Love and courage in the West.

Before we talk about the west, though, let's talk about the south. There's this family, a mom and a dad and a baby, who loaded everything they owned into a truck. The Dad hooked a trailer carrying their car onto the back of the truck and got behind the wheel. The mom strapped the sweet baby into his car seat in their other car, and they drove through the TX heat into the night. The baby wasn't too happy to be in the car all day and shared his opinions freely, but the mom forged ahead. The dad wasn't a truck driver by trade, and towing a car was new but he persevered. They stopped for the night somewhere on the road from Houston to Augusta and then headed out early to make their 2:00 appointment at their new home town. They arrived tired and hot, but full of hope for the future and love for each other. That's when Gabe and I arrived, because moms like to see where their kids live and make sure they're alive  and hug them and tell them thanks for moving to a new place that's a lot closer. Feeling satisfied that their courage and love and capabilities would continue to see them through I returned to my home to start my Fruit Punch Day weekend adventure.

There was courage at the airport when I overheard a conversation between a hurried traveler and the airport employee who had brought a golf cart to assist him. The traveler was trying to make a flight, (weren't we all) and started to run to his gate. The unique element of this situation was that he was carrying a white cane. The assistant was encouraging him to get into the cart so she could drive him where he needed to be. He responded that he could get there faster if he ran. Since the assistant had a job to do she explained that she would help him. He said, "Then run with me. I run all the time. I've run marathons." So he allowed her to guide him through the crowd as they both ran to get him to his gate on time. That's the kind of human spirit that makes me smile and want to be a braver person.

Fruit Punch Day found me in Salt Lake City/Provo, UT. One of the rules of Fruit Punch Day is that you need to spend it with loved ones and that's what I did. I was with this courageous mom who continues to be cheerful and loving even though she fights a bit of nausea now and then because, well you know, her life is about to get twice as great sometime next year.

And for fruit punch we drank pineapple and tangerine soda. Woo hoo! We ate Tillamook hucklebarry ice cream for good measure because that and In 'n Out are my some of  favorite treats in the west. We were then joined by the guy who loves these beauties the most and our party was complete.

Saturday I drove to a special place in Manti. This is the house I visited as a little girl when I stayed with my grandparents. I watched my Grandpa milk the cows and he always gave me fresh milk in a little metal cup. Grandma sat on the back porch shelling peas from her garden. In this house I learned to crochet and make lettuce milkshakes. Kale smoothies aren't so new after all. Now my parents have retired here. My Dad just spent a week in the hospital where it was discovered that he was having some strokes. He's also on dialysis 3 times a week so time spent at this house with my parents is very precious.

Dad likes to explain that he is fine with moving on to the next life, but he's staying to be mom's friend. And mom doesn't apologize. "I can't let him go." They have a wonderful partnership that they have been executing over the years. They serve each other in special ways. Dad cooks breakfast and brings mom food. She loves him and takes care of his needs. Dad works in the garden and grows things: chickens, ducks, fruit trees, melons. Mom works inside and out and makes things beautiful. Unfortunately their health is interrupting this perfect choreography a bit.

I thought I was going to Manti to help, but apparently I was going to learn. Time after time, courage and love were modeled for me by my parents and their friends and family. A man drove up in his truck and cowboy hat. Come to find out, this was a man who had joined the Mormon church in California where we lived when I was growing up. I remembered him and his sweet family and was pleasantly surprised to see him again. He walked around the farm with my Dad whose balance and strength have been compromised. When I looked out the window he was mowing the back acre. Later I heard my Dad ask what he owed him. He smiled and replied, "A lifetime of service."

 Another gentleman came by who was my parent's plumber and also their friend. He has driven the 45 minutes with my Dad to dialysis many times. On that day he sat in a chair in the living room while Dad told stories. He looked as if he had all the time in the world. It reminded me of the quote, "Love is spelled  T I M E."

Later in the afternoon, the doorbell rang and in walked my cute cousin who I've only seen on face book since we were little. She brought dinner which she had carefully prepared with cheese on this side of the casserole for Dad and no cheese on that side of the casserole for mom. She also brought warm hugs and loving words that left all of us feeling very well cared for. I returned to Provo that day filled with gratitude for good people.

The next destination was Chile's in Orem. I wanted to see how #7 was faring and give him some love, but he is working a lot of hours. We solved that. We went to his work. I was proud of his courage and great attitude. New jobs are challenging and being observed by your family when just starting shows how brave he is. The food was delicious and the service excellent. oxox

Sunday was Father's Day and a special day for the John (my brother-in-law) Stoker family. Their son returned from his mission to Korea and was speaking in church. This missionary had overcome some challenges. After he had been in Korea a few months, he broke his foot and had to come home. Instead of calling it good, he worked hard after surgery and returned to Korea to complete his time. It was uplifting to hear him speaking Korean and testifying of Christ. And to add to the occasion, all of Paul's siblings were there with many of the children. Such a great reunion.

Since I don't like the fun to ever end, and what's more fun than family, my daughter-in-law drove me to my brother's,

Charlie flew to Atlanta for work.
 He took my son to round 2 of 6 flags
while I was in UT/OR.
Thanks for being great, brother.

whose sweet wife drove us both to the airport, so I could fly to Portland, and get picked up by my # 2 son and #2 daughter who was visiting OR for the weekend. My husband and I were concerned about her driving from Portland to Provo alone so....Road trip! I didn't get to spend enough time with my son and his family in Portland, but it wasn't sad because they'll be in GA soon :) Good thing, because when I suggested we wake up the kids so I could see them, my son and his wife gave me the most horrified looks and flat-out refused my request. Weird.

You know when you say you're going to leave at 6:00 am, but that doesn't actually mean 6:00 am? Well this time it did. Okay, so we did skip our showers, but Portland traffic is legend. My daughter and I were elated over our victory as we sailed through downtown Portland and across the bridge, just ahead of the morning commuters. We rewarded ourselves by stopping by Multnomah Falls which takes my breath away every time.

It was fun to spend time with this beautiful soul
who has always excelled in courage and love.

As beautiful as Oregon is near the Cascades, it quickly turns to sage brush and brown rolling hills, which still has merit, just a little less wow. My original plan was for my daughter to drop me off at the airport in SLC, but because of a kind friend at home, Gabe was being taken care of. I decided to spend one more day with my parents which also allowed me to see my daughter's new apartment and roommates which are the bomb dot com.

Once again I drove to Manti. Once again I learned about love and courage. It was garbage day which was exciting to me. Who can resist the chance to get rid of things that are not making your life better? I had reached the vertical limit of the trash can balance when a sweet friend of Mom's across the street offered to put our stuff in her trash can. Music to my ears. A little later some special visitors came to join the fun. Dad's oldest sister (he's the youngest) and her son (my cousin.) I was filled to the brim with love from all this family time.

That morning my dad had cataract surgery.. I was a little surprised by this considering his recent health history, but then I learned that having hope is what gives us courage. At the follow up appointment the Dr. told Dad that he was seeing much better than he should be this soon. Dad's vision was now 20/30. Dad became giddy at this good news. (Well, giddy for him.) As we got in the car he asked with a smile, "Do you want to stop by the nursery on our way home and see if they have any Athena cantaloupe starts? I was happy to. As he held that box of garden dreams, I laughed a little until I realized that those little plants contained hope. He would plant them and they would join the rest of the garden residents and Dad would have something to look forward to. Actually, I would plant them, but he would still look forward to their progress.

 If I wondered how he would take care of his new Athenas, I was about to find out. He took his shovel and his cane for balance and slowly but surely went to places that I was positive he could not. Our first stop was his pride and joy, the walipini underground garden. I was not sure I would make it there, but I was sure he would not. Well, I underestimated the courage and determination to not spend even the winding down season of his life doing nothing. I cautiously worked my way past the stones and down into the DIY greenhouse. I turned around and there he came. He directed me in planting and watering and gave me a little lesson in how to live life and never quit. It's funny how I had always been afraid of rattlesnakes walking around that property, but my little fears seemed silly when walking side by side with this level of courage.

We moved up to the back garden. After I finished planting and Dad was watering, I picked peas.  This is not the first time I had a significant experience with the pea patch. As I harvested from the seeds my father had planted I thought of all the other blessings I was reaping from seeds my parents had sowed...family, faith, tradition, education. These people have done a good work on the earth.

I was having a conversation with mom about the future and what she would do if she was alone. She said, "You can't have a mad love affair all your married life and not expect to be devastated when they're gone." And then they hugged and kissed and served and fought a little and made up and flirted and I learned more about love.

And then it was time for me to go home, but not before a fun outing with my cute daughter and niece on our way to the airport where I caught the red-eye and arrived home bright and early.