Small Simple Things

Written by: Lincoln

I wonder how many of you can identify the object in this picture?  Thankfully not many know what the above picture is about.  Only those who have been really sick, usually post-surgery have ever seen these before.  This small item is a sponge sucker.  It is made by gluing a small durable sponge on the end of a sucker stick.  When patients are not allowed to eat or drink they are given this sponge sucker in a small cup of ice with very little water in it.  They are allowed to wet the sponge sucker and then wipe the sponge on their lips and inside their cheeks and tongue in order to try and moisten the salivary glands that get so dry when someone is not allowed to eat/drink, and for my boy this sometimes went on for several weeks at a time. 

When my boy was going through his adolescent years we had long stays in the hospital.  Many of them were post-operative and he would spend many weeks trying to recover from the latest trial of his intestines not functioning properly.  I think the longest stint was for 28 days in a row at Primary Children’s Medical Center.  This sponge sucker was/is such a lifesaver.  It would calm my son’s unquenchable thirst as he waited for his intestines to awaken after being operated on.  I remember so vividly how he begged to have this soon after surgery.  The first few days he was not allowed to have anything by mouth.  As the days wore on the doctors finally relented and the small cup of ice with a new sponge sucker was brought into the room.  It was always such a marvelous event!    I would watch my small son savor every bit of water from that sucker as he rubbed it over his cracked lips and dry tongue.  It brought so much joy into my life just watching him enjoy that ice cold sponge sucker.  I was always so thankful for the comfort that this little device could bring to my son.

As I sat in a chair next to him, in his hospital room one night, as he slept (I don’t remember exactly which time…they have all ran together) I remember looking at that cup and being amazed at how such a small and simple item brought so much comfort into my little boy’s life.  I stood up and took this picture wanting to try and capture those feeling I felt that night.  Feelings of gratitude for the many small blessings in my life, far too numerable to quantify.

I have kept this picture for years.  To many it means nothing; yet every time I see it I remember the feeling in my heart that night.  The commitment I made to try and be grateful all the time, to carry gratitude in my heart continually.  But being the weak man I am I have failed numerous times.  Yet as with many things my gratitude goal is a journey, not a destination.

 

I am here in Cleveland spending a few precious days with my son.  I look forward to these days.  Let me share with you one of the most exciting, yet simple events we have been able to do while my son and I are together in Cleveland.  We have been preparing for weeks for this to happen.  My wife brought out the needed equipment with her last time she flew from SLC to Cleveland. 

BASEBALL!!!

Yes….that's it!  Throwing a baseball back and forth together. (can you spot the ball?)  While seemingly such a simple thing to so many people it has been a great event for me this trip.  We were both so excited for it and we went out our first morning together.  We drove down to a beautiful park that sits on the banks of the Cuyahoga River.  The weather was excellent and the smell of our old leather mitts brought back such a flood of wonderful memories, for both of us, from his childhood, before he became too sick to play competitively. 

Since the time Ben was old enough to throw a ball we spent many wonderful hours at the baseball field.  We were blessed to have such great coaches, meet lifelong friends, and learn many important lessons about life.  I miss those days watching my son play at the beautiful old baseball fields that were once in the Riverton Park. 

I am grateful that I have this chance to play ball with my son.  I am grateful that he has days where he feels well enough to go and play catch with his old man.  I am even more grateful that he still wants to.  We have been out every day since we have been here together.  My arm is finally getting warmed up.  Yesterday we even went out in the rain and played catch together, it was our only chance since it was a steady downpour all day long.  I have enjoyed every moment!

I know that this is not much of a story for most people.  We have done many other new and exciting things while we have been living here in Cleveland.  It is such a wonderful area filled with so much beauty, history and warm hearted people. 

I just wanted to share with you a few of my thoughts and express my gratitude for some of the simple things that get taken for granted.  I also want to throw out a challenge to you.  Take the time to enjoy the seemingly small yet special events, things, and people in your life.  Take nothing for granted.  Notice them, they are all around.  Waste no time.

When I see you next please share.  I would love hear about them.

________________________________________________

A few other fun things during my time in Cleveland

A day trip to Pittsburgh PA.  What a wonderful day.  I love traveling with my family and it has been a long time since we have had the chance to travel for fun.  I just wish the rest of my family (Bailee, Kyle, Ollie, Brooklyn) could have been there.  This picture was taken of some very expensive bikes, to the price of $48,000!.  They are located in an amazing bicycle shop museum called Bicycle Heaven, a must stop if your in Pittsburgh.  This is the only place known in the world to see four Bowden Spacelander bicycles in the same location.  The Bowden Spacelander bicycle is supposed to be a bike collectors dream bike.

A trip up the Incline in Pittsburgh.  What a ride and what an amazing view from Washington Heights of the city of Pittsburgh.  A beautiful city surrounded by rivers and bridges.

No better way to end  our day than a baseball game.  We watched the Pirates come from behind and beat the Detroit Tigers (their largest come back since 2008).  Great game.  We were lucky to get some great seats for a steal of a deal.  It was so fun to see my boy having so much fun.

Long walks with my beautiful bride in the amazing parks that go through the deep woods and along the rivers in the area.

A tour of the Freighter Museum in the Cleveland Harbor.  The museum is an old freighter that you can walk through and tour.  Very amazing.

A day long driving tour of 19 covered bridges in Ashtabula County.  They have claim to the shortest (pictured above - 18' span) and the longest covered bridge in America.

A beautiful day with Benjamin and my wife seeing some amazing county.

Another bridge

...and another.  We saw 18 bridges that day.

My favorite place - Headlands Beach

Hunting beach glass on Headlands Beach

The missionaries taking care of us....and my wife taking care of them.

Mama, Mommy, Mom, Mother.

Written by: Ben

I will give a quick update before I get to the real meat of what I wanted to post about. My health has been a tad finicky the last little while, I had to start a regiment of anti-biotics for bacteria overgrowth. (This is basically when the "normal" gut flora or organisms in your gut grow at a rate at which my bowels are not able to handle. It causes distention, pain, nausea, and a decline in appetite to name just a few symptoms). All of this combined with a few other things make it more difficult to do what I enjoy. There has been some warm days, which have luckily coincided with my "good" days of health. So even though the "good" days are fewer than usual I have still been able to get out and use them to the best of my abilities. Otherwise life is going pretty stinkin good, just kicking it and doing my best to remain patient while waiting for transplant.

I had the opportunity this week to help a young lady whom I have never met or been acquainted with. My Nursing Coordinator called and asked if I would be willing to help a young lady she had just met and who was going through the first few appointments required by the team at the Clinic for transplant evaluation. Permission was given for us to speak over the phone, so I gave the young lady a call. (We will call her R since I don't know her all that well).

 R is a young college student in the Chicago area who has some digestive issues that have similarities to mine. I gave her a call a few days back and was greeted by a very bubbly and chipper sounding young lady who was a tad confused why a Utah number had called her phone. I explained who I was and asked if I could help in any way. She then asked a series of questions that brought back a mixture of minor depression, shock, anxiety and laughter. I could hear the fear in R's voice, and how she was searching for any kind of comfort from a stranger whom she had never met or even seen a picture of. My heart went out to this poor girl. We discussed some hard topics like survival rates, the difficulties of moving ones life, dealing with tests and docs, and a myriad of other questions and topics. R seemed to handle all of my responses well, although I could tell she was trying her best to sound strong. I was reminded of all the hard days, all the heart wrenching realities and possibilities that come with this process and others like it. I wanted to be next to R, to pull someone I have never met close and to tell her that it will all be alright, that the hard days end, the world still turns, and that despite all the difficulties, sadness, hopelessness, and heartbreaks, it will all be okay. I was in R's shoes just a few months back and even though I had amazing support all around (which I will get to in a sec) it would have been spectacular to talk to someone who was in the thick of it so to speak. So I was honored to be able to provide someone with at least a tiny bit of comfort that I was not able to have myself. 

Now onto what I actually wanted to write this post about: My sweet Mother! A fun story to start it all off. A few years/lifetimes ago I was fresh off my mission and going to school for the first semester since being back. I was walking out of the building and needed to call my Mom for something, now in my defense my mom is one of the best people on the planet and in a very child like and teasing way I affectionately had her as Mommy in my phone. So being all hip and new to the advancements of technology I whip out my trusty new I-Phone 6 (which is still my current phone) and use Siri to call my mom. So I hold the home button down and say "call Mommy", now the phone has a slight delay as it understands and interprets my voice into a command and gets ready to fulfill my desire. While my phone is doing that, I walk by a bunch of parked cars. Whilst next to one, what I can only describe as an embodiment of all that is gorgeous and wonderful in the world steps out and turns to look at me. Her loosely curled locks of gold brown hair bouncing slightly as she hops out of the car and flashes a brilliantly beautiful smile in my direction. I of course respond with trying not to run into the nearest stationary object, and all the while attempting to make walking look like an Olympic sport. So I muster up a cute and albeit doofy smile to try and impress this goddess of a woman that has been sent to make my day even more spectacular, or so I thought. Right at that exact moment Siri chimes in notifying me that she was going to complete the task I had asked of her and decides to repeat it back to me. With an astonishing volume that has never again presented itself my phone basically screams "Calling Mommy!" In an instant all of my hopes were dashed against the rocks of my childish ways as the gorgeous female bursts into laughter at my phones declaration. To top it off I realize I am now next to my car which sadly was more of a chick car than an impressive set of wheels. As I get into my car I lose the last bit of dignity I had and forcefully place my forehead against the steering wheel of my car; turning my head slightly to watch the beautiful female walk into the building.

Okay enough of the embarrassing stories. My Mom is perhaps one of the greatest human beings to ever grace this world with her presence. I could go on for hours and never even get past the basics of why my mom is so amazing. I will attempt to name a few: She is the biggest mama bear of all time, she loves all those she comes in contact with (unless it is when she is behind the wheel), she moved from all she has known and loved to be with her sick and terrified child, she has helped build not one but two homes centered on the Savior, she makes me laugh and smile on a daily basis, she drives me up the wall at times, she never gives up on me or any member of her family, she cries during almost any kids movie (in fact she has the biggest and softest heart of just about anyone I know), and she has been one of the greatest examples of pointing others towards their Heavenly Home and Savior that I have ever seen.

I am beyond blessed to have a the best mother in the world (according to my completely unbiased opinion)

She has taught be to love openly, cry gracefully, laugh uncontrollably, smile unceasingly, and give wholeheartedly.

Today my mom turns 50! I can't believe it, and I hope she is having a party at home with the girls. (My parents swapped places a few days back so my mom could be home for a little while). So naturally here are a few pictures of the last few years and some of the adventures I have had with my mom. (I wanted to post old photos, but sadly I do not have access to any of them).
       

My Mom and I try to get out every once in a while and enjoy the beautiful things that are around us.

Mom loves all the missionaries out here. She continues to be a blessing in as many of their lives as she can. She especially loves all of the sight sisters and that makes them some of the luckiest missionaries on the planet. 

Mom is going to kill me for some of these pictures. We got to experience out first major league baseball game together. 

Ever since I was little we would go to Nicklecade or any other form of arcade/fair. At which my Mom would love to play Ski-ball. I am pretty sure I can beat her now, even though she will battle me on that point of discussion.  

Plus my Mom is freaking gorgeous!

My Mother has always made the gospel a priority not only in the home, but in the lives of all of us children. 

I think this Calvin and Hobbes comic describes one of the many ways my mom and I interact.

She has been there for all the ups and downs, which in my family has been some serious altitude changes in both directions. (fun fact: Mom hates heights, I would post some fun videos if I knew how).

This picture captures my parents relationship in a nutshell. I could not be more blessed.

I am sure there are days that I drive my mom crazy with all of my shenanigans. Yet she handles everything thrown at her with such poise and grace that it takes my breath away. Even though she is terrified of heights, hates spiders and really most creepy crawlies, screams and gets scared way too easy, has road rage, nags me to clean way too often, favors the grandchild over her own son, forgets that she has three children, loves the Bachelor, drinks way too much Coke Zero, binge watches better than anyone I know, and is an emotional mess at times, she is the best Mother any child could ever wish for. Love you Mommy!!

P.S. I apologize if my grammar is not super great, my principle editor (my Mom) is not available to proof-read this post.

An Influence For Good

Written By: Ben

I swear that every single time I get around to writing in this Blog I always end up saying something like "Sorry it has been forever, but I am going to start writing more frequently...". Clearly I have not held up my end of the bargain, so sadly you will just have to wait and see if I actually get better at writing in the blog. 

It doesn't necessarily make sense, but a lot and yet very little has happened since I last wrote. One of the big things that happened was the fact that I turned 25! My sweet Mother wrote about it so I won't include much. February 9th was the big day, and it is weird to think that pretty much a month has passed since then. I had a low key birthday, Mom and I went out to eat and went to the movies where we watched "The Upside" which I loved and related to in different ways. I was also able to go out with two very good friends of mine from here in Cleveland. These two love the Cheesecake Factory, so we went there, since I generally do not eat much, and of course the cheesecake was indeed delicious. Overall it was a very good birthday, even if I did turn a quarter of a century.

I have had the amazing opportunity to get to know many amazing people out here in Cleveland. It would take me far too long to talk about all of them, but I will say that they are each individually amazing people that have done so many things to make this whole experience a continual joy. I try and get out as often as my health permits me, which sometimes means only once a week and on other occasions it means multiple times a day. I have noticed that I do not talk about my health in much detail on the blog, I am not sure why that is, but whatever. Since the weather has been rather chilly, I have not gotten outside near as much as I would like, and I can easily say that it has affected me in ways that I don't really enjoy. So I am going to have to find a way to bundle up nice and tight so I can brave the frigid cold with a little more excitement. I am a firm believer in the phrase "The body and the spirit are the soul of a man" and when I don't get my outdoor fix my spirit takes a dip and respectively so does my physical health. Generally this shows in the subtleties of my mood and life, but it still has a seeping effect into the many facets of my life.

Overall I would gladly proclaim that I live a very blessed and fortunate life. 

I guess I should probably talk a little bit more about my health... Overall things are holding steady, but I guess a moment of brutal honesty is in order, some days it really takes a toll on me. I guess this is a reason I have been reluctant to write in the blog. I have felt very inadequate and weak, even though we all have days and moments like this, I have a hard time being open about it, especially when it is for anyone and everyone to read. I am sure many if not all of you can relate in one way or another, but nobody likes to show weakness especially when it comes to those we love or that we feel look up to us in some way (not to mention the ladies).  I think it is a universal feeling of wanting to put forth our strengths and best selves for all to see, and there is nothing wrong with that, but with this blog I guess I am trying to be very open and honest. Some days when all I can do is lay there and watch TV trying to control my pain or distention I feel pretty useless. Luckily I learned and continue to learn that if we can just do our best to play with whatever cards we are dealt, you usually come out a winner in many more ways than one. So yea life has a way of kicking us all while we are down, but it also has a way of making the simplest things impact us in far deeper ways than we could ever imagine. I cannot count the times a sunset or a star filled sky has touched the very depths of my heart, perhaps letting me know that even in the most trying of circumstances, life is still filled with many marvelous and spectacular miracles.    

This leads me to the pictures below:

 My Mother and I have been extremely fortunate to have had the blessing that is each and every one of these incredible Sister Missionaries. I couldn't swarm this blog post with pictures of all of the sisters we have gotten to know, but here are a few of them. 

It is funny, because on my mission I sometimes thought the sisters were spoiled and a tad full of themselves. (I of course was completely and utterly wrong). Each sister has been such an amazing blessing in our lives, and if I ever find out that some dirt bag hurts one of these beautiful daughters of God my cousin and I will throw them off the tallest cliff we can find. (I swear I am a very gentle human being). 

This last picture comes with a story. These two Sisters (Sister Hickenlooper on the left and Sister Lund on the right) were the first ones to give me and my Mother a tour at the Kirtland Historic Sights. During the tour my Mom chatted with Sister Hickenlooper and I had the amazing opportunity to talk a lot with Sister Lund in particular, and for me it was very special. I had been in Ohio less than a month when we took the tour. As I chatted with Sister Lund, and listened to her testify of the Savior it filled me with peace and calm during a very stressful and desperately hard time in my life. I was also able to share a story that is very close to my heart that I have only shared a handful of times in my life. I sadly never had the opportunity to tell Sister Lund how much she helped me, although I most certainly will remember the experience. She helped me to feel somehow accepted in a land that was foreign to me; she smiled at me like I wasn't there as a very broken and scared young man, but as an earnest seeker of the joys of life. I am sure she and the other Sisters have touched countless lives, but I will always be indebted to her for how she helped me in a very pivotal part of my life. Indeed she may never know just how much she did for me.  

I am confident that each Sister we have met has impacted and influenced many people in more ways than they could possibly realize. For they have all been a light in the life of my Mother and I. 

The Sisters are an astounding testimony to the simple truth that we often do not know the incredible amount of good we each can do in this crazy world. 

The Best of Ben

Written by Nikki

This week on February 9th Benjamin will celebrate his 25th birthday!

So I want to celebrate him!

He has always been a gentle and kind young boy and

he's grown into a gentle and kind man!

I don't know many people that could handle the up and down health trials that he has and do it with as much optimism, joy and dignity. 

He really is an example to me of finding joy in the journey.

Fun facts about Ben:

*  Loves the outdoors

*  Loves to tease

*  Rides a street motorcycle

*  Speaks Spanish

*  Surprisingly good at Just Dance

*  He's a scaredy cat 

*  Loves Grape Juice

*  He's Tenderhearted

*  Likes Funyuns

*  Loves Baseball

*  He's a good shot

*  He was in a production of the Nutcracker (as a favor to his sisters) That's brotherly love!

*  Uncle Ben

*  Loves the Canadian Rockies

*  Loves fishing

*  Served a mission to Indianapolis, Indiana

*  History Buff

*  Spouts off random facts... That are actually true.

*  Is a CNA with goal of being an NP

*  Sometimes answers to Stud Muffin

*  Loves Loves Loves Hiking
*  Likes to watch Food Network, especially when he can't eat food.
*  Likes to give dating advice to his younger sister. ;)

Prepare yourself for Photo overload! :)

We LOVE you Benjamin!

We're grateful your our son, brother and uncle. 

Happy Birthday!!

Ohio/Transplant Update:  We have passed the 6 month mark.  When that day came and went,  I will not lie I was discouraged.  I have had a hard time getting my groove back.  I always want to be 100% honest about how I feel.  It's really hard being separated from my home and the rest of my family, especially my husband, but as a mom this is where I belong and there is nowhere else I would be.  I felt my first -22 degrees, and dang that is cold!!  Benjamin experienced a polar vortex on the mission so it wasn't his first experience with this kind of cold! 

Benjamin's health continues to stay steady.  He still has good days and bad days as far as his energy and how his stomach feels, but you will rarely hear him complain about anything.  He stays as busy as he can.  Some of the things he really enjoys are teaching with the full time missionaries, being involved in the YSA ward, going out with friends and visiting the Senior missionaries at the Kirtland Historic Site.  

We continue to prayerfully wait for the phone call that will change everything.  Even when we feel discouraged we have faith in Heavenly Fathers plan for us.  We are here in Ohio, in this place at this time for a reason, and we will continue to be prayerful that we might serve the lord and the people we come in contact with in any way we can. We are so grateful for all of those who continually serve and support our family both in Utah and here in Ohio.  So many have given of themselves for us and we feel so much love and gratitude daily. 

Mosiah 24:14-15 And I will also ease the burdens which are put upon your shoulders, that even you cannot feel them upon your backs, even while you are in bondage; and this will I do that ye may stand as witnesses for me hereafter, and that ye may know of a surety that I, the Lord God, do visit my people in their afflictions

And now it came to pass that the burdens which were laid upon Alma and his brethren were made light; yea the Lord did strengthen them that they could bear up their burdens with ease, and they did submit cheerfully and with patience to all the will of the Lord. 

Ether 12:27 And if men come unto me I will show unto them their weakness. I give unto men weakness that they may be humble; and my grace is sufficient for all men that humble themselves before me; for if they humble themselves before me, and have faith in me, then will I make weak things become strong unto them.