Heather Hodges

It all started 12 years ago this week. My brother, Houston was coordinating a mock crucifixion scene for Camp Kadesh at Abilene Christian University. He asked Wade to portray one of the criminals who would hang on either side of “Jesus.” I was part of the angry crowd who yelled, “Crucify him! Crucify him!” In the late afternoon, all the actors drove to a hill outside Abilene to reenact the crucifixion scene for a group of high school campers. It was a moving experience for everyone involved, especially for me. Not only did I get to participate in a portrayal of the most important day in the history of the world, but I also noticed for the first time the man who would become my husband - one of the criminals on the cross. We had our first date two days later and four months later we were married. The significance that our relationship began at the foot of the cross has not escaped our notice. We want above all things for our relationship to reflect the grace, love and sacrifice of our Savior. It has been an incredible 12 years full of joy, laughter, pain, tears, renegotiation, forgiveness, and love. Thanks Wade for the adventure that is our life. I love you.

Wade as one of the criminals, I’m in the top right corner.

We had a great Family Festival last night at Garnett.  One of the attractions was the Bungie Run / Joust combo.  The idea is to play king/queen of the mountain and push each other off.  My husband didn’t get the memo.  Take a look at this incriminating video on his blog.  www.wadehodges.com

At the 2nd annual Family Festival we will celebrate our culturally diverse neighborhoods of East Tulsa by throwing a party for our children and families. 

There are many ethnicities and languages represented in East Tulsa and I believe we are a more vibrant community because of our differences.  While it is important that immigrants to our country assimilate into our culture and learn English we want to celebrate our differences and the richness of our respective cultures. 

For centuries  people from all over the world have been coming to America for the same reasons – freedom and hope — and then a Frenchman created a statue that embodied their hopes and dreams and the promise of America, “Give us your poor, your tired, your huddled masses longing to be free…” – The Statue of Liberty. 

On Wednesday evening May 14^th, 2008 the Garnett Bilingual Preschool, the Garnett Church of Christ, and the Green Country Event Center will host the 2^nd annual Family Festival.  Admission to the event is free. 

There will be inflatables for the children, pony rides, a clown, a magician, face painting, balloon animals, and family style games such as three legged races, parent-child wheel barrow races, water balloon toss, and a hula hoop contest. 

We will have demonstrations by the Hmong cultural dancers, Karate Shikara by the students of José Munoz, gymnastics by Aim High Academy and the students of the Garnett Bilingual Preschool, Safari’s Interactive Animal Sanctuary, and a Magic Show by Michael Platten.

There will also be food for sale by Hmong’s Café, Wing Stop, barbeque by Chef Roy Victory, Mexican food from Carnicieria la Placita, and of course pop corn and cotton candy.

I hope everyone in the Tulsa area will bring their families by for food, fun, frivolity, and of course a little culture.  See you there!!!!

I recently watched the 1953 Academy Award winning movie “Shane” for the fourth or fifth time.  Alan Ladd plays Shane, the tough but weary gunfighter who tries to settle down with a farming family and be their hired hand. He becomes friends with their son Joey, who wants Shane to teach him how to shoot. But trouble soon arises between the farmers and the ranchers and Shane has to put on his guns again to save the day. Shane beats up the bad guys and saves all the farmers from ruin. After this Shane knows he is no farmer and decides to leave.  As he is riding off into the sunset Joey calls after him, “Shane….Shane…. come back Shane!” Joey doesn’t understand why Shane can’t stay forever. Goodbyes can seem unbearable to the ones left behind.

How do we learn to say goodbye gracefully? I’m trying to learn this arduous, but important task now. My dearest Grandma Ola is soon to leave this earth. She is suffering from terminal cancer, and is in her last days or maybe weeks of life.

I have just returned from spending a few days with her; she and I both knew the reason for my visit. But how do I say goodbye to the woman who has meant so much to me in my life? She has taught me many important life lessons, and has walked beside me during some of the saddest and happiest days of my life. She taught me to paint and to really see the world around me. She made my wedding dress. She has listened to me cry and laugh. She poured out wisdom on me and taught me to love the Lord more fervently and faithfully. She modeled how to love and be loved by the same man for 68 years. She showed me how to be content with little or with plenty. She showed me that a woman can do or become anything she wants. She taught me how to be brave in the face of pain. She taught me that creativity is a gift from God. She modeled leadership and strength. She modeled how to live as a woman of God.

Today she taught me how to say goodbye. As we sat together, she reached out and patted me on the knee with her frail hand. She told me she was ready and that she wasn’t afraid. She said she wasn’t dwelling on her death, but knew it would come soon. When the time came for me to go, I bent down to hug and kiss her. She squeezed my hand and said, “I’ll see ya.” We both knew what she meant.

Even in her last days, Grandma is still teaching me one more lesson. She is teaching me how to let go and say goodbye gracefully. But it is not goodbye, but “I’ll see ya.” So unlike Joey from Shane I won’t say “come back”, but rather, “Go on home Grandma, I’ll see ya.”

“The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not be in want.  He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, he restores my soul. he guides me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake. Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me, your rod and your staff, they comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies.  You anoint my head with oil, my cup overflows.  Surely goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.” Psalm 23

Sometimes listening at my sons’ bedroom door pays off.  Most of the time I just hear them talking about toys, their favorite TV show, friends, the cat, etc.  But last night I heard a different conversation that made my heart swell just a little.

Elijah (5 yrs old) - “Caleb, you want to know why I’m so proud of you?”

Caleb (6 yrs old) - “Why?”

Elijah - “Because you didn’t cry when Mom pulled your tooth out.”

Elijah, Mom is so proud of you for affirming your big brother.  Way to go bud!!!!

After putting the boys to bed the other night I heard them giggling and whispering about Christmas. They finally settled down and when I went to check on them, they had fallen asleep in the same bed. Wade moved Caleb back to his own bed before he had the chance to push his brother to the floor. Only in slumber can they be in such close proximity to each other without engaging in warfare. Perhaps it was the visions of sugarplums dancing in their heads.

Last Sunday after church, Wade and I took the boys out for Indian food at a great little cafe here in Tulsa. The food was excellent, as usual, and as we were heading home he turned into the parking lot of Circuit City unexpectedly. He told us to wait in the car as he dashed into the store “Just to look at something.” As the boys and I waited, I noticed a guy walking out of the store cradling a medium sized white box. Shortly after he got in his car a family emerged from the store. The dad was holding the same white box and the two kids were jumping up and down at his side in excitement. At that point it dawned on me, they have a Wii !!!!! We have been searching for weeks for this coveted and highly elusive electronic commodity. Every store we would enter had either just sold their last one or they hadn’t had any for weeks and didn’t know when a new shipment would arrive. So when I saw two suspicious white boxes exiting a store in succession, the boys and I jumped out of the car and headed inside. I called to the family as I passed, “Is that a Wii?” The dad responded, “Yes, but I think they are selling the last one right now, you’ d better hurry.” At this point the boys knew the cause for my sudden dash towards the store and became equally as excited as I was. As we entered the store I saw the last Wii at the counter being purchased. I sadly told the boys that it was too late, that guy over there in the black shirt was buying the very last Wii. Caleb hung his head slightly in disappointment, but my astute 5 year old, Elijah said, “But Mom, that’s Dad!” So we now in turn became the family walking out of the store, dad carrying the white box and the two kids jumping up and down at his side.

As I’ve said before, I am not a fan of video games. I think they are a colossal waste of time and encourage children (and grown men) to become sedentary trigger happy couch potatoes. However, this is the not the case with the Wii. It is a high energy, up on your feet, interactive experience for the whole family. We have had tons of fun this week and we look forward to a long winter of family game nights.

Wii Parenting Tip - Privileges are Powerful: Wade and I have found that the Wii is also a great motivating tool to encourage our sons to clean their rooms, eat their asparagus, and refrain from assault and battery on each other.

My sons stealthily moved from house to house last night in the cover of darkness as ninjas. Of course mom was close behind with the flashlight. Elijah was dressed as a garden variety ninja and Caleb was of the Teenage Mutant sort. Halloween is starting to get really fun around the Hodges home.

My baby turned 5 years old today!!!!  Where has the time gone?

The last video game unit I had was an original Atari. My brothers and I mastered Pit Fall, Frogger, Night Driver and of course Pac Man. Since the time I was about 14, I’ve seen video games as a colossal waste of time. I’ve viewed excessive video game playing as a character flaw. I’ve passed judgment on old boyfriends and grown men for spending too much time sitting in front of a TV with a controller in their hands. But, after last night I’m singing a new song.

Some new friends had us over for dinner last night. After the very excellent meal, they broke out the Wii. It was probably the most fun I’ve had all week, and certainly the most exercise I’ve had too. I played tennis, bowled, shot rabbits with toilet plungers, and incinerated bunnies while dancing to the beat. I got a stitch in my side laughing at my sons boxing each other and then rolled in the floor when the two dads boxed. It was truly a family fun night with the adults having most of the fun. And to top it off, my arm is sore today from the exertion.

No wonder this new toy is hard to find in stores right now. Does anyone know where to put your hands on one of these little gadgets, cause we want a Wii.