A day that will never be forgotten....but not for the reasons that you might think. Of course due to the pandemic the normal parades, rodeos, and fairs that you usually experience in Utah didn't happen. Nor were the typical ward picnics with kids dressed in pioneer clothes parading around the park occurring in other states in the US. Life as usual during the pandemic of 2020.
No, the reason that it will not be forgotten was that this was the the day that my sweet brother-in-law, Lance Ipson, was called home-- back to his heavenly home. He was only 60 years old. To say that this was unexpected is a gross understatement. For my sister, his eight children, six in-laws plus Brad, and 17 grandchildren--there was no warning at all. Lance's health seemed good. He was actively eating healthy and exercising as he was trying to prepare for senior missionary call which they hoped to start in 2021. He was still working full-time in accounting and serving as bishop for a local Spanish-speaking ward in their stake. In his free time, he did projects in their acre yard in Mesa trying to fulfill his dream of being a farmer even in the heat of Mesa, AZ, and providing a dream yard for his grandchildren to enjoy now and for years in the future.
Like many days, it started off like an average day. Valerie posted a beautiful youtube video of the Tabernacle Choir singing: "Come, Come, Ye, Saints!" Here is the link https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4ia3gYSvG8M&fbclid=IwAR13JQUjWNXBKLZkNv06YKp-GHVz5jrfG-Pyc3ePgwOcOKrmbNWBIztmnYA
This is her post (used with her permission):
"July 24th is celebrated in my church (The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints) as Pioneer Day--the day the Mormon Saints first entered the Salt Lake Valley in their quest for religious freedom. I don't have direct pioneer ancestry but I have walked the Trail of Hope in Nauvoo, Illinois and felt the spirits of those long-ago pioneers. I have stood on the bank of the Mississippi River where they crossed at the journey's start. I have looked back from that place toward homes and their glorious temple (rebuilt since then) that had to be left behind--their "City Beautiful." I have stood in the nearby pavilion which lists the name of every life lost on the 1300 mile trek, and I have contemplated the cost.
It was a sweet reminder of what we remember during Pioneer Day and especially nice since we hadn't been having Church with the usual Pioneer talks and songs throughout July. There were a few others who posted Pioneer day memes or posts as well.
I didn't do much that day. Gary and I had gotten our second shingles immunization on Wednesday and we both had a fairly significant (for us) reaction to the shot. We both developed fevers within about 12 hours and spent Thursday and Friday sleeping and watching movies with very sore arms. Gary's fever broke on Thursday and mine broke early Friday morning. We were doing better by Friday afternoon so after Friday movie night, Gary and Jena headed out to watch the neighborhood's display of Pioneer Day fireworks. I stayed home and made a phone call to my sister, Robin, who had asked for me to call when I had some time.
During that call, I received a call from Valerie's phone which was odd for a Friday night. When I called back, my niece Landi answered the phone and told me that Lance had passed away, probably from a heart attack (later we learned it was an electrical problem of the heart--it literally just stopped the heart beat.) I can't even describe my feelings of shock and sadness--for Lance, for my sister, and my nieces and nephews. It was overpowering. Landi asked me to call my dad and my siblings which I did after calling Gary.
It was a tender thing to share this type of news with others who loved Lance, too. In addition, I was very aware that my siblings would be expecting that if I called late at night that I was calling about our dad whose health had been declining. So with each one, I used words to this effect--"I am calling with bad news but not the bad news you are expecting." My siblings loved Lance, Valerie, and their family, too, and so they each had to understand and react in their own personal ways. And watching that and their outreach to Valerie and family has been a sweet and tender mercy of the past 2 weeks.
It went without saying that I would head to Mesa as soon as possible. So I made arrangements that night for a one-way ticket to go to Mesa on the next (Saturday) afternoon.
It was a late night for me as Gary and I talked and mourned. Another close friend has just lost her mother a couple of days before as we had already been seeing that from a distance and now it was in our family and our personal loss. I fell asleep around 2 and woke up at 6 after a night of odd dreams of family. Better than Valerie and her children who had little to no sleep that first night.
That early waking gave me time to get the house somewhat put together, laundry done, some groceries bought, and work rearranged before I left. I even got some chocolate eclairs for my friend who had lost her mother (however, they were never home when we -and later Gary- tried to drop them off so Gary, Ben, and Jena got to enjoy them instead.) Uncertain when I would come home, Gary helped get the laptop ready in case I needed to work from Mesa. I had no idea how long a sister might need another sister in a time like this.
My brother, Mike, who lives in Gilbert during the summer, picked me up from the airport and took me to her house, and finally I was able to embrace my sister in person. It was such a relief to finally be there and to be with my sister and her family. As much as we wished that it could have been our mom that was there to comfort my sister, I am glad that I had the resources and support to stand in her place at this time. How glad I was to be there and to stay the next ten days with them---
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