Words from me...

I’m going to try and keep closer to this Blog, but with the good weather it’s hard to be inside.
Lorin and Sherry were at the Spanish Fork Gun shoot last Saturday so I took Kent and Justin over to visit with Lorin. Then Sherry came with me to the Greenhouse to plant my last four pots. The girls even had her carrying out several trays of flowers to do her pots when she got back home. I thought I had beat this cold but buy the time I got home that night it was back full force. The wind in Spanish is always blowing and with the last few snowstorms it made it so Kent stayed in Lorins truck most of the time, he loves being with his big brother. If I remember the stories right the two brothers dated Sherry and her twin sister and that made for a closer relationship between them. Lorin and Sherry have always been such a support system to us through this last four years.

Rex came and sat with Kent also, he was here most of the day, Sue said he just enjoyed being able to sit with his brother even though it was hard at times to keep the conversation on track, they figured it out. Kent felt so happy to see Rex and have that time with him. Once again, Rex and Sue have been such a wonderful comfort to all of us over this last 4 years.

Kents cousin Tom and wife Juline came yesterday and it was a kick to go over old memories with the two of them. Tom lived with us a short time when we were in West Jordan. Kent has had a lot of family coming to see him and he loves it. He really is doing better than I thought he would without his heart and blood pressure meds. He still gets tired and when the pain starts he gets some painkillers in him, but they seem to be handling everything that is hitting.

All of Kents siblings are trying to get everybody together like they do at Christmas in the next few weeks but they are waiting to see about when Marva can fly in from Denver. It’s always fun to go over the stories with everyone. Through the years the boys (most of them) have been hunting buddies. They would hunt birds out on the Honeyville farm, and the big game was and is still hunted on the Chalk Creek property. My kids have a lot of good memories of the hunts and camping trips. Things just keep changing so fast. I know it’s hard not to go to Chalk Creek and not see Fort Stacy; Gary is so missed by all of us.

Barbara and Annette have also been down to go over the stories that they all remembered, the two girls are so much fun to be around, they do everything together since Gary passed away and mom and dad are no longer around. Their laughter makes us all roll on the floor. Kent loves to have them around, they sure can pick a sad room up fast. Bless their hearts. Tom Priday stopped in also. He was picking up Kara to take her back to Denver. She has been here at the Y for her first year of college.

Cody took Kent to Kaysville so he could be apart of Rods being made an Elder; Kent has waited for that day since Rod came from Germany. Tanner’s turn was next and Cody went back down with his kids for his Baptism and gave a talk. Michelle had to work, so Cody gets high marks for filling in. Kent wasn’t feeling up to going but we are going on Sunday for his Confirmation.

Justin has been sticking pretty close to the farm and his dad and that has been nice for Kent. They were best buds and did everything together. We didn’t even have a date night without Justin. When this all started Justin pulled away from his dad. Justin was only 15 and I don’t think he could handle seeing his dad lying in the hospital day after day for over three months. He couldn’t talk to him anymore and I don’t think he could really understand everything that his dad was going through. Just watching all the machines that they had Kent hooked to was mind-boggling. He would watch us rotate the pillows move him from side to side but he would stand back and watch out the windows, I think this has been a lot harder on Justin than we all can really understand. It made Justin a latch key kid through that short period. Through his dating years, through his getting his driver license, through so much of Justin’s growing up his dad has been in a coma or been so frail that he couldn't be the man that he had grown up with.

I was lucky and had a dad that was healthy thought my growing years, one that I knew could protect me when I needed him to. I have thought about this son of mine going through all of this, and all of us being mad at his rebellion, a double whammy for him. And then I look at Kent’s side of wanting a boy so bad to grow old with and how those teen age years are such a challenge for everyone, yet I’m so sure Kent has missed being able to be the dad that he truly wanted to be to him, how do these things end up this way? I ask these things in all my prayers and then think of the entire blessing that we have seen, and the entire blessing that others have never been able to have like we have. When all is over it will have been such a short trial and I pray that we will all grow and become stronger in the gospel because of it.

I can never say enough times how much we love and appreciate the love and concern from all of you and I hope if I have not showed it that you will know in your heart that we love all of you and when and if you have trials that we can be of some support.

Shirley