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Paul got the call around 7 p.m. on Sunday, September 3rd.
For a few agonizing seconds, he was the only one who knew the terrible news. We were with a bunch of friends celebrating Labor Day weekend; we were all enjoying ourselves.
Paul was told that our second daughter, Michelle, had attempted suicide, and that she was at a hospital in Bryan, Texas. The police officer on the other end of the phone wouldn’t tell him anything more.
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This is one of my favorite arrangements of this beloved song –
It’s just a beautiful, soothing song, don’t you think?:
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This song gave us much peace while Michelle was in the hospital; it was also played at her funeral.
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(“Over The Rainbow” by the incomparable Eva Cassidy – available on CD or MP3)
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There are so many wonderful versions of Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah” out there – originally covered by John Cale, the version performed by the late Jeff Buckley is perhaps the most well-known of them all (the song has also been covered by Bon Jovi).
I think the first time that I heard this song was on the movie “Shrek” (sung by Rufus Wainwright). There is an amazing 4-part arrangement out there by the Norwegian quartet Lind, Nilsen, Fuentes, and Holm. Heck, it even sounds good in Italian when performed by Il Divo.
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In 2004, Eric Whitacre set Rudyard Kipling’s poem “The Seal Lullaby” to music:
Oh! Hush thee, my baby, the night is behind us,
And black are the waters that sparkled so green.
The moon, o’er the combers, looks downward to find us,
At rest in the hollows that rustle between.Where billow meets billow, then soft be thy pillow,
Oh weary wee flipperling, curl at thy ease!
The storm shall not wake thee, nor shark overtake thee,
Asleep in the arms of the slow swinging seas!Rudyard Kipling, 1865-1936
His arrangement is absolutely breathtaking:
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In hectic and chaotic times, music like this truly calms the soul. This song gave us much peace while Michelle was in the hospital; it was also played at her funeral.
Honestly, one of the most beautiful arrangements of this beloved hymn:
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This song gave us much peace while Michelle was in the hospital; this was also played at her funeral.
(Performed by the BYU Concert Choir, from their CD “All Creatures of Our God and King” from Tantara Records, directed by Mack Wilberg. This is also available at Amazon, but that link doesn’t have samples available for listening.)
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Twenty-six years ago today, a spirited whirlwind of a girl blew into our lives:
Watch out, world – this one is loaded for bear…..
….and we have never been the same. Where has all that time gone?
God has a wicked sense of humor – ask any family that has more than two kids, and they will tell you that the third kid threw them for a loop. Just when you think you have the whole “parenting” thing figured out – you’re thinking you know everything there is to know about raising kids – the third one comes along, and you realize that you don’t have the first CLUE…..
By the time Sarah came along, we had been parents for 6 years. Poor Sarah got the “leftovers” – we were a lot calmer about things, but we were also just plain tired. Rachel was starting kindergarten and Michelle was only a year old, so Sarah got whatever energy we could muster up at the end of the day.
Thirty-eight years ago today, two starry-eyed kids said “I do”….
To my wonderful husband, Paul – thank you for all of the special memories, and for making me so incredibly happy.
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This came out in 1996 – the first time I saw it, I almost fell off of the couch, I was laughing so hard.
All these years later, it still makes me giggle 😛
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Continue reading
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Today marks the day that we welcomed our beloved second daughter, Michelle, into the world. It seems like only yesterday that we were counting her fingers and toes.
Never let it be said that God doesn’t have a wicked sense of timing. We had waited 2 years to start trying to have a 2nd child, and after 2 more years of silently mourning each time it was obvious that I wasn’t pregnant, I had finally resigned myself to the fact that maybe we were only meant to have one child. So I resolved to go see the doctor “the next month” to go back on the Pill.
Not my real parents – they don’t want their faces shown, so I got to pick a random picture of any old couple (That’ll teach ’em…..)
On this day 59 years ago, my Mom and Dad tied the knot.
I’m glad they did, ‘cuz otherwise, I wouldn’t be here….
The Fat Lady Has Sung
Koch's Tour 