Tribute to my brother Randy Poulton

My brother passed away Monday, February 28, 2011. He was the oldest son and 2nd oldest in our family. He was 2 1/2 years older than me! My mother had 5 children in 5 years and 3 months. I still marvel with wonder at how she did that! She went on to have 3 more children. We had a lot of struggles growing up, there was a lot of EMOTION (good and bad) in our family, but there was a lot of love too. Randy had a lot of pain in his life, though the last 12 years have been a lot more peaceful for him, THANK YOU mom for all that you did for him. He never let me forget that I was the one who wrecked his car on a giant rock in Rexburg, Idaho! I don't remember him getting mad at me for that. I loved him so much and I'm so grateful to know that he is in loving arms and feeling the peace that he so desperately searched for all of his life.

June 2009, Lisa, Kamie and David, me and Randy!

This is how most of us remember Randy, always the clown! Oh how he hated those dentures!

It's really hard not being there with my family as we all mourn the loss of our brother and son. I really prayed hard to know if I should go home and be with my family, Randy is the first to die in our family, other than grandparents many years ago. I think we all think about our own mortality and what it must be like. I am not afraid of death. the sting of death is swallowed up in the reality of Christ for me. The hard part is the living without that person, I know it will be hard for my mom because she has given so much of herself to Randy. And for my dad too, he's been hanging out a lot with Randy the last few months while he's been in Boise. I'm so glad that he and Lu have been there and had that time with Randy. The Lord works in mysterious ways.

But I was called as a missionary for a year, only a year. And who knows if this will be the only mission I'm able to serve. So I stayed and have been trying to do my work and I have to say that the missionaries have helped me through (especially my companion! Thanks Scott for all of the love and support you always give me.) On Monday I was kind of in shock I think, I could not concentrate at all and very emotional. I ended up having these sister missionaries come over for a haircutting luncheon. Everyone ate lunch while Sister Porter cut several people's hair, it's amazing how far 3 footlong Subway sub's will go. Tuesday the President and his wife brought me a vase of roses (beautiful yellow ones), as I was thanking them they said, "no, it wasn't us, it was an anonymous Elder" (Atwood). There was a wonderful card with about 20 Elders signatures. People are so kind.

Back row: Sister Ferro, me, Perez, Maxwell, Porter, Donkin and Maylett. Front row: Sisters Rodriguez, Ang, and Bullock.

Birthday dinner for Sister Pincock (right). Sister Cramer (left)

Pink tie P-day! I finally got the memo and wore pink!!!

Tyler Lindsay on the left with Elder Struthers. Tyler went home in December and came back for the sealing of a family that he helped teach. It's weird to call him by his first name! He came by Sunday night to say Hi! He crashed our Cafe Rio party where I made Sweet Pork Salad! I now know why they call it sweet pork...it has like 2 cups of sugar and soda pop as well! Boy was it ever GOOD!!! I think I cooked that pork for 18 hours.(that's not an exaggeration either!) It really did taste like the real thing.

Sister Donkin really loving that salad! (She made hers into a burrito!)

I should have posted these pictures a few weeks ago. My good friend, Sister Young and I at Lake Conroe for a Sunday drive.

Sister Marsh's 75th birthday. Her children sent her a fruit bouquet, it was very tasty!

Sister Rodriguz, Sister and Elder Walker, and Sister Donkin.

Last, but not least I had to put this picture in. I saw it as we were driving up to Lake Conroe. How often do you see a building with trees growing out of the roof? What do they do as the tree grows bigger, cut another hole around the tree in the roof? Do you plan for that and make the hole bigger in the first place and if so how do you keep the water out when it rains? Luckily, this is not someone's house, just a fruit stand, but still it begs the question? Why and how did you put the roof around the trees?