January with its fresh shiny “clean slate” always gives me hope. Hope that a new year will bring goodness, healing and progress with the things that matter most. Writing is one of the practices that brings me healing.  So to start off 2017 I want to write about a special event I’ve celebrated my entire life in January, and that would be my one and only sibling’s birthday, Ty Schenzel.

My brother Ty celebrated his birthday BIG every year. It didn’t have to be a “milestone” birthday. He expected everyone to know it was his birthday and bring attention to it on January 12^th. I’ve been kicking around ideas as to why in his 54 years of life on earth his birthday mattered so much to him. I have to believe it started with our wonderful mom. I’m sure having a birthday so close after Christmas could have led to it being under-celebrated due to post-holiday-slump. But I don’t remember that being the case. My earliest recollections of Ty’s birthdays are with his neighborhood friends gathered around the big dining room table in our split-level house in Littleton, Colorado. Mom would decorate, the boys would wear their nice slacks and sweaters, and gifts would be opened. It wasn’t anything more grand then that, but I know Ty loved being celebrated on his special day.

Birthday parties with neighborhood friends in Colorado!

Celebrating with the cousins and me back in Nebraska!

Fast forward to the teenage years and they are somewhat of a blur to me, as I was wrapped up in my own teenage life, being only two and a half years older than Ty. But I do remember Ty’s little posy of friends that would gather in the basement of our house on Teakwood in Fremont, playing cards for HOURS. And I’m sure when it was his birthday, my mom made sure they celebrated with chocolate cake, Ty’s favorite. I recently watched the new Netflix hit, “Stranger Things”. Take the four boys in that show and super-impose my brother and his friends and you have a picture of what I’m talking about. This incredible bond of friends that didn’t really fit in with the “cool crowd” at school, but they found happiness in each other’s company. I know Ty always looked fondly back on those friendships.

When Ty gave his life to Christ wholeheartedly as a teenager, I think his intensity for celebrating his birthday increased even more. I believe it’s as simple as him really grasping how deep God’s love was for him. I think he felt that one day a year, it was important to acknowledge that God had done a good thing in creating him. Now that can come off sounding rather arrogant, but actually Ty believed that about every person God created. One of his favorite sayings was, “God loves me more than anyone else, not really, but sort of!” He even tweeted that it was going to be the title of his next book, just days before the car accident that took he and his wife’s life. He had a strong grasp on the fact we are each God’s “favorite” and that we are each uniquely wonderful and worth celebrating.

Ty’s wonderful wife making sure there was plenty of chocolate cake for his birthday!

Ty also took great joy in celebrating other people’s birthdays. He flew into Orlando for our dad’s 75^th birthday and dressed up like a leprechaun to surprise him at his St. Patty’s Day themed party. The hilarious thing was it was such a big surprise (and such a good costume) that my dad didn’t recognize him for quite some time, which then gave Ty concern as to the mental condition of our father! (I’m happy to report we are about to celebrate my dad’s 85^th birthday and he’s still going strong with a sharp mind.) Ty also loved nothing more than flying his grown children in to surprise their mom on her birthday. I had the joy of being there when he flew their oldest daughter and first grandchild in from California to surprise Terri. A few years later he flew Annie in from New York for her birthday and they posted the video on Facebook. How I loved hearing Terri shriek with uncontainable excitement when she saw her special birthday surprise!

Ty surprising my Dad on his 75th birthday.  Dad finally recognized him once he took off the hat and beard!

Ty surprising Terri with the wonderful gift of a visit from Emily and Theo!  I love how you can tell both of them have tears in their eyes…

So now that my brother and sister are in heaven, celebrations have to change. Last year on Ty’s first birthday after the accident, his oldest daughter gave birth to her third child, a beautiful baby girl, and they named her Beatrix Tyler. I know Ty would take delight in having his third grandchild share his birthday with him. It is not surprising that this child has provided so much comfort to her mother during her first year of life. God gives us such good gifts.

I’m starting a tradition of taking January 12^th off as a holiday. I’m going to eat chocolate cake and celebrate my brother’s life. And I think we should follow Ty’s lead and make sure we take the time to celebrate birthdays well. He would want you to recognize the beauty of your life and the fact that God loves you more than anyone else, not really, but kind of!

Footnote: Thankfully my brother did finish his first book “A Thousand Screaming Mules” which chronicles his dream to build a safe haven for the inner city youth of Omaha. The unique title of the book is based on a quote he would use when his children would ask him if he was going to make their special event (dance recital, basketball game, dog show, etc.). Ty would say, “A thousand screaming mules couldn’t keep me away!” He applied that same love and devotion to the children at the Hope Center. (Available on Amazon if you’re interested in reading more about his story!)