God's Country

Sometimes we joke that southern Oregon is God's country. It's not a joke to me.

When Lauren and I first got married, we were determined to end up in southern Oregon one day and raise our family. Then, after a couple years of living in Provo, UT and traveling a little, we wavered on our enthusiasm to make it back to the Rogue Valley. We thought, "Living away from home will give us a chance to branch out, force us to make friends that become family, and provide more opportunities to share the gospel." Our once concrete resolution to return became soft and sandy.

Two weeks ago I landed in Medford, Oregon at 10:30pm and was grateful to be home. For the next few weeks Lauren and I would be spending the most quality, relaxed, and carefree time with family since being married and it will probably be the last student-like summer ever. The next morning I woke up to a beautiful Medford sunrise.

I went outside to better experience the morning calm and was met by cool, crisp, fresh Oregon air. The colors of the valley and trees felt warm and tranquil. The first thought that came to my mind surprised me. One week previous to this experience I woke up at 7:00am in San Antonio, Texas. The air was thick, warm and sticky. I knew what the day had in store: sweat, sweat, and more sweat. So with a fresh memory of Texas mornings, and more importantly the Texas weather, in mind, that first Medford sunrise got me thinking, "Man, we've got to end up in southern Oregon."

Then Lauren's friends from Utah came and blessed us with a wonderful three-day visit. You know when you're visiting with someone and you say, "Hey so and so, you should come out to _______ sometime and spend a few days with us. We know you'd love it" and the other people say, "Yeah we'd love that! Sure thing!"? That conversation has happened a few times between Lauren and I and some of our friends. I expected our conversation with the Romers to follow suit. But a few days after we invited them out they made plans to make the 24hr round trip trek to visit. Wow! That's what I call putting your money where your mouth is. Anyway, they came out, we had a great time, and one of the days they were here we visited Crater Lake National Park.

As we drove to and from the park, the same thought came to my mind, "Man, we've got to end up in southern Oregon." That experience at Crater Lake made me realize that both Lauren and I have rich histories in southern Oregon. The childhood memories, family ties, small-town feel, countless outdoor activities, and wonderful people are just a few reasons we'd love to come back. Raising our kids around their cousins, going to the rogue valley cup (soccer) and championships (wrestling), watching games at Spiegelberg Stadium, hiking Table Rock and Roxy Ann, bass fishing in the local ponds, golfing at Stone Rides, Centennial, and Eagle Point, swimming and playing at Mimi and Grandma Thompson's, working at Rogue Valley Medical Center and attending the little Medford Oregon temple; this is what's in store if we make it back.

My sandy resolution to make it back to God's country is feeling more concrete.