I apologize for being away for a week. Doug’s grandmother passed away a week ago and we have been in Illinois for some of the time for the funeral.

It was the strangest feeling walking into her house without her sitting in her blue recliner by the window. She would sit in that chair and look out the window and listen to the radio. It was odd to be working in her kitchen, not just helping. Even in the last years when she couldn’t do much cooking, there would always be a fresh ham and an angel food cake from the grocery store. She fed us well, including homemade egg noodles cooked in chicken fat and chili with a layer of lard on the top of it. Delicious!

She could never sit still. It was strange to not be running around or doing projects. We didn’t worry about dinner plans. We didn’t listen to her stories three or four times – all about people we had no idea who there were.

We did have a time of sweet fellowship with family we hadn’t seen in a long time. Remembrances, catching up, good conversation. Even with modern technology – cars, airplanes, Skype – it’s hard to keep up. The miles do separate you.

Hopefully, this will teach us to cherish each moment. To realize that family is the most important. To store up memories.

Thank you for all your thoughts, prayers, and expressions of sympathy.