Why Joy in the Journey?

On July 25, 2014, I officially became the mother of 5 children with the birth of our baby Gideon.  They induced me into labor very early, due to several medical complications that required immediate attention, to attempt to save his life, and our precious baby only lived a week.  As our family learned and grew and shared moments with him during that week, I treasured those times.  Not enough, though.  This blog is a way for me to look back on those moments, to relive them, and to share them with others, since he never got to meet many of my friends and family.

Since he has passed away, I have sought ways to make his life mean more.  Gideon was given a priesthood blessing in which he was told that his life, though short, was no less meaningful.  He was also promised that his life would continue to impact many people.

I did not come up with the idea of starting a blog, that was my husband's idea.  (An idea that he likely now regrets, as I have spent a lot of time working on this.)  I love to write, and it was a constructive way for me to share my emotions, to examine the things that make this journey harder or easier, and to let people who want to know "How are you?" the truth about how I really am doing.

The title "Joy in the Journey" was the name of an EFY (Especially For Youth, a church sponsored "faith camp" type thing) that I attended years ago.  I was very touched by many things I learned there, and they have stuck with me.  Two in particular have guided my thinking ever since that EFY.  First, joy is not a destination, it's found all along the journey.  And second, life can have moments that are unhappy or not pleasurable, but those same exact moments can still be moments of deep and profound joy.  This blog is a way for me to dive deeper into both of those two philosophies, especially as our family deals with the grief of losing our precious child.  I am seeking to find joy, to find meaning in all that has happened and continues to happen to our family.

Truly, there is much of heartache, questioning, and even sometimes physical pain, there is also so much joy in this journey.