Alright...so this story has been put off more much longer than enough.

This will be my first go at it, and a total rough draft...So pay attention to whatever I date it, because it is sure to change as I think of and am able to say more things.

9/4/2003

The Beginning...










In the summer of 1993, a friend of mine by the name of Jason moved from Houston, TX to eastern Idaho. He had recently finished his schooling and felt his calling was to go to Idaho and be a youth minister. Not long after Jason arrived there, he called and invited me to come and spend the New Year's holiday with him. I accepted and ventured to the cold north. :o)

I intended to go for only about five days, from the 30th through the 3rd...The first two days I basically palled around with Jason as he showed me what he'd been up to during the last year. On the fourth day, a Sunday, he had pastoral work to do, and invited me to tag along. One of his stops was to visit a young man who was in the hospital battling cancer. This was Ivan, and he was 14 at the time.

We went in, and Jason introduced me to Ivan, and his friend Kaitee who was also there. After a few minutes, Kaitee asked if Jason could take her home, while I felt that I should stay there and continue talking with Ivan. At first he was very quiet and didn't have much to say, but once I began telling him my story, and that I had also had Hodgkin's disease (his form of cancer) at a young age, he began to talk more and open up to me about everything from family, and girls, and school to baseball.

I'm told that Jason returned only about twenty minutes later, but he saw how Ivan and myself were into conversation, so he remained outside the room for some time. He didn't enter until nearly two hours later, when Ivan's mother, Heather, arrived.

I didn't know at the time why, but Heather and Jason both appeared to be genuinely shocked that Ivan was having a conversation with me. After I had been introduced to Heather, and she encouraged me to return if possible, and I had said goodnight to Ivan, Jason and I began to leave the hospital while he explained to me why they were so surprised. Jason told me that for essentially Ivan's entire life he hadn't had a male influence. His father lived across the country and cared little for him, other than to provide necessary financial support. This bothered his mother quite a bit, and every attempt she had made at finding a male role model, mentor, pastor, anything for Ivan, he shirked it and turned away. Jason had been working on building a relationship with Ivan in the time that he had been there, but he had little success. Thus, he and Heather were both incredibly impressed and surprised to see Ivan having a real conversation with a total stranger.

After hearing this, I knew that Ivan and I would have a special, God given relationship...and though I couldn't see it at the time, it was certainly for a purpose.

I returned the next day, the last day that I was supposed to be in town, to give Ivan and his mother my contact information and to say goodbye to them. I promised to call and return when possible...and though I had known them for less than a day I was truly sorry to have to leave them.

Within the following months Ivan was able to beat his bout with cancer and it went into remission. I returned to Idaho during my spring break, and then again once summer vacation had begun (I was working as a teacher at the time).

During those months, Ivan and I were able to build a strong and very special relationship...and over the years I was truly blessed to be friends with such a true disciple of the Man.

I hope that you will enjoy some of the stories that I have to share of Ivan, and that maybe in some small way, your life can be touched by him as well.
Ivan
1 To everything there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven...
Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 (below)
2 A time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted;

3 A time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up;

4 A time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance;
5 A time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing;

6 A time to get, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to cast away;

7 A time to rend, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak;
8 A time to love, and a time to hate; a time of war, and a time of peace.