Keepin' it real

Inspired by a number of my favorite people and the blogs they keep, I've decided that since this is our family blog--better said, our family journal/family history--I need to more frequently include posts that portray our "real" day-to-day moments and not just the "high-light reels" of the fun/adventurous moments in our life.

One of my favorite quotes on what life is all about comes from what President Gordon B. Hinckley shared in a talk a few years back:

I have enjoyed these words of Jenkins Lloyd Jones, which I clipped from the newspaper some years ago. Said he:.... "Anyone who imagines that bliss is normal is going to waste a lot of time running around shouting that he has been robbed.

"Most putts don't drop. Most beef is tough. Most children grow up to be just people. Most successful marriages require a high degree of mutual toleration.

Most jobs are more often dull than otherwise.... "Life is like an old-time rail journey - delays, sidetracks, smoke, dust, cinders and jolts, interspersed only occasionally by beautiful vistas and thrilling bursts of speed.

"The trick is to thank the Lord for letting you have the ride.'"

("Big Rock Candy Mountains," Deseret News, 12 June 1973, A4; as cited in Ensign, March 1997, p. 60.)

So here I am, "keepin' it real"--

At this time of Thanksgiving, while I certainly WANT to be thankful for the life journey I'm experiencing...the 'jolt' I received recently is one that I'm having a difficult time being thankful for. Why?  It's difficult not to feel at a loss and overwhelmed after receiving news that--

• my dad's health is worsening, he's back in the hospital, AND he is being stubborn about NOT wanting any help from anyone! I am grateful for my dad and the life he has lived, and the 'additional' years we've enjoyed with him past what his doctors thought he'd have.  This stubborn streak however...well, thanks for passing it on to me too Dad. : )  Perhaps if it weren't because you're stubborn, persistant, or passionate about life, perhaps you wouldn't still be here two years after having been diagnosed with that terrible disease (of which I'm NOT a fan) of which I am trying to understand it's purpose: cancer.
• after having lost our sister D to breast cancer at the end of April, a short 5 months later in September our sister J was diagnosed with stage 3 breast cancer as well.  Just yesterday I received word that J's cancer is spreading quickly and that as a result, she isn't doing so well.  J has started chemo and we are all hoping that she, her sweet husband, and three wonderful sons, her mom, our dad, and all of our siblings will feel some measure of comfort at this VERY difficult time.

(click on picture to enlarge)

While I firmly believe that there is indeed a purpose in ALL things, I do not for one second pretend to UNDERSTAND the purpose in SOME things like: spiders, mosquitos, and CANCER!  So...if I haven't seemed myself lately, now you know it's because I've got a lot weighing on my heart and mind.