Grandkids Are Blessings, Grandparents Should Be

Grandkids are a great blessing in our lives.  We now have twenty-five and love each and everyone so very much.  They all have their own unique personalities and we are so happy that we can be around to see them grow and do the things they are involved in.  Like all of us, each one has ups and downs, challenges and triumphs along the road of life.  We rejoice in the parents of all twenty-five of these precious little ones ( Well, some of them are actually getting pretty big and are now out on their own.)  As grandparents we take great comfort in knowing that each of these precious grandchildren have wonderful parents who provide for them and love and teach them the important things in life. We love them all large and small.  This Saturday I had the opportunity to kind of go back about 40 years and take a little boy fishing.  Micah has kind of been feeling a little bit bent out of shape since the arrival of sweet little Neveah.  He is still loved greatly by all of his family, but has shown a few symptoms of the second child syndrome whatever that is.  I think he's just kind of crying out for a little extra attention.  Well, it was my  privilege to spend most of the day with Micah up at Third Dam on the Logan River.  We fished, and fished, and fished.  We even caught a few.  Micah was so happy to be outdoors with his old grandpa on a beautiful late summer day.  It was kind of hot, but up in the canyon by the river there was a cool breeze blowing off of the water.  We were actually in the shade much of the day and it was just about right temperature wise.  I thought we'd fish until he got tired of it, but it was actually me who said in the end" It's about time to go home."  He'd have gladly stayed until it was dark.  All in all we had a great time and I hope Micah will always know how much his grandpa loves him.

Big Smile,  String of Fish, and Grandpa.  I think that would make a great day for most boys.

We got home just in time to catch Addison mowing our little lawn.  He actually has a job mowing all of the lawns in our little subdivision.  He has learned from his dad and mom to do his very best.  Everyone here loves the way he does his job.  We are proud of him in so many ways.  It's hard to believe he's already started into his Junior year in High School.  He is a great student.  He runs on the cross country team at Mountain Crest.  He is a great big brother, son and grandson.  What more could you ask of a sixteen year old.  He even avoids the cute girls at school, well, maybe not.

Reflecting on the Brigham City Temple Open House Visit

Today we had the wonderful opportunity to visit the Brigham City Utah LDS Temple Open House.

We were not disappointed.  First of all, the Temple is stunningly beautiful.  It is a symbol of our faith in life after death and the atoning sacrifice of our Savior, Jesus Christ.  It was good to be there with some of our family (Iris, Alison, Annika, Avery, Ada, and me).  We had tickets for six and these are the ones who ended up being able to go at this particular time.  The temple openhouse will run for about a month and has been very successful.  They told us that they are accommodating about 1200 people every hour.  Thousands of people have flocked to Brigham City to see this beautiful new temple.  It is smaller than most of the other temples in Utah and I'm sure will be utilized to capacity, at least I hope so.  In fact, one of my greatest wishes  would be that all of the temples were used to capacity.  This would be a very great blessing to so many people.  It is one thing to marvel at the structure of these beautiful houses of the Lord and go about making pictures, but it is quite another to take full advantage of the blessings offered to those who make temple attendance a priority.  I think of the sacrifices that our ancestors and even those who live in areas of the world where the  temples are not so readily available.  Some have literally given their lives to go to the temple and many have given all of their earthly possessions for the opportunity to make those sacred covenants with the Lord.  In our work at the Logan Temple we see people anxiously engaged in the good and essential cause of temple work for our deceased loved ones, who in reality have merely gone before and now await the day when we will come to their aid and contribute to their salvation and exaltation as they did to ours in ways that be unknown to us,  but are nonetheless very real.  I love the gospel and the saving and sealing ordinances of the temple that bind us together in the eternities.  I have been impressed by the hundreds of young couples who come to the temple so often in spite of their busy schedules at work ant at school.  They come frequently and I can just see the their love for the Lord and for others.  They also look so at peace with themselves and their relationship with their spouses and others around them.

That is a part of the  great blessing promised those who faithfully attend the temple.  Sometimes we rationalize and say we are too busy.  I hope we can look the Lord or those dear ones who  have gone before in the eye and explain to them why we were so busy or  so uncommitted to the gospel plan of salvation for all of God's children, both the living and the dead.

I guess I got a little to "preachy".  Well, I was preaching to myself along with anyone else who really cares.  I'm not going to apologize though, because the spirit whispers that to me and tells me it is true.

I was grateful to be able to attend the Brigham City Temple Open House, and yes, I did take a few pictures afterwards.  I hope they will inspire me to be a little more grateful and a little more faithful each and every day.

The new Brigham City Utah Temple

Annika, Avery, and Ada 

We were so glad they could go with us. We would have loved having all the rest of our grandchildren there as well.  We are so blessed to have all twenty-five of them in our lives and love each and every one so very much.

Grandma Iris with some of her posterity.  We are blessed beyond measure.

The House of the Lord

Holiness to the Lord

Sun, Smoke, and Spirit

For the past three nights I have anticipated  a beautiful sunset here in Cache Valley.  I checked the time for the sunset and each evening went out in great anticipation of catching a special "just right" sort of picture.  There has been a hazy smoke in the air for the last several days as a result of the several wildfires that have been burning in surrounding areas.  Smoky skies make for beautiful sunsets, at least some times.  On Sunday evening I was disappointed  because there were light clouds on the western horizon.  Monday evening found my out again, camera in hand, only to be similarly disappointed by a thin layer of clouds just above the mountains in the western sky.  Tonight I was a little more certain of a good picture.  About an hour and half before sunset the sun turned to a brilliant red and it didn't appear that clouds would be a problem this time around, so I took my camera and went to my designated spot, hoping for a perfect picture.  This time it wasn't the clouds that caused me a problem but the smoke was almost as thick as the clouds had been on the previous nights, especially just above the horizon. but not quite.  Hope springs eternal and so I continued to hope for the best.  It didn't turn out just like I wanted it to, but I did get a few interesting, though not spectacular pictures. Sun, Smoke, and Spirit.  I am not done with this little project, but thought some of these photos had a little merit.  Below are a couple of examples.

Logan Temple, Cache Valley, and the western mountains in a smoky haze at sunset August 14, 2012

Old Sol

Another shot similar to the first.  A little disappointing but beautiful in its  own way.

A smoke filled Cache Valley in the setting sun August 14, 2012

Panorama of smoke filled Cache Valley with the sun setting in the west august 15, 2012

"And the Moon shall be turned to blood."  How about the Sun too?

Sunset Moods and the Logan Temple

Sunset in the sultry glebe of evening over Cache Valley, Utah August 15, 2012

When in the sultry glebe I faint,

Or on the thirsty mountain pant,

To fertile vales and dewy meads

My weary, wand’ring steps he leads,

Where peaceful rivers, soft and slow,

Amid the cooling verdant landscape flow

Late Summer 2012

Today Iris had an appointment with Doctor Hammond in Montpelier.  He continues to be our dentist even though we now have lived in Logan for nearly four years.  He is such good dentist and even a better man.  We always come away feeling glad we made the effort to go over the hill.  Today was a rather different day in some ways.  Usually when we drive up through Cache Valley toward Preston the grass is green and as we go on further up past Mink Creek it becomes even greener and then almost lush as we enter the Emigration Canyon  and go on over into the Bear Lake Valley.  I realize the summer is approaching its end, but things seem dry in the extreme this year.  It's no wonder, we've had very little precipitation in this neck of the woods for nearly three months.  We did get a little relief for about an hour one day last week.  There have been several wild fires burning in the area and the sky is full of a smoky haze.  I was hoping to make the best of it and catch some beautiful sunset photos but it was not to be,  Just before sunset the last two nights I have gone out to wait for a beautiful sunset.  I waited in vain.  Each night just before sunset a few clouds developed on the western horizon, making the sunsets rather ordinary, certainly not spectacular.  I'll keep my camera handy for a few more days, just in case.

A hazy day looking toward Midnight Mountain from near Ovid

What was just a couple of months ago the green and rolling hills near Riverdale outside Preston, Idaho.  Fortunately no one was hurt and the economic loss was limited.  Even better, the grass will be even greener when the snow melts off these hills next spring.  Nature has a remarkable way of repairing itself.  Even a  burned out hillside holds a promise and a testimony of a greater power  which will eventually renew all creation and for which we all should show gratitude always, giving credit where credit is due.

Precious Moments with Micah and Tristan

This afternoon I decided I'd spend some time with Micah and Tristan.  I went down and took them to Maverick where they selected a treat, something to cool them down on a hot summer day.  The we went over to the Denzil Stewart Nature Park.  This park is rather unique.  It has not playgrounds no bathroom facilities.  There is a fountain and a concrete walkway around the park with several interpretive signs along the way.  The owners of the land that is now the park had fond memories of the area stemming from pioneer days in Cache Valley.  When they moved out of the valley and made their fame and fortune elsewhere they decided to donate this property to the city of Logan for the purposes of creating a small nature park, an area that would be left pretty much in an unchanged state from the time before it was inhabited by modern man.  It is an interesting spot for me to go and reminisce about things as they used to be.  I was glad that Micah and Tristan were able to enjoy wandering through the dry grass meadow, climbing trees, and throwing rocks into the river, and exploring for artifacts of nature and early pioneer life in this area.  Ir's surprising, well, not really, that young children can still find so many things of interest away from the TV, the IPads, the cell phones and all the plastic toys etc. with which we try to entertain them in this modern world.  It gave me a great feeling to know that boys are still made out of  "frogs and snails and puppy dog tails" and still like to explore nature and learn from the simple things God created for us all to enjoy.

Micah demonstrating his monkey talents

Tristan, the little Tree Hugger

Interesting artifacts discovered on a little hike into a small wooded area,  a small snail shell, a rusted bottle cap, probably from pioneer times, and a piece of beech tree bark each with a great tale to tell to those who would really care to know.

Micah and Tristan enjoyed throwing rocks into the river and watching the big splash.  They even tried their hand at skipping rocks.  That might take a little more practice.

Little boys wanting to be big and tall.  Thanks for going with me Tristan and Micah and making my afternoon so full of fun and wonder.! and thanks to the Denzil Stewart family for helping us to know about things as they used to be and still can be if we take the time to enjoy nature and preserve it for the future generations.

LITTLE THINGS MEAN A LOT

Today when I went out  to go up to the Temple for our evening assignment I found something on the door step.  I'm not sure who left it there and maybe that is just as well, It could have been any of our good neighbors or perhaps family or friends.  We are blessed to have an abundance of all of them.  It was a simple garden gift, four ears corn, but it was much more than that.  It was a symbol of caring and sharing.  It was a  symbol of thoughtfulness.  It was a symbol of gratitude for living in a country where we have enough and to spare.  It was a reminder that each of us has something to give, a smile, phone call,  a note, or card in the mail, a wave, or a hand shake, perhaps something we have made or baked.  There are so many things we all could give.

These things cost nothing or very little and bring us far greater rewards than anything we may have sacrificed.  The world would be a little better if all of us would just follow the Scout Motto "Do a Good Turn Daily."  Simply living by that motto and doing it unselfishly can change our lives for the better, bringing joy to us as we bring joy to others.  Silent, Secret, Acts of Service can change us and ultimately the world, in a way that probably nothing else really can.

Back in the "Happy Days" there was a song called  "Little Things Mean a Lot" .  The lyrics of this song give cause for reflection, gratitude, and self evaluation, and are just as true today as they were when they were originally penned and sung.

LITTLE THINGS MEAN A LOT

Blow me a kiss from across the roomSay I look nice when I'm notTouch my hair as you pass my chairLittle things mean a lotGive me your arm as we cross the streetCall me at six on the dotA line a day when you're far awayLittle things mean a lotDon't have to buy me diamonds or pearlsChampagne, sables, and suchI never cared much for diamonds and pearls'cause honestly, honey, they just cost moneyGive me a hand when I've lost the wayGive me your shoulder to cry onWhether the day is bright or grayGive me your heart to rely onSend me the warmth of a secret smileTo show me you haven't forgotFor now and forever, that's always and everHoney, little things mean a lot

Each Life That Touches Ours For Good

For the past four years Iris and I have had a very great blessing.  We have been able to work together in the Logan Temple.  That in and of itself is a blessing beyond any measure for us and those we assist in the temple.  In addition we have been privileged to  become friends with many people we didn't know before.  Most of them are elderly and have already raised their families.  They come from all walks of life. Some have made a lot of money, some have received numerous advanced degrees.  Some have been mission presidents and even general authorities in the Church.  Some are struggling with issues of health in their advanced years.  Some have been rewarded with large and faithful posterities.  Some have wayward children and grandchildren.  Some live in spacious homes and other inhabit small apartments.  Some were born into the Church and some have converted in later years,  Most speak English as their native language, but not all. In other words we are a rather diverse lot in many ways.  Yet we do have many important things in common.  We all love the Lord.  We all have testimonies of the restored gospel, of the Book of Mormon and the Prophet Joseph.  We all love and appreciate the Temples of the Church and the sacred ordinances that are performed in them.  Those we work with have a special place in their heart for the Logan Temple and for the faith and sacrifice of the pioneers who built it.  All of us work long hours each week in the Temple.  None of us receives any sort of monetary compensation for our work and yet we are very well paid in many other ways.  In fact many travel more than a hundred miles every day just to be there at the appointed hour and fill their assignments.  There is unity among the workers in nearly every conceivable way.  From the moment we arrive at the Temple our focus is on helping others and one another as we assist the patrons who come for varied purposes from day to day.  Over the course of the years, we have met hundreds of wonderful people, even thousands, as we assist the many patrons who come from far and near to participate in the sacred and holy ordinances of the Temple.  The Logan Temple is just one of nearly 150 around the world, all involved in the same work, all being staffed by people very similar to those in the Logan Temple, where we are honored to work.

A couple of times each year we get together in a place outside the Temple for a little social gathering and some good food and entertainment.  Today was the day of our Group Three Summer Temple Social.  It was held at Lundstrum Park in Logan.  Nearly all of our Group was able to come.  We were especially glad to have several former members of our Group with us today, former workers who were released at the first of July in preparation for the opening of the new Brigham City Temple in September.  We learned to love these good people and to truly regard them as our brothers and sisters.  We had a wonderful catered meal and an outstanding program arranged by a committee from our Group.  We had a great time and this evening I have been pondering the great blessing of these wonderful people who have touched our lives for good.

Below are just a few pictures of today's happenings.

Iris with President Ward Taylor, our Temple President.



It has also been a great blessing to have my little bother, well not so little, and his wife, Lorraine on the same Temple Group as us.  We have both grown through this experience and our families have been blessed.  We have come to love and appreciate them even more than we did before.

Some of our many temple friends in the chow line. and waiting for their turn.

Our Assistant Group Coordinator, Nick Nilesen, in a little different role, this time on the keyboard for a local country music group that entertained us.

This is the best shot I was able get of the whole Group, many good friends.

These are our good friends, Mitch and Reva Roland from Tremonton.  Iris and Mitch grew up together in the small Macon Georgia Branch back in the 1940s and 1950s.  Then they lived over two thousand miles from the nearest temple.  A lot has changed since then, but I doubt they ever imagined working together as ordinance workers in the Logan Temple later in life.  They are wonderful people and we are honored to know them and the many, many more whom we have come to know over these past four years.  The blessings will continue as these good people touch our lives for good.