A Day of Remembering

Wednesday was a beautiful day. Kris had the day off work so we were able to take Jake to school together again. When we got back into the car, Kris asked me if I wanted to go to breakfast. So we ate at this cool hole in the wall called "Lilly's". Wow, do they ever pile the food on the plate! Kris got a Belgian Waffle with eggs and bacon, and I got an omelet with pepper jack cheese and toast. We hardly ate anything the rest of the day! We had a nice time, just enjoying being together. (though it was a little strange without Jake there)

After that we "woke up at Walmart", as the commercial says, and picked up a few things before we headed back home. I had made one of those giant cupcakes the night before, so I had to finish frosting that before going back to pick up Jake. Then we headed to Party City to pick up balloons for Grant's resting place. Inside, I found the same saleswoman that had been there the day before when I had ordered the balloons. Since we were taking them to the cemetery, I had inquired as to what she could do to make the balloons last as long as possible out here in the blazing AZ sun. Before long, she was sharing with me how she had lost one of her twins in a drunk driving accident. A drunk driver had hit her car at the time of her pregnancy, causing the placenta to tear away from her uterus, and the baby that was in this sac passed away at some point. This was eight years ago and she still has a tough time talking about it. Long story short, she let me have as many balloons as I wanted for the dozen price and then on Wednesday she gave us an extra balloon for free. I had let Jake pick out a balloon for his brother and he wanted Mickey Mouse. Deb, the saleswoman, wanted us to have one in addition to that, that said "Happy 1st Birthday". That meant so much to me! I was telling my sister this morning, that in some respects, our suffering has brought about good things. I look around and I see that there is pain and suffering everywhere; and that just because something bad happens to you it doesn't mean that you are cursed, or that God doesn't care. I knew this up in my head for years, but it's a different thing when you actually experience it. We are called upon to go through trials for many reasons- so that we might help others, so that we may grow stronger in our Christian walk, and sometimes, so that we might see Jesus.

I came across another poem that I'd like to share with you all by Helen Steiner Rice. I thought it went along well with the point I'm trying to make in this post. I hope you enjoy it, along with the pictures we took at Grant's resting place.

The Way to God

If my days were untroubled
and my heart always light
Would I seek that fair land where there is no night;

If I never grew weary
with the weight of my load
Would I search for God's peace
at the end of the road;


If I never knew sickness
and never felt pain
Would I reach for a hand
to help and sustain


If I walked not with sorrow
and lived without loss
Would my soul seek sweet solace
at the foot of the cross;


If all I desired
was mine day by day
Would I kneel before God
and earnestly pray;


If God sent no winter
to freeze me with fear
Would I yearn for the warmth
of spring every year


I ask myself this and the answer is plain-
If my life were all pleasure
and I never knew pain
I'd seek God less often and need Him much less,


For God's sought more often
in times of distress,
And no one knows God
or sees him as plain
As those who have met Him on the pathway of pain.