Safari Adventures

 

My aunt and paternal grandmother had made arrangements to take my cousin and me on a California adventure.  I believe were about eight and nine at the time we went on our week-long vacation. 

We stayed at a hotel in Las Vegas and saw Andy Williams perform.  And then we went to California.  Our plans included Disneyland, Knotts Berry Farm, a Wildlife Safari and touring the Queen Mary.  My brother and another cousin did a similar trip the following year.  Only Grandma and Aunt Kristie deleted the safari and Queen Mary (as neither had been impressive in the year prior) and took the boys to Universal.  I think they got the better deal.

My husband, daughter and I moved to Oregon in July of 2015.  My brother came to spend a week with us in September.  He is the one who looked up activities that we could do together while he was here.  One of those adventures included the Wildlife Safari in Winston Oregon (here). 

He said he had always wanted to do a safari adventure and that particular day and time has definitely been the best day that I have spent at Wildlife Safari.  There was so much activity among the animals and Steven drove slowly through the different areas that Wildlife Safari has to offer.

I’ve been to the Safari several times over the past ten years and the time I went with Steven was definitely my favorite.  A far cry from the one my cousin and I had visited in California over fifty years ago.  It was a hot day as I recall and the animals definitely were not active. 

 

Great Memories.

Hopscotch Tournaments

 This morning I woke up with a 

memory from elementary school.  

I don't know what made me think of it after 

all these years.  

Our school had two main playgrounds. 

 I believe there were eight hopscotch outlines on 

the playground going south and 

six on the playground going east.  

Students would sign up to play against one another.  

The winner of each set of players would go on 

to compete with another winner.  T

hose winners would compete and down 

the line until only one was left.  

No Ideas of What Sparked That

 

Last night I dreamed of a modern day Robin Hood.  I don’t recall all of those that he helped except one.  A young mother was living in an abandoned building with her three young kids.  Robin Hood had used said building as a hang out in his daily routine.  He wasn’t expecting to see children.  He wasn’t prepared for their innocence or inviting him into conversation.  He stole a pillow from the only bed in the room and left a different way.  When he encountered the young mother he dropped the pillow and ran away.

The next day he carried two grocery bags to the outside of the room that contained the bed.  He knocked on the door and hid behind a pillar to watch the mother retrieve the two bags full of peanut butter, bread, jam and at least one butter knife, some napkins and small paper plates.

Later he brought two garbage bags filled with bedding and clothes.  Again he stood by and watched. He had never been a criminal but had been mischievous – and perhaps was being mischievous in a much different way.  He liked it.  He started doing good for others.  I don’t remember any details.  I thought it odd that I had dreamed it.  And perhaps just as odd that I'm sharing it.

Influence

 

My boys had a friend named Mike who would occasionally attend church with us.  He enjoyed being there.  It brought a sense of peace that was nowhere near his home life.  I don’t know what all evils existed but there was a point in time where Mike and his sister were sent to St. George (city in Southern Utah not to be confused with the European country)  to live with relatives.  I don’t know if it was ordered by the state or what exactly happened but they were gone for a couple of years.

While living in St. George Mike discovered a Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and decided to attend there – I don’t know how often, but the results were quite positive.  When he moved back to Salt Lake he reunited with my boys and returned to our church for a while.  I remember one particular fast Sunday when he and each of my boys shared their testimonies.  It surprised me that Mike had been the instigator of getting them all up there.  I was touched by what he shared.

Mike was one of my facebook friends when we had moved from Kearns to West Valley. To the best of my knowledge Mike never did get baptized.  Unfortunately he stopped going to Church and picked up some of his dad’s bad habits.  His facebook posts became dark and disheartening.  After a while I lost track of him.  I hope that he returned to what once gave him stability. 

I hadn’t thought of Mike in years. But today I was reminded of the Mike had shared shortly after his visit to St. George.  It was a very uplifting testimony meeting today.