To My Sister Emily
on the occasion of her 30th birthday
by Bill Shakespeare and Chip
My sister Emily, shall I compare thee to a summer's day?
No Thou art more lovely and not nearly so disorganized.
Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May,
But you are there to clean, order, and assure everyone is
immunized.
In the intervallic absence of your sailor,
Steadfast you stand and concede no failure.
Your wit and humor our lives do grace,
As doth the light in your bright smiling face.
With ever your thoughts on husband, sibling, parent, and
child
You do tame the tempest and our weather make mild.
Now advanced in years, albeit without visible sign of
decline,
You must wander in Death’s icy shade
But three decades isn’t so bad, you’ll see, you’ll be fine
And need not fear that your radiance will fade.
Now you are thirty,
This poem is wordy,
But our love for you we do proclaim.
Our Emily, sweet Emily, changing yet still the same.
I don’t know Emma Jo at all (previous to finding her blog) but I can say that she has an excellent voice when it comes to writing. Her posts are witty and fun to read. The outside observer is easily caught up in her style and her thoughts are genuine; involving the reader. Although I have never met Emma Jo, I feel like a far away friend who cares about her day to day adventures. I hope she has a wonderful birthday. She can be proud that perfect strangers wish her the best.
Maleen
p.s. Her kids are so cute that it is hard not to read her blog just to see pictures of them.
One of my favorite memories with Emily was when we stayed up really late writing the Sacrament Program for the Primary.
I had so much fun laughing about different football/church scenarios we could use.
I remember the first time I spoke to Miss Emily Oscarson.
In Klein High School's crowded cafeteria, she sat across
the table from me; a new girl from the east coast. I
remember her striped button-up shirt and jean jacket,
and the way her big blue eyes scanned the room for a
friendly face. From the very beginning I wanted to be
around her. I was thrilled to think that someone like
her wanted to sit by me at lunch. I never would have
guessed that we would be family. My life has been enriched
by her kindness, her wit, and her insane creativity.
She's a bit of a superstar in our family- just like that
day in the cafeteria. Love you, EM
My Daughter Emily
From the start Emily was special. How many people can say they had a baby while on a mission? Born in Sweden during a unique time in our lives she was a joy from the beginning. Even as a baby she was patient, calm, happy, and resilient. When one of her sisters accidentally turned over the baby carriage she was sleeping in, dumping her onto the street where she cried until someone noticed and rescued her, I decided that angels were watching over her. I think they still are.
As a young child Emily was quiet, sweet, and happy to part of a large group of siblings. We called her “lillemor” or “little mother” because she always watched out for her two younger siblings. She was the quiet leader of the “younger kids” and made sure they were kept in line. She was never the one who had to be the center of attention but we knew not to mistake that for a lack of initiative or strength. In fact, if I had to chose one attribute which characterizes Emily it would be her tremendous strength. She has strength of character, determination, commitment, and integrity. She decides what she wants and then goes after it without a lot of fanfare or complaint. We stood in awe as she finished college a semester early, moved to Annapolis, Maryland to be close to her fiancé, living with two (kind of strange) strangers and a ferret, finding a job, and making it all work without a car of her own, as she prepared to get married to her sweetheart midshipman. We kept asking ourselves, “Where does that strength come from?”
As a little girl she had big blue eyes, very long thick blonde hair and a small frame. To look at her you would think she was shy and dainty…until you saw her eat. On one occasion the family went to a restaurant for breakfast and we were going around the table placing our orders. Sweet little petite Emily laid her menu on the table and in a very feminine voice announced, “I’ll have the lumberjack, please.” Another time she challenged an unsuspecting 300 pound Tongan elder to a cinnamon roll eating contest and ate him under the table. I think she may have weighed all of 90 pounds at the time. Emily is not one to be underestimated in anything!
Emily’s organizational skills are legendary. At some point in her growing up I realized that Emily loved to be organized and had a talent for it. I have turned my pantry over to her several times in my life in order to get it whipped into shape. She can attack a closet full of clutter and leave it straightened, clean, organized, and completely labeled! She is the perfect Navy wife. Through the many moves required by Clark’s job, she has within days turned each apartment or house into a beautiful, comfortable, stylish, and organized home. She always leaves a place better and more beautiful than she found it. Martha Stewart eat your heart out. I want to be like Emily when I grow up!
The thing about Emily that is closest to my heart is the kind of mother she is to her four beautiful girls. I have never seen a more dedicated, loving, committed mother. She is consistent in her discipline and yet patient and loving. I have seen her as a mother in the best of times and the worst and she always has her girls’ best interests at heart. Even when she was suffering the effects of morning sickness she would manage to give her girls the attention and care they needed. She puts her role as mother at the top of her list and it shows in all that she does. Her daughters are so lucky to have a mother who dresses them with care, provides fun and exciting activities and games, encourages their talents and minds, and teaches them the gospel. My favorite scene when they were living with us last winter was to see them at night before bed sitting on their beds reading the scriptures together. I have watched her give birth to two of those girls and stood in awe of the concentration and courage as she worked so hard to bring them into this world. Her girls are her world and I know she will do all in her power to teach them and guide them back to their Heavenly Father.
Emily is a woman of faith. She is faithful in whatever Church calling she is asked to do even when it is hard or challenging. When she was called to be the choir pianist she was overwhelmed and felt inadequate for the job but she faithfully accepted it and gave it her all even when she fell short at times. When she and Clark were asked to serve in the Inwood Ward, it was a very hard assignment and I knew she would much rather have been in her home ward with friends her own age, but she rose to the occasion and both she and Clark made a huge difference in so many lives. Her life reflects a strong testimony of the truthfulness of the gospel and she is an inspiration to me and those around her.
Finally, I have to say that I just love being around Emily. In all of the seven months she lived with us this past year, I always just loved having Emily around to be my buddy and friend during those months. I never felt annoyed with her or got tired of her company. She is funny, gets excited about the things I care about and knows how to have a good time. I loved popping popcorn in the evenings and sitting down to watch a marathon of “Heroes” episodes late into the night with her. She introduced me to “Lost,” helped me throw things away, and was my confidante and friend for seven precious months. Thanks Emily for all the joy you have given me in the past thirty years. You are an inspiration and example to me and I am so lucky to be your mom. Let’s pop some corn and watch a movie together soon! I love you.
Emily
In the late fall of 1856, a young woman from England by the name of Eliza Briggs faced cold, hunger and fatigue as she helped to push and pull a handcart up the Rocky Ridge in central Wyoming. The oldest of seven children, Eliza witnessed the death of her father, a brother and a sister as they made their way towards the gathering place of the saints. Under her cloak, she carried a baby sister, Emma, all the way to Salt Lake City. Eliza Briggs was courageous, full of faith and determined.
Wilhelmina Åkerlind joined the church amid great opposition from friends and family members. Her faith and testimony carried her through very difficult times. While expecting her third child, her husband was called on a mission. When he suggested it may be best for him to remain home and care for the family, this quiet and sweet woman declared that the Lord had called him to serve and therefore would help and sustain her and the family while her husband was gone. His mission was a blessing to many both in his generation and after. Wilhelmina Åkerlind Oscarson was courageous, full of faith and determined.
With the prospect of being stranded in a strange city 800 miles away from her husband and new home, Vera Brown Oscarson had a decision to make. In her own words, “There was a guard and he refused to let us through. I tried to explain we had our tickets and our time was so close he could see we could never make it through the mobs of people. He refused! I took the children back and rearranged us taking Dick’s hand and telling Don, “When that guard is talking to that group of people approaching him, we will start to run and if he blows his whistle or yells, keep running!” It happened. He did yell. He did blow his whistle but we kept running and he did not dare leave his post there being so much confusion everywhere. We found our train track 22 and exactly two minutes after we were in our seats it pulled out.” She moved her family 27 times in 20 years, each time making a strange, new residence to a “home”. On one of these occasions she wrote: “The first night we walked in (had to be after work) with only our suit cases and nothing else but the boys’ cribs. It was pouring rain. Roy built a fire in the fireplace. I had seen a lilac bush covered with blossoms in the yard the day before. I took an umbrella and went out and broke off a big bunch of blossoms. I arranged them in a kettle and sat them on the mantle, turned to my husband and said, ‘Now we are home’.” Vera Brown Oscarson was courageous, full of faith and determined.
Each of our daughters carries the DNA (both physically and spiritually) of these and other great women. Emily has been amazing in her ability to take on formidable challenges. I admire her courage in leaving surroundings more familiar to live in Annapolis with a ferret in order to be close to her midshipman. She is bold and takes initiative to make things happen and get things done. I admire her courage in bringing four wonderful daughters into the world who I am sure will emulate so many of their mother’s wonderful qualities. I admire her courage in moving her family from place to place, each time creating a “home”. I admire the way she stands up for what she believes and for what she thinks is right. Emily is courageous.
One of the most difficult things I have ever done involved issuing a call to Emily and Clark to attend a ward, not their own, where their talents and spirit were needed. They had just moved to a new place in a new home in a ward where they had many friends and playmates for their children. We had sought the Lord’s guidance to know what should be done to strengthen and support the members of the Inwood Ward. The answer had been very clear and yet I realized so well the sacrifice that would be required of this young family. This was a hard assignment and a challenging time, but Emily and her family took it on and made a difference. They answered a call that required every bit as much faith as Grandma Oscarson telling her husband to serve as he had been called, knowing the Lord would provide. Emily is full of faith.
Emily has strong and independent opinions and yet is open and receptive to those of others. She is centered on wanting to do the right thing and make the right decision. She listens, ponders and then makes up her mind. And once that mind is made up, look out! She is determined.
I love Emily for all these qualities of courage, faith and determination. But beyond that, I love her because she is Emily…our sweet, sweet little girl. She is smart, capable, extremely well-organized, considerate, sensitive and lots of fun! What a sense of humor! I love watching her in her role as wife and mother, but will always see her in her role as “Lila mor” / “Little Mother”. Comforting Abby during those school days in New Jersey and having fun with Spencer (while never letting him get away with anything!) So very much packed into that little body. Elders from Tonga cower when challenged to a cinnamon roll eating contest. “I’ll have the ‘Lumberjack’, please!
Today we write of you, Emily and compare you to the great women from whom you are descended. But in the days ahead, your posterity will look to you and find the great example of courage, faith and determination that they will want to emulate. It will be the “Emily” stories of ferrets and moving and C-sections and making order of chaos and being true to one’s ideals and testimony that will earn you a place among those great women whom we now revere.
Thank you for being Emily. Happy Birthday! (Are we having cinnamon rolls?)
Dear Emily,
HAPPY 30th BIRTHDAY!! Thirties?? Doesn’t seem possible! What a great husband you have to plan and carry out a surprise such as this and I am thankful he asked me to contribute.
As I thought about what I should write there were of course many stories I could have chosen from. Good stories that made me laugh just thinking about them. Things like our trip to Hilton Head and Clark using a Mountain Dew bottle for a reason it was never intended for. Or how about the many nights we sat at our houses watching Survivor and eating Chinese food? Do you see my dilemma? There are just too many good ones to choose from. But then I started thinking about what I know and love about you. As I thought about that certain words came to mind, words such as friendship and happiness honesty, and selflessness.
When I think back to when we adopted Madelyn I remember how I hated letting other people hold her because that meant I wasn’t holding her. In the first few months of her being with us I think I spent most of my day simply holding her or rocking her to sleep. I loved that part of motherhood. There were many times when she was sleeping and I would look at her and think of you. I would think about how you would come over to our house and at any given moment Haley would start kicking. You would laugh and I would ask you what was so funny and you would tell me she was moving and if I wanted to feel her. Or how you and Clark called us right after Haley was born and asked us if we wanted to come to the hospital. Even with all the anxiety and newness that comes with becoming a mother for the first time you never hesitated in letting us hold her. When you were about to give her a bath you would call me and ask if I wanted to come over and join in on all the fun. And then there were all the sacrament meetings. You and Clark would come in and sit by us and instead of cuddling with her you would let me hold her the entire time. I think of all those little moments you let me enjoy her or all the times you allowed me to experience motherhood through you. I am a firm believer in the idea of people coming into your life for a specific purpose. And Emily you were exactly the friend I needed at that time in my life.
I wish we could be there to celebrate with you but since we can’t I will just hope that you have a great day filled with lots of yummy take out food as well as great presents to open up. Thank you again for being in my life and for being the kind of person I can look up to and admire. I love you.
With much love,
Mandee
Emily is a very special person. There are so many qualities about her
that I admire. Emily knows who she is. Emily is immovable. Emily is
smart. Emily is moderate in temperament and emotion. Emily is FUNNY.
Emily is strong (so strong!). Emily works hard. Emily thinks about
other people and takes care of their needs. Emily is quick to laugh.
Emily is fearless (regardless of how she actually feels). Emily knows
what is important. I don't have the skill to make this a funny or
witty accolade such as she deserves, but I am amazed that all of
these qualities (and many more) reside in the same person. Looking at
it written out it's almost impossible that she exists outside of some
fantastic novel! But she is real, and it's all true! I am lucky to be
Emily's sister and to have special "access" to her life and her time.
I admire her and look up to her as if she were the older sister. I
love Emily, and am SO glad she was born and given to our family!
Happy Birthday!
Love,
Carrie