'OLD' IS WHEN...
Your sweetie says, 'Let's go upstairs
and make love,' and you answer,  
'Pick one; I can't do both!'


'OLD' IS WHEN...
Your friends compliment you
on your new alligator shoes
and you're barefoot.


'OLD' IS WHEN...
A sexy babe catches your fancy
and your pacemaker opens the garage door,

'OLD' IS WHEN...
Going bra less
pulls all the wrinkles out of your face.

'OLD' IS WHEN...
You don't care where your spouse goes,
just as long as you don't have to go along.

'OLD' IS WHEN...
You are cautioned to slow down by the doctor instead of by the police

'OLD' IS WHEN...
'Getting a little action'
means you don't need to take any fiber today.

'OLD' IS WHEN...
'Getting lucky' means you find your car
in the parking lot.

'OLD' IS WHEN...
An 'all nighter' means not getting up
to use the bathroom.

AND

'OLD' IS WHEN...
You are not sure these are jokes?

It's almost 8 am and only 19 degrees. Burrrrrrrrr! But in probably 3 hours it'll be 45-50, then by 3 it'll be 65. Crazy weather here.

We're headed off to tour Indian ruins with some college studetns that are visiting during Spring Break. We'll see go to the Grand Canyon as well. So much amazing stuff to see, the painted desert, the colored stripes of the mountains, the total primative living conditions as we drive through the Navaho reservation. Everyone should experience the high desert. Do we have a travelouge forum in here? Maybe I'll post some of the awesome pictures.

I have a story to tell. A story that begins with joy, love and amazement at God’s grace, then it turns to pain, bewilderment, sorrow and loss. But in the end, this story is of peace, completion, and again amazement of God’s grace and provision. This is the story of our daughter, Kelly, God’s gift to us.

When our son was nine, my husband and I adopted Kelly when she was 4 and a half year from Thailand. She adapted to her new country and family with great ease.

Years go by and Kelly’s life is full. She grew in beauty and character. She was well known for her bright smile and spunky attitude. Kelly was a normal high school student, very popular, athletic and even a starter in her sophomore year on the varsity soccer team. During the summer between her sophomore and junior year we began to notice changes in her. At times her normally mild attitude was sharp, her behavior odd and even irrational. She seemed depressed and extremely tired all the time. But honestly, we thought these things were typical of teenagers. Then around Christmas, we noticed that something wasn’t right. Every 30 seconds she was having little twitches. After weeks that stretched into months of tests, at the end of April Kelly was diagnosed with Subacute Sclerosing Panencephalitis. SSPE is caused by an altered form of the measles virus that infects the brain. It’s a very rare condition, with only a 1 in a million chance to get this disease. There is no known treatment for SSPE and it is always fatal. Duration of the disease is anywhere from 1 to 3 years from diagnosis in most cases. But Kelly was not following the norm, her disease was progressing very rapidly. Since it’s so rare the doctors couldn’t give us any kind of time frame for her. Every day was a learning experience for them and every second was precious to us. Hundreds of people were praying for Kelly and our family and we felt God's love and grace all around us.

When we finally told her the truth about her illness and we cried together. We took her home and she asked us to call her friends because she wanted to talk to them. They came in droves. They sat together and talked, and laughed and cried. Kelly would bluntly say “I’m going to die.” and after a pause she’d say with that same bright smile, “But don’t be sad, because I’m going to Heaven. They have streets of gold and there’s a mansion for us there. I need you to be a good Christian because I’m going to be waiting for you at the gate when it’s your turn. While I wait, I’m going to decorate your bedroom in God’s mansion. What color do you want?” Then they would talk about the colors that Heaven would be when she got done up there. We started calling this the story of the colors. Kelly didn’t see her death as an end to her life, but a new beginning to a great adventure. Through her excitement God gave us a peace that passes understanding.

As Kelly became weaker and unable to talk we often sat with her and her friends to tell the story of the colors for her. She would smile and let her friends know that she was excited about this new phase of her life. We felt it was our duty to share her story with everyone who came to see her. That’s what she wanted. That’s what God wanted.

The next six weeks went by so quickly. Many visitors, young and old came and heard the story of the colors. On June 17th Kelly passed away. Her funeral itself was filled more with celebration than with sorrow. The music was selected to bring a message of hope and joy. The pastor’s message was one of salvation and almost 20 people accepted Christ that day. We know Kelly was dancing with the angels at that moment.

God constantly reminds us He is holding us near Him and giving us comfort. We knew Kelly was a special gift from Him from the very beginning and that He had something very special in store for her. We are so totally humbled to have been able to share in a tiny part of His magnificent plan to touch many lives through her.

That people prayed to the Father on her behalf was only a part of His plan. It was that they see His love through this tiny angel He gave to us for such a short time. That we are eternally blessed to have known her and felt the warmth of that radiant smile and to have seen the glow of her unquestionable faith. God is good.

Though Kelly died so young, her story has touched more lives in that short time than most of us will ever touch in a full lifetime. God’s hand was on Kelly’s life from the moment she was conceived. He chose to use her to effect many people in a positive way. Don’t ever think that your life is so insignificant that it would never effect anyone. I used to think that, then I met Kelly.

In Heaven, is she decorating your room right now? What’s your favorite color?