More Important Things

This is my 300th blog post, and when I saw that it would coincide with Black Friday and the kick off to Christmas shopping I figured it would be the perfect opportunity to promote my books.

But then something happened, and I'm writing this. Because there are more important thing than selling books.

Our church family lost a sweet, amazing woman this morning. Veta Petty was an amazing person and a wonderful roll model for the rest of us. She had a practical faith--basically, if God says that's what we do then that's what we do. Period. End of story. You get down on your knees and pray, then get up on your feet and work. She shared more stories than I ever will--stories that admitted her imperfections (or perceived imperfections, I sure didn't see any) and also glorified God and Christ. She understood her relationship with Jesus better than anyone I know.

Veta understood the importance of family, including her ward family. She was the first to offer help in any situation, whatever help she could. Earlier this year she purchased my book series in full to show her support for me. I'm sure if I was weaving baskets she'd have done the same thing--bought some whether she needed them or not to show her support to me and my family. She was that kind of person.

I'm going to miss Veta's presence at church. She always had great contributions to make to any lesson. Her comments were always heartfelt and sincere. When we lived out here back in the late 90's, Veta was here. I thought of her often during our years in Utah, and I was so glad to see her when we moved back to Oklahoma. She'd been in the hospital off and on these last few months, and I sensed we'd soon have to say goodbye. I regret not being able to go up and visit with her, but I can still barely function--let alone make social calls. But she was always on my mind. And this year, she and her sweet husband will celebrate Christmas in Heaven together.