A Piece of Heaven

For the first time in 34 years my husband and I are both empty nesters! We are getting used to this new stage of life and have been on quite a few little trips this summer. Our favorite is the weekends we spend in Star Valley, Wyoming. In fact thats where I am now sitting in a camp chair listening to the birds chirp and the breeze blow through the pine and aspen trees. I wish I could bottle up the mountain air and take it home with me! Our kids and their familes come up often and we love watching the grandkids play with their cousins in the woods-just like I did as a child. I feel so blessed to be able to enjoy this little piece of heaven. My great grandparents helped settle this area. My grandfather was a sheep rancher with hundreds of acres of property, and my grandmother taught school. They left an amazing legacy to their 3 daughters one of whom is my mother. Their hard work, love of family, this land, and faith in God has strengthened me many times throughout my life. 

 We brought my 85 yr old mother up with us last week. She was raised here but married my father and They raised us in Utah They were both school teachers. My parents built a cabin here 40 years ago. It seemed so big then but the family has greatly outgrown it. Now the area around the cabin is filled with several trailers and tents during the summer. 

 As I was walking up the trail at the cabin last week with my mother, she mentioned how happy my grandfather would be to see his descendants using the land to spend time together as a family. His legacy continues. 

 I will continue to enjoy my time in this little piece of heaven for a few more weekends, but thoughts and plans for school are already creeping into my summer vacation. When I feel myself starting to stress about school preparations, I stop and remember a time a few years ago when this would not have been possible.

 My health and cancer diagnosis had left me with a bleak future. The treatments were tough and it took literally years to recover. But I recovered!! and am still doing well. Well enough to travel with my husband, enjoy this beautiful land, and pursue a career in education which I thought had passed me by. 

 I know this is not usually the case and my heart goes out to those who are struggling and those who never had the chance to recover. I do not take my good health lightly and thank God every day for this gift I have been given. I offer encouragement to those who are dealing with Multiple Myeloma and the treatments, side effects, and vast implications in every area of your life. There are possibilities of hope and healing, and new dreams for the future and my wish is that they will come to you,