Busy in Our Land of Strangers

Our days of relative leisure appear to be over.  Once again, there is lots to do and commitments to keep.  Layne and I home teach and visit teach the same families.  One of them, the Glenns, has just had a major loss.  Bob Glenn was diagnosed with cancer a couple of weeks ago.  He died last week.  Wow.  I didn't know that cancer could overtake a person so quickly.  His wife is reeling from the loss of him.  She asked us to sing at the funeral yesterday.  So Layne and I joined with another couple and sang a quartet version of a medley of hymns.  You know singing isn't my favorite thing.  It makes me nervous to sing in small groups.  So I prayed that I would be calm and confident.  When the time came I was filled with peace.  I was able to look folks in the eye and concentrate on the message of the songs.  I didn't know I could do that.  Maybe I'm meant to sing more often.  Not that I'm claiming any great talent in that area, but at least I can hold my own with some level of calm.  At least of late that seems to be the case.

We appear to be becoming more social as we get to know more people.  There is lots to do here and it seems that there are enough people with time to pursue the local sights to provide us with a happy series of invitations.  We are becoming quite the social creatures.  Layne is even relenting on his preference for always staying home and responding to a variety of chances to do things with new friends.  I think it is a very good thing.

Layne spends much of his time working in our acre.  It is looking lovely.  I take great pleasure in the beauty that is sprouting out of our ground.  And there is green grass everywhere I look.  Grass.  What a pleasure it is.  We are surrounded by green.  I love it!

Here you can see that green grass that seems so wonderful to me.

The lovely garden that grows outside our basement windows.

A view of part of our back yard, with Layne's garden in the back,
a view beyond that and stormy skies overhead.  Beautiful, I think.

Tomorrow we are driving to Salt Lake to visit Layne's twin brother and my sister and her hub.  I'm so looking forward to spending time there.  But I'm not looking forward to driving there in our old truck.  If you remember, it is only good for 55 miles per hour or so.  I anticipate a longer drive than I was hoping for.  But it will be good for hauling home some of the items from Gerald's house that he has offered to let us use.  He and Frances have decided to rent out their Draper home.  So the many items inside must be stored somewhere.  Why not some of them with us!  It'll be a blessing, even if we have to use the truck to make it happen.

Singing and Bonding

I know I've said this before, but I'm not much of a singer.  In spite of that, I am in a local singing group that actually sings for pay.  You read that right.  Our little group sings at various convalescent groups, assisted living and community groups and they actually pay us for this.  We sing through a half hour program every spring and every Christmas.  Or so I am told.  We are now in the midst of our spring program.  Our theme is money, so every song addresses it.  In spite of former complaints about singing in the choir, I am enjoying singing with this group.  Perfection is not required; fun is.  There is a lot to be said for bringing happiness to other people.  Our group seems to be pretty good at that.  At the end of our season (which is the end of this month), our proceeds will go to a charity of our choice.  This year part of it goes to a local doctor who travels all over the world correcting cleft palates.  As we sang through our money songs, it seemed quite fitting, at the end of our program on Saturday night for family and friends, to give some money to this fine doctor.  It was a feel-good kind of deal!

Our singing group at work:  The Treble Clef Singers

When I was a new member of the Church at 15 years of age, our newly baptized family of three (Daddy not included) became members of a ward in San Leandro, CA.  It was there that I met a girl named Phyllis Brennan.  She is Phyllis Salsedo now, and lives in Arizona, near all four of her children. On a whim, she decided to drive out here to Star to visit us.  She has been here since Wednesday, along with her two big dogs.  I'll admit to dreading the dog part.  But her dogs have been very good boys, spending most of their time in the dog cages they stayed in during the car trip.  They actually seem to like being cozily settled in the back of her van, looking out at the residential sights.

Me and Phyllis

I drove Phyllis through our countryside and our city and told her much of what I know about this place.  Philly is a woman of impulse.  She decided that she'd like to live here!  So we spent much of Saturday looking at potential homes for her and her dogs, with our real estate agent, Peggy.  She found a home she likes and is wasting no time trying to figure out how she can buy it and move here.  I'm amazed at her eagerness to move away from the place she has called home for 20 years; to leave her family and her job and come up here.  Wow.  Wait.  We just did something like that.  But it took us awhile to actually move.  Phyllis is ready to move right now.  I had to tie her down a bit and remind her that there are things she needs to think about and arrange before she jumps into this totally new place.  So I think she'll give it a day or two.

Our stake president met with Layne and officially gave him a reprieve from being a patriarch.  "Now you can go on a mission, if you'd like," he told him.  So now I wonder; is this what the Lord would have us do now?  I fight with myself over this.  I have a strong desire to get our family records in order; to get a legacy for our family ready to pass on to them.  My biological clock is ticking:  my years left on this earth are now clearly seen to be short

Flowers from our yard!  Since we had none at our other
house, these seem quite wonderful.

.  The family history/legacy thing hangs over me like a heavy cloud.  I long to get it under control.  It feels like there will be freedom and open highways once that task is under control.  So, should that be done first, or should we throw that on the shelf once again and go on another mission?  I just don't know.

On the Move

All family connections involve travel now.  I don't like it.  Grandson William (son of Ben and Jessica) was scheduled to be baptized the 27th of April.  So we flew to California on the 25th and stayed with Cliff and Audrey.  I felt embraced in the arms of family and it was wonderful.  One really good thing about living away is that we get to visit the kids one-on-one.  We had a sweet connection with each of our Adams-Hart kids.

Son Ben with grandson William, on his baptism day, March 27, 2013

William was soft and open on his baptismal day.  As I spoke to him of confirmation, he looked at me with tenderness.  He got it.  I felt euphoric as the Spirit embraced us all.  So far I've been able to speak at all of our grandchildren's baptisms.  It has been a blessing to me.  We had a great family party at Ben and Jessica's following the baptism.  Jessica's family and ours all blended in happy celebration of a fine little boy, making his own commitment to be faithful to God.  What can be better?

Layne and I attended our old Pleasanton ward on Sunday.  We were a little hesitant to go at first.  But we were embraced by friends and it turned into a warm and wonderful time.  Our California time ended at Audrey and Cliff's, with Reed and Dorothy there as well.  I love being with family.  I'm so glad I have one!

Grandson Isaiah, in new Sunday duds we got
him for his birthday.

We drove our old truck home on Monday.  Layne babies it, it seems to me.  We averaged 50 miles per hour all the way home.  Ho Hum.  I had a hard time being patient with that.  The truck isn't especially comfortable and I was buried in stuff, as there is no room to put it anywhere else except on me.  This trip was loooong!  But we arrived before the day was over and was I glad.

We got home just in time to greet Bill and Trudy Ostler, who arrived Tuesday afternoon.  They stayed until Friday.  Trudy is one of my few kindred spirits.  We loved spending time with her and Bill.  We had such fun!  Layne made arrangements to take them on a hot air balloon ride, hoping they would be pleased.  "I'm sure Bill will like it but I'm not sure about Trudy," he said confidently.  Never assume.  "I'd better check on my life insurance, " Bill said when we presented our balloon plan to him.  "I've always wanted to ride in a balloon," said Trudy.  Bill continued to joke about the upcoming ride, indicating that he was plenty nervous about it.  But he wouldn't back out!

Layne and me, sitting next to Ben Franklin, at Martin's Ferry.

Bill and Trudy with Ab Lincoln, at Martin's Ferry.

Early Friday morning we headed over to the balloon lift-off location.  Bill checked out every maneuver to assure himself that we wouldn't die.  With great caution he entered the balloon basket with the rest of us.  He white-knuckled it as we lifted off.  But as we sailed higher, he began to relax.  Our pilot was the owner and very knowledgeable and competent.  He instilled confidence.  Before long Bill, and the rest of us, began to really enjoy floating above the city.  The day was perfect and the views wonderful.  For 45 minutes or so we sailed in the sky, listening to owner Bruce explain how the wind works and showing us the sights.  Gently he lowered us onto a grassy field, landing with such softness that we hardly recognized that we were once again grounded.  "Wow," acknowledged Bill, "that was an experience never to be forgotten."  So good!

Unpacking the balloon.

Bill, Trudy, Layne and me in front of our balloon.

The balloon rises.

View from our balloon.

Our landing spot.

Our soft landing.

Layne and me, earth-bound once again.

After Bill and Trudy left, I packed up the car and drove to Salt Lake to visit my college roommate Joanne Gunson.  Saturday morning was bright and sunny when I departed.  With snacks to munch, the google girl on my phone to direct me and a coke to keep me awake, I made the 6 hour drive pleasantly, arriving Saturday afternoon at the home of Joanne's brother Jay and wife Judy.  We had such fun together!  Sunday morning we attended a live broadcast of "The Spoken Word" in the tabernacle on temple square.  What a treat that was.  The choir sound was superb in the tabernacle, vibrating into our bones.  Wonderful.

Judy and Jay Rounds, Joanne Gunson (my college roommate).

The weekend also brought several friends that I ran into by chance.  So sweet to see them; magical even.  I spent Sunday evening with my sister Maryanne and hub Bob in their new home in Draper.  It is a great place and decorated beautifully, even though they only moved in the previous Thursday.  Maryanne and Bob are both very tired.  I understand how that happens.  I feel the same pressure here to get our new household functional and as lovely as possible.

Two of their sons came while I was there.  I loved it all.  To sum up this past week, it was an over the top bonding time.  What can be better?  It was a renewal of my sense that people provide the greatest joy that life has to offer.  I drove home on Monday morning with a song in my heart.  As I drove I looked out at the county sights with such an appreciation for the beauty that surrounds us in the earthly garden that the Lord has made for us.  I looked above the car window to see the direction I was headed; I looked next to the steering wheel to see the googled directions home on my phone; a glance below that showed me the time; a touch of my finger controlled the temperature and a short reach provided me with food and drink.  The drive passed quickly and it was heaven.