Life's Challenges...

I find it peculiar that Dean and I seem to mirror each other with our life altering challenges.  For example, when I met Dean, he told me of his experiences with Cornea Transplants because of an eye disease that I had never heard of, called Keratoconus.  This is the coning of the corneas to a pointed configuration.  I was amazed by his experiences.  Twenty-one years later, I would experience a Cornea Transplant due to the exact opposite eye disease, called Fuchs Dystrophy.   This disease was the thickening of the cornea.  The only cure was to have a transplant.  He has had 9 eye surgeries, and I have had 5!

Dean's transplants all went well.  Mine, wasn't to be so fortunate for me.  I suffered an intraocular stroke in my right eye that wiped out the inner 1/3 of my Optic Nerve, leaving me virtually blind in that eye.  Four years later, Dean had an accident that dislodged one of his Corneas and had to have emergency surgery on that eye which resulted in damage to his retina.  Another surgery saved it!  But his eyesight suffered.  He has been dealing with the battle of bad eyesight ever since.  In 2016, my left eye developed the wet stage of Macular degeneration and I experienced a blind spot which cannot be reversed.  This is in my left eye.  So, I, too battle with bad eyesight!

In 1985 I had to have a total Hysterectomy due to the fact that my Uterus was just too worn out from having 6 children.  This year (2021, Dean had a () due to the development of Cancer.  I guess that is how life goes for us old folks.

In 2012, I suffered a subdural hematoma and had to undergo surgery to drain a massive bleed which left me with some bruising of my brain that I had to deal with for a time until healing could take place.  Last Thursday evening, Dean suffered a small Stroke that injured 2 sites on the left side of his Cerebellum, which has effected his speech.  He was a very lucky man, because it could have been  much worse.  He now has to have serious heart medications to keep his Atrial Fibrillation from causing more blood clots to be released to the brain.  

Dean has Atrial Fib, I have High Cholesterol; Dean has serious eye problems, I have serious eye problems; Dean had a stroke, I had a Subdural bleed; Dean has serious skin allergies, I have skin Cancer; Dean gets very cold in a warm room and I roast to death; Dean over-reacts to things, and I guess I under-react; Dean is a male, and I am a female!  Makes me wonder what else is life going to throw at us before all is said and done for the two of us.

I don't believe one can get through life with out challenges!  It is the stuff life is made of that helps us to grow.  If we don't, we just curl up in a ball and never get anywhere.  We either grow or we stagnate.  We either move on or we stay in one place.  We either live our lives in the sunshine or go around eternally with that proverbial little black cloud following us wherever we go.  Me?  I like sunshine!  Oh, I guess I like a little rain once in a while, but, boy!   When that sun comes out after a storm...that is my happy place!

Nine-Eleven Plus Twentty...

 

Oh, my...I just can't wrap my brain around the fact that it has been 20 years since that dreadful day in history that brought America and her citizens to their knees!  Twenty years and I can remember that day as if it were just yesterday!  The images still float around in my brain can still bring back the same emotions that I felt on that day and for weeks afterward.

America cried.  Men and women cried.  Fathers and mothers cried.  Children cried.  And many around the world cried with us.

Today, some of those older men and women are no longer with us.  Some of our young men and women who volunteered to go fight a mindless enemy are no longer with us.  The children are grown up and some living today weren't even born yet.  We went to war...the longest conflict in the history of this country...and many more lost their lives.  We conquered the enemy...or did we?

Evil visited our shores on that infamous day and its influence here and around the world has spread like the virus that has beset us over the past year and a half.  The evil one has gained a stronghold on our country and the hearts of men and women in leadership positions.  Power hungry politicians lead our once great Republic!Our children have grown up with ideas of wanting to live in some fantasy land of Utopia...they are not taught to love this great land as I was taught.  I fear the injuries inflicted upon Lady Liberty twenty years ago are far deeper than the scars of the footprint left by two burning towers in a once great city...New York City.

If I could leave any comforting words to my children and grandchildren...even my great-grandchildren, they would be these.  America was more that a dream shared by a handful of men in 1776.  This land has always been "a land of promise," blessed by the hand of God and destined to become a great beacon of liberty to be seen from far and wide and respected.  That great God of this land put into the hearts of men to form a great nation...a beacon of liberty.  She was destined to become that "shining  city on a hill," spoken by one of her greatest Presidents, President Ronald Reagan.

In my eight decades upon this earth, I have seen America rise and fall through a World War (II), the Korean War, The Viet Nam conflict, and many other conflicts around the world pitting good against evil.  And though we always felt that good was winning, evil has slowly enveloped the hearts of men and we didn't even notice.  Each new generation has been spoon-fed on propaganda, first in our Universities and today, in our Public Schools.  Children as young as 5 or 6 are being taught that this is not a great country..."your parents are wrong!"

It took a pandemic...a world-wide virus...to open our eyes!  At least most of us who have been around for nearly 100 years!  Is it too late to turn things around?  Our president "The King Who Has No Clothes,"  has abandoned Americans and allies in Afghanistan, he has abandoned Americans at home, and we at home fear that evil will visit our shores once again.

The only thing we have to hold on to is our faith in God.  "If He brought us to it, He will bring us through it."  I believe, dear children, that God hears and will answer our prayers.  His plan for this great land is not finished.  Good will prevail over evil.  And we will be a beautiful America again.  Once again, we can lift our voices up toward Heaven and sing the strains of "America, The Beautiful!"  "Oh beautiful, for spacious skies, for amber waves of grain.  For purple mountains majesty, above the fruited plain.  America, America, God shed his Grace on thee.  And crown thy good with brotherhood...from sea to shining sea."

As we remember that awful day of 9/11, 2001, may we also remember the day after that brought a nation together in brotherhood.  We were all one on that day...let's bring it back again!

Perhaps Near the End of My Journey...

I usually sit down and write with pen in hand and a clean sheet of paper in front of me, but my eyesight is failing  and when I write my thoughts with a pen and paper, I come back later and cannot read them!  It's a real bummer and it is a dilemma I had hoped I would never face.  

My father had Glaucoma and in the later years of his life, his eyesight was so bad that he shouldn't drive.  In fact, driving was the last thing he did before he died!  He was killed when his Bronco slammed into the back of a city truck on St. George Blvd. in St. George Utah on his way to work.  He was 74 years old.

My mother had Macular Degeneration, the same ailment I am dealing with.  We took her car keys away from her when it became obvious that she was a danger behind the wheel of a car.  She was the same age as me, which was 82 or 83!  I stopped driving about 2 years ago, and I refuse to get behind the wheel to drive.  I'm safer walking!

Sorry for the side-note!  To continue...I write now on the keyboard of my computer.  Thank God that I still have the mental capacity to remember where the keystrokes are.  It was a skill that I learned in High School and has served me well for decades.  So, here I am staring at the computer screen, and I must gather my thoughts and figure out what to write.  It has been a good while since I have even tried.

Covid 19 hit the country last year and slowed everything down...not only for me and my family, but for the whole world, as well,  My youngest daughter and her family got it, suffered its ill effects and recovered.  They were the only ones in my family who came down with the dreaded virus.  My husband and I dodged it at every turn.  We sequestered ourselves in our home for the most part, wore those stupid (needless) masks when required, and ate healthy, took our Vitamin D3, C, Zinc and whatever else we were of a desire to do.

The "pandemic" is pretty much over after a year and a half, except for the attempts by "higher-ups" who call themselves "Scientists" who scare us to believing otherwise.  I never did fear the virus and I never will.  I (and my family) use common sense and treated it just like we treat any other disease that is going around.  Panic and fear are not things I subscribe to.

So, with the world and the country trying to resume some semblance of normalcy, I think I have a jump start on all of them.  I go outside and work in my garden; I walk sometimes with my husband; we go out to eat; we go to Church and the Movies and Concerts.  And we do not wear masks in any of those events.  Here's how I look at it...if I get sick, so be it.  I know what to do to take care of myself.  If I get really sick and I should die as a result, again, so be it!  I'm not afraid of death!  I've lived nearly 82 years on this planet and it has been an exceptionally good, fulfilled, happy life.  And the way the world is going right now, honestly, I would welcome that Heavenly change!

So, my dear friends, that brings you up to speed with the life and journey of Florene (Lori) Davenport-Henderson-Mickelson,  and God willing, I will be back, hopefully sooner than later.  Until then, I bid you all farewell and God Speed!

                                                   

What is Truth?

 I have been contemplating many things lately.  One of them, which keeps popping into my head is the dilemma we are dealing with in our country...in fact in all of the world... right now, on the subject of TRUTH.  There are so many voices out there.  Some of them shouting!  Some of them very calmly proclaiming their own version of their own truth.  Some of them preaching truth.  Some of them sneering that their version on truth is the ONLY TRUTH.  What is one to do?

With all of this noise and confusion all around me, I am reminded of a story that has been told in my Church, TheChurch of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, of a young boy who heard confusing voices all around him in the year of 1820.  They were attempting to sway people to join the various churches looking for members.  He was a boy who had been taught by his parents to search the Scriptures.  One day, as he was reading in the Gospel of John, he came across a verse that read, "...if any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, who giveth liberally and upbraideth not."

The boy pondered these words and decided to put then to the test.  He walked into a wooded area near his home in Palmytra, New York, found a quiet, secluded spot and knelt down to pray.  He didn't expect what happened next and he was really surprised to find himself surrounded with light and directly in front of him, it was brightest of all...and there, in a pillar of light stood two personages.  And they spoke to him!  One introduced the other as His beloved son and said, "Hear Him!"

The boy's name was Joseph Smith and he had just seen a vision of the Father, who pointed to the other and called Him His beloved Son! This is a truth that I. know, because the Holy Ghost has testified the truthfulness of it to me many times.  And I cannot deny that Spirit.  Nor can I deny the burning within me that testifies truth.  This is a gift that has been given to me!  This is a gift I treasure.

There is a Hymn in our Hymn Book that asks, what is Truth?  The title of this Hymn is "Oh Say, What is Truth?"  From this hymn, I learn a great deal and it helps me find the answers to many of my questions.    It describes Truth as "the fairest gem"that the richest of worlds cannot produce.  Think about that for a moment.   Think about all of the principalities of the world and what they tell you that they say is their truth.  Is it?  Is it the fairest of gems?    Test it!  Next to truth, all of a "Monarch's diadem is counted as dross and refuse."  Truth is certainly a rare gem!

The second verse calls truth the "brightest prize."  When you find it, hold on to it, because you have certainly found a prize!  Mortals and Gods aspire to possess this truth...this rich prize.  To possess it is "an "aim for the noblest desire."

Truth overcomes evil.  I include the entire third verse here.  "The septre may fall from the despot's grip.  When with winds of stern justice he copes.  But the pillar of truth will endure to the end, and its firm rooted bulworks outstand the rude blast and the wreck of the fell tyrant's hopes."  

This verse pretty much tells it all, if you follow a court case (as we have witnessed recently in the impeachment trial of our past President, Donald J. Trump!)  Truth wins in the end!  There were so many conflicting voices and the lies were brought to the forefront.  But still, those who lied believed their lies so profoundly, they were turned into tyrants!

On to the last verse...truth 'tis the "last and fir first."  "Tho the heavens depart and the earth's fountains burst, TRUTH , the sum of existence, will weather the worst, ETERNAL, unchanged, evermore."

So, when you are confronted with confusing voices, put their words to the test..do what Joseph Smith did....Pray, and measure those confusing voices against their value and endurance.  Are they eternal?  Good words, these!  Put them to the test.

For me, the test is eternal.  I measure good against evil and "GOOD" comes out on top every time.  I also have the gift of discernment, a gift I earned after many trials of choosing between good and evil in my life.  The Lord knew I had to earn it and I am so grateful He stuck with me as I traveled that difficult road.  It is a precious gift and I don't ever want to lose it.  

My Savior.  He IS "The Last and the First," The Alpha and Omega!

He is my True North.

He is the compass by which I navigate my life.

Without Him, I could not discern what is TRUTH!

Getting along and Getting by...

 As I journey forward into this new year, the year of our Lord, 2021, I am finding myself in awe at all that I have experienced in my lifetime!  The progress (and sometimes regress) of mankind has been astounding!  And still, mankind is struggling with this phenomenon of getting along and learning to love one another.  Control and greed seem to creep into every aspect of our lives.

Though I have been oblivious for the better part of my life, of how government has crept into the simplest acts of controlling everything, to dedicating their missions to make sure we are constantly under their thumb.  It has been a slow process, so most of us haven't even noticed it.  For the most part, my life has been full of happiness and peace, but last year was a nightmare and this year is looking to be more of the same, if not worse.

Now, while all of this has been going on, I have also noticed another phenomenon taking shape.  More and more of my friends, myself included, have been turning their attention to a higher power.  We are turning to prayer and the scriptures and developing a stronger relationship with our God, the Creator of the Universe and all that in it lies.  He is ultimately in charge-- and this thought gives rise to peace in the soul.

The month of January is closing and February will soon be upon us.  As I look toward the rest of this year, I pray that hearts will come closer and be more in tune with the spirit of love--brotherly love--and turn away wrath.  May we be more understanding of the needs of others; more compassionate towards those who are finding their livelihoods disappearing; more helpful to those who need a helping hand; and more ready to pray with a brother or sister who is suffering through loss.

I pray that the Virus that has plagued this land for a year will burn out its engines and move out of the atmosphere.  And I pray that we will be more ready for the next epidemic to come our way.  We have the science to understand these things and I pray that the good minds will work diligently to find cures and vaccines and may government step out of their way so they can do their work.

Ah!  So many problems and so many loving people working on solutions...if only government would allow them to work!  People are out of work because of government!  People are suffering because of government.  But good e\people are waking up and beginning to speak up and fight against the corruption and control that we find ourselves in.  If we let God help us and not become angry mobs, we will be able to accomplish great things.

I love my life!  I love my Country!  I love my family!  I love my God!  I pray every man, woman and child in this land of ours will be protected throughout these coming months and this coming year.  Be not discouraged!  Be not dismayed!  Cultivate Faith and Hope and most of all Charity!

GOD BLESS AMERICA!