Skip to main content

Well Played

This morning my amazing Aunt Jan went home to be with Jesus. I have been thinking of her often over the last few weeks, and I keep thinking of the verse in Ephesians that says to live wisely and make the most of every opportunity (my paraphrase and cutting some of it out). As I think about her today, these words just keep coming back to me over and over again. I have rarely met someone so purposeful and thoughtful in every action and interaction. I think there were very few things that she did or ideas she had that, if you asked, she couldn't give a well reasoned argument for why she did a certain thing exactly the way she did it or why she thought about a certain subject exactly the way she thought about it.  She was excellent at asking people questions and learning about who they were and what they thought and enjoyed. She studied diet and nutrition and phonics and any subject that interested her. She didn't have a degree in any of those things but I am certain she could have given degree holders in any of those subjects a run for their money. She purposely kept in contact with many extended family members, even if she didn't know them well, she'd still make an effort to call or make contact. She was great at sending emails or little gifts, all thoughtfully written or selected. If you have never received a newspaper clipping in the mail, a postcard, a coffee mug, a dish towel,  a book for your kids, or a medical diagnosis from her, you have missed out. Most importantly, she was thoughtful about how to share Jesus with others, both through her actions and words. When she was diagnosed with cancer she was thinking about how she could be salt and light to the doctors and others around her. She was thoughtful about how she could encourage her family. She wrote an email to all of us saying "To live is Christ, to die is gain."
Today, some might say that Jan Skidmore lost her battle with cancer.They would be wrong. They would be wrong because cancer lost. Cancer did not dictate how she lived her life. Cancer did not dictate her attitude. Cancer did not steal her joy. Cancer did not destroy her faith and hope in Jesus. Did she struggle, yes. It was a battle. But she won the battle. Jesus won the battle. She won. Jesus wins.

Comments

Kristina said…
*Tears*
When we lived in Missouri, Kev and Jan were there and we went to church where he preached. They were kind to us and I remember them fondly.
June 24, 2016 at 12:44 PM
bee said…
Can't say it better than this. Excellent! !
June 24, 2016 at 2:02 PM
bee said…
Can't say it better than this. Excellent! !
June 24, 2016 at 2:02 PM
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Animal Happenings

 It looks like the last update I posted on animals was about going to the sale barn and getting cows. As a reminder we got a calf/cow pair and a "weaned" calf: Chloe, Midnight, and Mooey. Chloe and midnight are some kind of black angus mix and midnight is part Holstein. Midnight and Mooey will eventually be our meat cows. We hope to AI Chloe sometime in the near future for another calf. Midnight, her calf pictured below (much littler in the pic than he is now) is a very good looking steer. He could go to the fair if he wanted. This is a picture of him getting out of his fence and coming in the yard. He still gets out from time to time. Having a mama calf keeps both the steers in line though. They are much better about not getting crazy, unlike some other steers we could name from the past, but won't. We ended up having to feed quite a bit of hay this winter as we had snow cover from November to end of March. We got our barn built about January and began collecting more ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Getaway to Ticks Bend....I Mean Beavers Bend State Park

 Back in April, we decided we needed to do a short family getaway after the semester was over. The last time we'd been on vacation just to vacation (not going to see family in CO) was when we went to San Antonio when Maddy was 3 months old. We found Beavers Bend State Park close to Broken Bow, OK and decided to go there. We booked a cabin in the state park and eagerly awaited the day we could take off for our getaway. We left on Sunday afternoon and stayed through Tuesday afternoon. It was short, but so fun and relaxing. We had no computer and no cell phones while we were up there. We just got to enjoy being around each other and the beautiful scenery.  We built a fire and roasted some marshmallows. Also popped some jiffy pop. Aaron had never done one of those before.  This is a 100 year old cabin they had at the visitor center. I like the mud chinking ( I think that's what it's called). A couple named Comma and Mabel lived in the cabin when the CCC was building t...
4 comments
Read more

We Need Your Prayers

Many of you have probably heard all ready, but Aaron and I got some devastating news today. Our baby will probably not survive outside the womb. They did an amneostasis this afternoon to test for chromasomal defects, which is what they think it is right now. I know I am spelling everything wrong so I hope what I write makes enough sense for everyone to understand what is going on. The specialist we went to see feels that it is triploidy or triamias 18. Those may not be the right names but they are two of the three chromasomal defects. The other is down's syndrome. He did not feel that it was down's. The other two defects are fatal so if we carry the baby to term it will not live but for a few days or hours if one of the defects above is the problem. We will know in 2days. If it is not one of those then we will have to go to a cardiologist and a genetic counselor. The baby had clubbed hands and feel and it's heart is not formed correctly and is not in the right place. Becau...
8 comments
Read more