anniversary 16

Sixteen years ago this weekend I made a big mistake. My mistake was tentatively, cautiously backing into love with Anthony Wilson Lundberg. I did it all wrong. I should have jumped pel mel off the cliff of love whooping and hollering like crazy. Thank goodness I have an eternity to do it right.

It has been a real blessing to celebrate our anniversary this year in St George with Mom and Dad Lundberg. Mom is still in the rehab facility but is headed home next week if all goes well. There have been many tender mercies as we have been with Mom and Dad this weekend. Mom's greatest struggle right now seems to be overwhelming anxiety. I'm not sure we can understand how frightening it was to lay alone in the desert unable to move and in horrible pain. Her pain seems manageable now, but I know she has nightmares and terrible claustrophobia.

One of the things I think Mom is very good at is allowing people to serve her. It was such a testimony to me that we love and feel closer to the people we serve. I think there is a special bond that occurs when we serve someone's physical needs, like mother's and their children. I felt that when I helped Mom shower or when Tony rubbed Mom's legs and back with lotion.

It was equally good to see Dad. We have been worried about him because of the immense burden the accident has placed on him. We got to see firsthand the inextricable emotional connection that binds Mom and Dad. The first time we were in the car with Dad alone he teared up trying to explain what it felt like to almost lose Mom. He has an almost unrealistic optimism that has caused great concern for his daughters, but is truly his coping mechanism for dealing with grief. Tony gave Dad a blessing before we left which I think will be a source of peace and strength for him.

Life will never be the same for Mom and Dad. For starters, I think they will be selling the four-wheelers right away. Dad says they are going to buy dune buggies instead. HaHa

We are in the final two weeks before school starts and I was feeling kind of panicky; have we maximized summer? have we made enough memories? have we taken advantage of the glorious days of unstructured time? Like an answer from heaven directly addressing my anxieties, yesterday was one of the best days of the whole summer. Tony had the day off because we were supposed to be taking all the youth from church to the lake. The weather, torrential downpours, resulted in a cancelled lake trip, but a great oportunity for a family adventure. We headed south to the St Joseph national forest and found the most beautiful hike. We were soaking wet after our three mile trek, but the rain made the colors and smells amazing, and the temperature was warm.

After our hike we drove to Spring Valley resevoir where Cooper and Max were in fishing heaven. Despite the resevoir being stocked with trout we managed to escape without any dead things to take home. We had dinner at a Hawaian restaurant in Moscow and then while Tony was at his high council meeting, I took the kids to Walmart to buy dry clothes and spend their birthday money. All it takes to truly be stripped of pride is a visit to Walmart with five filthy dirty, sopping wet kids to buy the cheapest clearance rack sweatpants and t-shirts I could find. Max found a "storm trooper helmet" with voice changer to spend his money on and it was like a dream come true for he (and his older brothers). He wouldn't even let me put it in the cart, but insisted on carrying it around the store in his arms.

This weekend is the first annual "Cousin Ski Camp." If all goes well, this could be a new Rippy tradition, maybe enough to lure our Utah cousins to come up. If nothing else it helps alleviate my "school is starting" panic attacks.