Following are some thoughts I wrote about over 18 years ago and I felt they were worth sharing with all of you on the family Blog.
Doug Ward - 1991
Manny Feldman said this about the family, “A family is: Where each can find solace and comfort in grief, pleasure and laughter in joy, and kindness and encouragement in daily living”.

I would like to recall a number of times in my life to illustrate what Mr. Feldman is saying; in 1957 as I prepared to graduate from High School a number of my friends and I joined the Marine Corps Reserve. In doing so, we were obligated to spend six months of active duty (the first three at the Marine Corps Training Base in San Diego, CA and the last three at Camp Pendleton near Ocean Side, CA) … Basic training is going though what is affectionately called “Boot Camp”. Boot camp is three months of intensive, brow-beating training on how to follow orders, defend yourself and your country. I can still remember very vividly the first day I knew I was homesick. It was the first Sunday morning that I had any time to myself and I had taken a paper into the latrine to read, the funnies I think. As I started to read it brought so many warm memories back to me of the kind of things you do at home that I started to cry and could not stop. At first it was just a few tears then I was really crying; a tough marine crying like a baby! I sobbed for over 15 minutes before I could get control of my emotions. I missed those I really loved. Not my friends, who I had spent most of my time with, not the places we went to as friends … I missed my family! All of a sudden I wanted to be with them, talk to them, laugh with them and share my feelings with them. Not being able to call home, which was strictly against the rules, I went back to my barracks and sat down and wrote a letter? As the lines of that letter developed the grief began to go away, all of a sudden I felt that I was with them, emotionally at least and that made a big difference. The tears stopped and were replaced with the knowledge that I had a bond, not physically but emotionally, with my family.

When summer came in 1989, it turned out to be the longest one of my life. It was the first summer I had spent away from LaRee and our two youngest kids. They were all homesick for Idaho and happily returned to the home they had known for the past 10 years and in doing so, they left me in North Carolina to fend for myself. At first it was interesting not to have to report to anyone, I could do as I wanted. I could come and go as I pleased. No one was there to ask: when will you be home? Where are you going? Why are you doing that? Or, can you fix this for me, ect, ect. On the other hand, I didn’t have anyone to share my success or failures with … No one for me to smile at or anyone to smile at me when I returned home. It wasn’t much of a summer and I continually found myself yearning to be with the ones I loved. I wanted someone to care where I was, care where I was going and want to know what time I would be home. I yearned to share my joys and defeats. I called a lot and even wrote some letters but it was still the longest summer of my life. It is sad but sometimes we don’t appreciate the ones we love until they are not there to be loved or share their love with us.

After moving back to Utah in 1991, we celebrated the 80th birthday of my father in Moran, Wyoming. What a weekend! 27 of us in one house which we call “The Cabin”: Staying up to late, kids crying, kids laughing, kids just being kids. Excursions together, working together, hiking together, hours of just remembering when; we were together as a family. It was a weekend that won’t be forgotten. Why? Because we were together!! Not just friends and we are the best of friends, but we are far more than friends, we are family, we care about each other … we love each other unconditionally. Our love is there in the best of times and the worst. We truly care for one another because you see we are a family “where each can find solace and comfort in grief, pleasure and laughter and joy, and kindness and encouragement in daily living”.