Coach Shoup

Today is the two year anniversary of my Uncle Ryan's passing away.  He was in my first thoughts this morning and I wrote an entry in my diary along the lines of this:

"So today's a very important day.  It's the two year anniversary of Ryan going Home.  It's the anniversary of when my world stopped turning for a long time.  It was the day that one of the most influential and incredible people in my life went on to their next one.

I miss Uncle Ryan so much.  I miss seeing him mess with my brothers during Christmas.  I miss listening to him and his brother play off each other's jokes.  I miss the summers that for part of them he and his brother and their kids would come to our house and have a blast.

But today isn't a day to be sad and somber.  It's a day to remember who his Hope was in.  It's a day to remember how much he lived every day of his life.  It's a day to see his wife and two beautiful children and be reminded of God's faithfulness because of how well they're doing.  It's a day to remember all the times he and his twin brother tortured my brothers and cousins during Christmas time at Grandmom's.  But most importantly, it's a day to remember where he is now, and to be ecstatically happy because of that. 

He isn't somewhere unknown in a weird in between world.  He isn't in the pits of hell saying hello to Michael Jackson and Hitler.  He's in the throne room of HEAVEN.  He's chatting with Pop Pop and trying to look interested as he talks about stuff "back in the day."  He's talking to Jordan Queen and saying "Oh, yeah!  You went to school with my niece, Emily Shoup!  Isn't she the worst? ;)"  To put it lightly, Ryan is wreaking havoc in Heaven.

But I think the biggest reason I miss him is because I miss seeing him be a primary example of how a life should be lived.  He was always smiling, laughing.  When you talked to Uncle Ryan, your day was instantly brighter.  When you saw him and his brother play off each other's jokes, you couldn't stop laughing.  When you saw how much he loved his wife and kids, you wished you could love your spouse/children, if or when you have them, half as much as he did.  When you were in the same room as Uncle Ryan, you wanted to be with him and make your life count as much as he made his.

October 21, 2010 was a tear-filled, heart-breaking, world-shattering night.  But it was also a reminder of who's in control.  Even Ryan, who was larger than life itself, couldn't stand a chance against the Author who knew that 40 years was just enough to have him make a difference in this world.  Ryan dying was very difficult but it was also happy at the same time because it reminded you that having your ultimate hope in God is, at the end of the day, what really matters.  Ryan loved God first and then everyone else under Him, and that paid off.  I can only picture what kind of escapades he's involved in up There, but all I know is I can't wait for the day that I get to see him again.