Gratitude
So Natalie and I have been walking each morning for about 45 minutes at the Rec. Center in Bountiful.  Today on our walk, I told her that I wanted to do a "Year in Review" book for 2011, but honestly couldn't find anything, other than Synthia and Matt's wedding, that I was happy about.  (She promptly reminded me that she and Kent moved into town last January.)  OOPS! :)  Anyway, this has prompted me to "put down in words" a bit about each day.  My goal is one sentence - kind of like a Tweet, Nat said. I'm thinking that if I actually do this, there will be plenty of things to include in my 2012 "Year in Review" book.  Yes, 2011 was a hard!  I won't elaborate, because my goal is to think more about the good stuff, rather than the hard stuff.  I can learn from the "hard stuff" and move on.  Unfortunately, some of the "hard stuff" doesn't know when it has worn out it's welcome, if you know what I mean. So, I'm learning more about setting boundaries, about forgiveness, about tolerance for "prickly people" and for my own weaknesses.  I'm learning more about gratitude.  It's a well kept secret that a person can't feel gratitude and remain in a rotten mood for long.

Sooo... today I'm grateful for this insight. 

I'm also grateful for the past two weeks.  Sharm's father passed away on Sunday, January 16th.  How I love and admire him.  I'll miss having him near, when we gather as a family.  I'll miss his wisdom.  I'll miss his never-ending sense of gratitude.  I love you Dad!

Bennett Scott Wilkinson's Passing

On Saturday morning, we learned that Amanda and Dave Wilkinson's baby boy had passed away in the night. There seems to be no apparant reason after all autopsies have come back. He was 18 months old. Our hearts' are all broken this week, my sense of life and death altered again and my children seem less mine, more of God's really. We have little control of things in this life. It's fragile, with NO guarentees. Relationships are all that really matters in the end and how we love one another.

Mandy asked me yesterday, "Can I do this"? Yes Mandy, I told her, you can. Time is a healer, but it will take alot of time. And she and Dave will, with intense grief and graciousness. They are so strong and so capable in all aspects, yet nobody is truly prepared for this kind of experience! I don't care who you are. Time helps, it does. Oh, how I love them. How my heart aches for them and Stana, Scott and all the family! Today is the funeral. I don't want to feel pain!

Mary and Baden and kids came to visit. It has been so fun to be with them. Sophie, "Bofus", as they are calling her, LOL, is adorably cute and so much bigger. It has been a total joy having them here and Mary has been a huge help to the Wilkinsons and Kjars! Russell has RSV again, so my prayers are for him today!