Hudson

Tag

Good stuff & bad people

Earlier this week I was scrolling through news on ESPN on my phone, when I read the following headline: “She said yes; Alex Rodriguez and Jennifer Lopez engaged to be married!” I clicked the link, and was taken to an Instagram post showing her hand on a beach somewhere, with the largest “rock” I think I have ever beheld with mine eyes. And if I’m being honest a thought I’m not all that proud of ran through my head. “How…

The fear of the Lord

It’s something I’ll never forget. The only time I have ever seen my step-dad actually angry. Like raised his voice, and most likely his blood pressure angry. Like stopped me dead in my tracks and made me reconsider all of my life’s goals and dreams angry. Like, I’ve known the man going on 31 years and it’s never going to happen again I am sure, angry. And let’s just say it wasn’t caused by something you’d expect.  My brother and…

Better together

It was one of the scariest things I have ever done. I gathered a room full of people who I had led for two years, people I felt probably looked up to me, people who trusted me and thought of me as someone to share their struggles with - and now I was about to share my struggle with them. What would it cost me? Their trust? Their friendship? Their respect? My job? After all, this same issue had cost…

I know a ghost

There are few things on the planet that can bring me as much joy as what I got to experience last week. My beautiful wife is one of them. Spending time with her is literally my favorite activity in the history of time. My children are a second. Their laugh and smiles are infectious, and just the medicine that this “daddy” needs when he walks through the door each night. Watching a game at Lambeau Field or Miller Park would…

Easter Sunday

I remember it like it was yesterday. The year is 2011, and the day is February 6th. My family and I have been watching together as our beloved Green Bay Packers played the Pittsburgh Steelers in a game you might have heard of called the Super Bowl. It had started off well for us, the Packers had been in the lead for the entire game, and now in the waning moments, the Steelers were attempting a comeback, in an attempt…

The hardest part

Tom Petty famously penned and sang the line ‘the waiting is the hardest part’ - and I think in most cases, I’d have to agree with him. When we were young kids, my parents used to drive us down to my grandparents farm on all the major holidays and at least a few times each summer. Grandma’s house was a magical land filled with the best of all worlds. Grandma loved to cook, and we loved food, so that lined…

Cleaning House

My wife and I are not the housecleaning type. It’s not like we live in a pigsty or anything - we do clean the house. It’s just that, given the choice between hanging out with each other or the kids and scrubbing toilets and washing floors, we will always choose the former. Growing up, my parents kept the house incredibly tidy. Floors were washed and vacuumed every Saturday, bathrooms were cleaned weekly, and beds were made on a daily basis.…

He is choosing – you and me

Have you ever walked into a place you didn’t want to? Late to an important meeting. Needing to have an uncomfortable conversation. Having to see someone you just don’t get a long with. These are life’s seemingly unavoidable situations. No matter how long we wait or how hard we try, they just seem to keep coming up. I remember one such occasion in my life. An important and influential member of not just my life but my community had wronged…

Let there be strawberry jello…

My Grandma Steffen makes the best strawberry jello you’ll ever eat. Her name is Arlene, and if you promise not to tell, I’ll share half her secret with you. She makes it with extra love, and puts cool whip on the top. For years and years, my brother and I have been skipping the “real” part of holiday and birthday meals, and getting the jump on the rest of our family by going straight to the jello. If you’ve ever…