Fifty is Nifty

On June 1st, Nedra and Dave (Daniel's parents) celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary. What a wonderful thing to be a part of!
Somewhere I read that happiness in marriage is not something that just happens. In the art of marriage the little things ARE the big things. Those who marry begin a work of building something larger than they know; marriage is a journey of  love, sacrifice and commitment and even in a world were marriage is being ridiculed and relationships don't seem to last we see that they can be successful too. Marriage is standing together facing the world.
Marriage has definitely it's ups and downs and unfortunately I've seen many people who did not have the support and commitment of their spouse and made that journey rather painful  :(
Daniel's parents have been a great example to all of us in many ways and I'm very grateful for the way they received me into their family 11 years ago. Together they raised a beautiful family: Teresa, David and Daniel (and Carlos too) are wonderful people in part because of the commitment they both have to their relationship and their family.
Since we had Nedra and Dave in town for Darren's baptism last week we took advantage of that time and had a very special dinner with them and David, Maren and the kids at Ruth's Chris Stake House.

Today as both of you look back

with happiness and pride

Upon the fifty cherished years

That you've spent side by side,

May every memory that you share

Of dreams you've seen come true,

Help make this special Golden day

A happy one for you!

I couldn't find a recent photo of Nedra and Dave together so I figured this one would work just fine. This photo was taken back in 2006 when Daniel graduated from the University of Utah with a Master's Degree in business.

Here are some pictures of Maren and the kids goofing around at the restaurant. What a fun evening!

Happy Anniversary!

If You Need a Reason To Be Thankful.

Nothing is more honorable than a grateful heart.
Seneca - Roman Philosopher
Often as we go through life we get over whelmed or run down. Sometimes our vision gets so clouded by obstacles and clouds of life that we lose sight of our ultimate destination and even the beauty of the ground we are treading on.
If that is the situation with you today and you are feeling a little down or maybe even a little sorry for your self I wanted to share a shocking story with you. Poor Haitians resort to eating dirt. If you want to read the full account you can click here but to sum up Haiti's poorest can't afford even a daily plate of rice and so some are taking desperate measures and eating mud cookies. The cookies are made of dirt, salt and vegetable shortening. Unfortunately for many they are becoming a regular meal.
My purpose in this post is not to make any of us feel guilty for the many blessings that we enjoy but only that if at some point we feel like complaining about something we are about to eat or about some circumstance in our lives that we feel are unfair. I hope that we can think about what some people in this world have to do to survive.
Maybe that thought will help us all be a little more grateful for the life and the challenges we are given to overcome.