tigers and sharks in vietnam

To celebrate Memorial Day, Mom and Dad, Jeff and Stacey and their friends Brian and Kelly joined us for a BBQ. We had a little emergency when our ice cream maker died, but the other LDS family in town had just finished with theirs and saved the day. It was particularly nice to have Dad share new and previous told stories of Vietnam. For example, once he and friends had been swimming in the South China Sea. With it's colorful fish, it was like swimming in an aquarium. All of a sudden a helicopter started shooting at them so they swam as quickly as they could to shore. They were surprised to discover the helicopter had been shooting at shark--not at them. Another time the helicopter shot a giant tiger that had been roaming through their camp. Dad said it was giant and fierce, even dead. Dad emphasized that he felt that heavenly Father protected him because he was keeping the commandments. Because he was a college graduate, 25, returned missionary who neither smoke or drank, some of the men thought he was an officer planted in their group to keep an eye on them. He was not ashamed to report exploiting that mistaken identity. As we further talked about both my Grandpas' military service, I realized how ignorant I am about war. The thought of sending my husband or my boys to war makes me sick. I hope I can turn that emotion into gratitude.

A couple of nights ago I was in that halfway point between awake and asleep and I started thinking about Primary. I felt the most overwhelming feeling of responsibility and protection for all the children in the Colfax ward. I could see their faces. I wanted desperately to make sure that no one had gone to bed hungry, that they had brushed their teeth and had a story, that they had said their prayers and been tickled and snuggled in warm soft beds. I've never felt those feelings so powerfully before for children other than my own. I wish I had the resources, time and energy to do what my heart, not my head, wants to do.