- From My Baby book
The last few days I've been thinking of how we react to unexpected tragedies or difficulties. Whether it be the Metrolink crash or Hurricane Ike, the same response occurs. After the initial shock, the media starts reporting on how it could have been avoided or who was at fault. We humans have a hard time accepting that bad things happen, even to good people.
As I was thinking through a post on this subject, I kept thinking of Rod.
Rodney Dean Fultz was born on March 5, 1963, just 13 months before I came along. Within the first year of his life, it was discovered that Rod was a hemophiliac or a "bleeder" as he was commonly called. In spite of many, many difficulties and hospitalizations, Rod was an overcomer. I think God gave him an extra dose of grit in place of the clotting factor found in most humans!
What a brother he was! He had an incredible wit. You never got the last word with Rod. He had a comeback for anything you threw his way. I know, because this was the source of many fights between the two of us! As we got older, he knew when he was about to push me over the edge and would say something that would just crack me up.
Hearing him sing was a powerful experience. The second verse of "I'm Just Warming Up" with the words "all my pain and sorrow, up there I will forget", could not have been sung with more power or passion by anyone else.
If anyone had the "right" to question his circumstances or try to find someone to blame, it was Rod. But I can still hear him, not many months before his death, as we spoke about all he had been through in his life. He said, "Kathy, whenever I'm tempted to question or feel sorry for myself, I just read the book of Job. I can't complain."
One definition of shadow is an inseparable companion or follower. Rod's example of facing life's difficulties is one I want to follow. I knew even as a baby, he was someone I wanted "shadow".
To my friends that knew Rod, I hope you enjoy this photo walk down memory lane as much as I did! And whenever I hear "Jingle Bell Rock" I remember the Christmas when Rod and I entertained the family, he with his "crutch guitar" and me with some fancy moves!!
15 comments:
Hi Kathy,
I have enjoyed your blog and have been reading since the beginning. You are an inspiration! I knew the day would come when you would write about Rod and I knew it would be the first comment that I have ever posted on anyones blog. I enjoy reading but have just never felt to post till today.
Thank you for writing about Rod and the pictures brought back so many memories. Hot Rod, as Gary called him, was in my first sunday school class when I moved to Fresno in 1974. Little did I know that he would become such a friend to our family. Katie and David always loved Rod and we still find ourselves telling stories about him. Bible Quiz trips, Disneyland, volleyball and softball games (nothing kept Rod down) and one summer I think we went to Sugar Pine Ice Cream Parlor a million times. He is someone we will never forget. And like you I can still hear him singing in the choir and what a blessing he was to so many. We were all so blessed to have him in our lives.
I miss him a lot,
Remembering with a smile,
Love you,
Juanita
Juanita,
Thanks for reading my blog. I'm a little amazed that anyone keeps reading!
Rod was so real. It didn't take long to get past his exterior, weakened body, to the amazing person he was. I didn't know you were his Sunday School teacher! I'm so glad he had friends like you, Gary, Katie, and David! He loved you all so much - even when David tried to get him to go home so David could get some sleep!!
Love you.
Hello Kathy & Les!
While reading your blog today, it brought back so many memories. Rod was such a part of my younger years...He was one of my inspirations. He seemed to know just when you needed to stop feeling sorry for yourself and he'd make you laugh and laugh. Or sometimes, you'd get a card that would pick you up.
He not only did this for me, but anyone he felt needed to be encouraged. He seemed to have a second sense in knowing when someone needed encouragement.
Then when I got married he sang every song except one on that special day. When my kids pull that old tape out, it's with great pride I can tell all the great stories about Rod.
Yes, there are so many things I could say and not do justice. However, there is coming a day, when we will all meet again to have the greatest celebration of all. Rod and Sis. Fultz are just getting it all set up!
Thanks for the blog,
Heather
Hello Heather! (and Steve and kids!)
Rod really made it hard to feel sorry for yourself when he was such an overcomer! How could I complain about the flu, when he lived with pain each and everyday?
"What a Day That Will Be!" when we're all reunited!
Love you!!
Rod had such a wonderful spirit, always smiling, always playing down his hurt and pain. He was an inspiration to us all. I remember his singing so well, but I remember too that he certainly could act and was such an asset to the dramas.
Rod loved being in the dramas! He was in one the Easter before he passed away, giving it his all!
I will always remember the awesome times we had with Rod. He was my first Bible quizzing coach. He was always ready to go to Disneyland. I remember always wanting to ride with him. He was so much fun to be around. And how can anyone forget him dancing around the platform in his own way singing with all he had "My God is holy, My God is true, My God is faithful in everything we do....."? Rod was a great example to me as a young boy growing up of what a true christian should be. I'll never forget being the miniature groom in his wedding I thought I was a little Rod. I was so blessed to know him.
David,
I keep the Bible Quizzing picture of Rod, Kari, Rachel, Josiah, you, and Caleb in my Bible. Whenever I need a lift, I looked at it!
He was blessed with so many wonderful friends.
Rod was one of the first people -- in fact, maybe the very first -- to befriend me when I moved to Fresno. He was an unforgettable person in so many ways -- his talent, his humor, his wit, his ability to squeeze every drop of fun out of life, but most of all his tenacity. I still remember the very last drama he was in, not long before he passed away. He was very sick, and most people in his shoes would have said, "I just can't do it." But not Rod -- he gave it everything he had, fighting at the end to hang on to his voice. I don't know if God has star witnesses in heaven, but if He does I'm sure Rod will be one of them.
Love, Michele
Michele,
Rod knew how to live "a man that hath friends must shew himself friendly."
That final drama took his voice for the last time, it never returned. But I know he never regretted giving his all.
Kathy,
Your essay about Rod and his photos are wonderful... They seem to pull a response from the hearts of those of us who knew your incredible brother.
My first memory of Rod wasn't his voice, wasn't his wit, nor was it his crutch-guitar. It was his bonafide Christian example.
The first time I remember Rod, was a night after my wife and I visited Truth Tabernacle and decided to grab a late dinner at Lyons on Fresno street.
The hostess seated us directly across from this very nice young man having dinner with a nice young lady, who conducted themselves impeccably. Throughout the meal, he was the ultimate example to his church and to his pastor. As we paid our check that night, I stopped at their table to tell them how much I appreciated their example.
That was my first memory of Rod.
That was before he earned the right to insult my car, incessantly tease my children and terrify my wife with that horrific rubber mask that left us all in stitches after-the-fact. What a camping trip!
I was soon introduced to his "crutch-guitar", "crutch-mic", and other antics that never failed to get a laugh from everyone in the room. Rod was the quickest, brightest wit I've ever known in my life. His was classy wit, not the sophomoric type that was cruel or demeaning. His wit was was the type that would catch you so off-guard that you wouldn't realize he had just "got you", until he was well out of range.
Yet, Rod was always cognizant of exactly who he was. He never suffered from any form of an identity crisis. Rod knew that he was a child of God, and he carried himself accordingly.
Early in our friendship, I remember one instance where we were discussing the dangers of sin, and I can recall his thoughtful, intuitive insight on the matter. His convictions made an immediate impact on me. For days I simply couldn't get his words out of my mind, and I am glad to say that he prompted me to question my cavalier attitude toward my own convictions.
Rod made a difference in my walk with God.
Then he would turn around do something goofy like complimenting the meatloaf we were eating....
"But that's not meatloaf Rod! That's my wife's chocolate cake!"
Yes Kathy, we really miss him.
lm
Larry,
I'm so glad you shared how Rod influenced you. His influence on my life continues even now.
You didn't know him as a teenager, but even then he didn't suffer from identity crisis. He always knew who God was. And God always knew who Rod was.
We love you and your family so much and I'm thankful for the time that Rod had you in his life.
Hi Kathy,
I've been out of blogdom for a few weeks so I didn't see this post about Rod until today. I had looked over your blog before hoping to see some pictures and memories of the wonderful person he was.
I have SO many fond memories of my high school years when Rod was my teacher.
I'll never forget the set of masks he had in our classroom that would serve as our signal as to what mood he was in, there was a teddy bear or some sort of fuzzy animal, a monkey or something indicating silliness, and there was a wolf meanig WATCH OUT! (he rarely used that one)He was always SO funny and made school so much fun.
I'll never forget when I was struggling as a young person, he called me into a school office to talk to me. He let me know that the choices I made in my life were important and that I was important and valuable. I believe his talk that day was life changing for me. I know that I can attribute my salvation and decision to live for God to the mentors I had in my life like Rod.
Oh and one of those pics you have on the slide show was taken at Disneyland and I have one very similar where he is holding his crutch like a guitar too!
Kari Morgan (Runner)
Kari,
It's good to hear from you again. Since I'm not the mother of four, I can only imagine how busy you are!
Thanks for sharing your memories of Rod. This is my most popular post to date! He was a friend to everyone. It is amazing the impact his short life left on so many.
What an incredible guy. He always had a ready smile and encouraging word...
I loved how he was always the same, no matter how long it had been since I'd seen him...
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