Tuesday, December 27, 2011

Christmas Eve and Christmas 2011

When we were raising our family Christmas Eve was always a very special time filled with wonder as we contemplated the significance of the birth of our Savior so long ago in a manger in far away Bethlehem.  We loved the story , the music, the smell of pine, the laughter, the twinkling eyes and smiling faces of family gathered together, and the anticipation of a special visitor from the North Pole bearing gifts to all the boys and girls of the world.  As the years went by so did some of the traditional Christmas activities and all too soon we found ourselves alone on Christmas Eve, though not very often. We seemed to get invitations from family to come and spend this special night with them.  Well do we remember the Christmas Eves with Stephen and Candice and their sweet family in Smithfield, and the snowy night of Christmas Eve at Alison and Ammon's place.  The past couple of years we have been invited to come to Ryan and Sam's for a special Christmas Eve with their precious little family.  Ryan has taken it upon himself to make a very special meal for us to celebrate this  night like no other.  I must say, he is a very good cook, in spite of all he had to endure from his father.  Maybe that has been my main role, to show everyone how not to do things.  I guess the main thing is that they learned.  This year, also, we had Stephen and Candice with us.  They went with us to Ryan and Sam's for the evenings festivities.  Afterwards we all came home to our little place where we were able to enjoy the fun with Stephen and Candice and their children before bedtime.  The children were allowed to open one special present before they retired and each of them got  a new set of  casual cloths, which doubled as pajamas, at least for the night.  It was so fun to have the sound of laughter and children in our home for Christmas Eve.  Thanks to all who shared some time with us during this special season of the year.  Below are just a few pictures of our 2011 Christmas memories.

Not to be forgotten, the reason for the season, celebrating the gift of Jesus' birth, life, and atonement to bless all the people of the world, past, present, and future.

Mother and Child, Samantha and Tristan,  Christmas Eve 2011.
We were blessed to have these three beautiful little girls with us on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.  The blessing of happy children in every home would be my greatest  wish for Christmas?
Mason, Halle, Gabrielle, and Sophie patiently await the time to open their Christmas presents.
Time for a little breakfast on Christmas morning is made easier by the thought of some of Grandpa's huckleberries in the cereal.  Just another of the great rewards for spending a couple  of days on the mountain in the huckleberry patch last summer.

I didn't get good pictures of all of the festivities surrounding Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, but These should help everyone get the idea, that it was a very good time for us, Christmas 2011.

Sunday, December 18, 2011

JT's Mission Report


     As most of you know, our eldest grandson, Elder JT Eborn, returned from his mission in Russia this past week. It has been wonderful to see him again and to see how he has grown and matured in the gospel.  He has always had a big smile and a great attitude about life, not that he hasn't had his share of challenges.  He has learned to accept what comes along and to see opportunity for growth and service to others in all of life's circumstances.  This mission to Siberia, where the temperatures for months on end are below zero and where people have been taught for many decades that there is no God and that religion is the opiate of the people and where a state of near hopelessness is a common attitude for many people has been a grand experience for Elder Eborn.  JT never complained but accepted his assignment to the "nether most part" of the vineyard with a happy heart and with a strong will to share the gospel with all of the people in Russia, who were willing to listen and give heed.  He undoubtedly had a pronounced effect on many of the Russian people as well as others he met along the way, including his companions, fellow Church members, those who were assigned to be his leaders and those of us who stayed home and supported him through our prayers, our letters etc.
     Today he reported his mission.  He was humble and powerfully spiritual.  It was obvious that he had performed his duties as a missionary with courage, valor, and integrity, and that what was already a strong testimony of the gospel when he left had grown even more certain and powerful  As grandparents we were very happy be able to say: "He's our grandson!!"  We love all of our grandchildren very much, but somehow the first one has a special place in our hearts.   Maybe it's just because he's got the others by a few months or years.  We know he has set a great example for his cousins and for all of us and we are very grateful for his example and his love of the Lord and all of his people.
     This Sunday evening I'm getting a little out of my routine.  For the past two years, one hundred and four weeks, I have taken time to write to my favorite missionary.  The letters weren't long and perhaps they seemed rather repetitive and dull, but the underlying message was this. "JT, we love you, and you are always in our thoughts and prayers, and the gospel is true."  This will not change, in spite of the fact that he's now home and is beginning the the next big chapter of his life.  I have no doubt that he will do well at whatever he determines to do in life.  As we were talking, JT thanked me for all of those letters.  He said that only one other person had written him every week.  Amber, yes, she is still here and she still likes JT.  I think the feeling is mutual.  We'll see where all of this goes, but irregardless they have shown that they can both be loyal.  This a quality to be sought after by all of us, I think.
I'm not a betting man, but if I were .....................  Time will tell.

Saturday, December 17, 2011

Celebrating the Christmas Season 2011

This Christmas season we have so much to be thankful for.   Fist of all, we give thanks for the birth, the life, the example, and the atonement of our Savior, which makes it possible for us to experience true joy.  It is good for us to get together at this season and remember the sacrifice He made for us and to celebrate the birth of  the baby Jesus in that manger so long ago.
It is also good to get together as family and friends and enjoy one another's company and give thanks for those who touch our lives for good.  We have been blessed with a wonderful family, with the bounties of life and, for the most part, good health.  Opportunities to learn, to grown, and to serve surround us on every side.  I hope we recognize the Source of all these blessings.
This year we had a special blessing.  Our missionary, Elder JT Eborn has returned from two years of service in the Russia Novosibirsk Mission.  He has been a wonderful example to us all and has shown his love for the people of Siberia during these past two years.  We are grateful for his love for his family and all of us back home, and we are especially grateful for his safe return.  He has grown in the gospel and has become a man of great love and compassion.  His testimony is strong and vibrant and will continue to influence others forever.  And he certainly didn't lose his good looks over the past two years.  The family has always loved JT, but now even more than ever.
All of the cousins were so happy to see JT.  They recognize in him, the goodness that was exemplified by our Lord.

Again this year we were fortunate enough to get four tickets to the special Tabernacle Choir Christmas Program at the Conference Center in Salt Lake City.  We had been looking forward to spending an evening on Temple Square, observing the beauty of the lights and the enjoying the merriment of that special place, to be concluded with the Tabernacle Choir Christmas Program.  But as the time drew near we had conflicts in our schedule and besides we wanted to do something special for someone else.  We decided to give the tickets to JT so that he and Amber, who is still there after two years in the mission filed in Siberia, could have an evening together celebrating the Spirit of Christmas on Temple Square.  As it turned out JT and Amber gave the two extra tickets to two homeless men so they could get into the Conference Center and enjoy the festivities.  I couldn't help think, how much like JT this really was.  He is always looking out to help others.  I guess it's the  "Good Turn Daily" thing that he learned as a Scout.  I'm sure they touched these two men for good.  We were proud to hear what they had done. How much like the Savior this act was.

The Salt Lake Temple in Winter
Just One Scene from the Tabernacle Choir Christmas Program.

Today we got together as a family, at least most of us.  Some had to work and some were a ill for the day, but others traveled all night to be with family from Las Vegas, and others from Lehi, Layton and other places in Cache Valley.  We were all happy to see each other and enjoy the great time  that was planned by Justin and Chalisa.  We had a great meal, ate too much, exchanged gifts and played together.  Mostly we just enjoyed being together at this special time of the year.

A few representative photos are below.











Tuesday, December 13, 2011

Celebrating the Christmas Season with our Neighbors and Friends


Last night we had a little Christmas Party/Home Evening  at our place.  All of our little senior subdivision neighbors were invited and most of them showed up.  We all seem to get along well and tend to look out for each other.  We have been blessed to have such good people around us wherever we have gone in our lives. Here is the Bretner neighborhood has been no exception.  Alison vetted the place pretty well for us before we moved in here almost three and a half years ago.  According to our HOA bi-laws, the head of the household  has to be fifty-five years old or older to live here.  None of us have a problem with that.  It's good in some ways but we do miss the fun of little children in the neighborhood.  Of course, our old neighborhood in Montpelier had pretty much become a senior subdivision before we left to, so in that respect there hasn't been much of a change.  I couldn't help but feel last night while our neighbors were here, what a great place the world would be if every neighborhood was as caring as ours is.  Not all of us get a lot accomplished on a typical day, but when you are old just making it through the day with a smile on your face is perhaps enough.  Three years ago all these people were strangers, but now they all sort of feel like family.  Actually, I did know one of our neighbors here from long ago.  Eldon Drake, who is now in his ninety years old was one of my professors at Utah State when I was in college so long ago.  When we moved in here, we had just started to unload the truck when a white car pulled up along side and and elderly, familiar looking gentleman, looked at me and said: "Bart Eborn, welcome to our neighborhood."  This man has a memory like no one else I know.  I don't know how many students he had during about forty years as a professor at USU, but you can imagine that it was many thousands.  I must have either been very bad or very good, because in spite of all the years, he has always remembered me.  He even looked us up in Montpelier, when I was teaching over there.  He was coming home from Yellowstone by way of Star Valley and stopped down at the USave and asked if they knew me and where I lived.  It was about nine o'clock at night when we heard the door bell ring and as we opened the door there was my old college professor from thirty years before.  He was genuinely interested in what was going on in our lives.
It was rather humbling for me to be remembered after such a long time.
     Another time , this was before Dr. Drake's surprise visit to us in Montpelier, we got a phone call from Jason.  It seems he was out at the Maverick in Providence getting gas for his car.  There was an elderly gentleman there who was trying to get gas too.  He seemed to be having trouble with the pumps or something.  Jason, being the good man that he is, went over to this elderly gentleman and volunteered to help him.  After they got the pump working a were filling the man's gas tank, he looked over at Jason, and then said: "Are you Bart Eborn's boy?"  He had never seen Jason before in his life and he hadn't seen me in thirty years.  It just astounds me that he could make that association after all that time in a setting like the gas pumps at the Providence Maverick.  It brought joy to my heart, though no real surprise, to think that Jason was looking out for others and especially that in this act of kindness, Dr. Drake was for some reason unknown to me, thought of Jason's dad.  There are some truly astounding and wonderful people in the world. Some are in our family, some are our neighbors, and many more surround us in our daily lives and help to make us  what we are.  I can't help but think of the hymn we sometimes sing, Each Life That Touches Ours For Good. Our lives have been influenced by so many good people.  I hope that in turn we are doing some good for others in our every day walk of life as well.

By the way, Eldon Drake is the second person on the left of the above photograph take at our home last night.

Tuesday, December 6, 2011

A Great Day for a Great Little Girl

As most of you know Stephen and Candice recently moved back to Utah from Pueblo, Colorado where they have lived for the last nearly five years.  It has been a good and growing experience for all of them and they have met many wonderful people who also have left lasting impressions upon their lives.  They have been anxiously engaged in the Good Cause and have blessed the lives of many during this time.  They have also missed home and their family here in Utah.  Stephen has been blessed to find work in scouting here in Utah and will be working with the Great Salt Lake Council.  We are excited to have them closer to us. For the time being they are staying in Lehi with Candice's sister Keri and her husband Toby and their family until they can sell their home in Pueblo.  We will all pray that this doesn't take a long time.

Sweet little Gabrielle had her birthday  just at the time they were leaving Pueblo.  She turned eight and of course was looking forward to being baptized as a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.  They were not able to do this in Pueblo and expected to have wait a while after arriving in Utah for arrangements to be made.  However, they went to church in Lehi that first Sunday and were introduced to the Bishop in their new ward.  He was on the ball and upon learning of Gabrielle's desire to be baptized made arrangements for the baptism this past Saturday.  We had the opportunity to go down and be a part of this special occasion.  Stephen baptized her and I was asked to confirm her.  Following the confirmation Gabrielle, said to me:  "Grandpa, when you put your hands on my head I felt a warm feeling in my head and when you said receive the Holy Ghost it went right down into my heart and all over."  What a blessing and testimony that was to me.  We love our sweet Gabrielle.  The Lord loves her and she is a part of a very loving and supportive family.  We are all so blessed.

Gabrielle following her baptism and confirmation with her parents, Stephen and Candice.
The Stephen and Candice Eborn family.  Thanks for allowing us to be  part of your lives.

Thursday, November 24, 2011

Celebrating Thanksgiving: Some of the Rest of the Story

As we celebrate Thanksgiving again this year, I do so with added appreciation for those who began this great American tradition. We have all heard the story of the First Thanksgiving and the Pilgrims at Plymouth colony in Massachusetts in 1621. I had heard of John Alden and Priscilla Mullins and Miles Standish and others who were there for that First Thanksgiving feast. I had also heard of the Indians who attended, Chief Massasoit and some others of the Wompanoag tribe that lived in the area. This past year while tracing various ancestors on allmycousins.com, I discovered that John Alden, Priscilla Mullins and also Miles Standish are to be found on the Family Tree. To be sure they are distant cousins, but as time goes not really all that distant. While exploring the Weldon family line on Iris' family tree, I discovered the name of the Indian Chief, Massasoit, who was also a part of that First Thanksgiving.
The First Thanksgiving, Plymouth Colony, 1621
Miles Standish
One of our distant cousins who was at the First Thanksgiving

Myles Standish (c. 1584 – October 3, 1656; sometimes spelled Miles Standish) was an English military officer hired by the Pilgrims as military advisor for Plymouth Colony. One of the Mayflower passengers, Standish played a leading role in the administration and defense of Plymouth Colony from its inception.  On February 17, 1621, the Plymouth Colony militia elected him as its first commander and continued to re-elect him to that position for the remainder of his life. Standish served as an agent of Plymouth Colony in England, as assistant governor, and as treasurer of Plymouth Colony. He was also one of the first settlers and founders of the town of Duxbury, Massachusetts.
A defining characteristic of Standish's military leadership was his proclivity for preemptive action which resulted in at least two attacks (or small skirmishes) on different groups of Native Americans—the Nemasket raid and the Wessagusset massacre. During these actions, Standish exhibited considerable courage and skill as a soldier, but also demonstrated a brutality that angered Native Americans and disturbed more moderate members of the Colony.
One of Standish's last military actions on behalf of Plymouth Colony was the botched Penobscot expedition in 1635. By the 1640s, Standish relinquished his role as an active soldier and settled into a quieter life on his Duxbury farm. Although he was still nominally the commander of military forces in a growing Plymouth Colony, he seems to have preferred to act in an advisory capacity.   He died in his home in Duxbury in 1656 at age 72.   Although he supported and defended the Pilgrim colony for much of his life, there is no evidence to suggest that Standish ever subscribed to the Pilgrims' religious beliefs or joined their church.
Several towns and military installations have been named for Standish and monuments have been built in his memory. One of the best known depictions of Standish in popular culture was the 1858 book, The Courtship of Miles Standish by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. Highly fictionalized, the story presents Standish as a timid romantic. It was extremely popular in the 19th century and played a significant role in cementing the Pilgrim story in American culture.

Statue of Chief Massasoit
One of Iris' distant cousins who was at the First Thanksgiving.

According to English sources, Massasoit prevented the failure of Plymouth Colony and the almost certain starvation that the Pilgrims faced during the earliest years of the colony's establishment. Moreover, Massasoit forged critical political and personal ties with the colonial leaders John Carver, Stephen Hopkins, Edward Winslow, William Bradford, and Miles Standish – ties which grew out of a negotiated peace treaty on March 22, 1621. Massasoit's alliance ensured that the Wampanoag remained neutral during the Pequot War in 1636.

John Alden and Priscilla Mullins

Among the survivors of that first winter at Plymouth Colony who were at the First Thanksgiving,
John Alden (1599 – September 12, 1687) is said to be the first person from the Mayflower to set foot on Plymouth Rock in 1620.  He was a ship-carpenter by trade and a cooper for Mayflower, which was usually docked at Southampton.   He was also one of the founders of Plymouth Colony and the seventh signer of the Mayflower Compact. Distinguished for practical wisdom, integrity and decision, he acquired and retained a commanding influence over his associates.   Employed in public business he became the Governor's Assistant, the Duxbury Deputy to the General Court of Plymouth, a member under arms of Capt. Miles Standish's Duxbury Company, a member of Council of War, Treasurer of Plymouth Colony, and Commissioner to Yarmouth.

S_thdeep.GIF (12357 bytes) THE 53 PILGRIMS
AT THE FIRST THANKSGIVING :
4 MARRIED WOMEN : Eleanor Billington, Mary Brewster, Elizabeth Hopkins,
Susanna White Winslow.
5 ADOLESCENT GIRLS : Mary Chilton (14), Constance Hopkins (13 or 14),
Priscilla Mullins (19), Elizabeth Tilley (14 or15) and Dorothy, the Carver's unnamed
 maidservant, perhaps 18 or 19.
9 ADOLESCENT BOYS : Francis & John Billington, John Cooke, John Crackston,
Samuel Fuller (2d), Giles Hopkins, William Latham, Joseph Rogers, Henry Samson.
13 YOUNG CHILDREN : Bartholomew, Mary & Remember Allerton, Love, 
Wrestling Brewster, Humility Cooper, Samuel Eaton, Damaris & Oceanus Hopkins,
Desire Minter, Richard More, Resolved & Peregrine White.
22 MEN : John Alden, Isaac Allerton, John Billington, William Bradford, William Brewster,
Peter Brown, Francis Cooke, Edward Doty, Francis Eaton, [first name unknown] Ely,
Samuel Fuller, Richard Gardiner, John Goodman, Stephen Hopkins, John Howland,
Edward Lester, George Soule, Myles Standish, William Trevor, Richard Warren,
Edward Winslow, Gilbert Winslow.
FAMILY GROUPS :
  • ALDEN : John
  • ALLERTON : Isaac with children Bartholomew, Mary, Remember; the Allerton
  • servant William Latham
  • BILLINGTON : John & Eleanor with sons Francis, John Jr.
  • BRADFORD : William
  • BREWSTER : William & Mary with sons Love, Wrestling; their ward
  • Richard More
  • BROWNE / BROWN : Peter
  • CARVER: The Carver ward Desire Minter; the Carver servant John Howland;
  • the Carver maidservant Dorothy.
  • CHILTON : Mary
  • COOKE : Francis with son John
  • CRACKSTON : John
  • EATON : Francis with son Samuel
  • ELY: Unknown adult man
  • FULLER : Samuel with nephew Samuel 2d
  • GARDINER : Richard
  • GOODMAN : John
  • HOPKINS : Stephen & Elizabeth with Giles, Constance, Damaris, Oceanus;
  • their servants Edward Doty and Edward Leister.
  • MULLINS : Priscilla
  • ROGERS : Joseph
  • STANDISH : Myles
  • TILLEY : Elizabeth
  • TILLEY: Tilley wards Humility Cooper and Henry Samson
  • TREVOR / TREVORE : William
  • WARREN : Richard
  • WINSLOW : Edward & Susanna with her sons Resolved White,
  • Peregrine White; Winslow servant George Soule
  • WINSLOW : Gilbert
Note : In Of Plymouth Plantation, William Bradford lists the Mayflower passengers and also tells
us who died during the first winter of 1620/1621 and spring of 1621. No other ships arrived in
Plymouth until after the "First Thanksgiving  celebration. The Pilgrims at the "First Thanksgiving"
are all the Mayflower survivers.


I have also discovered relationships of our family to George Soule and John Howland. In the
book,The Courtship of Miles Standish, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, was writing about one
of his forebears, so that makes him one of our relatives gone ahead also. Interesting, don't you
agree?
Note : In Of Plymouth Plantation, William Bradford lists the Mayflower passengers and also tells us who died during the first winter of 1620/1621 and spring of 1621. No other ships arrived in Plymouth until after the "First Thanksgiving" celebration. The Pilgrims at the "First Thanksgiving" are all the Mayflower survivors.

Thursday, November 3, 2011

Are You Ready For Thanksgiving?

It's November and Thanksgiving is just a few weeks away.  We are planning on Thanksgiving with family.  I know not all of you will be able to make it but all are welcome to share this day with us at our place.  Just let us know if you can come so we can make preparations.  Are you ready? The Gobbler will be here.

Monday, October 31, 2011

Special Halloween Spooks 2011

As a child I remember always looking forward to Halloween.  It was fun.  I remember the days in elementary school decorating our home room and the fun things we would do and the spooky songs we sang.  As we grew older we did things a little differently, but always with the same goal of having some innocent fun.  I remember my own mother dressing up as a witch and entertaining each group of little spooks who came knocking on our door where they each received a delicious home made treat.  I even remember doing a few tricks to poor innocent people when I was a teenager.  I'm not especially proud of these, but even they were meant just in fun. Being happy, smiling, singing, and laughing are good for the soul and so I believe Halloween is good for the soul too, so long as it is not overdone.  We always look forward to our own special little Halloween spooks who come calling on the eve of Halloween.  Thanks for coming and sharing the fun and making us smile.  We love you one and all.

Batman, alias Tristan.
 Spooky Skeleton alias Micah at the school Halloween parade.
 Some kids never grow up.  Justin and Chalisa smiling and making us smile too.
The A Gang , Halloween visitors, but not very spooky.
Count Dracula, alias Hayden
Ethan, bruised, battered and stitched up, but still very good looking.
 Annika and Micah at the School Halloween Parade.
Is their a cuter witch than Kate?  I doubt it.  Well, maybe it's a three-way tie for first place.  Annika, Ada, and Kate all came as witches this year.

Monday, October 24, 2011

Some of Our Best Friends and Helpers

The grand kids here in Utah had a few days out of school last week.  We tried to take advantage of the good weather and their days off.  I hope they enjoyed spending time with us as much as we did with them.  We do love our grand kids, one and all.

The Bearded One, Ethan playing with some of nature's autumn handiwork.
 Hayden supervising a puppet battle between a frog and a porcupine at the Stokes Nature Center


 Kate posing with some autumn leaves she found along the Logan River Trail.

Annika, Tristan, and Micah helped Grandpa pull up the flowers before the snows of winter cover them. We hate to see them go, but look forward, nonetheless, to the beauties of the winter season to follow.

Monday, October 17, 2011

Cache Valley Before Crayons and Water Colors

There are artists and then there is THE ARTIST!!!


   Along the Wellsvilles
Overlooking Cache Valley from the west

Sunday, October 16, 2011

Autumn Splendors

We live in a very beautiful corner of the world.  One need only go with open eyes into the mountains within a few miles of our home on a beautiful autumn day, of which there are many, to see the magnificence of God's creations in all their splendor.  The leaves in Logan Canyon are turning color, though I have seen them more vibrant than they are this year.  The higher elevations have already received their first dusting of snow, warning that winter is not far behind, along with its own special variety of rugged beauty, and of course catching a view of Bear Lake at twilight can be a deeply moving experience in and of itself, beautiful and ever changing in its moods.  I am grateful to live in this beautiful world and to still have the will and the strength to get out a bit and enjoy some of what is so conveniently near.  I always come home a better man and in awe of what I've been permitted to see.

Just a couple of miles away up Logan Canyon October 13, 2011.
Aspens in their cloak of autumn gold in Logan Canyon.

 A dusting of snow has already come to the area around Tony Grove Lake.  Cool, clear fall air invigorates the soul and stimulates the mind.
Twilight autumn moods at Bear Lake Oct 13, 2011
 An autumn evening comes to Bear Lake.  Panorama Oct 13, 2011