Traditions are traditions and we learned how important they can be today. With dad in the hospital and half the family in LA, the kids assumed our Labor Day tradition wouldn’t happen this year. When I came home from LA unexpectedly and told them we were going to make it happen, their faces lit up. Kirra, Ruth and Porter started planning while I stayed the night at the hospital with Amos.
He is becoming unresponsive but I was able to hear him say “I love you” in a muffled tone last night. It melted my heart. As difficult as this has been, I have been blessed with peace and understanding all along the way. Amos’s step dad, Evan, called me today to strengthen my faith. Amos has such great dads who serve us in much needed ways and my love for his entire family has grown during this process.
Now for the results of the 7th Annual Abplanalp Labor Day Olympics…
Kirra won the shooting range
Porter won the yoga trapeze competition
Blakely won the sit ups challenge
Evelyn won the swimming races
AND…
We all agree that daddy was the overall winner! He kept his numbers stable all day and fought the worst pain imaginable. He is our Superman!
My niece, McKenna, sent a message from Russia today that goes with our Olympics theme…
“I love you all and miss you so very much and my heart is with all of you at home, especially uncle Amos!! Before I share my week I wanted to share with all of you a scripture that I may have shared before because it is my absolute favorite! It is Amla 26:27, it is all about not giving up. My mission president shared a story with us during zone conference about a swimmer who had a goal to swim the English Channel. As you can imagine she was an extremely experienced swimmer. During the swim a boat would follow along side her to make sure to protect her from sharks and intervene should she become too tired. During her swim a fog set in and suddenly she lost all sight. She kept pressing forward for a time but grew very tired and without the shoreline in sight became very discouraged. She gave up 1 kilometer before the shoreline. Imagine the dissapointment she felt. This made me think about our lives. We are all swimmers trying to keep moving and breathing, trying to keep our heads above water…When the fog of life sets in it is easy to give up, or to forget why we began swimming in the first place but I want to suggest that the shore is always just in our reach… I hope you all know that I am not going to give up over here because I know that you are not giving up at home! The Lord has all power, let us trust Him.”
Tomorrow is the show. NBC prime time. See you all then for Evie Clair’s best performance ever. Don’t forget that you are the ones who decide if she continues to the finals. Please vote.