The Eagles Have Taken Off

The 3rd Annual Lukachukai Baseball Championship was held over the weekend. This is a small tournament not to be confused with the 10 team conference tournament held in two weeks. In this year's LBC we had birds defeating mammals in the first round as the LA Eagles took care of the Rock Point Cougars 7 to 2. In the other first round game it was the Tuba City Thunderbirds downing the Shonto Bears by a lot. Then the mammals faced off for third place, and the Cougars easily outscored the Bears 12 to 2. That set things up for the championship game where the Eagles outclawed the Thunderbirds 11 to 5. None of the games were pretty from a baseball standpoint, and the field was as rough and hard as ever, but at least the view is priceless. As you can see from the picture the setting for a baseball game is unmatched while the level of play...yeah it could definitely improve.

Other things one might notice from the picture: My assistant coach has joined the "right" team this year by donning a St. Louis hat at all of the games. Our team caps have not come in yet, and the season ends in two weeks. There are two players who still don't listen to me about wearing their caps right; you can easily see which two. There are three girls on this year's team. One girl is wearing a pink visor. Why would I allow such a thing? Did I mention our team caps have not come in yet? Other than that she is one of the top players I have coached anywhere. She could play on most middle school teams in the US. She easily won the MVP award for this tournament. She is an eight grade, female version of Lenny Dykstra---"Nails". She truly intimidates the other teams.

She can wear whatever hat she wants.

High-n-Tight

BEFORE

Newman and Midge went to the groomer on Friday. Unfortunately the groomer misunderstood what the words "cut their hair short" meant.....so she shaved.

Poor things......but with the warmer weather our buddies will stay nice and cool.

This represents what a "bad hair day" is all about!

AFTER

Big Night with Big Phil

A lot of you from Greene county Indiana will appreciate this, especially you, Beech. Leave us your current email when you comment.

The main thing in life that makes it so interesting, exciting, and meaningful is knowing different people. I've been blessed (is that the right word?) with a lot of interesting characters for friends in my life. One of the more interesting is Big Phil. I don't have the time or words to sufficiently describe him here. Let's just say that he grew up with me as part of the Tulip gang and he became very good at wiffle ball, badminton, and unintentional comedy. Big Phil was like family, and nomatter what we had going in life Big Phil always seemed to show up. That was until about the turn of the millenium when he felt the call of the open road, or something like that. Big Phil became a wanderer, a feather in the wind, a ramblin' man. I received calls here and there and heard rumors about his whereabouts, his adventures, and misadventures, but physical encounters were sparse to say the least.

Last Thursday Big Phil called to say that he, his big truck, and his new sidekick were in Gallup, New Mexico. "I'm coming back from LA on I-40 to the midwest. Why don't you come down and see me and my new lady."
Since it was 6:00pm on a weeknight and Gallup is only 90 minutes away, how could we refuse that invitation? We first had to go by one of my student's homes for a birthday party. Since the family had the wood stove cranked up on a 60 degree day to where the indoor temperature was in serious danger of melting my contacts, I was happy to tell them that we could not stay because we had to get to Gallup to see an old friend. They understood and sent us on our way with some frybread.
We rolled into Luv's truckstop around 8:00 pm and easily spotted Big Phil in his big, blue truck. He excitedly gave us a tour of his home on wheels and introduced us to his newest sidekick named Rita. We then took them out to eat to the El Rancho where John Wayne himself used to hangout. Big Phil excitedly filled us in on the life of a trucker in between bites of green chile. He had Tracy so drawn into the stories and nuances of his profession that I was half afraid that I would be returning to Tsaile alone.
After we dropped Tracy off at Walmart to kill two birds with one stone I got to see Big Phil's big engine underneath his big, snub-nosed hood. After that it was time for some shut-eye for him and Rita and nighttime driving on the Rez for us, which is always an adventure because you can count on dodging cattle, sheep, and horses every couple miles or so.

There you have it, Big Phil has his wheels back beneath him and is going strong with Rita in tow. He wants to know when we can get together again sometime with Zach, CJ, Jarrod, and Tommy to hit the wiffle ball and reel in some Crane pond cats.
Only time will tell for a ramblin' man.

The Meaning of it All

The chasm of sin and death is immense.

We are not able.

The Tree of Life is able where we are not.

It is finished.

He is risen.

He has left behind his burial cloths to give us new clothes, new life, new hope, a new relationship. Clothes of righteousness from Him. Life through Him. Hope in Him. A relationship with Him.

Let's Celebrate!

It's a beautiful day for baseball weather!

Somehow the too small, crooked hat always stayed on. Somehow the developmentally disabled kid with a genetic disorder from birth lived past doctors' predictions and lived a richer life in 35 years than most people do in 70. Mike Duzan died this past Tuesday, and those of us who knew him understand that we are all somehow enriched for being a part of his rich life.

Everything about Mike was big: big smile, big wave, big greeting, big slap on the back, big zest for life, and a big love of baeball. There are very few baseball memories for me from Babe Ruth to my senior year that do not include him. He was an assistant coach and the team's biggest fan. Mike would go over signs with us before the game, and each time ended it by pointing to the fence. He thought big. He believed in us big time.

This past Tuesday I had no idea that Mike had died. I was busy coaching my own baseball team of 7th and 8th graders, Navajo kids who don't pick up a ball until 7th grade. My team was playing a very poor game on their way to getting beat by a conference team for the first time in over three years. As we were getting drilled 11 to five I thought about Mike several times. Even in those tough losses, those times of utter frustration, Mike made it a better moment. Just thinking of him during our game made a bad loss not so bad at all. At least it was a "beautiful day for baseball weather" like he used to be fond of saying.

The last time I saw Mike was last summer. My parents had picked up Tracy and I from the Indianapolis airport, and we stopped in Worthington at Vests' to get some gas. I knew Mike would be in there working. As soon as I walked through the door he spotted me, gave me that big smile, gave me that big greeting, and gave me that big slap on the back that took the wind out of me. As we parted he said, "Take care, friend."

Mike Duzan was a friend with a big heart. His passing is a big loss for us all.

Spring Time is Levins' Time

You know spring has arrived on the Rez when you find yourself enjoying the sunshine and green lawn at Don and Sandra Levins in Many Farms, AZ. Of course, those weren't the only things to enjoy this past Saturday at our favorite cookout destination. A true Irishman named Inda was there, and he managed to keep the F word to a minimum in front of the ladies even though he claims it is an Irish preposition. Grover and Kay were there sharing some 20 years of life experiences on the Rez. Steve was there with another Hoosier perspective. Socrates was there leading us in song as we sang some Johnny Cash and Kenny Rogers. The Levins' dog, Lucky, was there facing off with a scrappy rezcat. Dan and Doug were not there in person but were involved in many stories. Then, of course, the life of any party and our "Rez parents", Don and Sandra were there. They are true Okies who have been out here since the mid-90's. Don is getting so adept at making homemade brew that I believe even in Germany he would be considered a brewmaster. Sandra is one of the most eccentric, loving, and talented people you could ever hope to meet. By the end of the day she had broken out the guitar, banjo, and fiddle, discussed the five books she is writing, and raved about her kids and grandkids. All of this in between cooking a feast, which as always included Wickers chicken, and discussing theology and sex without missing a beat.
You are probably aware that Tracy and I stay really busy and most of our activities are physical ones like mountain biking, ice climbing, and backpacking, but we enjoy this activity as much as any of them. This activity being eating, singing, and talking in the Levins' backyard under a tight, deep blue sky in the middle of the Rez. I mean, where else can the conversation switch from "Where did Cain's wife come from?" to "I had a marvelous orgasm last night." to singing "The Ballad of Ira Hayes" in a matter of minutes?
Life is good.