Janet's Blog

Merry Christmas! The trees have been up and decorated since the end of November. The presents are piled high. The lights are shining brightly inside and outside of our house. This week's blizzard brought enough snow to last until January, so our Christmas will surely be white. And, most important of all, we are ready to celebrate the birth of our Savior, who is with us still, through life's ups and downs. This has certainly been a year of ups and downs. Here are a few highlights (and lowlights): I am glad that my vision is good enough for me to drive back and forth across Nebraska. The beginning of the year found me making that trip more and more often, to visit Mom in the nursing home, and to help Dad make the transition from home to assisted living, and then to the the nursing home, where he was able to share a room with Mom for the last days of his life. It was a privilege for me to spend so much time with both of them at such a difficult time, and to be with my brother and ...

The sun is about to set on 2021. Some of us will say "Good riddance!" Others will be looking forward to 2022 as a chance for new beginnings. As I drove home yesterday afternoon, I was captivated by the sunset near Chimney Rock. Way back in the mid-1800s, travelers were excited to finally see its spire stretching toward the sky, signaling that they were on the right trail, and well on their way to Oregon. Just as those long-ago pioneers faced unknown challenges on their long, often treacherous trip, we, too, look ahead to the New Year with a little uneasiness, even trepidation, and perhaps a little anticipation as we wait to see just what God has planned. As I savored the beautiful sunset, I was reminded that the sun will come up again, just as it has since the beginning of creation, until that day when God determines that the world will come to an end. But even then, he will be with us. Chimney Rock no longer guides wagon trains on their way to the pioneers' new homes, bu...