A Memorable Weekend

A Memorable Weekend

April 3, 2018

     It has been a memorable weekend for all of us! We sustained our 17th prophet, President Russell M. Nelson. I love how he is so old, yet seems so young. We are looking forward to hearing him over here in England on April 12. Who does that at 93 - touring the world and stopping for church meetings along the way? I loved Elder Stevenson quoting David B. Haight about how we can feel about sustaining prophets: "We can rejoice, even shout Hosannah! that the Lord's mouthpiece is in place and that the Lord is pleased that HIs work is being done".
     My boy and I were also able to spend some time with Ted and Candace in France. Our highlight was visiting two of the five beaches in Normandie, Gold and Omaha. Here D-Day began. Yet, the work was in place in England for over a year with construction of harbors that were then secreted over the channel to France. It was an amazing feat, even for today's standards. We are dumbfounded that this could really be kept a secret for that long, considering the heavy construction that took place. Artificial fog machines were in place to aid in its secrecy.
     On June 6, 1944, the Allies began their launch. Before the landing was over there had been over 130,000 participating. Even with the huge surprise it was to the Germans, there was a loss of over 9,000 Americans and 1,557 missing in action. We felt a huge sense of pride, yet sorrow for these "boys". It is estimated that the average age of the Americans was 22 or 23 years old.
     We were able to visit the sacred grounds of the American Burial Cemetery. We were there at flag lowering time at the end of the day. It was an eerie, sad, yet proud moment when we heard the loud speaker playing the Star Spangled Banner and then the taps. The sky was overcast as we stood among the white markers looking out over the ocean, The cliffs were close by where some were assigned to rappel, if they made their way across the beach, Our minds cannot comprehend the horror and carnage that took place. It was an honor to be there.
    On another note, we took Mike in for a procedure today to help with his breathing. He has been fighting  what we thought was allergies since we arrived in England almost seven months ago.  We initially met with a specialist that we really liked, a Mr. Kapoor. In England, surgeons go by Mr. This is a higher designation than Dr. Isn't that interesting? We won't have the final diagnosis for at least another week, but we are expecting there will be further treatment, such as radiation. Mr. Kapoor was more optimistic after the procedure that this is a form of cancer BUT it isn't as bad as he first expected.  At this time, we are both confident and at peace that all will  be well. Our dear stake president blessed us both with health and strength. He also blessed us with angels to attend us. We believe Mr. Kapoor may be our angel in England. My Mikie is sleeping now, which is a good thing because he sure has a sore throat.

Our Love,
The Seaman's in England