Every. Single. Day.

Honestly, I don't even know what to write.  Our world can be so beautiful and life can be so wonderful.  It makes me very sad that sometimes that is not the case.

Five days ago there was a mass shooting in our city.  On Saturday afternoon, I was waiting in Dallas to fly into Odessa, Texas when a friend texted and warned me to stay inside due to an active shooter.  Soon, I started receiving several other texts warning of the danger and so I pulled up a website of our local news.  Everyone around me at the airport was heading to Odessa/Midland as well.  We were standing in line to board and quietly sharing what we knew/heard while everyone was trying to figure out what exactly was happening.   How many people had been killed already?  How many gunmen were there?  Were family members and friends safe?  We boarded.  It was the longest 45 minute flight of my life.

One thing that was comforting during that time is I knew most of my immediate and extended family were out of town for the three day weekend.  Brian was in Dallas with the boys.  Brinley was in Utah.  However, poor Aubrey (12 years old) was home alone with her cousin Lauron.  They were hiding, scared, in a closet.  Lauron had a her phone, and they were watching way too much social media about the terrifying events.  I was worried about my brother, Kerry, who is a trooper.  I knew he would be very involved trying to capture the suspect/s...and he was.

The shooter went on a crazy driving shooting spree all over town.  He killed 7 innocent people and injured 22 others.  He shot at and chased one of my dear friends.  He killed a 15 year old girl while her family was shopping for a new truck.  He murdered a 29 year old postal worker so he could steal her mail van.  He killed the father of my eleven year old nephew's friend.  The family was on their way to take family pictures.

The shootings took place in areas my family is in Every. Single. Day.

They took place were we grocery shop and eat out and work out.  They took place on the streets I drive on to visit both of my brothers and their families and my sister and her family.  One of the shootings took place by our High School football stadium.

In the days since, as I drive along 42nd street, or loop 338 or Yukon/Grandview, I think of the families whose lives have been changed forever.  Of our town which has been changed forever.

I am heartbroken.  His senseless acts of violence will scar so many lives for years to come.

I am heartbroken, but I am also in awe.  The outpouring of love and support for our community and within our community has been a blessing.  Officers from other areas came in to add extra support and security.  Businesses in the area offered free food to first responders and free funeral services to the families affected.

There have been lemonade stands and benefit concerts and blood drives to support those injured.  Tanner and I went to the mall two days after the shooting and there were comfort dogs.  Kind people from all over Texas drove in to share their trained dogs so anyone needing extra love could receive some from petting the dogs.  Their thoughtfulness brought me to tears.

Witnessing the many kind and generous actions of others has been a blessing.  It's a reminder to me of the overall goodness of humanity.  It's a reminder to be kind and to reach out to others.

It's a reminder to slow down and treasure the most important parts of life Every. Single. Day.

🎵You Gotta Dig a Little Deeper🎵

 Sister Gwilliam's Email, Monday March 29, 2021

This past week I got to switch companions for a day and go up in the mountains to Sweet, Idaho. 

I was having a good time up until me and Sister Weber went to get ready for bed. As I started to say my prayer, I heard a loud rustling motion behind me. When I opened my eyes I saw my companion frantically swiping her hand back and forth over her sheets.

 I asked her what she was doing, and she calmly informed me that every night when she gets into bed, she usually finds several bugs crawling in her bedding. She swipes them out, vacuums them up them up, and then wakes up to more crawling out of her pillowcase.

Like any normal human, I was HORRIFIED, and asked her if she had told someone about this. She just shrugged her shoulders and said "They live in the mountains, they're used to it."

I do not live in the mountains, and I am NOT used to it. And it was a testament to how tired I was that I just shrugged my shoulders and went to bed.

Looking back that was a horrible decision, but I guess I was blessed for my faith (or pitied for my stupidity?😂) because when I woke there was none to be found.

So that was a fun adventure. I have to admit I was pretty relieved to return to my bug-less bed in Star.

One of my favorite experiences this week came from a lady who I'll call Kara. She's one of the first people we met in Star, and I absolutely love her to death. 

It is so easy to be impressed by her. She is kind, generous, attends church every week, and is faithful in her church calling as a humanitarian representative. 

When we came into the area, the missionaries told us how awesome Kara was, but they also said that they had stopped meeting with her because she never seemed very interested. They would invite her to feel closer to her Savior by reading the scriptures, and every single time, she would promise to do so, and then decide not to. 

I was very confused. Based on what I saw, Kara seemed so interested in learning more about Jesus Christ - why would someone who was so anxious to come closer to Him choose not to read from the scriptures?

In our first meeting with her, we had a great discussion. We talked all about healing through the Savior, and Kara was actively participated. I left the lesson confident that she would read the specific chapter from the scriptures we had invited her to. 

The next week we returned, and I was so excited to hear what she had learned. After a few minutes of talking, she told us that she hadn't gotten to the reading. 

 I admit, I was pretty disappointed. My very first thought to myself was that maybe the other missionaries were right. Maybe she really didn't want to learn. 

But as we talked to her more during that meeting, we realized something that both us and the other missionaries had overlooked.

Kara can't read.

I know what you're thinking. How could we somehow miss that that?? Honestly I was thinking the same thing - I have never felt dumber in my entire life (actually that's debatable...but I definitely felt dumb😂). 

To be fair, she does technically KNOW how to read - she actually used to be a fairly avid reader, however due to some health problems, Kara now gets vertigo when she reads on her own. She hates listening to audio books because, due to those same health problems, she is deaf in one ear.

Once we realized this, everything made a whole lot more sense. She wasn't refusing to read because she didn't want to, she just couldn't. 

And no one had dug deep enough to find out why.

As soon as we discovered her struggle, we told Kara that we don't want her to miss out on the power the Book of Mormon can bring into her life. We offered to call her a few mornings a week and study with her. She happily agreed, and we have loved spending 15 minutes together just relating the scriptures to our lives. It has helped us grow even closer to her and to Christ. And we just love Kara!!

I'm so grateful that we were able to follow that prompting to dig a little deeper, and to go to the root of her problem. Especially because I've seen myself how powerful it is when you take the time to learn more about Christ.

I've had a lot of ups and downs in my mission, but two solid truths have stayed constant for me:

1) I love my Savior 

2) I love things that bring me closer to Him.

The Book of Mormon has been one of the BIGGEST things that have helped me to learn more about His character and His love for us. And I feel that comfort and love from my Savior every time I read that book. 

My favorite part about the whole experience with Kara is that after that first time we read together, one of her friends in the congregation messaged us and said 

"Sisters!!! {Kara} and I hung out today and she brought up how you guys were reading {the Book of Mormon} with her. She said that it was one of the best experiences she has had!"

She went on to say about how much Kara loved meeting with us, and ended with 

"*You are making a difference *"

I was so grateful to recieve that text. It was so good to know that reading together had touched Kara just as much as it had touched me.

There is power when we read God's word!! It wasn't me who made a difference, it was the Savior. And he can do the same in your life!  I invite you all - this Easter weekend especially - to take time to read a little bit more from your scriptures each day.

Take a few minutes extra with your Savior, and I PROMISE you, that the power that comes from that will make a tangible difference in your levels of happiness and in your life. 

I've seen it in my own:))

I love you all!

-Sister Gwilliam 

Pictures:

-Drinking from the Sweet natural spring

-The District😎

-Me and Sister Weber

-Ice cream at 10pm👀

-The Elders pranked us with this apple. Long story.

Update from Sister Gwilliam

January 18, 2021

So as a missionary, it's pretty common to switch around in your mission. About every 6 weeks (which we call a transfer), our mission president moves missionaries around to new locations within Idaho and Oregon. How often you transfer depends on how the mission president feels prompted, but usually missionaries don't stay in one place for very long.

This week we recieved transfer news, and because I've been in Boise for almost 6 months now, I fully expected to leave. To my shock, both me and my companion will be staying here for another 6 weeks🥳🥳 which means at the end of this transfer, almost half of my mission will be spent in one area. (Welllll like almost 8 months... but pretty close lol)

In celebration of discovering I'll be staying in Boise for 8ish months, I decided I'll list 7.5 things I've learned in BN1🙌🏻

1) You don't have to be rich to be generous

One low key embarassing example of this is when I forgot to bring nice shoes after a service project, and I didnt realize it until we had to be at a lesson in 15 minutes. I was stuck in a dress and Nikes with pretty much no other options😂 As I was about to resolve myself to pretending tennis shoes are the new high heel, we remembered that a kind member lived nearby. Luckily, she was generous enough to give me a whole closet's worth of shoe options to borrow.

In addition to generosity to me, they are also so giving to those around them! This area of Boise is not the most well off in the world, and often others in the area will ask for food or clothes or a ride somewhere. Although they are often in the same boat, families (usually ones with 8 kids, 2 jobs, a church calling, and full time school) are always willing to give of their time or resources to help.

2) Calling someone by name makes a huge difference.

One thing I've really appreciated about serving here is that several people have made a point to say "Sister Gwilliam" (or Squilliam or Gloria or some attempt at it😂) instead of just "Sister". I've done my best to call everyone by name as well.

Several of the people we're teaching feel more comfortable calling us just "Sister", so a definite highlight of this week is when Casey - one of my FAVORITE people in the world - said "I love you Sister Gwilliam" as we were leaving. She had never used my full name before, so I felt so loved in that moment.  

2.5) The potato thing is a total myth - except for when it isn't 

We either have no potatoes at all, or every single person we meet that week gives us 2 different forms of potato for dinner and a free sack of potatoes - there is no in-between

3) A clean home makes a difference.

I've noticed this in our own apartment, and I've noticed it in the homes of others. I don't mean spotless clean - when you have 8 kids (or one missionary companion😜) that's not always realistic. But basic hygiene and cleanliness bring in the spirit and definitely make a difference.

4) If you treat everyone as if they are going through a hard time, then 98.876% of the time you'll be right.

This week we were worried about a lesson, because a little boy we are teaching is always bouncing off the walls. It's reallyyy hard to keep him focused sometimes...actually most of the time😂 We always play games to teach, so during this game, as he was jumping from checkpoint to checkpoint, I asked him how he could be kind to someone this week. Usually he gets distracted and goes on a tangent, so we have to repeat the question again so he keeps his answer on track. As I was about to repeat the question, I felt like I should stop and listen this time. He started talking, and although he didn't answer the question, he told me all about another boy at school who has been bullying him. 

Suddenly, the reason he's had trouble staying focused made sense. It must be really hard to learn all about being nice to other people when people at school aren't nice to you. I was filled with so much love for this little boy! Although I couldn't take the bullying away, I was able to talk to him about his problem in a more compassionate way, and I feel like I understand him better now.

I've found that this is the case for most people. Whether unfocused or seemingly perfect - pretty much every person you meet is struggling with something you're not aware of.

5) Those who have gone through the hardest things often shine the brightest 

Cliché quote I know😂 but because I have been blessed to talk to several people who have opened up about their trials, I have seen just how beautiful they've become because of it. 

6) If you ask small children "does this look drinkable?"  for an object lesson, then they will walk up the the bowl and stick their entire face in there to drink it. Even if another child's face is already in the bowl and the water is covered in pepper...(#lessonfail)

7) Those we work with think we're teaching them, but often they're teaching us much more.

I have learned SO MUCH from the people in Boise, and I'm pretty pumped to serve around them for another 6 weeks! 

Love you all! Have the best weeks!

-Sister Gwilliam 

 

Meanwhile in Utah

Last semester Brian and I were wondering how Brinley was fitting everything in.  She was diligent with her course work and she kept church a priority, but she also played so much.  She had outings throughout the day and into the evenings and late nights almost every single night.  We were also a little concerned when she told us her bedtime was usually 3:30 am...as the earliest....every night.  Seriously???  How was our girl not getting sick?

This semester Bryn has more challenging classes.  She is taking Anatomy, Stats, Human Development, ASL, Raquetball and Book of Mormon.  (I may have missed a class or two.)  Anatomy takes a ton of time, but she is loving it.  Stats has not come naturally for her, but she puts in the time to make it click.

Brian and I have been impressed as she has scaled back her extracurricular activities to keep her studies a priority.  It's been hard for her.  She's been frustrated trying to adjust to her new semester and still have some sort of a social life.  This girl has always been self motivated and self directed though, and she is figuring it out.  

She's a great example to me on laser focus and accomplishing goals. Here are a few pictures from this semester.

It finally snowed a couple of times.  Bryn is LOVING it.  I think she was probably 14 the last time it really snowed much when she was living in Texas.

I think this was from Divine Comedy.  I love that she invited Taryn to join in!  (Taryn moved to Utah from Arkansas a few weeks ago.)

She and Brian have been bonding over the fun v-ball and b-ball games she gets to attend.  She is turning into a huge sports fan.  I get the social part of the fun but otherwise, I don't get it.  

Roommate bonding....

Lastly, her view from campus one early Saturday morning.  She has been missing out on weekend trips with roommates and sleeping in on Saturdays so she can attend multiple Anatomy open labs.  She knows she needs the extra study time to do well.   Most exciting....her hard work with her studies is paying off.  She called on Saturday to say she received a half tuition scholarship for a year!  Super impressive!  

Weirdly Busy Week

This week has been weirdly busy.  Nothing all consuming...just a lot of little things that needed to be handled every single day. (Two doctors appointments, providing Trunk or Treat craft booth, hosting a baby shower, glasses shopping, ....stuff like that on top of our normal busy routine.) Those things got in the way of my daily schedule of blogging, working out, slipping in a daily nap in etc....  

On Monday, Tanner had his follow up appointment and was cleared to go back to school.  Woo-hoo!!!  He was well enough to get a flu shot but was not to thrilled about the prospect.  He was joking around with the nurse and it was cracking me up.  He is usually very reserved around people he doesn't know well.  I am so glad he is feeling better.

He is not released to play sports until next week.  THANK YOU for that Dr. Ramos!  Tanner has a two weeks of makeup work to finish.  All of his teachers are pressing him to try to wrap it up this week because grades are due. I wanted him to forget about football and focus on school.  He has been working his tail off and has had to go several times to morning and afternoon tutoring.  (or "torturing" as Tanner texts it...not even sure he realizes he is spelling it wrong.)  He is feeling soooo much better now and has completed almost all of his missing work.

The top left photo just says it all. He would come right in from being at school all day and then settle in for another couple of hours to catch up.  He wasn't 100% well but just plugging along the best he could.

Speaking of flu shots.  Park is a big wimp when it comes to shots.  I knew he was leaving during one of his classes and I asked him if he'd meet me at Sams.  I didn't say why and I guess he assumed he was helping me load some heavy groceries.  We met at the pharmacy and he was incredulous when he found out why he was there.  He kept shaking his head and saying "You tricked me! I'm never helping you again."  I did point out that I never said why I wanted him to meet me.  I took him out for Orange Leaf after but I received a lot of looks like this over the next couple of days.  (But then we would both bust up laughing.)

Aubrey and I spent a little bit of time over several days and went all over town trying to find glasses she liked.  She had no luck and was resigned to just use her old frames.  Luckily she skipped her morning classes on Wednesday and we hit up one more shop.  (Don't judge! When your kids have things scheduled from 7:45-5:45 every weekday, sometimes you have to skip school to find glasses or get a flu shot.)  She found two pair she loved.  

She was able to get two pair for $89 which is less than we usually spend for one each year at Walmart.  Wish I knew about this shop years ago.

Puffer coats...we had to pose.  Gram came in later and she had one on too.  This was Taco Villa Monday at Rosas on Wednesday.

We are finishing off the week with basketball tryouts (Aubrey), a football game (Parker), a trip to Lubbock to watch Parker's game (Dad and Tanner), a temple trip (Aubrey, Dad and Tanner) and hosting a baby shower (me.)   Happy Friday!

Christmas Eve

We had our Christmas Eve family gathering.

I thought our three looked pretty good walking in to Kerry's house.

Tanner, Holden, Parker

Uncle Nate w/ his dog Tucker

Ella w/ baby Jesus

We asked Brinley, just before it started, to record a message. It was fun to feel like she was there for a few minutes. Here are a few pictures from the night.

The group.  Uncle Alan and Aunt Aileen Pitt left early.  It's weird to have such a small gathering.  Usually we have invited a few friends or coworkers or missionaries.  Trying to keep it smaller with Covid.  Lft-rt: Ty Hill, Stevie Pitcox, Chris, Auv, La, Dylan, Holden, Tanner, Bri, Joseph, Kate, Gram, The Martins, The Kings behind the Martins

Emily & David on the couch, Brian, King family: Tyler (friend), Danielle, Laurel, Ashley, Briana & David

Top picture we were photo bombed by Trump and the bottom one by Uncle Kerry.  And if you look at any of our pictures over the years, this is as dressed up as Tanner gets!  

Gram and Grandpa

Jake Davidson, Charity Vore, Aubrey Gwilliam, Chris Vore (far back), Dylan Hill, Holden Vore, Tanner Gwilliam

We had snacks and visited.  Then we gathered for the talent portion of the evening.  It is a tradition to share talents as our gifts to each other.

Angelique Vore, Britney & Ella Bird, Beth Poyner, Quetta Pitcox

Erin Gwilliam (me)

Often each family will have a group talent or a representative. Aubrey has come through for us in the past couple of years with a dance or a skit w/ Lauron. This year I read a poem which captures 2020 so well. I changed a couple of lines up but it's copied from a YouTube video by Matthew West

Twas the night before Christmas, and all through the place

Every smile was hidden by a mask on each face

To see Christmas morning, they hardly could wait

All gathered together in groups no more than 8

And making quite sure that every single germ was dead

There was no scent of Christmas, only Lysol instead

But oh my my, oh well well, Does it really even matter?

We’ve all lost our sense of smell

Amazon brought all our boxes to town

We got out the Clorox and wiped them all down

Mom glued to her laptop, online shopping in a trance

While the kids were rehearsing their next Tik Tok dance

Then we all took a vote, who was naughty, who was nice

But the results were disputed because some voted twice

With each sugar cookie, my weight it did mount

So I yelled to the scale, I demand a recount

Less money for spending but oh what the heck

Maybe next year they’ll send us a stimulus check

The children finally nestled snug in their beds

As nightmares of virtual learning danced in their heads

And mothers and father exhausted a plenty

Bowed their heads and gave thanks we survived 2020

Then down through the chimney w/ all of the loot, 

Came Jolly old Santa ...in a hazmat suit

With a HO HO Ho he said, I’ll see you later

You may be in short supply so I brought you some toilet paper

Yes he quickly appeared and then quickly he went

Santa Claus the ever fun event

Now on Kings, Pitts, Birds, Gwilliams, Vores and Martins too

This last part of the story is for me and for you

To a world that’s in darkness, may we all be a light

A Covid Christmas to All and to All a Good Night

Lauron Vore sang O Holy Night and it was gorgeous.  Danielle King brought her boyfriend Tyler and they did a cute rendition of You're a Mean One, Mr. Grinch.

The Chris Vore group strayed from their usual musical talents and performed a balancing trick.

Jake & Charity, Joseph & Kate, Chris and Ang

Kate Martin sang Rudolph.  She is the cutest.  

The Birds performed Jingle Bell Rock with some really cute actions...plus the boys were both rocks.  Brit and the girls would sing Jingle bells, jingle bells, jingle bell and the boys would peak their heads up from their Comfies and say ROCK.  Pretty cute.

Brit, Ella, Char, Braddock and Hudson

We had our traditional handstand contest.  Charity, Danielle, Tyler, Joseph, Kerry and Nate were in it.  Danielle won! (again....seems to be a King most years.)  We have an adult and a kid version.  Hudson was the only kid who wanted to participate this year.  We are kind of low on kids in the Vore fam...they have all grown up into teens and young adults.  Anyway, he won by default.

Back to our shortage on little kids...we had to ask for everyone 16 and younger to come.  Tanner conveniently had to go to the bathroom, but Holden, La and Aubrey were good to participate.  And Dylan, who is 21, came as well.  David King read the story of the birth from Luke 2 while the kids walked in dressed in costumes.

Grandpa told the group to take off their masks and not to breathe.  I think some of the kids probably did hold their breath  Left-rt: Aubrey, Charlotte, Holden (Joseph), Kate (Mary), Hudson (star), Dylan, Lauron, Isaiah, Ella and Braddock

Merry Christmas 2020.  We are very blessed.