Allegory of Two Sisters

A Tale of Two Sisters—A Modern Day Allegory



Once upon a time, there was an older sister named Millie. She had two siblings. It was decreed that she would receive another sibling. Millie already felt a huge responsibility for her existing brother and sister. She cooked. She cleaned. She tended. She thought the mother was too old to have another baby. But Heavenly Father knew best and a child was born: A younger sister. It was decided that this baby girl would be called Abby.


Abby and Millie shared mothers but had different fathers, meaning Abby would be a half-sister. Millie had watched the example of the mother concerning half siblings. The mother had 6 half-sisters and half-brothers: They were mostly ignored by her mother and there was little or no communication—there were no relationships with half-siblings. But this was not to be with Abby and Millie. They were “sisters”. The term “half-sister” was not used and mostly forgotten.


Millie cared for, tended and loved Abby. Because they were many, many years apart, Millie was more like a second mother rather than a sister. Many strangers mistook Millie for the mother. Sometimes Millie resented this, but love softened her heart and she adored Abby.


Many years passed. Millie went off to college. She missed Abby terribly—her tender hugs, her sweet I luv you’s—but came home for Christmas and summers. Millie married and started a family of her own. Abby and their mother soon moved nearby. The families were close and participated in many activities together. Abby played with Millie’s children like siblings, because they were so close in age. Abby grew into a typical teenager. One afternoon, Millie’s daughter was hurt inside her heart and asked, “Why doesn’t Abby want to play with us anymore? Doesn’t she like us?” Millie explained that sometimes a teenager’s friends are more important than family. Millie’s daughter understood but was thankful for any time Abby spent with her and her brothers.


Abby went to college. She met a wonderful young man and married. Within a few years, she, too, had her own little family.


Time flew by. Children played and grew strong. The only constant was Change. Millie became bold and confident, often forgetting to think before speaking. Abby became a very delicate and complex adult, often taking offense to others’ benign actions and words. Abby reacted to her hurt by shunning the offenders—family, friends, neighbors, acquaintances.


One day, Abby asked Millie a question. Millie answered thoughtlessly. The words spilled over her lips and flew through the air before she could retrieve them. It was done. Feelings were hurt. Grudges were nurtured.


Millie felt bad and wanted forgiveness. She desired to start over, to move forward. She wanted the love and admiration of her sister Abby. Millie sought the advice of the mother. The elderly mother told Millie that she could not start over: there was no blank slate for Millie, only humble pie. Millie grieved. Was this the Christian way she had been taught? Abby would not be moved. She had forgotten all the times she had been forgiven for misdeeds and thoughtlessness. Millie reached out numerous times but to no avail. The damage was done. Though her Father in Heaven had long ago forgiven her, Abby, it seemed, would not.


Millie surrounded herself with those she loved and loved her in return. She opened her home as a refuge to many friends and family members. All that lived and came into her home delighted in what she, her husband, and family offered. She continued to learn and progress and had a very fulfilled and loving life. But in her heart, Millie still mourned the loss of Abby, and increasingly the loss of her mother, who stood with Abby in all things.

The Bike Accident

The Bike Accident

From September 2013

This is an exchange between David and his mother, Conna.

David: Mom, did you hear about an accident in St. George where a bicyclist was hit by a van from behind and the bicyclist died?

Mom: No, I did not hear but that is so sad.

David:  Anyway, the bicyclist was from Spanish Fork and he and his wife went to high school with Mike.  The wife’s family lives just a couple of doors east of us.

Mom: [Standard comments about how unfortunate the accident is.]

David:  Do you remember that the same thing happened to me when I was in 4^th grade? (I was referring to a bicycle accident I had when I was hit from behind, flew way up and landed on my side, suffering a fractured skull and a badly bruised leg. I was in the Sun Valley hospital for a week.)

Mom: Why David, you didn’t die in a bicycle accident. If you had, I would have remembered.

David: Mom, if I would have died in an accident, I wouldn’t be talking to you now.

Mom: Well, that’s true too.

The Cricket

The Cricket

From April 2014

One day last week, my father-in-law, Ken, calls his oldest son, David, Brent's brother.  Keep in mind that Dad and David live 250 miles apart, about a 4 hour drive.

Dad:  You've got to call an exterminator.  There is a cricket in here and it's driving me crazy.
David:  How do you know it's a cricket?
Dad:  Don't you think I know what a  #@$&!@#$  cricket sounds like?
David:  OK Dad.  I'll see what I can do.

David makes the necessary arrangements.  Exterminator is scheduled.

Next phone call...

Dad:  Never mind.  I can't hear it anymore.  It must have left.  Did you call the exterminator?  Well cancel it.  I'm not paying for that!

Exterminator is cancelled.

Next phone call...

Dad:  You've got to call an exterminator!  There is a cricket in here and it's driving me crazy.  I couldn't sleep with all that chirping.
David:  OK Dad.  I'll see what I can do.

Exterminator is scheduled.

Next phone call...

Dad:  Never mind.  I can't hear it anymore.  Did you call the exterminator?  Well you better cancel it.  I'm not going to pay for that.

Next phone call...

Dad:  You've got to call an exterminator!  There is a cricket in here and it's driving me crazy!  I can't sleep with all that chirping.  It chirps every 30 seconds.  It's driving me crazy!

David:  OK Dad.  I'll see what I can do.  But this time, even if it stops, I am not cancelling the exterminator.

Dad:  OK.  Do what you have to do.

The exterminator, the Physical Therapist, and the Housekeeper all show up at the house about the same time.  The exterminator does his job:  Carefully spraying cracks and crevices, inside and outside and over thresholds.  The Housekeeper does her job:  Cleaning bathrooms, kitchen, and vacuuming.    The Physical Therapist does his evaluation with Dave's mom, Conna (who recently had a stroke but that's another story).
The PT promptly finds the "cricket" aka smoke alarm and removes the battery.  Problem solved!

Bear Lake

I like vacations that stay in one place. No moving from hotel to hotel on the way to somewhere.
Ideal Beach Resort at Bear Lake worked out great! 

http://www.idealbeachresort.com/

 Isn't this serene?  

West Side of Bear Lake

The East Side of Bear Lake was really windy.

Looks like Hawaii!

And what did we do, you ask?????

Played on the Beach...

Rode bikes...

Did a little swimming...

Built sand castles...

Relaxed...

 

Relaxed...

and just Relaxed.

This is how we spent June 25-29, 2013.

Bear Lake was a great getaway for us.

Grandchildren

Heavenly Father was so very wise in giving us children to adore!
We are privileged to have these children call us "Grandma" and "Grandpa."

Timothy would do a little piano playing, then swing around and pose for his photo.  Loads of character, that one has!

Angela--our little miracle granddaughter.  Look how big she is at 5 years old. 
Remember?  She was born 2 months early!



What a Blessing!

A Wedding

Hawaii is Paradise. 
And to attend an
LDS Temple Wedding? 
Double Paradise.

G.O.B.

G.O.B.
a.k.a. Jobey, Gob, Goblin

Our beloved cat now resides in Cat Heaven.  He was born in May 2007 in a garage in Cedar Hills, Utah.  Vickie first saw him when a student brought three kittens to school for Show & Tell.  Vickie asked the student’s mother, “What are you doing with the kittens?”  The mother replied, “We are moving and we have to get rid of them.”  Vickie told her that she wanted the orange kitten when he was ready to leave the mama cat.

In June, the Richey family received their new kitten—a long haired male orange tabby with hazel eyes.  He joined two other cats, Meisha and Ashley/Hunter, and one dog, Milo.  He got along great with Milo and they would play and chase each other.  Milo sometimes dragged him by the ear across the wooden floor and the kitten would just complacently sit there.  Our new kitten was named after a character from the TV series, Arrested Development: G.O.B. after Gob (pronounced Job, like from the Bible). G.O.B. stands for George Oliver Bluth from the same TV series.

The family had difficulty keeping GOB inside the house.  He loved being outside and would sneak out whenever the garage was opened.  He became increasingly crafty at eluding capture.  That first summer, 2007, someone from the road construction crew in front of our house, took him home thinking he was lost.  After a little investigating, he was returned and quickly fitted with an identification collar.

Jobey loved to be petted, brushed, and cuddled.  He had a daily morning routine which began with his “sonic meow”, followed by being brushed, eating canned cat food, and nursing his fleece blanket while purring.  He would then wait in the garage until Brent and Vickie opened it to leave for work each morning.   Then he would shoot out of the garage and dash across the street to the big pine tree.

Jobey was a very affectionate and mischievous cat.  He was friendly to everyone and every animal in the neighborhood.  There were numerous reports of his affection for neighborhood dogs:  Jobey would simply lie down in front of the dog and pat the animal.  Dogs were very confused by his behavior.  Small children could easily pick him up or pet him.  He loved and was loved by everyone.

GOB loved to curl up at night in any comfy chair, especially the rocking chair in the upstairs family room--and that’s the last we saw of him.

Early Monday morning, August 1, 2011, the family received a call.  “Do you have a cat named G.O.B.?  He is in the street, not moving, maybe hit by a car.”  He was about a block from home, 1540 N 200 W—safely across the busy 1600 street and probably hit by a car on a seemingly quiet side street.

The family grieves for their sweet pet.  He will truly be missed.