He's really gone!

After a really rough night with the boys, we woke up, got ourselves and the boys ready and drove to the airport. Before we left, I knelt and said a prayer. As I prayed for Andy I had this impression of him being kept in a bubble. I felt (for lack of a better word) him traveling through this next portion of life under the protective direction of Heavenly Father. I know that this time in our lives can and will be good for Andy and our family if he will do all that is required to stay worthy of and in tune with the Lord's direction.

As we drove, I reflected on a favorite set of pictures of mine by Liz Swindle. I first saw them when I was a missionary in Texas, and have always wanted to hang them in my home. The other night, when we were downtown we saw two of the three pictures again. One is of Joseph in Liberty Jail. He is on his knees in what I think could be described as "mighty supplication." The other is Emma, babe in arms and children hanging on to her dress as they cross the frozen river. The third picture, which I do not always see with the first two, but which completes the set for me is the one of Joseph and Emma in a clinging embrace at their doorstep. To me, this series of pictures shows what I always imagined marriage to be - A righteous husband out fulfilling his work, regardless of how difficult the work comes and wisely calling on the Lord's favors when it becomes overwhelming; a strong, loving mother who faces the hardest of circumstances in taking care of her children as circumstances require; but ultimately, between these individual responsibilities and trying times that we each must face ourselves, the warm embrace, the clinging comfort of being in each others arms. Never have these pictures meant so much to me as we approached the airport and I knew I would have to watch Andy leave for 4 months. I can't imagine how Emma must felt - and Joseph - knowing that he would not be coming back. I think of Emma out on that cold, dark and dangerous ice and I think, "I can do this!" And I think of Joseph, the great person and prophet that he was and I hope Andy will follow his example of relying on our Heavenly Father and Savior. I told Andy that in near decade that I have loved and been inspired by those pictures, they have never meant to me what they do today.