Stardate: 08.18.2026
I came to Oconomowoc with a job to do.
I was part of a team preparing a new store for its grand opening. There were goals to reach, problems to solve, details to polish, and a team to support.
I knew the assignment would eventually end.
I didn't know how many people would become part of my story along the way.
That's one of the gifts of traveling away from home. We enter a place knowing very few people. Then the days begin to fill with conversations, shared work, laughter, challenges, and small moments that weren't on the schedule.
Somewhere along the way, people become friends.
Sometimes they become family.
One of those relationships began with a concerned neighbor.
Peter came to me with concerns about the new store. I listened. As we talked, I discovered his concerns were legitimate. We addressed them, and he was satisfied with the solutions.
Then Peter stopped by during the ribbon cutting.
While we were outside, I had the opportunity to share part of his family's story with him and others. His wife's family had arrived here generations ago aboard a ship named the Lyon.
There was another part of their family story that touched me deeply.
When Peter was diagnosed with lymphoma, his granddaughter, Hannah, prayed for his healing.
Hannah is seven years old now.
I asked Peter to carry a prayer from me to Hannah.
I asked her to pray for the community of Oconomowoc. My prayer was that the new store would be a blessing to the people who live here and that we would serve the needs of the community well.
That moment will stay with me.
So will the people I have worked beside these past few weeks.
The teammates who showed up each day.
The conversations between tasks.
The people who helped me when I needed help.
The people I was able to help.
The laughter that made long days easier.
The shared purpose that brought us together.
I have about 28 hours remaining on this assignment.
The work now is final polishing with the team and making sure they are ready to carry things forward. There will also be goodbyes.
Some of these people will become lifetime family.
I already know I will return to Oconomowoc with my family someday. When I do, I'll see more than a building where we opened a new store.
I'll remember the people.
I think that is one of the beautiful things about the journeys God gives us.
We often begin with a destination in mind.
Then people appear along the way.
They become part of our lives through circumstances we never planned. A conversation. A shared assignment. A concern brought to our attention. A story about a little girl named Hannah who prayed for her grandfather.
We keep walking.
And somehow, the journey becomes richer because they were there.
"Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing."
— 1 Thessalonians 5:11
I have been encouraged by the people I've met here.
I hope I've encouraged a few of them, too.
Perhaps that's enough.
We don't always know what our presence means to another person. We may never know which conversation mattered or which small act of kindness someone carried home with them.
We can still choose to show up.
We can still listen.
We can still serve.
We can still be open to the people God places along our path.
Join me here:
https://substack.com/@michaelmulliganlivelong
Captain's Addendum
Bones: "Michael, you're getting sentimental again."
Spock: "The evidence suggests he has developed emotional attachments to his colleagues."
Bones: "Spock, they're called friends."
Spock: "I am aware of the distinction, Doctor."
There are people I met in Oconomowoc who I expect will remain part of my life long after this assignment is finished.
That wasn't part of the plan I carried with me when I arrived.
I'm grateful it happened.
Live long and prosper.
— Michael
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