Texas, Tornadoes, and Teaching the Gospel

Today on the way to school, Lincoln and I had a very interesting conversation.  It went something like this...
Lincoln:  When I go on a mission I want to go to Texas.
Me:  Really?  Uncle Daniel went there.  That would be cool if you went there too!
Lincoln:  Yeah.  When I go I am going to be a tornado watcher guy.
Me:  That would be awesome!  I actually think that missionaries spend their time teaching the gospel to people.
Lincoln:  I would do both.  When a tornado comes I would say, "Quick!  Quick!  Get in the basement!  And remember, God loves you very much!"
I love the things he comes up with. 

My Dad is Courageous

A couple of years ago I watched a movie called Courageous.  Its was such a great movie that I recommended it to my family to watch.  My Dad watched the movie and it had a pretty big impact on him.  Following the movie he sent this email to all of us.  I love the words in the email.  I want to keep it forever. 

Dear Michael, Shannon, Tori, and Daniel,

 

I just watched a movie recommended by Shannon called Courageous. If you haven't seen it, I encourage you to watch it.

 

Needless to say, since I am writing to you, the movie had an impact on me; and as a result I need to make sure you know where I stand.

 

If you have ever wondered if I love you, love your mom, love Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ, I apologize for leaving you wondering. I should say it more; probably hoped my actions would speak louder than words. I love each of you, I love your mom more than you can imagine. I love my Heavenly Father and Savior.

 

If you have ever wondered if I would be there for you at any time and any place, I apologize for leaving you wondering. I always will be. My family is my life. Without you and your mom, I would be nothing.

 

I'm so proud of you and proud to say I am your father. Being your father has been easy; not because I'm good at it, rather because you are all so good. I know I have made mistakes and ask your forgiveness for those.

 

If I have been successful as a father, it is because of your mother. She has taught me so much and made me the person I am. I wish I was half the parent she is.

 

My desire is to be better. My desire is to continue to be a better father than I have been, and a good grandfather to your children.

 

I plan to continue to learn and apply what I learn. And I hope you will help me by letting me know what I need to do to be better.

 

Thank you for your patience and understanding.

 

Love,

 

Dad

 

His words were so beautiful and impacted me so much I felt compelled to respond to my sweet daddy.

Dad,

Rest assured, I have never wondered whether you love me, mom or Heavenly Father and Jesus.  You are the best daddy I could ever imagine.  I love you so much.  I've heard a saying that goes, "a daddy is a girl's first love."  I think of you when I hear that and I absolutely think it's true.  You taught me at a young age what I wanted in a man.  You are wonderful and I love you so much, Daddy.

Love, Shannon

 

Back to It

My mom and dad were here over the last couple of days. Gosh, I love them so much. They are so loving and kind. My mom shows her love in the obvious ways; Hugs, loving words, gifts, service etc. Although dad gives hugs and loving words as well, as I have grown older I have noticed his way of showing love to his children is a bit different. At times Dad shows his love by issuing challenges to us that will help us become better people. Dad and I spoke in an impromptu conversation in the hallway about the need to keep a journal. He admitted that his journal keeping habits have not been very good and that he will be starting again. I admitted the same. He challenged me to do better job at keeping a journal. I accepted the challenge and since my blog is my journal, I'm back at it!

So much has happened I the last 6 months. Lincoln graduated from Kindergarten and we sold our home in La Verkin. We are currently living in St. George in a rental home while our new home in Hurricane is being built. We can't wait!  

Lincoln is now in first grade at Heritage Elementary. He is doing great! I am also back in the classroom teaching 4th grade at Heritage. We are having a great year. David is still at Southwest Behavioral Health doing the data managing. We are happy, healthy, and doing awesome!

I am so thankful for my family both immediate and extended. David and Lincoln are two of the greatest blessings in my life. I am so blessed and because of that I know my Heavenly Father loves me. 

So I will be back to the blog again. Enjoy!

Faith

Tonight lincoln asked "mom, is the Book of Mormon real?"

I said, "yes. All the stories are true. They happened a long long time ago."

Lincoln asked, "in 1966?"

After a small giggle in my head we proceeded to have a really good conversation about Heavenly Father, Jesus, Heaven, angels, and what happens when we die. He asked why we close our eyes in Heaven. I realized that he thinks we close our eyes in Heaven because he cant remember it. I told him that when we are born, we forget Heaven because Heavenly Father wants us to have faith without being able to see the things that we should believe in.  I told  him about when he was a baby.  I was changing his diaper. He kept looking at the ceiling and smiling. I asked him what he was smiling at and he said, "the smiley faces!"  I truly believe that at that moment he could see people on the other side of the veil. Lincoln was very receptive to the story and I could tell that he could feel the spirit as we talked. What an awesome moment we had, just him and me talking about the gospel. He is such a great kid with an amazing spirit about him. His faith is an example to me. He prays for everything from help finding the stapler, to helping my sunburn get better, to helping the day tomorrow go by fast so that he can participate in something he is excited about tomorrow evening. He is amazing! I should learn from his example. As I turned off the light in his room tonight and turned to leave his room I heard him say with all the love in his heart, "Good night Heavenly Father."

Sweet kid.