On the 9th Day of Service...

 

We took dinner into our neighbor who fell and broke one leg and sprained the other :( we also took care of our 8th day of service today and helped at the Bishop's Storehouse.

 

The last time I was here was under very different circumstances.

Years ago when I was pregnant with Gracie our business was struggling, so much so that we almost lost everything, including our business and our home.  Having to ask for help was the hardest thing we've ever done.  I assumed that because we worked hard, lived a good life, and paid an honest tithing that we'd never find ourselves in that bad of a financial situation.  My first visit to the storehouse I spent the entire time trying not to cry.  I was embarrassed and could not believe things had gotten so bad.  This trial, as most trials do, taught me a lot of lessons I couldn't have learned any other way.  I learned to really be humble.  I learned that the most important things in life are the relationships we have with our families and the time we get to spend with them.  I learned that sometimes we can do everything right and things still go wrong.  I learned that hard things happen to good people.  My embarrassment at having to get our groceries from the Bishop's Storehouse in time turned to gratitude.  I came to appreciate the welfare program in a way that was only possible through experiencing it first hand and I have a great deal of empathy and understanding for others who struggle financially.

 



We helped bag oranges, apples and potatoes.  The kids fun doing it and we'll definitely go back.

 



 

I remember a conversation I had with Kevin a few years ago.  We were talking about "the year the bottom fell out" and I was telling him I went through a period of being really angry because I didn't understand how things could have gotten so bad when we had always paid a full tithe and a generous fast offering.  He had a much different perspective as he told me he was never angry but felt like because we'd paid our tithing we didn't end up losing the house or the business.  It took a few years but we were able to recover and our business has been incredibly blessed.





We had a fun night!

We rode Trax downtown to see the lights at Temple Square.

 



 

 

It was very beautiful and very crowded!

 



Emmer's friend Haley came too.

 



 

Enjoying every minute of having my big boy home .  He'll be with us a few more weeks and then he's off to Arizona for an internship with my Brother's company.  And then he'll be leaving for Brazil before we know it!