In Honor of Bryce

This past June, my grandma's long-time companion, Bryce, died. He had struggled with his heart for a long time, but he went peacefully in the presence of my grandma and his daughter, Lana. Bryce was not just an incredible man, but also a wonderful companion to my grandma. I was out of the country for his funeral, so I unfortunately could not attend, but I did get a copy of the program, and in it I found a really great quote by the Christian pastor and speaker, Charles Swindoll:

"The longer I live, the more I realize the impact of attitude on life.

Attitude, to me, is more important than facts. It is more important than the past, than education, than money, than circumstances, than failures, than successes, than what other people think or say or do. It is more important than appearance, giftedness or skill. It will make or break a company...a church...a home.

The remarkable thing is we have a choice every day regarding the attitude we will embrace for that day. We cannot change our past...we cannot change the fact that people will act in a certain way. We cannot change the inevitable. The only thing we can do is play on the one string we have, and that is our attitude..."

My grandma and I went to a brick-laying event for Bryce this past week at the hospice where Bryce spent his last days. Since I had been out of the country, it was my first time to see the place, and I was very impressed with it. It was a beautiful, homey facility, and the staff were extremely welcoming and friendly. Outside of the hospice, there are bricks laid with names of people who have died there. So, my grandma and Lana had one made for Bryce and this week we placed it in the ground in honor of Bryce. It was a great way to end his time at that hospice, and I was so happy to have been there, but, even more than that, I am extremely grateful to have known Bryce.