Matthew Skroblus on experiencing life to the full2

Matthew, who also goes by Matt, Skrobee, and a whole lot of other things, is a friend of the podcast and an overall interesting man. He describes himself as a “jack of all trades, master of none.” Although he attributes the risks he takes to his attention deficit (ADHD), we think his many hobbies make Matthew and his stories extraordinary. 

In this journey you’ll hear about Matt’s childhood, his career path, family, and child raising advice. You’ll hear about some unique experiences including falconry and a recent 340 mile kayak race Matt and a friend finished - all without Matthew ever having kayaked in his life! 

Tell us  what inspired you about this episode. Share with a friend. Post on social media or email us: podcast@sarahgood.com.

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Discover more about our guests

Follow Matthew on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/skroblus

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Favorite quotes from the episode

“Out of [my] ADHD Tendencies I'm not very good at being committed to anything. I’m good at being committed to a lot of things.”

“Everybody finds outlets for which they spend their free time.”

“In my head I had to think ‘we're going to do this to win’ because I wanted to experience the idea of racing, not just doing this [race] leisurely.”

“I think everybody's wired to experience different things.“

“If you could just find a small avenue to get out of your comfort zone… the personal growth that I've experienced - and the life joys - I mean, God put me on this planet to enjoy it.”

“I have habits. I have problems. I have victories. I have defeats. But at the end of the day I'm never defined by those.“

“Behind every front door there's a different story.”

“Behind every kid's eyes there's a different brain.”

“Behind every kid's voice or non-voice there's a story that they want to tell you.”

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Fun things from the episode

MR340: https://rivermiles.com/mr340/information/ 

Matt’s MR340 results: http://raceowl.com/MR3402021/RaceSplits/19942

Galatians 2:20: https://www.bible.com/bible/111/gal.2.20

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View this episode on YouTube: https://youtu.be/oMal-_4Z4BE
Share your thoughts: podcast@sarahgood.com

Now That's Something Good Podcast by Sarah Good is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Show notes may contain affiliate links. This is at no extra cost to you but does help support telling more stories that bring more good. Now that is something good! Thank you for your kind support.

Transcript

Sarah:
[2:00] Hey friends welcome back to now that something good today in the studio I have my friend Matthew say hi Matthew.

Matthew:
[2:07] Hello.

Sarah:
[2:08] Matthew I just got start right off I feel like I'm gonna ask you to introduce yourself but I get confused because sometimes I call you Matt and sometimes I call you Matthew do you have a preference.

Matthew:
[2:14] Matt, Matthew, hey you, "Srobee," Skroblus. Some others have other...

Sarah:
[2:19] You'll answer to any and all those okay perfect so you might hear me today call him at and then sometimes I'll say Matthew because my brain is glitching on which thing but Matthew introduce yourself a little bit tell us about who you are your family and what your life looks like right now.

Matthew:
[2:34] introductions... I am currently a high school teacher,
I teach at the high school level and coach football coach football and track before that was a youth pastor from a family perspective
I have a lovely wife I have two kids one who my youngest is 8 my oldest is 13. Both of them have contributed to well all three of them have contributed to the salt and pepper hair,
for what you may or may not really be genetically altered on my head,
but that's the specific so high school teacher at one point I was a youth pastor for 13-14 or so years
before going into teaching and here I am.

Sarah:
[3:21] I love it well thanks for coming to hang out with us today we're going to kind of jump all over the place but I need to ask you first Matthew about
your beverage choices that you have with us today so I don't know if you listen to our show and if you don't it's okay there's no I'm not going to quiz you on if you listen to any of our episodes of the show Matthew,
we are big on like,
coffee when people come or drinks and so this kind of seems to be a question so we're just going to start right off with could you tell everybody what your you brought your own beverages you wouldn't let us give you anything to drink.

Matthew:
[3:48] You did offer me you know something to drink. I was at College... I think I was going through a 24-pack of Dr. Thunder.

Sarah:
[4:01] Oh gosh.

Matthew:
[4:02] Every three days,
through college and that carried over into adult life which was fine through my 20s and through my 30s. Late part of the 30s going into the 40s I noticed my metabolism was a
little bit different and started making some changes to get away from soda so I went to Perrier which is a carbonated,
mineral water I really don't even know what that means but it wasn't sugar-filled and,
went to a Perrier water and there's a coffee drink here,
which is a Nitro cold brew. I'm a coffee snob because I really don't like coffee and it really has to taste good and probably either has to taste really bad like straight black coffee and thick,
or it has to be something that tastes.. I really don't know what I am in the coffee realm but I'm a coffee snob.

Sarah:
[5:01] Yeah that's all right.

Matthew:
[5:03] In the event that I don't know what I'm drinking but it better taste good when I drink it.

Sarah:
[5:07] It better taste good it looks good you have a good like a little Nitro cold brew vanilla sweet cream one today so 0 caffeinated for our conversation.

Matthew:
[5:15] Makes me sound very masculine, thanks.

Sarah:
[5:19] I'm sorry you were leaving that part out on purpose. We're off to a great start,
well hey I want to jump back to a little bit of your story Matthew just whatever you want to share with us I know you just said are you in your 40s this is a horrible question asked
if I thought we were okay well welcome to your 40s
I'm not quite there but Will's there and you know it's coming on it's coming fast talk to me just a little bit about how you said you were a youth pastor for a little bit of time
I know you have a kind of a different story of how you came to know the Lord just give us a little bit of the Matthew background story whatever you want to share.

Matthew:
[5:54] That's pretty quick,
born and raised for the first five or six years in Oklahoma - Oklahoma City area my mom divorced,
around the time I was four I think remarried around when I was five,
she had met a sailor from the Virginia area that was in town opening the USS Oklahoma City submarine.

[6:23] And They carried on a long-distance relationship they got they got married we moved from there from Oklahoma to Virginia
we were in Virginia for maybe a year and a half and then went to Washington State because his station got moved from the Virginia Coast to the Puget Sound by Seattle
so we moved up there shortly and then we hopped around from that point on
from Virginia to Washington from Washington to Illinois from Illinois to Oklahoma and I know you can't see me,
but I'm squinting to try to remember all these moves from so from Virginia to Washington Washington to Illinois Illinois to Oklahoma Oklahoma back to Illinois Illinois
to Ohio Ohio to Texas Texas back to Ohio Ohio,
up to another part of Ohio and from Columbus to Cleveland then back to Texas and then that's kind of where that second stint in Texas I was moving into,
senior year of high school was moving back to a high school that I previously been at before however.

[7:42] And just let's step back just a couple steps so during that High School transition there was a time where I was at a high school in Columbus Ohio or the Columbus area
and moved to the Fort Dallas-Fort Worth area then back to Columbus and then back to Fort Worth,
those those moves there's another move within their that's in Ohio as well but there's two high schools that I went to twice,
so I was going back to my senior year when I was told I had to move going into my senior house moving back to a school that I had been to,
previously,
I had a girlfriend at the time I had gone through some medical stuff with a football injury that it take me out of sports that's kind of in a depressive place and it was kind of a tough move for me as it is for most,
you know incoming seniors when they after told that to move but nonetheless honestly my parents bought me a new car,
and it was kind of an incentive or maybe bribery at the time to move and I moved struggled and in the midst,
of that struggle and a non-Christian home.

[8:56] When I moved back to Texas for that final stint and tried to reconnect with all of the friends I had before,
there was one problem they had all found their way to church and youth group and found their way to the Lord I had not so I was definitely an outsider,
and was pulled in really fast and,
long story short after being in Texas for about 7 months 7 8 months,
um I found myself leaving school are not leaving leaving leaving school but a day before school,
running out of my house in the morning my mom it was
way before school was supposed to start and she says where are you going and I said well I got to go up to church she's what do you mean you got to go to church as a school day and I said why I need to get to Brett's house which was my youth pastor at the time
it was a parsonage so his house was connected to the church and so I got in my car I drove there I drove to his house knocked on his door,
um

[10:06] His wife answered he was already over at the church which again they shared backyards with the church she said he's over at church I jumped the fence jump to Second fence jump the third fence,
and I pounded on a basement door he was sitting there at his desk and looks up and
opens that window to the basement door of the church and says Matthew what were you doing here and I was like it's time
and he says what do you mean it's time and I crawled through the window down onto his desk probably broke his keyboard and his computer on my way through,
and sit down in the chair and I said I've tried a lot of things and I'm kind of at a place where where my life is I.

[10:52] I'm just I'm giving myself to this and I accepted the Lord there in his office that morning I was 18 years old senior in high school,
from there I took about six more months,
my mom started attending church my stepdad I remember my step dad's words of that time were,
I see what God has done for you and I want that next thing I know they're both singing in the choir and life's kind of a journey from there but that's kind of the story of me coming to Christ.

Sarah:
[11:24] That's crazy though I love how all those moves and all those things right like we're I'm sure that we're really hard back and forth all these new places and then it was back to this place that God knew,
hey this is going to be the spot in those people and I'm always interested in people's Journeys how all these little things just add up to certain moments that if that didn't happen,
who knows what would have happened crazy okay well Matthew so we know each other because we go to the same church
and this is the part of the story I told him before we started recording I was like I'm going to tell you a story that I'm not going to tell you yet
I don't know if you remember but there's a lot of reasons I wanted to bring Matthew on today to just share with us and talk
with us you are you're going to hate me for saying this but you are one of the wisest people I feel like I know you have a great way of sharing things explaining things and I want our friends listening to be able to hear some of that today,
but we went to lunch very early on and getting to know you and your family I remember we're just getting to know each other having all these conversations and you look at will and iron your like hey what kind of hobbies do you guys have and I remember
time I'm like Hobbies Matthew I have four kids and I work for a church like I don't have any time for hobbies but you at the time,
I think we're getting into falconry am I saying it is that the right.

Matthew:
[12:37] Okay yeah the dream the dream has not died.

Sarah:
[12:40] Okay well I want to talk I'm going to come back but I was so intrigued by Hobbies because you have been a person that I've heard you talk about different things and I just
I love it so start with tell me like what what is it about Hobbies have you always liked had these kind of side things that you love and do and want to try out or how do you come up with these things just tell me a little bit about Hobbies.

Matthew:
[13:01] Hobbies I don't really think of them as Hobbies as much as experiencing life,
I'm definitely not the person that latches onto one thing and it's like this is what I want to do,
there are a lot of people that sell themselves out to one thing or the other I mean Olympics are on right now.

Sarah:
[13:18] Yes Ron right now yeah.

Matthew:
[13:20] You're watching athletes that have given everything they have,
and their parents and their you know their Guardians their grandparents have given everything they have to make them achieve some specific goal.

Sarah:
[13:32] Yeah yeah.

Matthew:
[13:33] Matthew's life does not work that way and I'm a person
I just said Matthews life I send to talk to myself in the third person and it's really not an egotistical thing but there's a lot of times where I'm looking down on my life thinking what are you experiencing what is Matthew doing,
and I want to experience a lot and I get bored very quick,
out of probably ADHD Tendencies so when it comes to Hobbies I'm not very good at being committed to anything.

Sarah:
[14:03] Okay okay fair enough.

Matthew:
[14:05] Being committed to a lot of things so that's the experience I was not the greatest student in school,
growing up which is funny because I became a teacher,
and now I look at all of these students that are coming through with what I was youth ministry as a teacher and one of my biggest questions for them is what do you enjoy doing,
and what do you enjoy experiencing for me my hobbies I love sporting activities I'm I'm kind of when it comes to sports and hobbies,
I once told a friend Mark he he showed that he could do so many things musically and,
knew so much about Spike there's just so many things you could do and I say you're just kind of a jack-of-all-trades and,
he's like wait a minute that means master of none and that moment I realized part of my makeup was the reality of I embrace that idea of being a jack of all trades and a master of none,
I don't really have a strong desire to master anything.

Sarah:
[15:08] Mmm I love that.

Matthew:
[15:08] A desire to experience a lot of things so falconry is one started oh I don't know about 3 years ago and all the stuff that goes into capturing a hawk and,
raising a hawk and hunting a hawk and then releasing it back into the wild,
so yeah that that's a Hobby Sports is a hobby coaching as a hobby,
and mr340 race which is the longest paddle race probably in the world non-stop paddle race
I think is how it's touted from Kansas City to st. Louis area I just jumped into that Adventure I did not really trained like I should have for it
but for me it wasn't about the training because it's Jack of all trades master of none in my life and it's not about it's compete to win,
and Pete to do well and have the experience of somebody who competes in it not just doesn't participate Justin just participate,
and so experienced that,
repercussions from it because I didn't train and I guess that's part of the the reality so I enjoy tons of hobbies I like hearing other people's Hobbies it tells you a lot about them,
and what they enjoy what they like and honestly I like conversation and want to hear about what people like.

Sarah:
[16:31] So what did it tell you when I was like I have no Hobbies your like this girl needs some help she's got experience life more.

Matthew:
[16:38] When I hear somebody say they don't have any hobbies that's probably not a reality everybody finds outlets for which they spend their free time,
and for some people that may even that kids may be high,
and they invest solely and becoming a coach or our I don't know maybe even a helicopter parent for their for their kid,
For Better or Worse people engage in what they find the most interests in what brings them fulfillment yeah and.

Sarah:
[17:11] Yeah yeah well I have a hobby now I started a podcast so that should count. Like this our... we're in the middle of my hobby right now.

Matthew:
[17:19] I know and this high-rise studio is fantastic.

Sarah:
[17:22] I just have to have a few things in place for a hobby I'm like we got to do this this and this. Well I love it so Matthew I was,
reading a book this summer and it re-engaged this whole thing about hobbies and they were talking about this whole your time out jack of all trades but they were talking about doing something for the
just for the fun of it and being an amateur at it and not going hey I'm going to do this because now I can make money doing it or I can sell it or I can do this but just doing it for the experiment or the experience and the enjoyment and that's really,
with me and I think a lot of people maybe struggle to with like what do I find that brings me enjoyment how do I do that and we can get,
in just one going to my job and I need to do this and there's nothing wrong with those things but life is meant to be experienced and if we're not careful we wake up one day and we're like,
what have I done what have I been doing and so I really look up to that you have all these things in the different things you've done because I'm like this is this is fun I need some more Hobbies try some things just for the heck of trying it do you have any other hobbies you've tried,
any ones that didn't result super well or you're like.

Matthew:
[18:29] Yeah so growing up in Oklahoma my mom, Ginger, she chased tornadoes.

Sarah:
[18:36] Oh I'm so glad you said this okay.

Matthew:
[18:38] I remember,
I really don't remember but I remember the stories of my mom telling me that we would load up in the old Bronco 2 - it was red and gray or red and silver and we'd load up in that Bronco 2
there in Oklahoma City and we would drive out to the local Airport
not the major airport like a local small airport outside of Oklahoma City and we get wind readings and,
and she was all into that stuff and we had our radio like CB and the coolest thing was her CB she had the ability to contact Gary England in The Newsroom,
in Oklahoma City and and,
and have conversations about what she was seeing this was before spotter identification and spotter network was out there and people were,
really be able to use cell phones and call in and tell them what they were seeing and and things like that with the weather,
so I grew up around tornadoes and around severe weather that passion kind of carried on my mom kind of lost that.

[19:42] Desire for a while there were second marriage and just life and moving around and us getting out of Tornado Alley but as she eventually ends up back in,
the Oklahoma area Oklahoma City area before she passes she got back into the meteorologist and what I carried it into college and beyond. Made a little money doing it. Not much
to speak of because cell phones came out and I couldn't sell footage and things like would have been possible but have intercepted a lot of tornadoes however,
not my wife's idea of fun for me or her and my seen over a hundred tornadoes intercepted over a hundred tornadoes,
Kansas Oklahoma.

Sarah:
[20:31] I'm gonna need you tell us more about this Matthew because like you were legit a storm chaser like you hear about these things and he was just like you would go I need you to tell me what like intercept a tornado really means.

[20:48] Like how close are you yeah.

Matthew:
[20:50] Let's start with this simple... one, storm chasing is not what people think it is it is not this exciting.
Hobby for 24/7. It is something where you are spending way too much money in gas,
especially now - I don't know how people chase storms now with gas at almost three dollars a gallon but,
people chasing storms it's long hours in a car. it's sleeping in your car because you spend all the money that you had to go do this chase,
on gas and what fast food or gas station food that you could scrounge up to be able to make it happen while your wife or families at home saying like we're not spending extra money on this,
so intercepting a tornado for us generally... before we had an armored car,
we were within maybe a mile or two...

Sarah:
[21:43] Wow okay.

Matthew:
[21:45] Of seeing the seeing actual tornado structures. For the most part it's a lot of hail damage on your car,
things like that still. Learning to navigate around them once cell networks got up and iPads became accessible and cell phones got it a lot better we armored a car. Before I knew it we were getting within a hundred yards, of the cyclonic movement of a tornado and taking pictures and talking to news outlets.
That all ended for me with the tornado that hit - in the fact the last tornado that I intentionally chased or sought out was the one that hit the St. Louis Airport,
which picked up our car and rotated it almost 360 degrees.

Sarah:
[22:33] While you were in it?

Matthew:
[22:36] While we were in it. It was a storm that we actually picked up a way down in Hermann area,
and followed it all the way up and I broke the number one rule for my wife which was if it's at home your home and it went the storm went almost over our home,
before it dropped its second tornado which is the one that hit the airport and picked up our armored car and moved it around and that that was the last storm I chased and I guess.

Sarah:
[23:03] I mean that's still fairly.

Matthew:
[23:04] All trades master of none it was time to move on.

Sarah:
[23:06] Yeah but when what that was in the last 10 years or seven years I was like when did that happen that's crazy okay so I didn't realize you were doing it that that still seems recently to me.

Matthew:
[23:19] Seems like a long time to me well that.

Sarah:
[23:22] 10-year I'm like
well I'm not known you then but I've known you in four of the ten year you know that's crazy well and I love because you are great Whenever there storms you often you will sometimes text Will and I and just be like you should be in the basement and I appreciate that like okay what should we be doing
you go somewhere or not so.

Matthew:
[23:38] We've had some close calls at home here.

Sarah:
[23:40] Yeah that's amazing what a fun see who that made people have that story Matthew okay I want you to tell us more about the mr340 say it right.

Matthew:
[23:50] Mr340 is the mass m r stands for Missouri River 340 stands for 340 miles it's the longest non-stop paddle race in the world I believe,
it starts in Kansas city where the Caw River meets the Missouri River and then runs all the way to St. Charles I say St. Louis St. Charles St. Louis I think you're probably in.

[24:17] Almost St. Louis County - there's a large place to be able to pull boats and stuff off there it's the last major boat ramp you're going to get before you hit the Mississippi,
so you don't get all the way to St. Louis but it is 340 miles it's a Non-Stop paddle race which means,
it doesn't mean you don't stop it doesn't mean you don't have the ability to stop,
it means that your time continues there are no mandatory checkpoints that you have to stop at for a given period of time so you
you can continue to race non-stop if you if you choose we set out on a goal this was me and,
my racing partner from Salt Lake City Utah who is a friend from Kansas when we lived in Kansas that was over there were neighbors of ours and also friends from from college,
but I called him for I don't know maybe three or four years,
and said hey I want you to come do this race with me now there's a reason I called him he's a professional Adventure racer.

Sarah:
[25:21] Okay wow.

Matthew:
[25:22] He was just on Amazon's world's toughest race with Bear Grylls,
a few years ago and they raced through Fiji for days on end,
through the mountains through rapids hiking biking like that's what he does aside from his masonry work and his design work. so when I called him he's turned me down for several years and finally said hey, "whatever."

Sarah:
[25:51] wow.

Matthew:
[25:52] I think it was his way of shutting me up! "Stop stop calling me and asking me to do this. I'll come to it with you." And then like "leave me alone."
so he and his family drove up they have family in Kansas so it worked out well for them they were able to see some family and we engaged on this race he was obviously pretty well prepared for this because it's what he does,
he's not a jack of all trades master of none like he's mastered several things really well and adventure racing is one of them one difference for him was this was,
doing one skill constantly so that was the tough part for him for me it was all tough,
um because I did not train I didn't watch the videos that he sent me I didn't spend time on the river I was just wanting to go experience this,
did some minimal training.

Sarah:
[26:40] You literally okay so you found about the you've known about this race for a little bit,
you're okay decide you want to do it he says yes and then you literally like you didn't know training like you just showed up.

Matthew:
[26:55] I didn't he was my ringer that's what I call these my ringer.

Sarah:
[26:56] I love this I love this.

Matthew:
[26:58] And when people like you're going to do what and I was like don't worry I've got a ringer and they're like oh so you're just like going to do this for another note we're going to win now we're going to win no but in my head I had to think we're going to do this to win because I want to experience the idea of racing not just doing this leisurely.

Sarah:
[27:12] Yeah I love it.

Matthew:
[27:14] On the mr340 you set out from Kansas City you're going to St. Charles 340 miles there is a boat behind you,
and there are checkpoints in front of you and that boat called The Reaper hits It's called The Reaper and it's got these eyes,
and see it at night but they I think they glow in the dark.

Sarah:
[27:36] I think they glow in the dark oh goodness.

Matthew:
[27:38] And the windows have been replaced with these big giant glow-in-the-dark guys.

Sarah:
[27:41] That sounds terrifying.

Matthew:
[27:43] 500 and something boats set out on this their broke into multiple divisions
you have singles division for males you have single division for females and kayaks or canoes or whatever it may be there's
aluminum there's paddle, there's foot paddle, there's doubles, tandem - so there's a ton of different entries you could be in. There's well over 500 boats in the race
and you race against two things: one you race against your Division and then you race against everybody in the field.

Sarah:
[28:09] Okay okay.

Matthew:
[28:10] The reaper follows behind you and if you don't get to a checkpoint by a specific time then you are eliminated from the race and are no longer able to continue.

Sarah:
[28:21] Okay okay.

Matthew:
[28:22] For instance the starting at cop point in Kansas City the reaper hits Glasgow and you it closes it like 4 p.m.
You're leaving out on a Tuesday and you have to make it there by Wednesday by 4 p.m. or no, sorry byWaverly by 8 p.m. and if you're if you don't meet these checkpoints,
if the if the reaper passes you on the way

Sarah:
[28:49] Yeah

Matthew:
[28:50] and it's in front of you you're not out of the race. But if it gets to the checkpoint before you do.

Sarah:
[28:55] Then you're out wow.

Matthew:
[28:56] Over a hundred boats were reaped.

Sarah:
[29:00] Gosh - so how many checkpoints were there like that that you had to hit along the way?

Matthew:
[29:04] One two three four five six seven or so.

Sarah:
[29:08] Okay in over how many days was like how many miles can you go in a kayak realistically in like,
me I'm sure well I mean I'm sure like what's feasible physically mentally like all the because you're like literally in this two-person kayak just for Mom okay I've after the wrap my head around this.

Matthew:
[29:27] It's this is probably one of the greatest experiences of my life.

Sarah:
[29:29] It was so amazing.

Matthew:
[29:40] So leaving cop Point our first day we realize in order for us to be out of the reaper we needed to paddle through the night,
and make it to the second checkpoint which is Glasgow Glasgow I depends on where you are from Missouri or what state you're from on how you how you pronounce its but it's GLA s Gow,
and at that point you're about a hundred and forty-one or so miles into the race.

Sarah:
[30:03] Wow okay.

Matthew:
[30:04] So day one we set out,
I'm going to be honest this is probably the first time I've been honest with my racing partner if he hears this podcast I've never paddled guy come my life.

Sarah:
[30:16] This is great Matthew I love this you've never paddled a kayak and you go in this race and you didn't do any training doesn't float trips.

Matthew:
[30:27] I know I've done some float trips well I did some strength training you know I'm a coach.

Sarah:
[30:31] This is amazing.

Matthew:
[30:34] So we're I don't know 20 minutes into the race and I'm realizing this was a bad idea.

Sarah:
[30:41] Oh gosh.

Matthew:
[30:42] So I automatically resort to Comedy and I start cracking jokes to any boat that could hear me or my partner behind me that I could try to calm him down for his reality of understanding that I hadn't really trained for this like I told him I would.

Sarah:
[30:53] No no no.

Matthew:
[30:55] We make it to Waverly my hole,
plan the whole time was I just gonna wave it wave early because we knew we had to make it past their that cut off at that point was 8 p.m. so the race starts at 8:00 a.m. we needed to make it to Waverly by 8 p.m.

Sarah:
[31:10] Okay wow.

Matthew:
[31:12] It carry on to Glasgow Glasgow which is again further on so our
first time I really got out of the kayak which is sitting in a pretty tight space was a hundred and forty-one miles and we left at 8:00 a.m. on a Tuesday and we pulled in through the fog which slowed us down by about,
an hour we pulled in there about 6 a.m. in the morning.

Sarah:
[31:35] Wow you were in that kayak that long oh my gosh.

Matthew:
[31:40] Got out one time just to turn our night lights on,
what's your required red and green lights on the front of your boat and a white light on the back I got out on some rocks on the side of the bank to turn our lights on and I could I could barely stand,
back in the boat and we continued on that evening the fog set,
and we made it in there we slept we hit the ground I think it's up on the ground for two hours that evening and then we're back on the water,
I six to seven seven to eight by about 8:30.

Sarah:
[32:14] Okay okay.

Matthew:
[32:15] So from there,
we had a checkpoint that we were set on we didn't realize how we had advanced in the standings and we were actually in like the top,
12%.

Sarah:
[32:29] WoW race ya.

Matthew:
[32:29] Of the race at that point not quite sure how we got there other than a lot of people are just smarter and actually took time to sleep,
and rest and and paste themselves so we,
we're doing really good will continue on let's push this on so we set our goal Beyond Jeff City so the next goal from Glasgow would have been Jeff City and we decided to set a goal of Portland which was another probably three hours,
three three and a half hours past Jeff City night to was the worst experience of my life.

Sarah:
[33:03] Gosh Prince again okay.

Matthew:
[33:04] I never want to experience again night to one of the things you experience on the water when you're paddling long distances in your body is exhausted as are hallucinations.

Sarah:
[33:13] Oh gosh okay.

Matthew:
[33:14] And I have seen mermaids jump out of trees and swim through the water,
I saw Mario Brothers pounding through the trees I saw barges that didn't exist,
worried about buoys with a lot of the flooding that we've had in the Missouri River the buoys are on chains that connect to the bottom of the river these buoys
with the flooding you have lots of logs and trees and debris that hit them and they pull these buoys down and get caught on that chain so they go underwater and as the as the water flows and the current and the,
and the force these buoys will be underwater and you have no idea they exist and then an 80 90 100 pound buoy will pop up out of the water for a few seconds and then go back down under the water
these buoys mark the channel which is where the water moves at its fastest rate and
your barge traffic is trained to move and and where your boats move and whereas a kayaker or canoer on this race you want to be able to stay in that channel where that fast-moving water is used,
from sandbars and things like that so night to we're shooting for a place called Portland we realize about.

[34:23] Fifteen minutes past the checkpoint we probably should have stopped out which was our original goal Jeff City my right hand began to give out and swell up to where my fingers were touching,
and I lost,
almost all movement in my elbow all the way down my right forearm and the hallucinations began to set in along with the pain we were seeing things that didn't exist mostly for me Fletcher,
my racing partner had experienced this stuff before so I was relying on him a little bit to tell me what was real and what wasn't yeah and being,
I'm not I've never done a drug an illegal drug in my life or been a drinker and put myself in a place where I wasn't in control of my life.

Sarah:
[35:08] Yeah yeah.

Matthew:
[35:09] Control of my mind and for the first time in my life I had no control over what I was perceiving of what was real.

Sarah:
[35:17] You yeah what was not yeah.

Matthew:
[35:17] And what was not real yeah and there was no way for me to discern the difference other than my racing partner and he was having some of those but at least had to experience them before.

Sarah:
[35:26] Yeah so what did you do what did you guys do.

Matthew:
[35:29] Well there so there was two checkpoints between where our checkpoint that we were heading for which is Portland there's a checkpoint that we were able to hit instead,
so we found our way to that checkpoint we had a few close calls between here and there we hit a sandbar which really is not a dangerous thing to do I mean your boat basically runs aground on sand,
I have no idea what's going on and all of a sudden your boat hits The Sandbar and makes an awful sound,
and then you're worried about how you're going it off that sandbar and you're weak and you're tired and you're having a hard time really even understanding what's going on,
um we were able to to push past that get off that sandbar we made it too,
to to a checkpoint in McCain,
which was the checkpoint before Portland it's about a 40-minute paddle and then that was our second day,
we got up our plan was to sleep for an hour and a half to two hours,
and then to continue on to st. Charles which was so de 141 miles de to a little over a hundred and then about a hundred miles day three.

Sarah:
[36:43] Okay wow.

Matthew:
[36:45] Into st. Charles.

Sarah:
[36:46] And you own you so you did all that on how much sleep over those three so it's basically three days three night two nights.

Matthew:
[36:51] Three days so we started at 8:00 a.m. on a Tuesday we made it to our first stop on Wednesday at 6 a.m. I got up about,
8:00 8:15 and we're on the river until about 3:00 a.m.
So that would have been what day Monday to our talk Tuesday to Wednesday was it a Thursday and then,
Landing in St Charles at I like 11:58 or something.

Sarah:
[37:29] Wow in the evening.

Matthew:
[37:31] In the evening yeah.

Sarah:
[37:33] That's crazy okay so what did I mean you you finished which is huge I mean that's a big thing we'll come back to that in a second but you met the reaper never went back like so you guys finish didn't get.

Matthew:
[37:48] Get if you make if you make it to Glasgow you're so far ahead of the reaper at that point it's not something you have to worry about again it wiped out over a hundred boats day one.

Sarah:
[37:57] That's crazy so how many boats end up finishing.

Matthew:
[38:00] Well I would expect some women they were 500 something bows over a hundred got wiped out you had some that just drop out along the way so I know you,
in that mix of the 520 or 530 whatever boats are you probably lost about a hundred and fifty I'm just I guess I'm just spitballing there.

Sarah:
[38:19] And so tell me what do you have with like do you have like a backpack on like what do you did you have to pack all your food and snacks at these checkpoints is there anything to grab water or.

Matthew:
[38:29] Another rookie move.

Sarah:
[38:31] Oh no.

Matthew:
[38:33] You're supposed to have a ground crew,
you're required to have a ground crew covid hit and they created a thing called a virtual ground crew last year when they did the race through covid-19,
they continued that on because we're still in that time of covid I talked to my wife who is,
Adventure some,
she's not a camper she's she enjoys the outdoors during the day she hates nature.

Sarah:
[39:01] Yeah I.

Matthew:
[39:04] She hates wet things like that like this this is just not her gig she's wonderful what she does and and is the great Khan a great compliment to me,
I convinced her and her best friend to be our ground crew and the goal was for them to just meet us once,
halfway so we carried all of our food one of our downfalls was our boat was extremely heavy which slowed us down and because we only had a ground crew what was going to be halfway through we carried way more than,
the boats that were stopping every 50 60 70 miles,
we were we weren't stopping until halfway through the race they did end up meeting us at multiple places after our first stop just so we could start shedding weight and we were so exhausted,
but in that process that ground crew meets you gives you you know takes your trash,
one of the big things that the mr340 is Missouri River conservation which is about keeping our rivers and streams you pay to be in this race and we really win no money and all the money that you're putting into it goes back into the state and into
keeping our waterways clean yeah which is an exciting thing and something that I enjoy giving to that relief effort but,
you're getting rid of trash taking stuff on depending on your boat and your way some people poop and pee in their boats.

Sarah:
[40:31] I'm glad you brought that up I didn't want to ask but I was like how you go to the bathroom and these things Matthew like I need to know there's lots of different ways okay yeah.

Matthew:
[40:36] There's there's lots of different ways I could tell you that water in some a lot of that ends up and you you probably won't be in the Missouri River anytime soon.

Sarah:
[40:43] This goes back to my why don't silence lemon water I can see the bought salt water or chlorinated pools you.

Matthew:
[40:51] Well I'm yeah I'm sure that I'm sure those are much cleaner.

Sarah:
[40:56] Don't take it away from me Matthew don't take that away.

Matthew:
[40:58] But reality is they met us.

Sarah:
[40:59] Several ways.

Matthew:
[41:00] I could not have done it without my wife and him who.

Sarah:
[41:03] That's awesome.

Matthew:
[41:04] Who met us and replenished our water we were consuming approximately 200 dish calories per hour.

Sarah:
[41:11] Okay yeah.

Matthew:
[41:12] So you think about the food portioned out. I ate a lot of salmon,
packaged salmon lots of high calorie, high protein. I made a mistake by taking in too much salt.

Sarah:
[41:24] Okay.

Matthew:
[41:26] And not enough water to balance that out which increased my swelling which was not a good thing. Again another rookie move. But between that and electrolytes I'm still suffering and I've got some nerve damage in my hand that hopefully will be back soon but.

Sarah:
[41:39] No okay okay. So Matthew like this is quite the experience like what are some of your... let me ask you this, would you do it again?

Matthew:
[41:48] Well I could read you a text thread from the MR340 from the Facebook with some people that,
coined us comedy relief,
and I don't know if that's a good thing or a bad thing it may be something that my racing partner had said to them as we were coming by because I was all about telling jokes to anybody I could just get my mind off the fact that I was in pain and my coping mechanism a lot of times is comedy,
so on the river I was telling a lot of jokes there was one group that we continue to catch up with a different times and,
they coined us comedy relief and she wrote a really long post they were actually doing this for like their 40th birthday,
couple with kids and they finished ahead of us
in fact not only do they finish ahead of us but I just want to make this known that Susan and Bob somewhere you're out there in the st. Louis area and not only did you finish ahead of us and you were my age,
I know you were in a little bit faster canoe but you stopped and stayed in a hotel in Jeff City and my heart is still,
still hurts from the reality that you were able to do that and tells me just how bad I was at this.

Sarah:
[43:02] That's funny that's funny.

Matthew:
[43:05] Um and you finished ahead of me and you had never really done this before in your life either,
but we were there comedy relief at different times and I would say one of the greatest things that I have is her story on Facebook and how many times we popped up and that story that we got to play a role in other people's lives along the journey.

Sarah:
[43:19] Mmm Yeah a school yeah so what would be some other things you say that you took away from that experience or something you learned or learn not to do again.

Matthew:
[43:32] Our first question was what I do it again and I used a lot of different language techniques on the river in talking to other boats,
about my thoughts about what was actually happening to me and the body and the race and one of the common questions would you ever do this again,
and I had a lot of responses to that all which ended with the reality of no I will never.

Sarah:
[43:55] I will do ya.

Matthew:
[43:57] Yeah but we're getting there were a lot of conversations that fed into the reality of me saying no at the end so what I do it again yes I would do it again I would do it differently and and probably be.

[44:13] Stupid is not the word dumb is not the word there are people that did this on paddle boards as in like stand-up paddle boards.

Sarah:
[44:19] Oh my goodness - 340 miles on a paddleboard?.

Matthew:
[44:24] Yeah! If I do it again I'm gonna do it on a paddleboard.

Sarah:
[44:28] You're gonna do it that way.

Matthew:
[44:29] Because it just seems cool. Jack of all trades, master of none. I guess I've done it boat yeah I don't really consider a paddle board a boat,
it's like a surfboard with big paddle and they get to sit down and stretch your legs out and stand up sit down, kneel. I don't know how. The Core workout I'm sure I don't have to train for it but,
again I'll probably be on a paddleboard.

Sarah:
[44:52] I love this so much that's great we'll see yeah you just do the same thing but you changed it up so it makes it makes it different and you have all this experience now feel like you kind of need to do it again.

Matthew:
[45:02] I wouldn't call it experience.

Sarah:
[45:03] What did your partner think about it? Like how did he like,
what's been his take away from... like "I'll do this again" or is he he still talking to you after this?

Matthew:
[45:14] He's glad to be back in Salt Lake City. We had a great time.

Sarah:
[45:16] Okay.

Matthew:
[45:20] We've both shared back and forth there's nobody we would have wanted to do this with.

Sarah:
[45:24] Yeah yeah well so.

Matthew:
[45:25] Other than the two of us we're great friends it's one of those things when you have friends that you distance yourself by space and then by time.

Sarah:
[45:33] Yeah my time yeah.

Matthew:
[45:35] For long periods of time where you know Salt Lake City Utah to St. Louis is a long way. and even though you have cell phones and they make you seem like you have the ability to be close to somebody you kind of lose touch,
however I always need a Fletcher in my life and there are people that kind of replace,
people that play special roles to an extent but there's still those people that never fully replace that person in your life that is like a perfect compliment to you,
and as a friend he's a perfect complement that lives way too far away and space and time and even a cellphone hinders the reality of us being together so,
this was a great opportunity for us,
would he do a race with me again yes he will not do the MR340 again per our lat most previous conversation but if I were to jump into another race with him,
and be willing to travel maybe his direction or something that involved,
multiple things like mountain biking running yeah chi chi things like that are more his is Jam,
it will be race again I don't I don't know if we will together.

Sarah:
[46:51] Yeah that yeah.

Matthew:
[46:52] Maybe I will tell you this I learned I'm not sure how I didn't know this but the Katy Trail runs along the Missouri River for a long time and I,
I think I need to buy a bike and I think there's a race that goes along the Katy Trail I've never trained really on a bike.

Sarah:
[47:10] Well you figure it out.

Matthew:
[47:10] But I think I I've talked to a few people into jumping into a Katy Trail race that's coming up maybe.

Sarah:
[47:17] That's funny will you answer my questions like what's next what are you going to tackle.

Matthew:
[47:22] Well I think I want to do a bike race that sounds like I mean I'm gone on the water now it's time to go.

Sarah:
[47:29] Yeah I love it.

Matthew:
[47:31] Buy a bike that's too expensive.

Sarah:
[47:34] And.

Matthew:
[47:37] So maybe race a bike.

Sarah:
[47:39] Fancy what advice would you give to somebody listening going they had I want to like so part of I just love is you just use try it like you're just like
hey what do I got to lose besides maybe some nerve in your hand like to try something out what would you tell somebody if they're like bad I don't I don't know how to find a hobby or I'm just not sure what to do,
encourage somebody that they should just try to thing they've been waiting to try talk to that but for a minute.

Matthew:
[48:05] It's probably a personality trait. I don't know that everybody's wired that way. I think everybody's wired to experience different things. I've got some friends or acquaintances that,
I saw an acquaintance the other day that was super excited about hand stitching embroidery and I'm thinking like there's no way in my life I would ever do that but like for them that was an adventure.

Sarah:
[48:33] Yeah yeah.

Matthew:
[48:34] There was there was a she was worried about it she was nervous yeah and posted,
the before and the middle and the after and there was success and something that Journey along the way this person likes to quilt and and they're not old there,
my age so.

Sarah:
[48:52] Yeah so I can't I can't speak.

Matthew:
[48:55] I can't speak to that but when I see something like that I think hey,
that's the process yeah it's about finding things that you're interested in it interested in and pushing your yourself out of your comfort zone,
and again not everybody's wired to get way out of their comfort zone. but if you could just find,
a small avenue to get out of your comfort zone - the personal growth that I've experienced, and the life joys - I mean God put me on this planet I think to enjoy it.

Sarah:
[49:32] Wait.

Matthew:
[49:33] And to to work through it be challenged by it and to remind me of times how small I am,
because I have times where I can get pretty prideful,
Missouri River humbled me very quickly and it's those kind of Life Experiences I think just the shape they help shape our culture and they also help shape our character.

Sarah:
[49:56] Yeah for sure that's amazing so I want to jump and talk a little about you talked about football used to play football you're now a football coach and a teacher what got you in to all that talk just a little bit about,
I mean you this is part of what I love about your story you made kind of a middle-of-the-road in one career path,
chose a different career path talk about getting into teaching and what that's meant in that kind of Journey and experience.

Matthew:
[50:23] Jack of all trades master of none so.

[50:27] When I accepted Christ at age 18 of course it went from non-Christian to becoming a Believer and the church that I had originally got involved in was a Southern Baptist Church,
life carries on through there I carry on an internship after I move in to decide that I want to move into ministry as a career where I spend the next,
teen full-time years of my life as well as the first part of my schooling in my bachelor's degree at Southwest Baptist University,
so I went from Southern Baptist Church,
to being an intern in a Southern another Southern Baptist Church here in the area where I met my wife then taking my first full-time gig in a,
Southern Baptist church and then moving to a non-denominational church and here comes the Jack of all trades master of none I went from a
Southern Baptist to non-denominational church then on to a Methodist Church which is what brought us here to the st. Louis area,
and then from there there was a lot of question about what I was going to do next I did not want to be a lead pastor,
and I had this desire to teach in the classroom I wanted to be around students that that were in the classroom and I have a love for Science and began to bridge that Gap as I kind of made that transition out of ministry have another church call me and it just.

[51:54] Back into what was a comfort zone.

[51:56] And took a church at a Lutheran or took a position at the Lutheran church again jack of all trades master of none so let's just jump into,
nomination here and I did that for a couple years I gave them the news a couple of years in that hey,
it's time for me to make this other transition and we made a lot of great strides there with what they were looking for and,
I moved into teaching as a career and then took my past experience of being around students and my love for students,
at the high school level and went through a certification process and ended up in teaching High School,
in a county rule school about 45 minutes outside of where we live and also so teaching High School coaching Middle School Football middle school track,
because it was 45 minutes away it was hard for me to get into the varsity realm of coaching just because of time and drive was there for a full tenure,
and decided it was time to be back closer to home because you know we're raising a 13 year old and eight-year-old and
when we closer to home so I moved back to a school district for my wife works here in the winds flurry and so now we're back home
and I'm only teach currently teaching one teaching science still at the high school level but now coaching at the varsity level as an assistant football coach for,
for the school.

Sarah:
[53:24] What have you what's been some of the biggest lessons you've learned while teaching and being an education and just whether that was as a youth pastor whether that's been as actually a teacher in a classroom what are some things you've learned from that.

Matthew:
[53:37] Behind every front door there's a different story of every home behind every kid's eyes there's a different brain,
behind every kid's voice or non-voice there's a story that they want to tell you which has led me to this reality of everybody's different,
and it's taught me patience it's taught me kindness It's taught me swallowing my pride it stopped me at times thinking what I thought needed to be done and,
the realities of finding what they need done and how to meet their need,
the public school classroom has pushed me in that direction is challenged me in that direction,
there's not a one size fits one model for for all for all kids,
and where I am now and where I've taught in the past has helped train me and I think equipped me and burden my heart for the realities of meeting kids needs.

Sarah:
[54:38] Yeah.

Matthew:
[54:39] And where they're at helping them take their next step in understanding that their stories different their experiences are different and,
my job is to love them yeah and care for them and then bring education to them because that's my job.

Sarah:
[54:56] Yeah I love it what do you wish so we've got a lot of different listeners that listen all kinds of Life placements all that we love,
that but for parents listening or aunts and uncles or caregivers what do you as it educator wish that parents are cure caregivers knew about,
teachers.

Matthew:
[55:20] I can't think of a teacher that I've personally worked with that doesn't truly care,
we all have patience levels we all have stories at home as well we all have good days we all have bad days teachers are humans,
I remember thinking that my grade school teachers specifically like I thought they lived at school.

Sarah:
[55:41] Yeah yeah.

Matthew:
[55:42] I didn't know they in my head as a kid I didn't realize they went home to families and,
it as I've learned their stories behind,
behind every front door and there's a different mind behind every set of eyes,
teachers are no different and parents are no different benefit of the doubt,
when parents and teachers and students set stop and intentionally set aside,
maybe Pride or just acknowledge the reality of difference and find common ground in were humans,
and give each other the benefit of the doubt I think good conversations can take place and and I that's not that's really not just teacher and student and parent that's that's probably just life,
teaching has taught me too focus on benefit of the doubt.

Sarah:
[56:51] Mmm that's good I think a lot of our conversations and interactions with people would be way different if we,
took a second to just see that lens and give people the benefit of the doubt it's part of the reason why will and I want to share stories because your story is different than my story which is different than somebody else's story but they all make,
who we are and the lens that we see things through and how we see the world and that all mean something and everybody if we believe what we believe about the gospel and about
creation and the good news is that man the image of God is in every single person no matter what they look like no matter what they believe no matter the differences in,
that's what we want to share that's what we want to do and lean into so I'm
not got to benefit from being in your classroom but I've got the benefit from being your friend and I'm sure you are great at students and I know there are a lot of parents and a lot of students that are benefiting from being in your classroom where you can just be another person that is speaking life and we'll give them the benefit of the doubt
and see beyond maybe what's really on just the front side but go deeper with them so
that's incredible Matthew we've already like we're almost at the end of our conversation time is there anything it goes so fast is there anything that you want to talk about that we didn't talk about,
yet are you want to share anything I tell us.

Matthew:
[58:08] I'm for the most part I'm an open book like do you have any more questions or.

Sarah:
[58:12] Oh gosh I've always got questions,
let me look at my little while you know what I do want to I want to ask you about this so you are a dad that you're in a how you're greatly outnumbered in your home you have just got a boy dog okay so you even though you leveled it just a little bit.

Matthew:
[58:29] The pets were all girls are you serious yeah up until this point.

Sarah:
[58:30] Are you serious I didn't think about that all your oh yeah I forgot the you just got a new dog so house.

Matthew:
[58:37] I haven't checked that.

Sarah:
[58:38] How's the new dog situation going.

Matthew:
[58:40] My wife got a new dog yeah I love that dog.

Sarah:
[58:43] Okay yeah okay what's the dog's name.

Matthew:
[58:47] Dakota yeah.

Sarah:
[58:48] Dakota I love it. I love it.

Matthew:
[58:52] Golden Retriever. Male in the house. well it's me and me and him that you'd like to keep me up.

Sarah:
[59:00] Okay okay yeah but you're raising two girls.

Matthew:
[59:04] Two girls.

Sarah:
[59:05] You're getting into the teenage years - you are in the teenage years. What advice would you give some of our friends that are maybe in the thick of parenting right now?

Matthew:
[59:16] Jack of all trades master of none,
advice.

Sarah:
[59:21] Or encouragement.

Matthew:
[59:22] Encouragement. Description of my life raising girls is a lot like golf.

Sarah:
[59:29] Okay you have to explain this that's first thing that pops into my head is golf yeah.

Matthew:
[59:32] That's the first thing that pops into my head is golf when you go out onto a golf course,
you're up against several different things the first thing you're up against is the course and their every course has a par,
which is the the norm it's the break even point where like you weren't great you weren't bad like you.

Sarah:
[59:54] Great you weren't bad like you were our yeah.

Matthew:
[59:58] There are those who fall under.

Sarah:
[59:59] Farm.

Matthew:
[1:00:00] And look up to par there are those who overachieve par and look back up are like it's.

Sarah:
[1:00:04] Yeah yeah.

Matthew:
[1:00:05] A piece of cake but the majority of us are under par and struggling to meet par and I think me raising girls,
my wife raising you know our girls,
it's in life it's just it's a constant focus on I think the pressure is to meet par. And that's tough because,
par changes for every course you go on,
and wherever you are, you meet the second part of golf which is being judged,
whether you are or not being judged, but the reality is you are by those you're playing with.

Sarah:
[1:00:45] yeah.

Matthew:
[1:00:47] Um so whether it's raising girls are raising boys or just raising kids in general - your par changes with the environment,
and the course that you're on at the time be it at church or be it at school or be it at the grocery store,
and the people that you're playing with are the people around you that are observing your game.

Sarah:
[1:01:08] Yeah yeah.

Matthew:
[1:01:09] And that's that's a that's a tough thing to work through as a parent at a grocery store you might you know you're you know that,
courses got a par and you're trying to be the best parent you can and that store and it's been a bad day and your kids going crazy,
you're seeing somebody else's kid and they're they're not doing what you think they should do and you're judging that parent and all of a sudden that parents not meeting par and that parents worried about everything that's going on and what's you know.

Sarah:
[1:01:37] Mmm she's on the course with me right now and then yeah.

Matthew:
[1:01:38] Who's on the course with me right now in this aisle and who's judging me and that's stressful and that's hard as a parent were also in the time of a pandemic or hopefully coming out of it or at least reaching some new Norm,
so as you go to a course there's the part of the course there's the people you're playing with and you're playing with different people all the time,
and last but not least I think in the game of golf is the personal reflection I can't think of a sport that goes to the intensity at least in my life rather than the game of golf wear,
you're also playing against yourself.

Sarah:
[1:02:17] Mmm.

Matthew:
[1:02:19] And I think this is the part of golf and parenting that is probably the most beneficial to me,
the other things I don't have control over the par of a course I don't have control over the people that I'm always playing with or the people that are observing my game but I have control over me I have control over whether or not I go to the driving range I have control over,
um my attitude on the course and the way the way I approach the ball the way I hit the ball I have control over.

Sarah:
[1:02:46] Hit the ball I have control over yeah.

Matthew:
[1:02:49] And the reality is I know that that's not going to be perfect.

Sarah:
[1:02:53] Right right.

Matthew:
[1:02:54] Um but I'm challenged as a parent,
to to engage and probably one of the hardest Sports which is probably not golf but racing kids.

Sarah:
[1:03:08] Yeah yeah.

Matthew:
[1:03:09] And it's going to the driving range it's finding a coach,
lessons people that want advancing golf taking time to not just listen to the crowd right which a lot of people are coached by those they play with.

Sarah:
[1:03:23] Yeah yeah.

Matthew:
[1:03:24] That's not really coaching coaching is intentional it's finding somebody to directly feed into you.

Sarah:
[1:03:30] Yeah that's good.

Matthew:
[1:03:31] At times that maybe somebody I seek out that is an external person that I see right you may be somebody that doesn't have kids,
it may be something that can listen to me and let me vent instead of venting somewhere else and controlling controlling my thoughts my wife at times is my greatest coaches,
when we you know we struggle through a situation raising our girls and and at times remember we're playing this game most often together,
on the same course at we're judging each other and we're also each other's greatest coach which,
a little bit of a unique not unique but you know to those that are raising kids that person you're playing with is in can be a very beneficial coach to you so raising kids,
the two things that you don't have total control over is the part of course you don't have control over all the people that you're playing with.

Sarah:
[1:04:31] Hmm yeah.

Matthew:
[1:04:32] Reserving your game you do have control over the time and effort you put into the game,
and you're not going to be perfect at it and it days it's going to get you,
there's something that always brings me back to golfing and it's that one shot it's that second shot or third shot that you hit and you're like I can do this.

Sarah:
[1:04:53] Yeah yeah.

Matthew:
[1:04:54] And when you hit those shots or make that putt it's like getting that win with your kid and your little eyes I can do this and then having that coaching that you intentionally seek out to help you along the way.

Sarah:
[1:05:07] That's great Matthew now I feel like I got to go on how to play golf.

Matthew:
[1:05:10] You should go play golf it's your it's your next table.

Sarah:
[1:05:13] That's mine I feel like that it Wills giving me the thumbs up behind you I'm Gonna Learn that's why I'm going to do this next year learn how to play golf,
I'm in it for the Wardrobe a little bit Matthew is why I do Hobbies let's just have real on that's football I'm all in for the football games not because I want to wear the football out
but I want to go with the sweatshirt give me the team uniform or sweatshirts blankets because falls on the earth footballs in the fall right so when the weather gets cooler.

Matthew:
[1:05:38] So you like The Outfits but you like.

Sarah:
[1:05:39] I don't actually want to play the sport of football.

Matthew:
[1:05:42] I get the opportunity sometimes to play in the worship band at the church where we both attend and you serve but she won't let me wear a kilt on stage like I.

Sarah:
[1:05:51] I have that I'm not sure that the kilt is the appropriate attire for worship leading in my that's just my opinion I don't know what other people think.

Matthew:
[1:06:00] Yes something is plaid.

Sarah:
[1:06:01] I know I think it's the fact of your legs being shown on the stage.

Matthew:
[1:06:06] I'll have good socks.

Sarah:
[1:06:08] we'll talk about that but we'll have to see you at the show.

Matthew:
[1:06:11] We'll work on that.

Sarah:
[1:06:12] We'll see if the kilt shows up at worship you never know maybe if we went to Scotland maybe you could lead worship over there and have a kilt,
bagpipe you should learn the backpack if you learned the bagpipes to match with the kilt I can go for it.

Matthew:
[1:06:27] What do you mean by learn?

Sarah:
[1:06:28] Do you already know how to play the bagpipes? You gotta be able to play a song semi-proficiently.

Matthew:
[1:06:32] Remember jack of all trades master of none jack-of-all-trades master.

Sarah:
[1:06:36] This would not be the time to show up on the stage with the kilt and the bagpipes and be like "I've not prepared I don't know anything" that would be a you'd want to learn we got to learn a little something learn a song How Great Thou Art bagpipes,
okay let's do it and then we'll get the kilt and we'll take.

Matthew:
[1:06:49] I wish you didn't offer that!

Sarah:
[1:06:49] We'll come back and report how this happens. "Will, is on the record?" It is on the record so I've got one more I think you I think that was actually probably the answer to my last question but I asked you so the show's called now that something good you shared with us a ton of good things but what something else could have you right like it can be anything I always tell people like there's no.

Matthew:
[1:07:07] You just asked if I have something I read. I don't like reading.

Sarah:
[1:07:10] Yeah you like reading okay something like a I don't know anything anything good.

Matthew:
[1:07:14] It's good anything good what is good.
Being here today was good. My new job position is good. I'm excited to be back close to family.

Sarah:
[1:07:30] Exciting yeah.

Matthew:
[1:07:31] Where I'm not traveling I loved the school that I was at. my family is good I would not be where I am without their love and their support.

Sarah:
[1:07:39] Mmm.

Matthew:
[1:07:40] My church is good I would not be where I am currently without without my church body and and the love of Christ. I wouldn't be where I am
without Christ and that's just a daily reflection my life verse is always been Galatians 2:20, "It is no longer I who live but Christ who lives in me. The life I live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God who gave himself for me."

Sarah:
[1:08:03] It's good.

Matthew:
[1:08:04] Um I have flash patterns,
I have habits I have problems I have victories I have defeats. But at the end of the day I'm never defined by those. And what's good is that I have a savior,
who who has set my course for eternity and a family that is not only a church family and my immediate family with my wife and kids and extended family and friends but I get to do this life with people. That's that's what's good to me. And if I can experience some Adventure along the way then those are good experiences, as I make the journey.

Sarah:
[1:08:52] I love it that's lots of definitely something good things. Matthew thanks for being here today.