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Last Thanksgiving we were on top of the world. We hosted Thanksgiving dinner as a “rehearsal dinner” the day before getting married. To most people, that would seem insane first of all hosting a holiday... then hosting a holiday the day before your wedding... and lastly doing it in our house. A friend kept saying “Mr Chu” and tried to get me to cater something out of the house... but we knew that wasn’t right (or at least Jeff knew better than to debate me about why it needed to be in our home) But it was Thanksgiving. And we were getting married the next day. And Jeff and I were so grateful and thankful that despite where life has taken us and different paths and different ups and downs... we found each other... we found happy. And our families found each other. And no chaos or noisy kids or dirty dishes or messy kitchens mattered.
Family mattered. First and foremost. Our six kids. Our parents. And the people we loved.
Today we are honoring Jeff’s dad Matthew Sarrett who passed away March 21, 2018. Matt was able to be at our Thanksgiving, beam with pride and love for the grandchildren he loved and the new ones he was excited to watch grow. Matt exemplified family and love and like his son Jeff, and I would argue his grandson Grant, Matthew has a kind gentle loving and protective way for those in his world.
And it is obvious why Ryan loved all of them so much... non verbal communication... love... kindness... those are things you can see and feel in your heart and Ryan spent his whole life enveloped in it.
And as I watch the video of Corynne trying to learn how to sign “socks” so she could tell Ryan she loved his socks (Ryan always has the craziest beat socks to wear under his AFO braces), or see Gillian cuddle on the couch next to me and Ryan, or watch the cousins pile on or my brother Rob putting Zach in a headlock... it is clear. You can feel it. The love The casual comfort. Family. And this was all of our world. And Ryan’s world And Matt’s too...
Nothing made Ryan happier than being with family... well... maybe Disney... or Happy Meal Toys... or dogs... but yeah... family was it...