Reminiscing Memories - Past, Present, Preserved

April 27, 2024 - Today is a cool day after our nice rain yesterday, and it seems a good day to stay inside and focus on going through the contents in the three file cabinets downstairs in the storage room.

It hasn't taken Sam long to go through his folders containing things related to his past.  Here he is burning most of it.

However, I went into the office so I can record on the computer by word or photo the memories I want to keep.

Before deleting the hard copies, I have (a) taken photos of some items, (b) shared comments on my blog that relate to other things, and (c) posted summaries or brief comments of interest in selected files on the computer.  Yes, I am a saver!

Shared here before discarding:

Republican National Committee card

We have been registered as Republicans all our married life, but we also have voted for friends who were Democrats.  In St. Johns, which was the county seat, in order to be elected for a local or county office, candidates ran on the Democrat ticket.  We do feel it is important to vote your conscience and support the constitution.

I was always an active member of the PTA while our children were in school.

Marla and I shared a special memory in 2006 going to Omaha, Nebraska, to see the special Broadway in Omaha's Joseph and the Technicolor Dreamcoat.

I have been fortunate to be able to attend several enjoyable live theater productions during the years.  These two tickets are included as representative of all the rest for which I no longer have the ticket stubs to include.  

In 2006, I drove to Denver to see The Lion King. If I'm remembering correctly, I drove there by myself and Kristine went with me to see the play.

The Diary of Anne Frank was a production Sam and I saw at the Shakespearean Festival in Cedar City on September 29, 2010, with friends who had come for a reunion of couples who had severed together as missionaries in Russia.

These tickets to see Celine Dion's concert in Denver bring back a very special memory.  I really like her singing, and she had a wonderful show.  Sam and I drove to Denver and went to the concert with Scott and Kristine.  Sam would have felt better about spending $100 a ticket for a special college football game rather than a concert, though.

Another time, I drove to Denver and stopped on the way to pick up Karen, Sam's sister, in Nebraska to go with me to hear the Tabernacle Choir (now known as the Tabernacle Choir at Temple Square) perform at Red Rocks Amphitheater.  We loved the concert.

We have also had season tickets with Hal and Christy Smith for Hale Theater productions in Orem, Utah; and we have also been to a few Hale Theater plays in their larger theater in Sandy, Utah. 

We have had occasions to see quite a few school productions, which have been surprisingly good.  This one had Sarah and Derek's Anna and Paul in it.  (Anna is 2nd from left; Paul not in photo.)

To be continued in the next posting, as I look through more files!

Legacy Farms 5th Ward & Spanish Fork Utah Palmyra Stake

I am pleased the ward choir has recently resumed after having had a break ever since the shutdowns related to Covid.  John Robinson had been the choir director then; but after his being called to be the ward executive secretary, no one was called to replace him until this year when Ben Tanner was called as the ward choir director with Tiffany Voorhees as the accompanist.  We resumed having choir practice in our home again downstairs by the piano on Sunday afternoons.  

Before the Covid shutdown, the choir had practiced in our home then and had more members than we have currently, but the members have nice voices.  So far, we have sung once each month in sacrament meeting since the choir resumed. 

Maren and Eden Paupulaire have nice voices and have been singing with the choir, too.  Some of the other women who have been coming regularly to our current choir practices are Pam Bingham, Heather Dastrup, Angela King, Janet Olsen, Brynn Richardson, Sunni Swain, and myself.

The men from our ward who will be singing in our ward conference on April 29th came to our home to practice their number without the women coming the last two Sundays.  The men will be singing Poor Wayfaring Man of Grief." (They are in the photo below)  

John Robinson, Matt Burnett, Ben Tanner, Nathan Swain, Eli Tanner, and the accompanist - Tiffany Voorhees

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On April 20 & 21, we went to the stake center for the Saturday evening meeting and again the next morning for the Sunday morning session of conference, for the Spanish Fork Utah Palmyra Stake.  The visiting authority (Henrique or Enrique Molina - spelling?) gave excellent talks at both sessions.  His name was not included on the stake's website nor on any postings that I saw, so I am guessing on the spelling of his name. 

SPANISH FORK UTAH PALMYRA STAKE: (Aug. 16, 2020) President — Eric Toren Forsberg, 39, district sales director, Sanofi Pasteur; succeeding Glen B Roach; wife, Audrey Lynn Gailey Forsberg. Counselors — James Christian Biesinger II, 50, flight surgeon, Utah National Guard, and nurse practitioner, Revere Health; wife, Lori Ann Jensen Biesinger. Larry Mark Hutchings, 48, department manager, Caselle, Inc; wife, Hattie Maber Smith Hutchings.  (Larry Hutchings was a former bishop in our ward.)

 

"Favorite Things" - Ward Relief Society Social 04/18/2024

Relief Society social - our home - April 18

In the sport court - as temperature was too cool for backyard.

Alyse Brady, Relief Society Activity Coordinator, in the center with other sisters seated around the wrapped gifts.

"Favorite Things" was the theme for our ward Relief Society social on Thursday, April 18, held at our home.  Each sister brought a wrapped gift not to cost more than $10 that represented something special to her.  These gifts were placed in the middle of our circle.    As a name was drawn, that sister chose a wrapped gift among those placed in the center, and the sister who brought the gift told why this was a favorite of hers. These then became special gifts to those who went home with them. 

The gift I brought in a floral gift bag was a nice notebook with an accompanying card where I had written:  "Saving and sharing family memories is important to me, so I have a family blog where I regularly post photos and information to share with my family who currently live in several different states in the United States and in Ireland as well as three missionaries currently serving.  At a recent count, we have 88 in our family including the great-grandchildren.  I bought this notebook for you to jot down important notes that you may or may not want to share with your family for future reference."  

A chocolate fountain added a fun but unexpected memory that added to the delicious special treats brought and shared.  Somehow the fountain was not properly put together; so when it was turned on, the chocolate began spraying upward all over the wall and tablecloth.  Several sisters got busy cleaning up the mess, and the chocolate was then available but without turning on the fountain again. 

The only sad note was knowing Angela Larsen and family are moving, which brought some tears.  We love her and her family, and they will be greatly missed.

Pete and Angela Larsen family

Photo is several years old, as Landon (right) is currently a priest and a junior in high school.  He has been coming to the temple preparation class that has been meeting in our home at 1:30 on Sundays.

Primary Activity Boys

The current calling for Sam and me in our Legacy Farm 5th Ward is to serve as Primary Activity Leaders for boys ages 9, 10, and 11.  We appreciate having Angela King called to serve with us.  

When we were called in 2023, we had the following boys:  Parker Armstrong, Wesley "Cruz" Berge, Stockton Carter, Wyatt Finlinson, Craig Randolph, Alex Hutchings, Kaelin Jorgenson, Carter King, Owen Memmott, Corwin Richardson, Isaac Tanner, Charlie Teusher, Alex Voorhees (plus for a short time two twins, Liam & Lucas Wolthius, who moved away).

Isaac Tanner, Lucas Wolthius, Alex Voorhees, Parker Armstrong, Liam Wolthius, Wyatt Finlinson, Alex Hutchings, Owen Memmott, Nixon & Cruz Berge, Kaelin Jorgenson, and Carter King

May 2023

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After the boys who turned 14 by January 2024 and advanced out of Primary, we gained the boys who turned 9; then our activity group in 2024 became:

9-year-olds:  Nixon Berge, Brycen Larsen, Cooper Lung, Ollie Nichols (Maddox Jones - inactive).

10-year-olds:  Alex Voorhees, Wyatt Finlinson, "Cruz" Berge, Isaac Tanner, Kaelin Jorgenson (Craig Randolph - inactive)

Being in sports organizations in Spanish Fork is popular and boys have conflicting schedules, so we changed our meeting time from Wednesdays to Thursdays; but some of the boys still have conflicts.  

At our activity on Thursday, January 11, six boys attended: 

Brycen Larsen, (Angie King), Wyatt Finlinson, (Sam), Ollie Nichols, Kaelon Jorgenson, Alex Voorhees, and Isaac Tanner

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January 25, we had Kyler Bingham come to talk to the Primary boys about his mission in Africa and then helped teach the boys how to properly "tie" a tie for when they serve their own missions.

Isaac Tanner, Alex Voorhees, Ollie Nichols, (Ollie's mom), Kyler Bingham, (Kyler's wife), Sam

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February 8 - We went walking with the boys and delivered Valentine treats to seniors in the neighborhood.  

February 22 - Angela King taught a first-aid lesson with demonstrations for the boys.  Each time we meet we are teaching and reviewing the Articles of Faith.

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March 7th, one of their projects was designing paper airplanes and practicing flying them.  

Ollie Nichols, Alex Voorhees, Wyatt Finlinson, (Sam), Brycen Larsen

Wyatt Finlinson, Alex Voorhees, Ollie Nichols, Brycen Larsen

flying their airplanes in the sports court.

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March 28, the activity was held at the home of Angela King where she had things ready for the boys to make Resurrection Rolls for their treat to enjoy. While the rolls were baking, the boys filled 12 plastic Easter eggs with scriptures and objects telling the Easter story. They got to eat a couple of rolls for their treat and then take home rolls to share with their families.

Alex Voorhees, Cooper Lunt, and Ollie Nichols

Brycen Larsen and Isaac Tanner

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Isaac Tanner on the tractor. 

Brycen, Ollie, and Cooper watching Sam give the boys instructions for driving the tractor and transversing the course.

Primary boys ages 9, 10, and 11 enjoyed having their activity outside on April 11 where they learned about fire safety and starting a controlled fire. They also had practice driving a lawnmower on a coarse around obstacles and reviewed the Articles of Faith 1-5. The activity ended with treats and practice throwing safety darts at a target. Several boys were unable to attend and were missed.

Brycen Larsen

Ollie Nichols

Cooper Lunt

Isaac Tanner

The boys looked for dry plant material and had a dozen matches to get a fire started.

Ollie Nichols

Brycen Larsen

Cooper Lunt

The boys have been learning and reciting the Articles of Faith at our activities and added the 5th one in April.

General Conference - April 6 & 7

It is always an uplifting and spiritual experience to listen to General Conference.  We watched General Conference from the comfort of our home and were blessed to hear all the beautiful music and inspirational messages.

Corban, Brynlee, Mason, Isaac, and Doug

Doug and his children attended the Sunday morning session of General Conference in Salt Lake City. Shannon watched from home, as they were only given five tickets from a friend to attend. This is a quote from Doug that accompanied this photo: "Loved General Conference this weekend. Grateful I could take my kids (minus Jacob who is on his mission in Brazil). Also grateful for the loving and inspired guidance of a prophet."

Maren and Eden were fortunate to have tickets given to them by the bishop; and they were at the same Sunday morning session of conference and actually were in the same section.

President Oaks, President Nelson, and President Eyring

President Dallin H. Oaks conducted the Saturday morning session, Elder Gary E. Stevenson conducted the Saturday afternoon session, and Elder Dale G. Renlund conducted the Saturday evening session.  President Eyring conducted the Sunday morning session, and Elder Quentin L. Cook conducted the Sunday afternoon session.  This is the first time I can remember having a session not conducted by the president or one of his counselors.

All three of the First Presidency gave inspirational messages. 

President Nelson attended the Saturday afternoon session.

 At the close of the Sunday afternoon session, (speaking in a video screen) President Nelson  announced  15 new temples, which brings the worldwide total to 350 houses of the Lord.  Seven were announced for the United States:  Yuma, Arizona; Houston Texas South Area; Des Moines, Iowa; Cincinnati, Ohio; Honolulu, Hawaii; West Jordan, Utah; Lehi, Utah.  The others are in French Polynesia, Mexico, Brazil, Argentina, Scotland, Australia South Area, British Columbia, Venezuela.

President Nelson has announced 45% of all temples.

Elder Paul B. Pieper was one of the speakers in General Conference today.  President Pieper was an Area Authority for the Europe East Area when we were serving as missionaries and living in Russia.  We have been in meetings and conferences with him and his family.   

From Ronald A. Rasband: In our emoji-filled world , words matter.

Our words can be supportive or angry, joyful or mean, compassionate or tossed aside. In the heat of the moment, words can sting and sink painfully deep into the soul—and stay there.

Our words on the internet, texting, social media, or tweets take on a life of their own. So be careful what you say and how you say it. In our families, especially with husbands, wives, and children, our words can bring us together or drive a wedge between us.

I promise that if we “feast upon the words of Christ” (2 Nephi 32:3) that lead to salvation, our prophet’s words that guide and encourage us, and our own words that speak of who we are and what we hold dear, the powers of heaven will pour down upon us.

Joy, hope, and love are all vital elements of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Here are more quotes from other inspired messages we heard during this General Conference.

More quotes from this 2024 conference:

Elder Patrick Kearon

Elder Kearon was sustained as our newest Apostle. This is a quote from his talk: "Our loving Father oversaw the creation of this very earth for the express purpose of providing an opportunity for you and for me to have the stretching and refining experiences of mortality, the chance to use our God-given moral agency to choose Him, to learn, to grow, to make mistakes, to repent, to love God and our neighbor, and to one day return home to Him.

The intent of the Father’s great plan of happiness is your happiness, right here, right now and in the eternities."

He began his talk with some humor when he mentioned his mother-in-law would be the most astonished at his being called to be an apostle, and he added that she was looking down from heaven.

President Nelson attended all but the Saturday afternoon session from home due to his recent back injury. President Eyring was in a wheelchair and remained sitting during the sessions except for this photo when he stood with assistance. All three gave inspirational talks.

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This special weekend ended with Todd and Beth and their family coming to our home Sunday and bringing the food. Those enjoying the delicious meal: Todd, Beth, Rebecca, Jared, Ethan, Whitney, Megan, Gabe, Maren, Eden, Sam and Narene.