When I was about 10 years old a secret was revealed to me-about me. The dad I knew,the man my mother was married to, wasn't my only dad. My real father had passed away from lung cancer a day or two before I was born. I found out that was where my middle name (Partington) came from and after a while pieces of my life began to be made known to me. For instance,I had siblings I didn't even know about. I hadn't seen them since I was a baby. Over the years I would try to find them but to no avail and I still have had no success.
But, one day last summer I had a voicemail from my mother saying she had something to tell me. When I called her back, she started telling me a story about something that happened to her in the Temple. She was with some members of her ward and one of them was doing work for some Partingtons. My mom asked her how she was related to the Partingtons and she said her mother was one. After talking they realized that Tami's mother and my father were first cousins. For the first time in my life I knew how to locate a relative from my father's side. For the first time I wasn't a lone Partington with no earthly connection to the others...and today for the first time ever, I met in person, my second cousin, Tami, as well as her husband (who also happens to be my mom's bishop) and their children. As I anticipated this day, I didn't know what to expect or how I would feel but as I was driving to Provo this morning I felt a little emotional about the whole thing. My own sisters are out there somewhere and as far as I know they don't even want me to find them and maybe they do but I have no evidence of that and I feel a little hopeless about it sometimes, so to be on my way to finally meet a relative on my dad's side, a cousin who really wanted to meet me,who would invite me to the blessing of her grandchild was the best thing ever. I walked into the church and found her and she gave me a big hug and it was an emotional moment for both of us. She said she knew that my dad wanted me to meet her. I think she's right. I think my dad was happy to know that I felt a little more connected to our family and that our family was more than just some mysterious wonder that I doubted I would ever find. It's hard to explain what the whole thing means to me and it's so weird to think about how life happens...how my mom ended up in the same place with my relatives that I didn't even know. Isn't that just crazy??? I feel grateful for my new cousins and the experience also makes me want to be a better sister,aunt,friend, and so on to the ones who have been there all along.
Speaking of familiar, as well as, new relatives, my sister brought a beautiful baby boy into the world last week. Precious, Landon Spencer Jarvis was born on Friday morning. I look forward to holding him in my arms, changing his stinky diapers and bonding with him as much as possible before his parents whisk him away to live in a far-away land in just a few short months. (Ouch..talk about a bitter-sweet time for me) I love him. There is something about holding that perfect innocent little angel in my arms that makes my heart melt and it makes me want to be a better person too.
BTW, it's not that I don't see the run-on sentences. I'm just too sleepy to do anything about it.
That is all. Good night!!
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