Ty

I'm writing about Ty tonight because my emotions are on the surface. Last Friday (July 1) we were enjoying ourselves at Shawn's family's cabin in Star Valley, WY. Shawn's friend, Blake Keyes, called him and asked what was going on with Ty. Ty's uncle, Blair, had posted something on facebook that made him worry. Shawn called his cousin, Blake, to see what was going on. Blake did not know, so he called someone else who was over at the other cabin in Star Valley. Through this chain, we were informed that Ty Redd, Blaine & Jaylynne's son, had accidentally been shot in the stomach while practicing shooting targets, and had been given a 10% chance to live. We were shocked. Speechless. All we could do was kneel and pray. Shawn's brother, Matt, gave a beautiful prayer, mentioning that we would accept Thy will with whatever happened with Ty, but also asked for comfort. We all did receive much comfort from that prayer. We knew Ty would be okay and felt peace. An hour or so later, we received the news that Ty had passed away. Again, we were shocked, but now we were heartbroken. The reality of it was a lot to grasp in those few moments - from the time we learned of the accident to the time of Ty's death was approximately two hours. Shawn, Matt, Brett, Bryan, April, and Sarah spent much time crying, praying, and giving blessings to those who were at the other cabin. There were a lot of swollen eyes and tears.

As I think of Ty, I think of his sparkly brown eyes, olive skin, and contagious smile. I mostly recall him around the age of 5-6. Full of life, and cute as a button. You just wanted to squeeze his cheeks when you saw him. On a sad note, I vividly recall Tucker and Ty acting as pall bearers for their baby sister Emma's funeral. Even though they couldn't have been older than 8 and 6, they were the cutest little men -- acting so grown up at such a young age. As Ty got older, we did not see him as often, but we always heard classic "Ty" stories. Ty broke his arm. Ty broke his leg riding bulls. Ty's hunting cougars with Lance. He was always busy doing something, and as his obituary stated, Ty "used his time wisely" while here on earth. At the viewing, I read through Ty's business brochure that described his hunting guide business. He was an awesome little hunter, and described how he could guide people to find "a mature tom" without "breaking your pocketbook." Chance was impressed that Ty had named one of his hounds "Jimmer." While at the viewing, Hannah wrote Ty a note that simply said, "I love you." As I attended the viewing tonight, my memories of Ty were confirmed. Ty was a tough little cowboy. I would love for either of my boys to be half as tough and half the man that Ty was on his way to become.

We heard more Ty stories at the funeral. My favorite was how he walked his mom through locating a deer on the hillside over the phone! Ty told his mom where to go and how to find the deer that he had shot earlier that day. Jaylynne located the deer through Ty's instructions, as well as through the stench of the deer! Once the deer was found, Ty instructed Jaylynne to pull the arrow out of the deer. Gross!!! When asked why, Ty exclaimed, "Mom! That arrow cost $15.00!" Jaylynne begrudgingly pulled the arrow out of the deer and took it home for Ty. I bet she is so glad she went through that for him as she looks back on that event. Another Ty story included how he had walked up a mountainside in snow up to his neck. Ty's bishop had a young man ask him if there was hunting in heaven. Ty's bishop replied, "I don't know, but if there isn't, I know Ty's up there right now talking them into it." Ty's toughness, along with his continuous obedience to his mom & dad, were emphasized throughout the funeral.

Ty was 14 years old when he died. He was not your typical 14-year-old. He lived in a world full of hunting, fishing, horses, and hounds. Girls were far from his mind, even though I read in a memory book that the girls thought Ty was the cutest boy in all of South Ogden Junior High. For Christmas this year, he was given a cell phone. Ty looked at the cell phone and asked, "What the heck am I going to do with this?" Ty began taking videos of his adventures during what would be his last six months of life, which are now priceless treasures to his family. I learned today that in May (last month), he took a video on his cell phone with the song "Take Me Home, Country Road" by John Denver playing in the background. With his video phone, he took a picture of himself, then of the temple, then of a picture of Jesus holding a boy. His parents and grandparents found this video on his phone a few days after he died. You can't help but wonder if Ty was inspired to make this video. It has been such a great comfort to them during this very, very difficult time.

Through the attendance of Ty's viewing and funeral, I received a strong impression of how distinctly separate our bodies and spirit are. The boy's body in the casket was not Ty. It was a shell of Ty. Ty's spirit lives on. It did not disinigrate or disappear just because his body gave out on him. I know that Ty's presence will be with his family on and off during their earth life. He is not far away. I hope Ty might pay our family a visit from time to time in order to inspire us to "cowboy up."