So sad........

I am thinking about a girl I grew up with, she's just a couple years younger than I am, who just passed away from breast cancer. Left a devastated husband and 3 little children........I just can't imagine what they must be going through. I look at my little ones and wonder how their lives would be so altered if they didn't have me around (I sometimes think they might be better - doesn't everyone have that thought sometimes?). And I selfishly think of me and how I wouldn't be around to watch them grow up. There just isn't any silver lining in this kind of situation. My mind can't make sense of it, my faith gives me answers of "adversity is good," but my heart thinks "good for who?" The only thing I can wrap my mind around is a scripture...."I know that he loveth his children; nevertheless, I do not know the meaning of all things." I just don't think you can find answers in this kind of situation. Who knows why some people have to endure such things and others don't. It just doesn't seem fair. I guess we all have our trials in life, but it really seems like some people have more intense trials than others - is that because they are more righteous? They need to learn more? I just really don't know..... if being more righteous means having more trials, I'm not sure that I want to go in that direction.........no, I'm not saying I'm going to head in the other direction, I just wonder sometimes. And I think that sometimes it doesn't matter what you pray for, the Lord's will is going to win out in the end. So maybe it's better to just pray for the ability to endure the hard times, instead of trying to pray the hard times away.....

On an upbeat note - as I was going through my kids' drawers the other day and saw old soccer uniforms that no longer fit and that they no longer want to wear, I wondered if there was anything positive to do with them. So, after some research, I found that the US Soccer Foundation has a Passback program which takes used soccer uniforms and distributes them to kids in America and other countries that don't have the equipment they need to play soccer. I thought it was a good idea, and so now I'm in the midst of organizing a collection drive for used soccer uniforms and gear. I've got 3 elementary schools on board with me, one more in the wings, and a Middle School figuring out how to involve some student organization in this. So........with some good advertisement and some generous hearts, hopefully this will work out! I've never really done anything like this before, but I imagine that I'm not the only one who has things in their drawers that could be put to good use somewhere else. Feel free to send yours my way - I'll somehow get it to this organization and then they'll take care of the rest.