Comings and Goings

Our life over the past few weeks can best be summarized by one of my favorite quotes from Charles' Dickens' A Christmas Carol: "Life is full of comings and goings. That is the way of it." We've been experiencing both comings and goings in our family lately, along with the emotions, joyous and difficult, that come with each.

A couple weeks ago we learned that Grant's family will welcome a new brother-in-law in 2009 when his sister called and told us she's engaged. We are thrilled for Melissa and Justin and are so happy for them and the choices they've made. We look forward to getting to know Justin better and especially for their wedding in May.

Another of the joyous "comings" in our family this next year will be the arrival of my sister Mary's baby in March. I got to see Mary briefly before she flew out to spend time with her husband's family in Cincinnati for the holidays. Her tummy is beautifully round, she's glowing, and she and Louie could not be more visibly happy to welcome baby "Raffi" (his/her nickname for the time being since they're not going to find out the gender) into their home. They will be extraordinary parents, and it is a joyous thing to feel the excitement of awaiting a new little family member.

And as for the goings, we are saying goodbye, at least for a while, to Grant's grandmother this weekend. She passed away Tuesday evening after suffering from some serious strokes over the past couple weeks. Her health has been deteriorating over the last several months, and even when they came to visit this past summer, Grandma Moore was not quite her same old cheerful, boisterous self. Grant said the other night that he will miss her laugh most. She was (and is!) such a fun, kind woman, and we're glad she gets to be healthy and happy again and reunited with loved ones. Still, the "goings" are always hard for those of us left here.

Times like these make us all the more grateful to have the restored gospel of Jesus Christ in our lives to help us know that the "goings" are just temporary. In fact, I think Grant's typical goodbye he gives to me when leaves to go to school or work or hangs up the phone -- "Bye for now" -- might be the most appropriate thing he could say to bid farewell to his grandma. Because fortunately, we know it is just for now and that we'll see her again.

And thanks to the knowledge we do have, which allows us to know that there is life before and after death, and that family relationships perpetuate beyond the grave, it's interesting to consider that the "goings" here are "comings" there, and vice versa.

"Life is full of comings and goings. That is the way of it."