Simplifying #2
Dear Family,
Friday for our P-day we went Kayaking. Yes, you heard me right, with the man who doesn’t like water or sand. Dad was such a good sport. It is at La Jolla Shores with a guide, of course, and Dad did most of the paddling. We didn’t quite get the in-sync thing and so he told me just to pretend I was rowing. It was fun! We got wet, saw some leopard sharks, other fish, the sea lions, brown pelicans, another kind of bird (can’t remember), learned some San Diego history and went into a small cave on our kayak. We slept well that night. In a couple of weeks I would like to ride the tandem bikes at Coronado :)
At General Women’s Meeting, I was inspired by Sister Marriott’s talk to ask Heavenly Father to show me my weaknesses. I had often felt that I should ask the question but figured I had plenty of weaknesses that I already knew about so why ask for more. As I went to bed that night the thought came to me that I am often a meeting murmurer. The next morning as I studied the Book of Mormon I was told in 1Nephi 16 and 17 how to overcome it. That was certainly an immediate answer. Since then I have been made aware of two other weaknesses: Pride in thinking that I know best how to do some things, and not observant or sensitive enough to other's situations or challenges. I think that is probably plenty to work on for awhile. It’s pretty humbling to realize straight up what your weaknesses are that you need to work on overcoming. Even though I sort of knew them they didn’t come to full light until I actually asked.
We got to go to Zone Conference a couple of weeks ago and watch the new movie “Meet the Mormons” with the other missionaries. It is quite the buzz around here and hopefully will help to inform people better. One of the sisters had a tour today that ask some off-the-wall questions (at least in our view) about the Mormons: like how come children can’t go into their parent’s bedroom until a certain age, and you can’t drink soda, why? And pretty typical, why do you have another book? Well, Sister Milla was able to enlighten them. Maybe someday they will be open to listening to the missionaries. They were actually from Mexico.
I have been working at memorizing the spanish script for the Battalion. I finally got the introduction room part memorized. I really didn’t think I could do it but I have. Presenting it will take quite a lot of courage, but it will happen one of these days. I have got quite a ways to go to learn the whole thing.
Conference was so inspiring. I didn’t get to watch the last session on Sunday because I was at the desk at the Battalion. So, Monday morning I thought I would watch it while I did some food preparation for the week—we have to pack a lunch or dinner for our shift at the Battalion. My thought was that I will just stand my iPad mini up on the counter. Good idea. So as I did that and got Conference playing I thought, now how do I read my recipes that are on the iPad at the same time. Well, Dad suggested I use my phone to listen since I really didn’t need to see anything. Good idea! So I am into cooking with my recipe app pulled up, listening to Conference on my iPhone and my phone rings. Now what do I do. It rang several times in the next while, or I received texts. So here is a visual of my kitchen: watching Conference on my laptop, looking at the iPad to read the recipe and looking at texts on my phone and answering it, at the same time preparing food. Now I call that techno multi-tasking :))
Well, from talking to you all and Eden, and with pictures posted (thank you, thank you), it looks like the birthday celebration was a success! I don’t think the 40th birthday for anyone is a loved occasion but Eden did very well at embracing it. Thanks to all of you for making it such a beautiful and memorable evening. I realize their were many conflicts. Your devotion to family is what it is all about (and Michelle handled two families in one night). It was a sacrifice for all in some way. So well accomplished. So memorable. My heart is full with the love I have for each one of you. You all have your individual talents and bring them all together for the family. As I read in Mosiah 18:21 this morning, “…having their hearts knit together in unity and in love one towards another”. And Mosiah 18:29, “…imparting to one another both temporally and spiritually according to their needs and their wants”. This is MY family :)))
Saturday is our day on the Temple grounds from 3:00 to 7:00. We had to go early to inspect a large Pod that is sitting in the Temple’s extra parking lot. It was labeled Mormon Battalion and the Temple engineer wanted to know what was in it. So, we met his assistant engineer at the spot and it was opened (they couldn’t even find a key for the lock and so they broke it off and put a new one on). There were bees swarming all around but fortunately they left us alone. Well, I was hoping for something exciting inside but it was just a bunch of Mormon Battalion stuff the regional activities people have stored for the Battalion commemoration day in January. We are getting a new temple presidency in two weeks so maybe the out going ones are trying to cleanup.
Saturday I did some grocery shopping for Sunday and next week when Brock, Julie and boys come. That night as I was getting things ready, remembering that is was Fast Sunday, I had a little whisper in my head say, “You should bear your testimony tomorrow.” Don’t you hate it when that happens. So I kept rationalizing why I didn’t need to (the director and his wife are in our ward, what if I didn’t say the right thing or couldn’t remember what to say, I don’t think very well on my feet, my mind just goes blank…..). As you probably have experienced, none of that was valid. So in the morning as I was studying the thought came to me, “You need to bear your testimony to strengthen your testimony”. I knew that was true and so I bore a very simple testimony.
Lots of love to you all. Hope I can keep up this letter writing (it literally takes me hours). I so appreciate your writing us, though.
Love, Mom
Friday for our P-day we went Kayaking. Yes, you heard me right, with the man who doesn’t like water or sand. Dad was such a good sport. It is at La Jolla Shores with a guide, of course, and Dad did most of the paddling. We didn’t quite get the in-sync thing and so he told me just to pretend I was rowing. It was fun! We got wet, saw some leopard sharks, other fish, the sea lions, brown pelicans, another kind of bird (can’t remember), learned some San Diego history and went into a small cave on our kayak. We slept well that night. In a couple of weeks I would like to ride the tandem bikes at Coronado :)
At General Women’s Meeting, I was inspired by Sister Marriott’s talk to ask Heavenly Father to show me my weaknesses. I had often felt that I should ask the question but figured I had plenty of weaknesses that I already knew about so why ask for more. As I went to bed that night the thought came to me that I am often a meeting murmurer. The next morning as I studied the Book of Mormon I was told in 1Nephi 16 and 17 how to overcome it. That was certainly an immediate answer. Since then I have been made aware of two other weaknesses: Pride in thinking that I know best how to do some things, and not observant or sensitive enough to other's situations or challenges. I think that is probably plenty to work on for awhile. It’s pretty humbling to realize straight up what your weaknesses are that you need to work on overcoming. Even though I sort of knew them they didn’t come to full light until I actually asked.
We got to go to Zone Conference a couple of weeks ago and watch the new movie “Meet the Mormons” with the other missionaries. It is quite the buzz around here and hopefully will help to inform people better. One of the sisters had a tour today that ask some off-the-wall questions (at least in our view) about the Mormons: like how come children can’t go into their parent’s bedroom until a certain age, and you can’t drink soda, why? And pretty typical, why do you have another book? Well, Sister Milla was able to enlighten them. Maybe someday they will be open to listening to the missionaries. They were actually from Mexico.
I have been working at memorizing the spanish script for the Battalion. I finally got the introduction room part memorized. I really didn’t think I could do it but I have. Presenting it will take quite a lot of courage, but it will happen one of these days. I have got quite a ways to go to learn the whole thing.
Conference was so inspiring. I didn’t get to watch the last session on Sunday because I was at the desk at the Battalion. So, Monday morning I thought I would watch it while I did some food preparation for the week—we have to pack a lunch or dinner for our shift at the Battalion. My thought was that I will just stand my iPad mini up on the counter. Good idea. So as I did that and got Conference playing I thought, now how do I read my recipes that are on the iPad at the same time. Well, Dad suggested I use my phone to listen since I really didn’t need to see anything. Good idea! So I am into cooking with my recipe app pulled up, listening to Conference on my iPhone and my phone rings. Now what do I do. It rang several times in the next while, or I received texts. So here is a visual of my kitchen: watching Conference on my laptop, looking at the iPad to read the recipe and looking at texts on my phone and answering it, at the same time preparing food. Now I call that techno multi-tasking :))
Well, from talking to you all and Eden, and with pictures posted (thank you, thank you), it looks like the birthday celebration was a success! I don’t think the 40th birthday for anyone is a loved occasion but Eden did very well at embracing it. Thanks to all of you for making it such a beautiful and memorable evening. I realize their were many conflicts. Your devotion to family is what it is all about (and Michelle handled two families in one night). It was a sacrifice for all in some way. So well accomplished. So memorable. My heart is full with the love I have for each one of you. You all have your individual talents and bring them all together for the family. As I read in Mosiah 18:21 this morning, “…having their hearts knit together in unity and in love one towards another”. And Mosiah 18:29, “…imparting to one another both temporally and spiritually according to their needs and their wants”. This is MY family :)))
Saturday is our day on the Temple grounds from 3:00 to 7:00. We had to go early to inspect a large Pod that is sitting in the Temple’s extra parking lot. It was labeled Mormon Battalion and the Temple engineer wanted to know what was in it. So, we met his assistant engineer at the spot and it was opened (they couldn’t even find a key for the lock and so they broke it off and put a new one on). There were bees swarming all around but fortunately they left us alone. Well, I was hoping for something exciting inside but it was just a bunch of Mormon Battalion stuff the regional activities people have stored for the Battalion commemoration day in January. We are getting a new temple presidency in two weeks so maybe the out going ones are trying to cleanup.
Saturday I did some grocery shopping for Sunday and next week when Brock, Julie and boys come. That night as I was getting things ready, remembering that is was Fast Sunday, I had a little whisper in my head say, “You should bear your testimony tomorrow.” Don’t you hate it when that happens. So I kept rationalizing why I didn’t need to (the director and his wife are in our ward, what if I didn’t say the right thing or couldn’t remember what to say, I don’t think very well on my feet, my mind just goes blank…..). As you probably have experienced, none of that was valid. So in the morning as I was studying the thought came to me, “You need to bear your testimony to strengthen your testimony”. I knew that was true and so I bore a very simple testimony.
Lots of love to you all. Hope I can keep up this letter writing (it literally takes me hours). I so appreciate your writing us, though.
Love, Mom
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