Sabbath Musings

I do not often resemble the following scriptures:

 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for

 righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.

—Matt 5:6

 I want to be better.  I want to thirst after righteousness;  to hunger for it..like I do warm scones. I want to love God more than anything else. I do want to put God first.  Yet I am weak.  But I ask you... isnt just wanting this sometimes enough?  If I remember to pray...whenever I think about wanting to love God more, and to do more in His behalf... isnt that going to  some day lead me to Him? Wont my prayers for this be answered some day?  Wont I be prompted to behave better, more often than not? I think so.

Have you read C.S. Lewis's book, The Great Divorce?
There's a great line there.. where George says, "If there's a wee spark under all those ashes, we'll blow it till the whole pile is red and clear."

My desire may manifest itself as little pathetic puffs of desire and good intentions..but they are there..and maybe someday I'll develop a full head of steam and really catch fire!! That is what I pray for...when I remember...when I feel 'hungry and thirsty.'

Somewhere, far down, there was an itch in his

 heart, but he made it a point not to scratch it.

 He was afraid of what might come leaking out.

from: The Book Thief 

by: Markus Zusak

(my bus)

I actually bought a dollie at DI...but its cute!!
I get 'bus-sick" when I try  to read on the way to work. Whats that about!? I dont get car-sick!!!
Public transit is a unique phenomena...so quiet early in the morning...the high school kids are walking/sleeping zombies.
The bus is FREE!!
My Builder  has put on the salad mak'in king hat...plus he's doing dishes!! Bless him!!
My hands ache when I wake in the morning. Cant figure that out.
I have to change my Blog face page..for I no longer gather any sort of dust between my toes. (any ideas?)
I LOVE rain storm at night.
I chose this months book for Book Club...Papa Married a Mormon by John Fitzgerald.  Turns out I have a first addition that I bought years ago for 8 bucks. Now it looks like its worth about 1000.00!! Thats right!! O-N-E-T-H-O-U-S-A-N-D dollars!! Crazy!!!
My hiking job made me feel young...this job makes me feel old.
I have no clue how to be a Relief Society President.
We have a wedding in less than 40 days!!!
40 days!!!

Oddness, like aches and pains, fits of tears and

lethargy, always made him uneasy and he had

a fear of these uncontrollable, messy puddles 

of life, the sticky humanness of things. 

from: Hullabaloo in the Guava Orchard

by: Kiran Desai

5 Stupid Things I Hate: (hate is such a strong word)

1. going to church at 1:00pm-too much time in the morning and it interfers with naps.
2. the gay rights battle-why cant we all just get along
3. job hunting
4. small talk..not skilled
5. the smell of cigarette smoke when all is going well in life.

5 Stupid Things I Love: (much easier)

1. Oreo's and milk, though for some reason its not quite as fun without the grands to enjoy them with.
2. turtles-mine now lives in the duck pond in the garden. I imagine he's feeling blissful.
3. fresh bread and farmer's markets
4. Alias- with Will Cooper and Jennifer Garner
5. the smell of cigarette smoke when Im feeling stressed.

Maybe happiness is this: not feeling like you should

be elsewhere, doing something else, being someone

else.  Maybe the current conditions in Switzerland

make it simply easier to "be" and therefore "be happy."

from: Geography of Bliss

by: Eric Weiner

MASTER of the Story of Griselda

[Italian Early Renaissance Painter, active ca.1500]

Artemisia

1492

Oil on panel, 88 x 46 cm

Museo Poldi Pezzoli, Milan

I finished reading The Passion of Artemisia longing to see some of her work. And here it is!!  I'll be searching for more!!

The Pah-Ute (Paiute) Indian group, near Cedar, Utah in a picture from 1872. O’Sullivan was famous for not trying to romanticise the native American plight or way of life in his photographs and instead of asking them to wear tribal dress was happy to photograph them wearing denim jeans.

I've been missing Southern Utah...I have friends that do a great job posting what they've been up to down there...without me...sigh.  Then I stumbled upon this photo...what a harsh life.  Im grateful I wasnt born to be a pioneer; without air conditioning, running water and bug exterminators. 

Its been a LONG time since My Builder and I have been to a movie. We stay home and Netflix...but we went to this one...Men In Black III, and I thoroughly enjoyed it! Good choice for us!! Thanks dear.

I bought a bike helmet, for my bike riding adventures. Ben looks way cuter than I under that hat!

Mimi in 1975..with her best friend Judy and her family.  Arent the two of us just as foxy as they came!!?? te he Thanks for sharing Jude

I seek weekly refuge and peace here...and I always find it.

Two of my boys are spending a week at Lake Powell...I am not...

Instead we went to the Cashe County Fair..
and saw pigs...goats..sheep..and cattle.
Lucie got her face painted
Ben got to dip his piggies in the stream
I ate homemade french fries
and held My Builders hand.
The highlight for me was..strangely enough... being introduced to McClintock the 2300 lb bull..whom Im told will probably go to Nationals and win! 
I was impressed!!

All in all, not a bad way to spend a Thursday evening.

One of our many goals for Relief Society and my new calling is to visit every lady in our ward..and since I hate to go anywhere unfamiliar, empty handed...we made up this little card to give each lady..with our name and phone numbers and meeting times.
Silly, but it gets the job done.
Tomorrow (Sat) is our first funeral. We are expected to feed 90 people at the luncheon. Gulp. There's nothing like just jumping right in...

Peace

You remember this handsome man?  He's home from his mission ... and getting on with his life...north of here, in Idaho.
He's following my counsel and dating cute girls, smiling more and trying not to take life so seriously...he's too young for his old man persona ! I do know he's fulfilled one of his childhood dreams since returning and has set up a salt water aquarium in his bedroom...I suppose he finds fish good company. He's working hard and saving for school. And Im hoping he's putting away some greenbacks so he can come to Logan for a visit.

One of the down sides...the only down side...to having missionaries return is that you stop getting mail!
I MISS Justus's letters to me while he was serving in Chile!! I miss my son's emails too, but Justus's letter were epistles,  full of insight and his reminiscing of how he saw life with crazy me, while he lived with us in St George. I treasure these letters.  Maybe one day when Justus becomes a famous film maker and moves away to some distant land he'll write me again.
I look forward to seeing what the future holds for this fine young man!

WHAT I LEARNED THIS WEEK:

We are besieged by financial troubles, 
which I greatly resent for I consider
money one of the least important things
in life.  Yet the want of it can certainly be distracting.
from: The Many Lives and Secret Sorrow of Josephine B
by: Sandra Gulland

Herding silver foxes with their lush winter coats, and watching herds of Big Horn in Zion, is Great fun!!!
Just adding to the endless list of the great virtues of hiking!

Dean Koontz...whom I've never read before...is a genius at descriptive imagining!!

" Hard luck seemed to seep out of the ground itself,

as though the devil's rooms in Hades were directly

beneath these streets, his sleeping loft so near the

surface that his fetid breath, expelled with every

snore, percolated through the soil."

Wish I could say it that way.

If I live to be 102 and am still hiking, I'll NEVER travel every trail and canyon of Zion. NEVER!!

Still working up the nerve to share some of my New Year's Resolutions. I heard on the radio this morning as I was driving to my hike that if you have a goal...in your head...you stand a 30% chance of attaining it.  If you have a goal and you write it down...you have a 50% chance of attaining it.  BUT....If you have a goal and you write it down AND TELL SOMEONE about it....you have an 80% chance of reaching your goal!!! You'd think I'd be all over the 'sharing."....hummmm....
Stand by.


.

Picture yourself in a boat on a river,

with tangerine trees and marmalade skies.

-Willy Wonka

What I Learned This Week:

My Indian name is Warm Moccasin!!!  I've always wanted to be named by an American Indian.  Its been on my bucket list for quite some time.  And here I've received the perfect name...and it didnt require me to sweat in a hogan..or even to get sand between my toes.  Of course its all just for fun and giggles...but I've already grown quite attached to my new name!!
WARM: for all that implies. Its a no brainer.
MOCCASIN:   feet, foot fetish, walks, hikes, supple, decorative, natural, quiet, tree-hugging me-- loves this!!!
Way to go silly website!!  I dont know how the internet does what it does...but its got me pegged. Should I be afraid?

My list of New Years Resolutions is growing. Do I share?  Well, maybe a few.

There is such a thing as a Blanket octopus and a Rock Fish. And the resemblance is remarkable!!!  Oh the wonders of this beautiful world in which we live and play!! (My Builder and I watched Disney's Oceans this week.)

The new Sherlock Holmes movie is fantastic!!  Going with Clark...perfect!!! Looking forward to Mission Impossible III this week with My Builder.

There truly are limitless trails to discover and hike in St George!!  Love this about us!!!

I LOVE bright colored crazy socks that dont come in matching sets.  And  I have now learned that most of my kids cant handle the pressure of wearing something that doesnt match.  (They got that trait from their dad!!)  Im not in the least bit fastidious as they all are!! Whew!!  Dodged that troublesome quirk.

Benjamin Franklin was a marvel...and I've only just begun reading the first 40 pages of his Completed Autobiography.  Its going to be a good one!!!  Thanks dad!!

.Have a wonderful week friends...and tell me what you have learned!!!

.

What I Learned Last Week

Certainty is missing the point entirely.

Faith includes noticing the mess, the

emptiness and discomfort, and letting it

be there until some light returns. Faith

also means reaching deeply within, for the

sense one was born with, the sense,

for example, to go for a walk.

from: Plan B

by: Anne Lamott

Last week in Sunday School I learned that the "Ancient of Days" doesnt refer to Joan Rivers; but when used in the scriptures, it is referring to Adam; Adam who lived in the Garden with Eve for a time.  Interesting


I had it re-confirmed that fasting for two meals does indeed quicken the mind, opens the channels to heaven, brings comfort, inspiration, peace and ideas!!  What a wonderful, powerful principle of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.


Im told that Im addicted to hiking.  I am also addicted to sugar.  Sugar has got to go...or at least come in lesser quantities...hiking on the other hand is here to stay!!


If you let a 3 yr old help you decorate your Christmas tree- expect all the best ornaments to be down around your knee caps.  Also...when said three year old expresses  his strong opinion of not enjoying Celine Dion singing Christmas songs- "Mimi, turn that off!" ...I'd better respect him...though its a bit un-nerving that he doesnt like my Celine!!


BYU can play basketball!!  Sadly, they can play with out my dear nephews...who sit on the sidelines injured.  Hold your heads high Cougars!! You gave Baylor a run for their money!!


Tips, glorious tips saved my cheese this week!! Thank you generous guests! Thank you!!


In the summer the herbal tea bags find their way to back of the pantry shelves and I forget about them. In the winter I hunt for alternative to soda for refreshment and warmth.  Never have I enjoyed a warm cup of herbal tea as much as I have this season!!  Celestial Seasons is the bomb!!


Lastly, but certainly not leastly, the out pouring of love, support and encouragement for Robby this week has been overwhelming! Robby being accepted to nursing school is joyous news indeed. We have been swamped with  many, many   family members  calling to offer advise, and even going so far as wondering if a support fund of some type could be set up that all the family could contribute to for school if they'd like; there has been a humbling and VERY generous offer of a basement to live in so that rent wont have to be paid for the time they are in school.  Brothers and sister call to see what is happening and what they might do to help.  My heart is full to the brim with gratitude for the love and support he feels and the My Builder and I feel, for the all the outpouring of  encouragement, it is humbling indeed.  
I guess thats what family is for...I pray you all know that we would do the same when the need arises.  Oh how I love and praise my extended family.  One is never alone, not with a family like ours!!  Bless you all!!!  We have no idea yet of the outcome here...there is still so much to be worked out for Rob and his dear family...but Im sure he can feel the prayers of those that love him...and they will help him decide what to do, and how to do it. Just know that we so appreciate the cheering section that we call family!!!  LOVE you!!!




.

Reposting....from 2007

I had my brother, who's in the Navy, check this story out first, before I posted this next article on my blog. He has now confirmed that this is true. It really does happpen this way! May God bless our men and women in the armed services, and may we always remember where our freedoms come!



By JOSEPH L. GALLOWAY
McClatchy Newspapers

Over the last 12 months, 1,042 soldiers, Marines, sailors and Air
Force personnel have given their lives in the terrible duty that is
war. Thousands more have come home on stretchers, horribly wounded and
facing months or years in military hospitals.

This week, I'm turning my space over to a good friend and former
roommate, Army Lt. Col. Robert Bateman , who recently completed a
year long tour of duty in Iraq and is now back at the Pentagon. Here's
Lt. Col. Bateman's account of a little-known ceremony that fills the
halls of the Army corridor of the Pentagon with cheers, applause and
many tears every Friday morning. It first appeared on May 17 on the
Weblog of media critic and pundit Eric Alterman at the Media Matters
for America Website.

"It is 110 yards from the "E" ring to the "A" ring of the Pentagon.
This section of the Pentagon is newly renovated; the floors shine, the
hallway is broad, and the lighting is bright. At this instant the
entire length of the corridor is packed with officers, a few sergeants
and some civilians, all crammed tightly three and four deep against
the walls. There are thousands here.

This hallway, more than any other, is the `Army' hallway. The G3
offices line one side, G2 the other, G8 is around the corner. All
Army. Moderate conversations flow in a low buzz. Friends who may not
have seen each other for a few weeks, or a few years, spot each other,
cross the way and renew. Everyone shifts to ensure an open path
remains down the center. The air conditioning system was not designed
for this press of bodies in this area. The temperature is rising
already. Nobody cares. "10:36 hours: The clapping starts at the
E-Ring. That is the outermost of the five rings of the Pentagon and it
is closest to the entrance to the building. This clapping is low,
sustained, hearty. It is applause with a deep emotion behind it as it
moves forward in a wave down the length of the hallway.

"A steady rolling wave of sound it is, moving at the pace of the
soldier in the wheelchair who marks the forward edge with his
presence. He is the first. He is missing the greater part of one leg,
and some of his wounds are still suppurating. By his age I expect that
he is a private, or perhaps a private first class.
"Captains, majors, lieutenant colonels and colonels meet his gaze and
nod as they applaud, soldier to soldier. Three years ago when I
described one of these events, those lining the hallways were somewhat
different. The applause a little wilder, perhaps in private guilt for
not having shared in the burden .. yet.

"Now almost everyone lining the hallway is, like the man in the
wheelchair, also a combat veteran. This steadies the applause, but I
think deepens the sentiment. We have all been there now. The soldier's
chair is pushed by, I believe, a full colonel.
"Behind him, and stretching the length from Rings E to A, come more of
his peers, each private, corporal, or sergeant assisted as need be by a
field grade officer.

"11:00 hours: Twenty-four minutes of steady applause. My hands hurt,
and I laugh to myself at how stupid that sounds in my own head. My
hands hurt. Please! Shut up and clap. For twenty-four minutes, soldier
after soldier has come down this hallway - 20, 25, 30. Fifty-three
legs come with them, and perhaps only 52 hands or arms, but down this
hall came 30 solid hearts. They pass down this corridor of officers
and applause, and then meet for a private lunch, at which they are the
guests of honor, hosted by the generals. Some are wheeled along. Some
insist upon getting out of their chairs, to march as best they can
with their chin held up, down this hallway, through this most unique
audience. Some are catching handshakes and smiling like a politician
at a Fourth of July parade. More than a couple of them seem amazed and
are smiling shyly.

"There are families with them as well: the 18-year-old war-bride
pushing her 19-year-old husband's wheelchair and not quite
understanding why her husband is so affected by this, the boy she grew
up with, now a man, who had never shed a tear is crying; the older
immigrant Latino parents who have, perhaps more than their wounded
mid-20s son, an appreciation for the emotion given on their son's
behalf. No man in that hallway, walking or clapping, is ashamed by the
silent tears on more than a few cheeks. An Airborne Ranger wipes his
eyes only to better see. A couple of the officers in this crowd have
themselves been a part of this parade in the past. These are our men,
broken in body they may be, but they are our brothers, and we welcome
them home. This parade has gone on, every single Friday, all year
long, for more than four years.

This makes me  happy. It’s the true story of a soccer team from a floating village in Thailand. enjoy!!!

the Vision

Fruition!

HAPPY FIRST DAY OF SPRING!!!!

A long time ago, there was no such thing as school, and children spent their days learning a trade, a phrase which here means “standing around doing tedious tasks under the instruction of a bossy adult.” In time, however, people realized that the children could be allowed to sit, and the first school was invented.
—Lemony Snicket


artist: Saul Steinberg

You should never hesitate to trade your cow for a handful of magic beans.

Tom Robbins

Lake Huron’s Manitoulin Island contains a lake of its own, Lake Manitou. Lake Manitou is the world’s largest lake-on-an-island-in-a-lake.

Lake Manitou itself contains two islands; each is thus an island in a lake on an island in a lake.

Atlantis-  art by W.Heath Robinson

bubulcitate
v. to cry like a cowboy

(That’s from Henry Cockeram’s English Dictionary of 1623, so it doesn’t refer to a cowboy of the American West. What it does refer to is unclear. Cockeram said he included “even the mocke-words which are ridiculously used in our language,” but this word appears never to have been published outside of his dictionary, so we don’t know what a “cowboy” is or why he might cry. Make up your own meaning.)



image-via flickr

Sunday Ramblings

That is not the best sermon which makes the hearer

go away talking to one another, and praising the

speaker, but which makes them go away thoughtful

and serious, and hastening to be alone.

-Bp Burnet

Gotta love our missionaries!! Making the best of sometimes difficult situations!!

"Tut, tut Mr Philander," he chided. "How often

must I urge you to seek that absolute concentration

of your mental faculties which alone may permit you

to bring to bear the highest powers of intellectuality

upon the momentous problems which naturally fall

to the lot of great minds?"

from: Tarzan of the Apes

by: Edgar Rice Burroughs

A visit to the Temple and that strange movie I watched a week ago has got me to wondering:

Where is the Tree of Life is?

Anyone wonder why there is no speculation of its whereabouts?

Where is that cherubim and the flaming sword?

Mormon discourses are quiet on the subject. There's a void there.

In a way Im surprised some adventurer hasnt stumbled upon the Tree...

But I suppose that God has hidden it from our view.

Its easy to imagine what complete chaos would break out between the inhabitants of the world if there suddenly became a way to live forever.

Would you want to live forever?

I'd be happy to slow down the aging process...

We know these things are within Gods power...

John the Revelator is still walking the planet with us.

Is he enjoying himself, or does he cry into his pillow every night due to all the pain and sorrow he sees?

Do we want to live forever...because we are afraid of dying?

Im not afraid.

I do anticipate being very sad at leaving my loved ones behind.

Would finding the Tree of Life eliminate sickness and pain?

Would what it holds within its branches eliminate stress and " commotion?"

Would it cause us to slow down and smell more roses?

Would we be more careless and fearless?

This is random, pointless speculation I suppose. For its not in Gods plan for us to "live forever in our sins." (thank heavens)

Besides, we are indeed living longer...geriatrics is a booming business!

I dont think we're making very good use of our extended time here on earth...for the most part. I dont see things improving much as far as taking care of one another and improving our condition. It feels like things are worsening really.

Thank heavens God is in control.

But it was fun wondering...

what if..........

Sunday Grumblings

Today, self-confidence is leaking out from my every pore.
Pretty soon it'll be gone, completely empty...
Its not a pretty sight.
Change is hard sometimes...
We asked for it...to be sure...
but still....
it's hard.
Staying the same is comfortable, cozy even.
Alas, its not in the game plan for me...
a shift in focus is occurring....
I've told my kids from the dawn of time that life isnt fair...
If Im not acting like my normal cool self...
make note...
change is hard. Hard on me.
Thats all I can say for now.
Stay tuned for more complaining and whining.

God is in charge....?????
Right??????

But denial lies. It protects us from the potency of
a truth we cannot yet bear to accept. It takes our
hands and leads us to places of comfort. Denial flourishes
in the familiar. It seduces us with our own desires
and cleverly constructs walls around us to keep us safe.
from: Refuge
by: Terry Tempst Williams

The pattern of my life is changing..again...It always does. New life, new textures, new loves, are always being added to our patchwork life all the time. Making room isnt hard, its the changing of the pattern that pinches sometimes.

Here we have a post that may hurt the sensitivities of my dear daughter... a daughter who is so kind and dear and mindful of my tender feelings...

But...I write on, for this is my blog...about me...and my mortal journey.

All my colorful, random chickees are near and dear to me; each one of them bringing a bright and cheery light in my life!!

Its beyond my power of description to express the joy they each bring me.

And my wise and good boys have resigned themselves gracefully to the fact that Anna is the 'princess' of our world....or more succinctly, my world.

Its that mother daughter thing....

Anna is like the warm, pleasant color that my eye is naturally drawn to in the fabric of my life. She's the zest, the contrasting hue that brings out all the best in the rest of us. She's not the dominate color of our 'quilt”....but she is the color the eye goes to first... she's a component that brings such joy into my life...more so than the microwave, or even living here in So. Utah or even hiking 20 miles or so each week...all things important to my life.

Anna has been one of my very best friends. But now...she has found a replacement...a new best friend...darn it!!

yep

Thats just what it is.

And today Im melancholy about it.

Im a little jealous.

Im a little sad.

Im missing her.

Phone calls are briefer (is that even a word?)

Phone calls are fewer and farther between.

Can you believe it!!!???...Im missing her AGAIN... almost as much as when she was in Houston under strict ecclesiastical supervision!!

Being happy and sad because of your kids and your life is common..and yes I know...its that 'ol “circle of life” thing again!!

Its that empty nest beginning to echo again.

Justus will be gone in less than a month.

Brian will follow soon after that.

Anna has been redirected.

Clark is just out of reach-knowing full well that college will sweep him away soon after his return from Chile.

Rob and Joe are happily diverted by beautiful wives and kids and life.

Of course I wouldnt want it any other way. I really, truly wouldnt!!

I just better get used to it....the jumbling of the status quo …

I just have to get used to the patching in, and moving about of all the marvelous textures and weaves and warps that comes with children and change.

I do so love how a family can grow and expand and become richer for it...

My Builder and I are so very blessed..

Its all good.

I suppose.

Hummm...I wonder what my beautiful grandkids are doing today??!!

Randomness with Food and Static

"Indeed, when I am in really great trouble,as any
one who knows me intimately will tell you, I
refuse everything except food and drink."
from: The Importance of Being Earnest
by: Oscar Wilde

Store your opened chunks of cheese in aluminum foil.
It will stay fresh much longer and not mold!

Peppers with 3 bumps on the bottom are sweeter and better for eating.
Peppers with 4 bumps on the bottom are firmer and better for cooking.

Add a teaspoon of water when frying ground beef.
It will help pull the grease away from the meat while cooking.

To really make scrambled eggs or omelets rich add a couple of
spoonfuls of sour cream, cream cheese, or heavy cream in and then beat them up.

For a cool brownie treat, make brownies as directed. Melt Andes mints
in double broiler and pour over warm brownies. Let set for a wonderful minty frosting.

Add garlic immediately to a recipe if you want a light taste
of garlic and at the end of the recipe if your want a stronger taste of garlic.

Leftover snickers bars from Halloween make a delicious dessert. Simply
chop them up with the food chopper. Peel, core and slice a few apples. Place them
in a baking dish and sprinkle the chopped candy bars over the apples. Bake at 350
for 15 minutes!!! Serve alone or with vanilla ice cream. Yummm!

Reheat Pizza
Heat up leftover pizza in a nonstick skillet on top of the stove, set heat to med-low
and heat till warm. This keeps the crust crispy. No soggy micro pizza.

Easy Deviled Eggs
Put cooked egg yolks in a zip lock bag. Seal, mash till they are all broken up. Add remainder of ingredients, reseal, keep mashing it up mixing thoroughly, cut the tip of the baggy, squeeze mixture into egg. Just throw bag away when done easy clean up.

Expanding Frosting
When you buy a container of cake frosting from the store, whip it with your mixer
for a few minutes. You can double it in size. You get to frost more cake/cupcakes
with the same amount. You also eat less sugar and calories per serving.

Reducing Static Cling
Pin a small safety pin to the seam of your slip and you will not have a clingy skirt
or dress. Same thing works with slacks that cling when wearing panty hose.
Place pin in seam of slacks and ... ta da! ... static is gone.


peace out everyone!!!

Facts of Life:

1. At least 5 people in this world love you so much that they’d die for you.
2. At least 15 people in this world love you in some way.
3. Every night, someone thinks about you before they go to sleep.
4. You mean the world to someone.
5. Someone that you don’t even know exists; likes you.
6. A smile from you can bring happiness to anyone even if they don’t like you.