It's June -- Things to be grateful for

1. I can go to my new fridge and get a nice COLD glass of milk. I didn't realize how much my old one didn't work.

2. I know it is going to get HOT this week, but we have enjoyed an exceptionally wonderful June so far. Only in the 90's during the day and it cooled off nicely at night.

3. Rich and the girls' visit. We had fun and I got to know my nieces better.

4. April got to spend a few days with us because Sam went camping to help with a young men's activity.

5. I'm getting some awesome pictures from Stephen's cross-country trip. I wish I were there, except for the driving.

6. Life isn't quite so hectic--so why is my house not clean yet?

7. I missed my dad yesterday, but I'm glad that he is with my mom again.

8. I'm grateful for my son-in-law and his willingness to help.

9. Our pool is still nice and cool.

Three Great Artists

I am amazed at the artistic talent in my family. I admit it, I'm also jealous. It's always amazing to me how people look at a blank page and put what is in their head onto the paper.

My niece Grace visited me this month. She is almost five, her birthday is next month. She likes to draw princesses with big lips, fancy dresses and cleavage. No stick figures for this girl. She reminds me of her cousin. . .

Stephen whose choice of subject was super heroes--the Flash was his favorite. The picture below was chosen for the cover of the literary magazine at Mountain View. We have a huge painting of Spiderman on a wall in the basement. Stephen takes after my brother. . .

Rich who is also a great artist. I seem to remember a lot of monsters coming out of his pencil. He would also entertain us with sketches he had drawn in Fast and Testimony meeting. You have to admit, that is sometimes a very fertile field to find great subjects. There was also a picture of an old man that hung on my parents wall.

I'm grateful for these talented people because there is nothing like watching a great artist at work.

The Week the Relatives Came

My brother and his girls have been visiting us for the past week. His wife was supposed to come too, but she hurt her back, so she has been at home doing a "While you Were Out". (An old TLC show where one member of the family leaves and another member does something wonderful to the house.) I hope that Lisa is the designer and all her neighbors are the work force. The girls will come home to new rooms and Rich will come home to a clean garage and new living room furniture. It's quite the project for a week and a half.

Swimming was one of the favorite activities of the week, especially for Susan. She loved swimming and was constantly asking her dad when it was time to swim.

Grace is a great artist taking after her dad and cousin Stephen. Here she is with the monster she drew at the Arizona Museum's for Youth monster exhibit.

Caroline loves her dad and doesn't like to have him out of her sight even if it mean going to her aunt's boring Sunday School class or waiting for Chris to get the jumper cables after the car battery died. The jumper cables were home instead of in my car where they should have been. Whatever.
We all enjoyed this great movie!

We went to eat at Joe's Barbeque and Rosa's, two of our favorite places.

Today they went home. They are going to stop and see the Grand Canyon on the way home and stop in Kanab for the night. I know their dog Waylon missed them, and their mom did too of course.

A fun time was had by all. By the way, read the Day the Relatives Came. It is a funny book.

I am having a hard time getting pictures where I want them to be so. . .Caroline is the first picture. By the way, when I asked them what movie they wanted to watch I thought they would say some Disney cartoon. No! They wanted to watch THE MUMMY.

Section 76

Sometimes when I teach, certain things about a section stand out. Maybe they aren't the most important, but to me they are very interesting.

According to Brigham Young, "When God revealed to Joseph Smith and Sidney Rigdon that there was a place prepared for all, according to the light they had received and the rejection of evil and practice of good, it was a great trial to many, and some apostatized because God was not going to send to everlasting punishment heathens and infants, but had a place of salvation, in due time, for all, and would bless the honest and virtuous and truthful, whether they ever belonged to any church or not."

It seems to me this has always been the case. Whenever the Lord reveals something that changes things, people have two reactions. They either rejoice that the Lord has given his people new knowledge or get angry because the new revelation contradicts some long held belief. If it contradicts what they believe, they can either do what Brigham Young said, "I used to think and pray, to read and think, until I knew and fully understood it for myself, by the visions of the Holy Spirit" or they can hold onto their preconceived notions about how God should run things.

Smart people will embrace the former and reject the latter.

Also, sometimes we fall into Satan's trap and believe that we are not celestial material. When we do our best, the atonement of Jesus Christ makes up the rest. If you haven't, read Stephen Robinson's BELIEVING CHRIST and FOLLOWING CHRIST. It will give you a whole new outlook on "making it to the top." I know these books changed how I looked about my relationship with the Savior.