Beneath the Wraps

          Our ward has seemed to dwindle in attendance since we first moved in.  Some have left our ward due to moving out of the area or moving on to the other side.  We’ve had some move in – but where is the activity?  It has always been an older ward; the daytime activities seem more well attended than night time.              The activities committee had set up and decorated Thursday morning to afternoon.   It was beautiful.   A lot of work went into it.   They had set up an overflow room.   But as it was not all the tables filled up.   I don’t know why.   Last year we seemed to have had people coming out of the woodwork.   I felt smooshed as though there was no elbow room.                This year they had planned for 125 people.   I think there may have been sixty people.   Maybe.   Lot of food.   An announcem...

                 I was issued a new role for  Relief Society       though I haven’t used the ones  I’d been given prior.                        There were 8 pages containing over  250 names.   I have kept 60 on my own list and  mark role from that list and  transfer attendance to the computer.    That’s a lot of names of supposed members living  somewhere within the ward boundaries.              Not all the names are recognized by many –  not even the sixty that have at least been  more consistent than the rest.                   I have never seen the numbers go  above those sixty.    Good thing I am not focused on statistics.

             I think it was Friday night when our bishop posted that the COVID cases are high in the ward and advised members who had/have symptoms to stay home.   I thought that church was cancelled but learned that I had misread.   Still, I wondered why it hadn’t been cancelled all together.   Our numbers were few.           I counted 36 people in the chapel and perhaps 20 more in the overflow – I don’t know why the accordion doors hadn’t been closed so that those who chose to sit that far back wouldn’t have the option.   It isn’t as though there were any screaming youth to take out.   In fact, there were only six youth in total.   Only two of them were primary age.           Roland had been called to teach Sunday School for the youth ages 12-14 but ended up with both classes making his class total a grand total of all four yout...

          Jenna has graduated from Middle School.   Her last day was yesterday and there was a promotion celebration last night.     The principal passed out a few awards.   The first one was for perfect attendance.   She and Kylee had both received perfect attendance awards that day.   Jenna had not missed any school - including the Monday after spring break when I told her she could stay home.   Kayla's family didn't leave until about an hour after she returned.           The promotional award for 100% attendance went to Kylee who had not missed a day in three years.   I don't recall Jenna having ever missed a class in sixth grade, but know she had missed some during seventh grade.   She had missed the last two days when we left Oregon to go back to Utah for Jeanie's funeral.         ...