Friday, August 9, 2013

bonus blog...all about trav

this is tate's mission blog that he has asked me to keep for him.  when he returns from his mission i will print this blog and make a book for him so that he has his letters and my thoughts throughout his mission will be in a book form.  my little gift to him.  i have come to realize that this blog has helped me express my feelings or thoughts along the way while tate is on a mission.  i have decided today to include an entry about tate's uncle travis today.  I know that tate won't mind and i hope that when tate reads this it will bring a smile to him...




bonus blog...all about trav...  travis has been on my mind quite a bit lately.  we just recently attended a memorial golf tournament held in his honor.  his two good friends, rick ockey and troy bell organized and put this tournament together.  the money raised will go to abbie, kannon, laynie bo and madden for their college funds.it was well attended and overwhelming to see the friends and family that came to support travis.  they were all there to pay tribute to a man who had an impact on their lives in some way.  i know that he was watching and was humbled at the outpouring of love.



the following day we held a family reunion while everyone was in town.  we didn't do anything BIG...just being together was enough.  all of the kids participated in the highland gauntlet where they did skills in football, soccer, track, baseball, volleyball, and  basketball.  we then had a pancake breakfast, went to the fun zone, had a barbeque and then watched a movie.  this family loves to be together which was one of travis's favorite things to do.  we laughed, cried, told stories and laughed again...just how travis would have wanted it.



all of us wore t-shirts that had the quote printed on them...WIN THE DAY.  it was quite a sight to see over 30 family members with their matching t-shirts on.  this was in tribute to the BIG guy (travis) who couldn't make it to our reunion.  and yes we even had a shirt for tate made so that he could be part of the day.



 this was a quote that travis said often.  i had heard him say it...had seen him sign a card or letter with this quote but never really knew what the meaning was.  i decided that i needed to understand the meaning of WIN THE DAY  so that i could fully understand why it was of importance to my brother.



the oregon ducks football team hired a new coach that took this quote and made it his team's motto.  he wanted them to come to practice each day and work hard.  he wanted them to win every push up, every sprint, every drill, every pass, every tackle, every block and scrimmage.  he then expected them to come back the next day and do it all over again only this time push themselves harder than they had done the day before.  he expected them to WIN THE DAY each and every day.  he expected them to do this 6 days of week so that when it was game day they were prepared to WIN THE DAY and win the game.


now i understood... this is how my brother led his life...he wanted to WIN THE DAY...each and every day.  he expected his family, friends, teammates, and those he coached to do the same.  he was BIG and everything he did was BIG.  he didn't do things halfway or rush into decisions.  he thought things through and explored every option and its outcome before making any decisions.  this is something i admire about him most.  he was thoughtful of ALL THINGS.



he loved shelby and the kids with all of his BIG heart.  everything he did was for them.  they were the first thing he thought about in the morning and the last thing he thought about at night.  they are his everything...


i am thankful for his example not only to myself but to my children, my grandchildren, my nieces and nephews, my brother and sister and to my mom and dad.  he lived his life the way we all should by seeing the BIG picture and helping others to see it too.


i hope that this past weekend was something he would have been proud of.  he loved his mom and dad and family with all of his heart...his BIG heart.  we love him and will always remember him each and every day for the rest of our lives.  i love my little BIG brother and will continue to WIN THE DAY in his honor.


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