Sweet Little Leah!

I just came across this letter I wrote to Leah when she was to be sealed to her family and given a name and a blessing. I thought I should put it on my blog.

Sweet Little Leah,

I absolutely believe you were always supposed to be a part of the family. When I first looked into those big blue eyes I saw a little bit of heaven. You are an angel. Smiling is just symptomatic of your bright, happy personality. It is easy to see that not only are you going to brighten everyone’s lives, but you will find joy everywhere you look, just like your Mommy and Daddy.

We all waited a long time for you to come into the family, but we knew you would come. Your Mom and Dad are just too special to not use their talents, gifts, and love to bless a precious baby and help her grow to be a loved, valuable daughter of God.

The joy you have given me, your Grampa, Uncles Jimmy and Scott, your Aunt Samantha, and your cousins Hailey and Madyson is hard to explain especially since we are so far away. But, we love to read your Daddy’s blog and see the pictures he posts. It makes us feel almost like we are right there with you. I just wish I could kiss your cheek and give you a “snuggle” every single day. Mommy dresses you so cute and she giggles when she takes videos of you laughing, so we laugh too. Leah, even though we don’t live close to you we all love you so much. Maybe someday we will all live close enough to watch you grow up. I hope so!

When your Mommy called to tell me that you were finally and officially a Trosper I cried. I knew it was going to happen, but it still touched my heart to know it was true. I laughed when I heard you blew bubbles the whole time the judge spoke. What a silly girl! Will you ever understand the miracle this all was? How God must have played such a role in bringing together your parents and Caitlin. There were many tears proceeding this wonderful day, but they were all worth it! You are beautiful and bright just like your Mommy and you are happy and clever just like your Daddy. You look like you belong, and you do!

Now you will be sealed to your parents for “time and all eternity”. You will be sealed to both of your families forever. We all need to live the life we should to be worthy to live that life with you and with Heavenly Father. You are a little angel sent directly from God, through Caitlin, into our hearts and our family. I love you sweet girl.

Love, Gramma Trosper

"Live the Life You Choose"

"Live the Life you Choose!" A friend recently had those words tatooed on his shoulder. I have reflected since then on the meaning and truth, or lack of truth in this statement. (As an aside: I don't personally like tattoos, but it's his life, and he gets to choose! Ha ha!)

The title of my blog is "Leslie lives life, loves life, and laughs at life." This is true, but I didn't say "Leslie gets to live the life she chooses" because many times in my life it has been proven that I didn't get to make the choice. My husband, my children, or even friends made choices that changed the life I chose. My health has even played a part in the life I live. I do have a choice in how I respond to the life I didn't choose, and therein lies the choice.

I love the story of Corrie Ten Boom. She was the Christian living in Holland whose family hid and helped Jews escape from Hitler's Nazis. Eventually they were taken to concentration camps themselves. Corrie and her sister Betsie were interred together at Ravensbruck one of the most insidious and cruel camps. As I remember her telling the story in her book THE HIDING PLACE she was incredulous that her sister would thank God in her prayers for the lice and other vermin in their prisons, but her sister explained that the rats and lice kept the guards away. I so admire and try to follow Betsie's example in how to live the life she was given. Corrie and Betsie made righteous choices and lived exemplary lives, but they didn't choose the life they were living.

I believe we can dream, make goals, and live a better life. What would our life be without striving for things that would improve us, or lift us up? It is important, also, to "Live your life that you have no regrets." How important is that? Love One Another is the first thing that comes to mind when I think of living a life with no regrets. Reach out to those in need, don't hurt those you love, and if you do....rectify your life, get right with them and with God so there is no regret.

As I see it, the purpose of this earth life is to receive a body, to be challenged with trials, and to have the agency to choose how we respond to those trials. Maybe there was a time in the pre-existence that we were made aware of some of the difficulties we would face, but none of us were given a life free of sorrow and pain. With the Lord's guidance and love we can learn from our trials, endure, and return to our Father in Heaven able to be proud of the life we lived.

We do need to love ourselves. I think we forget sometimes that the Lord says "Love your neighbor, as you love yourself". Very clearly we can't do one without the other. I have heard, though, that we live in the "me generation", in a "horizontal society" rather than a "vertical society". That means rather than looking to God for the best answers.... we look to ourselves and our peers. "If it feels good, do it." or "What makes ME feel good?", "What's in it for ME?" Kind of a selfish view, more or less. Is that the way God intended us to live?

So, I like the way it sounds "Live the Life You Choose" and I'm sure my friend meant it in the very best way, but I hope while he is living the life he chooses, he remembers there are other people living it with him. He always did live an exceptionally unselfish life. I hope his new declaration doesn't change that, and that he will continue living a life with no regrets.

I know the life I am living right now is definitely not the life I chose. I chose to marry the man I loved and have an eternal family. Things didn't work out, so I am not living the life I choose. I am choosing to live the best I can with the life I have.

What are your thoughts?

How could it be June already?

I don't know if it's because I'm getting older, but time is passing so quickly! I have commented to many people that it just seems like we celebrated Christmas and it is summertime. Surprisingly, I found a Dr. Seuss quote that sums it up pretty well.

"How did it get so late so soon?

Its night before it's afternoon.

December is here before its June.

My goodness how the time has flewn.

How did it get so late so soon?"

There are so many things to do, so few hours in a day, and so few days in a week to complete them. At this rate I will have to live a great many more years to accomplish all my hopes, dreams, and goals.......oh, and to get my closet cleaned!!!!