Apartment Living

This is Jefe!  When you live in an apartment, Amazon delivery is a little bit more complicated.  One way is to have it sent to the apartment building where it can be left on the floor or tables of the area in front of the mailboxes.  Sometimes there are mounds of boxes there.  We chose instead to pick them up from Jefe which is a secure mailbox at a 7-11 a few blocks from our apartment.  You type in your code and a door pops open with your package behind it.

After 6 weeks here, we were notified of a "parcel pending" service which is basically the same principle but it is actually in our building.  Gary tried it this week and it works well so now we don't even have to make the trip to the 7-11.  

I am actually not sure what happens if your package doesn't fit in the provided boxes--maybe that is why some end up on the floor.  We will see what happens in the future. Big city living....

 

Happy Birthday, Dad!

On June 18, my dad turned 88 years old.  We celebrated by having him and Karla over for dinner and cream pies (key lime and chocolate) and a surprise Zoom meeting with my siblings--My sister, Robin, couldn't ever get her sound to work and only her camera for a brief moment which I didn't catch with my camera.  My dad was delighted with seeing and talking to everyone although he missed having Robin be able to be there the whole time.

From the top

Dad, me, Mike

Scott, Todd, Lynette

Rick, Valerie, Robin

Last year, we were trying to arrange for all of us to gather in Salt Lake for his 87th birthday because he had been told that his heart was failing...when Covid hit which cancelled those plans...and we had a big family Zoom meeting instead.  This year was a bit quieter celebration with just the siblings but it was great to be "all together" with dad to wish him Happy Birthday.

A story:  When I was growing up, I told my mother that one reason I didn't want to play the piano was because "I didn't want that to be the only thing I did in the Church."  When I was first called to be a Relief Society president when I was 31 or so and called my parents to tell them, my mom said, "And to think you could be playing the piano, but instead you learned your dad's talents."  It made me laugh, but it is true that I share some of the same talents with my dad, although perhaps express them in different ways.  

I am pretty sure that I talk WAY more than my dad at any point in his life.  However, I learned to faithful in my service in the Church by watching him, I loved science and math like he did, I developed my talents to teach and to give talks in part from watching him do those things.  I learned to love live theatre and to take part in plays and roadshows like he did.  Of course, my mother also shared many of these things as well.  That is what made the two of them a great match and the perfect parents for me.

Happy Birthday and Happy Father's Day, Dad.  Thanks for being my dad. 

Goodbye to Indy---

You don't know her.  I actually never met her in person, but Indy Llew Jones was a young girl who had Down syndrome who passed away a few weeks ago due to cancer.  She was only 5 years old and had battled cancer since she was two years old.  Her mother had written about her on social media since her birth and has a large following on Instagram. Because of the connection of Down syndrome and the fact that they will in the Salt Lake area, we share friends in common and I have followed their journey.  I actually speak more about her in a post I have in my draft box related to Grief and Dying...if I ever get it to a point that I want to share it.  This post just highlights the public celebration that they had a couple of Sundays ago to celebrate her life and legacy.  Many families from the Down syndrome community showed up to give their support and hugs to the Jones family and to other families. Having a family member with Down syndrome means that there is a wider community of families who are there to share this journey with you if you want that.  We have been grateful for that support in our family and it was sweet to watch it in action at this public gathering even though I only watched it virtually. Even in that type of setting, the ability to mourn with those who mourn is a sacred privilege.  It was amazing to hear both of her parents talk and testify of life beyond this earth and a loving Heavenly Father who made a perfect plan for us and Indy Llew--her life AND her death --were part of that plan and they are honored to have been her earthly parents and connect with her forever.

Terah (her mother) wrote often about the light that Indy brought into the world.  Certainly her parents shared that light with everyone through their sharing of Indy and their personal experiences along the way.

Blowing bubbles in honor of Indy who loved bubbles!

Social media certainly has its pros and cons, but the ability to share, to support, and to be connected in good times and hard ones is a blessing.  I am better because I observed their journey from afar.  I will be a better support and friend to others in their hard moments because of what I have learned from Terah and Bryan Jones.  And hopefully, I will do better in my own trials because of them as well.

Aren't you glad that we don't have to go through this life alone without each other?

Syracuse Temple--Groundbreaking

We couldn't be there in person due to Covid-restrictions.  We heard that 150 people were allowed to be on site for the ceremony.  That included our dear friends, Kaye and Wayne Volk, who served on the committee and are writing the history of the building of the temple.

Kaye said that their instructions were to plan a "simple and sacred" ceremony.  We were excited to take part even though it was only virtually.  The goal is to have the temple completed in 23 months.  Not sure where we will be in 23 months, but we do know that the Syracuse Temple will be a sweet place to be in the future for us and all of the good people in Syracuse and the surrounding areas.

Elder Kevin R. Duncan gave his remarks and also gave the dedicatory prayer at the groundbreaking.  As he grew up just a 1 1/2 miles north of this spot, it was touching as he recalled the growth of the Church in this area and the many great families who served as the backbone for that growth.

Now we get to watch...from a distance as the work begins in earnest on this special temple.

IN-PERSON Gatherings

Slowly, life is returning to that "normal" we have missed.

We had our first in-person branch gathering on Friday--the Aloha Pot-luck--a monthly gathering (in the past) to welcome people entering the mission and say goodbye to people leaving the mission.  We met in this very old Church building on 2nd North--

The stained glass window in the Chapel

Old-fashion lights

Jena and Gary went right to work to help set up things for the dinner.  Turns out that setting up for an activity is like riding a bike--you don't forget how even if it has been over a year---

And we sang welcome and goodbye songs to the missionaries coming and going!  We also sang "Called To Serve."  It was the first time we sang that song with our fellow missionaries in person.

I am not going to lie--I cried!

And we live in a branch where everyone jumps in to help clean-up!  Not surprising since our branch only has full-time missionaries in it.

Then Saturday, we kept the party thing going by having Vonette and Gary come and play games and then go out to dinner with us at the Blue Lemon in City Creek. 

On our walk to the restaurant, we stopped by the Temple grounds to see the progress on the work.

After dinner, we made a stop at the Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory...

and then took an enjoyable walk through the City Creek Mall.

This piece of art in the mall swings around in the sky----

We so appreciate Vonette and Gary making a trip down to Salt Lake and to brave the traffic and the parking situation to visit us.  We are excited for more visits and more people to come.

Zoom is wonderful and has been great for a pandemic--but people in person are the best!

Mission Day

Jena and I attended a wedding reception for Brinley Dickson on Thursday night in Ogden and we were able to visit with some of our friends from Syracuse.  The Dicksons are dear friends and neighbors in Walnut Grove.

The most common question I got was what is a typical day like as a missionary.  I don't know how to answer that because it seems like everyday is different and sometimes different than we had planned...and the weeks are flying by.  I know that I have a to-do list and I never get it done in a day or the week that I have planned.

Typically--for us:

6:00 am  Gary is up and working on the computer.  As zone leaders, there is related paperwork and organization and lots and lots of emails to sort through.  Gary has taken the bulk of that responsibilities and these early morning hours are usually focused on that.

Around 7:00-8:00 he heads out to the Church History Library where he has been busy updating computers in preparation for the opening of the Church History Library  -BIG NEWS--August 16 all of Temple Square including the Church History Library will be open for guests and employees and missionaries.  Gary is able to connect with our zone members who are currently coming into the Church History Library to work on their assignments.

 7:15-7:30  I get up and do my morning routine, light housekeeping stuff and prepare to be on the computer by 9:00.  I answer emails, attend meetings virtually, do projects for the zone  (currently preparing for a Zone Social in a few weeks), and do time stamps for interviews we have done.

Gary usually heads home around 1, we have lunch, and then it is back to our computers or our phones as we call zone members to check on them or Church History Library employees to check in or mission leaders or their children as part of our Church history assignments.  Sometimes, I may head over to the Church History Library to meet with a zone member or help with a donation or other tasks, but mostly I am in our apartment with Jena.

We occasionally do oral histories--we would like to do two a week but it just depends on finding and their schedules.  Everyone tells us it slows down during the summer so we are expecting that might happen.  I currently have four more time stamps to write of interviews we have already done so I have work to do even without any oral histories set for this coming week. The bulk of our time is definitely spent on zone leader related activities.

My plan is to stop by 4 or so and head out for a walk, but that doesn't happen as much as it should and it has been hot around here lately.

We have dinner around 6:30 and then Gary is back on the computer, but I usually spend time with a book, household tasks, watching TV--Jazz are in the playoffs--Gary is used to working 16 hours a day--me, not so much!

We attend mission devotions, zone leadership meetings, and Church in person, but most other meetings are still done in Zoom including our zone devotional and leadership meetings. 

That is what our days look like.  Rereading it seems like it is boring but really it is filled with sweet interactions with amazing people and so many moments of spiritual feeling and promptings.

Whatever you are doing in your life right now--doing what you know Heavenly Father wants you to be doing and experiencing right now is the best feeling!  And missionary life--that is a different level of doing than I have experienced in the past.  I think it is due in part to the prayers that people offer for the missionaries and in part to the sense of purpose that being a missionary has.  It already makes me sad to think about not being a missionary when our mission comes to an end.

So that is a "typical day" in a mission where every day is different!

And for the BYU fans in the crowd--did I mention that I got to do an oral history with Steve Cleveland and his wife who served in the Indiana Indianapolis Mission?  He was a former BYU basketball coach. Pretty fun--and spiritual like the oral histories always are. Go, Cougars!!!

Accidental Road Trip

A couple of weeks ago, Gary happened to catch one of the mission presidents we have been looking for at home and he agreed to do an oral history.  Gary set up a time for me to call him back to do the "pre-interview" phone call and set up time for the actual interview.  Gary mentioned to me that the mission president had said that they don't really do Zoom so probably we will do a phone interview with him.  That is fine, of course.  As it happened, I had to call the former mission president from a parking lot after a clinical meeting in Provo for Ben, so Gary wasn't around when this phone call took place.

We talked briefly and then the mission president said, "Your husband said that you could interview us in person and we think we would prefer that.  Can you do that?"  News to me but I am flexible so I thought fast, said sure, and set a time for us to meet with them....in person....in Boise, Idaho...which is about 5 hours away and clearly outside the 60 mile radius of our mission, but after all, Gary had said we could....

It turned out that Gary had said that we could ARRANGE for someone to interview them in person--an area Church History advisor could be asked to follow up for us. Oops....it was set for Tuesday, June 8th, so we got the needed permissions and Monday, we headed off on a 

-----ROAD TRIP---

if you know me, you know I love road trips so I was excited.  The three of us left Monday at noon and drove to Boise and got in our hotel just in time to set up and listen to our mission fireside with Matt Grow, the managing director of the Church History Library--which was excellent.

Selfie as Gary set up the fireside on the TV--

then...determined not to eat at any national chain, we found this Chinese-American restaurant called "Joy Garden" and enjoyed Sweet and Sour Pork and other yummy food (with plenty to have for lunch the next day at the hotel.)

Monday night Idaho sunset---

Tuesday, we attended another mission meeting through Zoom in the morning, ate our Chinese food for lunch, and then prepared for our oral history interview.

In addition to being part of a road trip, this was the first interview that we were able to do in-person.  No photos, but trust me, you wish that you could have been there to hear this sweet former mission president and his wife talk about their service and their lives.  To be in their home and to talk about tender and holy things was such a privilege.  Both Gary and I feel it was the right thing for us to have done--to be there in person.  They served in the mid-1980s and now are in their 80s with many, many health problems.  Even after the interview we stayed and talked more with them about their lives, their joys and hobbies.  (For example, they live on a golf course and over several years of him collecting golf balls ended up having over 20,000 of them which he sold to a local golf shop.  He says searching for them makes his morning walks more enjoyable.)  I loved it.  The spirit they had in the middle of their health challenges was amazing.  We were so blessed.

We mentioned to them that we were going to stop at the Boise Temple on the way out and they reminded us about the Meridian Temple which was just five minutes away so we made that detour as we began our journey home to Salt Lake.

The Meridian Temple--very unique and striking building

It overlooks a valley which is located to the north west of Boise.

As is common these days, the temple shares its parking lot with a stake center.  Between the rows of parking, there were red roses planted.  It was very striking, especially if you like red roses like me and it is summer time when they are in bloom.

Next stop:  The Boise Temple

I hadn't looked at pictures before we left--just googled the address, but immediately when I saw it, it stirred memories of the Dallas Temple---one of my favorite temples.

And sure enough, it was built around the same time as the Dallas Temple---

It was hard to get a picture of the whole temple because of the design.

The west part of the temple where the patrons enter and exit the building.

A rest stop to change clothes after wearing our formal "missionary clothes" for the oral history and look it had a marker for the Oregon Trail which of course follows along the Snake River in this area.  We didn't go to the indicated spot to see the ruts.  That will be another trip when we finish our Oregon Trail journey from Wyoming to Oregon.

We actually passed the Twin Falls Temple on the way to the Shoshone Falls.  Although the water levels are low this year and they are controlling the amount of water going down the river, it was still pretty and the sounds of the waterfall were magical--next to ocean waves, I think water falls are one of my favorite nature sounds.

You can see that over half of the water fall area has no water---people there told us that we needed to come back to really see this pretty waterfall---

You can't see it but people toss coins at that rock and try to land on the top of it.  I wonder how many coins are at the bottom of the river...

The Snake River to the west of the falls

These "locals" were telling us some of the facts and figures of the area and the people who work in the electrical plant attached to the dams.

Back to take pictures at the Twin Falls Temple---

With afternoon visit and the stops on the way home, we didn't get into our apartment until 11:30 pm.  We were tired, but happy.  It was a good trip and it was fun to be together.

Uhm...I wonder where our next "accidental road trip" will be???  (Just kidding, Gary---60 miles radius of the mission next time!)
 

Happy Birthday, Liam!

Liam turned 6 years old on Friday!!

He loves the color yellow and Batman  (just like his great Grandma Giberson), he loves dogs, learning to read, he loves to go camping but mostly to play in the lake when he goes, and loves his grandpa's white truck.

Because we were there on Thursday the day before his birthday, he opened our present to him a day early.

The next morning, Jessica sent this photo.  Liam had started working on building his Batman Lego set we gave him at 7:30 ("all by myself") and kept working until it was done and then played with it at least until 11:30 when Jessica texted us the photo.  Birthday gift win!

WE LOVE YOU, LIAM, AND GLAD TO HAVE YOU IN OUR FAMILY! 

Side note:  He got to ride in his grandpa's truck when Jessica took Jena and I home on Thursday.  It was the first time, sitting in his tall car set in the back seat and he LOVED it.  He told us that he could see out of every window so he wouldn't need to ask us how long until we got there, because he could SEE where we were at.  I love how excited he was and how he could share that excitement with us.

And in case you were wondering, he did end up asking us how much longer until getting to our house---"because it was taking long to get there."  Since he had never been to our apartment yet, he really had no idea about how long it should take or what the familiar landmarks were for the journey.  Maybe next time!