I barely ever use twitter, but the day Parker was down, I was desperate to cheer him up. So I logged in to twitter and posted the picture of Parker’s Iowa Hawkeyes cast. I tagged some of his favorite Iowa Players. One of those players, Pat Angerer, replied.
Pat Angerer was a linebacker for the Iowa Hawkeyes. He was drafted by the Indianapolis Colts in the 2nd round of the 2010 NFL Draft. Now I’m the Colts fan, but Parker watched games with me. Even though he is a Packers fan, he always rooted for Angerer because of his Bettendorf and Iowa Hawkeye ties. Parker also loved Angerer's NFL intro in which he says, “Pat Angerer, The United State of Iowa.”
Pat sent me a message stating that he would like to send something to help cheer up Parker, so I thanked him in advance and quickly gave him our address. I was so excited for Parker.
A few days passed, and I was getting ready to head out the door to meet some people and deliver baskets from the raffle. When I opened the door, I saw a box sitting on my porch from Pat Angerer. I ran it inside to Parker, and he looked at it in disbelief. “Pat Angerer?” Parker said, “What?!”
He opened the box and inside was an autographed jersey and a card. He was stunned. He opened the card and quietly said, “Wow!” I don’t think he expected Pat to have written as much as he did. He read the card. Then read it again. He didn’t let me read it though. He just smiled and held the card. Since I had to go meet some people, I hurried out the door without reading the card, but kept wondering what it said. It clearly had an impact on Parker.
When I got home, the first thing I did was look for the card. I read it and it brought tears to my eyes. Before I tell you what it says, let me tell you about a conversation I had with Parker just the day before.
We were talking about Parker’s appointment on Thursday and how they were going to remove the cast. He wanted to know if they were going to wrap his leg in an ACE bandage like his other leg had been wrapped in. I told him no, if he didn’t need the skin graft, he would get another cast until 6 weeks had passed. “6 weeks?!” I wasn’t sure if this was an exclamation or question.
We had previously told him that he would have a cast for 6 weeks, so I didn’t understand why he was concerned. He said that 6 weeks was not long enough! I asked him for more clarification. He explained his small biopsy incision looked “creepy” for longer than 6 weeks. Regarding the two big incisions from his last surgery, he said, “I don’t want people to have to look at them.” He was worried about them being “grossed out.” Parker thought the incisions were cool, and he isn’t grossed out by them. He’s just worried about what others are going to think. We reminded him what Dr. Miller told him, chicks dig scars, and we told him not to worry what others think.
But back to Pat’s letter.
In his letter, Pat defined what a warrior was. He explained that Parker was the truest form of a warrior. His words were incredible. Anybody would feel amazing after reading the words that Pat wrote about Parker.
I’m not going to write exactly what Pat wrote because I want Parker to have those words for himself, but I am going to quote a small portion of the next section of his letter because I want everybody to know just how amazing Mr. Pat Angerer is. Grab some tissues.
“A Knight in shining armor is a man who has never had his metal truly tested.”
- You wear those scars with pride. You were tougher than whatever tried to bring you down. You inspire me and my family.
The impact that these words had on not only Parker, but on me…..
Wow! - is all I can say.
It’s one thing to hear your mom say, “Don’t worry about what other people think.” But the way Pat Angerer said it was marvelous and it made a difference. It was also really great timing.
To Pat: Thank you. Thank you for taking the time to write Parker. Your words of encouragement meant so much to him, and he’s read the card numerous times. I’ll never forget the shock or the smile on his face when he looked up after seeing the package was from you, “THE Pat Angerer?” I have no doubt that you're an amazing father after reading the words you wrote. You're insightful, thoughtful, and intelligent and your kids are lucky to have a role model like you. I’m still trying to talk him in to sending you a text, but he’s being coy and doesn't want to bother you.
To those reading this: Highest bidder gets Pat Angerer’s phone number! JUST KIDDING, PAT! I’ve seen you tackle. I’d rather be on your good side!
Pat Angerer was a linebacker for the Iowa Hawkeyes. He was drafted by the Indianapolis Colts in the 2nd round of the 2010 NFL Draft. Now I’m the Colts fan, but Parker watched games with me. Even though he is a Packers fan, he always rooted for Angerer because of his Bettendorf and Iowa Hawkeye ties. Parker also loved Angerer's NFL intro in which he says, “Pat Angerer, The United State of Iowa.”
Pat sent me a message stating that he would like to send something to help cheer up Parker, so I thanked him in advance and quickly gave him our address. I was so excited for Parker.
A few days passed, and I was getting ready to head out the door to meet some people and deliver baskets from the raffle. When I opened the door, I saw a box sitting on my porch from Pat Angerer. I ran it inside to Parker, and he looked at it in disbelief. “Pat Angerer?” Parker said, “What?!”
He opened the box and inside was an autographed jersey and a card. He was stunned. He opened the card and quietly said, “Wow!” I don’t think he expected Pat to have written as much as he did. He read the card. Then read it again. He didn’t let me read it though. He just smiled and held the card. Since I had to go meet some people, I hurried out the door without reading the card, but kept wondering what it said. It clearly had an impact on Parker.
When I got home, the first thing I did was look for the card. I read it and it brought tears to my eyes. Before I tell you what it says, let me tell you about a conversation I had with Parker just the day before.
We were talking about Parker’s appointment on Thursday and how they were going to remove the cast. He wanted to know if they were going to wrap his leg in an ACE bandage like his other leg had been wrapped in. I told him no, if he didn’t need the skin graft, he would get another cast until 6 weeks had passed. “6 weeks?!” I wasn’t sure if this was an exclamation or question.
We had previously told him that he would have a cast for 6 weeks, so I didn’t understand why he was concerned. He said that 6 weeks was not long enough! I asked him for more clarification. He explained his small biopsy incision looked “creepy” for longer than 6 weeks. Regarding the two big incisions from his last surgery, he said, “I don’t want people to have to look at them.” He was worried about them being “grossed out.” Parker thought the incisions were cool, and he isn’t grossed out by them. He’s just worried about what others are going to think. We reminded him what Dr. Miller told him, chicks dig scars, and we told him not to worry what others think.
But back to Pat’s letter.
In his letter, Pat defined what a warrior was. He explained that Parker was the truest form of a warrior. His words were incredible. Anybody would feel amazing after reading the words that Pat wrote about Parker.
I’m not going to write exactly what Pat wrote because I want Parker to have those words for himself, but I am going to quote a small portion of the next section of his letter because I want everybody to know just how amazing Mr. Pat Angerer is. Grab some tissues.
“A Knight in shining armor is a man who has never had his metal truly tested.”
- You wear those scars with pride. You were tougher than whatever tried to bring you down. You inspire me and my family.
The impact that these words had on not only Parker, but on me…..
Wow! - is all I can say.
It’s one thing to hear your mom say, “Don’t worry about what other people think.” But the way Pat Angerer said it was marvelous and it made a difference. It was also really great timing.
To Pat: Thank you. Thank you for taking the time to write Parker. Your words of encouragement meant so much to him, and he’s read the card numerous times. I’ll never forget the shock or the smile on his face when he looked up after seeing the package was from you, “THE Pat Angerer?” I have no doubt that you're an amazing father after reading the words you wrote. You're insightful, thoughtful, and intelligent and your kids are lucky to have a role model like you. I’m still trying to talk him in to sending you a text, but he’s being coy and doesn't want to bother you.
To those reading this: Highest bidder gets Pat Angerer’s phone number! JUST KIDDING, PAT! I’ve seen you tackle. I’d rather be on your good side!
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