Thank you...

I've been thinking a lot lately about the many people who I need to thank for helping me get to where I am today. I know that I am not the most open person and probably haven't let others know how much I appreciate them and the things they have done for me. So, I am going to single some people out. I know that many of these people will never read this blog, but I will list them anyway.

Mom - Thanks for all of your help in getting moved and settled in to our new place. I had a great time driving across the country with you. You were so much help to us (especially Ashley) during my first week of class. Eliza really enjoyed having you here. I wonder how long she is going to refer to my office and bathroom as "Grandma Lar's".

Dad - Thanks for taking me to work with you when I was younger and teaching me how to work. I learned that hard work is important and working too hard is not fun. Thanks for always telling me that working in construction for a career would not be allowed. Thanks for the blessing you gave me before we left home.

Mike and Phil - Thanks for sacrificing some of your time to drive out to NC with me. You were a lot of help and I had a great time while you were here. Good luck in school.

Amy - Thanks for letting us stay at your house. It was great to see you and your family. I really miss y'all. Please come see us some time while we are in NC.

Tara - Thanks for being so genuine and caring. You really have been a great example of charity to so many people.

Jill - Thanks for loving my daughters, and spending time with them. Thanks for the haircut that probably secured my spot at Duke.

Wes Greene - Thanks for the great example of how to empathize with patients and treat them in a way that encourages progress. Thanks for taking me under your wing in PT and helping me learn valuable skills. Thanks for writing a letter of recommendation for me.

Rich Hall - Thanks for hiring me at Sports Med. I couldn't have got in to PA school without that job.

Brian Larson - Thanks for being a good friend and the encouraging discussion about school, PA applications and life. You also taught me how to care for patients and not just the underlying problem you were treating.

David Coniglio and Peggy Robinson - Thank you for interviewing me at Duke and for recommending me for the program. I was scared to death to be sitting across from you that day, but I'm very excited to be working with you now.

The Duke PA faculty - Thanks for making me feel welcome and deserving of being at Duke. For some reason you believe in me and have given me this opportunity to excel. I won't let you down.

Idaho State PA program - I'm not sure how to say this the right way and sound humble about it, but I really am thankful for it. Thank you for the opportunity to practice my interviewing skills and for turning me down.

Dave Wallace, John Flores, John Barrett - Thanks for helping me through my undergrad at USU and making it fun. All three of you had a profound impact on my life. You believed in me and were very encouraging.

While the order of this list has been in no particular order, these next two are definitely the most important, and the ones that I owe the most gratitude.

Ashley - Thank you for seeing something in me that made you want to spend the rest of your life and eternity with me. Thanks for standing by me and not leaving me while I failed classes which in turn meant taking an extra year and half to graduate. Thanks for believing in me and maintaining faith in me and Heavenly Father as I applied to school and got rejected and applied again. Thanks for being willing to move 2400 miles away from your family and friends so I can pursue my dream. Thanks for the effort you always have and continue to make in trying to understand the way and reason I do things and what goes through my head (the truth is half the time I don't know either). Thanks for giving me two beautiful girls and for caring for them. Thanks for making me the guy who people look at and say "how did he get her?" Finally, thanks (in advance) for your understanding, long suffering, friendship, love, and support over the next two years. It is not going to be easy, but we'll make it.

Heavenly Father - The one individual that I have personally thanked (many, many times) for helping me get here. After all it is you that has made it all happen. Thank you for answering my prayers and teaching me about faith, patience, and love. Thank you for not making things too easy for me. Thank you for allowing me to go through a difficult process and exert more effort than I ever have. Please stay with me and my family over the next two years and help us grow in knowledge, understanding, faith and love.