Life Sucks, Kinda

For several days I've thought about giving a summary of 2008, but didn't do it. Why not? because it sucked, and I'm glad it's over . . . and not particularly enthused about recounting it. However, I have come to the conclusion that I should bottle it up, put it here on the shelf, and stop thinking about it. So here goes.

So much has happened, it will be difficult to summarize in this short space. It would be nice if we could have you over to enjoy a meal with us and catch up with each other. Then we could tell jokes every now and then and have comic interruptions from the kids.

Most of this year has been spent worrying about one thing or another. We all have difficult years, and this year it was our turn. Our main difficulties came via two drawn-out events. First of all, my brother, Dana, passed away after suffering with a brain tumor for over a year. It was a long and difficult journey as we did what we could to express our love and connect with him as much as possible before he was gone. I must pause here to testify that I know that life goes on beyond this existence. David and I have had some choice experiences since Dana’s passing, and know that his spirit is still alive and well, and that his family connection with us is just as real now as before. There is a plan and purpose to our life, and one day we will understand all the details. For now, it is enough to know that God is real and our Spirit continues on to Him after death.

Our second difficulty was more temporal, and seems trivial in comparison. David’s office is moving about 40 minutes south soon, turning his bearable commute into something he doesn’t want to put up with. When we got the news in June, we decided to try to sell our home and get settled in the south end of the Salt Lake valley as soon as possible. In two weeks, our home was sold for full price . . . or so we thought. Through a convoluted series of events, we had the house and garage completely packed before the buyer postponed a couple of days before closing. Twice. We waited for him to get things in order--just a couple of weeks, he said, then he announced that he couldn’t make the purchase at this time. After the pre-made casseroles were gone, I unpacked the pots and spices. Later, I unpacked the school things for the kids. Finally, I unpacked it all and decided we should make ourselves comfortable until the spring. We will list our home again in a couple of months, but for now . . . we are happy to stay for a while longer. It has been a distinct blessing to stay here with our network of friends and family close-by to help us through this year.

Even though I feel like these two events took up the entire year, it is not true. I think it's just because they caused so much commotion and stress that it's like I continue to look at them as if I'm using a magnifying glass . . . and that's my entire year. I gained at least 30 pounds while looking through that stupid magnifying glass. I'm starting to growl, just thinking about it!

Thankfully there are a few good things going on, too. I cleared out a bedroom and made space for long term visits from my parents--one more step in the long process of inviting them to spend more time with us. David continues to enjoy his work, and is grateful for the great environment he works in. I am busy at home, and am SSSSOOO grateful that David agrees I should be here. (Things just run so much smoother this way!)

Also, our kids are doing great things at school and in life. Unfortunately, I'm not comfortable posting all the particulars about them, since this is a public site--even though no one reads it, but still, ya never know. In general terms, they continue to amaze and impress us with their desires and talents. It looks like we will soon have one learning to play the organ (yes, organ). We got another a dog, and it has proven to be one of the best therapies we could have ever chosen. Another has seen prayers answered in meaningful ways. A fourth is lined up to skip a grade in school at the end of the year, and the young ones keep us all entertained.

So, I feel dopey by telling how bad this year was for us, especially when I don't have to look too far to find other people struggling in varied and equally difficult ways. To sum it up, I guess I need to put in the clause "kinda". Good riddance to 2008. Life there sucked, kinda. I'm looking forward to a clean slate and a year that ends with 9, totally.