Happy Independence Day!

I must admit I feel as if I have been in a complete daze the last few days. I am sure you have heard of the news of the 19 firefighters who lost their lives fighting the Yarnell Fire last Sunday. This tragedy has really hit me, because I knew the majority of the men. I grew up in Prescott, AZ graduating high school at Prescott High School along side most of the men who passed away, as well as some of their wives. They were so very young, three men only months away from becoming Father's, some men month's from being married, some men just recently married, and some men with very very small children. The other day my father who owns a little store downtown Prescott wrote a blog post on his shop blog and he says it so well I thought I would just quote him,

"Prescott is a small community. The hotshots were not from Yarnell, they were from Prescott. One friend of ours commented that, "everyone in Prescott is separated by only one or two degrees from the firefighters who died". Everyone either knows one or more of the hotshots, or they know someone who was a friend of these heroic men. The loss has hit our community hard. As the summer monsoons have begun, the late afternoon low, gray clouds are a reflection of the somber mood in our little town. We have 19 funerals to prepare for during what is supposed to be our biggest week of the World's oldest rodeo, the 4th of July, and a wave of tourist and visitors that Prescott welcomes each year. Instead of a jovial mood, we mourn the loss of our brave men."

As a little girl the 4th of July was always a BIG event. Prescott has the World's Oldest Rodeo and people flock to the little town from all over the World. I feel as if now from this moment on this day to those of us from Prescott, AZ will not only be a reminder of our independence, but also be a reminder of all the men and woman who in uniform who have lost their lives fighting for us, especially these men.  Sadly this year I won't be celebrating the 4th of July in Prescott, AZ since I am assuming the traffic will be dangerously insane and I am about 3 hours away, but most importantly I will be with my husband and children loving them every moment I can! I hope you all have a blessed and safe 4th of July!

Alyssa

P.S. The Skill Builder FMQ Lesson #6 will be posted tomorrow.