Several years ago I went backpacking with a group down to Paria Canyon in Southern Utah. Located within the Paria Canyon-Vermillion Cliffs Wilderness Area, this beautiful 50-mile hike was a breathtaking adventure in some of God's greatest creations. With stunning sandstone "sculptures" molded by wind and water and overwhelming 300-400 foot tall cliff walls, this trip was where I fell in love with Southern Utah.

During this trip we would sleep out under the stars and I remember one night gazing up into the cosmos and trying to count the infinite number of bright lights that hung in the night sky. The air was so clear down there that I felt as though I could raise up my hand and touch the stars. 

Touching the stars. Not many of us try to do that anymore. As kids we all had these marvelous dreams and hopes for the future, but somewhere along the way we start to lose that magic, that special spark of "anything is possible". Reality sets in and imagination goes out the window. No wonder so many people in this world are bored, sad, lonely and discouraged! You can see it in their eyes; they've stopped dreaming.

They've stopped reaching for the stars. 

Like so many Americans I spent this past Sunday, June 16, surrounded by my amazing family, especially the man honored on Father's Day, our Dad (who if you have met him looks like George Bush, Jr.). Now I have to tell you, my family jokingly quips that we are the only functionally-dysfunctional family you'll ever meet. In fact, we often say that we put the FUN in dysfunctional. 

Joking aside, I love my family. From my two wonderful parents to my three siblings, plus a wide assortment of cousins, grandparents, aunts, uncles, but as I sat there yesterday thinking how blessed I am I realized that my "family" consists of so much more than bloodlines. There are my incredible bobsled teammates who have meant so much to me on and off the ice. There are classmates who got me through junior high, high school and college. There are the friends who have become as close to me as any blood relative. There are coaches, trainers, church leaders, teachers, neighbors and the list goes on and on.