It's in the valley I grow

January 10th was my dear Grandma Eastman's birthday & my mom & Dad was in a terrible wreck, I always remember these two events each year. I loved my grandma very much & spent a lot of time with her as a little girl. I was 13 when the wreck happened & they came to school & got me out of Mrs. Frazier's class. Isn't it funny how some things just stay in your mind for a long time & then as Putter would put it, you can remember what I did wrong 25 years ago but you can't remember to put a spoon in my lunch bucket. It always brought a smile to my face & even sometimes a good laugh. We're still reading & studying the Book Of Mormon to get it done in the 40 days we are just about half way. I'm learning a lot of those hard names I would just skip over in the old days. Still cold here in Texas, still wearing long johns & thanks to Danalee I have a new fuzzy pair that I'm pretty proud of. I'm keeping them pretty close to me. We attended a baptism this morning & I love them. He was 11 yrs old. A little boy about 9 yrs old talked on baptism & he gave one of the best talks I've ever heard. I felt like he should be on a mission, he will be an outstanding one someday. One dear sister that we visit often fell and broke her neck, she has been operated on & now recovering still in hospital. Another gentleman that goes to our over 60 home evening group, the missionaries, found him dead by the side of his bed. It's been a strange week. Had a great dinner last night with a couple of elders at a non member home. I met this woman when I very first got here & we connected, I love her, she is from Hong Kong & a very good cook. Hope all is well out there in your neck of the woods & please know I think of lots of you often & it usually always brings a smile to my face. I was able to talk to my dear neighbors on New Years Day, they are fighting cancer also & my thoughts & prayers are always with them. Got a card from some people who went through stem cell with us & they said they're doing great right now. I always love hearing from them, they're not members of our church but she taught me so much during our stay in Salt Lake, I'm so happy that they're still trucking onward. She stays in touch often & I appreciate that. My companion saw ice for the first time in her life, she was so excited we took her picture so she could send it to her children. She is the one from Australia, where she lives it never gets below 70 & she's never seen leaves fall from trees so she had to walk through them & loved hearing the crunch beneath her feet. I received a lot of thoughts this week but the one I chose was from a lady with M S, she is in a rest home & has been for years. We visit her every week & we ran into her at the temple last Wednesday. I was able to do 30 baptisms that day so she was my highlight of the day.  IT'S IN THE VALLEY I GROW: Sometimes life seems hard to bear, Full of sorrow, trouble & woe. It's then I have to remember, that it's in the valley I grow. If I always stayed on the mountain top and never experienced pain, I would never appreciate God's love and would be living in vain. I have so much to learn and my growth is very slow, sometimes I need the mountaintops, but it's in the valley I grow. I do not always understand why things happen as they do but I am very sure of one thing, my Lord will see me through. My little valleys are nothing. When I picture Christ on the cross, he went through the valley of death; his victory was satan's loss. Forgive me Lord, for complaining when I'm feeling so very low. Just give me a gentle reminder that it's in the valley I grow. Thank you for valleys, lord for this one thing I know the mountaintops are glorious but it's in the valley I grow!!! Author  unknown. My scripture is Alma 12: 21-24.