The Opportunity of a Lifetime

From the youngest of ages to the end of our life, each day brings countless opportunities and demands that hinge on one factor – our ability to turn free will into willpower. As parents, it is one of the most important things that our kids will ever learn, and yet for most this process remains a mystery.

Footprints of Our Catholic Brethren

In the subfreezing morning of January 15, 2012, our family and 14 other fellow pilgrims embarked on a historical tour of the Evansville Diocese. For the next five and a half years, our family and the accompanying pilgrims would travel once a month to the next oldest church and eat at a restaurant nearby. By the time we reached our final visit on Pentecost Sunday in June of 2017, we had visited 65 churches and traveled roughly 4,500 miles. This account of The Evansville Diocese Historical Tour tells the story of this pilgrimage and the sites, sounds, and people which left an indelible imprint upon our family and those who traveled along.

The impetus for 40 Days of Hopeful Prayer came unexpectedly. Seated on our couch one night, I felt discouraged that I could not find the sustained time to write more extensively. In that moment of frustration, I suddenly felt inspired to change my focus, and attempt to write a prayer about a meaningful moment from the day or a collection of experiences that had affected me. I felt compelled to set my sights on forty prayers given the significance that this number holds in scripture. And so, over the course of the next year, many of my evenings ended with a prayer, and my illustrations of the leaves became a natural symbol of each. 40 Days of Hopeful Prayer is written from the perspective of a child psychologist, a friend, a father, and a husband, and above all, one individual in search of hope and transcendence midst everyday challenges that life brings. It reflects my love of nature, and the beautiful diversity that trees bring to our world as one manifestation of divine brilliance.

In August of 2011, I found myself on the banks of the Ohio River as the sun began its ascent. As a young boy, I watched in amazement as Ironman athletes competed in Kona. Before this dream came to fruition, my life had already been frenetic with four children and a busy practice. By the time it was over, though, I came to understand why I had little choice but to accept its calling. In multiple instances, I would come face-to-face with death in unlikely ways. I would find myself questioning the sanity of my decision. I would learn to find joy in strange places, in the briefest times. I would learn to embrace suffering and befriend those I never met. Into the Rising Sun is a chronicle of this journey, both as one individual in pursuit of a calling and one family in search of the truth. It became our story of faith, in each other and in realities difficult to comprehend. It is an intimate look at a young family shrouded in love midst the challenges of an ever-changing landscape and the travails that new life brings. In many ways, it is a saga of millions left untold all searching for clarity. Couched in this story are other related tales. These are the accounts of Ironmen past and present, both known personally and through popular media. These are stories that have inspired millions. They are the ones who inspire us to carry on when the toil seems just too hard. Into the Rising Sun seeks to understand the drive that exists in all of us to transcend barriers that seem insurmountable. It goes in search of a greater purpose that underlies it all.

The Unified Pursuit of Health, Harmony, Happiness, and Heaven

Very often we find ourselves struggling and disconnected from the person who we are called to be. We go looking for solutions in different places, only to find that sustained progress and growth does not seem to come. Meanwhile, as our lives seem more compartmentalized and arranged, we slowly begin to slip away from the holistic existence that all of us desire. We seek happiness in circumstances that don’t endure, and settle for superficiality that does little more than get us through our day. But deep inside of us, a yearning remains—one that desires to deeply embrace our physical, psychological, social, and spiritual dimensions in raw form as one being.