When?

Taken from email and added as a special reminder of great days.

Myrna wrote: When are you to be in Utah?

Amy wrote: Ok here are the dates. We arrive into Utah late Friday night on the 14th of June around 1am (so technically Sat morning). We'll spend the day in lake shore for their annual homecoming  celebration since you are at the temple anyway. I suspect we'll head down to Nephi that evening and stay over with you. We'd like to go to church with you but Todd is flying out for Chicago at 4:30 that day (he has to be there for work on Monday morning). What time is your church? I'm crossing my fingers for and early schedule. :)

Todd then flies back to Utah on July 3rd and we head out on Monday the 8th. Leonard let me know about what's happening on the 6th with everyone coming and also swimming at the pool. That will be fun! Do you know if Nephi is doing the fireworks on the 4th this year? We'd love to come down for that if they are. Much better than the mess in Provo!

Also, Tyler has to fly home for a weekend for his jamboree shakedown that is required for him to attend for the jamboree. He flies out on Thurs June 20th and back on Monday the 24th. Kind of crazy but its what we had to do to be able to come out to Utah.

Let me know if there's anything I left out or if the family's doing anything that I should get on my calendar before it starts filling up with everyone clamoring to get on it, lol! Family gets first dibs. :)

Also, sorry if my typing is awful, Tyler has commandeered the computer and I'm on my phone typing with my thumbs. I'm not as good as the teenagers, haha!

Myrna wrote: Good news and bad news: We are doing fireworks in Nephi on the 4th; our church schedule is late. So sorry.  

Amy wrote: Oh dang! Well, at least we can spend the morning with you before we have to get Todd to the airport by 3. 

Myrna wrote: We meet at 1 p.m. for Sacrament meeting. We are over the assisted living center Sacrament meeting for patrons at 9 a.m. It is only a short meeting, songs, a short talk, prayers, the sacrament.

Todd wrote: We'll have to put some more planning to it. I would have to leave Nephi at 1pm at the latest to make my flight.

Myrna wrote: We could go to an earlier ward. Benders said they would gladly sub for us at the assisted living center, if ever needed. We could ask.

Todd wrote: What time do you get home on Saturday from the temple?

Myrna wrote: We leave there at 5 p.m. The last month we have been doing the Adam and Eve part on the 1:30 p.m. session. That takes lets us finish at 3 p.m. Then we sit on the Celestial Floor for one hour. So we have been finishing at about 4:30 p.m. and leaving for home. Do you need us to find subs?

Todd wrote: No. By the time the Lake Shore homecoming is done, you will be home. Would they care if we went to the Resident Home with you for Sacrament meeting in the morning on Sunday? We would have Hailey, I think that would be the only concern since the other two are youth. Emily could sing a song and Tyler could play a song for the sacrament meeting.

Myrna wrote: That would be wonderful. We will arrange it so that you can take care of the meeting. It will be something, I am certain, that our members will enjoy. Thanks for that.

From Gordon Smith

Hi Myrna,

I was reading your email about eating Jell-O powder.  We did that as children.  It brings back fond memories.  It tasted good!

One part of your email where you described eating permanent wave powder reminded me of a story I read.  A quote from your email is below, and my story is below that.

“After we consumed the Jell-O, we all found out that what we had really eaten was permanent wave powder. My goodness! We all had excited adults at that point.”

The story tells of a man and his wife on a trip.  They accidently hit a rabbit while driving.  They stopped to see if the rabbit was ok.  The rabbit appeared dead.  Just then a lady stopped to see if they needed help.  When they explained what had happened, the lady went to her car and came back with a package.  She opened it and placed some of the contents on the rabbit.  The rabbit jumped up and hopped toward the woods.  After a few feet it turned around and waved at them.  It  would then hop a few feet and turn to  wave again.  It did this all the way to the woods.  They asked the lady what she had used to heal the rabbit.  She handed them the package.  On the package was written, “New shampoo formula.  This new shampoo will bring life back to any hair, and your hair will have a permanent wave.”

Oh well, you and Leonard needed something to laugh about after his “Humpty Dumpty” experience.

Lots of love,

Gordon

Gramps' Owie

Dad/Gramps really opened a wound on his right arm yesterday. I tease him that he still thinks that he is age 16. We took the visiting grandchildren--Erin, Donovin, Caydin, Matthew, and Rachel--to the Nebo View Elementary playground (the one on 100 North) and LHT was going to help the grandkids have fun by going on a "spinner" with them. It is a device that has bent upright bars forming a loose cage-like spot for a person to stand or sit and spin around. He was going to demonstrate and was on the device alone. For some reason, LHT's foot slipped off the base and he fell out opening a 6-inch long 2-inch wide cut on his right arm as he hit some part of the equipment as he fell. 

We brought the grandkids to our house, about three blocks away, and LHT thought that I could pull the skin back in place using a pair of tweezers. I thought otherwise. AnnMarie arrived to pick up her two after a day at court (Matthew and Rachel). I had texted her telling her to com to the playground since she was due to arrive at 3 p.m and we went there at 2:30. So I had had Matthew text her to tell her that we were at the house instead. I had stamped my foot and said, "Leonard, we need to go to the doctor's." She, calmly, as befits her profession said, "Dad, there is too much tissue missing." She had to leave to get to Provo for an appointment. Erin, who is now 13, took over with her younger brothers and we headed to the doctor's office. Unknown to us at the time, was that there had been five ambulance runs come into the connected Central Valley Medical Center hospital, also staffed by the doctors at Central Valley Medical Clinic.

When he saw it, Dr. James M. Besendorfer, M.D., called it a "laceration." (I thought it just looked horrible and Dad/Gramps, as usual, thought that I, Myrna, could just fix it. Honestly.) After I watched the doctor take care of it, I likely could have. However, I lacked the prior knowledge and I am happy that we went to the doctor's office. Luckily, they were seeing patents. This happened at about 3 p.m., so the doctor's office was open. It must have been just another "laceration" for the day because the nurse commented that the doctor had "another" one. 

It is a good thing that the doctor and LHT are old friends who have worked on scouting projects together because he just smiled when he heard what had happened. He also knows that LHT is still just age 16 inside. At any rate, he was able to close the wound by carefully pulling the wounded (and purple-hued) skin back over the gapping area where the flesh had been exposed. He did it with a small pair of surgical tweezers, the type with the fine point, and only a small jag along the edge will be left to create a small scar. He sent over to physical therapy and obtained a foam dressing to use which the nurse applied after cleaning the area with saline solution.

The doctor said that the foam dressing is made from polyurethane. The polyurethane contains variably sized small open cells that pull exudate away from the wound bed. The dressing is absorbent and doesn't lint. It will be left in place for 10 days. The doctor will then remove it and see what it looks like. He said that he liked this way of dealing with lacerations. He had removed these types of bandages and found that they were healed. "It is just remarkable," he said. It was a new way of dealing with lacerations and was very successful.

So there you have it, LHT will keep the site dry and will return to the doctor in 10 days. After all that, his blood pressure was still low. I didn't even want them to check mine, though the nurse offered. I was afraid that all the excitement would have had such an effect on me that they would send LHT home and keep me. (Smile.)

We came home, and the kids and I went to order pizza and rent a movie. We had planned to go swimming or go to a movie last night but we stayed home instead. We are so exciting that it scares me. (Of course, you can see that we are not. I am surprised, as boring as we are, that any of the grandkids will even stay with us. As they get to be teens, they usually get to be too busy and those visits slow or stop.) Usually, we take the David Trauntvein kids places like Provo to go shopping or to Lagoon or camping or SOMETHING. This visit, we are just being boring. We have been to Provo and to Brick Oven. Of course, there is a always the appeal of the four-wheeler, the lawn-mower, and the great-outdoors in Nephi. (Hehehe.) 

Mrs. Richards' Treasured Cookies

Mrs. Richards’ Butter Cookies

*3/4 pound butter (three sticks)

4 eggs

2 cups sugar

1/2 cup milk (or fruit juice)

4 teaspoons baking powder

2 teaspoons vanilla

6 cups all-purpose flour (or enough to make a stiff dough)

Cream butter and sugar together until fluffy. Add eggs, milk and

vanilla and beat together. Then add flour and baking powder. Mix well together. THE DOUGH WILL BE SOFT. Let sit for one-half hour. Roll on a lightly floured board to about one-half inch thick. Cut and place on ungreased baking sheet. (I usually cover the baking sheet with parchment paper first.) Bake at 375- to 400-degrees for 5 to 7 minutes or until edges are lightly browned. Remove from baking sheets to wire racks or cloth-covered table-top. Cool slightly. Then frost.

*Three sticks of butter is equal to 1 1/2 cups butter that is not precut. I melt the butter then add the sugar and mix well.

Frosting for Cookies

1 stick butter

1 small package powdered sugar

1 tablespoon milk

1 teaspoon vanilla

Few drops food coloring

Melt the butter and pour over powdered sugar in a medium-sized mixing bowl. Add milk, vanilla and food coloring. Beat until smooth. More milk may be needed but be cautious because it doesn’t take much to make it runny. Spread on cookies and decorate as desired. (Candy hearts for Valentine’s Day, etc.)

Story behind the cookies: My Grandmother Vivian Smith, a teacher, and her parents, the owners of a pharmacy and drug store in Huntington, Utah, were kind and generous to the Mrs. Richards who was the possessor of this recipe during a difficult time in her life. The one thing that she treasured was the recipe for these cookies. Everyone loved them when she made them but she did not share the recipe with any. Community legend had it that her family had baked them for the king before they found themselves as converts to the LDS Church and in Utah. One day, Mrs. Richards came to my Grandmother and told her that she had little to treasure but this recipe. She gave a copy to my grandmother who was allowed to share it with her parents. Mrs. Richards told my grandmother that she could share it with family. Since all are dead now, I do not feel a need to keep it as secret and have shared it a bit more. Grandmother did share it with her sisters-in-law and, through Aunt Pearle Smith, Russ Farrer, her grandson, who baked at Brick Oven in Provo, Utah, for awhile, made these cookies for sale while he was employed there. When he left, he kept the recipe.

Myrna Great-Grandmother Mina Ericksen Pritchett, her daughter Vivian Pritchett Smith, my mother, Elaine Smith Pitts and her sister, Renee Smith Childs, and I have all made these cookies and received countless compliments for them. My children have the recipe. It is still treasured.

I began making these cookies as a child with my grandmother who always made them for Christmas and for Valentine’s Day, as well as for most major holidays, and “just because.”

Depression and Diabetes

Dear Living With Type 2 Diabetes Program Member,

Everyone feels down every once in awhile. But feelings of sadness that just won’t go away could be a sign of depression.  People with diabetes are at greater risk for depression.  Having depression can affect how well you manage your blood glucose, but your blood glucose can also affect your mood.  If you think your blood glucose level is affecting your mood, or if you think you have depression, talk with your health care provider.

Symptoms of Depression

Loss of pleasure – You no longer take interest in doing things you used to enjoy.

Change in sleep patterns – You have trouble falling asleep, you wake often during the night, or you want to sleep more than usual, including during the day.

Early to rise – You wake up earlier than usual and cannot to get back to sleep.

Change in appetite – You eat more or less than you used to, resulting in a quick weight gain or weight loss.

Trouble concentrating – You can’t watch a TV program or read an article because other thoughts or feelings get in the way.

Loss of energy – You feel tired all the time.

Nervousness – You always feel so anxious you can’t sit still.

Guilt – You feel you “never do anything right” and worry that you are a burden to others.

Morning sadness – You feel worse in the morning than you do the rest of the day.

Suicidal thoughts – You feel you want to die or are thinking about ways to hurt yourself.

Learn more about depression and diabetes.

There’s a lot to manage when it comes to diabetes and it can be hard to keep track of all your tests, medicines, and exams.  Let Diabetes 24/7 help.  This tool allows you to communicate your health information with your doctor and anyone else you choose.



Keep track of blood glucose, A1C, blood pressure, cholesterol, weight, physical activity and your medicines.  Check out Diabetes 24/7 today.

From Eva About Richard's Visit

Eva wrote: Congratulations, Myrna, that was good news.  

We had a surprise fabulous weekend.  Richard came home for a surprise visit.  We spent Thursday afternoon together and he went with me to pick out a frame and orer my new glasses. Bless his heart; he paid  for them for me.  Friday evening  he, Jim &^ Karma came and got me then we met David, Eulale , Lynda and Michael at the Olive Garden uptown in Salt Lake where I treated them all to dinner; we had a wonerful time and were grateful Michael felt well enough to come;  he had a total shoulder replacement surgery ten days ago. has his arm in a sling and lot s of pain meds.   He has not been able to be with us for two or more years.  Today Richard picked me up and we went to visit Helen  which was nice.  i have not seen her since she was in th4  hospital .  We went with Jim & Karma and Titan up  to enjoy the afternoon in their beautiful cabin 45 mins up Parley's Canyon in one of the side canyons. Then we went to Jim's where Andraia and Blake had cooked Japanese food .  JD, Angie, Gil and Kaitlyn came; also Barry Jana, David, Eulale, Tiffanie and Adelyn also all came. Richard brought me home then went back to his hotel to get some much needed sleep.  His plan leaves at noon tomorrow. They are still considering doing the Stem Cell transplant. If they do, he will be in the hospital for a month then many months recuperating   We all had such a good time together. Have a good Sabbath.  much love, Eva

To the Elders

This morning, at the assisted living center, where we have been assigned to a one-year mission to provide a sacrament service for the residents there, we had another spiritual experience. Some of the residents are lucid and some are not. Some are in and out of reality. I am always impressed that they can sing the hymns with such gusto, remembering the words, when we have to go from person to person helping them to find the page. A few can find the hymn number on their own but most cannot.

Norma Sherwood is 103-years-old. She has outlived her two daughters and two husbands. Her son-in-law is in terrible health. Her grandkids are good to come and visit from time to time but she really has no one left to care for her. We usually have our pianist choose the hymns for the service, simply because, that way, they will be able to play well. This morning, a young mother in our ward, Rachel Olsen, selected, as the closing hymn, "Nearer My God to Thee." Norma leads the music each Sunday. She sits up front in the room and she does a wonderful job. One nurse tried to tell her that she didn't need to do more than a simple form of leading but Norma would have none of it. She was trained to do it right and she was going to do it right. At any rate, she asked the pianist to wait a minute before beginning to play. She said she wanted to talk about the music for a minute. 

She then told us all of the night the Titanic sunk. The people who were left on board, after the life boats had all been used, knew they were going to die. "They knew that in a few minutes they would all drown, that they were going to die." It would do no good to throw themselves into the ocean because the tow of the sinking ship would draw them under. So they stayed on board on the deck. "Some of them hugged one another. Then they all sang, 'Nearer My God to Thee.' They knew that they were going to die but they sang."  She got a bit teary-eyed telling of that. "When I heard about that, I just cried. I still cry every time I think about those people who knew they were going to die and who sang a hymn."

We then sang the hymn. I had a hard time singing because she had painted such a vivid picture for us all. In fact, while she spoke all of the residents listened and paid attention to all she said. 

Colleen Bender and her husband Russ Bender, who was one of the bishops I served under when I was Relief Society President, were there to assist. Russ was in charge of conducting. Colleen gave the poem from conference that Elder Boyd Packer gave. "In 1992, having served nine years as an Assistant to the Twelve and 22 years as a member of the Twelve, I reached the age of 68. I felt impressed to start what I called an 'Unfinished Composition.'" he said. The residents really enjoyed the poem and laughed in all the right spots. I was impressed.

Colleen, like me, found that she had very tender feelings for the people who are there. These are people in our community who have worked with both Colleen and I in many church callings and in community service over the years. One was a nurse at the hospital, another the county treasurer, another was a county commissioner. One cut my hair many, many years ago. Each one of them is living at the home were they can be assisted with medications and meals. They have formed something of a family and like to be together. It doesn't matter that some do not remember the name of their friend. They take hands and they just enjoy being together.

I was so impressed with the graduations we attended for Dane, last week, and Kyle, on Thursday. I talked about Dane's graduation last week. Kyle was in the symphonic band and in the acappella choir. So he played the opening music in the band and then walked to the other side of the stage to sing. Kyle did well and was in the top 10 percent of his class. the speakers at both events were quite good. Last year, the school board member who spoke at Kyle's school had droned on and on. The speaker this year must have decided that he could win the next election more easily if he gave a short address and got on with it.

Dane's class was about 100 and Kyle's was about 500. Just marching that many people across the stage and saying something about them while the are introduced takes enough time so that no one wants to listen to a school board member go on and on about the greatness of the educational system in Utah. Both graduations were held at UVU. Dane's in the grand ballroom and Kyle's in the basketball arena.

 Erin, Donovin and Caydin will be with us for a week. They will be coming tomorrow. David and Bree are going to serve and best man and matron of honor for two of their friends who are getting married. Julie is bringing her kids over on Wednesday for Stephanie to celebrate her birthday. Siovhan's and Michael's are all within a few days of each. 

This morning, at stake general priesthood meeting, they introduced 14 young men who had just graduated from high school and who have received their mission calls. They then had them all sing a hymn. Gramps said it was a wonderful experience.

Well, we love our missionary grandson. (Well we do have two and will soon have three.) You know that we pray for you and that I keep your name on the temple prayer roll. Both Gramps and I are so proud of the great work that you are doing. We are thankful for the many tender mercies that our Father in Heaven is showing to you (and to your cousin). We are so thankful for you.

Special to Michael: We hope that your birthday card arrived on time and in good shape. We hope that the birthday is one of the best ever.

News From Eva

Congratulations, that was good news.

We had a surprise fabulous weekend.  Richard came home for a surprise visit.  We spent Thursday afternoon together and he went with me to pick out a frame and order my new glasses. Bless his heart; he paid  for them for me.  Friday evening  he, Jim & Karma came and got me then we met David, Eulale, Lynda and Michael at the Olive Garden uptown in Salt Lake where I treated them all to dinner; we had a wonerful time and were grateful Michael felt well enough to come;  he had a total shoulder replacement surgery ten days ago. has his arm in a sling and lots of pain meds.   He has not been able to be with us for two or more years.  Today Richard picked me up and we went to visit Helen  which was nice.  i have not seen her since she was in the  hospital.  We went with Jim & Karma and Titan up  to enjoy the afternoon in their beautiful cabin 45 mins up Parleys Canyon in one of the side canyons.   Then we went to Jim's where Andraia and Blake had cooked Japanese food .  JD., Angie, Gil and Kaitlyn came; also Barry Jana, David, Eulale, Tiffanie and Adelyn also all came. Richard brought me home then went back to his hotel  to get some much needed sleep.  His plane leaves at noon tomorrow. They are still considering doing the Stem Cell transplant. If they do, he will be in the hospital for a month then many months recuperating. We all had such a good time together.   Have a good Sabbath.  Much love, Eva

Picnic

While I ended up sick on Memorial Day itself, the Sunday afternoon that we decorated graves for the Smith grandparents, my mom, a Childs family ancestor, and the Smith aunts and uncles in the Evergreen Cemetery, was a good day. (Jim also has an ancestor buried nearby.)

Many hands made short work of the weeding and clean-up. Shawn had brought some gas-run garden tools which helped. The plots looked lovely when we were done.

We ended up having a tailgate picnic at roadside where my Smith family is buried. 

Toren warned us that we should not eat at the cemetery. He said it was just not a good idea so he sat in the car after the decorating was done. 

However, the other members of his family did join in. They had not received the memo that there would be a picnic so they mostly had dessert. The Jones and Howards did eat and they all remained well and healthy in spite of Toren's warning. There were others there who also had  picnics near other plots. I don't know how they fared. Shawn ended up being ill. I did fine until the next day when the bladder infection I had got much worse. 

Your dad's father (Henry) always told him to never take anything away from a cemetery because it was not good to do so. LHT and I had quite a discussion about the time I brought some sod pieces I had dug up and put them on the north side of our house. No one ever told me not to eat there. I think, however, that my relatives would not have an objection. They all liked picnics, to the best of my recollection. We certainly had enough of them as I was growing up.

When we used to decorate graves when I was a child, we would always end up at Uncle Fred and Aunt Pearle's house. There we would have a backyard picnic, if the weather was good. They had a wonderful backyard--green lawns and wonderful bushes. We would always have a wonderful time.

I give you all permission to have a picnic near my grave when I have joined the Smiths in that spot.

From Melanie to Myrna (A Reply to Help)

So...remember when I was a teenager and we would occasionally find ourselves watching television together? You would cry when certain commercials came on. Every time we watched the Kleenex commercial, you cried...I mean EVERY time. I said something to you one time and you got up, angry with me because I told you that you had seen the commercial about fifty times, and you didn't need to cry over it anymore. I think I said something like, "Oh, my, gosh...get over it all ready." You cried more. Before you stormed off you said something along the lines of, "I can't wait until you have children, and the doctors hook your tear ducts up." I think you prayed for that...because it happened. :)

What you are telling me sounds like the Mom I remember from my youth. Not someone who is weak, just someone who is connected. I would rather you cry, than not feel connected. As for the worry part...I think Grandma Smith told you that you were a ninety year old woman who worried too much, and you were a young mother at the time. Old dogs continue to perform their old tricks? You can dress a monkey in pearls and a skirt and it's still a monkey? Even when you took Zoloft you worried....

As to the Elderly. We are supposed to feel for them. President Monson still tears up when he talks of his visits with his 85 widows. He talks tenderly of them and about them. We don't need to worry for them though. I believe the Lord has them here to teach us lessons, like he does of the mentally handicapped. We know they are precious in the sight of God. They are being reserved here on earth to earn their bodies. Maybe their spirits need more time for refinement...we will know all things soon enough. For now, enjoy them. 

One time when I was holding Dorothy H.'s hand, I was talking with her and telling her about my busy morning. She hasn't been able to talk for ten years. While I was explaining to her why I not as happy as usually, she looked in to my eyes, gave my hand the biggest squeeze that she had been able to ever give, and smiled. I looked in to her beautiful blue eyes, and the spirit bore testimony to me that God knew her. I then had the impression that I was supposed to tell her that. I said, "Dorothy, I know God loves you. He is mindful of you and He hasn't forgotten you." She started to cry. I started to cry. Whenever I walked in the room after that, she would find me and hold my hand. I still cry when I think of that moment. Whenever I was with those people, I treasured my time. I would be so sad when I would go in one day, and find out that one of my best friends had died. At first it affected me greatly, then I realized how happy they were to be rid of that infirm body and to once again be reunited with spouses and children who had passed on before. 

In the research that I have done, the music that we have loved for years and sung for years: hymns, Primary songs, patriotic songs, etc. are keys to unlocking the mind. There were many patients that I worked with that were content to sit and observe, not being able to speak or communicate in any way, but as soon as I started singing songs from the 40s or 50s, hymns or play songs, there would be a spark in their eyes, and they would start moving their hands and singing along. When I was singing to a woman named Rita, she started singing with me. Her daughter, who visited multiple times a week, walked in, stopped and listened to us (I couldn't see her, she was behind me). Rita looked up to her and sang her a song. The daughter commenced to sob. It was the first time in years that she had heard anything other than babbles coming from her mom. The daughter continues to sing to her mom daily as part of their morning routine, and they share many smiles and hugs afterward. 

I have been studying about hope. There is so little of it in our world anymore...and because their is so little, people despair. 

Elder Uchtdor spoke in the April 2013 General Conference about Hope. 
"There may be some among you who feel darkness encroaching upon you. You may feel burdened by worry, fear, or doubt. To you and to all of us, I repeat a wonderful and certain truth: God’s light is real. It is available to all! It gives life to all things. It has the power to soften the sting of the deepest wound. It can be a healing balm for the loneliness and sickness of our souls. In the furrows of despair, it can plant the seeds of a brighter hope. It can enlighten the deepest valleys of sorrow. It can illuminate the path before us and lead us through the darkest night into the promise of a new dawn.

"This is 'the Spirit of Jesus Christ,' which gives 'light to every man that cometh into the world.' Nevertheless, spiritual light rarely comes to those who merely sit in darkness waiting for someone to flip a switch. It takes an act of faith to open our eyes to the Light of Christ. Spiritual light cannot be discerned by carnal eyes. Jesus Christ Himself taught, 'I am the light which shineth in darkness, and the darkness comprehendeth it not.' For 'the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.'

"...The very moment you begin to seek your Heavenly Father, in that moment, the hope of His light will begin to awaken, enliven, and ennoble your soul. The darkness may not dissipate all at once, but as surely as night always gives way to dawn, the light will come....Lift up your soul in prayer and explain to your Heavenly Father what you are feeling. Acknowledge your shortcomings. Pour out your heart and express your gratitude. Let Him know of the trials you are facing. Plead with Him in Christ’s name for strength and support. Ask that your ears may be opened, that you may hear His voice. Ask that your eyes may be opened, that you may see His light" ("The Hope of God's Light," Ensign, May 2013, 75). 

"Hope is a thing with feathers, that perches in the heart." ~ Emily Dickinson

Allow yourself to feel hope. Mom...worry about the things you can change. AnnMarie will tell you that. I know she worries, but she knows that she is one person who can only do so much, and where she falls short, she asks for God's help. Wherever you don't feel like you have hope, it is the adversary working on you. Where faith and hope are, fear and doubt can not reside. Instead of gardening a weed bed of fear and doubt, plant flowers of hope and faith. Hope on. 

Love you much!

Mel