What a great meeting!!!!

The entire month of December built up to that 25th day.  And what a day it was!!  Going to Church on Christmas day, the day, is just fantastic.  Our building was jammed with visiting families filling pews with the regular attenders.  All were celebrating being together and then attending Church and seeing old friends.  I think we had angels with us as our music was just heavenly.  The YW sang and there was a flute solo also, the Primary sang, the organist used the stop (or whatever) for bells and it was wonderful, 2 pianists accompanied the violinist, a Christmas story was shared & a Christmas talk.  We all sang parts and sang from our hearts.  It was a celebratory time.  I wished it could have gone on and on.

Lydia and Johnathan, two of the violinists 4 children, came and sat with us and we felt like grandparents.  We were so glad for that.  I looked around and my entire being just felt cozy, warm, loved and filled with testimony.  I had tears that just kept surfacing.  I saw Becka, looking all like the Mia-Maid she now is and loved her, and her grandparents for raising her.  Families gathered for Sarah's Tuesday wedding.  Heidi home for awhile.  Mike back from his traveling.  Myra Faye with enough health to come to Sacrament.  Ken.  Maurine. Jerry.  All with health issues that we pray for amongst others.  And Kathryn, Lee, and Noma that weren't able to be with us, I missed them.  Nan making the effort to come across the building to hug me and wish me a Merry Christmas.  And Tammy. Paula.
Seeing Timote/meeting his wife.  Seeing Mark/his wife from a distance.  MaryLynne, Emma, Shannon, Crystal, Joan, Tish, Sharon, Julianna.   Heather.  Cheryl. Tamera.  Betsy.  Joyce and Joyce (and her daughters!).  Chelle.  Abby. Okay!  I better stop as I now realize that I could name everyone in the Ward that touched my life Sunday because they all did, simply by being at Church.  Every single person...man, woman, child...member or visitor...my life was blessed by their presence.  Singing with them and sharing that sacred hour of feeling the Spirit was a choice blessing.

My life was blessed because every single person that came to Church showed me the commitment of their testimony....Just by being there.  leaving the presents.  dealing with the children.  thinking of the meal. getting everyone dressed.  rehearsing songs. Arriving on time and being happy, friendly and loving.  Oh, yes.  I had tears.

Great feelings of love, welled up, when we talked to our children and heard their happiness and realized that no one sat around and moped.  Each made the day joyous and were happy.  Sharing a feast with our son and enjoying each other's company and being grateful that he could join us, with his ever present icepack making it possible. Just another line on the happiness list!

What a fantastic 25 days!  The baking, the sharing, the decorations, children enjoying looking at them, carols sung to us, treats by the platefuls, the programs (including our sardine packed attendance at the Ward Christmas Party), lots of watching Hallmark channel Christmas shows plus the greatness of BYUTV on the Spoken Word, watching 5 different Nutcrackers-from around the world on TV plus attending one at the Capitol Theatre, lunching with friends, visiting with friends, Christmas music like the Messiah and the DVD with Sissell that was featured with the Choir in 2007.  We love to watch different versions of A Christmas Carol and saw 3 this year.  TV is a wonderful treasure!!  So all of that plus more was nestled in amongst regular life and it was memorable.  and already I look forward to next year!!  and will do similar things again.

Christmas is all about love, don't you think?  The love we have for the Savior, the love of the Gospel, the love of our families, our friends, and loving our turn on earth.

This season was topped off by a single act of love after Church.  We had scooted home, changed clothes, started finishing up dishes for our meal and there was a knock on the door.  To my surprise it was Mindi!  She said it wouldn't be Christmas if she didn't get a hug.  To think that she took the time to come over and express her love just grabbed my heart.  She always calls me Sister S., as I was her Seminary teacher, when she was a freshman in high school.  There is something so special in the way she addresses me. I feel mother hen and she my chick!  We have had a long consistent involvement for these many years and she is as precious to me today, as she was when I met her that 9th grade year.  Unfailingly on Sunday she will find me and give me a hug.  This was such a sweet gift as she left her family to come see me.  

We are in the right place when we attend Church on Sunday and the 25th just really ended December and all the Sundays for 2011 in a most special way!!

Name-tag!!!

Making an evening run to SS Ace Postal to make certain that my sister's birthday gift arrives on time, I was struck again by the absence of Christ in community decorations.  This sick feeling in the pit of my stomach hits every year without invitation.  

I'm merrily readying myself for the most joyous of times and suddenly I'm overcome with nostalgia and feel homesick, for a lifetime of familiarity for Christmas, when all of us were on the same page.  The merchants, the city planners, the homes (inside and out), the factory packaging, the labels, the signs heralding Christmas all over the place. 

And the music!...no grannies run over by reindeer ditties but what we called real Christmas music.  Christmas carols which were actually hymns, and sentimental heart tugging ballads like- Blue Christmas, I'll be home for Christmas, I'm Dreaming of a White Christmas- all of which tug at my heart still.  Radio stations and stores that played a month of real Christmas music.  Downtown loudspeakers played Christmas music.  Music celebrating and focusing on the birth of the Savior. The Hallelujah Chorus and other songs from the Messiah were heard frequently.

Schools had Christmas programs, complete with hymns and sometimes scriptures read.  Community choirs put on Christmas concerts. Dance recitals had a Christmas theme.

Tonight I was so bothered by SS having gorgeous big snowflakes attached to each lamppost.  I did not see one thing related to Christmas.  Granted it was dark but I was gawking and straining to see.  

At the grocery store, I said to the woman affixing discount tags to something on the end displays, at the check out line,
....I just traveled the full length of your town and there is absolutely nothing celebrating Christ.  It's all snowflakes.... 
she looked puzzled and then trying to appease me said....well, there is a star and a display on a Church down the street....
I said... well, I'd hope so but what about your town itself?  I like to see Christ in Christmas....  
she said...Things aren't like they used to be...  and went back to her pricing! 
Then I asked the young man, that was going to check me out, and as I framed my same question, I realized it was a young woman, that replied...
Times have changed.  $8.72 please... 
I said...but I'm Christian and I miss it.  Don't you?...  
her reply...It's okay.

Frustrated the life out of me.  I drove home and drove down my own center street and it's a variety of bells, Santa's, candy canes, street lamps, and what I thought looked like a star hung on our lampposts.  The City Hall has a lit Snowman outline holding up the wall. The lit silhouette of 3 reindeer, pulling an appropriately empty sleigh on the edge of the graveyard, just made me question how far things have deteriorated from what used to be.

I have Happy Holidays, Winter Wonderland, Season Greetings pushed at me and never a mention of Christmas and yet it's perfectly acceptable to have signage, greetings, appropriate gifts all connected with the celebration of Hanukkah and Kwanzaa.  Why is okay to use those terms and what they stand for and what they are celebrating as religious events and yet Christmas is banned? 


True.  I am soapboxing.  but it's just so sad to me and so maddening at the same time.  2 years ago my feelings started to build.  A clerk told me happy holidays and I told her that just doesn't work for me.  It's Merry Christmas.  

I then started looking for signs in nearby cities of Christmas decorations and really got down.  Our new Church house was being built and in the midst of my blues, the builders put the name on our Church!  I was ecstatic.  I felt like the Savior was now represented in our town.


I was struck by the largeness of the sign and how prominent the name Jesus Christ was.  I didn't remember seeing that on other LDS Churches and realized I'd not really been around that many.  I felt the sign didn't look like the one on the building we were meeting in.  It looked more like a Missionary nametag.  I felt like the Church had a nametag on!!  I compared the tags the Elders wore.  Then went over to the Toppenish Church and looked at that name.  Totally different in design!

It hit me that the General Church had picked things up a notch.  Not letting the Church name fade into the background and be rather nondescript in how it looked and where it was placed but making it very clear and bold.  Leaving no doubt to anyone that read it.

My friend, Myra Faye, knowing of my frustration, called and told me to come over and I'd feel better in looking at her garage!  this is what I found!

There are still believers in the world that state their convictions!!

This is the Toppenish building.  No wonder I was caught off guard with the new sign below!!

This is the day that my heart soared with happiness.  December 2009

I have never entered a photography contest and therefore have never won a prize!!