local team.  It’s been a tough roller coaster ride since then.  One of these years, we’ll not only make it back to the Superbowl, but we’ll win it!  My backup professional team has always been the Chicago Bears.  My family lived in the Chicago area before we moved to the Philadelphia area.  Walter Payton was my favorite player then, and he’s still my favorite all-time player.

As for college football, this won’t win be many points outside of Pennsylvania, but I’m a Penn State fan.  I graduated from Penn State with my MBA in 2006.  It hasn’t been a fun year for our fans, but I’m hopeful for the future.  If it’s division three, I’ll be cheering for Grove City College.  They don’t make the news for the football program very often, but they’re my team.  If you look up college football rushing records, you’ll find that R.J. Bowers set several all-division rushing records at Grove City College several years ago.

There you have it – my answer.  Now, it’s your turn.  Answer this week’s ice breaker question by leaving a comment.  I look forward to reading your response!

3 Thumbs Up! June 2nd, 2012

Time for another rendition of the Stretched 3 Thumbs Up!  Each week, I highlight 3 things that deserve a thumbs up.  This week is a bit of a hodgepodge which I hope you’ll enjoy.

Thumbs Up Number 1: Home Sausage Making.  Before you laugh or get too grossed out, hear me out on this one.  This book is a great resource for anyone who is adventurous enough to try making their own sausage.  There are so many great recipes in the book along with tips for making sausage.  Homemade sausage is way better than store-bought sausage.  I enjoyed homemade bratwurst over the weekend, and it was clearly better than anything you can buy already made.  Check out Home Sausage Making for a fun, new culinary experience.

Thumbs Up Number 2:  Pandora.  Pandora has become one of my favorite apps for the iPad.  Pandora is an on-line radio application that allows you to create your own radio station based on a song or artist.  Within seconds, I can listen to music that fits my mood or focus.  The application is also available for PCs and iPods (and other platforms I would imagine).  I know the local radio guys don’t like this application, but it’s worth checking out Pandora if you’re trying to listen to a certain type of music.

Thumbs Up Number 3:  Team GCC.  This is a new blog and new adventure by a group of students and alumni from Grove City College.  This team of young men is pedaling across the country with a common vision and purpose.  They started in Seattle, Washington this past week, and they’re currently making their way across the northwest.  Check out Team GCC, and follow them as they make this 4,000 mile journey.

What else deserves a thumbs up this week?

Top Posts of 2011 Number 1 – Top 10 Things To Do At Grove City College

We are down to the top Stretched post from 2011.  Sharing these top posts provides an excellent opportunity for me to take a small break during the holidays, and it also provides an incredible opportunity for you to catch up on things you may have missed over the past year.  I hope you’ll hop on over to the original post, so you can read the entire post and add your comments to the existing comments string.  Thank you for letting me take this break and for letting me take this opportunity to share these posts.  Your support for the Stretched Blog this year has been incredible!

And so, drum roll please,…the most popular Stretched post from 2011 was a fun look at my college experience shared right before Homecoming.  The post is titled Top 10 Things To Do At Grove City College.  Here’s an excerpt to get you going:

Top 10 Things To Do At Grove City College

Leanne and I are getting ready to head out to Grove City College for homecoming and Leanne’s 15th reunion.  I’m excited to go back to the place we first met.  My four years at GCC were extremely memorable.  Since I’m thinking about it, here’s my Top 10 Things To Do At Grove City College:

1.  Go to chapel (16 times a semester).  As much as that may sound dull, we were blessed with some great speakers at GCC.  I particularly remember John Guest, Tony Campolo, and R.C. Sproul.

2.  Look to your left and look to your right.  As Nancy Paxton would tell all freshman, your future mate may be in sight.  As it turns out, I met Leanne at the end of my junior year.  The rest is history, so they say.

…

To read the rest of this post, head on over to the original Top 10 Things To Do At Grove City College post.

Share one positive memory about your college or high school experience!