2009 Top Ten

Dr. T's Top 10 Highlights from 2009 (in no particular order and there are more than ten good things that happened to me this year)

• Spending time with family. This doesn't happen nearly often enough.
  
  
• A summer trip to Boston with Ms. L. Visiting the Joseph Smith birthplace in Sharon, Vermont; touring the Ben and Jerry's factory; attending a Red Sox game; eating cannoli; Boston Pops 4thof July; biking Martha's vineyard.
  
  
• Serving on the BYU Women's Conference committee. I have met some fabulous women; my spirit has been lifted and my testimony has been strengthened each Friday morning.
  
  
• Finally putting siding on my house so it is no longer dark brown.
  
  
• Going to Atlanta in October to do a training for CDC and being able to see dear friends whom I dearly miss.
  
  
• Attending the social marketing conference in Florida. It was surreal to have one of the presenters cite an article I had written. Am I really that grown up?
  
  
• Regular MRIs show that Mr. J's tumor hasn't grown.
  
  
• I moved to a new office, though larger is still sans window.
  
  
• Having cousins, who attend BYU, over for dinner occasionally. I enjoy having them come eat and play games.
  
  
• A new calling as Relief Society president that is causing me to stretch and grow in ways I had not imagined.

Christmas 2009

This is the first Christmas in about five years that I haven't spent it with my sister. I went through withdrawals. Nevertheless, we had a good time.
On Christmas Eve my parents and I met my sister and her kids at Maddox for lunch. It was a beautiful sunny day. The food was yummy. It made the day go by faster for the kids (and adults). And of course they liked that they could get their Christmas presents from me.




Christmas morning we had breakfast with Uncle Sam and Aunt JoAnne. That afternoon my brother and sister-in-law and their kids Ms. E and Mr P. came for a visit.



Us red-heads have to stick together. Though something happened when I turned 40 and my hair isn't as red as it used to be.


Ms. E has her daddy wrapped around her finger-- real tight.

Grandma playing "Pop the Pig" with Ms. E, Mr. P and my sister-in-law.
My mom and I like to put together puzzles. This year I chose one from Thomas Kincade called "Flags over the Capitol." It is a beautiful picture but a very difficult puzzle. I left it for my mom to finish.


Last Christmas Eve, Ms. K whispered in my ear "It is such an exciting night." That is exactly how I felt on December 17th. I found another piece of a family history information I had been searching for. I think that the reason I like doing family history research is that it is like putting together pieces of the puzzle and seeing how everything comes together. I can easily spend hours searching for people in census records, newspapers, and other documents.

But, my new calling in Relief Society is going to put all my extra-curricular activities on hold. I am overwhelmed yet honored with the opportunity to serve. I find myself praying a lot more often. My devotional topic of "Strengthened by the Hand of the Lord" has taken on all new meaning.

Life is Good!

It's Better to Give...

My nephew Mr. J is in the 6th grade. Every morning he gets on the bus at 6:30 to go to school. For Christmas, the bus driver gave every student on his bus $5. Apparently it is a tradition he has done for years. At school some people came around and asked if anyone wanted to donate to the local food bank. Mr. J donated his $5. What a kid. I could learn a thing or two from him! He knows something about loving and giving...

My Destiny

In the movie, Forrest Gump, Forrest asks his mother, "Mamma, what is my destiny?"

Yesterday I was sustained as the Relief Society President in our ward (a ward is a congregation of church members). All women age 18 and older are members of the Relief Society. For our ward that is about 120 women. In the last 23 years I have served in seven different presidencies- three times in college and four since then. This is opportunity number eight. I think that MY destiny is to serve in Relief Society.

I love Relief Society. I think the love started in college. In my Relief Society service I was mentored by women who had years of experience. They knew and understood what Relief Society was all about.

When the Relief Society was organized on March 17, 1842, the Prophet Joseph Smith taught that the Relief Society was organized for “the relief of the poor, the destitute, the widow and the orphan” and that the Relief Society was “not only to relieve the poor, but to save souls.” In the last 168 years, our purpose is the same. Julie B. Beck, General Relief Society President, reiterated in September 2009 that the purpose of Relief Society is to prepare the sisters for eternal life by helping them: 1) increase faith and personal righteousness, 2) strengthen home and family, 3) serve the Lord and His children.

I am overwhelmed and honored with this opportunity to serve the Lord. I know God lives. I know Jesus Christ, whose birth we celebrate this season, also lives. And I choose to serve in Relief Society because I love them. As King Benjamin said in the Book of Mormon, "When ye are in the service of your fellow beings ye are only in the service if your God."

Merry Christmas! Life is Good.

O Christmas Tree....

Yesterday I went Christmas shopping in Salt Lake. I really don't like shopping. It is one of my least favorite ways to spend my time, unless I am in an antique store or browsing at a bookstore. I went to the Gateway because it has two of my favorite stores-- Coldwater Creek and Barnes and Noble. At the Gateway there is this Christmas tree near the Olympic fountain that changes colors. I took this video with my phone camera, which is low quality, but at least you can see how cool it is. If you are in Utah, you should really go check it out.

Mazza...Memories...Merriment

Tonight was my annual holiday dinner with my friends in SLC. Last year we went to Cucina Toscana. That was the best Italian food I've had since Italy. This year we went to Mazza Cafe on 9th and 9th. Mazza serves middle eastern cuisine and has won the SLC magazine "best middle eastern restaurant" multiple times. On the menu was a falafel sandwich so I knew I had to get it. I have been craving a falafel for 21 years-- since I returned from Jerusalem. As soon as I took a bite of the falafel I was transported back in time. The flavor and the spices were just perfect. YUM!!! The owner also gave us a sampler of appetizers, on the house. My favorite was the grape leaves and the humus with pita.

It was great to see Becky and Rhonda. Lynne was sick so couldn't make it. They are the kind of friends that though months go by without seeing each other you can pick up right where you left off. They are the best! It was a fun night and great way to celebrate the holidays.

Life is Good!

Christmas... It's about Family

Tonight we had our annual Christmas party with the cousins who attend BYU.
We ate yummy food, played our traditional round of Christmas BINGO with gifts from the dollar store, and laughed a lot.
This is one of my favorite parties of the season!
They were so thoughtful and gave me a gift certificate to Tomassos! Yum. Thanks much! Love you guys!

Women's Conference Christmas

This year (and next) I am serving on the BYU Women's Conference committee. This assignment has been the highlight of my year. I love Friday morning meetings with these women (and lunch afterward). Most of them served on the committee last year, so already knew each other, but they have welcomed me with open arms. They are incredible women. Last night we had a Christmas party.
We were to bring our favorite Christmas salad or Dessert. I made St. Nicholas cookies. I wasn't sure how they would turn out, but after one cookie sheet of over baked, one of rolled too thin, I finally got the thickness and the cooking time right. They are my favorite cookie and remind me of my mom.








Joann N.

Shirley K. and Me

Ann T. and Joleen B.

Amy S., Chelita P., Melanie A.


One group of us...

Lorraine H. and Carrie J.

Diane H. and Noreen P.

The Hostess- Diane C. We were colleagues at BYU until she retired last year.

Jean W. (who really keeps Women's Conference organized) Ann H., Ann T.

Julene B. (photographer) and Joy W.

Home...For the Holidays

My parents came to visit this weekend. We went to the BYU Christmas concert. I was really looking forward to it, but the music wasn't as good as in years past. The first half of the program I think they forgot that Christmas should be JOYFUL. They could take some tips from the Morehouse-Spelman Christmas concert. Now they know how to sing! Nevertheless, it was good to have them here for a day.

Knowing they were coming, I tried to put out some of my Christmas decorations. The tree still isn't up. As we reminisced about the origins of various decorations I realized that everything (except one) is something my mom or sister has made me. They are both so talented. My talents are in other areas. I am good at finding patterns and they are good at making them. In fact, we found another one last night at Deseret Book.

This quilt was made by Mom.
These rolly-polly Mr. and Mrs. Santa we made years ago when I was in college.


My sister made these JOY blocks last year.
My sister also painted this "Snow Greetings."
My mom made this table topper for both my sister and me. We found the pattern on a trip to Nauvoo when we stopped in Hannibal, MO. Love it!

My dad made the post. The stockings were made by my mom. The red felt one was my first Christmas stocking. I will always have my mom's handwriting, becuase the name in cursive is her writing.
This wall-hanging my mom made. I found the pattern at Mormon Handicraft in Salt Lake City when it was located where the Conference Center sits now.


My sister made this "Jingle all the Way"
I am so blessed by the talents of my mom and sister! Life is Good! Happy Holidays.

What I did on my Thanksgiving Vacation

Discovered a new ice cream that is going to be a contender with "Chubby Hubby" for favorite ice cream. So yummy!!


Painted Christmas ornament sun catchers with the kids.

Lost Five Crowns more spectacularly than ever before. I usually do lose, but not this bad. I think I have really bad luck. Or maybe I should play other games.

A picture of the winner (smile), loser (frown), and those in the middle (no expression). This pose was Ms. K's idea. She is the resident photographer.


Ate lots of yummy food. Most people have one, maybe two desserts. We had two types of pumpkin pie, pecan tarts, mince pie, and German chocolate cake.


Asked my niece Ms. C what it would take to get her to come to BYU. I'm thinking a boy named Mr. A has more influence than me :) Notice the whipped cream on the cake. And the Parrott family in Atlanta thought I was crazy for putting cream on pecan pie!


Celebrated my brother's birthday. Hence the German chocolate cake-- his favorite.


Had a girls day out with my mom. We went to Rainbow Gardens. Rainbow Gardens used to be a swimming pool (in the 1960's) and a bowling alley. Now it is a gift shop and restaurant. Rainbow Gardens is one of my favorite places to shop because they have really unique gifts. Usually we go shopping here the day after Christmas because every thing is half-price. We did find these really cute ornaments. We bought four to put in each of my parent's windows. They look "super-duper" cute in person.After shopping and realizing our taste far exceed our budgets we had lunch at the Greenery (located at Rainbow Gardens). It was a fun afternoon with my mom.

I am Grateful For...

G- Gospel of Jesus Christ. It gives my life meaning, purpose, and direction.

R- Relationships. I am surrounded by incredible people at work and in my neighborhood. I am blessed by their association.

A- Airplanes. I love to travel and am grateful that I don't have to drive to many destinations.

T- Temple. The Mt. Timpanogos celestial room is my favorite place on earth.

E- Exercise. Our bodies are amazing.

F- Family. I am grateful for parents who love each other and who love me. I am grateful for siblings who have children so that I can be the favorite aunt.

U- University. I am grateful for the opportunity for a university education and the continuing opportunity to work at BYU.

L- The little things like food, clothes, electricity, clean water, comfortable bed, and heat (my friend Karen's daughter is in China. The government controls when the heat is turned on. It just got turned on this week-- she has been freezing!).

Life is Good.

Grateful to be Tired

I spent several hours yesterday raking leaves and working in my yard. I did manage to get all the leaves bagged before the wind blew too hard and any storm came. I went to bed physically exhausted. My body hurts this morning. It feels good to be physically tired for a change, instead of just emotionally drained from 8 (or 9-10) hours of work. I am grateful to have a physical body that moves.
Life is Good.

Christmas Wish List

My dream job is to travel the world and eat at fabulous restaurants. This book would probably be a good place to start.

Perspective

I went to a wedding reception tonight. The bride is 27 and the groom 23. They did a program at the start of the reception which included a slide show about their life. The bride said that she had cried many tears wondering if she would ever meet "prince charming." PLEASE!! She is only 27. If she was almost 42, then I may have had some sympathy for her. I guess it is all about perspective. In the big scheme of things-- 27 is so young! Her comment reminded me of my students who come to my office and wonder what they are going to do with their life because they are in their early 20s, graduating from college, and they are not married. What ever happened to having a plan for your life and following that plan, and in the process being open to the Lord's guiding hand? That sounds like a reasonable approach. What do you think?

Life is Good!

Grateful Once Again

I have to talk in church on Sunday. The topic is "Living in Thanksgiving Daily." I admit, I've been having a hard time feeling grateful the last couple of days. It doesn't make for a good state of mind to develop a talk about gratitude. But then today a friend brought me a piece of peanut butter fudge from the BYU Bookstore. It was medicine to help me feel better. And, it worked. I think it worked not so much because of the tasty chocolate and peanut butter, but it because of what the gesture meant-- that someone was thinking about me and cared enough to do something nice.

One of the things I am talking about on Sunday is "opening our arms" to reach and help others in need and expressing thanks. Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin stated, "every time we cheer another's heart, every time we ease another's burden, every time we lift a weary hand, we show our gratitude to that God to whom we owe all that we have and all that we are."

Tonight I made a list of all the people in my neighborhood who have been so good to me in the last seven years. I have really been blessed. I need to do more to "open my arms."

BYU Devotional

A couple of weeks ago I received a call from the BYU vice-president's office. Being contacted by the VPs office always initiates lots of questions in my mind-- mainly, "what could this possibly mean." After playing phone tag, we finally connected and he asked me to speak at devotional next semester. As my dad said, "You?!?" Yes, me.

After worrying for a few days and developing cold sores due to the stress, I told myself that I wasn't going to worry about it until the official letter arrived in the mail. It arrived last Friday. And today my name appears in the university's devotional calendar along with some other very distinguished guests. So I guess it is official. I've started to identify a topic and outline a talk. It will probably take me two months to get ready. And yes, Jill, if you come to listen you can sit on the playing floor in the cushy seats.


Life is Good.

Grateful

Earlier this year one of our students was in a skiing accident that left her paralyzed. She has since returned to school and is in a wheelchair. I have only talked to her once. A few weeks ago she was waiting to use the handicap stall in the restroom while a dance student used it as a changing room (despite numerous signs telling students to not use the restroom as a changing room). She recognized me from a poster in the hallway. We briefly chatted. After this I promised myself that I would not be so thoughtless and use a handicap stall again.

Anyway, I saw this student again tonight. I was leaving work in my car and making a right hand-turn at the intersection. I was in a hurry to get home because I needed to exercise before going to a baby shower. At the intersection there is a dip between the end of the sidewalk and the road. She was at the bottom and appeared to be straining to get the wheels started and going and up the slight incline. My mind raced back to earlier in the day when I had easily walked across campus to the Marriott Center to listen to devotional, and then up to the Wilkinson Center twice. It hit me how blessed I am to walk with relative ease. I wonder what our student will do when winter comes. I can't imagine that getting around in a wheelchair in 3 inches of snow would be very fun.

I wonder if there are ever days that she wishes she had the use of her legs again. She is a source inspiration. I wonder how many people would return to school after a life-altering accident? I am sure she is more dedicated than many other students who have full use of their legs.

I am grateful to walk! Life is good.

Grateful

It is November and the beginning of the holiday season. Yeah!! Each day I am trying to think of one thing for which I am grateful. Here are three things on the top of my list this week:

1- Loyal friends. I am grateful for friends that last through the ups and downs of life. It is comforting to know that no matter what happens, that if you say or do stupid things, or if your emotions get out of control, that they understand you and stand by you. Loyal friends are the best.

2- Cross references in scriptures. It is so much easier to study the scriptures using the footnotes. I am grateful for all those people who were involved in this project. I remember when my dad got a book that was called "Topical Guide." How great it is to have the topical guide right in the Bible and Book of Mormon. These cross-references are coming in handy as I try to prepare a BYU devotional talk for February.

3- Sight. One of my favorite things about fall is the changing color of leaves. On the path I walk each day there is a Japanese Maple that is still displaying vibrant red leaves. So beautiful. I am grateful I can see.

Life is Good.

It Doesn't Get Much Better Than This...

Dear Rosemary,
You are the best aunt in the world. I LOVE YOU so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so much. Do you love me? Love Ms. K

Women and Education- Three Cups of Tea

There are two things in life that I feel passionate about:

1) The Gospel of Jesus Christ;

2) Education for Women.

Today on campus we had the opportunity listen to Greg Mortensen, author of "Three Cups of Tea." It was one of the most inspiring talks I have heard in a long time (not counting General Conference). I think that every student at BYU should have been required to attend.

A few years ago a friend gave me a copy of Parade Magazine with the cover story of Greg Mortensen. I was so impressed with his efforts to build schools in Afghanistan so girls could be educated. His premise is that it will only be through the education of girls, who grow up to be women who then influence their families, that peace will come to the region. He said the militants tend to target youth, who are not connected to families, as new recruits. This is because educated mothers will not allow their sons to join the militants. Of course there are several other major benefits to educated women, including improved health status and lower infant mortality.

Education is such a privledge. I don't think that most students that I interact with on a daily basis appreciate what an incredible opportunity they have to be at a university and at BYU specifically. At times I feel like they are just enduring my class, or the semester, or college in general. There are people all over the world that would love to have the experiences of BYU students.

If I had one wish, it would be for women to take their education seriously. Having an education prepares you for whatever life will bring and whatever roles you will have. And education opens so many doors and provides you with so many options. When you have an education you can choose where, when, and at times how much, you work. An education allows you to work at a career that produces income so you can provide for yourself. There is nothing more satisfying and rewarding than to know that you are self-sufficient and do not have to rely on others for the basic necessities of life.

Life is so good. We are so blessed!

"Add or Find Husband"

I was exploring the New Family Search site tonight. My own name came up, along with my parents and grandparents. Interesting to see yourself as part of a database. Anyway, next to my name were two options that said "add or find a husband." Hum... If it were only that easy.
Maybe I should have clicked on "find" to see what my options would have been. :)

Life is Good.

On Baseball

My brother and I have been cheering for the Angels. My nephew and sister-in-law are cheering for the Yankees. Unfortunately, last night the game in NY got rained out. It is rescheduled for today. I receive a text message from my brother this afternoon. The conversation goes like this:

D: Only 3 hours until the game

Me: Yeah. Too bad I won't be watching it.

D: Why?

Me: Because I choose to not watch TV on Sunday. (see my earlier post about the Sabbath)

D: Listen to the radio.

That made me laugh out loud. He has always been the one with the sense of humor in our family and makes me laugh. I wish I had more of his personality.

Latest Reads...

In an effort to spend time doing things I enjoy, I've increased my reading. I'd much rather read than watch a movie or the television.
Here is a list of my reads in the last few months. They are not in any particular order, though the ones at the top half I really liked and the last two were my least favorite.

The Help
Kathryn Stockett

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society
Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows

The Undaunted
Gerald Lund

Have a Little Faith
Mitch Albom

Sarah's Key
Tatania de Rosnay

The Whiskey Rebels
David Liss

Astrid and Veronika
Linda Olsson

The Hourglass Door
Lisa Mangum

A Good Deeds Day

I've been sick since Saturday (fighting it since Wednesday).

This morning I received an email from my friend Vicki. She offered to bring me dinner and go to the grocery store. I told her that I would feel better by tonight and politely declined her offer.

She responded by saying that she was going to me me something to eat for lunch and to let her know what I needed at the store. She finished by asking what time would be convenient to drop by and to give her a list for the grocery store. "This assignment is NOT optional" she said.

I got back from ATL on Sunday, so I had not been to the grocery store in over a week and was running low on milk and eggs. So I relented and let Vicki serve me. Being "fiercely independent" it is hard to receive service. As I sat down and ate the yummy plate of food that Vicki brought I was so grateful for her kindness. It was the best food I'd eaten since Saturday night.

Tonight I called my mom to report in. It doesn't matter that I am a grown woman, my mom still worries about me. And to be truthful, it is nice to know that someone cares how I am feeling. She told me that today she called her neighbor who lives up the street. She had not seen her at church on Sunday and was worried about her. Come to find out, their whole family is sick. After some initial resistance, this woman agreed to let mom bring her some food. Mom took soup, homemade bread, cold cereal and fruit. What an interesting coincidence-- as someone was serving me, my mom was serving someone else in need. And that is what life is all about-- looking out for each other.

I [heart] ATL

As the airplane approached the Atlanta airport, I thought "Ah...I'm home." I think I am a Southern girl at heart. I've loved reading Southern Living magazine for years (even before I moved there). The year I spent living there was incredible-- I consider it one of God's tender mercies. So when I was contacted to see if I would do a training for CDC, I said yes because I knew it would be a chance to go South, see my friends, and eat good food!

On Wednesday I had dinner with Patsy. She is the one who helped find my apartment in a great location. She is undergoing chemo, again, but maintains a positive attitude.

On Thursday I met Nikki for a brief lunch. Nikki was one of my students several years ago. She works at CDC. Thursday night I met Jennifer and Sylvester for dinner at Twist. Jennifer was a student my first year at BYU. She is expecting her first baby next month.

On Friday I met Bob and Ann at The Loop for lunch. Bob and Ann were colleagues of mine during my stay at CDC/NCHM. Unfortunately Betsy couldn't make it and Galen was out of town. I had the Gorgonzola walnut salad: mixed seasonal greens, roma and sun-dried tomatoes, red onions, walnuts and gorgonzola cheese tossed in balsamic vinaigrette. So tasty!

Friday night I met Gayle, Sandy, Lazette, RuthAnn, and Peggy for dinner at L'Thai. L'Thai serves organic Thai food. So good-- definitely the best Thai food I have eaten. These are some of my favorite women. They make me laugh-- and I need to laugh more. I feel blessed by their association.

Saturday I took a short drive to the Georgia Apple Festival in Ellijay. It was definitely a small-town celebration! I met the Moores from North Carlonia. They make Shaker brooms and boxes. I was so intrigued by their handiwork. I bought one of their boxes and will cherish it for life. I ate a fresh fried apple pie and an apple dumpling with vanilla ice cream. Not the most healthy breakfast and lunch. The Prichett Gold apples right off the tree were so sweet and crispy. I wish I could buy them here.

Saturday night I met Stephanie, my Italy trip companion, for dinner at Portofino. I ordered the soup of the day, a white bean and vegetable soup and then the scottish salmon with maple glaze, and parsnip and pancetta risotto. Soooo yum.

When I retire, my dream job is to travel the world, eat at great restaurants and write reviews. I think it would be a fabulous adventure. I've already become a restaurant snob!

So, I still [heart] ATL. The trip was wonderful. The only bad part was coming home with a cold. I'm just glad I survived the training before the cold went full-blown. Another tender mercy.

Life is Good.

Being Undaunted

I'm reading Gerald Lund's novel The Undaunted. It is about the Mormon pioneers who left the comforts of their homes to settle the southeastern part of Utah. This call to move came after many of them had endured the hardships of crossing across the plains years earlier, some in wagons, some walking, and some pulling handcarts.

Last night I was reading about Jens Nielsen (a real person whose story is in this book). While crossing the plains one of his sons died. Jens' feet were so badly frostbitten that they never healed. On the night his son died, he was the only man to help put up their large, 20 man tent. The other four men had died. The women weren't strong enough to help. It was snowing and very cold. The ground was frozen solid so no tent stakes would go in. He said, "When it looked like we all should die, I offered a prayer to my Heavenly Father. I said that if the Lord would let me live to reach Salt Lake City, then all the rest of my days should be spent trying to be of use to Him under the direction of the priesthood."

I would like to think that if I was one of the pioneers crossing the plains in such harsh and unfavorable circumstances that I would have been as faithful and faith-filled as Jens Nielson. But I am not so sure I could have done it. Maybe that is why the Lord let me come to earth today-- He knew I couldn't endure an earlier time.

Many days I feel like the woman in this picture by Al Rounds. The picture hangs on my bedroom wall. It reminds me of a time when we did a pioneer reenactment trek at Martin's Cove. It was one of those moments when I was reminded that God is mindful of me as an individual.



At church today something was said that bothered me. I guess it was because I was feeling like the girl in the handcart picture. Later, in Sunday school, I was asked to read this quote by Elder Ballard: "We are the inheritors of a tremendous heritage. Now it is our privilege and responsibility to be part of the Restoration's continuing drama, and there are great and heroic stories of faith to be written in our day. It will require every bit of our strength, wisdom, and energy to overcome the obstacles that will confront us. But even that will not be enough. We will learn, as did our pioneer ancestors, that it is only in faith-- real faith, whole-souled, tested and tried-- that we will find safety and confidence as we walk our own perilous pathways through life."

I was so touched by that Elder Ballard's message. I hope that I will have the strength, wisdom, and energy to overcome the obstacles that I will undoubtedly face in my life. I hope that one day my nieces and nephews and their children will tell stories about me and my undaunted faith. I hope that one day I will be a source of inspiration for someone to keep going, to be faithful, even when it is snowing, cold, and the ground is too frozen for tent stakes.

Life is Good.

Life and Plan B

The last few days our Women's Conference committee members have been having a discussion about helping women find joy when life doesn't turn out like they thought it would/should (Plan A). One woman said that it is all about Plan B and finding joy in Plan B. I completely agree.

This week I've had a woman in my office not sure what to do since the relationship she was in ended, so "now what?" I see so many young women who don't have a plan past college. Then there was another student who informed me that she and her husband were trying to have a baby next July, so she needed to do her internship sooner. That was just a little TMI (too much information). As my sister, who has a little experience in this area, said "I hope she isn't disappointed if all doesn't go according to plan. Maybe someone should let her know that." I had the same thought, but then decided it would be best to let her learn about Plan B.

When I was at the bookstore today, I saw this display with notecards, post-it pads and wall hangings that included the saying for "Life is all about how you handle Plan B," and I had to get one. My wall handing doesn't look like this, but the message is the same. You can see this and more uplifting "sisterhood" items at www.suzytoronto.com

Life is Good-- Even when you are living Plan B.

Marathons and Life's Journey

One of my colleagues ran the St. George marathon last weekend. I asked him how he did. His reply was that he was within 20 seconds of his previous times. (I still don't get the thrill of running 26.2 miles on more than one occasion.) Nevertheless, he went on to explain that he had even followed the training schedule of the man that won with a time of about 2:20.

As I listened to him, I realized that life is often like his marathon experience. We are each on this journey of life. We notice others doing certain things that appear to be working pretty well. We decide that maybe if it works for them, then it should work for us too-- so we adopt their lifestyle, or at last adapt ours to mirror theirs.

But the reality is, we are all unique individuals. What works for one individual or family doesn't necessarily work for another. For example, some parents may choose to have their children wear their church clothes all day Sunday in an effort to remind them that the Sabbath day is a holy day. In my family that didn't work. We didn't have a lot of money when I was young. My mom's philosophy was that she wanted us to keep our Sunday clothes clean, looking nice, and lasting as long as possible. So in our family as soon as we got home from church we had to change out of our Sunday clothes.

Does that mean I don't keep the Sabbath day holy today. No. I just choose to do it in more comfortable clothes and I think that is okay. In the end, we are all going to face the judgment seat and the Lord won't care how fast we ran or what our training schedule was as long as we return home to Him having developed Christ-like qualities. That is the real test.

Life is Good.

October

The first weekend in October is always a bitter-sweet time. I absolutely love listening to General Conference. I am always inspired and uplifted. In yesterday's morning session I loved every single talk that was given-- not that all the talks on both Saturday and Sunday aren't good, but these I thought were especially good.

Six years ago this weekend, a series of events began that I will never forget. I can hardly talk about them without crying. We had gathered at my parents house for General Conference. My sister had been concerned about her son for a number of days, not quite sure what was wrong, and the doctors unable to diagnose anything other than "separation anxiety" since he had started kindergarten.

As we sat at the dinner table Mr. J didn't have much of an appetite, he had this far away look in his eyes, and he was unusually lethargic. Later I asked him if he wanted to go to the school playground and play on the swings and other equipment there. "No." he said. I could usually always get him to go play with me. When I asked him "why" he replied that he didn't know, but he just didn't feel like it. That afternoon my sister, my mom and I sat in the living room and cried. We all knew that something was wrong with Mr. J.

As I drove home Sunday night I was listening to radio interview with Michael Ballam. The thought came to me that I either believed in God and that He heard and answered my prayers or I didn't. I have never prayed so hard for anything, before or since, as I did for Mr. J during the next few weeks.



Monday morning began a series of miracles and challenges that lasted for days, weeks, months, and now years. Two major surgeries, two years of chemo, and on-going MRIs. Thinking about the miracles still gives me chills. The right doctors in the right places at the right times. Our family has been truly blessed.

Today Mr. J is a healthy and happy young man. Everybody, including teachers at school, love him. He is kind, thoughtful, and considerate.



Though this is an experience we wouldn't have chosen, it is one of those experiences that has strengthened my testimony that God lives, that He hears and answers our prayers, and that as Elder Neal A. Maxwell stated, "He is in the details of our life."

Life is So Good.