If you've ever run a relay, you understand that the most important aspect of the race is the passing of the baton. You can have the fastest runners on each leg of the track, but if the hand-off is not perfectly coordinated, you can loose the race in those minute seconds.

That's why you practise the hand-off like your life depends on it. You work on timing, you work on pacing your steps, you mark the track so you can see the precise moment that the runner behind you hits that exact spot where you have to take off and trust that they will not fail you by breaking their stride.

What's extremely tricky is that both parties are running at full speed and must depend on coordination and an innate sense of rhythmic timing to make that pass seamless. The race depends on it.

When the baton is passed like it should be, it's a beautiful thing to watch. It feels like you're watching one runner morphing with fluid grace into another form, each one more beautiful and breathtaking. It's a work of art...a thing of grace.

I had the opportunity to witness the passing of a baton this past week. Our Anchor was a lady who has run the race of life with a steady and unrelenting pace. Raising and caring for a large family and then a husband who was increasingly isolated by the ravages of Alzheimer's. She had grown up in a generation where the head of the household handled all the major decisions and certainly the finances. When she found herself in a situation in which she had to take on all these tasks, she rose to the occasion and with the support of her loving family had to learn to navigate all kinds of new territory.

This was not an easy time to be selling any home in Grand Rapids. The streets were littered with the signs of those who had been trying for months. When they contacted us to interview us about our plan to market their home, they started with asking us to do an honest assessment of what they would need to do to update a home that had been lived in for decades. The list was extensive. They said Thank You and set out to do the suggested updates and repairs.

A process like this takes a lot of coordination. In addition to the staging and updating, additional paperwork was required, children and the home owner were updated on a regular basis, extensive marketing was done online, Open Houses were held. And when all was said and done...it was placed in God's hands.

So, as we sat at the Closing Table, watching the animated conversation of two engaged parties, one transitioning to another phase of life and the other just starting their life together as newlyweds and new homeowners, I was struck by the beauty of a seamless transaction...one which was marked with a peculiar grace and handed off with courage and goodwill.

She was relieved and grateful to have successfully completed a remarkable journey. They were deeply thankful to be settling into a home which had been lovingly cared for. They invited her to stop by to see them and her former home if she wanted. It was a beautiful thing to watch. We were thankful to have been given the privilege of assisting in a successful hand-off!

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