There was a sign hanging in a friend's house. It said, “We do hard things.” We are not above engaging in hard labor. We were
raised to pull weeds, whistle while we worked, and put our shoulders to the
wheel. I personally believe that if both hands are not busy, then I am not being
productive. We have never had a housekeeper, hence our house has never been
spotless. We have made our kids clean and tolerated eye rolls as we’ve demonstrated
the correct way to clean bathrooms. We have threatened to take
away phones, bribed with allowance and have done everything in our power to instill some
sort of work ethic in our children. Sometimes the only way to get it
across to them it to physically show them. Showing we can accomplish unpleasant
items demonstrates to them, “We can do
hard things” which will someday add up to bigger accomplishments. The big picture of this might be lost on
teenagers sometimes, but similar work ethic is necessary when accomplishing
school work and studying for tests as well as carrying over into the workplace. We might not like everything we are asked to
do, but to prove our ourselves capable in the world, “we do hard things.”
Cancer is hard. Chemo is hard. Coming to terms with my own
physical and mental limitations has been excruciating. This month has been plagued with uncontrollable coughing,
nausea/vomiting, dry heaves, rampant diarrhea, stomach cramps and dehydration. There have been things this past month that I
wanted to do and needed to do but simply was not able to do them to the caliber I
am accustom. We have had to learn how to function with limitations. We have learned
to say, "good enough pig” from the movie Babe
& just accept our efforts as is. We have added extra IV fluids and last week we postponed my chemo treatment all together to give my body a chance to catch
up. There have been exhausting moments filled with tears in the bathroom and
rants when I have sworn I could not go on. But realizing my own limitations makes me realize once
again I can only do my part and it’s time to put my trust in God. To
ask for priesthood blessings, and to be reminded of God’s promise in Matthew
10:29-31, “Are not two sparrows sod for a farthing? And one of then shall not
fall on the ground without your Father. But the very hairs of your head are all
numbered. Fear ye not therefore, ye are of more valve than many sparrows.” He
knows the (lack of numbers) of hairs on my head
and just like the loving farmer from Babe, has helped me realize that,
“good enough pig” will have to do right now. He knows us; He knows what we are suffering through; He will get us through this.
Throughout the past couple of weeks, we have had a rollercoaster ride. I lost my job, but I was also
able to spend time with friends and family who help put things in perspective. I graduated
from Boise State University in Bachelor of Arts; Communication on Saturday,
with honors Cum Laude and a minor in Nonprofit Management. We watched our son
earn his bachelor’s degree from Idaho State University in Health & Sciences
Physical Education. We can’t wait to see what the future holds for him. We
moved him 
