Leaning left? or right?

An interesting chart that someone put together.  I aim for the Spirit and many times make it but that right side list is always tugging at me!  I decided that I weave back and forth but am always endeavoring to veer to that left list!  Mortality is not an easy breezy trip!  But I will press forward the best I can.  You too?  Right?  We are in this together as LDS women and we are Believers!  And Achievers!!

good morning!

A busy few days for sure.  I continue my sorting through the contents of the green trunk.  It seems as though being exposed to air has caused the papers to expand.  There seems to be more than when I started and it gets a bit overwhelming but I'm hanging in there and making headway.  More on that later.

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Hubby and I are trying again (or is it still?) to be healthier and here is our latest purchase of exercise equipment that is suppose to work magic.  Terry is going to PT for a few appointments, designed to help him with his balance and he's thinking this conveyance will help even more.  Plus he feels I need to put my plump self on there!  Today is the first day of the trial run.  This may get very interesting!!

You do see the 3 wheels, don't you?  Our trike!

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Sometimes wonderful things happen to us that we didn't know we needed and it's just comforting and healing.  I didn't know that I was needy of hearing someone say they loved me/valued me beyond my family.  I realized I was a bit parched inwardly when it just warmed my entire being to be told that I meant something to someone.  Does that make any sense?  Just the essence of being made to feel loved/included is a powerful gift we can give.  

To top off this flood of goodness, and the flood was actually more like several raindrops, if you count them individually but it had a flood-like effect on my soul.  This deluge was topped off by receiving a note, that I will always cherish, from a young Mother that is a friend.  I do believe that at a certain age we all become the same age!  would that be ageless?  When we are young we tend to flock with similars but as we age we realize that we women are all exactly that!...women.  Age does not matter anymore.  Matters of the heart matter.  Especially with our gospel linked hearts.

I feel the same about her as she feels about me!  A dear young friend!

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Some of my boost came from going to the Stake Women's Conference and feeling the love and sincerity of the 3 presenters and also seeing people I hadn't seen in a long time. Some of that gift of goodness came from my Ward sisters...the warmth...sincerity...friendliness that they embody...loved basking in that cuddle with a blanket feeling!  I was reminded...and a word spoken in due season, how good it is! (Prov 15:23)   

Plowing ahead...

What a surprise to have Madeline show up knocking on the door!  She just came home from her Mission and was heading home for the first time in 18 months.  The van was filled with family and they stopped and unloaded some of her luggage from the back and she and her Mom crawled out!  I was just thrilled to see her!  She was a part of my life before she was born as her Mother and I are friends. She has been in the life of our twin granddaughters, Cassie and Tori, for most of their lives as they are only one year younger than her.  The 3 spent many summers playing together.

Remember a couple of days ago when I told you about the invite to the Temple sealing?  Her brother Troy is marrying one of Madeline's Missionary companions.  They were the best of friends!  Talk about romantic!  I'm figuring Madeline is MissMissionaryMatchmaker.  Our own Yenta!

Sweet Madeline!!

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I've been working off and on plowing through my sorting trunk project and I did make some headway and found some items I was happy to see.

Some items I thought were lost and others had been forgotten ...like clippings of my daughter's baby hair!!  What was I thinking??  Everyone needs a bit of angel hair in their possession?  and of course it was balanced out by finding a business card when she was Hostess on Royal Carribean Cruise line!

Tidbit parts of our life history turned up...  A tithing envelope...

Branch President twice and Bishop once.  

 & a thank you note addressed to Kipper's Father.  She didn't know Terry and neither of us recognize the name but Terry evidently changed her tire...a little thank you note!

           How kind of you to change my tire.

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The one thing I was really happy to see was a letter from Lady Bird Johnson.  I had read her book, A White House Diary, and enjoyed it so much.

In fact I enjoyed the book so much that I wrote her a letter and told her so.  I was very interested and impressed with so many things she shared about her life in the White House... and her love of nature and how she wanted to beautify the highways and the parks and the streets and the cities of America and plant flowers of all sorts but most especially wild flowers. She wanted to make all of America the land of the beautiful!  Where flowers bloom so does hope, is how she said it. I still enjoy seeing pictures, especially of Texas, her home State, and how gorgeous those flowers are along the highways.

She wrote about looking forward to someday being home at the LBJ Ranch and creating permanency and creating what she called "forever rooms".  I told her I hoped she'd been able to do that and also hoped she was enjoying her life since leaving the White House.  I expected no response.

I was surprised when I got a note from the LBJ Ranch.  It was fun to find that personally written little letter!  I remember being so taken by the heaviness of the ecru stationary with it's brown ink..impressed that she had penned a note to me in answer to my musing questions of --did she get the forever rooms finished? and--was she enjoying the LBJ Ranch as much as she had hoped she would?

It cost her a 6 cent stamp to mail it to our Runamuck address!

LBJ Ranch at top.  Stonewall, Texas

January 30, 1971
Dear Miss Seljestad:

I've been fortunate in receiving so many wonderful letters since my book was published, but yours was especially dear and I just wanted you to know how much I appreciated those warm words.

With best wishes for happy days ahead.

Sincerely,
Lady Bird Johnson
Mrs. Lyndon B. Johnson

Yes, I did get our "forever rooms" finished and have enjoyed so much these different more personal days since leaving the White House!

Start of Sorting!

At different times I miss Dixie...Usually when it's something familiar that she did or we wanted to just call and share about something we read or heard about.  This is the time of year that she would call me and remind me...Nancy, be sure you go to Wendy's and order their fish sandwich.  They only sell it during Lent and it's the best ever.  After you go, call me and tell me how it was.

She loved eating out and ate business lunches almost daily for her entire career.  She had the ability to put people at ease.  She was so beautiful.  I miss her so much.

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Kip just got back from Seattle so we bought the banquet table today.  Table?  You don't remember?  RootTech!  I decided to organize all letters and printed stories etc. and calling it MeDoingGenealogy.  I was suppose to start on March 1st but Kipper didn't get back.  So today was start day.

It's a 6' long banquet table.  The Murphy Bed is folded up so it's right in front of those doors.  I'm starting with the top trunk.  It has lots of letters from way back plus baby shoes that all of my boys wore.  Itty bitty pale blue corduroy.  Adorable!  They survived all of these many years! 

There is also an apology note written on a piece of scrap wood by one of our sons.  He was suppose to do the dishes and Terry brought him home some little trinket and he felt so bad.  I remember us coming in and seeing the wood chunk propped up.  It touched my heart so much.

Dad,

I'm sorry for what I did about the dishes.  I don't deserve what you gave me.  I hope you still like me as a son.  You can give it to gerg or anybody. sorry. 

Kipper

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My work is cut out for me!!!  I'm ready to take it on!

inside the trunk!

Out of the trunk!

  Reams of paper--all filled with letters!  Letters that go way back.  Of course I will keep you posted!

What did you decide to do after hearing those RootTech talks?  I am looking forward to getting this project done!

In the Grove

Story from The Spoken Word...

This Week's Broadcast February 26, 2017 | Broadcast Number 4563

Growing Together Many years ago, a young boy visited his uncle who worked in the lumber business. They were looking at the trees in the lumber camp when the boy noticed a very tall tree standing alone on the hilltop. Full of excitement, the boy showed his uncle the towering tree. “Look at that big tree!” he exclaimed. “It will make a lot of good lumber, won’t it?” To the boy’s surprise, his uncle shook his head. “No,” he said, “that tree will not make a lot of good lumber. It might make a lot of lumber but not a lot of good lumber. When a tree grows off by itself, too many branches grow on it. Those branches produce knots when the tree is cut into lumber. The best lumber comes from trees that grow together in groves. The trees also grow taller and straighter when they grow together.”1 It is true of trees, and it is true of each of us. We grow into better people when we grow together rather than alone. While there’s value in independence, there are also critical lessons to learn from interdependence. The personal growth that comes from giving and receiving help can happen in no other way. We were not meant to be solitary, to stand alone, apart from one another. We need other people to love and care about, and we thrive when others love and care about us. Each one of us is needed, and each one of us has something to offer. Together we are better than we would be alone. All around us are those who are lonely—those who need a friend, a word of encouragement, a kind outreach. So many people are looking for the light of love, the warmth of friendship. We can resolve not to let them stand alone in the dark or the cold. We can reach out to them. We can take an interest in them and include them. We can help them stand taller and grow straighter, and like trees that grow in groves, we will find that we too can stand taller and grow straighter. This is what happens when trees—and people—grow together. 1. See Henry D. Taylor, in Conference Report, Apr. 1965, 54-55; cited in Barbara A. Lewis, “Why Is Unity Important?” Ensign, Dec. 2016, 49.

Nowadays Pillow Talk

When we were younger in years, and newer to marriage, we used to love to go to bed and talk and talk and talk.  Lying there in the dark.  Holding hands and talking.  What did we talk about?...just things...stuff...the happenings of our day that would morph into discussing an unplanned random subject.

We no longer do that when we go to bed.  We do try to go to bed at the same time.  We take Melatonin and hope for falling asleep.  We try to not talk but to just unwind and not get a 2nd wind.

We still talk though.  If we don't go to bed at our bedtime then just like children we get wound up and that is when we start the yak-yak.  Last night we were ready for bed by 10:30 p.m. and then the visiting started and suddenly it was 12:30 a.m.!

We started off talking about being children and how children need to be told cautions over and over and over.  We talked about IF we were young parents we'd be much more patient and understand they honestly don't remember counsel to protect themselves...climbing and wading and exploring and playing with matches and watching for cars and sharing and kindness etc. etc.

We decided that we are like children even at this age and have to be reminded/told within our religion...pray...study...be nice...go to Church...be kind...read your scriptures...serve.  etc. etc.  Over and over we hear the same things...Sunday Sermons...Sunday lessons...Stake Conference...General Conference.  Our mutual Father in Heaven is patient and understands that we, as His children, have difficulty remembering what we need to do for safety and growth.  We are weekly counseled to "remember" and "obey".  We even covenant to be good.  To obey!

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Moroni 4:3 O God, the Eternal Father, we ask thee in the name of thy Son, Jesus Christ, to bless and ^asanctify this ^bbread to the souls of all those who partake of it; that they may eat in ^cremembrance of the body of thy Son, and witness unto thee, O God, the Eternal Father, that they are willing to take upon them the ^dname of thy Son, and always remember him, and keep his commandments which he hath given them, that they may always have his ^eSpirit to be with them. Amen.

Moroni 5:2 O God, the Eternal Father, we ask thee, in the name of thy Son, Jesus Christ, to bless and sanctify this ^awine to the souls of all those who drink of it, that they may do it in ^bremembrance of the ^cblood of thy Son, which was shed for them; that they may witness unto thee, O God, the Eternal Father, that they do always remember him, that they may have his ^dSpirit to be with them. Amen.

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In our reminiscing conversation last night, Terry told stories to me that I've heard before, about his fun as a young boy at Kodiak.  He and his young friends played without restraint.  No caution.  No fear.  No supervision.

He relived his Kodiak summers and the year of taking some sort of hulls and making an outrigger with a board and 4 boys "rowing" in the freezing water.  Also the time a seal had died and was caught under the dock.  He and a couple of his young friends, borrowed a rowboat, and went under the dock, with the plan in mind to pry the seal lose and let it float out as it was so smelly.  They were going to save the day!  Instead,  the poking/prodding sticks caused the seal to explode and stink up everything including the "borrowed" rowboat and the boys.

We decided that parents cannot guard every action of children but children seem to have no fear and no idea of possible side effects that might harm them so they need protective parents.  Were we super protective?  We did try to guard them but the truth is we were out in a pioneer like arena and the woods and the creek and yes, even the dump, were explored.  As adults, we found out our boys were in lots of mischief and we had no knowledge of it.

How about you?...did you pull shenanigans?  fearless and invincible?  Terry was like a Huckleberry Finn.  I was a dreamer and enjoyed making up plays and playing dolls and playing by the railroad tracks...daring to put pennies on to see if the train really would crash...standing close to the tracks and seeing if the draft would blow us over.  Laughing and waving to the friendly engineer as he tooted his whistle at us.  Later realizing he was frantically waving at us to get back!!!  get away!!  You little fools!   So I too was daringly foolish!

We talked about we have not led a boring life and that got us on the subject of the Bore Tide on Turnagain Arm in Anchorage.

Sometimes on Sundays my Dad would take us on a family drive.  At certain times there would be a Bore Tide.

Here are some snippets I copied about the Bore Tide that I'm familiar with... as is Terry.

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CAUTION! Our bore tides are dangerous. Due to the quicksand-like mudflats that make up the beaches along Turnagain Arm, hikers may get stuck in the mud and drown or die from hypothermia. Always stay off the mud flats and observe the bore tide from a safe distance

The bore tide is a huge wave or series of waves that advance down Turnagain Arm in a wall of water up to 10-feet high. It’s a dramatic show of nature’s power that’s easy to see using our guidelines below.

What Are Bore Tides?

Bore tides can stretch half way across the Inlet

The bore tide is a rush of seawater that returns to a shallow and narrowing inlet from a broad bay. Bore tides come in after extreme minus low tides created by the full or new moon.

Bore tides occur all over the world—there are around 60 of them—but only a few are large enough to make a name for themselves. One in China, for example, stretches almost 30 feet tall and travels more than 20 miles per hour. Alaska’s most famous bore tide occurs in Turnagain Arm, just outside Anchorage. It climbs up to 6 – 10 feet tall and can reach speeds of 10 to 15 miles per hour. It takes not just a low tide but also about a 27-foot tidal differential (between high and low tide) for a bore to form in Turnagain Arm.

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Dixie and I would pile in the backseat for that Sunday family outing and we'd head out to that super windy road and Daddy would stop the car and we'd get out and watch the Bore Tide come in.  Then we'd drive further down the road and stop and get out again.  This was repeated a few times. My Dad would say...Look at that would'cha?  Great balls of sheet iron!  It's comin'!

There was great danger on what appeared to be ground that went from the road across to the mountains.  It was actually mud.  A silt-like quicksand substance.  Terry has two tales from a time he worked out there.  One time he saved a man's life by telling him to stop thrashing about.  Then Terry rolled out to him and went under his leg with his arm and released the man's boot.  Terry had told him earlier to get rid of his hip boots as they would be dangerous but the guy wouldn't listen.  When he was freed, he threw the boots away.  Terry can't remember what he wore the rest of the shift! Barefoot?

The other story was on that same job (laying a gas line across Cook Inlet- from Potter to Nikiski) They were either helicoptered in/out or used a tank retriever.  One day the tank retriever about sunk!  He quit the job!  We'd saved a lot of money so we decided to move to Idaho and see what it was like to live in the States. That move brought us to the Gospel!

Anyhow -there were, as always, those that just knew they could beat the Bore Tide odds and go hiking across Cook Inlet.  Shocking to them when they became a statistic!  An account of real dreadful deaths would surface in the paper.  Rarely but enough to be alarming.

So....are you still with me on this tale of winding intrigue??  All of this CoupleChatter is a reminder to all of us to be patient and if you hear yourself saying to your children....how many times have I told you or when are you going to learn or why can't you remember? or I told you that would happen  or See?! you should have listened or You should have minded me!....then stop such talk!!  We are the same in regard to what Heavenly Father tells us and He is kind and good and patient.

Put this puzzling post together and figure out all it's about is ---just be nice/patient to/with your kiddos and the same to yourself.

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PS-Nowadays people surf or kayak on the Bore Tide!  wonder how that works out???

Vicks Vapor Rub

Some of you readers are old enough to remember when you got a bad cold, or a sore throat, your Mother would rub Vicks Vapor Rub all over your throat and then take a strip of cotton flannel and wrap it around your neck and secure it with safety pins.  She'd then rub Vicks on your chest and your back.  The vapors made your eyes water and the cloth ended up being rather wrinkled and cold by morning.  It's a memory of home care that many of us share.  Also swallowing a dab of pure Vicks and beyond that?... swabbing our nostrils with a coating.  It was enough for a person to will a cold away!

A very familiar blue jar....

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Today I was reminded of that time of my childhood when I saw a picture of a product named Vix Vapor and it wasn't a blue jar at all!  What a shift in time.  Recently our Costco area became a sort of one stop shopping area.  You can buy a car from Toyota or go to Lowes or buy Sherwin Williams paint or fill up with Costco gas or go to Slow Burn.  They now have built and opened their 2nd marijuana store.  A big expansion...2 stores almost a stones throw away from each other, as two cities are connected...Union Gap and Yakima.  I know of 6 marijuana stores that are so close to each other.  There are others but these are just sort of bundled up with 5 on the same street!  The store in the basement of the Health Food Store is the most ironic one to me!  I know they all sell Medical Marijuana besides the Recreational Marijuana but it still is a stretch for my mind!

A new and different Vix Vapor below.....

Not my Vicks VapoRub blue jar!  This Vix is used for Vaping!

(you can read about this Vix Vapor  here)

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Doctrine and Covenants 89:4 
Behold, verily, thus saith the Lord unto you: In consequence of ^aevils and designs which do and will exist in the hearts of ^bconspiring men in the last days, I have ^cwarned you, and forewarn you, by giving unto you this word of wisdom by revelation—

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• Isaiah 5:20

  20 ¶Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!

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• 2 Nephi 15:20

• 20 Wo unto them that call evil good, and good evil, that put darkness for light, and light for darkness, that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!