When My Faith Was Shaken

For those of you who don't know me, except through this blog, you may be surprised to find out that I'm a Mormon...a very devout Mormon, in fact.  However, as strong as my belief has been, these past 33 years, there have been some moments of doubt.  Take for example, today, Ash Wednesday, or the beginning of Lent.  For you Catholics, Ash Wednesday represents a reminder and celebration of human mortality, and as a sign of mourning and repentance.  For me, it reminds me of when my testimony came crashing down. 

It was 1994, and my team the team I sat on the bench for, was ranked number one in the state of Pennsylvania and favored to win it all.  We They were amazing, and I was convinced that no team could take us them down.  So, we traveled to Bethlehem, Pennsylvania to play Nazareth High School on...yep, you guessed it...Ash Wednesday.  As we were warming up, I was shooting the only baskets I would shoot the entire game, I noticed the entire team were observing Ash Wednesday and displayed the traditional ash on their foreheads.  Yet, I wasn't nervous.  I mean, I was a devout Christian, who prays at night, and who was standing in Bethlehem about to play Nazareth - surely, I had this.  Surely, my religion had this game.  And then we got beat.  And my world came crashing down.  Everything I believed in hung in the balance. 

Then, as if that wasn't torture enough, every year, on Ash Wednesday, we would meet some "St." something high school in some Christian town and lose.  Lose!  Never did we even have a fighting chance. 

So, today I was standing in Costco and what rides up, but an Asian woman on a mobility scooter, fresh from observing Ash Wednesday.  I'm not going to lie, I clutched my baby a little tighter, and I'm still sort of waiting to see what faith shattering experience I'm going to have to endure today.