...And She Lived Happily Ever After Until The End Of Her Days

Each December my family watches the Lord of the Rings movies. Extended edition. When the movies were first released to the theater, we went three years consecutively for our Christmas movie and the tradition has continued onward with the release of the DVD's.

We don't always get to watch them together. Currently, Shelby is watching them with friends, Tyson and Diana are watching at their house, Goose is catching them at his place and Jaden and I are here. It's one of those things we share even if we're apart.

Jaden and I will watch the third and final on Wednesday night and then the movies will gather dust for a year until we wipe them off, pop the popcorn and see the world saved again next year.

I don't tire of these movies. Each year I say "I forget how great that movie is." Time passes, and I do forget.

There is a bit in the second movie, The Two Towers, that brings me to tears every single time. There are times I feel like boo-hooing when I see it, but most times I allow a quiet tear to slip down my cheek.

If you're familiar with the story, you know that there is a ring that allows evil to walk on this planet. The ring must be destroyed. The task of this destruction befalls an unlikely hero by the name of Frodo Baggins. The ring has the capability of ruling the ring bearer and Frodo is constantly in a mental battle to ensure success. He and his friend, Sam, are off to Mordor to throw the ring into the very fires that were responsible for the creation of this ring. There is a fellowship that is sworn to aid in the destruction of the ring. Long story short, the fellowship is separated from Frodo and Sam and the two small hobbits steadfastly continue. The journey is arduous.  All around them is war, death, fear and discontent. They grow weary of the constant anguish surrounding them.

Frodo: I can’t do this, Sam.
Sam: I know. It’s all wrong. By rights we shouldn’t even be here. But we are. It’s like in the great stories, Mr. Frodo. The ones that really mattered. Full of darkness and danger, they were. And sometimes you didn’t want to know the end. Because how could the end be happy? How could the world go back to the way it was when so much bad had happened? But in the end, it’s only a passing thing, this shadow. Even darkness must pass. A new day will come. And when the sun shines it will shine out the clearer. Those were the stories that stayed with you. That meant something, even if you were too small to understand why. But I think, Mr. Frodo, I do understand. I know now. Folk in those stories had lots of chances of turning back, only they didn’t. They kept going. Because they were holding on to something.
Frodo: What are we holding onto, Sam?
Sam: That there’s some good in this world, Mr. Frodo… and it’s worth fighting for.

I like this statement. I know that it's from a book. Yes, yes, I'm aware there really isn't a struggle. There aren't elves, hobbits, wizards, dwarfs, dragons or other mystical characters. We don't bear swords and wander around dressed in armor calling each other "My Lord" or "My Lady".  Yet, I find we live in a parallel universe.

I find that I have fought my own dragons. Most of them I slew. Some of them kicked my trash, but I promise you, they knew I was there.

Be willing to slay your dragons. Stand and join the fellowship when your friends and family need a hand to cast their burdens into the fire. I think we're in charge of our own story. I choose a happy ending. . .

It's The Most Wonderful Time Of The Year

Bah Humbug...

I'm not a big fan of Christmas any longer. It's over commercialized, over priced, and quite frankly over rated. There is no "real meaning of Christmas". Those people that say those words are blowing smoke out of their nether-regions.  They're just like everyone else, trying to figure out who to buy for, who they don't dare leave out, gifts for the family, friends, co-workers, church people, even random office parties that require a gift exchange. There are treats to be made for neighbors.  Let's be honest ... Some of those neighbors don't even like us. How about the expense of stockings and all the crap that goes into them?  Stamps for the Christmas cards?  I said it once, I'll say it again...BAH HUMBUG.

Except...
I DO like candy canes, hot chocolate and new jammies.  I thoroughly enjoy seeing the little ones lined up to see Santa and to see their little faces filled with excitement over seeing THE MAN.  I love the anticipation that is in the air. I like that people (in general) attempt to put on a better version of themselves for a month out of the year.  I am giddy when I finish creating my Christmas cards and my new addition of a DVD of pictures set to music so everyone can see updated pics of the kids.  (My form of the brag letter.)  I watch with pure pleasure as my kids draw names for their sibling gift exchange.   I share their excitement when they pull me aside to tell me of the really-cool-can't-live-without-gift that they bought. I like the quiet of LATE Christmas eve when I sit with all the lights out and watch the lights twinkling on the tree.  I watch It's A Wonderful Life every year as I wrap presents and we read The Polar Express each Christmas Eve before bed.  (And, yes, I cry EVERY time.) Oh yeah, and I LOVE that minute of anticipation when my family is gathered around the tree for a family picture right before we open presents.  I watch as Mark dons the Santa hat and hands the kids their gifts one at a time so that we can all be excited and amazed at the presents. I think it's HILARIOUS that he'll grab a present, walk up to hand it to Tanna and then while she has her hands outstretched to grab it, he'll blow by her and give it to Jaden...because it really was Jaden's to begin with.  I think that Christmas dinner is the best dinner of the year.  I love that my house is chaos...filled with laughter, teasing, yelling and joy.

This year we aren't going to be able to provide an expensive gift-laden Christmas.  Okay, let's be honest, we probably never have and probably never will.  I guess it really isn't the gifts that make Christmas so magical.  I think it's ALL the other stuff. It's the most wonderful time of the year to reflect on the people that bring joy and love into our lives. It doesn't cost a dime to wear a smile, so wear it with pride. Be the better version of yourself and wouldn't it be great if the gift you received in return was a bit of kindness?

So, my family will get all the love I can give.  We'll have a really FANTASTIC dinner on Christmas day.  We'll laugh and fight and joke and yell and sleep and eat and game and watch movies.  We'll do it all with love in our hearts.  Deason-style. You can't buy that off a shelf, now can you?

Unsung Heroes

I've had this blog on my mind for a little more than a week.  I have been so focused on getting Thanksgiving taken care of (and for your information, I did that in STYLE!) But now with Christmas looming, I find my time more and more limited. So, I'm writing in my pajamas...minus contacts, add slippers, hair uncombed ... don't worry too much,  I did brush my teeth!

The Wednesday night before Thanksgiving, we gave Goose a gift. I created concert-style t-shirts of his 2011 tour for firefighting.  Yeah, they rock!  I'm proud of them.  Good job, Mom!

I handed the shirts to our family members and when I went to hand one to my eldest son, Tyson, I was overwhelmed with emotion. It wasn't the warm, fuzzy emotion, either.  It was GUILT.  I think that I'm guilty of giving Goose so much attention for the work he does and that I don't always recognize what the rest of my family is doing that benefits their lives and the lives of the people that surround them.

I think we all have heros within our grasp. I'm not the talking about the "swoop-in-and-save-the-day" kind of heros. More like the people that are filled with such incredible strength, kindness, hope, love and unselfish generosity with NEVER a thought for their own needs or discomforts.  BAM!  You're thinking of someone right now, aren't you?

My unsung hero is Tyson. Those who know Tyson, aren't shocked by this statement. In fact, they might be thinking of him right now, too.  Those who don't know Tyson, well, let me be the one to tell you, this world is a better place with him in it.

Tyson has all the characteristics that you expect in your average-every-day-kind-of-hero. He's strong, handsome, kind, generous, unselfish, giving, etc.  Although these things put him on hero status in my eyes, it could be argued that many people possess these characteristics and they don't necessarily make him SO special.

Maybe so ... maybe not.  Years ago I was doing a family "brag" letter at Christmas, and Mark and I were talking about what we wanted to put in that letter to describe the kids and what was going on in their lives.  When Tyson's name was brought up, Mark said it best.  He said, "When I grow up, I want to be like Tyson."  Tyson was 15.

I'm sitting here thinking of stories to tell that would back up my statement and make you understand why I would say something so bold. The list is so long and the stories are SO complicated that it would take a novel to complete them.  So I'm going to keep it simple.  Stephen King is quoted as saying "The most important things are the hardest to say because words diminish them."  I find that to be the case here.

I love my son.  MANY people love my son. They have relied on him through the hard times and took pleasure in the good times. There isn't a person in his life that he hasn't shared with unselfishly. He gives the best gifts to our family and has never asked for anything in return.  In fact, I can't name a time that he has ever asked me for anything.  Most kids ask for new clothes, shoes, money, cars or whatever they want or need.  Not Tyson.

Rudyard Kipling wrote a very famous poem.  I swear he took the words from my heart.

If you can keep your head when all about you Are losing theirs and blaming it on you; If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you, But make allowance for their doubting too; If you can wait and not be tired by waiting, Or, being lied about, don't deal in lies, Or, being hated, don't give way to hating, And yet don't look too good, nor talk too wise; If you can dream - and not make dreams your master;  If you can think - and not make thoughts your aim;  If you can meet with triumph and disaster  And treat those two imposters just the same;  If you can bear to hear the truth you've spoken  Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools,  Or watch the things you gave your life to broken,  And stoop and build 'em up with wornout tools; If you can make one heap of all your winnings  And risk it on one turn of pitch-and-toss,  And lose, and start again at your beginnings  And never breath a word about your loss;  If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew  To serve your turn long after they are gone,  And so hold on when there is nothing in you  Except the Will which says to them: "Hold on"; If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,  Or walk with kings - nor lose the common touch;  If neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you;  If all men count with you, but none too much;  If you can fill the unforgiving minute  With sixty seconds' worth of distance run -  Yours is the Earth and everything that's in it,  And - which is more - you'll be a Man my son!

So, Tyson doesn't get a t-shirt with his accomplishments on it. He gets a quiet "thank you" from friends, family, and the strangers he helps on the way. Yep, he's my hero. And if you don't have a hero in your life, you need to get to know my son. If you're one of the lucky ones, he'll be your hero, too.

It's Just A Step

I've been wanting to write this for a while. Then (stupid) Daulton wrote about it and rained on my parade. Except I can't get it off my mind. So I'm writing it. Too bad for you, Daulton.  You'll have to suck it up and read what I have to say about it. So there!


FYI Daulton will soon be my daughter-in-law, so she needs to get used to being bossed around by me anyhow...HA!


So...


This blog is about a woman. Just an ordinary woman who lives in Provo. My friend, Korby, lost her mother a few years ago to breast cancer. I guess that's not exceptional in and of itself. There are many, many people walking this planet who have been touched by cancer.  It's what she did about it that makes her extra-ordinary.


I didn't know Korby at that time. I didn't know Daulton. I didn't get to meet Korby's mom. Yet, she has impacted my life. Not in some in-your-face-sort-of-way, but through the stories that Korby shares. I glimpse the love of music that she endowed upon Daulton and her sister Shea.  This is the way I get to see a glimmer of Sue.


But, this isn't about Sue. It's about Korby. When I got to know Daulton, I soon heard about the fund raising dinner that her mother was putting on in hopes to raise some money to attend the Susan G. Komen 3-Day. 


I didn't know what the Susan G. Komen foundation was, but I (somewhat lackadaisically) went along with the event. I donated a couple of pictures I create to help with her raffle that year and went to attend the dinner not really knowing what to expect.


Korby presents a video of pictures from the previous years' walk. That's when I was hooked. This is no ordinary stroll through the park. These people cover 60 miles in the three days. Yep. That's right SIX-TY miles. And there were THOUSANDS of people in attendance.


I have seen pictures of the swollen, bleeding feet after the walk. I have heard Korby tell stories that bring me to tears. I can't believe the dedication and love that Korby must possess in order to complete the walk. Rain, sunshine, illness, stress, sore muscles, blistered feet. It doesn't matter. She's there. And she does it.


I admire Korby for this. She doesn't wave a banner expressing her accomplishment. Instead, she quietly has raised over $50,000 for the cure. And she does it even though her mother isn't here to reap the benefits. She does it because it matters.


Korby started out with just a step. Her journey didn't start with "the walk". It began with an idea. She had a desire. This desire stemmed from a small inkling that she might be able to make a difference.  


The reason that there even is a 3-walk for the cure is because another ordinary woman promised her sister that she would do everything in her power to cure breast cancer.  According to the website, they have raised over 1.9 BILLION dollars. Dollars that are dedicated to the fight against breast cancer. That's pretty cool. That means that there are a number of men and women out there that had an idea that led to an inkling that they, too, might make a difference.


Many, many of these people don't have breast cancer. Many, many of them never will. They either know someone personally, or know someone-who-knows-someone who has had breast cancer and was cured, is currently fighting it ... or has lost the battle. Whatever the reason, these people walk because it matters.


Makes me wonder, what if we all followed our "inkling"?  It doesn't have to be something as involved as attending a walk, sponsoring a walk, or raising billions of dollars.  What if it's something as simple as holding the door for a frazzled mother at your local convenience store, or raking the leaves for your elderly neighbor? What if you made a promise to your sister and that promise has prevented millions of people from having to go through the struggle you witnessed your sister experience?


It all begins somewhere. Just take a step. And start changing your world.

The Price Of Freedom

My husband was in the Navy. He served from 1982 through the end of 1985. I know there are thousands of service members, and I know there are a million of stories that they share. But, I married him and we lived OUR story.

Mark doesn't talk about the service. He's not ashamed or anything silly like that. In fact, it's the exact opposite. He's proud. He did the right thing at a time in his life when the right thing was hard for him to do. He signed up with a friend of his by the name of Randy Christmas. They joined up on the "buddy system".  He was guaranteed to serve with Randy and he was also guaranteed to serve on the West Coast.  He was stationed in Virginia (East Coast) and Randy was on the West Coast. So much for promises.

We got married and off he went to Virginia without me. I followed a few months later with everything we owned packed in the back of a mustang. We set up home and off he went on a cruise. It was a time of no cell phones, no personal computers with email and internet. We had no house phone. It wasn't as though he could call from a pile of tin floating in the Atlantic ocean, anyway. I wrote him every single day. I sometimes wrote him two or three times a day. It was hard.

Mark was gone when I found out I was pregnant with Tyson. He was gone on birthdays, anniversary's, holidays. He wasn't there when someone threw a rock through my kitchen window in the middle of the night. He couldn't come to my rescue when some weird-o followed me home from the beach (we lived across the street from the beach) and tried to break into the apartment and I had to grab a shot gun and snuck out my bedroom window to run to the pay phone to call the cops.

Two hurricanes struck in the time we lived there. When I was evacuated with the first one, I had no car and didn't know where to go. We didn't have a phone and I didn't know anyone in Virginia to call anyhow. So I promptly hid under the bed. Don't ask me how I thought that would help. But, that's what I did. I cried all night. The waters flooded up to the edge of my windows, but didn't come into my apartment.  The second hurricane he was home. We got a knock on the door from one of his shipmates. He had to go to the ship. When a hurricane is eminent, the ships pull out of port so they don't bang against the docks and cause damage to either the ship or the dock. We had Tyson, and this time I followed the evacuation orders. We were put in a gymnasium of a school. There was no food. No water. It was terrifying. I watched the skies turn black and watched winds whip trees into formations that aren't natural.

Mark was a boiler technician on the U.S.S. Canisteo. He worked in unbelievable heat. He worked hard. When you are in the service, there isn't "thinking for yourself". He was told when he could sleep, eat, work. There wasn't much free time. He was told when he had to cut his hair and how short it was to be. He was told how to dress, when he was allowed to have facial hair, and how to make his bed. He slept on a bunk in a room filled with other sailors (gross).  He had to strap himself in the bunk to keep from being thrown out by the pitch of the ship. The price of our freedom came at the cost of his freedom.

It wasn't all gloom and doom. He saw places that he would have never been able to see. He had experiences that will be told for years. He fished off the end of the boat and caught sharks. He passed the equator and crossed the North Pole.

We were so lucky to serve in peace time. He experienced a few times when the ship went to battle status, but they did not engage. He served his country and was prepared to go to war or follow the steps commanded by the "powers that be".

The slogan for the ship was "If freedom were easy we wouldn't be here." Our service members give their all to our country.  And in turn, they serve each of us and I'm grateful that my husband is a part of this group of men who gave their all.

Time Is On Your Side

I remember being young.  It really wasn't THAT long ago. I remember the fashions, the music (ESPECIALLY) the music. I can still recall the vehicles that were on the road and the "special effects" that were so AWESOME in the movie theater.  Jaws was SUPER scary.  ET was phenomenal and Star Wars was the COOLEST MOVIE EVER.  I rocked the Farrah hair and light blue eye shadow.

I now live with my kids making fun of my Farrah hair, my clothes, my movies.  Sigh.  At least they still like my music.  (I think 80's rock will forever rule the airwaves.)

I think about all I have experienced.  Some of what I went through, I really don't care to recall.  I don't necessarily speak of all I have experienced. There really isn't much to gain from recalling the ick in my life. But, I did it. I survived. I grew. I blossomed. I'm proud.

There are things I wish I could have done. I wish I had set myself up better financially. I wish I had gone to college young and without 4 kids ... I wish I had dabbled in photography at a young age ... I wish I could go to Europe and see all the art ... I wish I had been able to get a piano earlier and had kept playing ... I wish I had gotten braces YEARS ago. Yep ... I have wished.  I have wanted different.  Sometimes I even hoped for more.  I'm not unhappy with what I have. I have a life to envy. I am talented, strong, independent and I really am a great Mom. I know this.  No, my wishes aren't regrets, they're just wishes.

I have watched my kids go through some tough things. It makes me incredibly sad. Taylor Swift has a song called "Never Grow Up".  She talks about a time when "Nobody hurt you. Nobody broke your heart."  I wish I could give that to my kids. I want to line up the people that hurt them and smack them good and hard upside the head.  That would be TOTALLY AWESOME.

Instead, I try to understand something that isn't understandable. I try to soothe pain that is not sootheable, I try to fix what cannot be fixed, to mend something that should have never been broken.  Yet, I will never truly succeed in my efforts. The strength and power to overcome these things are built within them.

So, I tell them the lame words "hang in there".  Maybe what they don't know is that time is on their side. They have so much ahead of them that they get to experience. Don't waste time on wishes. Spend time accomplishing wishes. Knock your dreams out of the park and get out there and grab some more.

No, I'm not old (yet) but my time of wishes is more behind me than in front of me. That's not all bad. I find my wishes are more focused on my kids. My wish for Tyson is that his family stays strong and healthy. That he will know pure joy as his family grows.

My wish for both my older boys is to be able to rid themselves of the demons that haunt them. To know that they could not control the decisions that their friends faced. I wish I could erase the pain for them.

My wish for Goose is always to be the man I know he keeps locked inside. To always be honorable and strong, yet to make sure to look at the other side of the story and remember that most people are just trying to do their best.

My wish for Tanna would be to find peace in her life. To make peace with loved ones and to remember what she is made of. To not let the circumstances of her past rule her future.

My wish for Shelby would be to be vulnerable. To let her emotions show on the outside as they rumble around her inside. That she will find peace in the knowledge that some day the time will come when a boy will hear the song of her heart. And it's a great song.

My wish for Jaden would be the greatest of all wishes. He has the most time. His path in life hasn't be scarred with the pits and valleys of growing up. I wish for him to take advantage of the opportunities he can't even see yet.

Just as my past is my own, my future is my own. I hold the keys. I didn't get braces young, but I got them and I love my smile. I'll get a camera and dabble in photography now. I'll probably never be great, but I know I'll be good. I may never get to Europe to see the art, but I see as many plays, museums, art shows that I can find here in Utah and am inspired. I'll traipse through the rest of my life barefoot and full of wishes and hopes. Time is on my side.

I Am

I make sweatshirts for my family each year for Christmas.  The tradition began 4 years ago when we had absolutely NO money for gifts, so I came up with the idea to make the kids a sweatshirt. I did. They were a hit.  The tradition began and I spend many hours developing a design that will "one-up" the year before.  I mull over my ideas for several months before I decide what I want on the sweatshirts.  The story for last years' shirts goes as follows:


Goose is a wildland firefighter.  Not only is he a wildland firefighter, but he is a Lonepeak Hotshot. Goose worked for this. He worked hard. Goose had spent a few years wandering around Provo not sure what he was going to do when he "grew up".  He was working at laying concrete flooring. He worked in the weather and worked for a company that didn't value him or his work ethics. He spent the winter either working in the cold or collecting unemployment because the company didn't have enough work to keep him busy. He was a lost soul. He was unsure of what he wanted and lacked the confidence to pursue anything more than what he had.  He was driving me crazy. He had no money, and his future seemed hopeless.  I called Goose one day and told him that I was putting him in school. I told him that he was going to be a wildland firefighter, that he could change the degree if he wanted to, but he had to know exactly what he wanted to do and that he wasn't allowed to drop out for any reason. He agreed and his future began.


Goose rocked school. The family spent countless hours quizzing him, testing him, helping him research and typing up endless quizzes and papers for him to study. We each held our breath on test days, sometimes waiting up late so he could call after class and let us know how the testing went.  We counted out push-ups and sit-ups. We timed runs. We each gave heart and soul to the success of Goose. Graduation came and he graduated with a solid A-.  As the saying goes, the crowd went wild.


Alas, our joy was short lived as the struggle to find work began, and Goose was consistently passed up for employment. It made me physically sick. I don't do well when my kids are disappointed/hurt. We worked and worked at finding him employment, but to no avail. He just wasn't going to be hired.


Enter Brett. Brett is a friend of ours. He is a wildland firefighter and was hired to work on a crew in Salt Lake. As fate would have it, there was a member on Brett's crew that was moving to another crew which left an opening on Dromedary. Brett told his boss about Goose, the boss called Goose. We got the job.


When you certify to be a Wildland firefighter, you receive a Red Card. When Goose earned his Red Card, he came to the house, walked up to me and handed me his Red Card and said, "Here's your card Mom, you earned it."


That was my "light bulb" moment. Right then, I realized how our family is not made up of individuals. We are who we are because we support each other and believe in each other. It is this support system that we each rely on when we face tough times. And we as a family form a bond together that cannot be penetrated.


Each of us are part of a fraction that make a whole.  Because Shelby dances, I am a dancer. Because I create, we all create. We not only share the good, but the heartache as well. If there is loss, disappointment, pain...we each share that as well.

So, I made shirts. I used words that I have heard describe a family member at one time or another. I am a whole person because Mark, Tyson, Diana, Goose, Tanna, Shelby, Jaden, Hailey, Bill and my soon-to-be-daughter-in-law Daulton make it so. We are Deason. And I say that with pride.

(The shirt front.)

(The shirt back.)