What Really Happened

Two big things happened this weekend.

We finally erected the first arches on our new dairy girl barn—the culmination of over a year of planning and saving.

And Banzai competed in the Pierce County Junior Wrestling League Championships—the culmination of over 4 months of hard work and training.

Saturday ended with five steel arches standing strong and true and Banzai walked out of that gym with a trophy almost as big as him, taking 3rd place in a tournament of 20 different teams.

But of course, those are just the stats.

And there’s always more to a story than just the stats.

What really happened this weekend is a whole bunch of humans showed up for the people they love.

Saturday at the farm started with six of our best friends rolling in, power tools and ladders in hand, ready to go to work. Not a single one of them had to be there—they all have jobs, lives, commitments, and responsibilities…but they showed up with smiles on their faces and excitement in their bones. They knew this was a big day for us—which made it a big day for them. Perhaps no one more-so than my bestie Nana who, just as the sun was starting to set, was convinced we should try to get two more arches up.

The excitement and energy of that day will bring a smile to my face for years to come. There was laughter and swearing in copious amounts as we muddled our way through the first day’s build of our barn—we walked away feeling accomplished and ready for the next 26 arches we will need to raise to complete the project.

And then we went from farmers to wrestlers. This off-season our family has gone full tilt into the world of wrestling. As a 2 time State Champion Matthew already had a love for the sport, but this year our kids tried it out and consequently fell in love, too. So for the past four months we have trained, traveled, and competed. Sissy made it all the way into Divisions in the post-season league but didn’t quality for Leagues like her brother.

But that didn’t keep her from showing up for him in a big way. The day of the tournament she gophered snacks for him, helped him warm up, and was mat-side for every single match, cheering him on at the top of her lungs. We were all on Team Banzai that day and Sissy was our Fearless Leader.

Sometimes it’s not all about you. In fact, sometimes it may have nothing to do with you. It is a gift to show up for the people you love—supporting them in their challenges and sharing in their victories. It’s these moments that strengthen the fabric of family and our friendships…or in our case, friendships that have become family.

What made this weekend truly special wasn’t the fact that we FINALLY got a portion of our barn up, or that Banzai won a trophy (even though up until yesterday he thought trophies were just for teams and was completely unaware individuals could earn them).

This weekend was special because we got to do this thing called life together. A sorrow shared may be a sorrow halved…but a victory shared is a ding dang celebration.

My cup runneth over.