Canadian Thanksgiving,,, the ORIGINAL THANKSGIVING! yes it's true,, October was the original thanksgiving, for both USA and Canada, Until Abe Lincoln set it to the 4th Thursday of November during the civil war. :-) So, since I married an american we have celebrated both every single year for the last 14 years!! It has become an incredible tradition that we, as a family, love doing with our friends for Canadian and our Family for American thanksgiving! It also happens to fall relatively close to Todd's birthday so we have just always combined the two.
And we did it again this year! We do it on the Saturday before, so that Kenz, Jeff, Jake and Emily can come up and still get home at a decent time on Sunday. It was a fantastic time with great food, even better friends and family around us all!!
Kenz came up Friday and we spent some much needed time together just her and I friday night,, ,then we took Willow, my cute grand puppy, over to Tom's so his dog Toby, and Willow could play together,, it was hilarious to watch these two dogs interact and play! They are both relatively CLOSE to the same size, Willow is a walker coon hound, and Toby is a black lab,, so they could both play hard with each other!
Then Jake and Emily came up Saturday, and we ate with some of our friends that we call family, and visited, then Kenz headed home and Jake and Emily stayed until Sunday.
Sunday, we got the opportunity to go to my best friend's granddaughter's baby blessing! Oh what a precious little girl!! I motioned to my niece (they have called me aunt for 14 years) that I wanted to hold this little girl, and she passed her down,, she started fussing and I am whispering to her,, "shhh shhh, shh, it's ok, where did you just come from,, who do you see?" and she stops crying and looks over my left shoulder... looked at me and gave me the BIGGEST GRIN,, (remember when my inseparable sister had her baby and I asked her the same thing,, and she looked over my same shoulder and smiled????) yep,, tears,, just started falling,, right as her Nana, my bf, looked over and heard and saw what was going on,, I looked at my bf and just smiled through the tears. This precious little baby kept glancing over my shoulder, looking at me and smiling,, don't tell me the veil isn't thin.
Right as this is going on, the aaronic priesthood is getting ready to pass the sacrament, and I look up and see a young man, around the same age as Levi with the same stinkin' floppy hair. Oh my heart!! Emily and Jake notice too, and we all did a double take.
Sacrament is over and it's testimony meeting,,, I struggle with the first sunday of every month, have for a while now,, but guess who got up to bear his testimony,, Levi's doppleganger! I look up from my arms where Andi is sleeping, as soon as I hear his voice,.. this young man who looks so much like my baby boy starts bearing his testimony...
*I am paraphrasing here* "I am so honored to have the priesthood, it is an awesome responsibility, I love how it makes me feel, and that I can help those people that are struggling right now, and I know it's my responsibility as a priesthood holder to help those that need it, it is all our responsibility, to make sure those that are having a hard time, that they know they are loved by us and our Heavenly Father, and to help them come back...." He said so much more but the jist of it was that he knew th awesome responsibility he had, and he was prepared to do the work he was asked to do.
YOU GUYS,, I heard Levi saying it,,, HONESTLY HEARD THAT YOUNG MAN TALKING IN LEVI'S VOICE, saying that he was ready to do what he knew he has been asked to do... that he was more than ready for this awesome responsibility, that had been asked of him,, and he was with me all the time to let me know I am loved, and not alone,, even though I am struggling right now. Oh the tears that fell, my heart nearly burst out of my chest.
Then the bishop got up, right as the meeting was about to close... and talked about General conference, how his family had been giving 6 tickets to attend this incredible meeting our church has bi annually,, the only problem was, there are 7 in his family, so he sent his wife and their kids into the meeting and he stayed outside... and the thought came to him,, He has much work to do to make sure he isn't left behind.. because this is how it will be if he isn't worthy,, what if,,, what if in the next life, his wife and kids get to go to the Celestial Kingdom and he is told he has to go to a different kingdom, what if he hasn't done everything he can to ensure his eternal family is truly eternal and always together throughout the millennium?? WHAT IF.....?
Ok Todd, got it,, brick to my head. The spirit was tangible, What are the odds that I am in this ward, on this day and these things are being said? I wasn't going to go,, I find it easier to stay home on sunday's and rest than go to my ward. But this wasn't my ward... I went so I could show support to my bestie, and her family and their ward ended up helping me more than they will every know.
Let me just say this... Even though I am having a hard time right now, and struggling, *honestly who isn't?* I know that this is the true gospel,, I know my Father in Heaven loves me, and cries with me every single time tears escape my eyes, I know that MY Savior wants to smack me,, enfold me in His arms and tell me He's got this,, He has cried every single tear, felt every single piece of my heart shatter into a billion pieces, felt every string of anger, hatred, doubt, love, and forgiveness in my soul, and He would take it from me again if He could. I know I will see my husband and son again, I know my family is eternal, and I know I have a lot of work to do, to ensure that I am with them again! THIS I KNOW, and no one, not even the devil himself can take that knowledge from me.
I know.
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