Happy Birthday to the World's Most Wonderfu, Beautiful, and Amazing Wife

This post will be my tribute to my beloved eternal sweetheart, Amy as she will celebrate her birthday tomorrow. As many of you who know anything about our story already know, she not only was the primary caregiver to her mother for the final 20 years she lived, but after she had sufficiently recovered enough from her mom's passing, and since we had both been interested in each other for a while, she had waited as long as she could for me to approach her about the possibility of dating. When she was sure of my interest but couldn't wait any longer, she did some brilliant detective work to find me and sent me the letter that started our relationship. I had been praying for quite a while that the Lord would open a way for us to get to know one another better, but I told Him that I wasn't sure she would accept my invitation if I put myself out there and asked her on a date. I did promise that if He opened the way, I would take it from there. To my credit, while I hesitated to approach her before that time, once I knew her interest in me was genuine and that my health situation and physical disabilities wouldn't be the obstacles  to our relationship that I thought they would be, I didn't waste any time after that.

And we were absolutely and completely compatible. We couldn't have been better suited for each other.The year that we had known and worked with each other in the temple had helped us develop a strong friendship. As we got to know each other even better (though we knew the most important things already), falling in love was easy for both of us. And while there were obstacles that came up that would have prevented things from progressing if we had dwelt on them, we both felt right enough about things that after three weeks of dating (we had 14 dates during that three-week period), we got engaged on July 4.

More obstacles came our way as we prepared for marriage. While we had hoped to be married in October, we were able to make it happen on December 18, her parents' anniversary, and also the anniversary of the day on which I had received the Melchizedek Priesthood and been ordained an Elder. This was because we had found and adopted the words in Moroni 7:33 as the theme scripture for our relationship. The powerful promise that if we had faith in Jesus Christ, we would be able to do whatever He wanted us to do, gave us the courage to make things work no matter what.

And in spite of the fact that I became somewhat complacent in appropriately taking care of myself physically and spiritually, that we have both run into health issues that currently hinder our ability to function to the best of our ability, and numerous financial troubles, Amy has tenaciously stayed true to her view that I am capable of not only once again becoming the man she fell in love with, but more importantly, the man she deserves and that deserves her. She constantly and consistently demonstrates her love for me, and, as I have before mentioned, she seems to always see me from an eternal perspective, for what I am capable of becoming, not just under my own power and free will, but also as a result of being healed one day by the hands of the Savior Himself, which is a promise I have repeatedly had reiterated.

I do not know what more I can say of her that would not embarrass her. Even though I have not always been as quick as I should be to follow her wise counsel and advice, she never fails to give me another chance to do so. Her infinite patience is angelic. She is truly the best, most wonderful piece of my life that I didn't know I was missing until she came into it 7 years ago. And now, thanks to the miracle I reported in my last post, I will be able to give her the birthday celebrations she has deserved for as long as she has known and loved me.

I end this post with a simple declaration: My beloved eternal sweetheart, thank you for everything. I love you with all my heart, now and forever! Happy birthday, my wonderful, beautiful Amy!

We have been the recipients of yet another miracle

Hello, all! While I felt that the update on temple construction that I just did was the easiest to do and therefore became the first one for today, these next two posts are no less important. I wanted to note a miracle we had happen in our lives.

When I got up today after getting a much-needed long night of sleep and rest, I checked with my bank, as has been my habit, to see if anything had changed, but not expecting anything different from what I have seen every day since I lost my job. Much to my surprise and delight, our bank balance reflected a sizeable deposit from the Social Security Administration. It appears that something finally moved them to action. And when I checked my phone, I had a message from my SSA representative saying that she just needed confirmation of the date on which I last worked (which was February 20) and she could see about getting my full monthly SSI payments reinstated. I guess my efforts to get through to her finally paid off. And despite the fact that she should already have the information of my last day worked  and the date I was last paid (as I mentioned that repeatedly in almost month-long attempts to resolve this), it is a step in the right direction.

Thanks to each and every one of you who publicly and privately expressed your concerns and support, and who also offered many prayers in our behalf. This is what we have prayed and hoped for ever since my health nosedived over a month ago. And I am very hopeful that things will be resolved even further in the following month or so. We have been very blessed. And the timing of this blessing is more than perfect. For the first time in our 7 years of marriage, I can finally give my wife the birthday spoiling she has deserved every day since she first became interested in me over 7 years ago.

My birthday tribute to my wife will follow. Thanks to you all for your readership, interest, and support.

Minor Progress Reported on Two Temples Under Construction

Hello, all! While no significant developments have taken place in terms of temple construction since yesterday, there are a couple of minor changes I have noted on my report of that progress. Yesterday, I noted that interior work was underway on the Meridian Idaho Temple, which is scheduled to be dedicated on November 19. Today, the status of that temple is showing that the work is not only underway, but is steadily progressing. In the meantime, at the Fortaleza Brazil Temple, structural framing is being erected for the tower that is part of the design.

As I noted in my report yesterday, I have had reason to adjust recently my estimates for when future temple-related events, particularly future groundbreakings for announced temples, will be scheduled to take place. Personal circumstances within the last couple of days have prevented me from working on the updated timeline I have promised for all upcoming temple-related events. But I will be working steadily on that in the next couple of days as I can, and I fully anticipate that I will have it officially posted on this blog before the weekend is over. In the meantime, tomorrow is my wife's birthday, and depending on what she wants to do with the day, I may not have much time to blog.

That said, I am grateful to all of you who frequently read this blog. Even if no one comments on any of my posts, the number of views on each post alone signals a clear interest in the topics I cover here. And so, I will press on. I may do one or two additional blog posts tonight: one for my wife's birthday, and one relating to a miracle we had happen today. Thanks to you all for your interest, readership, and support.