Dearest Family, July 12, 1998

I just accessed the computer messages and WHAT A WONDERFUL WAY TO START THE DAY. This will be very short - the driver should be here in about 15 minutes.

LEE ANNA - Thank you SO much for your WONDERFUL letter - that is the first time I have heard from you since your trip to Europe and I LOVED IT.

SUSANNA WROTE ME A LONG, LONG LETTER FROM JERUSALEM. I am going to print it so I can really digest it later - I read part of it to my roommates as they were eating breakfast.

BOB - I LOVED THE LETTER YOU WROTE TO ME ON SATURDAY BUT I DIDN'T GET IT UNTIL THIS MORNING!!! I love to hear the “little” things about your family - what Laura said about Claire being more understanding because she was a teenager longer than you were is a classic - Ha!!! Michael - your Grandpa Mellor never did learn how to spell either - I always corrected everything he wrote - it is funny now for me to see some of the notes in his scriptures that are misspelled.

I CANNOT BELIEVE THAT I AM SEEING PICTURES THAT WERE TAKEN AT RICKY'S FAREWELL. WHAT A THRILL!!! THEY ARE FABULOUS!!! MY ROOMMATES ARE ALL TRYING TO FIGURE OUT HOW YOU CAN TAKE THEM AND GET THEM DEVELOPED SO SOON!!! I JUST TELL THEM I HAVE A “MIRACLE SON”. I was SO excited to talk to Ricky yesterday morning. My roommates all helped me figure out the best time to call but I didn't trust them so I called an hour too soon and woke everyone in the Weinert home up - I wanted it to be a memory anyway. Soon after I called, Janet got on the phone and talked for a long, long time and I would have been so nervous thinking you would go to church so I'm glad I called when I did - did you go back to sleep?

I also had an e-mail letter from Jenny Fredericks and she said “Did you know that John Mellor is my Sunday School Teacher - he is so much fun!!!”. John, you really look good in the pictures but where is Julianna - is she still in Ft. Worth? Jenny said that my house really looks good!!!

I HAD BETTER TURN EVERYTHING OFF SO I CAN DO IT RIGHT. I LOVE YOU ALL SO VERY, VERY MUCH. PLEASE BE VERY, VERY CAREFUL AND THANK YOU JUST MILLIONS FOR BEING WHO YOU ARE. Grandma Bxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxoooooooooooooooo