June 18, 2025 • 48 mins
In this deeply moving episode of Love Like Crazy, we sit down with our friend Isabella Payne to talk about life, loss, faith, and legacy. From growing up in North Louisiana to walking through the unimaginable pain of losing both her sister Savannah and her mother Stephanie, Isabella shares her heart with grace, honesty, and laughter.
You’ll hear about how her family’s strong faith and church community carried them through tragedy, how Isabella’s father modeled strength through vulnerability, and how intentional living became her personal mission. This episode is about grief, but it’s also about hope, healing, and the beauty of remembering those we love by living well.
Whether you’ve experienced loss or want to know how to support someone who has, this conversation will stir your heart and inspire you to live with purpose.
Don’t forget to subscribe, like, and share with someone who needs this message
Leave us a comment—we’d love to hear how this episode encouraged you. — 🎙️
Timestamps
00:00 Intro & Welcome
02:35 Meet Isabella Payne
08:10 Losing Her Sister Savannah
20:20 The Power of Church Community
30:50 Losing Her Mom Stephanie
47:00 Honoring Their Memory Through Intentional Living
56:20 Final Thoughts & Encouragement
Whether you're a young family seeking encouragement or simply love uplifting stories of faith and family, this episode offers heartfelt wisdom, humor, and inspiration.
Don’t forget to:
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Podcast Produced by Hi Hello Labs
Website: hihellolabs.com
You’ll hear about how her family’s strong faith and church community carried them through tragedy, how Isabella’s father modeled strength through vulnerability, and how intentional living became her personal mission. This episode is about grief, but it’s also about hope, healing, and the beauty of remembering those we love by living well.
Whether you’ve experienced loss or want to know how to support someone who has, this conversation will stir your heart and inspire you to live with purpose.
Don’t forget to subscribe, like, and share with someone who needs this message
Leave us a comment—we’d love to hear how this episode encouraged you. — 🎙️
Timestamps
00:00 Intro & Welcome
02:35 Meet Isabella Payne
08:10 Losing Her Sister Savannah
20:20 The Power of Church Community
30:50 Losing Her Mom Stephanie
47:00 Honoring Their Memory Through Intentional Living
56:20 Final Thoughts & Encouragement
Whether you're a young family seeking encouragement or simply love uplifting stories of faith and family, this episode offers heartfelt wisdom, humor, and inspiration.
Don’t forget to:
- Like, subscribe, and leave a comment with future topic suggestions
- Share this episode with friends or anyone facing a tough season
------------------------------------
Podcast Produced by Hi Hello Labs
Website: hihellolabs.com
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:22):
Hey everyone, and welcome to the Love Like Crazy Podcast.
We're your hosts, Jay and Stacy Coleman, and we're here
in our home studio and we have a great, great
guest for you today that I'm so excited about this conversation.
Speaker 2 (00:36):
Yeah, to be honest with you, we have actually laughed
so much this morning already, just in visiting. We have
our good friend Isabella Payne with us.
Speaker 3 (00:43):
Yeah, I'm so excited to have for with us.
Speaker 2 (00:45):
Now, before we dive into this, I do want to
thank all of our listeners for being a part of
this podcast. This has just been so much fun watching
this grow over these last couple of years, and so
I would say this to you. If you're enjoying this,
make sure that you like this on the YouTube channel,
specifically subscribe, share it, leave us a comment. We love
(01:06):
to hear feedback from our listeners and it actually helps
us to push the podcast forward and to grow it.
So thank you so very much for being a part
of this. So, Isabella, great to have you with us today.
Speaker 3 (01:16):
Great to be here.
Speaker 2 (01:17):
I'm excited, We're excited about you being here today, and
so why don't we do this? You know, I know
that YouTube kind of hang out all the time and y'all,
you know, y'all talk and all that kind of stuff
girl talk. But you know, I kind of actually feel
a little left out. But so today, let.
Speaker 3 (01:32):
I want you to be included today.
Speaker 2 (01:34):
Well let's do this. I know that you're just you
just wrapped up college recently, yes, yeah, And tell us
a little bit about yourself, tell us where you at,
what's going on in life right now?
Speaker 4 (01:42):
Okay, So, grew up North Louisiana, went to like, grew
up in North Louisiana, moved to Central in twenty thirteen
and went to Central High School.
Speaker 3 (01:53):
Loved it. I actually did a lot.
Speaker 4 (01:57):
I didn't know anybody going into Central, and so I
really thought it's going to be kind of like the movies,
where you know, everyone wants to be friends with a
new girl, and like, I'm going to have all these friends.
And I remember getting in my dad's truck that first
day after school and just bawled my eyes out, like
it was horrible. We call it the Dark Days because
it was so bad. But it has taught me a lot,
and I think that was a huge turning point in
(02:17):
my life.
Speaker 3 (02:18):
When I was a freshman, because freshmen are weird.
Speaker 4 (02:20):
You know, nobody really wants to talk anyway, and it's
I mean, it literally was the pathway for me to
be outgoing and like, I'm not afraid to talk to
people now because of that. And so moving on from
living in Central I went to Southeastern for college.
Speaker 3 (02:34):
Loved Hammond. That was a great place to live.
Speaker 2 (02:37):
And Tommy's Pizza I've only went one time.
Speaker 3 (02:41):
I know, we talk about it all the.
Speaker 2 (02:42):
Time, but the boys love Tommy's Pizza, and to me,
it's okay.
Speaker 3 (02:45):
It was okay, it was fine. I'm Mexican. It's not
Johnny's Pizza so much.
Speaker 4 (02:52):
Yeah, Hammond was great, and I loved being closer to home,
like I could come home and eat dinner with mom
and dad if I wanted to, and then you know,
wake up the next morning, go to class. Like it's
not a lot of people commute. But I just loved
being out there in Hammond. And then really felt like
I wanted to do occupational therapy and really felt like
that's kind of my calling, you know, for my my career,
(03:14):
and so applied for a couple of different Now it's
it's out of state jobs. I didn't I mean out
of state schools. I didn't think about tuition, but it's.
Speaker 2 (03:23):
Okay rolling with it when young.
Speaker 4 (03:27):
So I applied for some out of state places because
you know, why not just go for it. And so
I ended up going to South Alabama and Mobile loved Mobile.
Got to live by the beach, which was awesome, and
then it was only three hours from Dad, so I
could come home when I wanted to. And then in
December of twenty twenty three, I graduated OT school and
(03:51):
I've been working. I just made a year in February,
and I work with kids half the week and older
adults the other half of the week. So it's very
I enjoy it kind of both ends of the lifespan.
And I think getting to bless people and families when
they're younger because you know, maybe their child has a
disability or things are a little harder for them to
do and kind of navigating that, and then with my
(04:14):
older adults being able to help them, you know, on
things that we take for granted all the time, it's
a little harder for them. And so getting to to
kind of help people at both ends. I have really
enjoyed the split. It's a little crazy sometimes, but I
enjoy going to work every day right now.
Speaker 3 (04:28):
I mean I'm a year in, but you need to
love what you're doing. Yeah, exactly.
Speaker 4 (04:32):
I really do enjoy enjoy what I do. So but yeah,
living in Central now, and it's good to be back home.
I know when I moved back home and getting to
go back to Journey, I missed that community, you know,
because I grew up with that in Calhoun in North Louisiana,
going to church and just seeing people in fellowship and
it's you know, I miss that when I was in
college and stuff because you really don't have like a
(04:54):
home church. And at South Alabama and Mobile we went
to a couple of different churches. But I have I
have thoroughly enjoyed getting back to Journey and just missed us.
Speaker 3 (05:03):
Yes I did. We missed.
Speaker 2 (05:06):
We missed you.
Speaker 1 (05:07):
I mean, you know, talking about North Louisiana. That was
the because because we're from North Louisiana as well, not
as far north as as you grew up. We I
just remember meeting when I met your mom. That was
the main thing that connected us was when I heard
that she was from North Louisiana.
Speaker 3 (05:25):
I was like, Oh, that's my girl, that's my girl,
and people.
Speaker 1 (05:29):
Yeah, it is.
Speaker 4 (05:30):
It is.
Speaker 1 (05:31):
You're like, I'm like, oh, you know, you know you're
from where I'm from.
Speaker 4 (05:36):
And people say North Louisiana And I didn't realize how
big people consider North Louisiana.
Speaker 3 (05:40):
Sometimes people will say like, oh, I'm from blah blah.
Speaker 4 (05:42):
Blah, and I'm like, oh, I love that, and I'm like,
they said North Louisiana, So I'm rolling.
Speaker 3 (05:47):
That's right. Like I don't even I don't even know
where it was exactly, but it's like, yeah, those people.
Speaker 2 (05:53):
We found out when we lived in laugh that anything
above Opelusis is considered Yankee, okay. And so when we
moved to Laughing and the people are like, you know,
you know, you know, they're like, where you're from Texas
And I'm like, you know, we're from Texas and they're like,
they're like, what your accent? I'm like, well, y'all.
Speaker 3 (06:10):
Talking about we don't have an accent.
Speaker 2 (06:14):
But you get around somebody like your mom, Yeah you
got an accent, and it's like I don't hear mine,
but I hear somebody else's right.
Speaker 3 (06:21):
That's right. That's very very very quick connection.
Speaker 2 (06:24):
We had definitely, Yeah, I know that that instant you know,
it's just kind of an instant connection with with your family,
with with your parents, and Stacy and your mom became
fast friends, and you know, it was it was kind
of fun to watch that relationship because your mom, like you,
I know, and I know that that's probably not an
aspect of the story that you like to focus on,
(06:46):
but you you've walked through some you and your dad
both some very difficult seasons, and I think that that's
whenever we you know, I know, your your mom and
Stacy were acquaintances, they were friends, but whenever, I y,
that's whenever the connection really started to form. Right, whyn't
you talk a little bit about that?
Speaker 3 (07:06):
Yeah, so grew up.
Speaker 4 (07:08):
Mom would always say we lived the American dream and
it was like without a white picket fence because we
had like three wheelers and mud and all that kind
of stuff and.
Speaker 1 (07:16):
So Northana go mud Ryana.
Speaker 4 (07:19):
But it was me and Savannah. Savannah it was three
years and nine months, so we always said just four
years older than me and normal sister than y'all had boys,
but sisters fight just as much and we.
Speaker 3 (07:30):
Could get physical sometimes too.
Speaker 4 (07:32):
But it was fun getting to have somebody because her
friends honestly, like were bigger sisters to me too, and
then she'd hang out, so we weren't so far apart
and we were just a I love my family Like
I now, I hear stories about like some of my
friends and what they grew up with, and I'm like
even more grateful for what I had.
Speaker 3 (07:52):
Family vacations. I know y'all have done. Y'all did family
vacations stuff like that.
Speaker 4 (07:55):
Just a very close family grew up in the church,
and I mean mom and Dad were a part of
every committee you could come up.
Speaker 3 (08:02):
With, and Sunday School and VBS.
Speaker 4 (08:04):
I mean we were we were all in and so
we went to Right before my ninth grade year, my
dad got an offer, like to be promoted with his job,
but to do that he'd have to move to Baton Rouge.
And so I remember, like I said, I remember thinking like, well,
I'm gonna be you know, that's fine with me. I'm
gonna be the cool new girl. And uh. Savannah stayed
in at Monroe and went to ULM and wanted to
(08:27):
do speech pathology.
Speaker 3 (08:28):
She was an ra with housing.
Speaker 4 (08:30):
I mean, she was like doing great and Mom always
said she was like you know when people go to college.
Speaker 3 (08:34):
Usually the kid moves away and the family moved away.
Speaker 4 (08:38):
So but it wasn't bad because all my family's in
North Louisiana, so it was really just me, mom and
dad that moved down here to Central. So we go
to you know, savannahs a freshman in college. I'm a
freshman in high school. And then you know, she'd come
down and visit on the weekends and things, attend New
Year's Eve parties at your house.
Speaker 2 (08:54):
Well, let's expound on that, because we were talking about
one of the connections was you wind up at a
new you and Savannah came to New Year party here
at our house, and that was the one where the
boys built a huge fire and we thought they were
burning the house down.
Speaker 3 (09:06):
But that's massive.
Speaker 2 (09:07):
It's funny to go back and talk about those things
because of you know, the connection.
Speaker 4 (09:11):
Now the right right exactly, and like getting to know
your boys now so we've gotten older. It was just
it's been a great experience with that. I'm so glad
Savannah was there with me. Like, how cool to experience,
you know, being that new kid with your sister. I
wish I could have bring protor to high school. It
got better by the way that I made us Now,
I loved high school.
Speaker 3 (09:31):
Those first three weeks were rough, but we made.
Speaker 4 (09:33):
It out got so in the When the flood happened
in twenty sixteen, Savannah was a senior in college.
Speaker 3 (09:39):
I was a senior in high school, and we went into.
Speaker 4 (09:42):
Like everybody else's flood relief mode, and I mean we
just ripping up carpet and the self service was so bad.
So Savannah was like trying to call and I remember Mom.
Savannah was like, I'm coming down there, and Mom's like,
your Chevy cruise can't get in this water, Like we're
people are on boats right now. So and that's how
Savanna was her heart. I mean she's like serving. I
mean Mom used to say, just to give you an
(10:04):
idea of Savannah, she would say, if everybody in the
world is happy, Savannah's happy. If everybody in the world
is unhappy and Isabella is happy, that's fine. I've gotten better,
But that really is Savannah was just she was a
people pleaser and not.
Speaker 3 (10:21):
Like let people walk all over you. Like she loved
to serve others.
Speaker 4 (10:25):
And she was just compassionate, a cheerleader like she actually cheered,
but like she cheered for you, like she just you
just knew that about her, and that's why she had
so many good friends that you know. It's just I'm
getting ahead of myself, but I've learned so much more
about my sister since she has passed, just because of
how she affected other people. So the flood happens, and
(10:45):
ten days after the flood, my mom gets a call
from a friend of Savannah's and she just says, Savannah's
sort of unresponsive.
Speaker 3 (10:52):
We're taking her to the hospital. That's all we know.
Speaker 4 (10:55):
And I am seventeen at the time, senior in high school,
think I know everything, And honestly, I don't remember much
of that drive up because Dad and Mom drove in
their truck and then I drove Mom's car because I
really am thinking, Okay, well we need to have two
separate cars because once Samanna gets out of the hospital
will come home. Like that was my mindset of just yeah,
she's sick, this is bad, but we don't know what's
(11:17):
going on.
Speaker 3 (11:18):
Like that's good. You know the doctors will fix it
and she's gonna be fine.
Speaker 4 (11:22):
I don't know what Mom and Dad were thinking, and
like I don't remember that trip as much. I know
we were booking it to go to North Louisiana. But
I know that whole time, and even when she was
in the hospital, Samanna's okay, like I knew, you know,
like it's gonna be fine, like that happens in movies.
Speaker 2 (11:36):
You know, it's like she.
Speaker 4 (11:38):
Has to recover right exactly, and just that comfortability of
like you know, that's you know, we're praying for it,
so it's gonna happen how we want it to happen.
So we were in the we got to the hospital.
We're in the emergency room, and that was probably the
last time Savannah and we had a real, like talking conversation,
and there was a cool way we got to talk after,
but just she was sick and we didn't know what.
Speaker 3 (11:59):
Was going on.
Speaker 4 (12:00):
And in that moment she starts coding nurses rush in,
doctor's rush in. And I'm telling you, I literally felt
like I.
Speaker 3 (12:07):
Was in a movie. Like it was just like this
isn't my real life right now?
Speaker 4 (12:11):
Going from like you kind of have the American dream
and then this, it was just it was a lot.
Speaker 3 (12:16):
Yeah.
Speaker 4 (12:17):
And so they pulled me in, mom and dad into
a room and it's just us three and I just
remember like, I don't know if it was Mom's phone
or Savannah's. And I just got up the phone and
we had some family out in the waiting room, and
I texted our old youth pastor that we grew up
with and just said, I need you to pray for
Savannah right now. And it's when I'm older and I
look at that situation. I'm like, in the midst of
(12:37):
all of that, I went to God, and my relationship
with God was probably not where it needed to be
at that aspect, but like we had nothing else, and
I know that that kind of doesn't sound the best now,
like that should be the first person we go to.
But how telling is that to me now? Where I'm like, man,
I need to pray more. I mean, but in that moment,
this is the only thing we have. You know, we
(12:57):
don't know what's going on. Fast forward, Savannah ended up
she just got really sick, really fast, and I they said,
you know, they did blood work and they did all
this kind of stuff to figure out what it was,
and they still did not know. I mean, it was
kind of like a bizarre like we don't know what happened.
Speaker 3 (13:14):
And then just one thing.
Speaker 4 (13:15):
After the other where She stayed in the hospital for
ten and a half weeks and three weeks and a
hospital in Monroe, and then I guess seven and a
half weeks at a burn unit because she ended up
having to have skin graps. I mean, she got we
ended up having to amputate. They were amputating some things
just because her fingers and her toes were just so
(13:37):
they had to do a couple of different protocols, like
she just got really sick.
Speaker 2 (13:41):
Did they ever discover what it actually was not?
Speaker 4 (13:45):
I know that there was like some bacteria in her
blood and I might be wrong on switching those things,
but we never got like a hey, this was in
you know cause I know we went to the beach
before somebody said, well did she was she around like
the flood water and stuff, and we're like, like it
it really like we.
Speaker 3 (14:01):
Do not know.
Speaker 4 (14:02):
We don't and she went septic and that's kind of
when things got really bad.
Speaker 1 (14:07):
And so your mom used to say it was an
unknown origin.
Speaker 3 (14:10):
Yeah, yeah, so much better than I but yeah, exactly.
And it's kind of to not know.
Speaker 4 (14:18):
It's kind of like I've just kind of come to
peace with that of just like I'm not gonna know
but anyway, so during that ten and a half weeks,
we were loved and prayed on, and I honestly took
it for granted in the moment when now that I'm older,
I'm like, wow, I mean, just the.
Speaker 3 (14:34):
There was always somebody at that waiting room. It became
our home. It was a huge outpour, oh goodness from
central Rusting.
Speaker 4 (14:42):
I mean I remember everybody everywhere like we would get
and I learned more about it now because in the moment,
I'm you don't know, yeah, exactly, like women's prisons groups,
prayer groups praying for Savannah and Arizona.
Speaker 3 (14:55):
You know, it was like, wow, how many times was
my sister prayed for that? It's huge?
Speaker 4 (15:01):
And so so at that point I started, I still think, like,
Savannah's really sick, but she's going to be okay.
Speaker 3 (15:08):
So I came back down.
Speaker 4 (15:09):
School started back up, and so I would go up
on the weekends and then come to school.
Speaker 3 (15:13):
We stayed. I stayed with the le Saints. Loved that family.
They were our next door neighbors. What a blessing they are.
Speaker 4 (15:19):
And anyway, so I'm still thinking Savannah's going to be okay.
And then one night we were actually playing Live Oaks.
So I was cheering on the sidelines and Savannah passed
away in Streeport and Mom and Dad I always I
share this so much more now. Mom said, you know,
in that moment, we weren't talking about her grades.
Speaker 3 (15:41):
We weren't you know, like we knew the time was coming.
Speaker 4 (15:43):
And she said, we weren't talking about her grades, or
you know, how many followers she had on Instagram or
how many state championships they won. She was like, we
were talking about how much people loved her and how
she loved others. And I remember when Mom said that.
Every time, I'm like balling my eyes out because that
real happened. And what do you you know, I always
think like, what do what if that was me? What
(16:04):
are we talking about? You know? So yeah, so that
was kind of Savannah's story, and so from that Mom
really took and ran with it, you know, with with
the whole grief process for sure.
Speaker 3 (16:16):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (16:16):
Well, that that's when, you know, whenever Savannah got sick,
that's when your mom and I we connected even more
through that. I know, Jay and I we made did
we make one or two trips?
Speaker 3 (16:28):
A couple of trips?
Speaker 1 (16:33):
Yeah, And so we were actually able to to go
into the room with Savannah and at that last that
last time, and so I remember all of the people
being in the way room, just the outpouring of love,
and I mean, and I think that truly is probably
what kept your parents going. You know, that's just that
(16:56):
that support not only just oh, I know, somebody's praying. No,
I can actually see that they're here and you're supporting.
And just the love that was shown, you know, to
your parents. I think someone provided a place for them
to stay so that they could be close to the
right and so they were able to be there with
her and not have to leave. And so it was
just I know, it was a very very difficult and
(17:19):
uncertain time, you know, for your parents, but that was
definitely when you're connected more.
Speaker 3 (17:25):
With your mom.
Speaker 2 (17:25):
What's beautiful about that is you actually see the church
in action.
Speaker 3 (17:28):
Yes, that's exactly what it was.
Speaker 2 (17:30):
What's really awesome about that is your mom and dad
were not just you know what we say, CEO is
not just Christmas and Easter only type Christians. They didn't
just go to church once a year, twice a year.
They were actually involved the Body of Christ, you know,
the Family of God. I mean it's like they were
actively involved in everything they could be and so as
a part of the church in North Louisiana. And then
(17:52):
whenever they moved down with us, the next thing, you know,
people just the church comes together and says we need
to rally.
Speaker 3 (17:58):
Around the same and it becomes natural, like it's like, oh,
we're doing it.
Speaker 4 (18:01):
We're praying for them, and we're like there were so
many people that would say, I'm praying and you know
that look where you're like they're praying, you know, like
it is sincere.
Speaker 3 (18:10):
And it was one hundred percent.
Speaker 4 (18:11):
We were surrounded a bout great people because I mean
that most of those people we knew family and through church, yeah, honestly.
Speaker 2 (18:17):
Which I would say that, you know, one thing to
learn from that from maybe some of our listeners be
involved in the church. Absolutely, don't just go once a year,
but be involved, become family, get to know people, because
every single one of us will go through a crisis
at some point in life and the Body of Christ
wants to rally around you. Yeah, but in order in
order to do that, they have to know you, right.
Speaker 4 (18:37):
Yeah, And everybody's gonna come to the waiting room and
stay till eleven o'clock at night, you know, if you
I mean, maybe they'll do it. But having those deep
connections is something that was so valuable to them.
Speaker 1 (18:47):
Not only were you know where y'all going through this
with Savannah at the hospital, but the flood had just happened,
so your parents like left their home that was you know,
in a mess.
Speaker 4 (18:58):
And I mean literally my brother, my brother, my uncle's church.
A group of men went and fixed our house. Yes,
like yes, oh my gosh.
Speaker 2 (19:07):
You know there for a second, I was like, wait,
is there another sibling we don't know about what?
Speaker 3 (19:12):
We're going to let it all out today.
Speaker 2 (19:14):
Secrets exposed, I love not crazy.
Speaker 1 (19:19):
So much more of this story that I knew.
Speaker 3 (19:22):
I'm going to take a turn real quick.
Speaker 2 (19:24):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (19:25):
No, I mean that was such a devastating time because
I know we went through the flood, you know, our home,
uh and the church we had to be built and
stuff like that. So I know that took a huge
burden off of your parents to know, Okay, I can
be focused on my child that's here in the hospital,
and I know very much concerned about you as well
where you were at that time, and then to not
(19:47):
have to worry about my houses as a mess.
Speaker 3 (19:50):
They went and took care of that.
Speaker 1 (19:51):
That was a blessing.
Speaker 2 (19:52):
Well, I want to know this because I know that
you're seventeen years old whenever this happens, and you're basically
you're going through crisis on top of chrisis, the flood,
You're sister this illness, and then she steps into the
she passes away, she steps into the presence of the Lord.
How do you process that? How do you as a
seventeen year old? Look, I know that your family had
a strong, healthy relationship with the Lord, so we know
(20:14):
that the Lord is gonna comfort you. But regardless, it's
still something that's traumatic to walk.
Speaker 4 (20:19):
Yeah, I will tell you, like being seventeen, you really
do think you haven't figured out. And then on top
of that, I knew the whole time, Savannah's gonna be okay.
So when I get a phone call, you know, Isabella,
she passed away. She's not here with us anymore, but
she's in heaven.
Speaker 3 (20:35):
My world was rocked, like I because.
Speaker 2 (20:37):
You were not expecting that.
Speaker 4 (20:38):
Oh no, And I mean honestly, I knew, like there
was times and mom and Dad didn't realize it was
going to happen, like that either, because there was a
time where she would get really sick and then she
would get beat at her right, and so it was like,
you know, Savannah's having a rough day to day, but
you know, and then we got good news, you know.
So when I got that call, I was I mean,
you just crumble, like you really, it was.
Speaker 3 (20:58):
Just kind of like is this real world? What is
going on?
Speaker 4 (21:01):
And in that moment and for the weeks after, it's
like a blur, like I don't remember as much. I
think the hardest part for me was just like being
an only child now, you know, like when I go
to thanksgivings like those those first are always the hardest,
you know, for me because I remember and I love
my family, I love my cousins and stuff, but when
you have a sibling, you're like, oh, well, we know
(21:22):
they're gonna be there and we can go, you know,
hang out, and then you don't. And so there was
a lot of some like just hard times where and
I'm not a huge crier, but man did I cry.
I mean it was just a lot of just like
just the missing her, you know. And I will say
Mom helped me so much learning how to grieve Savannah
(21:44):
because mom. You know, she did some research. She was
so in tune with her relationship with christ and then
you know, she could talk about it. But that's how
she healed. Where I would start talking about my sister
and I'm like, I can't talk about it right now,
you know, and that's that's okay, Like everybody does it differently.
But because I was seventeen, it was just a lot.
I mean, it was it was very it was overwhelming.
(22:06):
And then but I would tell you, go back to
the community. I also was so loved and prayed for
and cared for to where I was able to still
laugh and have a good time, you know, like my
rest of my senior year. I loved my class, you know,
and it was just the outpouring of love and just
getting to hang out with people. And I was a
lot more intentional, you know, like I want to spend
time with mom and dad, I want to spend time
(22:27):
with my friends. So it did shift, you know, during that.
But I know those first couple of weeks, and I
think that's typical of just like you're in shot or
we do it exactly. Yeah, And so it was a
lot to be seventeen and go through that. But It
definitely shaped my life again on the path. Like when
I started college, I was a lot more intentional. If
I wanted to go home and spend time with my family,
(22:49):
I'm doing it, you know, like I don't really care
if my friends, which my friends were like, go, you know,
you can do that.
Speaker 2 (22:53):
It kind of really helped you understand what's really important.
Speaker 3 (22:56):
Yes, exactly. And I remember still to this day, like you.
Speaker 4 (22:59):
Know, Mom would say Savannah had and that's when Mom
started like talking about Savannah. But she was saying, you
know what if you had ten and a half weeks
to live, because that's what Savannah had, and really taking
that and running with it on like we don't know,
you know, this could be our last you know, Tuesday.
Speaker 1 (23:13):
Morning, you don't know, just to appreciate the moment.
Speaker 4 (23:16):
So it really did help me my college years appreciate
that and have those intentional relationships. But I will say
I mean there was times. I remember one time specifically
I was thinking about because it's not all you know,
like grief is, you know, coming to terms with it.
Speaker 3 (23:30):
Like there are days where it was hard.
Speaker 4 (23:33):
I remember one night I was so upset we were
I was thinking about one instance we were in Disney
for the first time.
Speaker 3 (23:40):
We weren't really a Disney family.
Speaker 4 (23:42):
No hate to Disney families, but we.
Speaker 3 (23:48):
Never went. We were like beach and skiing, you know,
stuff like that. You could be both, but whatever.
Speaker 4 (23:54):
Anyway, so we went for a cheer and Savannah got
to go one year and I just kept playing it
over my head. I remember her coming up to me
and She's like, hey, Isbelle, I'm going to ride this ride.
You want to go with me? And I said, no,
I'm gonna go with my friends on this one. And
I kept playing that over and over like the regret
I had, Like that was an instance where I could
have hung out with Savannah and I am just losing
(24:14):
it and I just texted my mom and I said,
are you up? And she right there in my room
and she just prayed over me, she held me, and
I mean, I'm eighteen years old at this point, and
I just like that kind of stuff. Those instances where
I was just cared for and loved helped me so
much more, you know, Well, that's.
Speaker 1 (24:30):
And that's part of the processing of grief, is that
the Kulda would have should have right, and all of
the little things that you don't think of in the moment,
but it comes back to you and you're like, oh,
why didn't I say or do this? And I think
everybody deals with that and it's just just processing through it.
And you know, really, I mean, we can't really hold
(24:53):
onto that kind of regret, you know, I mean, because
it'll just eat away at you. And I definitely remember
your mom like being concerned about you now being an
only child, and you know, how how could she help
you to, you know, process that she was Actually I
feel more worried about you, are concerned about you processing
(25:13):
everything that she even was herself.
Speaker 2 (25:16):
You know, Well, I think your mom's way of processing
and dealing with the grief she.
Speaker 3 (25:20):
Was talking about.
Speaker 4 (25:20):
Talking talking about something and honestly think helping like me
and dad go through grief help her.
Speaker 3 (25:26):
Too, you know.
Speaker 2 (25:27):
You know, I've sat in counsel with people through the
years that are walking through things that are difficult. They've
lost a loved one and probably one of the worst
things I've ever heard, And I've actually fallen into this
category of myself, like you know, and men I think
do this a lot, like, well, I'm just not going
to talk about that person, you know, because if I
don't talk about them, then I'm not sad. And it's
(25:47):
all you really do is take that grief and stuff
it down inside of you. And your mom. Wow, she
just she had it down, like, hey, we're going to
talk about this and we're going to talk about my daughter.
And that's when she really you know, she launched that
into ministry and traffic people about savannah story.
Speaker 3 (26:03):
Yeah, yeah, that was That's so true.
Speaker 4 (26:05):
And I also think I know y'all talked about it before,
like the importance of talking about them. I mean my
family people that I don't know, they still think my
mom and my sister are you know, here on this
earth because I'm like, my sister used to do.
Speaker 3 (26:19):
That, you know what my mom does. You know, she
made that too.
Speaker 4 (26:22):
You know it's probably better, but but you know, like
things like that. So I think our family just took
that and ran with it. I mean we're constantly.
Speaker 3 (26:29):
Like do you remember when Savannah and we did this?
Or hearing stories.
Speaker 4 (26:33):
I mean it is that has helped me and Dad
grieve for sure, and just kind of we bring light
of it, you know, like, yeah, they're not here, but man,
did we have some good times?
Speaker 1 (26:41):
You know well, and a lot of people, you know,
they don't they think that it's gonna be painful if
if they bring up that person it's no longer here.
But really, we want to talk about our person. We
want to remember all of those things. And I know,
because both of my parents are gone. It's like when
I come across somebody that knew both of them and
(27:02):
they want to talk about that time in my life,
I'm all over it.
Speaker 3 (27:06):
You know. You want to relive.
Speaker 1 (27:09):
Those those happy times and stuff, and so yeah, that's
just that's a healthy way to process it. And your
mom did a great job at that and just changing
the perspective of it. Yes, there is this loss, but
let's talk about the importance of appreciating life while we're
here on earth. But then hey, there's life eternal, you know,
(27:31):
and are you ready to go to heaven?
Speaker 2 (27:33):
Yes, that's one thing I loved about your mom as
the focus was yes, I've lost my daughter, my child,
but I know where she is, you know, and your
mom is just so solid it And I say your
mom your dad too, just so solid in their faith right,
And it was that I was grateful because that, you know.
Not long after that is when you and Stephanie really
started connecting and growing in your relationship. And we'd prayed
(27:56):
for a long time about different friends and whatnot in ministry,
and your mom had a great understanding of ministry and
like what we walked through as pastures and so just
a good friend, you know, to you and y'all. Y'all
traveled a lot. I knew when they were traveling. I
was like, oh, they're going on. I remember one time Stacey,
she said, I'm like, where y'all going. She's like, I
don't know. Stephanie just told me we're going to Mama's house.
Speaker 1 (28:20):
Yeah, I mean we just had We just had the
best time. And Jay used to say, like, you really
needed a friend like Stephanie, you know, because she was
so outgoing and just so fun loving and so extroverted
where I'm I'm a little bit more introverted. I live
in this extroverted world, I operate in it. But she
(28:41):
really pulled me out of my shell, you know, and
that was just so all of my memories of my
friendship with her has is very joyful, very joyful memories.
And and yes, so you know, we, like I said,
we connected more so through all of this with her.
You know, your family losing Savannah. Yeah, and out of that, Yeah,
(29:03):
she began to all of these people that would come
to the hospital and that we're praying for Savannah. She
I say, she went on a little tour, a talking tour.
Speaker 3 (29:12):
I caught it. She's like, this is my thank you tour.
Thank you took. Yeah, And so she.
Speaker 1 (29:18):
Just would travel and go to I mean she went
to men's groups at churches, she went to I mean
you you name it. If they asked her, she was
getting in her car and heading that way.
Speaker 3 (29:29):
And yeah, you.
Speaker 4 (29:29):
Getting nervous talking in front of people, like if I
have a speech or something like that, which I don't
have speeches all the.
Speaker 3 (29:34):
Time, but like you know, in class or whatever.
Speaker 4 (29:36):
And Mom she would just she's like, Okay, yeah, I'm
gonna just pray about it and we're going to see
what happens.
Speaker 3 (29:41):
I'm like, man, how cool that was her gift? Oh?
Speaker 1 (29:44):
Absolutely, she definitely flowed in in that. And so I
had the opportunity to travel with her, not not all
the trips that she took, but but quite a few.
But yeah, the one that that Jay remembered it was
it was really my best memory of traveling with her.
We went to North Louisiana out in shoe drint, shoe drint,
(30:08):
and now that's kind of out in the woods, you know,
just the boo dogs, okay, and so you know, really
North Louisiana. And so she was asked to speak at
a widow's group, and I think it was just somebody
who probably knew your mom as a young girl.
Speaker 2 (30:28):
You know.
Speaker 1 (30:29):
It was like, hey, come and you know, share your
story and everything. And so I went with her and
we had the best time. And and that was the
cool thing about Stephanie, you know, connecting with just we
we both understood ministry, the aspect of ministry and going
to minister to these women. And so I was like,
(30:51):
you go over and you prepare, you know, get ready
to speak. And I just I didn't know any of
these women. And I'm like welcoming that.
Speaker 3 (30:59):
It was a potla receiving the dishes.
Speaker 1 (31:01):
It was at me Mall's house, okay, because I said
where are we going? And she goes, I don't know,
the text just says it's at me. And I'm like, well, I.
Speaker 3 (31:09):
Can't wait to meet her, Hannah, you know.
Speaker 1 (31:12):
And so there were so many mems there.
Speaker 3 (31:14):
I mean, it was.
Speaker 2 (31:17):
You know what I mean.
Speaker 3 (31:18):
It was the.
Speaker 1 (31:18):
Biggest spread of home cooking you could ever imagine. And
we just had the most wonderful time just visiting with
these with these ladies, and some of them were extremely elderly,
and but they made their way there because they wanted
to hear your mom's story. And so, I mean, we
(31:40):
we had we had a great, a great time just traveling.
And I was telling you the other day, she and
I we had she had her road trip playlist. You know,
she was really big into all of her music, and
so she said, up, okay, look our first trip we
were traveling. She goes, okay, look there's I start off
with this this one song, know, get me going, you know,
(32:01):
as as I as I drive. And I was like, okay,
And I think she was afraid to tell me. So
it was a secular song, and I think she was
afraid to tell me, you know, because it's her pastor
life and the true Stephanie comes out. We only listened
to the you know, the holy music, and I was like,
(32:22):
it's okay. She's like, yeah, you know, it's it's Rascal Flats.
Speaker 2 (32:25):
What song.
Speaker 3 (32:29):
It was? It was Rascal Flats, wasn't it?
Speaker 2 (32:32):
Uh? It's a song I car.
Speaker 3 (32:38):
Highway cars. Yeah, cars.
Speaker 1 (32:42):
I don't know why, I just totally went blank on that.
Speaker 2 (32:44):
I remember you telling me about that. She listened to
Life as a Highway a highway, and.
Speaker 3 (32:49):
So I said, oh girl, I said, I love that song.
Speaker 2 (32:55):
You know what I told her she said and what
she because I know her well enough to say this.
I went to high school with the fiddle player for
Rascal Flash. Because she tells everybody that absolutely shirt.
Speaker 3 (33:07):
He doesn't play.
Speaker 2 (33:08):
I don't think he doesn't play.
Speaker 3 (33:11):
But he did.
Speaker 2 (33:12):
John Johnson.
Speaker 3 (33:13):
Yes, yes, I'm sending this up.
Speaker 1 (33:17):
I'm sending this episode to them.
Speaker 3 (33:19):
I am so that they know.
Speaker 1 (33:21):
You know, it was just it was just so much
fun to be able to go on these road trips,
and we did. We started out with Life as a
Highway and so that is just like, you know, almost
like the theme song for everything.
Speaker 2 (33:36):
You said this early. And the cool part about your
mom was she had the ability to pull things out
of her. I could see them in her, but I
couldn't get them out of her. Your mom, you know,
pull your big girl panties up, that kind of stuff.
But she would talk about you know, I would just
do it. Yeah, And so the women's conference, she was like,
you know, just yes, and this podcast. I remember her
coming home and talking about Stephanie researching podcasts.
Speaker 3 (33:58):
And that was what we were doing.
Speaker 1 (34:00):
We were researching and I'm like, girl, you got to
find out the detail.
Speaker 3 (34:05):
Yeah, you're like I can so see my being like
how do they do that? How do they do it?
My mind, we needed to do that.
Speaker 2 (34:10):
And then she started talking about a podcasts and I
don't want to do a podcast and look at here
we are.
Speaker 3 (34:17):
Thanks.
Speaker 2 (34:18):
Yeah, I was like yeah, and I'm sure our listeners
at this point, based off of, you know, kind of
how we're talking that they realized that your mom was
gone home to be with the Lord. Do you want
to kind of speak about that a little bit. Yeah.
Speaker 3 (34:31):
Yeah.
Speaker 4 (34:31):
So she was doing her best thing, living her life
from twenty sixteen, and then I was starting I think
I was about to be a junior in college in
twenty nineteen, and she was driving home from tennis. She
had started to do tennis, loved it, and driving home
from tennis and taking unexpectedly and I remember getting that
(34:52):
phone call from my dad and it was like, you
talk about your life crumbled.
Speaker 3 (34:57):
I mean, it was just because going back to the
comfortability thing.
Speaker 4 (35:00):
After Savannah died, I kind of thought, and this is
not how it is, and I've learned that, but I
really thought, like, Okay, Isabella Paine Check, She's had her
big thing in life, that's changed her life. Let's move
on to the next person. That's not how God works,
and it's not that God's like, let this happen again.
But I really did live more comfortably, like at least
you know, man, that was hard, but I got my
(35:20):
people now and I'm moving on or moving you know,
figuring out life without fold how did yeah, like how
to live life without Savannah? And so when Dad called me,
I mean it was just like I talk about, I mean,
my knees hit the ground, like I was just it
was a lot. And so, you know, from that point
just for her, because with Savannah, I mean, she was
(35:41):
sick and but we still kind of thought, you know,
she's gonna be okay.
Speaker 3 (35:44):
Where Mom.
Speaker 4 (35:45):
It's like I texted her at six o'clock and at
nine o'clock she's not here on this earth.
Speaker 3 (35:49):
Like it was just it happened so fast.
Speaker 4 (35:51):
And so from that point on, I mean, I know,
me and Dad, he came and picked me up from
him in that night and we're just driving back. I
mean both I don't even know what that conversation looked like,
but it was just like, I don't even know what
to say. And my grandmother she when Dad called my grandmother,
the first thing she said, she said, well, she's with Savannah,
(36:12):
And I mean, I know, we both kind of just
kept talking about that and thinking about that because in
that moment, that is all I could think about, because
I mean it was like that was the one I
couldn't think about, right, Yeah, I didn't want to think
about anything on this earth. I was just like just
picturing Mom and Savannah and God, you know, I was
just like, hold on to that.
Speaker 3 (36:29):
That's what you're going to focus on. And you know
Mom was a hugger and so.
Speaker 4 (36:32):
Is Savannah, and that's all I was thinking about because
I was not I wasn't ready for this, you know,
like I just it was a lot. So so when
we lost Mom once again, we see that outpouring love
and this time I'm older, I'm really figuring it out.
Mom had prepared me, you know, like I learned I
(36:55):
talked about Savannah and Mom automatically or you know, people
I could tell people were people I want know what
to say, especially when it's happened like that.
Speaker 3 (37:02):
And you know, when I was seventeen.
Speaker 4 (37:05):
When I was seventeen, people would say, you know, I
know what you're going through, and I'm like, your pet
gecko died, No, you don't. And then I'm like, you know,
you got defensive. Nobody's pet gecko died that example, but
you do. You know, people are just trying.
Speaker 3 (37:19):
Anything they can.
Speaker 4 (37:19):
Well, where when I was older, I'm like, you know,
and I kind of got like, they don't know what
I'm going through.
Speaker 3 (37:25):
Well, now that i'm when I was older and I
lost Mom.
Speaker 4 (37:28):
People are saying that and I'm like, they're just trying
to encourage me and tell me that I'm not alone.
And I took I took a lot more of those
kind of words in when I was older perspective, and
that was because of what Mom had taught me. You know, honestly,
you know, maturity'll do that to you.
Speaker 2 (37:41):
It kind of changes the perspective of how how you
see things. It's like when you are grieving, and I've
seen this so many times, people they don't know what
to say, so they they're like, well, I'll say this
because it'll make you feel better. It's like, well, that
didn't you feel better at all?
Speaker 4 (37:55):
One time Mom was saying, I don't remember who it was,
but somebody walks up through her and she was like
this just sucks.
Speaker 3 (38:03):
And Mom was like, yeah, it does.
Speaker 4 (38:05):
You know.
Speaker 3 (38:05):
It's like just kind of owning it, like, hey, this
is a this is a rough situation.
Speaker 4 (38:09):
Keeping it real, yeah, exactly, and like there's not always
an answer for something, and just kind of like this
is hard goodness, you know. And I've said that a
few times to other people that you know, some friends
that have lost people. It's like sometimes you just have
to own it and say, like, this is a horrible situation.
But man, you know God is with you. I am
praying for you, and you can kind of change that,
but it is. And I and as a maturity kind
(38:31):
of aspect with Mom, like you know, at the visitation
and all of that, it's like, these people just want
to love on me, and I'm gonna embrace it and
hold on to that, you know.
Speaker 3 (38:39):
And I that helped me.
Speaker 4 (38:41):
But it's because honestly dealing with Savannah, you know, how
did I handle that situation? You get older, you kind
of realize like, oh, I'm seventeen, you know, I'm twenty now,
I'm like, I don't have all the answers and so
kind of moving on with that. But definitely I remember
Mom talking about that. She's like, that was just kind
of nice to hear.
Speaker 2 (38:56):
Like it was rough, you know, And I think you
alluded to this earth you didn't realize it at the time,
but your mom, through what y'all walked through with Savannah,
she was preparing you to.
Speaker 4 (39:06):
Handle this, and I think preparing me. My family members
have said that same thing. I mean, like you just
mentioned talking in that short amount of time where Savannah
passed away and Mom passed away.
Speaker 3 (39:17):
She did so much. I did so much, and she.
Speaker 4 (39:19):
Affected so many people, and I mean it helped me
learn how to grieve with her, you know, like I
felt like it was better how I handled this situation.
I was also older, but like what she taught me
about it's okay to cry. You know. There are days
where I'm like, this is rough, you know, mascara everywhere,
but it's like, go there because I missed them so
much and I was so blessed for the years I
(39:41):
had them. But then you make sure you get out,
you know, and you figure out who you need to
go to, or you pray and you figure out, God,
I'm about to go there.
Speaker 3 (39:48):
And then we're gonna get out, okay. You know a
lot of prayers.
Speaker 1 (39:51):
When a situation of great loss like that and being
traumatic as well, then when to isolate, right, they pull
out of community. With that, you you ran to those
that could help you and that would love on you,
and and you continue to talk about them. And so
you did a lot of things that were helping you
(40:13):
to process things in a healthy way. Because I know
the connection that you and I've had, you know, since
I lost my mom when I was eighteen, was that
I wasn't able necessarily to grieve in such a healthy way.
You know, we weren't really allowed to talk about her
and and and so I'm so glad to see that
you're being able to process it. And you know, I've
(40:34):
always you know, I told you, you know, I'm here for
you as well, because I think if I would have
had someone when I was eighteen that had lost their
mom that I could talk like, it would have helped
me tremendously. And so you definitely, you know, you don't
want to isolate yourself. You want to draw to a
community and you want to go to those that that
can help you.
Speaker 3 (40:55):
And it's okay to.
Speaker 1 (40:57):
Sit in those feelings. Right, and you're going to have
a bad day, but because what do we say, it's
waves of grief that sometimes it's it's rougher than others.
Those sea waters are really rough, and especially during milestones,
and like you said, the first year, you know, is
always very difficult as well.
Speaker 2 (41:15):
Absolutely well, And I want to say this as well,
because we've talked a lot about you know, Savannah and
your mom that your dad's been solid. It's been so yes,
you know, I know that the amount of grief that
he must have watched, you know, walk through with this.
And Tim, I know you're probably watching or listening because
you want to support your baby girl. So just proud
(41:37):
of you. Just make sure you hit subscribe.
Speaker 3 (41:41):
You were like, show me how to do it.
Speaker 2 (41:44):
But you know he's been a rock through all this.
Let's kind of take a few moments talk about him.
I know you don't talk about me, but I.
Speaker 4 (41:52):
Will tell you like I can hope, I'm not going
to tear up. I love my father, like, oh my goodness,
the and and it's it's weird to think, like, would
I go back and have Mom and Savannah? Absolutely, But
then I hear about people that have lost people and
their families, you know, get separated, is close, and it
was like after Savannah Dad, after Savannah died, me, mom
(42:13):
and Dad got close.
Speaker 3 (42:13):
After Mom died. Me and Dad are like, that's right.
Speaker 4 (42:17):
And I remember one time specifically because Mom would always
text me like, I know, you have your psychology exam
at eight am.
Speaker 3 (42:23):
Good luck.
Speaker 4 (42:24):
You know Mom's just now and Dad's like you're still
in college, Like yeah, I am. And my first finals
week without Mom, it was just because I missed her,
like texting and stuff.
Speaker 3 (42:34):
And I got home and I'm just lose. I'm just crying.
Speaker 4 (42:37):
I'm upset I missed her. And Dad comes in from
work and we just cry and hold each other. And
it was like that was so vulnerable, and I'm like
my dad grow man, and it's just like embracing me.
And we've had so many times where we're just like, man,
we miss him.
Speaker 3 (42:51):
I mean, he is just he is just a wonderful,
wonderful man.
Speaker 4 (42:54):
And he's shown me how to how to navigate loss
and how to stay you know, connected with your Christian
and you know, fellowship and read your Bible and things
like that.
Speaker 3 (43:02):
It's like I'm constantly having role models to look up to.
Speaker 2 (43:06):
Well, I'm gonna say this, that's a real man right there,
because you know, Stacy, when she lost her mom, her
dad's response was, we don't talk about her anymore. I
don't want you to know. Yeah, he did not know
the Lord, he did not have Christian faith, and so
he was just like, I don't want to hear y'all
talking about her anymore. But to your dad, to hear that,
to you know, to just hold you and cry together,
(43:28):
to me that that's a real man. He's teaching you
how to grieve properly. And I think that that's possible
because of his his relationship with Jesus.
Speaker 4 (43:36):
Yeah, absolutely absolutely. And he just I just love him
and he's just he's so great. I don't even know
all I want to say.
Speaker 3 (43:43):
He's just awesome.
Speaker 2 (43:43):
What is awesome about your dad is your mom was
the you know, the larger than life personality. You dad's
you know, he's kind of quiet, you know, and by.
Speaker 3 (43:53):
Himself, he is so funny. I'm like, my jokes do
not come from my mom like it comes from pain,
but he would never I di dieright with my mom's personality.
Speaker 4 (44:02):
Where I'm like everybody I have jokes.
Speaker 2 (44:10):
He is, well, how do you you know you and
your dad? What are some different ways that you feel
like you honor their their memory? And here's what I
would say about that to me talking about them, I.
Speaker 3 (44:21):
Was gonna say that's probably one of the biggest ones.
Speaker 4 (44:24):
Also, some things like people still, I mean, we talk
about them all the time, we do things.
Speaker 3 (44:29):
There's sometimes where I'll do something I'm like, I look
at him, I'm like Mom would have loved this.
Speaker 4 (44:33):
Yeah, We'll put ourselves in situations where we're helping somebody
else or praying over you know, people, or just having
simple conversations like oh, Savannah would have loved that person,
and just kind of, like you said, freely talking about them.
I think sometimes I do things where aka this podcast
where I'm like, oh, Isabella, I don't know, I'm like
Stephanie Payne would have eaten us up and.
Speaker 3 (44:52):
Do it to honor them, you know.
Speaker 4 (44:54):
So like things like that kind of happen in my
life all the time. And and I think Dad does
the same thing. Like if there's a you know, we'd
go to North Louisiana and spend time with our family.
Speaker 3 (45:04):
That has increased because.
Speaker 4 (45:06):
It's like, man, I love my family, I love spending
time with them, and things of this world can kind
of it can get busy really fast, and so honoring
them by living our life like we should, like really thinking.
Speaker 3 (45:17):
You know that Tim McGraw song where.
Speaker 4 (45:19):
It's like live like you were dying. I think it's
timogral you know we sing it, ha ha. But then
you think about if there really was like a timestamp
ten and a half weeks we're gone, we would one
hundred percent live our lives differently, And it's you know,
I think that sometimes I'm like, I'm gonna spend all
my money.
Speaker 3 (45:33):
I'm gonna go on trips like you can't do that.
I'm not gonna do it.
Speaker 4 (45:37):
Dad, But like really living life like and being intentional
and things like that, Like I feel like I'm constantly
trying to honor Mom and Savannah through that aspect of
my life.
Speaker 1 (45:47):
Okay, can I tell you just said the word intentional
And that was one of the last things that your
mom and I talked about. She said that the Lord
was really impressing on her heart to just be more
and more intentional about every thing that she was doing,
and especially with spending time with you, and so that yes, oh,
I want everybody to hear that Stephanie is telling you
(46:08):
to right.
Speaker 3 (46:10):
That's right.
Speaker 2 (46:11):
Well, I'll tell you that we say this with a
lot of interviews that this has been fun, but it's
been fun part too, Well, I think we probably will
because here here's what's funny. I said this earlier we
were standing in the kitchen. It's like it's light talking Stephanie,
because your mannerism is your voice. You just she was
just so much fun and you're always as well.
Speaker 3 (46:33):
I appreciate it.
Speaker 4 (46:34):
That's what I remember when I was younger. They're like,
you're just like your mama, and I'm like, no, I'm not.
Speaker 1 (46:38):
You know, you didn't want to claim in but now
thank you.
Speaker 2 (46:43):
Yeah, you're a good mix of Tim and stef.
Speaker 3 (46:47):
Yeah, thank goodness.
Speaker 2 (46:49):
If I had a blast today. I just want to
tell you how much we appreciate you coming in and
sitting down.
Speaker 3 (46:53):
Thank y'all.
Speaker 4 (46:54):
I appreciate you all asking me. It was kind of
a way on our moments. Man, I really appreciate it.
Speaker 1 (46:58):
Yes, you this has just been a blessing. I mean,
I know, I've talked with a few people and I'm like, Isabelle,
it's going to be on the podcast, and they're like,
that's going to.
Speaker 3 (47:08):
Be really good.
Speaker 1 (47:09):
So so thank you to all of our listeners who
are listening to this. You know, well, I share it.
Speaker 2 (47:16):
I've had it's been a blasted and I can't as
you said, you called I can't wait till part two
comes out. But I just want to take a moment
to thank all of our listeners for being a part
of this today. And once again, if you have enjoyed this,
make sure that you like it, make sure that you
click that little subscribe button on YouTube so that you
get reminders of when the next episode is going to
(47:38):
be coming out, and help us move this podcast forward.
Share it with your friends, your neighbors, your enemies, your relatives,
everybody you know. And as we talked about, make sure
that you are intentional in living your life. If you
only had ten and a half weeks left, how would
you live it? And I would say this to you,
live it for Jesus. Let the love of Jesus and
the compassion of Jesus show in your life. Every day,
(48:00):
and so today once again, thank you for being a
part of this podcast. As always, I'm Jay and I'm
Stacy and this is love like crazy.
Hey everyone, and welcome to the Love Like Crazy Podcast.
We're your hosts, Jay and Stacy Coleman, and we're here
in our home studio and we have a great, great
guest for you today that I'm so excited about this conversation.
Speaker 2 (00:36):
Yeah, to be honest with you, we have actually laughed
so much this morning already, just in visiting. We have
our good friend Isabella Payne with us.
Speaker 3 (00:43):
Yeah, I'm so excited to have for with us.
Speaker 2 (00:45):
Now, before we dive into this, I do want to
thank all of our listeners for being a part of
this podcast. This has just been so much fun watching
this grow over these last couple of years, and so
I would say this to you. If you're enjoying this,
make sure that you like this on the YouTube channel,
specifically subscribe, share it, leave us a comment. We love
(01:06):
to hear feedback from our listeners and it actually helps
us to push the podcast forward and to grow it.
So thank you so very much for being a part
of this. So, Isabella, great to have you with us today.
Speaker 3 (01:16):
Great to be here.
Speaker 2 (01:17):
I'm excited, We're excited about you being here today, and
so why don't we do this? You know, I know
that YouTube kind of hang out all the time and y'all,
you know, y'all talk and all that kind of stuff
girl talk. But you know, I kind of actually feel
a little left out. But so today, let.
Speaker 3 (01:32):
I want you to be included today.
Speaker 2 (01:34):
Well let's do this. I know that you're just you
just wrapped up college recently, yes, yeah, And tell us
a little bit about yourself, tell us where you at,
what's going on in life right now?
Speaker 4 (01:42):
Okay, So, grew up North Louisiana, went to like, grew
up in North Louisiana, moved to Central in twenty thirteen
and went to Central High School.
Speaker 3 (01:53):
Loved it. I actually did a lot.
Speaker 4 (01:57):
I didn't know anybody going into Central, and so I
really thought it's going to be kind of like the movies,
where you know, everyone wants to be friends with a
new girl, and like, I'm going to have all these friends.
And I remember getting in my dad's truck that first
day after school and just bawled my eyes out, like
it was horrible. We call it the Dark Days because
it was so bad. But it has taught me a lot,
and I think that was a huge turning point in
(02:17):
my life.
Speaker 3 (02:18):
When I was a freshman, because freshmen are weird.
Speaker 4 (02:20):
You know, nobody really wants to talk anyway, and it's
I mean, it literally was the pathway for me to
be outgoing and like, I'm not afraid to talk to
people now because of that. And so moving on from
living in Central I went to Southeastern for college.
Speaker 3 (02:34):
Loved Hammond. That was a great place to live.
Speaker 2 (02:37):
And Tommy's Pizza I've only went one time.
Speaker 3 (02:41):
I know, we talk about it all the.
Speaker 2 (02:42):
Time, but the boys love Tommy's Pizza, and to me,
it's okay.
Speaker 3 (02:45):
It was okay, it was fine. I'm Mexican. It's not
Johnny's Pizza so much.
Speaker 4 (02:52):
Yeah, Hammond was great, and I loved being closer to home,
like I could come home and eat dinner with mom
and dad if I wanted to, and then you know,
wake up the next morning, go to class. Like it's
not a lot of people commute. But I just loved
being out there in Hammond. And then really felt like
I wanted to do occupational therapy and really felt like
that's kind of my calling, you know, for my my career,
(03:14):
and so applied for a couple of different Now it's
it's out of state jobs. I didn't I mean out
of state schools. I didn't think about tuition, but it's.
Speaker 2 (03:23):
Okay rolling with it when young.
Speaker 4 (03:27):
So I applied for some out of state places because
you know, why not just go for it. And so
I ended up going to South Alabama and Mobile loved Mobile.
Got to live by the beach, which was awesome, and
then it was only three hours from Dad, so I
could come home when I wanted to. And then in
December of twenty twenty three, I graduated OT school and
(03:51):
I've been working. I just made a year in February,
and I work with kids half the week and older
adults the other half of the week. So it's very
I enjoy it kind of both ends of the lifespan.
And I think getting to bless people and families when
they're younger because you know, maybe their child has a
disability or things are a little harder for them to
do and kind of navigating that, and then with my
(04:14):
older adults being able to help them, you know, on
things that we take for granted all the time, it's
a little harder for them. And so getting to to
kind of help people at both ends. I have really
enjoyed the split. It's a little crazy sometimes, but I
enjoy going to work every day right now.
Speaker 3 (04:28):
I mean I'm a year in, but you need to
love what you're doing. Yeah, exactly.
Speaker 4 (04:32):
I really do enjoy enjoy what I do. So but yeah,
living in Central now, and it's good to be back home.
I know when I moved back home and getting to
go back to Journey, I missed that community, you know,
because I grew up with that in Calhoun in North Louisiana,
going to church and just seeing people in fellowship and
it's you know, I miss that when I was in
college and stuff because you really don't have like a
(04:54):
home church. And at South Alabama and Mobile we went
to a couple of different churches. But I have I
have thoroughly enjoyed getting back to Journey and just missed us.
Speaker 3 (05:03):
Yes I did. We missed.
Speaker 2 (05:06):
We missed you.
Speaker 1 (05:07):
I mean, you know, talking about North Louisiana. That was
the because because we're from North Louisiana as well, not
as far north as as you grew up. We I
just remember meeting when I met your mom. That was
the main thing that connected us was when I heard
that she was from North Louisiana.
Speaker 3 (05:25):
I was like, Oh, that's my girl, that's my girl,
and people.
Speaker 1 (05:29):
Yeah, it is.
Speaker 4 (05:30):
It is.
Speaker 1 (05:31):
You're like, I'm like, oh, you know, you know you're
from where I'm from.
Speaker 4 (05:36):
And people say North Louisiana And I didn't realize how
big people consider North Louisiana.
Speaker 3 (05:40):
Sometimes people will say like, oh, I'm from blah blah.
Speaker 4 (05:42):
Blah, and I'm like, oh, I love that, and I'm like,
they said North Louisiana, So I'm rolling.
Speaker 3 (05:47):
That's right. Like I don't even I don't even know
where it was exactly, but it's like, yeah, those people.
Speaker 2 (05:53):
We found out when we lived in laugh that anything
above Opelusis is considered Yankee, okay. And so when we
moved to Laughing and the people are like, you know,
you know, you know, they're like, where you're from Texas
And I'm like, you know, we're from Texas and they're like,
they're like, what your accent? I'm like, well, y'all.
Speaker 3 (06:10):
Talking about we don't have an accent.
Speaker 2 (06:14):
But you get around somebody like your mom, Yeah you
got an accent, and it's like I don't hear mine,
but I hear somebody else's right.
Speaker 3 (06:21):
That's right. That's very very very quick connection.
Speaker 2 (06:24):
We had definitely, Yeah, I know that that instant you know,
it's just kind of an instant connection with with your family,
with with your parents, and Stacy and your mom became
fast friends, and you know, it was it was kind
of fun to watch that relationship because your mom, like you,
I know, and I know that that's probably not an
aspect of the story that you like to focus on,
(06:46):
but you you've walked through some you and your dad
both some very difficult seasons, and I think that that's
whenever we you know, I know, your your mom and
Stacy were acquaintances, they were friends, but whenever, I y,
that's whenever the connection really started to form. Right, whyn't
you talk a little bit about that?
Speaker 3 (07:06):
Yeah, so grew up.
Speaker 4 (07:08):
Mom would always say we lived the American dream and
it was like without a white picket fence because we
had like three wheelers and mud and all that kind
of stuff and.
Speaker 1 (07:16):
So Northana go mud Ryana.
Speaker 4 (07:19):
But it was me and Savannah. Savannah it was three
years and nine months, so we always said just four
years older than me and normal sister than y'all had boys,
but sisters fight just as much and we.
Speaker 3 (07:30):
Could get physical sometimes too.
Speaker 4 (07:32):
But it was fun getting to have somebody because her
friends honestly, like were bigger sisters to me too, and
then she'd hang out, so we weren't so far apart
and we were just a I love my family Like
I now, I hear stories about like some of my
friends and what they grew up with, and I'm like
even more grateful for what I had.
Speaker 3 (07:52):
Family vacations. I know y'all have done. Y'all did family
vacations stuff like that.
Speaker 4 (07:55):
Just a very close family grew up in the church,
and I mean mom and Dad were a part of
every committee you could come up.
Speaker 3 (08:02):
With, and Sunday School and VBS.
Speaker 4 (08:04):
I mean we were we were all in and so
we went to Right before my ninth grade year, my
dad got an offer, like to be promoted with his job,
but to do that he'd have to move to Baton Rouge.
And so I remember, like I said, I remember thinking like, well,
I'm gonna be you know, that's fine with me. I'm
gonna be the cool new girl. And uh. Savannah stayed
in at Monroe and went to ULM and wanted to
(08:27):
do speech pathology.
Speaker 3 (08:28):
She was an ra with housing.
Speaker 4 (08:30):
I mean, she was like doing great and Mom always
said she was like you know when people go to college.
Speaker 3 (08:34):
Usually the kid moves away and the family moved away.
Speaker 4 (08:38):
So but it wasn't bad because all my family's in
North Louisiana, so it was really just me, mom and
dad that moved down here to Central. So we go
to you know, savannahs a freshman in college. I'm a
freshman in high school. And then you know, she'd come
down and visit on the weekends and things, attend New
Year's Eve parties at your house.
Speaker 2 (08:54):
Well, let's expound on that, because we were talking about
one of the connections was you wind up at a
new you and Savannah came to New Year party here
at our house, and that was the one where the
boys built a huge fire and we thought they were
burning the house down.
Speaker 3 (09:06):
But that's massive.
Speaker 2 (09:07):
It's funny to go back and talk about those things
because of you know, the connection.
Speaker 4 (09:11):
Now the right right exactly, and like getting to know
your boys now so we've gotten older. It was just
it's been a great experience with that. I'm so glad
Savannah was there with me. Like, how cool to experience,
you know, being that new kid with your sister. I
wish I could have bring protor to high school. It
got better by the way that I made us Now,
I loved high school.
Speaker 3 (09:31):
Those first three weeks were rough, but we made.
Speaker 4 (09:33):
It out got so in the When the flood happened
in twenty sixteen, Savannah was a senior in college.
Speaker 3 (09:39):
I was a senior in high school, and we went into.
Speaker 4 (09:42):
Like everybody else's flood relief mode, and I mean we
just ripping up carpet and the self service was so bad.
So Savannah was like trying to call and I remember Mom.
Savannah was like, I'm coming down there, and Mom's like,
your Chevy cruise can't get in this water, Like we're
people are on boats right now. So and that's how
Savanna was her heart. I mean she's like serving. I
mean Mom used to say, just to give you an
(10:04):
idea of Savannah, she would say, if everybody in the
world is happy, Savannah's happy. If everybody in the world
is unhappy and Isabella is happy, that's fine. I've gotten better,
But that really is Savannah was just she was a
people pleaser and not.
Speaker 3 (10:21):
Like let people walk all over you. Like she loved
to serve others.
Speaker 4 (10:25):
And she was just compassionate, a cheerleader like she actually cheered,
but like she cheered for you, like she just you
just knew that about her, and that's why she had
so many good friends that you know. It's just I'm
getting ahead of myself, but I've learned so much more
about my sister since she has passed, just because of
how she affected other people. So the flood happens, and
(10:45):
ten days after the flood, my mom gets a call
from a friend of Savannah's and she just says, Savannah's
sort of unresponsive.
Speaker 3 (10:52):
We're taking her to the hospital. That's all we know.
Speaker 4 (10:55):
And I am seventeen at the time, senior in high school,
think I know everything, And honestly, I don't remember much
of that drive up because Dad and Mom drove in
their truck and then I drove Mom's car because I
really am thinking, Okay, well we need to have two
separate cars because once Samanna gets out of the hospital
will come home. Like that was my mindset of just yeah,
she's sick, this is bad, but we don't know what's
(11:17):
going on.
Speaker 3 (11:18):
Like that's good. You know the doctors will fix it
and she's gonna be fine.
Speaker 4 (11:22):
I don't know what Mom and Dad were thinking, and
like I don't remember that trip as much. I know
we were booking it to go to North Louisiana. But
I know that whole time, and even when she was
in the hospital, Samanna's okay, like I knew, you know,
like it's gonna be fine, like that happens in movies.
Speaker 2 (11:36):
You know, it's like she.
Speaker 4 (11:38):
Has to recover right exactly, and just that comfortability of
like you know, that's you know, we're praying for it,
so it's gonna happen how we want it to happen.
So we were in the we got to the hospital.
We're in the emergency room, and that was probably the
last time Savannah and we had a real, like talking conversation,
and there was a cool way we got to talk after,
but just she was sick and we didn't know what.
Speaker 3 (11:59):
Was going on.
Speaker 4 (12:00):
And in that moment she starts coding nurses rush in,
doctor's rush in. And I'm telling you, I literally felt
like I.
Speaker 3 (12:07):
Was in a movie. Like it was just like this
isn't my real life right now?
Speaker 4 (12:11):
Going from like you kind of have the American dream
and then this, it was just it was a lot.
Speaker 3 (12:16):
Yeah.
Speaker 4 (12:17):
And so they pulled me in, mom and dad into
a room and it's just us three and I just
remember like, I don't know if it was Mom's phone
or Savannah's. And I just got up the phone and
we had some family out in the waiting room, and
I texted our old youth pastor that we grew up
with and just said, I need you to pray for
Savannah right now. And it's when I'm older and I
look at that situation. I'm like, in the midst of
(12:37):
all of that, I went to God, and my relationship
with God was probably not where it needed to be
at that aspect, but like we had nothing else, and
I know that that kind of doesn't sound the best now,
like that should be the first person we go to.
But how telling is that to me now? Where I'm like, man,
I need to pray more. I mean, but in that moment,
this is the only thing we have. You know, we
(12:57):
don't know what's going on. Fast forward, Savannah ended up
she just got really sick, really fast, and I they said,
you know, they did blood work and they did all
this kind of stuff to figure out what it was,
and they still did not know. I mean, it was
kind of like a bizarre like we don't know what happened.
Speaker 3 (13:14):
And then just one thing.
Speaker 4 (13:15):
After the other where She stayed in the hospital for
ten and a half weeks and three weeks and a
hospital in Monroe, and then I guess seven and a
half weeks at a burn unit because she ended up
having to have skin graps. I mean, she got we
ended up having to amputate. They were amputating some things
just because her fingers and her toes were just so
(13:37):
they had to do a couple of different protocols, like
she just got really sick.
Speaker 2 (13:41):
Did they ever discover what it actually was not?
Speaker 4 (13:45):
I know that there was like some bacteria in her
blood and I might be wrong on switching those things,
but we never got like a hey, this was in
you know cause I know we went to the beach
before somebody said, well did she was she around like
the flood water and stuff, and we're like, like it
it really like we.
Speaker 3 (14:01):
Do not know.
Speaker 4 (14:02):
We don't and she went septic and that's kind of
when things got really bad.
Speaker 1 (14:07):
And so your mom used to say it was an
unknown origin.
Speaker 3 (14:10):
Yeah, yeah, so much better than I but yeah, exactly.
And it's kind of to not know.
Speaker 4 (14:18):
It's kind of like I've just kind of come to
peace with that of just like I'm not gonna know
but anyway, so during that ten and a half weeks,
we were loved and prayed on, and I honestly took
it for granted in the moment when now that I'm older,
I'm like, wow, I mean, just the.
Speaker 3 (14:34):
There was always somebody at that waiting room. It became
our home. It was a huge outpour, oh goodness from
central Rusting.
Speaker 4 (14:42):
I mean I remember everybody everywhere like we would get
and I learned more about it now because in the moment,
I'm you don't know, yeah, exactly, like women's prisons groups,
prayer groups praying for Savannah and Arizona.
Speaker 3 (14:55):
You know, it was like, wow, how many times was
my sister prayed for that? It's huge?
Speaker 4 (15:01):
And so so at that point I started, I still think, like,
Savannah's really sick, but she's going to be okay.
Speaker 3 (15:08):
So I came back down.
Speaker 4 (15:09):
School started back up, and so I would go up
on the weekends and then come to school.
Speaker 3 (15:13):
We stayed. I stayed with the le Saints. Loved that family.
They were our next door neighbors. What a blessing they are.
Speaker 4 (15:19):
And anyway, so I'm still thinking Savannah's going to be okay.
And then one night we were actually playing Live Oaks.
So I was cheering on the sidelines and Savannah passed
away in Streeport and Mom and Dad I always I
share this so much more now. Mom said, you know,
in that moment, we weren't talking about her grades.
Speaker 3 (15:41):
We weren't you know, like we knew the time was coming.
Speaker 4 (15:43):
And she said, we weren't talking about her grades, or
you know, how many followers she had on Instagram or
how many state championships they won. She was like, we
were talking about how much people loved her and how
she loved others. And I remember when Mom said that.
Every time, I'm like balling my eyes out because that
real happened. And what do you you know, I always
think like, what do what if that was me? What
(16:04):
are we talking about? You know? So yeah, so that
was kind of Savannah's story, and so from that Mom
really took and ran with it, you know, with with
the whole grief process for sure.
Speaker 3 (16:16):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (16:16):
Well, that that's when, you know, whenever Savannah got sick,
that's when your mom and I we connected even more
through that. I know, Jay and I we made did
we make one or two trips?
Speaker 3 (16:28):
A couple of trips?
Speaker 1 (16:33):
Yeah, And so we were actually able to to go
into the room with Savannah and at that last that
last time, and so I remember all of the people
being in the way room, just the outpouring of love,
and I mean, and I think that truly is probably
what kept your parents going. You know, that's just that
(16:56):
that support not only just oh, I know, somebody's praying. No,
I can actually see that they're here and you're supporting.
And just the love that was shown, you know, to
your parents. I think someone provided a place for them
to stay so that they could be close to the
right and so they were able to be there with
her and not have to leave. And so it was
just I know, it was a very very difficult and
(17:19):
uncertain time, you know, for your parents, but that was
definitely when you're connected more.
Speaker 3 (17:25):
With your mom.
Speaker 2 (17:25):
What's beautiful about that is you actually see the church
in action.
Speaker 3 (17:28):
Yes, that's exactly what it was.
Speaker 2 (17:30):
What's really awesome about that is your mom and dad
were not just you know what we say, CEO is
not just Christmas and Easter only type Christians. They didn't
just go to church once a year, twice a year.
They were actually involved the Body of Christ, you know,
the Family of God. I mean it's like they were
actively involved in everything they could be and so as
a part of the church in North Louisiana. And then
(17:52):
whenever they moved down with us, the next thing, you know,
people just the church comes together and says we need
to rally.
Speaker 3 (17:58):
Around the same and it becomes natural, like it's like, oh,
we're doing it.
Speaker 4 (18:01):
We're praying for them, and we're like there were so
many people that would say, I'm praying and you know
that look where you're like they're praying, you know, like
it is sincere.
Speaker 3 (18:10):
And it was one hundred percent.
Speaker 4 (18:11):
We were surrounded a bout great people because I mean
that most of those people we knew family and through church, yeah, honestly.
Speaker 2 (18:17):
Which I would say that, you know, one thing to
learn from that from maybe some of our listeners be
involved in the church. Absolutely, don't just go once a year,
but be involved, become family, get to know people, because
every single one of us will go through a crisis
at some point in life and the Body of Christ
wants to rally around you. Yeah, but in order in
order to do that, they have to know you, right.
Speaker 4 (18:37):
Yeah, And everybody's gonna come to the waiting room and
stay till eleven o'clock at night, you know, if you
I mean, maybe they'll do it. But having those deep
connections is something that was so valuable to them.
Speaker 1 (18:47):
Not only were you know where y'all going through this
with Savannah at the hospital, but the flood had just happened,
so your parents like left their home that was you know,
in a mess.
Speaker 4 (18:58):
And I mean literally my brother, my brother, my uncle's church.
A group of men went and fixed our house. Yes,
like yes, oh my gosh.
Speaker 2 (19:07):
You know there for a second, I was like, wait,
is there another sibling we don't know about what?
Speaker 3 (19:12):
We're going to let it all out today.
Speaker 2 (19:14):
Secrets exposed, I love not crazy.
Speaker 1 (19:19):
So much more of this story that I knew.
Speaker 3 (19:22):
I'm going to take a turn real quick.
Speaker 2 (19:24):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (19:25):
No, I mean that was such a devastating time because
I know we went through the flood, you know, our home,
uh and the church we had to be built and
stuff like that. So I know that took a huge
burden off of your parents to know, Okay, I can
be focused on my child that's here in the hospital,
and I know very much concerned about you as well
where you were at that time, and then to not
(19:47):
have to worry about my houses as a mess.
Speaker 3 (19:50):
They went and took care of that.
Speaker 1 (19:51):
That was a blessing.
Speaker 2 (19:52):
Well, I want to know this because I know that
you're seventeen years old whenever this happens, and you're basically
you're going through crisis on top of chrisis, the flood,
You're sister this illness, and then she steps into the
she passes away, she steps into the presence of the Lord.
How do you process that? How do you as a
seventeen year old? Look, I know that your family had
a strong, healthy relationship with the Lord, so we know
(20:14):
that the Lord is gonna comfort you. But regardless, it's
still something that's traumatic to walk.
Speaker 4 (20:19):
Yeah, I will tell you, like being seventeen, you really
do think you haven't figured out. And then on top
of that, I knew the whole time, Savannah's gonna be okay.
So when I get a phone call, you know, Isabella,
she passed away. She's not here with us anymore, but
she's in heaven.
Speaker 3 (20:35):
My world was rocked, like I because.
Speaker 2 (20:37):
You were not expecting that.
Speaker 4 (20:38):
Oh no, And I mean honestly, I knew, like there
was times and mom and Dad didn't realize it was
going to happen, like that either, because there was a
time where she would get really sick and then she
would get beat at her right, and so it was like,
you know, Savannah's having a rough day to day, but
you know, and then we got good news, you know.
So when I got that call, I was I mean,
you just crumble, like you really, it was.
Speaker 3 (20:58):
Just kind of like is this real world? What is
going on?
Speaker 4 (21:01):
And in that moment and for the weeks after, it's
like a blur, like I don't remember as much. I
think the hardest part for me was just like being
an only child now, you know, like when I go
to thanksgivings like those those first are always the hardest,
you know, for me because I remember and I love
my family, I love my cousins and stuff, but when
you have a sibling, you're like, oh, well, we know
(21:22):
they're gonna be there and we can go, you know,
hang out, and then you don't. And so there was
a lot of some like just hard times where and
I'm not a huge crier, but man did I cry.
I mean it was just a lot of just like
just the missing her, you know. And I will say
Mom helped me so much learning how to grieve Savannah
(21:44):
because mom. You know, she did some research. She was
so in tune with her relationship with christ and then
you know, she could talk about it. But that's how
she healed. Where I would start talking about my sister
and I'm like, I can't talk about it right now,
you know, and that's that's okay, Like everybody does it differently.
But because I was seventeen, it was just a lot.
I mean, it was it was very it was overwhelming.
(22:06):
And then but I would tell you, go back to
the community. I also was so loved and prayed for
and cared for to where I was able to still
laugh and have a good time, you know, like my
rest of my senior year. I loved my class, you know,
and it was just the outpouring of love and just
getting to hang out with people. And I was a
lot more intentional, you know, like I want to spend
time with mom and dad, I want to spend time
(22:27):
with my friends. So it did shift, you know, during that.
But I know those first couple of weeks, and I
think that's typical of just like you're in shot or
we do it exactly. Yeah, And so it was a
lot to be seventeen and go through that. But It
definitely shaped my life again on the path. Like when
I started college, I was a lot more intentional. If
I wanted to go home and spend time with my family,
(22:49):
I'm doing it, you know, like I don't really care
if my friends, which my friends were like, go, you know,
you can do that.
Speaker 2 (22:53):
It kind of really helped you understand what's really important.
Speaker 3 (22:56):
Yes, exactly. And I remember still to this day, like you.
Speaker 4 (22:59):
Know, Mom would say Savannah had and that's when Mom
started like talking about Savannah. But she was saying, you
know what if you had ten and a half weeks
to live, because that's what Savannah had, and really taking
that and running with it on like we don't know,
you know, this could be our last you know, Tuesday.
Speaker 1 (23:13):
Morning, you don't know, just to appreciate the moment.
Speaker 4 (23:16):
So it really did help me my college years appreciate
that and have those intentional relationships. But I will say
I mean there was times. I remember one time specifically
I was thinking about because it's not all you know,
like grief is, you know, coming to terms with it.
Speaker 3 (23:30):
Like there are days where it was hard.
Speaker 4 (23:33):
I remember one night I was so upset we were
I was thinking about one instance we were in Disney
for the first time.
Speaker 3 (23:40):
We weren't really a Disney family.
Speaker 4 (23:42):
No hate to Disney families, but we.
Speaker 3 (23:48):
Never went. We were like beach and skiing, you know,
stuff like that. You could be both, but whatever.
Speaker 4 (23:54):
Anyway, so we went for a cheer and Savannah got
to go one year and I just kept playing it
over my head. I remember her coming up to me
and She's like, hey, Isbelle, I'm going to ride this ride.
You want to go with me? And I said, no,
I'm gonna go with my friends on this one. And
I kept playing that over and over like the regret
I had, Like that was an instance where I could
have hung out with Savannah and I am just losing
(24:14):
it and I just texted my mom and I said,
are you up? And she right there in my room
and she just prayed over me, she held me, and
I mean, I'm eighteen years old at this point, and
I just like that kind of stuff. Those instances where
I was just cared for and loved helped me so
much more, you know, Well, that's.
Speaker 1 (24:30):
And that's part of the processing of grief, is that
the Kulda would have should have right, and all of
the little things that you don't think of in the moment,
but it comes back to you and you're like, oh,
why didn't I say or do this? And I think
everybody deals with that and it's just just processing through it.
And you know, really, I mean, we can't really hold
(24:53):
onto that kind of regret, you know, I mean, because
it'll just eat away at you. And I definitely remember
your mom like being concerned about you now being an
only child, and you know, how how could she help
you to, you know, process that she was Actually I
feel more worried about you, are concerned about you processing
(25:13):
everything that she even was herself.
Speaker 2 (25:16):
You know, Well, I think your mom's way of processing
and dealing with the grief she.
Speaker 3 (25:20):
Was talking about.
Speaker 4 (25:20):
Talking talking about something and honestly think helping like me
and dad go through grief help her.
Speaker 3 (25:26):
Too, you know.
Speaker 2 (25:27):
You know, I've sat in counsel with people through the
years that are walking through things that are difficult. They've
lost a loved one and probably one of the worst
things I've ever heard, And I've actually fallen into this
category of myself, like you know, and men I think
do this a lot, like, well, I'm just not going
to talk about that person, you know, because if I
don't talk about them, then I'm not sad. And it's
(25:47):
all you really do is take that grief and stuff
it down inside of you. And your mom. Wow, she
just she had it down, like, hey, we're going to
talk about this and we're going to talk about my daughter.
And that's when she really you know, she launched that
into ministry and traffic people about savannah story.
Speaker 3 (26:03):
Yeah, yeah, that was That's so true.
Speaker 4 (26:05):
And I also think I know y'all talked about it before,
like the importance of talking about them. I mean my
family people that I don't know, they still think my
mom and my sister are you know, here on this
earth because I'm like, my sister used to do.
Speaker 3 (26:19):
That, you know what my mom does. You know, she
made that too.
Speaker 4 (26:22):
You know it's probably better, but but you know, like
things like that. So I think our family just took
that and ran with it. I mean we're constantly.
Speaker 3 (26:29):
Like do you remember when Savannah and we did this?
Or hearing stories.
Speaker 4 (26:33):
I mean it is that has helped me and Dad
grieve for sure, and just kind of we bring light
of it, you know, like, yeah, they're not here, but man,
did we have some good times?
Speaker 1 (26:41):
You know well, and a lot of people, you know,
they don't they think that it's gonna be painful if
if they bring up that person it's no longer here.
But really, we want to talk about our person. We
want to remember all of those things. And I know,
because both of my parents are gone. It's like when
I come across somebody that knew both of them and
(27:02):
they want to talk about that time in my life,
I'm all over it.
Speaker 3 (27:06):
You know. You want to relive.
Speaker 1 (27:09):
Those those happy times and stuff, and so yeah, that's
just that's a healthy way to process it. And your
mom did a great job at that and just changing
the perspective of it. Yes, there is this loss, but
let's talk about the importance of appreciating life while we're
here on earth. But then hey, there's life eternal, you know,
(27:31):
and are you ready to go to heaven?
Speaker 2 (27:33):
Yes, that's one thing I loved about your mom as
the focus was yes, I've lost my daughter, my child,
but I know where she is, you know, and your
mom is just so solid it And I say your
mom your dad too, just so solid in their faith right,
And it was that I was grateful because that, you know.
Not long after that is when you and Stephanie really
started connecting and growing in your relationship. And we'd prayed
(27:56):
for a long time about different friends and whatnot in ministry,
and your mom had a great understanding of ministry and
like what we walked through as pastures and so just
a good friend, you know, to you and y'all. Y'all
traveled a lot. I knew when they were traveling. I
was like, oh, they're going on. I remember one time Stacey,
she said, I'm like, where y'all going. She's like, I
don't know. Stephanie just told me we're going to Mama's house.
Speaker 1 (28:20):
Yeah, I mean we just had We just had the
best time. And Jay used to say, like, you really
needed a friend like Stephanie, you know, because she was
so outgoing and just so fun loving and so extroverted
where I'm I'm a little bit more introverted. I live
in this extroverted world, I operate in it. But she
(28:41):
really pulled me out of my shell, you know, and
that was just so all of my memories of my
friendship with her has is very joyful, very joyful memories.
And and yes, so you know, we, like I said,
we connected more so through all of this with her.
You know, your family losing Savannah. Yeah, and out of that, Yeah,
(29:03):
she began to all of these people that would come
to the hospital and that we're praying for Savannah. She
I say, she went on a little tour, a talking tour.
Speaker 3 (29:12):
I caught it. She's like, this is my thank you tour.
Thank you took. Yeah, And so she.
Speaker 1 (29:18):
Just would travel and go to I mean she went
to men's groups at churches, she went to I mean
you you name it. If they asked her, she was
getting in her car and heading that way.
Speaker 3 (29:29):
And yeah, you.
Speaker 4 (29:29):
Getting nervous talking in front of people, like if I
have a speech or something like that, which I don't
have speeches all the.
Speaker 3 (29:34):
Time, but like you know, in class or whatever.
Speaker 4 (29:36):
And Mom she would just she's like, Okay, yeah, I'm
gonna just pray about it and we're going to see
what happens.
Speaker 3 (29:41):
I'm like, man, how cool that was her gift? Oh?
Speaker 1 (29:44):
Absolutely, she definitely flowed in in that. And so I
had the opportunity to travel with her, not not all
the trips that she took, but but quite a few.
But yeah, the one that that Jay remembered it was
it was really my best memory of traveling with her.
We went to North Louisiana out in shoe drint, shoe drint,
(30:08):
and now that's kind of out in the woods, you know,
just the boo dogs, okay, and so you know, really
North Louisiana. And so she was asked to speak at
a widow's group, and I think it was just somebody
who probably knew your mom as a young girl.
Speaker 2 (30:28):
You know.
Speaker 1 (30:29):
It was like, hey, come and you know, share your
story and everything. And so I went with her and
we had the best time. And and that was the
cool thing about Stephanie, you know, connecting with just we
we both understood ministry, the aspect of ministry and going
to minister to these women. And so I was like,
(30:51):
you go over and you prepare, you know, get ready
to speak. And I just I didn't know any of
these women. And I'm like welcoming that.
Speaker 3 (30:59):
It was a potla receiving the dishes.
Speaker 1 (31:01):
It was at me Mall's house, okay, because I said
where are we going? And she goes, I don't know,
the text just says it's at me. And I'm like, well, I.
Speaker 3 (31:09):
Can't wait to meet her, Hannah, you know.
Speaker 1 (31:12):
And so there were so many mems there.
Speaker 3 (31:14):
I mean, it was.
Speaker 2 (31:17):
You know what I mean.
Speaker 3 (31:18):
It was the.
Speaker 1 (31:18):
Biggest spread of home cooking you could ever imagine. And
we just had the most wonderful time just visiting with
these with these ladies, and some of them were extremely elderly,
and but they made their way there because they wanted
to hear your mom's story. And so, I mean, we
(31:40):
we had we had a great, a great time just traveling.
And I was telling you the other day, she and
I we had she had her road trip playlist. You know,
she was really big into all of her music, and
so she said, up, okay, look our first trip we
were traveling. She goes, okay, look there's I start off
with this this one song, know, get me going, you know,
(32:01):
as as I as I drive. And I was like, okay,
And I think she was afraid to tell me. So
it was a secular song, and I think she was
afraid to tell me, you know, because it's her pastor
life and the true Stephanie comes out. We only listened
to the you know, the holy music, and I was like,
(32:22):
it's okay. She's like, yeah, you know, it's it's Rascal Flats.
Speaker 2 (32:25):
What song.
Speaker 3 (32:29):
It was? It was Rascal Flats, wasn't it?
Speaker 2 (32:32):
Uh? It's a song I car.
Speaker 3 (32:38):
Highway cars. Yeah, cars.
Speaker 1 (32:42):
I don't know why, I just totally went blank on that.
Speaker 2 (32:44):
I remember you telling me about that. She listened to
Life as a Highway a highway, and.
Speaker 3 (32:49):
So I said, oh girl, I said, I love that song.
Speaker 2 (32:55):
You know what I told her she said and what
she because I know her well enough to say this.
I went to high school with the fiddle player for
Rascal Flash. Because she tells everybody that absolutely shirt.
Speaker 3 (33:07):
He doesn't play.
Speaker 2 (33:08):
I don't think he doesn't play.
Speaker 3 (33:11):
But he did.
Speaker 2 (33:12):
John Johnson.
Speaker 3 (33:13):
Yes, yes, I'm sending this up.
Speaker 1 (33:17):
I'm sending this episode to them.
Speaker 3 (33:19):
I am so that they know.
Speaker 1 (33:21):
You know, it was just it was just so much
fun to be able to go on these road trips,
and we did. We started out with Life as a
Highway and so that is just like, you know, almost
like the theme song for everything.
Speaker 2 (33:36):
You said this early. And the cool part about your
mom was she had the ability to pull things out
of her. I could see them in her, but I
couldn't get them out of her. Your mom, you know,
pull your big girl panties up, that kind of stuff.
But she would talk about you know, I would just
do it. Yeah, And so the women's conference, she was like,
you know, just yes, and this podcast. I remember her
coming home and talking about Stephanie researching podcasts.
Speaker 3 (33:58):
And that was what we were doing.
Speaker 1 (34:00):
We were researching and I'm like, girl, you got to
find out the detail.
Speaker 3 (34:05):
Yeah, you're like I can so see my being like
how do they do that? How do they do it?
My mind, we needed to do that.
Speaker 2 (34:10):
And then she started talking about a podcasts and I
don't want to do a podcast and look at here
we are.
Speaker 3 (34:17):
Thanks.
Speaker 2 (34:18):
Yeah, I was like yeah, and I'm sure our listeners
at this point, based off of, you know, kind of
how we're talking that they realized that your mom was
gone home to be with the Lord. Do you want
to kind of speak about that a little bit. Yeah.
Speaker 3 (34:31):
Yeah.
Speaker 4 (34:31):
So she was doing her best thing, living her life
from twenty sixteen, and then I was starting I think
I was about to be a junior in college in
twenty nineteen, and she was driving home from tennis. She
had started to do tennis, loved it, and driving home
from tennis and taking unexpectedly and I remember getting that
(34:52):
phone call from my dad and it was like, you
talk about your life crumbled.
Speaker 3 (34:57):
I mean, it was just because going back to the
comfortability thing.
Speaker 4 (35:00):
After Savannah died, I kind of thought, and this is
not how it is, and I've learned that, but I
really thought, like, Okay, Isabella Paine Check, She's had her
big thing in life, that's changed her life. Let's move
on to the next person. That's not how God works,
and it's not that God's like, let this happen again.
But I really did live more comfortably, like at least
you know, man, that was hard, but I got my
(35:20):
people now and I'm moving on or moving you know,
figuring out life without fold how did yeah, like how
to live life without Savannah? And so when Dad called me,
I mean it was just like I talk about, I mean,
my knees hit the ground, like I was just it
was a lot. And so, you know, from that point
just for her, because with Savannah, I mean, she was
(35:41):
sick and but we still kind of thought, you know,
she's gonna be okay.
Speaker 3 (35:44):
Where Mom.
Speaker 4 (35:45):
It's like I texted her at six o'clock and at
nine o'clock she's not here on this earth.
Speaker 3 (35:49):
Like it was just it happened so fast.
Speaker 4 (35:51):
And so from that point on, I mean, I know,
me and Dad, he came and picked me up from
him in that night and we're just driving back. I
mean both I don't even know what that conversation looked like,
but it was just like, I don't even know what
to say. And my grandmother she when Dad called my grandmother,
the first thing she said, she said, well, she's with Savannah,
(36:12):
And I mean, I know, we both kind of just
kept talking about that and thinking about that because in
that moment, that is all I could think about, because
I mean it was like that was the one I
couldn't think about, right, Yeah, I didn't want to think
about anything on this earth. I was just like just
picturing Mom and Savannah and God, you know, I was
just like, hold on to that.
Speaker 3 (36:29):
That's what you're going to focus on. And you know
Mom was a hugger and so.
Speaker 4 (36:32):
Is Savannah, and that's all I was thinking about because
I was not I wasn't ready for this, you know,
like I just it was a lot. So so when
we lost Mom once again, we see that outpouring love
and this time I'm older, I'm really figuring it out.
Mom had prepared me, you know, like I learned I
(36:55):
talked about Savannah and Mom automatically or you know, people
I could tell people were people I want know what
to say, especially when it's happened like that.
Speaker 3 (37:02):
And you know, when I was seventeen.
Speaker 4 (37:05):
When I was seventeen, people would say, you know, I
know what you're going through, and I'm like, your pet
gecko died, No, you don't. And then I'm like, you know,
you got defensive. Nobody's pet gecko died that example, but
you do. You know, people are just trying.
Speaker 3 (37:19):
Anything they can.
Speaker 4 (37:19):
Well, where when I was older, I'm like, you know,
and I kind of got like, they don't know what
I'm going through.
Speaker 3 (37:25):
Well, now that i'm when I was older and I
lost Mom.
Speaker 4 (37:28):
People are saying that and I'm like, they're just trying
to encourage me and tell me that I'm not alone.
And I took I took a lot more of those
kind of words in when I was older perspective, and
that was because of what Mom had taught me. You know, honestly,
you know, maturity'll do that to you.
Speaker 2 (37:41):
It kind of changes the perspective of how how you
see things. It's like when you are grieving, and I've
seen this so many times, people they don't know what
to say, so they they're like, well, I'll say this
because it'll make you feel better. It's like, well, that
didn't you feel better at all?
Speaker 4 (37:55):
One time Mom was saying, I don't remember who it was,
but somebody walks up through her and she was like
this just sucks.
Speaker 3 (38:03):
And Mom was like, yeah, it does.
Speaker 4 (38:05):
You know.
Speaker 3 (38:05):
It's like just kind of owning it, like, hey, this
is a this is a rough situation.
Speaker 4 (38:09):
Keeping it real, yeah, exactly, and like there's not always
an answer for something, and just kind of like this
is hard goodness, you know. And I've said that a
few times to other people that you know, some friends
that have lost people. It's like sometimes you just have
to own it and say, like, this is a horrible situation.
But man, you know God is with you. I am
praying for you, and you can kind of change that,
but it is. And I and as a maturity kind
(38:31):
of aspect with Mom, like you know, at the visitation
and all of that, it's like, these people just want
to love on me, and I'm gonna embrace it and
hold on to that, you know.
Speaker 3 (38:39):
And I that helped me.
Speaker 4 (38:41):
But it's because honestly dealing with Savannah, you know, how
did I handle that situation? You get older, you kind
of realize like, oh, I'm seventeen, you know, I'm twenty now,
I'm like, I don't have all the answers and so
kind of moving on with that. But definitely I remember
Mom talking about that. She's like, that was just kind
of nice to hear.
Speaker 2 (38:56):
Like it was rough, you know, And I think you
alluded to this earth you didn't realize it at the time,
but your mom, through what y'all walked through with Savannah,
she was preparing you to.
Speaker 4 (39:06):
Handle this, and I think preparing me. My family members
have said that same thing. I mean, like you just
mentioned talking in that short amount of time where Savannah
passed away and Mom passed away.
Speaker 3 (39:17):
She did so much. I did so much, and she.
Speaker 4 (39:19):
Affected so many people, and I mean it helped me
learn how to grieve with her, you know, like I
felt like it was better how I handled this situation.
I was also older, but like what she taught me
about it's okay to cry. You know. There are days
where I'm like, this is rough, you know, mascara everywhere,
but it's like, go there because I missed them so
much and I was so blessed for the years I
(39:41):
had them. But then you make sure you get out,
you know, and you figure out who you need to
go to, or you pray and you figure out, God,
I'm about to go there.
Speaker 3 (39:48):
And then we're gonna get out, okay. You know a
lot of prayers.
Speaker 1 (39:51):
When a situation of great loss like that and being
traumatic as well, then when to isolate, right, they pull
out of community. With that, you you ran to those
that could help you and that would love on you,
and and you continue to talk about them. And so
you did a lot of things that were helping you
(40:13):
to process things in a healthy way. Because I know
the connection that you and I've had, you know, since
I lost my mom when I was eighteen, was that
I wasn't able necessarily to grieve in such a healthy way.
You know, we weren't really allowed to talk about her
and and and so I'm so glad to see that
you're being able to process it. And you know, I've
(40:34):
always you know, I told you, you know, I'm here for
you as well, because I think if I would have
had someone when I was eighteen that had lost their
mom that I could talk like, it would have helped
me tremendously. And so you definitely, you know, you don't
want to isolate yourself. You want to draw to a
community and you want to go to those that that
can help you.
Speaker 3 (40:55):
And it's okay to.
Speaker 1 (40:57):
Sit in those feelings. Right, and you're going to have
a bad day, but because what do we say, it's
waves of grief that sometimes it's it's rougher than others.
Those sea waters are really rough, and especially during milestones,
and like you said, the first year, you know, is
always very difficult as well.
Speaker 2 (41:15):
Absolutely well, And I want to say this as well,
because we've talked a lot about you know, Savannah and
your mom that your dad's been solid. It's been so yes,
you know, I know that the amount of grief that
he must have watched, you know, walk through with this.
And Tim, I know you're probably watching or listening because
you want to support your baby girl. So just proud
(41:37):
of you. Just make sure you hit subscribe.
Speaker 3 (41:41):
You were like, show me how to do it.
Speaker 2 (41:44):
But you know he's been a rock through all this.
Let's kind of take a few moments talk about him.
I know you don't talk about me, but I.
Speaker 4 (41:52):
Will tell you like I can hope, I'm not going
to tear up. I love my father, like, oh my goodness,
the and and it's it's weird to think, like, would
I go back and have Mom and Savannah? Absolutely, But
then I hear about people that have lost people and
their families, you know, get separated, is close, and it
was like after Savannah Dad, after Savannah died, me, mom
(42:13):
and Dad got close.
Speaker 3 (42:13):
After Mom died. Me and Dad are like, that's right.
Speaker 4 (42:17):
And I remember one time specifically because Mom would always
text me like, I know, you have your psychology exam
at eight am.
Speaker 3 (42:23):
Good luck.
Speaker 4 (42:24):
You know Mom's just now and Dad's like you're still
in college, Like yeah, I am. And my first finals
week without Mom, it was just because I missed her,
like texting and stuff.
Speaker 3 (42:34):
And I got home and I'm just lose. I'm just crying.
Speaker 4 (42:37):
I'm upset I missed her. And Dad comes in from
work and we just cry and hold each other. And
it was like that was so vulnerable, and I'm like
my dad grow man, and it's just like embracing me.
And we've had so many times where we're just like, man,
we miss him.
Speaker 3 (42:51):
I mean, he is just he is just a wonderful,
wonderful man.
Speaker 4 (42:54):
And he's shown me how to how to navigate loss
and how to stay you know, connected with your Christian
and you know, fellowship and read your Bible and things
like that.
Speaker 3 (43:02):
It's like I'm constantly having role models to look up to.
Speaker 2 (43:06):
Well, I'm gonna say this, that's a real man right there,
because you know, Stacy, when she lost her mom, her
dad's response was, we don't talk about her anymore. I
don't want you to know. Yeah, he did not know
the Lord, he did not have Christian faith, and so
he was just like, I don't want to hear y'all
talking about her anymore. But to your dad, to hear that,
to you know, to just hold you and cry together,
(43:28):
to me that that's a real man. He's teaching you
how to grieve properly. And I think that that's possible
because of his his relationship with Jesus.
Speaker 4 (43:36):
Yeah, absolutely absolutely. And he just I just love him
and he's just he's so great. I don't even know
all I want to say.
Speaker 3 (43:43):
He's just awesome.
Speaker 2 (43:43):
What is awesome about your dad is your mom was
the you know, the larger than life personality. You dad's
you know, he's kind of quiet, you know, and by.
Speaker 3 (43:53):
Himself, he is so funny. I'm like, my jokes do
not come from my mom like it comes from pain,
but he would never I di dieright with my mom's personality.
Speaker 4 (44:02):
Where I'm like everybody I have jokes.
Speaker 2 (44:10):
He is, well, how do you you know you and
your dad? What are some different ways that you feel
like you honor their their memory? And here's what I
would say about that to me talking about them, I.
Speaker 3 (44:21):
Was gonna say that's probably one of the biggest ones.
Speaker 4 (44:24):
Also, some things like people still, I mean, we talk
about them all the time, we do things.
Speaker 3 (44:29):
There's sometimes where I'll do something I'm like, I look
at him, I'm like Mom would have loved this.
Speaker 4 (44:33):
Yeah, We'll put ourselves in situations where we're helping somebody
else or praying over you know, people, or just having
simple conversations like oh, Savannah would have loved that person,
and just kind of, like you said, freely talking about them.
I think sometimes I do things where aka this podcast
where I'm like, oh, Isabella, I don't know, I'm like
Stephanie Payne would have eaten us up and.
Speaker 3 (44:52):
Do it to honor them, you know.
Speaker 4 (44:54):
So like things like that kind of happen in my
life all the time. And and I think Dad does
the same thing. Like if there's a you know, we'd
go to North Louisiana and spend time with our family.
Speaker 3 (45:04):
That has increased because.
Speaker 4 (45:06):
It's like, man, I love my family, I love spending
time with them, and things of this world can kind
of it can get busy really fast, and so honoring
them by living our life like we should, like really thinking.
Speaker 3 (45:17):
You know that Tim McGraw song where.
Speaker 4 (45:19):
It's like live like you were dying. I think it's
timogral you know we sing it, ha ha. But then
you think about if there really was like a timestamp
ten and a half weeks we're gone, we would one
hundred percent live our lives differently, And it's you know,
I think that sometimes I'm like, I'm gonna spend all
my money.
Speaker 3 (45:33):
I'm gonna go on trips like you can't do that.
I'm not gonna do it.
Speaker 4 (45:37):
Dad, But like really living life like and being intentional
and things like that, Like I feel like I'm constantly
trying to honor Mom and Savannah through that aspect of
my life.
Speaker 1 (45:47):
Okay, can I tell you just said the word intentional
And that was one of the last things that your
mom and I talked about. She said that the Lord
was really impressing on her heart to just be more
and more intentional about every thing that she was doing,
and especially with spending time with you, and so that yes, oh,
I want everybody to hear that Stephanie is telling you
(46:08):
to right.
Speaker 3 (46:10):
That's right.
Speaker 2 (46:11):
Well, I'll tell you that we say this with a
lot of interviews that this has been fun, but it's
been fun part too, Well, I think we probably will
because here here's what's funny. I said this earlier we
were standing in the kitchen. It's like it's light talking Stephanie,
because your mannerism is your voice. You just she was
just so much fun and you're always as well.
Speaker 3 (46:33):
I appreciate it.
Speaker 4 (46:34):
That's what I remember when I was younger. They're like,
you're just like your mama, and I'm like, no, I'm not.
Speaker 1 (46:38):
You know, you didn't want to claim in but now
thank you.
Speaker 2 (46:43):
Yeah, you're a good mix of Tim and stef.
Speaker 3 (46:47):
Yeah, thank goodness.
Speaker 2 (46:49):
If I had a blast today. I just want to
tell you how much we appreciate you coming in and
sitting down.
Speaker 3 (46:53):
Thank y'all.
Speaker 4 (46:54):
I appreciate you all asking me. It was kind of
a way on our moments. Man, I really appreciate it.
Speaker 1 (46:58):
Yes, you this has just been a blessing. I mean,
I know, I've talked with a few people and I'm like, Isabelle,
it's going to be on the podcast, and they're like,
that's going to.
Speaker 3 (47:08):
Be really good.
Speaker 1 (47:09):
So so thank you to all of our listeners who
are listening to this. You know, well, I share it.
Speaker 2 (47:16):
I've had it's been a blasted and I can't as
you said, you called I can't wait till part two
comes out. But I just want to take a moment
to thank all of our listeners for being a part
of this today. And once again, if you have enjoyed this,
make sure that you like it, make sure that you
click that little subscribe button on YouTube so that you
get reminders of when the next episode is going to
(47:38):
be coming out, and help us move this podcast forward.
Share it with your friends, your neighbors, your enemies, your relatives,
everybody you know. And as we talked about, make sure
that you are intentional in living your life. If you
only had ten and a half weeks left, how would
you live it? And I would say this to you,
live it for Jesus. Let the love of Jesus and
the compassion of Jesus show in your life. Every day,
(48:00):
and so today once again, thank you for being a
part of this podcast. As always, I'm Jay and I'm
Stacy and this is love like crazy.
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