A Bonus

Sometimes things turn out much better than expected.  We had such an experience last weekend after a tough bout with colds and fevers.  On Friday we were committed to leading a monthly hymn sing at Pinebrook and we just weren't sure how we would do it, especially with our coughs and sore throats.  Then for Saturday we had tickets for the Penn State Northwestern football game and since they were calling for rain we felt that we might just need to "eat" the cost of the tickets and stay home. That happened to us last year when a surprise snowstorm hit in October.  But the Lord allowed us to finally improve enough physically and we decided to at least meet our commitment at Pinebrook.  It turns out that He gave us just a beautiful day.  The leaves in the Poconos had begun to change and it was refreshing to see God's beautiful Fall display.  And the hymn sing was well attended and went extremely well.  And an added benefit was being with a number of long time friends and being surprised by a special couple that we hadn't seen in several years.  It was a very special day for us.  Then we had to make a decision about Saturday and since we were both feeling somewhat better we decided to get out our rain gear and go for it.  I knew that we had excellent seats but it would also be a long walk in the rain to get there.  So we were on the road again at 5:45 am and we did drive through some rain.  But once we got parked the rain seemed to end.  And, in fact, during the first half of the game the sun came out and it ended up being another beautiful afternoon.  The pregame activities were great.  It was Homecoming so the Alumni Band was there and with the Blue Band there must have been over 500 instrumentalists on the field.  The drum major made his flips and split successfully to the roar of the crowd. The stadium was electric.  We were just 15 rows up and on the 20 yardline with a great view of the field. The game was very exciting and excellent.   In fact, Penn State rallied from behind in the fourth quarter and most of the action was right in front of us.  It was one of the best games that we have witnessed in our many years of going to Happy Valley.  And because the game was so close right to the end, the fans didn't leave early.  So we were able to wait until the closing seconds, then leave and get to our car before most of the others.  In fact, we were the second car out of our lot and we drove away without any of the traffic that 95,000 fans would soon create.  A great day, a great weekend, and a great experience.  And it was almost a perfect weekend for my three P's.  Penn Manor won, Penn State won, and the Philadelphia Eagles almost won.  I guess not everything can be completely perfect.  But I do thank the Lord for a memorable, relaxing, and enjoyable weekend.  Sometimes when we trust Him He provides us with some great and unexpected bonuses.