"Remembering the Ones"

"You are the salt of the earth. But what good is salt if it has lost its flavor? Can you make it useful again? It will be thrown out and trampled underfoot as worthless. You are the light of the world-like a city on the mountain, glowing in the night for all to see. Don't hide your light under a basket! Instead, put it on a stand and let it shine for all. In the same way, let your good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father. Matthew 5:13-16

I hope this post finds everyone doing great. Thank you again for the comments, emails, messages, prayers and cards that you have sent our way. We are truly blessed and overwhelmed with your thoughtfulness.

Life never seems to slow down and it never seems to be easy. The one constant is change and that we can never go back and live today again. The one thing we can do is live tomorrow. It is never to late to change your future decisions. It is never to late to do things differently than you have in the past. I have no idea why this is on my mind so much over the past few days but it just seems there might be someone that reads this blog and needs a little encouragement. I know I need it often.

I named my last blog "decisions, decisions, decisions" because we make decisions every day that could have an enormous impact on our life. Some of those decisions might not seem big and some might not seem important but if you think about them... all decisions are important!

One of the decisions that I have made is to start a website that is going to "remember the ones". I am very excited about what God is doing right now with this vision. There is something that is telling me to do this. I believe that it will be a blessing to many people. I pray that God will use it for tremendous good. I started this blog in January with the "ones" on my heart and now I am going to finish the website. It will take about a month before it is ready to go "live" and I can't wait.

I believe that every baby born into this world is special and that every baby born into this world "different" than the norm is even a little more special. I know that I wouldn't have had this passion or drive to recognize the ones if it wasn't for Hogan's life. I believe that there are so many life stories out there that can inspire others.

I had lunch with a business friend of mine on Friday in Watkinsville at "Chops and Hops". I knew that my friend has lost his child at the age of 10 but I hadn't really asked many questions until Friday. My friend got married young in California. He and his wife had a child that had a disability. The child had a random condition that is very rare. She wasn't able to walk and she wasn't able to communicate much. She was only supposed to live a year after birth. She lived for 10 years. Her life was cut short by an accident. She loved water and was playing in her bath with a small amount of water. Her mother had gone downstairs to do laundry when she heard the water running. My friend's daughter was left handed and turned on the hot water by accident. This was a new house and they didn't realize that the water heater was turned up much higher than normal. She couldn't turn it off... by the time the mother ran upstairs to turn the water off.. the damage had been done. This precious little girl was badly burned. The mother called 911 and rushed her daughter to the hospital. The child lived for a while and was improving until one weekend when she turned much worse and passed away in her dad's arms a day later. I saw a picture of his beautiful daughter at lunch on Friday. I can only imagine the pain that he and his wife have to live. My friend is a special person and he had a special daughter.

This is another reason I am starting this website. I want to focus on parents and children that have beaten the odds or that are fighting for life. I am a healthy adult that has been blessed with great health so far in my life. I wonder if I am really giving God my best. I wonder if I can do more with the talents that I have been given. What is my excuse? It is never too late to change my life. It's never too late to make better decisions. I can't change yesterday but I can change tomorrow. I am so thankful for everyone that reads this blog and hopefully it isn't a waste of your time. Please pray that this website will make a difference in many lives and that it will be a good tool that will be used for good. I pray that God will use the website like he used Hogan's life on earth.