1. Mat washers. I'm not even kidding. If you go to the Rocket Express Car Wash on 72nd just off the freeway, you will find these amazing machines. You can take your filthy car mats that are so hard to clean and run them through this mat washer thing, and they come out the other side spick and span! It's so great. Really, you should stop whatever you're doing and go there right now.
2. Kids who read my blog books. So I've been blogging nine years. When I publish my 2018 blog book this January, it will be my tenth one. I display these books on our coffee table, and hardly anything makes me happier than when people read them. So imagine the joy when numerous teenagers, Seth's friends, sat around the living room Sunday at his farewell brunch, reading these books. Oh my heart!
3. Orchids. My friend Lacey drove all the way down here from Woods Cross to attend Seth's farewell talk. Then she came over afterward for the brunch, where Shulamith and I promptly put her to work cutting up muffins. Then she drove all the way back home, picked up her family, and drove back down to Provo for a baby blessing (well, two baby blessings, I think: twins!). In addition to all that, she brought me this beautiful orchid. Lacey is someone who understands how to be a friend. I love her and am grateful for her.
4. Patty and Clairy. Patty is one of my "lifetime" friends. We've known each other since college, where we were roommates for just one semester, but have somehow stayed close all these years. In pre-internet days, unbelievable as it may sound, we actually exchanged handwritten snail mail letters regularly. Email was life-altering for us, no more paper, stamps, or envelopes. When Gerald saw her in Sacrament Meeting Sunday, he made an astute observation: "You manage to get here for all these big events." Yes, she does. Patty is someone who shows up. Though she lives way down near St. George, she interrupts her busy life and manages to show up for weddings, mission farewells, mission homecomings, all the big events in my kids' lives. Often, she brings another favorite of mine, her sister Clairy. I'm so grateful the two of them were here with us this past Sunday.
5. Hearing Eli sing. I'm a typical mom who loves to watch her kids do pretty much anything. Those opportunities decrease as kids get older, but fortunately, they don't disappear entirely like so many "lasts" I'm facing right now. Eli loves to sing, especially to the Lord. His voice is quiet and lovely. Sunday, he sang an EFY medley called "Praise the Man," accompanied by Amanda. When we practiced that morning (I turned pages for Amanda), I fought back tears, and lost. Thank you, Eli, for being a part of Seth's farewell meeting. It brought me back to Luke's farewell in 2006, when Isaiah performed a piano solo, "We'll Bring the World His Truth." I cried then too. Such a wimp mom I am.
6. Emilys. No, that is not a typo. I have two friends named Emily. One of them texted me Sunday night with a grammar question. That led to a cool discussion about pronouns. Dang, hardly anything is as much fun as grammar, particularly pronouns. Thanks, Em! My other Emily walks with me two mornings a week. Usually, I'd say we balance our conversation fairly equally. One of us talks the first 20 minutes (usually I), then says, "And how are things with you?" and the other (usually she) talks the rest of the time. It's pretty perfect actually. Except this week, I'm kinda dominating the entire walk. Like I don't think she said a single thing about herself today. She just listened patiently to my rant, nodded, and commented appropriately.
7. Rain. Right now. This moment. Enough said.
8. The future Elder Erichsen. Well, what can I say about him? That for someone barely 18, he gave a splendid talk, his first "grownup" talk in Sacrament Meeting. That he was funny and confident, and the light of his young testimony shined through. That his eagerness to serve his mission was evident.
He is truly ready. Me? Nope, not at all. But that doesn't matter, does it? It's all about Seth now and his decision to follow his Savior and serve the people of Paraguay.
Still, I'm grateful for the tiny things, like friends and orchids and mat washers and rain, to get me through the next seven days -- and more importantly, the 730 after that.
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