This morning Spencer woke me up before 5 am. He said "mom, can I say something?" I said 'sure'. He said "I love you. I just want to say thank you for all you're doing for us right now." Well, hearing something like that made it worth being woke up. Now I can't go back to sleep, and I wanted to write a few of my feelings right now.
I was so blessed to have such a wonderful family. My parents have always been there for me no matter what. A friend told me the other day that with God there are no coincidences. Things happen for a reason. And I truly believe that. I was told of something that happened to my Grandma Richins years ago. It truly shaped my Grandma and Mom's behavior regarding family.
When my Grandma was just a few months pregnant with her third child, her husband died of the flu. She was living in Vernal and her parents were in Tremonton. Now this is what I remember of the story. I hope I have the facts straight. Grandma didn't know what to do, so she wrote her Mom to say she needed to come back home for some help. She was all ready to leave when she got a letter in response. Her Mom wrote to tell her not to come home. Not sure exactly why she did this. But Grandma stayed in Vernal and did the best she could with those three little kids. I think the experience taught her two things. She became one of the strongest women I've ever known. But it also taught her to always be there for her own kids no matter what the circumstances.
I have made a lot of mistakes in my life. And there were times I know my Mom wasn't happy with me and probably didn't like me very much. But I always knew she loved me. And she was always there for me. Many times when things in my life got tangled she would tell me to come home and she would help me. My parents taught me what unconditional love really means.
The biggest lesson I learned was to always try to be there for my kids. Even when they were grown up. I had a woman at the hospital tell me the other day that her mother in law was never there for her. She said it was nice of me to be there for Amy. I told her that Amy is as close to me as my own daughters. Amy has called me Mom since before she and Spencer were married. I have said I don't have a choice but to do whatever I have to for Spencer, Amy and the boys. I guess I do have a choice. But it is one I wouldn't or couldn't make. Because of my Mom's beautiful example, I do whatever I need to do to be there for them, to take care of the boys so both Amy and Spencer don't have to worry. And I don't regret my choices.
Things happen for a reason. With God there are no coincidences. It may take us days to realize that. Or it may take us years to finally find the reason behind something happening. Or we may never know in this life. But we just need to have faith and know that God is watching over us. And we need to learn the lessons from generatons past.
