Short site seeing trip through the Badlands National Park and an early lunch at Wall Drug. If you’ve never been there, it’s like a shopping mall but every store is owned by the same family. Their story is incredibly inspiring. While we were there we learned that my brother Shawn had passed away. 
The day was bittersweet. While we were enjoying sights and capturing wildlife on camera, my brother was struggling with his life. He had a triple bypass surgery a few weeks ago, came home from the hospital, and today I received the call that he was in cardiac arrest. He died about an hour later.
Tim had just recorded me singing Amazing Grace in a chapel in Wall, South Dakota, which was our last stop of the day. The chapel is dedicated to the travelers who came through the area. The acoustics were beautiful and I just couldn’t pass up the opportunity to sing. It seems appropriate to share this story in memory of my older brother. We are all just passing through. We are travelers…don’t get too settled because this is only a temporary home! Shawn is HOME now. Heaven must look good.
My brother was sixty years old and the oldest of us three (I’m the baby). I am still in shock that he is gone. We just talked about a week ago. Now, he is probably partying with Mom and Dee (Mom died in 2014, and his wife died in 2017.) This is one of the first pictures I have of us three kids. This was taken in our home on McKinley Street, in Middletown Ohio. Our street recently became famous in the best-selling book Hillbilly Elegy, soon to be released as a movie. Small world indeed.
Providentially, today is our last day in South Dakota, and we had already planned to leave and head toward home tomorrow. I don’t know any details on the funeral, or whether I will be able to go. Their 23-year old son Christian is the only one left in the family, and he will be planning everything. It will take us about four days to get home as we see some heat in the forecast. Then we can decide. We washed clothes and we are all packed.
Aside, when I was diagnosed with terminal cancer I assumed everyone would outlive me. Here I am four years later and going strong. You never know how much time you have! Every day is precious. Live life abundantly as Christ would have you to live.
Á la prochaine…until next time…Shawn, à bientôt!