Where Can I Turn for Peace?

          We have been trying to find a dog sitter to care for Bonnie at the end of this month.  Roland has been wanting to see the boys and had planned to do so by himself but Jai (aka Jenna) has spring break coming up and so thought we could all go.  But that would only give us a week.  Perhaps it would be better for Roland to go by himself?

         Taking Bonnie for walks lately has been quite bothersome on my part.  I do not have Jenna’s strength.  She’s broken from her leash/collar four times now – the last two were very hurtful.  I sliced my middle finger on my left hand when she tore out of her collar to bark at the dogs on the corner.  And then on Valentine’s Day my right thumb got damaged when she tore loose (this time in a harness) and chased a dog into somebody’s house.  Needless to say the tenant was NOT happy – and I don’t blame her.  The middle finger has healed but my thumb is still sore.

         Roland had suggested some ward members who have two larger dogs.  I told him I didn’t think it would work.  He called them anyway.  I walked Bonnie over and was correct about Roland’s suggestion is NOT going to work.  They happen to live next door to the house where Bonnie had gone inside.  Currently they have furniture all over their lawn and it is now raining spoiling what appeared to be nice furniture.  I think there is a domestic dispute – and not just with them.  Bonnie and I walked by at least three houses with obvious problems.

         Just as we arrived at the ward member’s yard, Bonnie took a dump while a brave cat approached her, but then the cat stiffened and hissed when Bonnie was done and took off. With the fence between the member’s dog and Bonnie, they were both tearing into each other. I still had hold of Bonnie’s leash when another cat approached and jumped Bonnie. Bonnie bit the cat.  She appeared to have feathers in her mouth, but it could have been fur.  It had come from the tenants yard.

         Okay.  I wasn’t about to cross by her yard again.  We went the long way home.  Now there are two circles to our west.  The outside circle overall seems full of unkempt yards whereas the inner circle for the most part has quite attractive yards that have been tended to.  We completed the outer circle and moved to the inner circle.  Five houses before we would cross the street and head towards home, we spotted a couple walking their dog.  I quickly turned Bonnie around and retraced the inner circle and returned home the alternate way.  I was quite worn out. 

         I was upset about Bonnie who really is a sweet dog with people but does not play nice with other animals.  I was also concerned with the houses I had passed in which a woman was crying at one, unnecessary language and raised voices at two more.  My emotions were “I’d like to help but I cannot let go of Bonnie” equal to “I don’t wish to get involved” – which is sad because it certainly is not what Christ would have done. 

         The more I walked the louder I hummed “Where Can I Turn for Peace?”  I really need to memorize the words.  I don’t know why I haven’t.

The Machine Does All the Work

 

        I don’t mind doing laundry as a whole. 

Sorting is no big deal.  Adjusting the knobs

and dials on the machine is also no big deal. 

Even the folding part I can tolerate. 

Returning the clean laundry to its rightful

place is the most unpleasant part of the

whole ordeal.  Still, I prefer it to

putting dishes away. 

Reminiscing my former West Valley Ward

 

Before moving to Oregon, the last ward (church boundary) I had attended was in West Valley.  As I think about it there were always activities – primary activities on both ward and stake levels, youth activities, adult activities, family activities, holidays such as Halloween, Easter, and 4^th of July breakfast. 

         There have been youth activities and dances on both ward and stake level – no primary activities that I recall – and I was in primary FOREVER thus you would think I would have noticed.  My last ward is the only ward I had been in where I hadn’t served in the primary for the duration.

         I miss introducing others through said activities.  In this ward we have some activities and LOTS of meetings – mostly on a stake level.  Each meeting I have attended has been less motivating than the one before.  I don’t think I’ll be attending anymore.  That’s a long drive which has normally cut into my bedtime I’ll have you know.   

What?????

 Last week when Roland left the house, it was always below freezing.  This week it will be in the low 50's.  Are you kidding me?  I am going to die come summer.  If I look at 40s and 50s as "no coat" weather, how am I going to survive 90 and triple digits.  I'm not.  My posts are dwindling as it is.  When they cease to exist (probably in the summer) than chances are looking good that I will too. (Well, I will exist, just not in an earthly form;  I am okay with leaving my body behind)

Appreciating Learning

 I'm grateful for the talents of others that have assisted in educating me.  

Feb 20 Diversity Talk part 3

 Here is the rest of the talk.  No links to provide for this one.  I had heard this example in an institute class I had taken.  Dee Hadley was the one who shared the Good Samaritan/six scenario example.

       Another example I have is a true incident that took place on the University of Utah campus.  Students who made their way to the institute building may have passed one of six scenarios – for example, there was a crying youth who’d been riding his bike but had stopped because the chain had come off and was looking for someone to assist with putting it back on. There was an older gentleman walking out of the library with a stack of books in hand – which he dropped.  There was a woman who tripped and fell. 

The students on their way to the institute building were having a test and their instructor had told them not to be late.  When it was time for class to start he shut the door and turned to the students who had arrived and said, “Congratulations.  You just failed your test”  for the old man with the books, the woman tripping, and the crying youth along with the other three scenarios had been staged.  Those who stopped to assist – if any – would have been late for class but are the ones who passed the test.  They had served with Christ-like love.  They were good Samaritans who hadn’t judged and served a higher purpose than being on time.

God wants us to embrace our diversities and become good Samaritans to everybody and not just those we choose to assist but those that we don’t understand or even like or know. We are all God’s children and He would like each of us to come and meet Him in His inn and fellowship one another and build each other up. 

with compassion, the Good Samaritan stops and binds our wounds with wine and oil. He will put us on his donkey and provide us shelter.

We need to focus on our good qualities and talents and learn from one another instead of focusing on the negative or what we don’t understand. We are not here to fix people according to our own definition but to help one another overcome any fears or doubts and work together at bringing one another to joy and light.  I challenge each of you to look at everyone with the same eyes that God does that we may lift one another and share and learn.

Feb 20 Diversity Talk part 2

This next part of my talk may sound familiar to those who have read past posts here and here

We are all made of many puzzle pieces, some more complex than others. Some might view others’ puzzles as near completion, but we don’t really know. 

Only God sees the entire picture. He knows what the puzzle pieces are and where they fit. Sometimes He will send people into our lives to help us find our puzzle pieces.

Many of us realize that our own puzzle may not be complete for ourselves, so why would we think it is for another? If I don’t know about all the pieces that are missing from my own life or what pieces will make me whole or tie me to somebody else,  what makes me think I can view another’s completed picture?  I can’t. None of us can. 

Only God can see the complete picture. He knows how we fit.

Each of us comes from different backgrounds.  There are some people who have adapted diverse cultures or traditions that may not be our own.  That doesn’t make them wrong.  It doesn’t make us wrong.  We really can and do learn from one another.  It’s not our place to pass judgement but to fellowship and love.

We should all know the parable of the Good Samaritan who came across a traveler who had been beaten and left in despair.  Others had noticed the broken traveler but had passed him by. They may have crossed the street to avoid him.  He was NOT their problem after all.  Perhaps they were too busy – or more likely too prideful.  They probably didn’t share common interests or values    so why bother?  Maybe he had deserved to be beaten.

This reminds me of a picture my brother had shared to his Facebook feed.  He had taken a picture of a homeless man bent over in humiliation with a cup outstretched in his hands.  Although my brother had taken the photo in December he had not shared the image with anyone until he posted in June with these words:

“I saw a homeless man whose figure felt so tragic, I wanted to capture it because it was such a haunting and sad image to me. I really second-guessed whether I should do so because it felt cruel of me to take a photo of this man's misery like some sort of exploitative tourist. But there was something pathetic, and yet also filling me with a sense of compassion, about the man's posture, that I wanted to safeguard the image as a reminder to me that there are people in low places in life, and it behooves us to stand up and take notice and help each other, if we can.”

He goes on further to compare the image in the photo to a homeless cat that had wandered into his yard:

“ we remarked how it feels like he wants to be loved and held . . . but still is a bit guarded in doing so, as if the world has so abused him and tossed him aside, that it is a challenge for him to trust and learn to love again.

“I do not know what traumas this little guy has faced, but I know he has, and it is taking time for him to adjust to a life that is different than the one he had. . . .we discussed the parallels of foster kids or recovering addicts or war veterans or anybody, really, who has experienced trauma or betrayals or disappointments and is trying to heal.

“I wish at times that we could really see into each other's hearts and intimately know the burdens and pains that make us who we are and how we act. I think if we could see deeply into each other's souls, we would be more compassionate, patient, and understanding with one another.”

Feb 20 Diversity Talk part 1

 

The two conference talks I finally settled on were “Hearts Knit in Righteousness and Unity” by Elder Quentin L Cook (here) given in October 2020 and “Room in the Inn” by Elder Gerrit W. Gong (here) given in April 2021.

Elder Cook started off his talk by relating a story about the Kane family who had traveled from Pennsylvania with Brigham Young and company. One day the Kanes were visiting with Thomas and Matilda King and their family in the King home in Fillmore, Utah. As the Kings and Kanes were sitting down to their dinner, there were five Native Americans who came into the room.  Matilda King spoke to them in their dialect and one of their guests, Elizabeth Wood Kane, asked about what had been said. 

Elizabeth learned that Matilda had told the group that she had prepared a meal for the Kane family who would be eating their meal first and that the other five would have to wait but assured them that she had another meal for them cooking over the fire.  Each received the same meal and the same amount of food. Elizabeth had been impressed with the compassion Matilda had to do the same for all that entered.

Unity is enhanced when people are treated with dignity and respect, even though they are different in outward characteristics. Although outward appearance may seem easier to identify, there are inward characteristics as well.  We are always going to find people that think differently than we do or worship differently than we do or may have different values or seemingly no values at all.     

We are all children of God regardless of our backgrounds, whatever challenges we may have faced and what walk of life our path has led us to.  We are ALL equal in His eye.  He doesn’t label us his brown children and white children or his Mormon children and Jewish children and so forth. God wants ALL of His children to return to him and desires for ALL to come to Him in His inn.

I have a granddaughter who appears to be on the chunky side as well as academically or perhaps socially challenged compared to some of her peers.  Recently the school she attends celebrated the first one hundred days of school.  Each child was told to bring 100 items of his or her choosing.  Ally chose Band-Aids as it is a product that she uses on a daily basis and because “she has some really cool ones."

Ally has a rare disease called Kabuki syndrome which requires her to receive two shots per day. Her mom had figured that Ally will go through over 120 Band-Aids a month on average.

 She says, “My girl is a warrior. She is strong. She is brave. She recognizes that she is different but let's it be known that being different is okay.”

 There are some of us who embrace the differences, and then there are others who feel threatened or afraid of the unknown – why that man has a different skin color, why a parent would allow his or her child to dress a certain way – but until we really get to know a person, we don’t know what makes them tick – and even when we do learn something that makes up part of their personality, we still don’t know everything.

Will Jeopardy be put in Jeopardy Again?

         I did not go into detail about the cancelled R.S. activity in this post.  I had suggested it before but it had always been on the back burner either due to the weather or stake activity that took precedence or lastly, the pandemic. 

https://jeopardylabs.com/

     We had scheduled the activity to celebrate the RS birthday but also a category for St. Patrick’s sounded fun.  We had planned to meet for the activity on a Saturday.  We had discussed whether to continue with it or not – but hey, enough is enough already.  Let us play the game that I had prepared – more than one time.  But no.  On Thursday the prophet announced no more meetings.  We stayed home for the next six to eight months and the game was living in the closet all that time.

https://www.steelecreek.org/churchathome-daniel

     Thus I wonder if we will have to cancel again.  I finally brought the game home to reprocess everything.  March 17^th is on a Thursday which is the same night we have decided to hold RS activities this year.  I don’t know what kind of a turn-out we’ll have. 

     So this will be today’s post and I will follow it with three posts on diversity as I relate the talk I had given in Church on Sunday.  Stay tuned.

Removing the Joy from Reading

        I remember taking Jenna to the library and checking out books.  We would read together.  She would look at books on her own.  She looked forward to any reading contest or book clubs.  She enjoyed traveling through books and acquiring knowledge.  Reading was a positive thing. 

        Fast forward to the school years that required certain books to analyze in order to receive a good grade.  Reading was no longer fun.  We had to dissect each sentence and look for symbolic meaning.  Why can’t we just enjoy books for the sake of entertainment or learn about subjects that really do interest us instead of something that the educational system came up with? 

        Jenna’s frustration leads her to say, “ why do you suppose the author chose the word ‘the’?  What does that mean? What can we learn about the author illustrating the sky was blue rather than orange or gray?  What do these colors represent?”

        I understand her frustration.  I felt the same way, and we’re not alone.  Being forced to read To Kill a Mocking Bird would not have been so bad if being graded on the representation of every word and character had not “killed” the joy of reading.  At least Jenna will read and memorize script.  I find myself relying more on video or audio entertainment than reading.  I get tired reading. 

        I’ve never been an avid reader.  I am slow.  I would rather read on my own terms though I often wish it was at a faster pace.  I do enjoy learning – but I’d rather research what interests me and what is easiest for my mind to handle.   

POP-tarts Have Now Failed Me

              I know that there will be many who may not relate to this post – at all.  Some people are okay with Pop-Tarts while others are not.  I know my uncle hates them.  Compares them to cardboard with jam.  This morning I think cardboard would have been preferable to the flour/water solution that seem to be the only present ingredients in today’s Pop-Tart.

        It’s not as though Pop-Tarts had been a staple in my home as I was growing up, but I do remember there being available.  Back in the day, they came in strawberry, blueberry and cherry.  They weren’t frosted.  We would butter them the way you butter toast.  Dad had showed us that if we butter the backside as opposed to the raised side, the butter would distribute evenly and not slide off.

    When frosting was introduced, I wasn't particularly fond of it and would often by unfrosted knock-offs.

        I realize that a child’s tastebud is different from that of an adults.  At least mine are.  What I thought tasted wonderful then I only tolerate now.  Often the reverse.  I don’t know when frosting was introduced but had often gone with a knock-off brand when I wasn’t always in the mood for frosting.  My eldest niece used to call them flat cookies.

        Roland and I have purchased Pop-Tarts several times while we’ve lived in Oregon.  Again, it is not a staple – just something fun as a snack or quick breakfast (depending on the flavor).   Pop-Tarts had come in packages of six or sometimes eight.  Now the package claims 16.  The box is the same size – perhaps a little smaller.  The Pop-Tart is definitely smaller than it was pre-pandemic.  Half the size.  The plain one is not so pleasant to the mouth – thus the frosting covering is NOT a bad choice as it covers up the super icky taste of today’s pathetic crust.  Gross. 

        I already know what some of you are thinking.  Why would I expect greatness in said product?  I don’t know that I expect greatness – but not such dull crust.  Compared to yesteryear – last century . . .

 And then to top it all off I had a fight with the toaster - first trying to put the dang things in - one broke.  And then getting them out.  There are still pieces that are stuck in the toaster - I cant get them out.  Seems the harder I try the more stuck they become.  I think there will be a smell of burnt in the near future.

Pop-Tarts’ website does not offer valuable information about revolution of product. This site does offer a bit more history (not much) if you are interested. 

Why Not Just Memorize the Entire Script

              When Jenna was seven years old I had signed her up for an acting class.  The show to be preformed was “You’re A Good Man, Charlie Brown”.  A few hours before taking her to the “audition” she painted red dots all over her face and told me she couldn’t possibly go because she had the measles.  I don’t know what she had against Charlie Brown at the time, but I know the entire “Peanuts” gang were not high on her list of shows to watch.  Pretending she was one of them seemed against her nature.

          That first night of class the script was passed out.  Three boys and four girls read the script according to how the instructor had assigned them before she changed what parts to read for.  Lucy and Linus were cast that night but she was still getting a feel for who the other children would play and who would be double cast (as there are just six characters).  Jenna had memorized everybody’s part except for Charlie Browns.  She was hoping to get cast as either Schroeder or Snoopy.

          The following week the children went over the script again.  Neither the instructor nor I could see either of the boys playing Charlie Brown as one seemed highly unfocused to play a main part.  The other spoke Spanish as his native tongue and did not read English well enough to pull off Charlie Brown.  Thus the instructor had asked if Jenna would be okay playing Charlie Brown.  She wasn’t, but we made Charlie Brown a girl instead of a boy. 

          Long before the final performance Jenna had memorized the entire script.  She has continued this for years.  She has never taken drama at school until this year.  Script was written and parts passed out – more students than characters.  Thus to include Jenna additional supporting characters were written in so that, if nothing else, she would at least be seen milling in the background.  People who say “there are no small parts just small actors” are full of it.  There are parts or even characters that are insignificant enough that they can be written out. 

          To her credit, Jenna has learned others’ parts as she has practiced going over lines with some other students.  During the course of time she has been asked to substitute for various students who would not/will not make it to the final performance (or sometime during the week of performance)  She has done that before – playing multiple characters or saying multiple lines when she is on stage with the one she is saying lines for (for example, there were three aunts in "Madness, Murder and Matrimony -or-Have Some Madeira, M'Dear?" who appeared on the stage at the same time, but when  another aunt was unavailable to perform one night, Jenna said both of their lines. 

 I am such a proud parent that I just feel the need to boast.  Here  are some of her accomplishments here and more on her Charlie Brown experience here.