REMEMBERING

Heard a great talk last Sunday and again had to blog it! Its about REMEMBERING!
As we get older we often forget things ....
Like: 
Where did I park the car?
Where did I set my glasses?
Where is my keys?
When was that appo?
Where did I leave my book?.....and the list goes on!!! 

Years ago dad had his Bible and it was well written in and read and then one day he just up and lost it. We looked but never found it nor could he remember where he last had it!
He missed it alot but never did we find it.

 So I am impressed with the word "REMEMBER REMEMBER."   I have found it is often repeated over and over in the scriptures.  Just as we have to try to remember each day where we put stuff or else we forget!  So it is as I get older I feel I understand why that one word is so very important in many ways!  We will and do forget!!  Not only do we forget everyday stuff  but we will forget Heavenly Father and his son Jesus Christ as well!
 Remember is used 352 times in the scriptures.

---

To remember : is to keep in mind or
 "be concerned about."

Another Remember:  After the flood, God set a "rainbow in the sky" as a token of the
covenant made to man to never again destroy the earth by water. Sent that "I may remember the everlasting covenant between me and thee!

Another Remember:  That we might remember the Sabbath day and keep it holy!

  Another Remember:  On Sunday...we take the sacrament
do this in "remembrance of me."
Another Remember: The symbols help us to focus our  attention on his promise to us  "that we will always have his spirit to be with us." My Favorite!

 YES "REMEMBERING" important/ least we forget!

My Rooster Chair

Was so excited to get this Rooster chair from my nephew Brian Evans for my Birthday!  I love it!!  What a thoughtful gift! 
Can't thank him enough for all the hard work he put into it!  Love the painting he put on it also of the rooster and the look of chickenwire on the bottom. Cute!  made and painted with his very own hands with wood from pallets at his job site. Such talent!  Wow! Thanks again Brian!

Getting Up Each Time We Fall

This poem and talk was given in church today, it really touched my heart.

                                                     "The Race"                                                          

Whenever I start to hang my head in front of failure’s face
My downward fall is broken by the memory of a race.
A child’s race, young boys, young men … how I remember well
Excitement sure … but also fear … it was not hard to tell.

They all lined up so full of hope, each thought to win the race.
Or tie for first, or if not that, at least take second place.
And fathers watched from off the side, each cheering for his own;
And each child hoped to show his dad that he would be the one.

The whistle blew, and off they went, young hearts and hopes afire.
To win … to be the hero … that was each young child’s desire.
And one child in particular whose dad was in the crowd,
Was running in the lead and thought my dad will be so proud.

But as he sped down the field across a shallow dip,
The child, who thought to win, lost his step and slipped.
Trying hard to catch himself, his hands flew out in brace.
And mid the laughter of the crowd the child fell on his face.

So down he fell with lost hope; he couldn’t win not now.
Embarrassed, sad, he only wished to disappear somehow.
But as he fell his dad stood up, and showed his anxious face;
This to the child so clearly said; “Get up and win the race.”

He quickly rose … no damage done … behind a bit, that’s all.
And off he ran with all his might to make up for his fall.
So anxious to restore himself, to catch up, and to win;
His mind went faster than his legs …he slipped and fell again.

He wished then that he had quit before, with only one disgrace.
I’m hopeless as a runner now I should not try to race.
But in the laughing crowd he searched and found his father’s face.
That steady look that said again, “Get up and win the race.”

So up he jumped to try again, 10 yards behind the last.
If I’m going to gain those yards I’ve got to run real fast.
Exerting everything he had … regaining eight then ten.
But trying hard to catch the lead he slipped and fell again.

Defeat; he lay there silently … a tear dropped from his eye.
There is no sense in running anymore … three strikes, I’m out, why try?
The will to rise had disappeared all hope had fled away.
So far behind, so error prone I’ll never go all the way.

I’ve lost – so what’s the use he thought. I’ll live with my disgrace.
But then he thought about his dad who soon he would have to face.
“Get up” … an echo sounded low … “Get up and take your place …
You were not meant for failure here … get up and win the race.”

“Get up” it said, “you have not lost at all.
For winning is no more than this – to rise each time you fall.”
So up he rose to run once more refusing to forfeit.
He resolved, that win or lose the race, at least he would not quit.
So far behind the others now … the most he had ever been,
So he gave it all he had and ran as though to win.
Three times he had fallen, stumbling … three times he had rose again.
Too far behind to hope to win … but he still ran on to the end.

They cheered the winning runner as they crossed the line first place.
Head high ... proud and happy … no falling, no disgrace.
But when the fallen youngster crossed the line … last place
The crowd gave him the greatest cheer for finishing the race.

And even though he came in last with head bowed low un-proud.
You would have thought that he had won the race to listen to the crowd.
And to his dad, he sadly said –“I did not do so well.”
“To me you won”, his father said. “You rose each time you fell.”

Now when things seem dark and difficult to face,
The memory of that child helps me in my race.
For all of life is like that race with ups and downs and all.
And all you have to do to win – IS RISE EACH TIME YOU FALL.


And when depression and despair shout loudly in my face,
Another voice within me says, “Get up and win the race!”

The Promise of Enduring to the End

Exactly what does it mean to endure to the end? Endure what, and how? And when is the end? Nephi explains that we must “be reconciled unto Christ, and enter into the narrow gate, and walk in the path which leads to eternal life, and continue in that path until the end of the day of probation/ until the end of this our mortal life!.Thus, to endure is to continue in the path we adopted at baptism/keeping our commitments to Christ, 

 The covenants of baptism and of the temple are solemn promises we make to God about how we will conduct our lives. Enduring to the end is keeping those promises throughout our lives—no matter what! It means we don’t quit because of life’s difficulties or temptations. Conversely, failing to endure means backing away from what we’ve started—first promising loyalty to God and then withholding what we promised. Endurance is not so much a matter of stamina as it is a matter of loyalty and integrity. Can you be trusted to faithfully hold your course? Just as a spouse who can be trusted to keep the marriage covenant is called faithful, so those who can be trusted to keep their gospel covenants are called faithful.

I once knew a man who had to decide whether to pay his tithing every time his check came, whether to go to his meetings every time they were held, whether to take an alcoholic drink every time he was offered one. Finally a friend asked him: “Why can’t you just decide once and for all which side you’re on?  
Why do you have to re-examine your loyalty every time a decision is called for?
You are spiritually reinventing the wheel over and over again, and you will never make any progress until you can build on what you already know.”

A few weeks later he called his friend and asked for a ride to some stake meeting. The friend was pleased he was going, and when he told him so I said
“You know, I wouldn’t like it if my wife told me she had to decide every morning whether she still loved me or not, or if she told me she only stayed with me because she hadn’t found a reason to leave—yet. my friend said "I guess the Lord is entitled to more of a commitment than that from me. I’m ready to stop reinventing the wheel."

God does not want excuses from those who leave the Church, thinking that they have good reasons or that they can keep covenants made in and through the Church while still rejecting the Church.
 No matter what their intentions, they are deceived.

A testimony isn’t like a hypothesis in science, which may be supported by evidence one day and destroyed by it the next. It is a conviction based on the evidence of things not seen that some things are eternally true. (See Heb. 11:1.) The provisionally converted are those who just haven’t found a reason to leave—yet. Just as such a relationship would be unsatisfactory in a marriage, so it is unsatisfactory in the spiritual marriage of the gospel. Such individuals need to become converted, to receive the witness of the Spirit and the conviction that accompanies faith.
Just as partners in a truly celestial marriage say, “we are sealed, no matter what,” so a truly converted member says: “I am a member of the Lords church. My lot is cast with the Apostles and prophets—no matter what!
Above all other issues, loyalties, agendas, and commitments,
This is where I stand.

Out there now, there are many voices !!

All wanting your attention
 —social voices, intellectual voices, political voices, and other voices.

I know a man who is going through a difficult time. He is listening to other voices and has transferred his  loyalty to other than the Lord. Tragically, his politics have become the idol to which all else in his life must bow—even over the Church.

 He said that he wanted to straighten his life out. I asked him if he had a testimony, and he said no, he didn’t. Surprised, I asked him why he wanted to repent and regain his membership if he didn’t have a testimony. I will never forget his answer: “I don’t know right now that the Church is true, but I know that I once knew, and I know God knows I once knew. The Church didn’t change between then and now—I did. 
 And now I want to know again what I knew before, and I am willing to repent to do it.”

Even when one’s endurance has failed before the end, repentance can bring about a new beginning.

Trials, deception, and iniquity—these are the enemies of endurance. 
Those who can bear the pain of trials, who can ignore alternate voices, whose loyalty can’t be bought ...these are they who will not betray their Master’s trust. They will faithfully maintain the charted course.
 They will get up each time they fall and endure the race!!

                                                                                                                                                         

Utopia! Is it a real place?

Utopia!  This is a  new word i found while reading a mag. this week and I loved it.....it tells us there is a place where every one will have complete happiness one day and good health as we have never known before.  I do look forward to that special day and time.

Wow! I can go for that especially since I been so sick lately. 
Alot of people can't believe it could ever get any better than this life where we are right now.   I think we all love this life and what it offers us.....for the most part I have always loved life and even would jump out of bed in the mornings anxious to get up and get out there and live! Seriously! I loved those days!
But as of lately I been down and sick and its taken that good feeling away as sickness tends to do to all of us at times.   Maybe we are suppose to feel pain in order to appreicate wellness and this life more.
Just imagine , a world with no wars, crime or natural disasters....no sickness, no death,no pollution , no terrorists to frighten us, no blind , no deaf, no lame or crippled, no mourning , no crying or pain.....for the old order of things will have passed away.   

IT SOUNDS WONDERFUL!!!!
To see all our hearts changed and everyone happy and well and together ..... 
 that for sure will be a great day!
           







                                                                                Must be Heaven!                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                         

Doctor and Vertigo

Well went to the doctor about this horrible vertigo that has been a curse on me for over a month. Went to a ENT doctor and they tested my ears, Then had my eyes tested  and then on to a neurologic who after placing a dark mask over my eyes put me down on a table and turned my  head which sent me spinning and screaming! Yes you heard me right.   It was horrible! He set me up fast and I cryed soooo soooo hard.  He said we have to diagnose you to find out the problem and you will have to spin!!   He ask if I wanted to do it again and I said let me calm down first.  I said would try again but results were same.  He quit and said i would have to go back to my doctor and talk about it.  I ask if there was another way like knocking me out and he said no that i would have to keep my eyes open and spin. I ask could you make a good guess and he said no again that he could lose his license if did that.    I would rather die than go through that again.

Well been reading on home remedies and found that I can do a routine and help myself so thats what i am doing.  So today its a good day. I feel sooo good today!!! Only did this routine by Dr. Foster once and it was wonderful!  I hope I continue to get totally better!!  

Another Baby's Day Out

    Well so we think we are waking to just another ordinary day but not so today!!   So it was that we woke up to a ringing of the door bell.  Ed our neighbor came over and said these two kids were in his yard and he thought perhaps they were our grandkids and we said no and he wasn't sure where they came from.

Well  since he was  leaving to take his wife to doctor or somewhere he gave them to us.
 Of course Joey went out around block looking while I kept them busy in the house.  We just thought parents would surely be out there frantic trying to find them. No parents... so we decided we needed  to call the police which was finally what we did.  These boys were adorable!  One had poo pants so I having no daipers here had to get inventive and pinned a dishtowel on him.  I gave them some fruit and they played with our puppy maggie.  A Day out for these two little guys was quite fun! ha!  anyway police came , ask for ID and tryed talking to the oldest, checked them out for abuse and said they looked fine. Finally about two hours in all had passed and their father finally came up the street.  Said he was the father and they had gotten out and no fence in back yard or lock on door, they had just moved in this house.

The thing is they face a busy road so they are lucky their boys didn't go that direction but came our direction.  To make this even more interesting we wake up two days later hearing our door bell ring again and yes, there they were again.  This time I told dad he should not call police but take them home and talk to the parents. He did and told them how to fix the door so they can't

get out again. Wow!  this reminded me of the movie " Baby's Day Out."

Hardest Puzzles

Jen and I are working on the bottom one with cats of course!
And this top one is one of the / hardest puzzle ever!   I think its possibly the hardest puzzle that I have ever worked all by myself!

A Day in the Life of Plo

I have come to love this little guy so much!  For whatever reason Plo loves to hop onto our puzzles when we are working them. So at top I covered it to protect it. ha.  He also loves the Sun that shines in our sunroom.
Not too long ago we were a little worried about him cause he has been acting different and afraid he might have taken into his system something that made him sick. :(
Kept a close eye on him. Took him to Vet but had a bad experience with the guy there.  He tryed getting blood from Plo and went into his foot to do it, not anyplace where soft ..... Plo has had  this done before and they never hurt him or drew it from his foot.  I was sooo upset over this experience and will never use that vet. again.  It was totally uncalled for! Jen suggested doing it in back where its soft ..... now why would a doctor have to be told that! ugh!  I made sure I told the nurse who helped  that it just wasn't right.  No more!
                    Some fun pictures of Plo!!

some of my favorite songs.

Be Still My Soul

If You could Hie to Kolob

FOR THE LOVE OF ANIMALS

   Well for those of you who follow my blog you know we have our Maggie dog and Jen my daughter has her cat Plo and  Kristen my granddaughter has two cats and dog then Valerie my oldest daughter has many pets which include two dogs , three or four cats, and a fat guinea pig which roams the house which might be a bit too much for alot of us. ha!
    Anyway Kristen and I went to the animal shelter today and its really so sad to see all the dogs and cats there without a loving family.  Kristen loves them all so much and it touched me that she feels so strongly about these little creatures that have been placed on the earth for our enjoyment and to be companions
to old and young alike!
                                                     Pictures soon!
I just recently watched a movie called " The Day of the Dog's" it was funny and strange also.
Anyway we all love our pets and when
                                  you get attached they do become family!!

MY YELLOW TREE !!

Wanted a tree with yellow petals like this on left and finally got one going and its starting to take off!
 So  Lovely! Hope mine does well.  will see!
               

I love this!

  Quote by Gordon B. Hinckley

“Let me say that we appreciate the truth in all churches and the good which they do. We say to the people, in effect, you bring with you all the good that you have, and then let us see if we can add to it. That is the spirit of this work. That is the essence of our missionary service”
 
I knew when I heard Bro. Hinckley speak he was a prophet of God!

A Story for You!

Some years ago, President Gordon B. Hinckley told “something of a parable” about “a one room school house in the mountains of Virginia where the boys were so rough no teacher had been able to handle them.

“Then one day an inexperienced young teacher applied. He was told that every teacher had received an awful beating, but the teacher accepted the risk. The first day of school the teacher asked the boys to establish their own rules and the penalty for breaking the rules. The class came up with 10 rules, which were written on the blackboard. Then the teacher asked, ‘What shall we do with one who breaks the rules?’

“‘Beat him across the back ten times without his coat on,’ came the response.

“A day or so later, … the lunch of a big student, named Tom, was stolen. ‘The thief was located—a little hungry fellow, about ten years old.’

“As Little Jim came up to take his licking, he pleaded to keep his coat on. ‘Take your coat off,’ the teacher said. ‘You helped make the rules!’

“The boy took off the coat. He had no shirt and revealed a bony little crippled body. As the teacher hesitated with the rod, Big Tom jumped to his feet and volunteered to take the boy’s licking.

“‘Very well, there is a certain law that one can become a substitute for another. Are you all agreed?’ the teacher asked.

“After five strokes across Tom’s back, the rod broke. The class was sobbing. ‘Little Jim had reached up and caught Tom with both arms around his neck. “Tom, I’m sorry that I stole your lunch, but I was awful hungry. Tom, I will love you till I die for taking my licking for me! Yes, I will love you forever!

President Hinckley then quoted Isaiah:

“Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows. …

“… He was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.”

No man knows the full weight of what our Savior bore, but by the power of the Holy Ghost we can know something of the supernal gift He gave us. In the words of our sacrament hymn:

We may not know, we cannot tell,

What pains he had to bear,

But we believe it was for us

He hung and suffered there^.

Kristen and Grams

This gal comes over and visits dad and I and delights us with her sweetness and we hope she never outgrows wanting to stop by for a quick visit  her old grams and pa. :)

Stacey

Tryed to get this in because it reminded me of Stacey and that I had made her a mermaid outfit once for a school play. If can will try to find the real picture soon and repost it. Stacey enjoyed school and know she did well and had many friends. She was a great help also with Jenny and I remember that Jenny would be so excited when it was time for Stacey to get home from school and Jen and I would rush off to the bus stop to meet Stacey! I will add more pictures here of  those early yrs. of Stacey and Jen together.  The girls all enjoyed themselves back then and Jen had taped them having some fun together while on a road trip.  You got to hear it, so funny!  Love my girls!

Vertigo!

  This is the worse thing ever....  I was sick with vertigo for two wks. and thought it would never go away!  So tough I went into some depression. Why me I thought???     I did not go to the doctor but was ready to throw in the towel and go. I went on the computer and saw the procedure they do and was totally afraid of having them do that to my head because turning my head anyway made me crazy with dizzyness. This was always worse when lying down or turning over in bed. I would wake with a shout!  Then also thought ok this could be my inner ear but felt no pain and so took some ear drops because as a kid I was always having earaches. I would wait and took many pills and tryed things.  Having  gone through this before ( since moved here to Eustis) felt it couldn't last forever but yes this time it did seem forever!!!!  I never ever had it living in Orlando and not even right after we moved here (cause traveled alot then)  but last maybe five  yrs. not sure.   I remember once I went to a walk in client and they said do you live around alot of  trees. I told him yes i did.  He said it could very well be Pollen....Pollen?  never had to worry about that in Pine Hills....so then I tryed many pills and did watch how I slept and  not turning head fast or picking up stuff on floor, that job I gave to Joey.  Yes it finally went away. What a nightmare!   I will put it to the test next yr. and leave the area in late Jan. and Feb.  I cannot go through this again!

This came upon me with a.