Prepared for Anything

There are several tried and true rules in Manufacturing that you should simply always obey. However, there is one obvious rule: never work on the equipment that is running during production. You would think. . . I . . .out of all people would understand the importance of it 🤔 – but I will never forget the Saturday night in December 2020 when the lights stopped because I was making changes during the show. 🤦‍♂️

It was prime time for the light show – Saturday night. There were cars all up and down the road. I made a simple change to my Snoop Dog – Winter Wonderland sequence – and the next thing I know – the show was down.

Cassie and I didn’t know what to do; but I felt like I did what any good husband does in those moments, I sent Cassie outside to face the crowd. It was important that I stayed inside so I could figure everything out. 😜 It was the most intense hour of our entire winter. Poor Cassie. Everyone knows how she loves being the center of attention, but not even she could overcome the immense pressure we were under. We got the show running the best we could, but that night made me realize a few things:

❶ Never work on the equipment while the show is actually running correctly.

❷ There is a ton of pressure to keep the show running every night.

❸ Ensure you have spare parts on hand. Equipment fails – and you need to be ready to replace it quickly.

Now, I bring you forward to Tuesday, December 7th, 2021. The Daily Journal called and asked to write an article on Fostering the Holidays. Great! 👊 We are excited and ready. I get home around 3:30 pm to ensure the show is turned on at 4:00 pm so when they arrive at 4:30 pm it will be shining as bright as any other night. But you guessed it, the one night I need it – half the house is not working! Seriously! 😰😩 The power supply went out on one of my most important controllers. This year, though, was a bit different. Remember ❸ above, I went and retrieved my extra controller (that I had bought earlier in the year) – wired it up – and the light show started working just as the Daily Journal was pulling into the driveway. 🙌 🥳

Key point to all aspiring light show entrepreneurs – when I decided last year to commit to this crazy, Griswold, light extravaganza – the one thing I never considered – the burden to keep the lights on and running. It requires you to always be watching and then ready to correct any issues. Relaxation during the Holidays – who needs it? 😅

Closing Thoughts

Jesus tells a parable in Matthew 25:1-13 concerning five wise virgins and five foolish virgins. In the parable, they were waiting on the bridegroom to come to help lead him during the night to the home of the bride, but he was delayed. The five wise virgins had brought enough oil to handle such a delay, while the foolish did not. So, when the bridegroom finally came (vs. 6), the wise virgins were able to trim their lamps (turn on their lights) and were, therefore, ready to help lead the bridegroom to the marriage feast. The foolish virgins had to go buy oil and therefore missed the bridegroom and the feast.

Jesus provides a simple lesson at the end of this parable: “Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour.”

The idea is that we are to “be vigilant”, “keep awake”, and “always be ready” for the Lord’s return.

So, my challenge in the blog is simple – Are you ready – and / or – Are you prepared?

Yes. . .there is a lot of pressure for us to keep the light show running at Fostering the Holidays, and we have tried to be prepared for anything or everything that can and will happen. But this week has reminded me again that I need to make sure I am prepared for something far more pressing– the Lord’s coming. When He comes – I pray all of us will be ready to trim our lamps (vs. 7), shine our lights, and enter in with Him to the marriage feast (vs. 10).

Thanks for taking a moment to read this blog and supporting us as we continue Fostering the Holidays.