Annie

I just found out that my dear friend Annie passed away this evening. She was 28 years old.

I am numb.

I went to Annie's facebook page after learning of her passing and read many thoughtful posts about how people who loved her are feeling right now. Then I went to Annie's info page where I found this quote. It was listed as one of her favorites. I have bolded the part I found on that page. The information before it is from a talk President Gordon B. Hinckley gave at BYU on 25 September 1973.

Life is... ups and downs, a bump on the head, and a crack on the shins. It was ever thus. Hamlet went about crying, "To be or not to be," but that didn't solve any of his problems. There is something of a tendency among us to think that everything must be lovely and rosy and beautiful without realizing that even adversity has some sweet uses. One of my favorite newspaper columnists is Jenkin Lloyd Jones. In a recent article published in the News, he commented:

"Anyone who imagines that bliss is normal is going to waste a lot of time running around shouting that he's been robbed. The fact is that most putts don't drop. Most beef is tough. Most children grow up to be just ordinary people. Most successful marriages require a high degree of mutual toleration. Most jobs are more often dull than otherwise. . . .

Life is like an old-time rail journey--delays, sidetracks, smoke, dust, cinders, and jolts, interspersed only occasionally by beautiful vistas and thrilling bursts of speed. The trick is to thank the Lord for letting you have the ride."

I'm grateful to have seen the 'beautiful vistas' and 'thrilling bursts of speed' Annie shared with me while on her ride. I'm also grateful for the few minutes I had with her recently when we hugged tightly and expressed our love for one another.

Thank you Annie. You will be missed.