PS from Northam Branch (for March, from Elder Kahmann)

The good news is I don’t think about our blog until the end of the month (i.e. to not detract from our work), but that’s also the bad news, because I don’t recall everything I’ve thought about, learned and/or experienced in the relatively short time we take to do our monthly postings. With that, I recalled last night an experience I had with Adrian Brennan, a member of the Northam Branch, which I want to share. He served as the president of the branch for, get this, twelve years! I’m not sure when he was released, but in the last 7-8 years (similarly in time frame to me) he lost his wife of 40+ years of marriage. We spoke in their branch the last Sunday in January, and after the day’s meetings, as we were preparing to leave (and I was waiting patiently in the parking lot for Sister Kahmann to conclude her varied conversations in the building), Bro. Brennan came out and we engaged in some casual conversation. I knew a little of his history and single/widower status from some discussion previously (he serves as a Church Service Missionary, managing and taking care of all the missionaries’ bikes, so we see him at Transfers). In the course of a prior conversation, I had shared with him some of my story about losing Karen, and we found that we had much in common. I further shared my feelings about my unwillingness to think about remarrying, as I felt that if I developed feelings for another woman it would somehow diminish and/or compromise my memories of and love for Karen (which I realized is not true). Fast forward to the last two Sundays, on which we attended Northam Branch again (to hear Cindy Holloway speak) and then to attend their (Dianella) stake conference, both of which Bro. Brennan attended. In my encounter at their branch he shared that he thought a lot about our conversation of 6+ weeks ago, and that he had opened his heart to the possibility of a relationship with someone else, and that he and the new Relief Society President in the branch were going on a picnic (date) that afternoon. We saw them sitting together in sacrament meeting and Sunday School that day, but didn’t know enough to think “what’s up?” Last weekend was their stake conference, and what were we so pleased to see? The two of them walking out of the chapel after Saturday night session holding hands! It was so awesome. Anyway, I’m not sure that I learned anything from this; it’s more about recording a wonderful experience that I could relate to, where the Lord brought together two people who both lost their first spouses, and now have a wonderful opportunity for life together. We’ll see how it all unfolds.