First and foremost, welcome to @ZZ Leggs and @Elton. The joy of watching Goose and Reluctant Yankee (DRing from NOLA) go Beautiful Mind on us during FNG naming was a gift in itself. Both names are classic. Elton may be YHC’s favorite since the naming of Honeysuckle.
YHC has several grumpy old man pet peeves. One of them is the abundant and obnoxious misuse of the word, “awesome.” That said, YHC should admit he uses the work WAY too much himself. It’s harder to stop saying it than, for example, crossing through the eye of a needle…or perhaps catching the eye of a German optometrist.
To be awesome invokes the fullness of awe. Awe is typically invoked by events such as universe creation, miracles, defeating death, etc. So, when I hear certain PAX who are in their early 20’s and hail from LaRose say, “Bruhhh, those hot wings were AWESOME,” it makes one stop and ponder life in some confusion (and maybe sadness).
Recently, YHC just reached his two-year Manniversary with F3. As many can relate, the F3 experience has been nothing short of a miracle. Sound melodramatic? Well, you be the judge. When YHC moved his family to Thibodaux, he had a few good acquaintances and some old “friends” from previous life chapters. His physical health was right in line with an early 40’s bro who often thought about the glory days. From time to time, he would run for a week or two after seeing a picture in which he saw the gut sticking out. YHC had no faith practice to speak of. Prayers happened when the S#&@ was hitting the fan or he was getting his teeth kicked in by life, in general.
Blessed as he was to have a beautiful and growing family, along with a solid-ish career track, there was always something missing. “Something missing” is a dangerous place for a man to hang out…in between his ears…looking at deceivingly greener pastures elsewhere.
So…with F3 came:
1) meaningful friendships;
2) the best physical/emotional shape in his life…since 1997;
3) an awakening toward a faith life, leading ultimately to a full conversion to Catholicism;
4) everything rich fruit that bountifully follows as a result of the previous three points.
Still sound melodramatic? Deal with it, Pop.
Coming up on his first year since confirmation in the Catholic Church, YHC is certainly not on the ballot for any ‘rookie of the year’ awards. That said, his faith has deepened in ways he never knew possible. Having never walked the Stations of the Cross before, it is these types of faith engagement of which YHC is just starting to now scratch the surface. And dang, bro…it’s some powerful stuff.
After some thought and clumsy prayer, YHC settled on a ‘Stations of the Cross’ beatdown for Holy Saturday. The night before, YHC had a vision for how this could play out: 14 cones (or cawhns in North Louisiana). At 11 pm that night, the cones were no longer dramatic enough. YHC needed more.
12 cinders and 12 cedar fence boards later, seven (7) crosses were hastily built. The PAX would go seven stations out (20 yards in between) and seven stations back. We would treat it as closely as time would permit to actually walking the Stations.
However, in our version, we would lunge-walk with coupons in between stations (aka…walking genuflections) to symbolize bearing our own crosses. For each station, YHC read the leader’s prayer, the PAX responded, selected scripture was read aloud, followed by three (for the Triduum) exercises for the station. The third exercise was designed to consistently be six (6) man makers. Why? God made man on the sixth day.
We would not have time to complete all exercises for all stations, but the PAX arrived at the 14th Station with two minutes to spare, picked up their coupons and sprinted back to the flag. The lunge-walks were brutal, the man makers were nauseating, and the side by side partner squats were disturbing…but not as awkward as the Suzanne Somers goblet squats.
YHC will refrain from further narration. It’s not about him or the PAX…or the external validation derived from a quality backblast. On Saturday, seventeen men and soon to be men entered into Christ’s Passion.
It was actually…
Awesome.
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Stations
I. Jesus Is Condemned to Death
20 Prisoner squats
20 Nolan Ryans – both sides
6 man makers
II. Jesus Carries His Cross
20 Goblet squats
20 WWI sit-ups (no block)
6 man makers
III. Jesus Falls the First Time
20 Burpees
20 Mountain climbers (2:1)
6 man makers
IV. Jesus Meets His Mother
20 flutter kicks w block
20 WW2 Sit-ups with block/ or modify without
6 man makers
V. Jesus Is Helped by Simon of Cyrene
20 partner air squats (side by side)
20 Alternating partner shoulder tap merkins
6 man makers
VI. Jesus Is Comforted by Veronica, Who Wipes His Face
20 apolo ohno’s (1:1)
20 chilcutt jacks
6 man makers
VII. Jesus Falls Again Beneath the Weight of the Cross
20 burpees, hand release merkins at bottom
20 LBCs w/ block
6 man makers
VIII. Jesus Comforts the Women of Jerusalem
20 Suzanne Somers (squats, toes pointed out)
20 J-Lo’s (2:1)
6 man makers
IX. Jesus Falls for 3rd Time
20 Bonnie Blair’s (2:1)
6 man makers
X. Jesus Stripped of His Clothes
20 Thrusters
6 man makers
XI. Jesus Nailed to the Cross
20 Star jumps
6 man makers
XII. Jesus Dies, Commending Himself to the Father
20 genuflections
20 V-ups
6 man makers
XIII. Jesus is Taken Down from the Cross and Placed in the Arms of Mary
20 WW3 sit ups w/ block or modify to WW2 sit ups
20 Leg lifts holding block straight up
6 man makers
XIV. Jesus is Placed in the Tomb of Joseph of Arimathea
Coupon run back to flag
6 man makers
