Mom update: I called Mom and Dad’s house around 5:00 hoping one of them would answer the phone. All I got was the answering machine. Then I called the hospital and Daddy answered the phone. After I told him I had really hoped they would not have had to answer the phone at the hospital he told me they were checking out at that very moment!! Yea!! Please understand, my Mom and Dad have been married for 56 years and with the exception of the two years Daddy spent in the service during early marriage (and Mom went over for the last year) and an occasional visit to the hospital for each of them, they have rarely spent a night apart in all of that time. Praise God from whom all blessing flow!!

Deb Koplen update: Bruce spent a great deal of time with Deb today. Her pain is being well managed and she is off of her IV pain meds and some of her pain medications are being reduced. She is still confused and having some hallucinations, but she is feeling much better. I checked her counts while I was there tonight. Her WBC (white blood cells, remember?) are beginning to recover and her HGB is not bad. She is still not eating very much so they have started her on TPN (a liquid nutrition). The Deb I saw today looked better and felt better than the Deb I have seen for the past three weeks since she went into the hospital. I just pray her confusion will ease up soon. Please continue to keep her in your prayers.

Psalm 126: 5 says, “May those who sow in tears reap with shouts of joy.” I had a moment today. The Village Jewelry Store called today to tell me that the pendant I had repaired was ready. I may have shared this story before, but it bears repeating. 32 years ago right about now my Mom was diagnosed with colon cancer. It was Christmas time and Daddy really wasn’t thinking about buying anything for Christmas so he told my brother and I to look for a gift for Mom. I found a beautiful butterfly ring at Zales Jewelry Store and the cost was $125.00. The ring has opal wings, a yellow gold setting and diamond antennas. We took the change jar kept on the back of the kitchen counter which was filled with quarters, half-dollars and silver dollars to the store. The clerks in the store thought we were collecting for come cause. When we told them our story about our Mom, and the clerks gladly helped us count out the change. Would you believe in that jar was enough to make the purchase. Mom handed me the ring upon Casey’s diagnosis with cancer.

The ring has become a symbol of hope and new life in our family. The ring is, however, rather fragile and has had to be repaired several times throughout its life(opals are among the softer precious stones and break easily). Shortly after Casey died, I took it to the jewelry store. I had the butterfly repaired and removed from the band and fashioned into a pendant. I will need to get a gold chain in order to wear it. Perhaps if it is a necklace then it won’t break so easily.

When they called me today the clerk said, “I am holding in my hand a beautiful butterfly pendant.“ It caused me to stop and the tears came pretty easily and I told the story of the ring to the woman on the other end of the phone. She told me that she had breast cancer. She said, “I think I was meant to hear this story.”

I have shed many tears over the last year and I still have moments when I miss Casey so very much. And then there are moments I take joy in the fact that he is happy, living in God’s perfect love and presence. He no longer has cancer because nothing imperfect can live in the Kingdom of Love. He was washed in the healing streams and was completely healed before walking into the kingdom. Casey’s last complete sentence to me was, “Mom, I just want to stand up.” Well now he does! I take joy in the knowledge that Casey stands before God every day, tall, strong and at perfect peace. Our assurance is that we will all go to God someday and live in that same state of constant joy. I am sure I will shed tears forever because I will always miss Casey, but I will always take joy in the knowledge that he is where God is and we will all see him again someday. Casey has new life.

God gives us a chance to have new life every day. Every day we choose Christ. We choose to love those we meet. We choose to help someone who is in need. We choose to worship. We choose to forgive those who have wronged us and the hardest part is to ask forgiveness from those we have wronged. We choose to allow the crucified Christ to live and work in our lives each day.

Spread your wings and fly my friends and take joy in the journey.

Love you all, Bruce, Gaylene, Geni and Travis.

Gcapplenotes@aol.com

I am not moved by what I see. I am not moved by what I feel. I am moved only by what I believe and I believe God.