Heartbreak

Every day new information comes in about the terrible Mudslide that happened in Oso, Washington. It breaks my heart to hear all the stories of the families that have been effected. I thought about that today when I was out doing some errands in the beautiful weather. I remember when I had cancer, it seemed like the whole world was going on while my life was falling apart.
So today when I was driving around and knowing that I am feeling better...I realized how grateful I am for the things that are good in my life. My heart goes out to all those who are not as blessed right now.
I try hard to remember that life can change in just a moment and to be thank for every day and every moment that I get to enjoy health and joy. I also pray hard for those who are suffering and I hope some how they can feel some peace, comfort and hope. I am grateful for all those volunteers. We need to keep them in the prayers.
Good night dear friends!

 

Washington Mudslide

Heavy equipment moves debris on the western edge of the mudslide where it covers Highway 530 Wednesday morning, March 26, 2014, east of Oso, Wash. Washington authorities on Wednesday reduced to 90 the number of people missing from the community wiped out by the mudslide. (AP Photo/The Herald, Mark Mulligan)

 

 Found the articles Here:

Time Machine

Last week at church in Primary ( our children's group ) I taught a lesson about the Savior, and His Resurrection. Jeff and I came up with a Time Machine, so that I could help the kids understand a little bit better by bringing people back from past, through the Time Machine. I started with a piece of Foam Core Board and then just started gluing anything loose that I could find in the garage. Old fuses, broken smoke detector, knobs...lots of knobs and a plastic lid. Then I bought some silver spray paint and sprayed the whole thing. Next I started added colors with arrows and paint. Then came the information part of the machine. Last but not Least...Jeff found these amazing lights that we glued on. Yes, it even made me think that maybe, just maybe...we could make this machine work! :) I figured if I believed it, then they would too!

 So I hung it on the back door of the room when they weren't looking, then I went up front and talked a little bit about the Resurrected Savior. I then said to the children..."Wouldn't it be neat if we could have someone from the past, someone from when Christ lived upon the earth, to come and share with us what it must have been like to see Him and know Him?" They all nodded their heads. So I asked them to turn around, but stay in their seats and let's see if we could get my Time Machine to work. I then went to the Machine, pushed some buttons on the calculator that I had glued on, and turned my dial to the word Bible and then I turned on the lights, about that same time our pianist started playing the theme song to  Mr Magorium's Wonder Emporium. It is beautiful and and has such a magical sound to it.( It's a cute movie ...if you haven't seen it.)

As soon as the music started... then there was a knock from the other side of the door and I said "Oh my goodness boys and girls, I think our Time Machine really worked, let's see who is here." I had already had our 3 volunteers out in the hallway and dressed up in costumes that I had brought. How fun it was to see their little faces when the volunteers came in one at a time and shared their message. But more important was the testimony of Christ that they shared with the kids. One of our volunteers portrayed Mary Magdalene, the first to see the Resurrected Savior. It was amazing, as she shared with the children how she knew the Savior, how He touched her life and how it broke her heart to have Him Crucified. Then she spoke of the amazing joy, when He appeared unto her. Most of the adults in the room had tears in their eyes,it was touching...all of the volunteers had prepared well and were amazing at portraying their character. Real people who saw the Resurrected Savior.

I am so glad that the kids liked it, I am glad that Jeff and sweet dear little boy (who is our friend) and I all designed and worked on it. It was the first thing that they asked me about today when they came into Primary..."are we going to do the Time Machine again?" 
Sometimes, I wish that I could go back in time and have witnessed things that others did, at the time that Jesus Christ was on the earth. I know that is exactly what the scriptures are for, but I still think that would have been an amazing experience. I guess that is what made me create our Time Machine!
Each Sunday I am realizing that these sweet little children are teaching me ...way more than I am teaching them!
Good night dear friends!

We have a work to do!

It is interesting to see how fast the world pulls together when we are in crisis. I loved this article by Jason Wright, it shares some insight into the work we have to do. It really made me stop and think about what I can do right now for those in need. Good night dear friends!

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May 21, 2013

By now the world knows that on Monday, just before 3 p.m. local time, a massive tornado touched down near Oklahoma City. We've witnessed how it shredded the nearby suburb of Moore like a city made of wooden Tinker Toys. But with rescue workers still sifting through twisted steel and bare trees stripped of leaves and bark, there is so much more we do not know.
We know the tornado brought winds up to 200 mph and a funnel cloud and debris field two miles wide. But we do not know the total devastation to homes, businesses and schools.
We know that many people have died, but we do not know how high the death toll will rise.
We know that many of the victims were children, but we do not know their names, ages or whether they liked toy cars or action heroes, soccer or ballet, dolls or stuffed animals. Those tender details will come.
Like many of you, I've watched hours of the live coverage broadcast from mountains of rubble and rippled asphalt parking lots. Stories are emerging of friends, neighbors and strangers saving lives. A witness spoke of one good Samaritan pulling a dead woman and her infant child from a collapsed convenience store.
Good Samaritan, indeed.
As the anecdotes roll in, I wonder why it sometimes takes such tragedy for our hearts to fully engage with one another. Does it seem we're all a little kinder after school shootings, marathon bombings and natural disasters? Don't we love our fellowmen on the good days, too?
What else do we know?
We've seen recovery footage featuring volunteers climbing up and around dangerous piles of rubble that appear as if they might collapse like a Jenga tower. Their bravery reminds us that God could do this work if he wanted to, but he expects us to be his hands.
We know he could pull people from trapped cars, put out fires or carry a stranger's body from ruins to a resting place. No, he doesn't need our help - he wants it.
Heartbreak of this EF-4 magnitude tornado teaches us that our Father in heaven is a God of perfect miracles, but often the day-to-day heavenly miracles come through imperfect, earthly hands.
We know that tragedies only teach us if we allow ourselves to learn from them. Perhaps the tragedies of the past few months have reminded us that the best way to honor those who've lost their lives is to be more kind, more patient and more loving.
The new angels with Oklahoma accents would want you to hold your wife a bit longer, to kiss your husband goodbye, to hug your kids until they squirm away and to call your mother just a little more often.
In coming days we will ask the wind in quiet whispers just how we can join the work. Specific opportunities will certainly arise to donate time, money and, for some, expertise. But there's no need to wait for an invitation.
Because when you spend time on your knees on behalf of Oklahoma, you're doing God's work.
Because when you shed a tear for victims you've never met or weep openly for a mother who will never again tuck in her little one, you're doing God's work.
Perhaps we already know more than we realize about this devastating tornado. Recovery in all its forms is truly God's work, and there's plenty of it to do.
Let's get started.
Read more of Jason's articles here:

"No one is useless in this world who lightens the burdens of another." ~ Charles Dickens

Real Hero

I loved this story in our local newspaper the other day about a local boy with cancer gets to be a superhero for a day. It was also on the TV today, introducing him and his parents. It touched my heart. I will only include a brief part of it, but if you have the time...you really should read it. The reporter's name and email are just below. I am sure that I am partial to it because one... I love children, two...I am a cancer survivor myself, so I truly understand what a toll it takes on the whole family. How grateful I am that there are so many good people in the world, who were willing to make this young boy's dream come true.

Erik Martin, who is living with liver cancer, has always wanted to be a superhero. On Thursday, the regional chapter of the Make-A-Wish Foundation granted him that wish with an elaborate event that involved hundreds of volunteers in Bellevue and Seattle.

By Katherine Long  klong@seattletimes.com

Seattle Times Eastside reporter

Dean Rutz  Seattle Times

The Make-A-Wish Foundation made 13-year-old Erik Martin's dream of becoming a superhero come true.

Electron Boy lances Blackout Boy (Jake Anderson) before turning on Dr. Dark (Edgar Hansen) in the battle between good and evil at the Space Needle. Erik Martin's dream of becoming a superhero came true Thursday. At left is Lightning Lad, played by actor Rob Burgess.

DEAN RUTZ / THE SEATTLE TIMES

A crowd of better than 200 gather outside Puget Sound Energy in Bellevue to cheer on Electron Boy as he saves a stranded worker in a bucket truck on Thursday.

School day for 13-year-old Erik Martin, but then something extraordinary happened: Spider-Man called.

Spider-Man happens to be one of the few people who knows that Erik, too, has a secret identity — he's Electron Boy, a superhero who fights the powers of evil with light.

And Spider-Man needed Erik's help.

Erik, who is living with liver cancer, has always wanted to be a superhero. On Thursday, the regional chapter of the Make-A-Wish Foundation granted him that wish with an elaborate event that involved hundreds of volunteers in Bellevue and Seattle.

The local chapter, which serves four states, grants more than 300 wishes every year to children with life-threatening medical conditions, but only a few of them involve so many participants.

Seattle City Councilwoman Sally Bagshaw stepped forward with a key to the city and a proclamation that Thursday was Electron Boy Day. Afterward, Erik posed for the TV cameras, flexed his muscles and spent some time astride a Bellevue police motorcycle.

"He's over the moon," said Foote. "This is definitely beyond anything we thought it would be."

Watching her son run across the plaza in front of the Space Needle, mom Judy Martin said Erik goes to school when he's able, but is often too tired. "He hasn't had this much energy in a long time," she said. "They called it the power of the wish, and they're right."

Like any good superhero, Electron Boy kept his innermost thoughts to himself. But he did have one important thing to say:

"This is the best day of my life."

May we all really stop and count our blessings each day!

"WE HAVE EVERY RIGHT TO DREAM HEROIC DREAMS. THOSE WHO SAY THAT WE'RE IN A TIME WHEN THERE ARE NO HEROES, THEY JUST DON'T KNOW WHERE TO LOOK." ~Ronald Reagan

" NURTURE YOUR MIND WITH GREAT THOUGHTS; TO BELIEVE IN THE HEROIC MAKES HEROES" ~ Benjamin Disraeli