I stopped posting publicly when Tiffany, my beloved wife of 27 years, was diagnosed with stage 4 colon cancer on September 21, 2013. After doing all we could to preserve her life, she passed away on January 1, 2015.
Tiffany means everything to me and her death has impacted my life deeply.
I’m a man of action. Given this tragic event I have decided to make as much good as possible come from it. I created a website http://tiffanyjanis.com that preserves Tiffany’s legacy for our children and future grandchildren, extended family, and friends. It honors her faith and strength and love.
To get my bearings as I enter a new phase of life, I’ve decided to visit all the Mormon temples in the United States. There are almost 80 of them spread throughout the country. Temples are where I go to connect with God and understand my life’s purpose.
Tiffany and I prepared to retire by the time we reached 50. Our intent was to serve missions for our church and travel. We raised 5 active children who were born close to each other. It was a lot of work! We were looking forward to enjoying the fruits of our labors, so to speak, and enjoying the freedoms of being empty nesters.
We reached that goal a few years early – I’m 48 (it’s 2015 when I’m writing this). Our youngest child left home for college in April. So I find myself in the sad position of having money and time but without Tiffany to share them with.
So I purchased a motorhome, attached my car to it, sold my house and sold or gave away almost all my possessions. With the intent of living simply so I can focus on the important things.
I have two primary goals as I do this trip:
- Get closer to God and figure out the direction my life should go from this point forward, according to His will.
- Get closer to Tiffany and feel connected to her.
Visiting all the U.S. Temples is a great opportunity for me to connect with God, get my bearings, do something not many people can do but would love to, prepare for my future, and rest from the intensity of Tiffany’s illness and death.
We are born. We live. We die. What we choose to do between birth and death matters. I hope to make good use of the time I have left.
Thank you for sharing this Damon. What a wonderful adventure to choose. You will be serving so many through your travels. How do you do the ariels? You must have yet another talent we were unaware of. I believe angels will travel with you on this quest and help you find peace for your broken heart. God Bless you. Lynn Anne
I just read the directions below and I understand none of them, so I hope they aren’t necessary. Max has spoken of your computer brilliance and is grateful for the brief time you were home
teaching companions.
Wow! I had no idea you were doing this until someone shared one of your posts on Facebook. What a wonderful idea! I hope you find peace and joy as you visit and serve in the Lord’s houses throughout the world. I will follow your travels.
Damon, I must say this post truly has struck allot of emotions since so many things you expressed run parallel with the goal my husband and I had of selling everything and since we had a 5th wheel we planned to travel to all the temples and serve a service mission. He however started having allot of health issues Dec. 2012, which continued through February 2014 when they finally discovered he had a blood desease that there was no cure for. He passed away mid April of that year. I since have sold my house, giving away most all my belongings. Moved to Texas and planning for my next step of what the Lord wants for me.
Thank goodness for the blessings of family, the gospel, and the Eternal perspective of the Temples to help with this unexpected stage of our lives.