Marathon Monday (with a couple pictures)

 

For my friends outside of New England, this past Monday was Patriot’s Day. As per usual, kids got the day off from school, businesses throughout the Commonwealth shut down, the Boston Marathon took place and the Sox played an 11am home game. Just like every other year… Except… it didn’t feel like just another year, and everybody knew it too. Dozens of Police officers waited at the entrance of every (open) subway station to check bags and trucks from every news station you could think of from around the world littered the streets. We all understood why, but it still made you hyper-aware of your surroundings. That being said, Monday was absolutely incredible.

Now I realize I can be an emotional guy, but when I say Monday was very moving I’m fairly certain even Ebenezer Scrooge’s heart (pre- A Christmas Carol) would have been touched. Seeing complete strangers standing side by side cheering on people they don’t even know brought a smile so big to my face that I felt as if I tore a muscle. You could tell it affected the spirit of the runners too. Most acknowledged the cheers with a big smile and a waving of a hand, while others thanked the crowd with arms raised and fists clenched as they ran along, ever closer to the finish line.

A staggering 99% of the 35,000 marathon participants finished the race, and over a million friends, relatives and others spent hours that day yelling their support to each runner that passed by.  

Watching all this unfold made me realize that last year’s tragedy made way for this year’s beautiful resurrection. It all seemed weirdly symbolic for this to happen a day after Holy Week. For those of us who are Christians, Good Friday was without a doubt the darkest day this world has ever seen, yet Easter Sunday was the brightest.  I couldn’t help but make that correlation as I saw hundreds of people run by me. It was like a Sunday sermon being preached by the city of Boston, and I was lucky enough to be sitting in a front-row pew.

As promised here are the pictures:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Here's also some others I took this past week because I was bored...

 

Disclaimer: Let it be known I took the Sox pictures when I got off work! haha

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Also, enjoy here's some good driving music for this beautiful weather!

Foxboro, Fenway and the Upside Down Kingdom

The first beautiful weekend in New England finally arrived… and I was off of work to boot. For those of you that know me well, this weather is what I’m all about. From volleyball to Mellow Mushroom. Frisbee to Virginia Beach. Whenever the temperature got over 60 degrees I was outside doing something.

Even though I traded North Carolina day trips for North Billerica train stations, this weekend was no different. Saturday my brother and I took off to Gillette Stadium to see an MLS match between the New England Revolution and the Houston Dynamo. I loved (almost) every second of it.  From the hour-long drive to Red Robin Burgers to the game itself, I don’t remember the last time I had that much fun... Well except when I realized I forgot the tickets to the game, but we got that sorted out with the ticket office fairly quickly. Still, few moments in life can top driving with the windows down and belting out a song at the top of your lungs. Bonus points if people stare at you.

 

Sunday was a little more reserved. I’ll be honest with you guys, I hadn’t stepped foot inside of a church in a pretty long time until today. And I’m not even sure today counts since their service is held in a movie theatre. Regardless, I found myself stepping out of my comfort zone and into theatre #12 at the Regal Cinema near Fenway Park. By most standards, the church is a small one. Maybe 100-150 or so people were there today, but it was still incredible to be surrounded by a church family. We talked about the Upside Down Kingdom of God, and how God chose to build His kingdom through the poor rather than the powerful. It was just another reminder that Heaven will be filled with all sorts of people. Beggars, Fisherman and Kings are all loved by God the same. I really liked it there and I look forward to returning Easter Sunday. Afterwards I took my parents to Chipotle just because my mom had never been. Steak Bowls FTW. #TeamSteakBowls

The rest of my day compromised of watching my recording of the Liverpool-Manchester City game (LIVERPOOL!!!) and… being alive? Yeah that’s pretty much it. Oh. And I took some pictures.

Also, if you're looking  for some summer music might I suggest this?

 

 

 

Opening Day

Some times in life things seem to good to be true. Yesterday was one of those days. I couldn't help but think that it was all a dream... That at some point in time during the day I was going to wake up and it would be 9:30 p.m. The time I usually got up for my old job. Now I know I've said that before, but it was how I felt throughout yesterday.

As most of you know by now, yesterday was the home opener/ ring ceremony for the Sox. Because of that a lot of us got there pretty early to make sure everything went without a hitch. While I can't say everything that I did, my day was spent working with volunteers on top of the Green Monster (Fenway Park's 37 foot-high wall in left field) as well as setting up/ tearing down the equipment for the Boston Symphony Orchestra and Dropkick Murphy's. Working in front of 37,000+ screaming fans was definitely one the craziest feelings I've ever had. Still, those moments paled in comparison to the time in between setting up and tearing down which was spent making jokes with the firefighters of Engine Company 33 Ladder 15 as well as an Air Force Chief Master Sargent from my neck of the woods.

Now if you hadn't heard, recently there was a big fire in Boston that killed 2 firefighters and injured a slew of others. So naturally the Red Sox wanted to find a way to honor the brave men who worked tirelessly to put out the fire and prevent the fire from spreading throughout the Back Bay.

As you can imagine, upon seeing these guys enter and line up next to me my mind was filled with a lot of different thoughts and feelings. Thoughts of admiration and honor. Feelings of being excited to be in their presence and sadness for the reason they were in my presence. Now if you know me, I'm bad at starting up small talk. Like wicked bad. But yesterday was bitterly cold so naturally that's what I started out with. It was so much fun. From describing the Opening Day Ceremony to them (we couldn't see it from where we were standing) to assuring them we'd take pictures of the event, that was definitely one of the most fun things I've ever done. Before they left to take the field I made sure to thank them for their service, to which  the just shook their heads and waved off my thanks. Very cool group of guys.

After the ceremony, I was off the clock and able to soak in the atmosphere of Fenway. Let me tell you, if you've never been to a game, or haven't been in a long time, you need to go. The history of the park, the knowledgeable fans and the Boston skyline in the background make Fenway a beautiful place to take in an MLB game. Plus I'll probably be there! Haha

Anyways today I start my real job of working on Yawkey Way, I'm sure more awesome memories will be made and I'll definitely writ a few down within the coming weeks. Have an incredible rest of  the day, and enjoy some good music by my friends The Doodads and Don'ts (FREE ON NOISETRADE.COM)

That Feeling of Helplessness

Today just started out as any other March day in Boston. Bitterly cold. However, I was inside the warm, welcoming confines of the North Station subway stop so at least I wasn't freezing to death. As I waited for the train to arrive to take me closer to work (I was REALLY early), this seemingly ordinary man stood on the edge of the platform and began shouting.

"Does anyone know how to get to the Boston DMV, and how to help me get a photo ID?!," he exclaimed. "I need it in order to get a house."

Now, I have no idea where the Boston DMV is, but there were about 70-80 or so people waiting with me so chances are someone knew...

Silence.

For about 5 seconds no one said a word, yet we all stared at that man...

"Please help me," He pleaded. "I have no money or house. I was a druggie for so long, lived on the streets and just found out a couple weeks ago that I'm HIV positive... I just need some help..." His face filled with tears as he whimpered, "I'm not trying to steal from you, but any help will do..."

My head was spinning. What was I to do? I was always leery about giving money to strangers, especially homeless druggies, but he seemed so different... There was no façade. Just a man with absolutely nothing.

In the middle of my inward battle, and just a few seconds after this man finished pleading with this crowd... the train arrived, and we all boarded and left...

I wish this story had a better ending. Frankly, as I type this so many ideas flood my mind of what I could have done differently, or the help that I could have offered. This grown man, due to desperation, begged for some help. Any help. And we... and I just left him there...

Every couple minutes I find myself praying for this guy. I can't go back now since I have work in a little bit... and that's eating at me.

For such a cultured and rich city, Boston has a lot of people struggling to pay rent, find their next meal, have a warm place to stay. God brought that right to my face this morning. They need to be loved on just as much as, if not more than, the affluent that I had aspired to reach.

I pray that this man finds the help he needs, but more importantly I pray that through God's power I can find a way to help all the hurting here. His church needs to reach Boston in a huge way, and as a part of His church, I need to reach Boston in a huge way.

So could you pray for me on this journey?

Sito

Here's some good music to reflect with.

A Short Trip to Boston

So as most of you know, yesterday was nice and warm. Well it was 50 degrees, but that counts as beautiful in a place where the four seasons are Winter, June, July and August. Anyways, my parents and I decided it'd be a great day to go out and do something. So we went to Boston for a couple hours to enjoy great Irish Food and visit Body World's Vital located in Faneuil Hall. So here are a few pictures of the day.



 

 

And as always: Enjoy some good music.

Family

“Welcome to the Red Sox Family!”

 

I couldn’t contain my smile. The owner of my favorite team growing up. The man that headed up saving Fenway Park, oversaw 3 World Series Championships in 10 years and who also invented the position I was hired for just welcomed me (and 89 others) into the Red Sox Family. Even though this was less than 5 minutes into the eventual 4 and a half hour night if they had ended right there I would have been content.

Now I can’t divulge into much of what was said or done last night for obvious reasons, but I can tell you one thing: the more I find out about my job the more I can say with confidence that I finally found a job that fits me. I can guarantee the people sitting around me thought I was crazy as I smiled the whole time they talked about customer service, payroll etc. I was like a kid in a candy store! And that was before I got a special mini-tour with my department of the Red Sox Hall of Fame and Red Sox trophy case. Don’t even get me started on that!

So anyways I just wanted to update you guys on a little bit of what happened last night. I go back next week, and hopefully the Green Line is fixed by then. My mom surprised me yesterday by parking outside of Fenway to pick me up since she didn’t want me to walk too far looking for another subway line to hop on after the Green went down. She’s awesome like that. So yeah, I’ll do my best to let you guys know what’s going on! Or…. You can up here for yourself one weekend and find out in person. Just saying.

 

Since you’re here enjoy some good music. Because Boston

Change

Looking out this window I no longer see the Blue Ridge Mountains. That’s been replaced with cluttered streets full of close-together homes and duplexes. There aren’t Chic-fil-a’s, Hardee’s or Bojangles that dot every corner. Instead we have Dunkin Donuts and a ton of great places for Chinese food. “Y’all” has been exchanged for words missing the letter R, while freezing cold and snow has made way for freezing cold and snow. As my dad put it, I’ve spent the past six years “vacationing” in Massachusetts. Now it’s time for me to finally move back.

 

                There was something ironic about Spring Break being the time I left Lynchburg. A lot of my friends left the city before I did. That truthfully made saying “Goodbye” a lot easier, and it allowed me more time for packing, which I’m pretty slow at doing anyways. It’s little things like this that make me think I’ve made the right choice in coming back to Lowell. Even though my new job/life will be more exciting and fast-paced. More people-oriented and less Third-Shift Janitorial. I can’t help but feel that I left a big part of my heart in Lynchburg. That will change in time, I hope.

                It’s lightly snowing outside, and as I eat Crab Rangoon and Pork Fried Rice for breakfast (judge away) I can’t help but think of 2 Corinthians 12:9 (ESV):

“But he said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me.” 

The only reason I am here today is because of grace. If you could only meet and hear the other finalists you would understand. I had no business being in the same room with most of them for anything other than say “People who currently exist.” It wasn’t like I was intimidated by them, but I just felt like in the grand scheme of things those people were more likely to have this special opportunity than say a once-homeless Puerto Rican  janitor from Lowell. God saw things differently though, and tonight I will be going into orientation for my new job.

 

                Can I tell you something? As bizarre as all this may seem. My past few years make sense now. All the closed doors. All the late-night interventions. The still small voice telling me to not give up. I finally know why… God has brought me a long way. Back to the city and people I love, and He’s told me: “Don’t worry, just be willing.” So I will be, and I am. What will this next chapter look like? Absolutely no idea. But that’s what it was like in my last chapter too, and look how that turned out.

Enjoy some beautiful music