Why you Never Miss Church

In my neighborhood, we have had some really sad things happen..lots of young people get sick and we've had our share of youngish (50) is young people, die. Even though this is sad, it has also brought us together in such a way, that I feel that my neighbors are apart of my family..my family hears so much about them that they probably feel like that too.. To continue on with this story...about four years ago my friend Eileen's husband who was healthy and well and 60 just dropped dead one night...it was such a shock! Eileen of course was devestated and we all gathered around her to help her through this time. She has been fantastic...after the first year she really got going and has been a great example of getting up and going on with life. The next part of the story goes back to one of my first blogs..about a friend who brought me soup because I was sick..and remember, she had cancer, but was still out doing things for others. Her husband Terry, is a very funny guy, he adored his wife and when she died about a year and a half ago, we all thought Terry would just go down hill. (I personally think Claudia, his wife, made him sign in blood that he wouldn't become a hermit, that he would keep going to church, go to the temple and generally do things that he wouldn't do unless she was there.) He has pulled himself up beautifully...keeping his cute sense of humor, EVEN GOING TO WEDDING RECEPTIONS BY HIMSELF. Getting out...he kept on going...Until recently Jim was SS President and Terry was his assistant and the most important part of their job was racing from the library to see who could get to the bell first..Terry always won, because he practiced more. Anyway..I was told that in Priesthood last Sunday the men heard all this screaming and laughing and yelling coming from the Relief Society room...somebody said "well those women are having way more fun than we are"..at that point Terry snuck out to ring the bell for Sunday School and it was announced that Terry and Eileen were Engaged!!!!! Big Diamond and everything. They had been going out for several months and didn't tell anyone in case things didn't work out. Eileen said, that sometimes when Terry came to get her she ducked in the bottom of the car, so no one would see her. They wanted to keep it a secret, until they knew things would work out. They pulled a fast one on a neighborhood that prides itself on knowing things before they happen..we even know who's going to be the next Bishop before the Stake President does! The interesting thing about these two families is that they have all been friends for 30 years...their kids played together..the husbands were friends, Claudia and Eileen were friends...I learned that good things come after hard things happen and that YOU NEVER MISS CHURCH!