Working out working up

This week, after a three month absence, I made it back to working out in a gym. I joined one over the Christmas holidays to strengthen up for the hip surgery I was having done in late May.

Having had the other hip replaced in the summer of 2016, I became very acutely aware of the need to be as physically fit as possible before going under the knife. Sure enough, I have bounced back quicker this year than last owing to those few months I dedicated to increasing my personal strength. With a bad hip, it was rather painful but doable.

I could have been better prepared but for a two-month lapse before my actual surgery. Traveling to M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Texas for much of April and dealing with family issues along the way took me away from the gym. My only daughter Lora's passing on April 28 pretty much took away my motivation to be going to the gym as I have lived in a kind of gray world after that event.

My surgery date came in late May and while the surgery was masterfully done by Dr. Cooper of Rogers, it was a rocky road for awhile and I kind of fell behind in my rehab. It was very hard to summon up the motivation to put the kind of effort into it that was needed.

However, there were rays of light and waves of encouragement that came my way during that very dark time in our family's life. That there were so many people who sent cards and condolences to me as well as personal visits went a long way to help get me through the worst experience in my life. I know there were literally thousands of prayers offered up for us, and the Pea Ridge community demonstrated again to me why this place is so special. There are towns and then there are communities, places where people genuinely have care and concern for one another. Pea Ridge is such a community.

Twice while I was going through the drive-through at McDonald's, I discovered someone in the car ahead of me paid my bill in advance. While eating at Victoria's, one of the local coaches here paid for my family's tab on his way out of the restaurant. These and all the other acts of kindness shown me by so many people has helped me accept the unacceptable. My daughter's children have been able to visit and stay with us quite a bit and that has also been a blessing.

So my first day back in the gym this week was an eye opener. The marks I had worked up to by the first of April were way beyond my reach now and I was kind of wiped out in a relatively short period of time. I do know, that if I keep at it, I can get back to where I was before and even beyond. Since that fateful fall on the ice on a Gann Ridge Road hill while driving my bus route several years ago, I have had my spine fused and both hips replaced. I have been in pain for the past six to seven years and for the first time since, I can now say that part of my life is finally history. I am walking relatively pain free, though my endurance is not there yet.

I'm working out now to get to be a more active "Papa" to my grandkids. Since I have 11 of them, there is a lot to do when they all come over at the same time. With eight of them under the age of 9, even more so.

I'm also working out so I can navigate the stadium bleachers like a normal person when the 2017 football season arrives. I am hugely optimistic that there won't be a game on the schedule that the Blackhawks can't win. Of course, I know as well as anyone that the best team doesn't always win but the best team with the best preparation usually does. We lost some very good players to graduation this spring, but we have a raft of talent back and a staff that knows how to get the best from them. I'm thinking "return trip to War Memorial."

There is that word, preparation. It really applies to everyone and in everything in life.

If you want to be a good student, it is not just the showing up. It is the preparing to get the most out of your experience while preparing to make decisions on the path you want to take with your life. There are so many little things that good students have to do to get where they want to go, good habits, good attitudes and the desire to be at their best, even when it isn't easy.

Being a good parent or grandparent is not just being there, though that is essential. It is preparing yourself to be a role model and a positive force in young peoples lives. My dad taught me that nothing in life just happens. There are reasons for everything. Confident, positive and prepared children just don't happen. They are molded that way by the people they come in contact with as they grow up.

I have the blessed fortune of being a teacher in the Pea Ridge School District. Getting to see the young people of our community on a daily basis is a blessing, and getting to take part in their educational trip through their school years is an honor. One of the best rewards and paybacks of being a teacher in Pea Ridge is seeing the students after they have grown up. I was fueling my car in Bentonville this week and three of my former students from many years ago happened to see me, and they came over to see how I was and express appreciation for their art experiences.

You have probably read in places that Pea Ridge is handicapped by a lack of industry. True enough, the industrial entities in Rogers and Bentonville provide boat loads of money to support their school systems, and should some industrial concerns build plants in our city, it would be a boost to the school financially.

However, we do have an industry in Pea Ridge. We are putting out a quality product in ever increasing numbers. That product is young citizens that will make our community, state, and nation a better place.

So, for the next few months, I will be working out so I can work up, working up to improve on life's potential.

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Editor's note: John McGee is an award-winning columnist and sports writer. He is the art teacher at Pea Ridge elementary schools and writes a regular sports column for The Times. The opinions expressed are those of the author. He can be contacted through The Times at [email protected].

Sports on 07/05/2017