Accidents, Avalanches and Apathy

So today is my birthday and we had the great idea that we could go skiing. Stevens Pass offers a free lift ticket on your birthday, so how could I pass up that big, birthday benefit?

Well, I will tell you how.

This morning, we departed from our humble home in the early morning with my husband, his brother and father. We left a little later than we would have liked; unbeknownst to us, this would play a key role in the later developments of our day.

Because traffic was horrendous going north on I-5, we took a detour via Highway 9 and caught up with Highway 2 through Snohomish. As we drove, we talked about the fun day ahead and that abundant, glorious snow. Over the previous days, the mountains had been pounded by storms; the forecast for today predicted 8-12 additional inches. While I am a novice skier, I could still appreciate the idea of fluffy, new snow; the other three were giddy at the thought of cutting through fresh powder on double diamond runs.

A short way up the highway, the snow started to fall heavy and fast. This trip was going to be exciting, indeed! As we blissfully dreamt of our imminent adventures, we edged up the mountain towards the pass. About 10 miles from the summit, we suddenly came to a screeching (well, slow and slippery) halt just short of Tunnel Creek. As we sat and watched the snow cover the windshield, police and tow trucks ambled up the road. We soon learned that a semi had jack-knifed at Tunnel Creek. To make matters worse, three other choice individuals, who thought they could circumvent the accident by passing alongside, quickly piled up with the truck and we had a multi-vehicle pileup on our hands.

Nice.

Within ten minutes were were restless; an hour and a half later, we were tired, hungry and growing claustrophobic in our makeshift igloo. After three hours in the car, the carefree thoughts of swishing down the slopes had turned to apathy and I could care less about skiing. My father-in-law walked over to a state patroller and his report back was not good. While the accident had just cleared, the WSDOT decided avalanche danger was very high and they would need to do some control work before opening Stevens Pass. (Translation: 4-5 hours of additional closure.) This news sealed the deal for us. As we made our slow descent down the mountain, I looked at the tired faces of the people in cars who were still waiting... and I sighed.

Mother Nature was obviously no respecter of birthdays.

(Update: We left our waiting area around 11:30am and the pass did not open to traffic until 5:30pm. I'm glad we left.)

A Walk in the Park... er, uh... Highway?

How cool are we? (picture courtesy of S.W.)

Last Saturday, we took the youth from our ward up the winding, scenic Mountain Loop Highway to the winter park area past Verlot. Normally, this area is just part of the highway during the warmer months of the year. But, every winter a long section of the road is closed to car traffic and miraculously transforms into a winter wonderland for cross-country skiers, snowmobilers and snowshoers; the latter group was where we fell.

As we extricated ourselves from the cars and pulled on the necessary gear, a light snow started to fall. Tall, snow-laden trees and low-lying brush cover either side of the highway and Big Four Mountain juts straight into the sky as the roaring, icy Stillaguamish river rushes along the road... picture it, if you will. It is the perfect winter setting for a (snowshoe) walk in the woods.

After the group, who were generally new to the activity, strapped on their shoes we commenced with the 2-mile trek to the Big Four picnic area. Minor issues on the way included one faulty strap on a snowshoe, many cold hands, a few sore muscles and one pair of ill-fitting boots that caused some unfortunately nasty blisters. However, we managed to reach our destination in one piece; the once idyllic covered picnic area had turned into an A-Frame style igloo, complete with a mini snow cave, tunnels and skating rink (the floor). While Dave fired up his supersonic stove for hot chocolate, everyone dined on frozen cookies, mashed sandwiches, chips and Gatorade. If that is not a feast for champions, I don't know what is!

While snow is beautiful to look at through the cozy warmth of your windowed-homes, it begins to decrease in beauty and appeal when you start to lose feeling in your extremities. Such was the case with our group, so we finished eating, warmed our hands over the small flames of the camp stove, packed up and began the long walk back to the cars.

There is a phrase a good friend likes to use when describing one who is tired, hungry and ready to be done with any particularly taxing activity. As we brought up the rear of our group, watching the leaders and kids pick up the pace, Dave leaned over to me and whispered: "the horse smells the barn!". With a slight advantage of losing some altitude (300-400 ft), I think we cut our travel time down by half. After a quick pose at the gate for a lovely, snowy photo op, everyone walked gingerly, yet briskly to the cars and headed for home. Even with numb fingers and tired muscles, I think everyone had fun... I think!

A Living Legacy

Last night, we were with my family celebrating birthdays when we received a call from my brother, David; he lives in Utah, and had some breaking news that he figured we had not yet heard. As we sat around the living room of my parents' house, the sad news rang from the speakerphone throughout the house. We all sat there, equally stunned and saddened about the news of the prophet's death. There was discussion about his life, his age and his impact on our church over the last 12 years.

Today I've read through various news articles, websites, and posts from fellow bloggers, on the passing of President Gordon B. Hinckley. As I pondered on my feelings about this amazing man, I thought back on some of the things he accomplished: presenting the Proclamation on the Family, which he delivered during the General Relief Society meeting in September 1995 - I remember thinking those words were divinely inspired and would have a lasting impact on my life; the significant increase in the building of numerous temples (including small temples) - each conference, I remember waiting with great anticipation to hear the new site announcements; the challenge to read the entire Book of Mormon during the last four months of 2005. While I could continue to fill pages with the many things he accomplished during his tenure as president of the church, there is one thing that struck a chord with me when I first heard it, and which continues to resonate within me today.

Above Popular wrote, "Every six months he got up during the General Conference of the Church and told the members how well they were doing at living the gospel, and then told them ways that they can improve. 'We're are doing great, but we can always do better'." That single idea best describes him as a person, a prophet and a man of God. He loved and lead the members of the church, praising all for the good work we'd done, but then quickly raised the bar to push us to become better.

That counsel, which he frequently uttered at the close of general conferences, was to "stand a little taller... be a little better, a little kinder, a little more generous, a little more courteous, a little more thoughtful, a little more outreaching to others". Remembering his accomplishments is important, but if I truly want to honor the life of this sweet man, that one piece of counsel is something I should never forget.

Feats of Strengths

The weekend after Christmas, Dave and his friend Brett drove up to Mount Baker to conquer the Pandome Ice Fall. In layman's terms, they were going to clamber up the side of a large, frozen wall of ice. Dave had received climbing rope for Christmas and was very anxious to try it out. While the idea did not instill the greatest thoughts of peace and comfort in me, I was excited for them and their wintery adventure.

After making the snowy drive up to Mount Baker, they unloaded ice axes, crampons & rope and got to work setting up the route with safety lines. A couple of young, local climbers showed up; also interested in scaling the falls, they helped the guys with belaying the climb. For those unfamiliar with climbing terms, according to http://www.gohigher.co.uk/, the word belay is a "fundamental safety technique for climbing in which a second person (a 'belayer') protects their climbing partner from falling by controlling the rope using anchors and braking devices."

Although Dave had never gone ice climbing, he had a good time and received accolades from the other climbers on his first effort. While I doubt it will match his interest in skiing, I think it is safe to say that ice climbing can be added to his long list of outdoor interests!

Amen.

Today I had an epiphany: life has a startling way of running past you at light speed and it's entirely too easy to get caught up in mindless, meaningless endeavors along the way.

Last weekend, Richard G. Scott spoke at our stake conference and he said something that stuck with me; Satan knows that he can't tempt the righteous with the usual tricks, so he uses life's minutiae to distract us from doing our important or "best" things. This year I've resolved to focus my time and attention on the "best" things and put the "better" things on the back burner for a bit.

A friend sent me the following poem by Erma Bombeck. I've read it before, but it had a significant impact on me today.

"IF I HAD MY LIFE TO LIVE OVER"

(Written after she found out she was dying from cancer.)

I would have gone to bed when I was sick instead of pretending the earth would go into a holding pattern if I weren't there for the day. I would have burned the pink candle sculpted like a rose before it melted in storage. I would have talked less and listened more. I would have invited friends over to dinner even if the carpet was stained, or the sofa faded. I would have eaten the popcorn in the 'good' living room and worried much less about the dirt when someone wanted to light a fire in the fireplace. I would have taken the time to listen to my grandfather ramble about his youth. I would have shared more of the responsibility carried by my husband. I would never have insisted the car windows be rolled up on a summer day because my hair had just been teased and sprayed. I would have sat on the lawn! with grass stains! I would have cried and laughed less while watching television and more while watching life. I would never have bought anything just because it was practical, wouldn't show soil, or was guaranteed to last a lifetime. Instead of wishing away nine months of pregnancy, I'd have cherished every moment and realized that the wonderment growing inside me was the only chance in life to assist God in a miracle. When my kids kissed me impetuously, I would never have said, "Later - now go get washed up for dinner." There would have been more "I love you's"; more "I'm sorry's". But mostly, given another shot at life, I would seize every minute... look at it and really see it... live it and never give it back. Stop sweating the small stuff! Don't worry about who doesn't like you, who has more, or who's doing what. Instead, let's cherish the relationships we have with those who do love us. Let's think about what God HAS blessed us with, and what we are doing each day to promote ourselves mentally, physically and emotionally. I hope you have a blessed day.

Imperfect Perfection

We just celebrated our 2nd anniversary last month by going to dinner at Arnie's in Mukilteo, where we feasted on the best local fare of salmon, pork tenderloin and hearty vegetables. I love my husband, I truly enjoyed our wedding and I'm grateful for the first two years we've had together. But, thinking back on our wedding, I do have one regret: not being able to secure a professional photographer for the event. For some silly reason, they were all booked for the hundreds of events happening during the Christmas season!

Because of that little issue, we asked friends and family to snap candid pictures. The end result was a collection of frames with blurred images, heavy shadows, closed eyes and people making faces or looking at different cameras in the same photo. While they are not perfect, I'm grateful for those random pictures because they captured images of all the people supporting us on a beautiful, blue-sky day in December when we were sealed for eternity.

As I was looking through old emails, I came across some pictures from the wedding that Tiffany and Trevor snapped in front of the temple (thank you!). They may not be the highest, professional quality photos and any number of the above-mentioned "problems" can be seen, but they are pictures of the people we love. I don't think anyone in the family has seen these, so I thought I would put them up on the blog. Enjoy!

~ the Goodwin Family~

~ the Marchant Family ~