Kept

I am a horrible secret keeper sometimes.  I don't mean to be, I just accidentally tell things in a round-about way.  I wanted to keep Brennon's gender a secret until we told Caden (remember how grumpy he was for an entire weekend when he found out Shelby was a girl?!), so I told Kimberly that I couldn't tell her until then.  Then I turned around a few minutes later and said, "Oh, I need to go grab blue balloons."  And then it hit me-- I just told her. without actually telling her.  I don't come right out with the secret, but I seem to accidentally spill the beans more often than not.

A few weeks ago, I was brought into the confidence of a very big secret, one that will change the course of this family's life.  Randy was called to be the second counselor in the Bishopric.  Nothing had been breathed to the ward that this could happen, so it was quite a shock to hear that it would happen, making the fact that I had to keep it secret that much bigger.  In addition, he was called on the Tuesday before General Conference, meaning I had to wait 12 days for it to be revealed.  That is a long time for someone like me to keep my yapper shut!

The second counselor of the Stake Presidency had called to ask if he could speak with both of us, that he'd meet with us separately and together.  Randy said that either of us was being called to a big calling.  I told him that it was him, since President Burrup hadn't called my cell, but doubted my logic when I heard that the second counselor in my Dad's previous Stake Presidency was over Young Women's.  I was sweating bullets for an afternoon after hearing that.  Ultimately, Randy was called, along with another good man, to be counselors to our current Bishop, Bishop Kreutz.

When asking Jamie her opinion of whom could be getting the calling (now that I write this, maybe I was less certain it was for Randy after all), since he'd called Randy and not me, I told Jamie it was going to be difficult to keep the secret.  "Here's the deal, we can't talk about it.  At all.  Not even a little bit.  I will send you a text that says either, 'Randy,' or 'Stephanie,' so you know that one answer, but I will not say anything else, and you can't ask."  She kept her promise, I kept the secret.

Jackie, Darwin, Wayne, Rachelle, and Grandma Fuller all drove up to see Randy ordained to the office of High Priest.  The guise was Tyson's birthday and watching one of his soccer games, the truth was: they came for Randy.  I think Heavenly Father knew it was going to be hard for me not to accidentally tell the secret, so he orchestrated it to happen around Tyson's birthday.  Otherwise, I wouldn't have a good enough excuse as to why we had both sets of parents here for some random weekend.  After all, it would have to be something monumental to have the driving hours that were made to be here, together.

This Week:
2017- Caden's funeral with Tyson's birthday and baptism.
2018- "Tyson's birthday," and Randy's ordination.

One year ago I felt sorry for Tyson, having his brother's funeral the day before his birthday.  This year I feel overjoyed for Tyson, having his dad's ordination the day after his birthday.  Crazy how life can be so different each year.

The question everyone asked as we walked through the halls during church was: Are you ready for this?  I can't help but think it's going to kind of be like cancer care.  You can't really be ready for what you don't have past experience and knowledge about, so you take it a day at a time, ready or not.  It's going to be time consuming, like nothing we've ever known before, but the blessings are going to bring Miracles to our eyes, light to our lives, eternal purpose to our days, and we'll come out better for it on the other side of this beautiful refining.  Randy is going to be an amazing support to Bishop Kreutz, to the Hillview Ward, and, as always, to us.  Ready or not...