Western & Southern Open Tennis Tournament, part I

 

“Now listen, you who say, ‘Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money.’ Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. Instead, you ought to say, ‘If it is the Lord’s will, we will live and do this or that.’”*

Tennis has always been high on Al’s list of favorite sports. When he and I first met at a  potluck for single adults in the spring of 1982, Al showed me the results of a survey that had been completed by members of the group. He had circled my name on the list of participants. Why? Because I had checked off “tennis” as one of my interests!

 As it turned out, he was an experienced and competitive player. Our first date, which was on the tennis court, was pretty hilarious. I nearly got heat stroke in the hot summer sun just because I didn’t want him to think that I was a quitter! But he wasn’t daunted by my being a beginner!

 Nearly forty years later, although he can no longer actively participate, Al still enjoys watching tennis matches. When his daughter, Shanda, played competitively, he was an avid fan and is now supporting her two young sons who are also getting involved in the sport, by going to their lessons and practices.

This year we had hoped to go with Shanda and the boys to the Western & Southern Open tournament in Cincinnati, Ohio. However, when the tickets became available online in the spring, Al hesitated to order them.

There were some unknown factors holding him back. Shanda had been accepted into a clinical trial at the Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York City beginning early in May. She would have to spend the first four weeks there at the center and then afterwards would have to return weekly for tests.

 No one really knew what to expect from the trial. Would there be side-effects from the experimental drug? How would she be feeling and how long would she be expected to continue going back to NYC?

 As the trial progressed, Shanda did amazingly well and after returning home was able to continue her regular work schedule as well as keeping up with the boys’ activities. So, the tournament was put on the calendar and tickets were purchased for the evening matches on Tuesday, August 16^th and those during the next day, along with insurance just in case something came up.

Both Shanda and Al had been to previous tournaments and knew what to expect; however, Nate, Elliot and I would be seeing famous athletes like Serena Williams and Andrew Murray in person for the first time in our lives.

As we approached Mason, Ohio, on Tuesday afternoon, Shanda who was our driver, alerted us that “Jesus was coming soon!”  She was referring to a 50+ foot statue called “Lux Mundi” on the east side of the freeway.

It was quite impressive seeing Jesus’ head towering over the trees and then briefly glimpsing the massive statue with arms reaching upward on the campus of the Solid Rock church as we drove by. “Lux Mundi,” the light of the world, was a good reminder to thank Him for the opportunity to be together and to appreciate the fact that we were able to see this long-awaited trip become reality, an answer to our prayers.

After checking into the hotel, we drove to the Lindner Family Tennis Center near Mason, Ohio where the tournament was being held. The tennis center was impressive with sixteen courts, a large food court with tables and umbrellas, many vendor booths and a large tennis shop.  Crowds of people were there eating, shopping, and watching various matches.

Before going to the Center Court where it just so happened that Serena Williams would be playing, the five of us sat down at a table for a quick dinner. The sky darkened and rain began falling, but not enough to dampen our enthusiasm or cause a major delay of the tournament.

 Part two of our adventure will be continued next week, Lord willing! In the meantime, know that Jesus, the Light of the World, is with you, that He loves you and will guide your steps as you trust in Him.

*James 4:13-15 NIV