This past week I have been reminiscing about Carl and myself
and some of the stories we have experienced over the years. I have posted some of these stories on social
media. I decided to take one and give a
few more details here for your entertainment.
Or as we often say, “So you can see you are not alone, and we are all in
this relationship/marriage thing together.” 😊 We just hang on for the ride with God on our
side!
One year we (actually it was me) decided we should do a
Tough Mudder. (Look them up online and
you will know that it was a large undertaking for someone who doesn't normally
exercise… toughmudder.com) The goal is to start and finish as a team and you
will then receive a headband, a shirt, a beer, and bragging rights. Seriously, that is all.
I have never taken a challenge like this in my life, so I
decided we better get into shape for this one. My husband and I began a workout
routine for the five months before the even to prepare for the task ahead. We signed up with some family and team
members from work. We had our team set
and were ready for the event when the day arrived, at least I thought we were.
When we arrived bright and early the nerves began to set
in. What was I thinking? I couldn’t say it out loud though because I
was the one who came up with this crazy idea.
One of our daughters friends joined us and forgot her inhaler. That would slow us down a bit. Another team member didn’t think he needed to
work out because he judged he was ‘in shape’ enough. That would catch up with him later.
We were ready either way.
We were doing this!
One of the first obstacles was called the Artic Enema. Basically, a fancy ice bath that you slide into (full submersion) and climb back out of. I thought it would be easy peasy. Carl jumped into the enormous tank of ice water, and I jumped in after him. He started to walk through the ice water towards the other side and climb out with no problem. This is where the problem started. When I jumped into the ice bath my mind was like, "Sure, just follow your husband" however my body was like, "What is this??" and I couldn't move. I was frozen in place. No matter how hard I WANTED to move, my body was like, "Nope, sorry, not today."
My husband was almost out of the frustrating freezing
obstacle, when he looked back for me and realized I was still at the
beginning... standing... not moving. So
my poor husband had to get back into the ice water and come and get me, and
drag my lifeless body to the other side.
Now that is love... ❤
The final obstacle in the course was called - Electroshock Therapy. If the name didn’t deter you, the description
of the obstacle would. Here is a brief description
from their website:
Perhaps
Tough Mudder’s most controversial obstacle, this simple structure remains
largely unchanged from its inception and earliest days on course. A field of
wires dangling from a rectangular frame, clicking as 10,000 volts crackle
through them. Over the years, mud, trenches, rows of hay and even a grandstand
have been added to enhance the spectacle. A right of passage for most
participants and favorite amongst spectators who enjoy watching the carnage.
When we signed up for this event, I expressly stated to my
husband we can skip the last obstacle. One
of the benefits of doing a Tough Mudder is you are able do some, all, or none
of the obstacles in the course. It is up
to you and your team. Either way it is a
team effort. You start and end
together. The biggest part of this event
is to work as a team.
Throughout the day we worked as a team through the many
obstacles until the final one was between us and that famous headband. I am not sure if it was the heat, or pure adrenalin
from running and capturing every obstacle, but one of us…it might have been me…
said, “Hey, let’s finish strong by doing this one too.” My husband looked back at me in shock, no pun
intended, and said, “Seriously?” Then he
said, “Okay.” And grabbed my hand and
headed to the infamous target with hanging wires.
I stood for a moment in front of it and just soaked in the
seriousness of the challenge. In front
of me was a large frame with wires hanging down and rows of hay laid perfectly
in the way of my finish line. My husband
didn’t even hesitate and immediately interlocked his hands and put them in
front of him to block the wires from his face and marched through as fast as he
could. He made it look so easy even though
you could see the after affects of his body twitching with the wires touching
his shoulders.
I decided to run right behind him and followed suit with my
hands in front of me. If he could do it,
I could do it, right? Almost halfway
across I tripped on one of the hay bales as I got shocked and fell to the
ground in a pathetic heap. I decided
that is where I would end it. It was a
good run. They could turn off the wires
when everyone left and then just come and get me.
My husband had completed the obstacle and turned around to
find me in the middle of the hot wire mess.
What did he do? Well, first he
shook his head, then without hesitation he ran back into the “burning building
of wires” to get me. He grabbed my hand
and half dragged/carried me out of the hot mess I got myself into.
We made it, despite my unwilling body…
Yes, we made it through all of the obstacles, together. And not once did my husband say, 'WHAT were you
thinking when you wanted to do this?"
He just did it with me. no
complaints.
He is my helpmate. In
spite of my crazy ideas. Love this man ❤
Will
I stop coming up with crazy ideas? Nope,
probably not. But I can guarantee my
husband will be by my side as we do them together. That is love.
That is sacrifice.
Genesis 2:18
The Lord God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone.
I will make a helper suitable for him.”
Ecclesiastes 4:9-10
Two are better than one, because they have a good return for
their labor: If either of them falls down, one can help the other up. But pity
anyone who falls and has no one to help them up.
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