Our Bunk Bed: Training For My Future

Charles and I slept in a bunk bed for about 6 months. When we first moved back into our little house -- over a year ago -- we got a sturdy bunk bed to sleep in, so we could fit our family of 6 in our 2 bedroom house. Sure, it was not an ideal set-up, but we were willing to do whatever it took. We have always been willing to do what it takes throughout our life together. (There is a huge, long, backstory to moving in-and-out of our little house, but I am too tired to share, and it is not the point of this blog post.) 

For 6 months, Charles slept on the top bunk, and I slept on the bottom. I can recall some nights I would fall asleep crying, wondering how this had become our story after 14 years of marriage, and diligent hard work. Bunk beds? Really? I mean, really? Charles was a successful attorney, after all. And yet, there we were, sleeping separately, in bunk beds. The thing is, the bunk beds had been a stroke of inspiration while trying to make a huge decision. It was one of those moments when the answer was made very clear, and bunk beds were part of that answer. (Another long story…) 

As I slept alone on the bottom bunk, I would often feel this deep aching in my heart. As I slept alone, I considered the many women (and men) who sleep alone every night. Some nights my emotions were so powerful they would overcome me, and I would sob. (I have never been much of a crier, until recently -- now I cry at least once a day.) As my days sleeping on the bottom bunk went on, the empathy grew in my heart for those who live and sleep alone. My heart burned for those who deal with the world alone -- with the load placed squarely on their own shoulders -- without someone to share the burden with. 

The separation between the top and button bunk was enough that it made me ache from sadness, but it also made me understand. Little did I know then, I was being prepared for the very near future. Our silly, laughable, bunk bed excursion, does not seem so silly to me now. It was all part of the preparation. As I think on it now, I stand amazed. 

God knows ALL. 

To make it through the bunk bed days, I filled the slats above my bed with inspirational quotes. I would read them every night, and let the messages seep into my soul.  They are now etched on my heart. Again, little did I know how profound my quotes would become for me…. let's read through some of them, shall we? 

My Collection of Bunk Bed Slat Quotes: 

"To Love Another Person is to See the Face of God." - Les Mis

"It is not the strength of body that counts, but the strength of spirit." - J.R.R. Tolkien

"Keep Moving Forward." - Walt Disney

"All we have to do is decide what to do with the time that is given us." J.R.R. Tolkien 

"To die is nothing, but it is terrible not to live." - Victor Hugo

"Are you afraid of the good you will do?"

"Be Still my Soul."

"No Fears, No Regrets."

"If you dare to dream it, work to achieve it."

"It is kind of fun to do the impossible." -Disney

"Laughter is the sun that drives winter from the human face." - Victor Hugo

"Do or do not, there is no try." - Yoda

"Follow the Light Unflinchingly." J.R.R. Tolkien 

"There is nothing like a dream to create the future."- Victor Hugo

"People may forget what you say or do, but they won't forget how you make them feel."-Maya Angelou

"Don't be afraid to give up the good for the great." -Rockefellar

"Faith in God includes faith in his timing." - Neal A. Maxwell

"Your future is as bright as your faith." -Thomas S. Monson

"There is a Castle on a Cloud." Les Mis

"There is some good in this world and it is worth fighting for!" J.R.R. Tolkien

"Darkness must pass, a new day will come, and when the sun shines, it will shine all the clearer!" J.R.R Tolkien

"Not being heard is no reason for silence." -Victor Hugo

"Forget yourself and go to work." -Bryant Hinckley

"Faithless is he that says farewell when the road darkens." J.R.R. Tolkien

"Happiness wishes everybody happy."- Victor Hugo

"You are never too old to be young." - Disney

"Not all who wander are lost. " J.R.R. Tolkien

"To be, or not to be?" Shakespeare

"If you want to be happy, be." -Tolstoy 

"It is better to fight for something than live for nothing." -Patton

"Even the smallest person can change the course of the future." J.R.R. Tolkien

"Another story must begin." Les Mis

"Steadfast, Immovable" -Jesus

"Believe!" -Jesus 

"Life is to be enjoyed, not endured. " - Hinckley

"Things will work out. " - Hinckley

"If you think you can, or think you can't -- you're right."

"Look down, and show some mercy if you can. Look down, look down, upon your fellow man." - Les Mis

"Try a little harder to be a little better." - Hinckley

"God on High, Hear my Prayer." Les Mis

"Be strong and of good courage."

"Humility is not thinking less of yourself, it is thinking of yourself less."  - C.S. Lewis

"Love one Another." - God

"This is the best day ever!" Rapunzel

"Your silence gives consent." - Plato

"They do not love that do not show their love." - Shakespeare

"The more you like yourself, the less you are like anyone else -- which makes you unique." - Walt Disney

"Like everybody else, I've got a dream." - Rapunzel

"Where words fail, music speaks." - Hans Christian Anderson

This is my FAVORITE quote… 

"Living by faith includes the call to something greater than cowardly self-preservation. " J.R.R. Tolkien

I did not know then -- sleeping in a bunk bed -- that I was being prepared for the future. We did have a few months in a regular queen-size bed sleeping side-by-side, before Charles passed away -- I am grateful for that! But the bunk bed was part of a larger plan… one that I could not even fathom at the time. I was being prepared… for now. 

The reality is, our lives may sometimes seem like a bunch of random pieces, that don't make any sense -- it can even seem like chaos. There are times when we just cannot see the whole picture, or the whole plan for our lives -- but God can! 

I do not know what my future holds now -- no one ever really knows what tomorrow will bring -- but I do know that God knows. 

So, my plan is to find out what God wants me to do with my life… and then I intend to do it! 

Oh, and notice how big "Keep Moving Forward" is on one of the slats that was right above my head… yep, that is what I intend to do! 

Forward!