Sunday

We talked (face timed) with Heidi's family today.

Jeremiah said they were going to eat a roast

beef dinner.  David and I said that sounded good

and David got sad because we were having

meatloaf.   (Meatloaf Smeatloaf!)  Jeremiah

said something like that was OK since I had

made roast beef with potatoes and gravy

every Sunday for 30 years.  I guess he meant

I could take some time off now. I laughed.

This is Heidi's left over roast beef dinner.

Looks yummy.  I think I will fix a roast

next Sunday.  

Jeremiah's comment made me remember 

those meals and Sundays.  

When we were raising our children, starting

with Peter, we did have a roast beef dinner

on Sunday.  As a matter of fact, when he

was engaged to Brittany and she came

to spend a weekend at our house I remember

when we walked in from church and she

she smelled the roast and said, "Mmmmm

Sunday dinner".  That could sum up

what was waiting for us on any given

Sunday.....Mmmm Sunday dinner.

While David was the Bishop I would

sometimes fix a small roast with

potatoes for him.  His Sundays were

long and I knew he would appreciate

it.  I didn't think that way every Sunday.

Probably should have.

I also thought about Sunday itself.

When we had children at home it

was my favorite day.  That roast

beef dinner contributed to that.

But so did the fact that we were

home as a family.  Neighborhood

children didn't knock on our door so

we lived for that day on an island all by

ourselves.  I loved it.  

It was important to me to have the house

clean on Saturday evening.  Just so Sunday

would be just that much more perfect.

I loved going to church with all five of

our children.  We just about filled up a whole

row.  And then I looked forward to going

back home and spending the rest of the day

in our house with our family.  There weren't

extraordinary things going on but the possibility

always excited.

We always made popcorn in the evening

and watched some TV.  For a while it

was Disney on Sunday evenings and then

it was America's Funniest Home Videos.

(We sent in a video once.  It was one of

our cats dragging a giant rag doll down

the hall and into the laundry room.  We

got a  notice from them a couple of years

later that it would be used in an episode.

Our 20 seconds of fame!)

For a number of years we would go to

Wagon Wheel where David's parents

lived and spend Sunday evening with them.

I loved those times.  I think David and I

thought eventually we would be the grand-

parents that were visited on Sunday evening.

(We thought a lot of stuff like that but life

makes its own way and it is what it is.)

Sundays are different now.  I don't

look as forward to them in the family

aspect as I did and it has taken some of

the wind out of the sails.  I don't want

it to but I don't seem to be able to look

at Sunday quite the same way.

I do value going to Sacrament meeting

and partaking of the sacrament.  I always

come away enriched by the Spirit and

ready to take on the week.  But Saturdays

aren't what they used to be.  All the  "get

ready for Sunday" stuff doesn't give me the

same warm feeling.

I think that is why it sounded like a 

good idea to face time our grand children.

It was so good to see all those beautiful

faces. . . and on Sunday.

PBP

Post Bishop Phenomenon

We thought we would face time or talk to our grand

children today. After a little while it was just grandpa

Dave talking to everyone.  This would not have 

happened on a Sunday afternoon if he were still

Bishop.  We laughed with each other about

this and made up a condition. . . . Post Bishop

Phenomenon.  I like it!!

Silverton 2014

Most of our children have posted 

their pictures of Silverton and have 

said about all there is to say about

our 4th of July in Colorado.

We wanted to add this one thing:

THANK YOU FAMILY

for coming.  Thank you for putting

together all your camping gear,

all your children's clothes, all your

food and all your money to

come so far and make it such 

a great event. It was great that you

came camping in the dirt and cold.

Just a few pictures from 

my phone.

 Abbey, Daisy, and Bode

in the back of Bigfoot. 

 Laine checking out the scenery.

 Pretty, pretty.

 Papa family in the Razor.

 My Silverton man and me.

 Joncas family.  Appreciate Heidi who 

was 4.5 months pregnant. 

Tim's family....all four children.  It is

always a challenge to bring a baby.

Lee and Laine.  Lee and Daisy came 

without Aaron.  He had his two weeks

of  Air National Guard in Pennsylvania.

She left Rockwell with Aaron's folks

and brought Daisy and her tent.  Went

the extra mile to be part of us.

There's Daisy.  

 Papa Family....all the way from Arkansas.

Thanks for the extra miles to be with us.

Pete's family.  Another baby in tote on the

camping trip....and a sick pregnant momma.

I could bring a baby but morning sickness

I don't know......

 Bode Boone.  

 Somewhere there is a picture of

me holding this baby.  It is proof

that I have held Dash.  I expect that

he will like me when he is about three!

 These guys set up a store and sold rocks.

They made money!  Everyone in camp

bought some.  Then they went

shopping in town.  

 This girl, Piper, kills me.  

She thought she owned camp.

 I took these girls, Melanie, Parker, and

Abbey to the Silverton Library.

They just grabbed books and started

reading.  I loved it.

 Paisley found the library toys.

This shelf of books is 1/3 of their 

children's collectin.

 Happy 4th of July!!

 Megan is so good.  She is 13 and

was the best.  She took care of little

children and played with the older ones.

Quinn is 9 and he was glad to have

her around.

 It made Jett's day when the garbage

truck came.  He is nuts about garbage

trucks and, who knew?, they

had one in Silverton!  (Laine)

 Amy (Hall), Laine, Paisley, and Daisy.

 I love Quinn.  He is a good sport.

He did want to drive his dad's Razor.

Shades of things to come.

The view from my tent window.  

These kids just played and played

and played.

All cleaned up

and all gone.

We don't know if this

gathering in this place

will ever happen again.

But we hope so.  We hope so.

 King David.

Queen Tricia

“Thousands of tired, nerve-shaken, over-civilized

 people are beginning to find out going to the

 mountains is going home;

 that wilderness is a necessity...” 
― John Muir

Deedo~

Deedo is home.  It was so good to hear her voice

and Brad's voice on their porch  yesterday.

I am glad they are home.  I am glad Deedo

finished her treatment and "rang the bell".

She came over today.  Did you get that:

she came over today!  I was amazed.

She is still Deedo.  Skinny girl. . .  but still

herself.  Her small frame has been

though so much.

She shared her honest feelings and fears.  

She still has chemo brain fog and 

pain from the radiation.

But she is home.  And my selfish soul is

so glad she is.  She, who needs my support,

is support to me.  She has been my

neighbor for the better part of 30 years.

Here's to the next 30, Deedo!

Thin Places

There is a Celtic expression, “thin places.”

 A thin place is where the veil that separates

heaven and earth is nearly transparent.

 It is a place where we experience 

a deep sense of

God’s presence in our 

everyday world. A thin place is where,

 for a moment, the spiritual

world and the natural world intersect.

~ 

‘Thin places,’ the Celts call this space,

Both seen and unseen,

Where the door between this world

And the next is cracked open for a moment

And the light is not all on the other side.

God shaped space. Holy.’

(Unpublished poem by Sharlanda Sledge)

Virginia Pierce May 2014

~
I found this thought and poem while
reading some BYU Women's Conference
talks from this past spring.

I loved the idea "the light is not
all on the other side".  That must have
multiple meanings....comforting light,
teaching and learning light, directional
light....all light that has come from
another place.  God's place.

This summer David and I watched
Heidi's two older children, Bode and
Laine.  We went camping for one night.
The sun came up early and as the
children slept I read about Christ and
his power of obedience.

To consider that he did what he did
because he was obedient is thought
provoking.  He, God himself, an
obedient servant.  He learned from his
obedience....line upon line.

So there, in those free early sun lit
moments I thought about my obedience.
I thought about staying on the same
plateau year in and year out and
felt that I had discovered something:

The First Law Of Celestial Life:
Obedience!

God's universe is held in place
by laws.  There is exact order
and exact obedience.

I think I am complacent about
my obedience.

D. Todd Christofferson says,
". . .Let your covenants be paramount
and let your obedience be exact".

I began to see how to get off
my plateau:  exact my obedience.

I need to think about my relationship
with Heavenly Father and love him
more deeply and show him my
love by exacting my obedience.

I need to remember we have
a long time relationship.

Then I need to stop living a
life style and start living a
life of obedience and do this
consciously.
~

These thoughts came to me while

I sat there in the early morning

camping with my grandchildren.

The door was cracked open for

a moment and the light was not

all on the other side.

The Summer Of My Discontent

"It is left to each of us to balance contentment regarding

what God has allotted us in life with some divine discontent

from what we are in comparison to what we

have power to become."

Neal A. Maxwell

If I live another 20 years will I be

much different than I am today?

I have moments when I feel that I

am becoming the person God intended

me to be.....and then they are gone.

I have moments when I can let go of

my insecurities and my fears and give

them to the Savior.....and then I
invite them back.

I have moments when I can give

unselfishly.....and then my thoughts

fill with what I want to do.

I have days and weeks when I am

careful with my words....and then

in a moment I am careless with words.

I can be so heartfelt grateful for my

life's blessings....and then need to be
reminded of them.

Please, Heavenly Father, give me enough
time and I don't know if 20  years is will do!