Superhero

It has crossed my mind several times over the last nine months that I may just be the lucky wife of a real life superhero.

***As a side note, can I just say that it's not quite as much fun as it appears to be in the movies!

Back in November, when Dust and I were being interviewed for a local news station, the reporter asked me, "Before the accident, did you think Dustin was invincible?"

"Did I think Dustin was invincible before?" I quizzically furrowed my brow and tilted my head.  "I still do!"  I exclaimed confidently.  "His head was crushed by a thousand pound ranger and look at him just two months later!"

Over the last ten years, I have watched Dustin beat and overcome challenges and obstacles of every kind.

Ten years ago, Dust got really sick with pancreatitis while serving a mission for our church.  After eleven days in a hospital in Brazil without a diagnosis (or even being able to keep jello down), Dust finally boarded a plane to come home at 128 lbs.  Just for reference, he currently weighs 206.

The day they sent him home, I breathed a huge sigh of relief... Until I saw him.  He was skin and bones, so withered away he could hardly even walk.  He didn't even look like himself. My heart was broken.  Completely broken.  But I loved him more in that moment than I ever would have thought possible.  

This was the first time I heard of the promises from Dustin's patriarchal blessing and watched them come to fruition.  Within a year, he had no remaining issues from the illness that very easily could have killed him.

I have been reading the book "The Heroes from the Book of Mormon".  I find myself amazed over and over again at how many qualities and attributes my good, strong husband has in common with these amazing men of God.

Many of them were men large in stature, and highly favored of The Lord.  They all listened to the Holy Ghost, continually worked to "put off the natural man" and they all became saints through our Savior Jesus Christ.

They were "meek, humble, submissive, patient, full of love, willing to submit to all things which The Lord sees fit to inflict upon him, even as a child doth submit to his father." They possessed faith, hope, charity, patience.

They were courageous, strong (physically and mentally), determined, faithful, and good to the core.

I look at Dustin in wonder and amazement as he possesses many of the qualities that make a man great.  With a calm confidence in The Lord, he truly trusts that He and our Father in Heaven know what they are doing with him.

I have seen Dustin in true depths.  I have seen him totally beaten down.  But over and over again, I have watched him pick himself up off the ground - bloody, broken, and bruised and walk himself toward the only one who has the power to heal.

I watch him show character and courage in the face of monsters that have the power to defeat any man.

I watch doctors tell Dustin that this is the way it is and not to hope for improvement.  And then I watch him improve.   I watch them tell him of insurmountable obstacles.  And then I watch him soar over them.  I watch him look at the things he shouldn't be able to do.  And then I watch him find a way to do them anyway. I watch him day after day steel up his shoulders and keep pushing forward, onward, upward.

Now, don't get me wrong... He is not perfect.  And neither were these amazing Book of Mormon heroes.  They were, however, good men, with good hearts who loved The Lord, honored their God-given abilities and desired to serve our Heavenly Father.

I understand that the Book of Mormon heroes were prophets and Dustin is not.  But I also understand that we know of these men so that we can try to emulate them - so that we may know that we are also capable of such greatness.

Each and every hero had major challenges and obstacles to overcome.  Each of them did everything that lie within their power and then trusted and relied on our Savior to give them unique and extraordinary strength that would ultimately put them in a class of superheroes.

I love this good man.  I feel honored to call him mine.  I hope that one day our kids know how lucky they are to have a real life superhero as their daddy.  

Happy Father's Day, my love!  Everything that I adore about my own dad and love about yours,  I see inside you.  

Happy Father's Day to our amazing, strong, honorable dads, who love us with their whole hearts and never, ever pass up an opportunity to be the rock that we lean on.  We are so blessed to call them ours.  No doubt about it, we come from strong and sturdy stock.