As much as I love that movie, Field of Dreams, I am not going to encourage you to build a baseball field in your backyard in hopes of some mysterious visitors. What I have been thinking about is the importance of building one’s family. Not only is it important for our own well-being and emotional health, it is important for our society and in the communities in which we live.
I have to admit, I am often frustrated by the “break-down” of the family in today’s households. It seems like people don’t make the time to have dinner together, communicate without having the TV on in the background, or even play a board game together (no, not a video game). However, this frustration was put to a screeching halt today after I read an article by Tom Kenworthy, USA TODAY, about Brennan Hawkins who disappeared for 4 days in the Uinta Mountains of northeastern Utah. After he was found, Tom interviewed some of the people who had come out to help search for Brennan. Tom shared:
The happy ending was also a tribute to the thousands of people from Utah and beyond who dropped their daily routines and traveled to the Uinta Mountains to join the search. One family friend came from Hawaii to help.
The outpouring of support was evident shortly after dawn Tuesday. A stream of vehicles, many hauling horse trailers or carrying all-terrain four-wheelers, rattled down the gravel road along the East Fork of the Bear River toward the Scout camp. ‘I got kids,’ said Curtis Jones, 39, of Harriman, Utah, as if his two-hour drive towing a horse trailer to assist in the search needed no further explanation. ‘If it was my kid, I’d want everybody I could get.’
‘It says a lot about the family, it says a lot about the people of Utah,’ said Edmunds, who directed the search along the river valley and high ridges carpeted with aspen and pine. ‘It’s a family-oriented community in Utah, and people want to come out in droves to help.’
Among the volunteers was Kevin Bardsley, father of the 11-year-old boy who vanished last August while camping at a nearby lake. ‘When we came off this mountain in the winter,’ Bardsley said, ‘my friends and I decided right then: If anyone came missing, we’d be there immediately.’
What a breath of fresh air. It gives me hope to hear about this kind of support. These thousands of people who traveled to help strangers, did so because of the importance of their own families. Building a strong family unit helps to build strong individuals who help others in times of need. So, even though it may seem crazy to turn away a promotion or hefty overtime pay, it is even more crazy to turn away from the strongest support system and source of love- the family.