A Fun Thing to Watch

Sitting on the stand at church affords me a great opportunity to engage in one of my favorite pastimes: people watching. Today we had a high councilman visiting. His married daughter and her family live in our branch and was a little late to church this morning. So they come in during the opening song, find them a seat and get all settled in. Then she leans over to her two girls, ages 3 and 4, and tells them their grandpa is on the stand. So you could see the intense look of concentration as they look and look and look for him. And then the magic moment; they found him. Their faces lit up like little beacons, you could see the joy sweep across their faces. That was choice. And then the secret little wave to him. And, as discreetly as you can from on the stand, he smiled and waved back. That was fun to watch.

Living Together in Love

Wow. April and May have slipped by in an instant. Well, okay. There were some things go on that have kept me busy during this time. I had learned some 22 1/2 years ago that losing a parent is not easy. I got a reminder recently as my Mom passed away. Maybe because my Mom's passing was less expected than my Dad's. Maybe because now both my parents are gone. Maybe because I have always derived a certain amount of comfort from having her around, even if it was hundreds of miles away. It felt so out of place to drive out to her house and be in her home without her being there. I can't begin to describe all the feelings that were flying around in my heart during that trip out. I am so blessed to have such a wonderful family - it made this difficult time so much easier. It was so good to see my children all together (except my missionary, who had a good reason for not being there), having a thoroughly enjoyable time being together. That happens so seldom these days. That's the blessing that hides in funerals; good times with family. I'm glad we had time that we didn't have to rush out and right back.

Okay, it's not Sunday. But here's a scripture that has always meant a lot to me: "Thou shalt live together in love, insomuch that thou shalt weep for the loss of them that die". (D&C 42:45). We do that and its such a wonderful way to live.