Well, what a way to start out the new year. It has not been
kind to me, nor my Kellogg family.
On Saturday evening, I got the phone call that no one ever
wants to receive. My number one fear suddenly became a reality.
My dad called me and calmly stated “Blaine’s house just
burnt up”. I felt my heart stop. I am
not an emotional person, but I did indeed have an emotional breakdown at the
mall, using there wi-fi, trying to complete my paperwork for work. My dad
followed the fire engines to the scene.
Just a half an hour earlier, he called me asking for directions to get
to a candy shop in Clovis. Most of the
Kellogg brothers were there that day, as the Kellogg brothers celebrated Christmas
that day. When he saw the fire engines
going, he knew in his gut, that something was very wrong, and followed the
engines to their home.
Just the day before, I had a discussion with Dean that one
of my favorite things that I love about the Kellogg’s is that there is an
immediate system of support in place. If
one person is going through a trial, whether it be an illness, or a home that
stands in ruins, everyone knows, and everyone let’s all others know. So that we
can stand next to the ones whose lives are being affected, and hold their hands
and their hearts through trying times, praying constantly for one another. What an absolute strength and comfort this is.
I want so badly to be there with my family, helping them in any way we can. We are just waiting for the word, and we will
be on our way.
Family has been on my mind in all its varieties lately, even
before the devastating event on Saturday.
I have felt the love and strength of my family throughout
the years, each time I have had surgery (which has been several) I felt the
love and prayers of them during my trials. It’s no different now that the trials are piled up on another family member. I know for a fact that although the Kellogg-Klan is spread throughout the nation, we are holding on tight to one another. Waiting to see what we can help with in the temporal sense.
I have continually thought how blessed we are. Everyone was
able to get out safely, no one sustained major injuries. It happened during the
day, where no one was asleep and everyone had the ability to get out. We are
grateful it happened now, and not 15 years ago with 11 children living in the
house. That would have been much, much worse.
Do I believe it happened for a reason? Yes. Yes I do. Do I know what that reason is? No. I have my
guesses, but it’s okay not to know. Heavenly
Father knows all reasons for everything, we, as mortals, don’t get to receive
that privilege yet.
Do I believe in guardian angels? With every fiber of my
being. I know for a fact that my mom, my cousins, and my grandparents that have
passed, were there, aiding in getting everyone out, making sure it didn’t
spread to my other uncle’s home, who lives next door to the home that stands in
ruins. Don’t ask me how I know that, I
just do, some things are too sacred for me to share via the internet. I do know
for a fact that my mom is my guardian angel until I am called home, and I know
that all those have passed serve as guardian angels, to all of the family
members.
Over the last few weeks, I have had the privilege of
receiving, and watching home videos of the Kellogg-Klan. In these videos, those
that Heavenly Father has already called home, are present. Grandma and Grandpa
Kellogg, Brad, Aimee, Cathy, and my mom Bonnie. I have watched these, and was
really truly able to see the strength that each family member has brought to
the family. I believe that each person that makes up a family was placed in
their family, for a specific reason, for a specific divine purpose.
Do I think that their strength is gone once the individual has
passed? No. In fact, I think that it indeed stronger. Now they are on the other
side of the veil, with strong superpowers. They have the capability of being
there when disaster strikes, before we know its happening, they have the
capability of knowing it going to happen, so they are ready, prepared, standing
ready to be a guardian angel.
Because of this unfortunate event, I have had time to think
about life, our lives are so very filled with temporal things. We all have televisions,
computers, phones, family photos, family heirlooms, food, clothing, etc. in our homes.
Then I thought, once that’s all gone, whether it be destroyed by disaster, or
once we have departed our earthly home, what do we have left? My answer is
this: we will always have each other.It is no secret that my favorite concept ever is that families are forever. Each of us have different opinions about whether we choose the family we came to or not. I believe that we have been assigned to our families by Heavenly Father, and we obeyed him and said “yes, to that family I will go, and do what thou would have me do to strengthen that family, so that we will all return to thee, together hand in hand, when all is said and done.”
So, my rhetorical question for is blog post is this: how are you strengthening your family that you came to earth to, and the family that you choose to marry into? Are you standing next to them throughout their trials, whatever they be? Or have you abandoned them in your busy, daily lives?
