Saturday, April 10th, was a beautiful day in Kentucky. The temperature was warm, the skies were clear and it was just a great day to be out and about.
Claude had accepted an invitation for he and I to go to Keeneland Race for Toyota Stakes Day. Ironically it was one year ago this month that we took Katelyn to Keeneland when she visited for her Spring Break. I had surgery just a few weeks before. So Claude and Katelyn found a nice seat in a covered section for me to sit in for the afternoon. It was a cool day. I remember leaving Keeneland around 5:30pm and as soon as I got in the back seat of the car falling over and going to sleep for the ride home.
This year I was healthy except for the non-stop allergy attack. But this wasn't a real issue because Toyota was having their affair in the Lexington Room on the 4th floor of Keeneland. It is a totally enclosed room and there was not pollen to irritate my sensitive nose!!
We sat at a table for 4 - there was Claude (Mayor of Sadieville) and me and Jarod & Janet Hollon (Mayor of Stamping Ground). I not met either of these wonderful people and they were delightful tablemates.
We were served a great buffet meal. I opted out of the roast beast or chicken and just ate the veggies, bread and dessert. Later in the afternoon they served popcorn to munch on.
We watched 9 of the races, the last one being the Toyota Stakes race. It was the most exciting by far. That doesn't mean I'm complaining about the others. Watching beautiful horses run is a thrilling experience. But the real long shot in the Toyota Stakes race was like 30-1. He was the horse that won the race. This brings a lot of excitement to a room whether you are betting or not. It's fun to be a part of that animation and emotion.
Sunday was Church in the morning. I substituted playing the organ again. We had great meetings. During Relief Society the 2nd Counselor was conducting and she asked me to hold her tiny newborn baby. What a wonderful experience that was.
We took Papa to lunch at the Mexican restaurant. Then I headed to the nursing home to visit with my mom. Then I traveled down the road to LaGrange to help with watching Bailey mostly and Hayden a bit.
When I got to the Marx home Hayden scurried down the stairs to see me with his wonderful excitement and telling me all the things that were happening and catching me up on the new things he has learned about the solar system and galaxies. When Bailey woke up and came downstairs she was sure Pa (Claude) should have been with me. Once she understood it was just me this time and that Pa has work to do in Sadieville she was okay. She does love Pa.
We had a good time with Hayden and Bailey. The weather was great and I brought new bubbles to play with outside. The kids have a new playset the Michael and Claude put together and we spent some time playing on it. It was a good couple of days.
Saturday night I headed to bed. Hayden had to stay up until midnight. Michael was up with Hayden for the evening shift of keeping him awake. Michael took Hayden to do an errand late and then for a treat. When they got home I was in my room finishing reading some things for our Relief Society Leadership Training this coming Saturday. At one point I could hear Hayden running down the hall. Then he scurried back to the other end of the hall. I reminded me of when he was little and learned to crawl. He was so fast. Jake was sleeping on an air mattress in my sewing room which is under our master bedroom. In the morning Jake was trying to sleep in and we had Hayden come in our room to play when we first woke up. He would scurry across our bedroom floor and Jake was hearing the same quick movement I was hearing this weekend. Sounds almost like you have a squirrel running in the attic. Really cute.
Andie had 5am wake up duty with Hayden. I got up between 7am and 7:30am and played with Hayden a bit before Andie and he left. Then Michael was off to work. Bailey and I amused ourselves quite nicely together. She is a very interesting little girl. I'm fascinated with her speech. I didn't realize she had learned all her letters in capital form. We caught a bit of Super Y before we started her Bambi movie. They displayed the letter 'L' and Bailey said what it was before the TV characters told her. She did this with the other letters as well. Yeah Bailey!!
Andie brought us lunch from Subway when she and Hayden returned. Then it was time to put the mini-Marx's down for quiet time. Bailey went down first. Then I went into Hayden's room to read to him. Andie headed to the dentist. Hayden and I read for a good bit in his space book. Then I suggested he might want to snuggle and fall asleep for a bit. It really didn't take him long to succumb to a very tired little body.
I had a bit of time to check eMails quickly before Bailey work up. We played until after 5pm before I went up to wake up Hayden. Andie returned and Michael got home from work so I headed back to Sadieville. It was fun to be with the youngest of our grandmonsters. I am grateful to be able to help occasionally and that they are close enough for that to happen.
Today Claude had his 6 month teeth cleaning appointment. He dropped me off at the nursing home and I visited with Mimi while Papa fed her. Then Papa and I headed to his apartment to practice some songs for tomorrows singing at the nursing home. I tried to fix somethings with Papa's computer also.
Then Claude took me to Pizza Hut for our late lunch/early dinner meal of the day. It was delicious and we both enjoyed just sitting and dining together for a bit.
Tomorrow morning Claude and I will go to Papa's and get him. Then we are off to the Louisville Temple for a bit. In the afternoon I'll sing with Papa at the nursing home.
This Saturday is our stake Relief Society Leadership Training. I'm spending every spare minute finishing my preparations for that meeting. I'll probably not blog until that is over.
Saturday afternoon we will have a meeting at City Hall in Sadieville. Then we have a meeting in Georgetown.
Sunday is a Ward Conference visit to Winchester Ward.
This week is not lacking in things to get done. I'm off to the races it would seem in my personal life!!
Tuesday, April 13, 2010
Friday, April 9, 2010
How Kentucky I Felt...
Tonight Claude and I were invited to attend the Friends of Georgetown Scott County Museum's 18th Annual Dinner. It was an absolutely delightful evening.
The event was held at Spindletop Hall. The address is a Lexington address but it is located across Ironworks Pike from the Kentucky Horsepark. The farm was established by Pansy Yount in 1935 on 800 acres of prime bluegrass land. The mansion was finished in 1937 at a cost of $1,000,000. The mansion has 40 rooms (each with its own thermostat), 14 bathrooms, 133 full-size exterior and interior doors, 102 windows and 11 fireplaces. There are over 45, 000 square feet of floor space. It has a circular staircase on either side of the main entrance door, basically making a half circle on each side of the room to the 2nd floor and down to the basement level.
The Spindletop home and farm get their name for the Spindletop Oil Company which in its day was the largest oil drilling and producing company.
In 1955 Mrs. Yount left Spindletop and returned to her hometown of Beaumont, Texas. In 1957 Dr. Frank Dickey, then president of the University of Kentucky began negotiations to purchase Spindletop Hall. The sale was complete in 1959. In 1962 Spindletop Hall, Inc. was chartered as the faculty, staff and alumni club for the University of Kentucky. Today you can buy associate membership even if you are not an alumnus of UK.
This was our first visit to Spindletop Hall. I hope it will not be our last.
The reason for this visit to this particular meeting was to support Cynthia Foster (Cindy), Sadieville's City Clerk. She was being given the Anne Bolton Bevins Award for all of her work on historic preservation in Sadieville and Scott County. Cindy and her hubby Billy were there and Claude and I came to support her. Cindy is such a dedicated, efficient, honest, committed city clerk and person. Claude and I just love her to pieces. Cindy found a treasure in the Rosenwald School and the Mt. Pleasant Baptist Church located in Sadieville and understood their historic significance. She got the Friends of Sadieville Renaissance group going to work as a non-profit organization to help with preserving these two significant pieces of Sadieville and our countries history as well as working to improve and revitalize Sadieville. The hours she has put in are astounding. So we were extremely pleased to be there when Cindy received this much deserved award.
The dinner and meeting were held on the 2nd floor. We ascended half of the circle staircase to get to the room we would be meeting in. We went through the room for our meeting to the next room where punch was being served and a lady was playing music I need when I play the piano for the nursing home.
We found Cindy speaking with Susan Lyons Hughes who is the Museum and Special Programs Director for Shaker Village of Pleasant Hill, Harrodsburg, Kentucky. Susan would be the guest speaker for tonight's program. It was time to find a table so we all moved into the first room we went through.
There were 9 people at our table. Everyone was just delightful. The conversation was great and covered many topics from fishing to travel to places we had lived, etc. To my left was Alice Anne. She was a wonderful person to sit beside. She knew the five people at the table except for Claude, me, Cindy and Billy. But we all got to know each other very quickly. Alice Anne had been a teacher by profession. She was supposed to teach speech but they needed her to be more specialized with children with disabilities so she took classes that she said, "Gave me a certificate but didn't mean I was really qualified."
My favorite quote of the evening came from this interesting and delightful lady. Alice Anne said, "I learned early in life always to leave a hole large enough to crawl out of." Now you have to read that with a real beautiful Southern drawl and you'll get the full effect. I can just hear it prefaced by "My mamma told me to..."
To Alice Anne's left was Joe Rhinehart. He had also been a teacher in Montgomery County, Maryland. He taught at Gaithersburg Middle School. I'm not sure when he left and came back to Kentucky. But he knew the area we lived in Maryland before it was all full of the businesses that were there when we left. He was a character as well.
I never caught the lady's name to Joe's left. The Apples were seated next to her. Dr. Apple had been a professer at UK because his kids grew up playing in the swimming pools at Spindletop before it became as expensive as it is today.
The meeting opened with a blessing on the meeting and food. Then Joseph Henderson sang "Let There Be Peace on Earth". He has a very full rich tenor voice. I'm going to say this and I don't want anyone out there to see me as racist. But Joe is a large black man. I totally enjoyed him and his singing. He had no accompanyment. He just opened his mouth and the sound came out like it was spilling from some wonderful cup. Every now and then Joe would trick me and go a little higher than the regular musical version of this song or a little lower. This was a popular song when I was a teen and it was just good to hear it and hear it done so well this evening.
Dinner came next. My what a feast. They served us a wedge salad. I LOVE wedge salads. Then came the main course, salmon, broccoli and rice with some type of white sauce on it. My, oh my, it was just delicious. Then they brought tiramisu for dessert. Heavenly!!
The program consisted of the business of selecting new officers and members of the board. Then the awards were given. There were 3 given, one of which was for Cindy. Then the guest speaker, Susan Lyons Hughes, spoke.
Susan's presentation was titled "It was a Strange and Melancholy Sight: the Shakers and the Civil War". Susan used a PowerPoint presentation and shared the history of the Shakers and how they were affected by the Civil War by reading entries from the journals of the Shakers from that time period.
Let me just draw you a word picture of where this happened. The first 'Pike' in the United States was the National Pike. We were very familiar with this Pike because of living in Maryland. It runs from Washington, DC through Cumberland, Maryland and on to Ohio. We often chose this highway for our motorcycle rides. Another main 'road' if you will back in this time period was Natchez Trace. For our anniversary several years ago, Claude and I drove the Natchez Trace Parkway from Natchez, Mississippi to Nashville, Tennessee. So when Susan explained these two major highways from this time period we knew them both personally. Then she had us think of the one ending in Ohio (north of Kentucky) and the other ending in Nashville, Tennessee. To get from one to the other was the old Highway 68 through Kentucky. Can you guess where this meant Highway 68 went?? Yep, right through Pleasant Hill, Kentucky and the Shaker Village.
Who are the Shakers? Their real names is United Society of Believers in Christ's Second Appearing. Shaker Village in Pleasant Hill has the most restored actual buildings. It is a wonderful place to visit. The Shakers didn't marry. They believed the 2nd Coming was right at hand. They did invite wonderful things like the clothes pin and a potty chair for hospitals, etc. Simple stream-lined furniture that was exceptionally functional is a treasure they have left for us today. They were pacifists, unionists and believed in the gradual releasing of slaves. They believed they were setting up a Zion society in preparation for the 2nd coming. Can you imagine all of that and Highway 68 running right through the middle of all the land and buildings you own. There was no way the Civil War was not going to come right through your land.
The soldiers were used to 'foraging' for food in the areas they march into and through. They called it foraging, the people called it 'stealing'. The Shakers determined they would feed and assist as best they could whatever troops came through their village in the hopes that whatever troops came through would treat them with the same respect. Because the Shakers had this wonderful land covered in well tended farms, they had animals for food and well as transportation, they were a prime target for foraging by the militaries on both sides. Their plan of providing hospitality worked well for them most of the time.
Susan read many, many quotes and told us what was happening in the war on the dates the entries were made in the Shaker journals. It was very moving and gave a vivid picture of the Civil War in Kentucky from the Shaker's perspective. I kept wishing Jacob was there to hear all of this. He would have truly appreciated it.
Susan commented about Perryville being only about 15 miles or so from Pleasant Hill. During the Battle of Perryville the Shakers could hear all the cannon fire. It must have been heart rending to these peace seeking people.
I totally enjoyed this presentation. I couldn't believe what a treat it was to spend a Friday evening in such good company and learn so many knew bits of history and see a dear friend receive just recognition for all her hard work.
To close the evening Joe Henderson had us all stand and join him in singing "My Old Kentucky Home". This is Kentucky's state song. Joe was just as clear and true with this rendition as he was with the opening song. We sang 2 verses and a chorus. Then Joe said, "That sounded so good, let's do the chorus again." And we did. I felt like a real Kentucky girl. It was tender and sweet and just felt really good.
I'm happy to live in Kentucky. It is a treasure in this country of ours. I'm happy we chose to check out Lexington when we were thinking of where in the world we wanted to spend our retirement years. I don't know for sure what the future will hold for Claude and I but I will forever be grateful for these little opportunities that come our way.
"To My Old Kentucky Home...Good Night!!"
PS: Monday night I became the Chair for the Friends of Sadieville Renaissance,
The event was held at Spindletop Hall. The address is a Lexington address but it is located across Ironworks Pike from the Kentucky Horsepark. The farm was established by Pansy Yount in 1935 on 800 acres of prime bluegrass land. The mansion was finished in 1937 at a cost of $1,000,000. The mansion has 40 rooms (each with its own thermostat), 14 bathrooms, 133 full-size exterior and interior doors, 102 windows and 11 fireplaces. There are over 45, 000 square feet of floor space. It has a circular staircase on either side of the main entrance door, basically making a half circle on each side of the room to the 2nd floor and down to the basement level.
The Spindletop home and farm get their name for the Spindletop Oil Company which in its day was the largest oil drilling and producing company.
In 1955 Mrs. Yount left Spindletop and returned to her hometown of Beaumont, Texas. In 1957 Dr. Frank Dickey, then president of the University of Kentucky began negotiations to purchase Spindletop Hall. The sale was complete in 1959. In 1962 Spindletop Hall, Inc. was chartered as the faculty, staff and alumni club for the University of Kentucky. Today you can buy associate membership even if you are not an alumnus of UK.
This was our first visit to Spindletop Hall. I hope it will not be our last.
The reason for this visit to this particular meeting was to support Cynthia Foster (Cindy), Sadieville's City Clerk. She was being given the Anne Bolton Bevins Award for all of her work on historic preservation in Sadieville and Scott County. Cindy and her hubby Billy were there and Claude and I came to support her. Cindy is such a dedicated, efficient, honest, committed city clerk and person. Claude and I just love her to pieces. Cindy found a treasure in the Rosenwald School and the Mt. Pleasant Baptist Church located in Sadieville and understood their historic significance. She got the Friends of Sadieville Renaissance group going to work as a non-profit organization to help with preserving these two significant pieces of Sadieville and our countries history as well as working to improve and revitalize Sadieville. The hours she has put in are astounding. So we were extremely pleased to be there when Cindy received this much deserved award.
We found Cindy speaking with Susan Lyons Hughes who is the Museum and Special Programs Director for Shaker Village of Pleasant Hill, Harrodsburg, Kentucky. Susan would be the guest speaker for tonight's program. It was time to find a table so we all moved into the first room we went through.
There were 9 people at our table. Everyone was just delightful. The conversation was great and covered many topics from fishing to travel to places we had lived, etc. To my left was Alice Anne. She was a wonderful person to sit beside. She knew the five people at the table except for Claude, me, Cindy and Billy. But we all got to know each other very quickly. Alice Anne had been a teacher by profession. She was supposed to teach speech but they needed her to be more specialized with children with disabilities so she took classes that she said, "Gave me a certificate but didn't mean I was really qualified."
My favorite quote of the evening came from this interesting and delightful lady. Alice Anne said, "I learned early in life always to leave a hole large enough to crawl out of." Now you have to read that with a real beautiful Southern drawl and you'll get the full effect. I can just hear it prefaced by "My mamma told me to..."
To Alice Anne's left was Joe Rhinehart. He had also been a teacher in Montgomery County, Maryland. He taught at Gaithersburg Middle School. I'm not sure when he left and came back to Kentucky. But he knew the area we lived in Maryland before it was all full of the businesses that were there when we left. He was a character as well.
I never caught the lady's name to Joe's left. The Apples were seated next to her. Dr. Apple had been a professer at UK because his kids grew up playing in the swimming pools at Spindletop before it became as expensive as it is today.
The meeting opened with a blessing on the meeting and food. Then Joseph Henderson sang "Let There Be Peace on Earth". He has a very full rich tenor voice. I'm going to say this and I don't want anyone out there to see me as racist. But Joe is a large black man. I totally enjoyed him and his singing. He had no accompanyment. He just opened his mouth and the sound came out like it was spilling from some wonderful cup. Every now and then Joe would trick me and go a little higher than the regular musical version of this song or a little lower. This was a popular song when I was a teen and it was just good to hear it and hear it done so well this evening.
Dinner came next. My what a feast. They served us a wedge salad. I LOVE wedge salads. Then came the main course, salmon, broccoli and rice with some type of white sauce on it. My, oh my, it was just delicious. Then they brought tiramisu for dessert. Heavenly!!
The program consisted of the business of selecting new officers and members of the board. Then the awards were given. There were 3 given, one of which was for Cindy. Then the guest speaker, Susan Lyons Hughes, spoke.
Susan's presentation was titled "It was a Strange and Melancholy Sight: the Shakers and the Civil War". Susan used a PowerPoint presentation and shared the history of the Shakers and how they were affected by the Civil War by reading entries from the journals of the Shakers from that time period.
Let me just draw you a word picture of where this happened. The first 'Pike' in the United States was the National Pike. We were very familiar with this Pike because of living in Maryland. It runs from Washington, DC through Cumberland, Maryland and on to Ohio. We often chose this highway for our motorcycle rides. Another main 'road' if you will back in this time period was Natchez Trace. For our anniversary several years ago, Claude and I drove the Natchez Trace Parkway from Natchez, Mississippi to Nashville, Tennessee. So when Susan explained these two major highways from this time period we knew them both personally. Then she had us think of the one ending in Ohio (north of Kentucky) and the other ending in Nashville, Tennessee. To get from one to the other was the old Highway 68 through Kentucky. Can you guess where this meant Highway 68 went?? Yep, right through Pleasant Hill, Kentucky and the Shaker Village.
Who are the Shakers? Their real names is United Society of Believers in Christ's Second Appearing. Shaker Village in Pleasant Hill has the most restored actual buildings. It is a wonderful place to visit. The Shakers didn't marry. They believed the 2nd Coming was right at hand. They did invite wonderful things like the clothes pin and a potty chair for hospitals, etc. Simple stream-lined furniture that was exceptionally functional is a treasure they have left for us today. They were pacifists, unionists and believed in the gradual releasing of slaves. They believed they were setting up a Zion society in preparation for the 2nd coming. Can you imagine all of that and Highway 68 running right through the middle of all the land and buildings you own. There was no way the Civil War was not going to come right through your land.
The soldiers were used to 'foraging' for food in the areas they march into and through. They called it foraging, the people called it 'stealing'. The Shakers determined they would feed and assist as best they could whatever troops came through their village in the hopes that whatever troops came through would treat them with the same respect. Because the Shakers had this wonderful land covered in well tended farms, they had animals for food and well as transportation, they were a prime target for foraging by the militaries on both sides. Their plan of providing hospitality worked well for them most of the time.
Susan read many, many quotes and told us what was happening in the war on the dates the entries were made in the Shaker journals. It was very moving and gave a vivid picture of the Civil War in Kentucky from the Shaker's perspective. I kept wishing Jacob was there to hear all of this. He would have truly appreciated it.
Susan commented about Perryville being only about 15 miles or so from Pleasant Hill. During the Battle of Perryville the Shakers could hear all the cannon fire. It must have been heart rending to these peace seeking people.
I totally enjoyed this presentation. I couldn't believe what a treat it was to spend a Friday evening in such good company and learn so many knew bits of history and see a dear friend receive just recognition for all her hard work.
To close the evening Joe Henderson had us all stand and join him in singing "My Old Kentucky Home". This is Kentucky's state song. Joe was just as clear and true with this rendition as he was with the opening song. We sang 2 verses and a chorus. Then Joe said, "That sounded so good, let's do the chorus again." And we did. I felt like a real Kentucky girl. It was tender and sweet and just felt really good.
I'm happy to live in Kentucky. It is a treasure in this country of ours. I'm happy we chose to check out Lexington when we were thinking of where in the world we wanted to spend our retirement years. I don't know for sure what the future will hold for Claude and I but I will forever be grateful for these little opportunities that come our way.
"To My Old Kentucky Home...Good Night!!"
PS: Monday night I became the Chair for the Friends of Sadieville Renaissance,
Thursday, April 8, 2010
Isaiah...
I'm going to just ramble for a bit. There is a lot of stuff going on and I just want to get a bit of it in this written journey of mine.
I am reading the Old Testament. I have been for a very long time, but then it is a very long book. I'm not reading for speed just to enjoy it. I've made my way almost through Isaiah. This is a book that really stumps a lot of us. I don't think I really appreciated it until I taught Old Testament in an early morning seminary class at Church. It was at that point that I got a lot of the basic history of Israel (the country) in my head. This is a help in understanding Isaiah. Often he speaks of current history for his time and Old Testament settings. But that same passage can also related to the end of days. So having a minimum bit of historical knowledge is very helpful.
I also found while teaching Old Testament that I really enjoyed reading Isaiah aloud. It is a book that I feel lends itself to a reading with your voice instead of in your head. It is a form of Hebrew poetry and, even though you may not understand all you are reading, while reading it out loud you come to appreciate the rhythm of the words and the strength of the words.
Over the years I've come to really understand some of the chapters and passages. Others I still don't quite get but I still truly enjoy reading the way Isaiah is written.
Then I started to read my Book of Mormon again while walking on the treadmill. I have a very old copy of the Book of Mormon. It is a hardbound big print version that was my seminary copy of the Book of Mormon. A lot of the chapters from Isaiah were included in 1st and 2nd Nephi, the first two books in the Book of Mormon. I enjoyed seeing again what I felt was important enough to underline or make notes about in the margins of my old seminary copy of the Book of Mormon. When I came to the Isaiah chapters some of them were right where I was reading or had just read in my Old Testament. What a delight to re-read without all my notes in my current copy of the scriptures. It was a pure pleasure to read these words again in this older Book of Mormon.
When teaching Isaiah in seminary, I had a good little book that some wonderful person wrote that took Isaiah and Revelation and in brackets behind the phrase or word it would explain what the phrase or word meant. This was a really helpful tool as well.
Another huge help for me in studying Isaiah is the LDS Edition of the King James Version of the Holy Bible. In the footnotes are included idioms and Hebrew definitions of words that may be obscure to us or may have a very different meaning today than it did anciently.
Here are some of my favorite thoughts from Isaiah:
I am reading the Old Testament. I have been for a very long time, but then it is a very long book. I'm not reading for speed just to enjoy it. I've made my way almost through Isaiah. This is a book that really stumps a lot of us. I don't think I really appreciated it until I taught Old Testament in an early morning seminary class at Church. It was at that point that I got a lot of the basic history of Israel (the country) in my head. This is a help in understanding Isaiah. Often he speaks of current history for his time and Old Testament settings. But that same passage can also related to the end of days. So having a minimum bit of historical knowledge is very helpful.
I also found while teaching Old Testament that I really enjoyed reading Isaiah aloud. It is a book that I feel lends itself to a reading with your voice instead of in your head. It is a form of Hebrew poetry and, even though you may not understand all you are reading, while reading it out loud you come to appreciate the rhythm of the words and the strength of the words.
Over the years I've come to really understand some of the chapters and passages. Others I still don't quite get but I still truly enjoy reading the way Isaiah is written.
Then I started to read my Book of Mormon again while walking on the treadmill. I have a very old copy of the Book of Mormon. It is a hardbound big print version that was my seminary copy of the Book of Mormon. A lot of the chapters from Isaiah were included in 1st and 2nd Nephi, the first two books in the Book of Mormon. I enjoyed seeing again what I felt was important enough to underline or make notes about in the margins of my old seminary copy of the Book of Mormon. When I came to the Isaiah chapters some of them were right where I was reading or had just read in my Old Testament. What a delight to re-read without all my notes in my current copy of the scriptures. It was a pure pleasure to read these words again in this older Book of Mormon.
When teaching Isaiah in seminary, I had a good little book that some wonderful person wrote that took Isaiah and Revelation and in brackets behind the phrase or word it would explain what the phrase or word meant. This was a really helpful tool as well.
Another huge help for me in studying Isaiah is the LDS Edition of the King James Version of the Holy Bible. In the footnotes are included idioms and Hebrew definitions of words that may be obscure to us or may have a very different meaning today than it did anciently.
Here are some of my favorite thoughts from Isaiah:
- Isaiah 41:10 Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness. (This is just a most comforting verse to me. I often share it when I send a note to a friend who is struggling or has endured a loss in their life.)
- There are several chapters that begin with or have included in them the phrase 'the burden of Babylon (or some other location)'. That word burden means a message of doom lifted up against a people. These are important to read and understand what will happen historically and what I should guard against.
- While reading the Psalms I looked for the word 'trust' this time. So as I read Isaiah 14:32 I noted the word 'trust' with a little letter 'd' leading me to the footnotes. The explanation of the word 'trust' in this case mean 'seek refuge in it' (the it being Zion).
- Another newly acquired favorite is Isaiah 61:1-3. Our stake president used these verses in his talks during the ward conferences in 2009. The words are just beautiful: The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me; because the Lord hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are boung; to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord, and the day of vengence of our God; to comfort all that mourn; to appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, that he might be glorified. (Isaiah is speaking of the Savior here and the role he is to play for and in our lives.)
- One of the most profound chapters is Isaiah 53. This describes our Savior, the suffering he would have to endure and that it was part of our Father in Heaven's plan. It has words like despised, rejected, grief, sorrow, stricken, smitten, bruised, oppressed and many more. But buried in this chapter are words like pleased, bear pleasure, prosper, healed, offering, knowledge and peace. This chapter is truly worth reading again and again.
- Isaiah's words in Isaiah 1:18 promise us that even though our sins be like scarlet because of the Savior those same sins can be white as snow through repentance.
- Even Handel used the words in Isaiah 9:6 in his famous work 'Messiah' that we hear each Christmas...For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, Teh everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.
- There is the story of King Hezekiah's life being lenghtened by 15 years and the sign to Hezekiah that this would truly happen was the sun being turned back 10 degrees.
- I love the strength of the words in Isaiah 40:31 "But they that wait (Hebrew meaning is hope for or anticipate) upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles (I can see those majestic birds flying in Alaska); and they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint."
- As a parent, I loved the words in Isaiah 54:13 "And all thy children shall be taught of the Lord; and great shall be the peace of thy children."
- There is a great chapter about the law of the fast in Isaiah 58.
- While reading Isaiah 40:22 I came across a phrase that I shared with Jake. He has a wonderful appreciation for space. This verse says, "It is he that sitteth upon the circle of the earth and the inhabitants thereof are as grasshoppers..." The phrase 'circle of the earth' caught my attention. I shared with Jake that people somehow think people that lived long ago didn't understand the earth was round. Clearly here they did know of the 'circle of the earth'.
- Then there is Isaiah 6 which explains the call of Isaiah as a prophet. If I were an artist (and I truly am not) I would paint a picture of what these words describe to me.
Easter 2010
We had another wonderful Easter. Hayden and Bailey persuaded Andie to bring them to Pa and Ma's house for a few days. Hayden has Spring break this week so they came Sunday afternoon and returned home Tuesday afternoon.
We decided to try a bit of time outside Monday morning. Andie and I thought we would be outside for a bit, then maybe head into Georgetown to visit Mimi. That is not how it turned out. We had a bag for each of the kids to collect twigs and grass. Hayden wanted to use play dough and make a pretend fire with twigs and grass he found. As soon as we got outside in the backyard, two deer bounced across our empty lot. That did it...Bailey was off to find 'Bambia'. And we were off on a REALLY long hike up the hill and into the woods past our empty lot.
I made little Easter baskets for Hayden and Bailey. They were smaller baskets that sat in a bucket hat. Hayden's basket and hat were green. Bailey's basket and hat were pink. I have an abundance of plastic eggs. I purchased the sticky backed foam letters. They were bright glittery colors. I put them inside the eggs in three and four letter words. The kids baskets has eggs full of letters and one little toy each. In the picture above Hayden is opening the eggs and trying to figure out the words the letters are supposed to be. I previously made some handouts for a Relief Society Leadership Training coming up this April. I had scrap paper in strip forms. Hayden took all those strips that were just big enough to make his words on. He had a great deal of fun making words using the letters. Bailey is on Claude's lap while he opens her Little Pony toy.
Eventually our little Bailey needed to go downstairs to explore all the toys. We by-passed the toys and headed to the back yard with Little Pony in hand. Little Pony was introduced the Owl and Elmo in their hanging baskets, the planters with dirt for Bailey to play in as the summer warms up, and down the hill to see the turtle on the rock. They even played in the sandbox a bit.
The older grandmonsters have all hiked on this hill at some time or another. Papa loves to hike this hill. But Hayden and Bailey and their little legs have only gone down the hill behind our house to the creek and up and down the creek there a bit. We ended up hiking all the way back to a trestle bridge for the train. This trestle bridge goes over Eagle Creek which is the creek behind our home. The kids did really well on this extended hike.
We first past a tree that died and broke in half. It turned out to be a Honey Locust tree. Now as gentle and good as that sounds, a honey locust tree has enormous thorns along its branches. It turned out not to be a good tree for the kids to play around. They were fascinated by the thorns though.
Then we went across the little road cut through the woods on the hill. This parcel of land our housing community is in was originally a farm. We were going to see where the old barn had been before it was leveled. That didn't take long. It is really just a pile of boards. The crafty side of me thinks there is some great wood there to make something out of.
Down the road be sauntered to find a pile of rocks. Now this does appeal to little ones. They carefully sized it up and determined the best place to try and climb on it. My job was to find rocks close enough to try and get a good picture or two. It gives me a better appreciation of those photographers that follow people around as they explore caves, or under the sea, or whereever. You forget they are there because you are watching the star of the show talk about how hard it is to get to where they are or to do what they are doing.
Then the Mini-Marx's were off and running. Andie and I told them to keep looking back and as long as they saw us we could see them and they were okay. Oh the energy!!
Halt!! Bailey found sticks. We were not going to find 'Bambia' on this hike but Bailey found something that could be held on her head so she was a deer. She also found a great place to sit and pick out leaves and sticks for her bag of treasures.
Hayden amused me by finding a stick. We determined it was the perfect size for a walking stick for him. He carried the stick the rest of the hike. Such a little man!!
We did stop and take a bit of a break. Andie took my camera and got a picture of my with the little Marx's.
Then it was time to head back to our home. We found a moth on Hayden. He was very still and the moth just seemed to really enjoying being on Hayden's t-shirt. Even when we decided to walk again this little moth stayed on Hayden's t-shirt. It crept from the front of his t-shirt to his shoulder and then around to the back of Hayden's head. Eventually the little guy flew away. But it fascinated all of us for a good long time.
The other fun thing about that long walk back was the enormous fallen tree. I noticed it on the way over the hill. It looked like some kind of creature. The branches touched the ground and kept the trunk up in the air. This made the branches look like huge legs. As we came back down the road I pointed it out to Andie and the kids. Andie thought it looked like a praying mantis, Hayden was sure it was a dinosaur, and Bailey was sure it was a crocodile or alligator. Whatever it was, it was a place Bailey was sure she needed to play. This crocodile or alligator needed food. Bailey is really into preparing pretend food and this tree creature was in need of a special Bailey meal of a leaf. Off she headed into the trees to feed the crocodile-alligator tree creature. Hayden and I headed to the end where the roots would have been. Turns out there was a place hollowed out in the ground and lined with rocks. I'm not sure what could have been there but I am sure those rocks didn't get lined like that on their own. Hayden and I climbed the rocks on this end of the tree and eventually he met Bailey in the middle of this tree. There was a really good branch they each took a turn climbing to get to the top of the tree trunk. Amazingly no one fell, no bones were broken, a few scratches from branches were added to our bodies, but it was fun to play with the tree creature.
Then we made the end of this longer than planned hike. Here is a picture of Andie with her little ones. Hayden on the left and Bailey on the right. The house on the left front is our home. The kids were really happy to see Pa's cool house again. When we got home all of us were worn right out. We found snacks and headed to the basement for a video. Bailey took a good nap. Hayden had a good quiet time. I got a great shower.
When we returned Claude said he had come out two time to find where we were since we were gone so long. Claude fixed dinner and I headed off to my Friends of Sadieville meeting.
I returned in time to help get Bailey and Hayden ready for bed. Bailey was in her Little Mermaid outfit. She 'yoves' Ariel. Hayden was in his new space pajamas. They managed to find the bookshelf on the side of the TV and rearranged all the Readers' Digest Condensed Books I have stored there. The covers are fun colors and the size is perfect for little hands.
Tuesday would begin with a breakfast of muffins and bacon. Then we finally got around to decorating Easter eggs. Claude boiled a dozen eggs before Hayden and Bailey ever came but we never stopped long enough to get them colored. Hayden and Bailey wore their bucket hats that their Easter baskets came in and ended up coloring their hands green. The eggs got colored and Claude and I will enjoy some deviled eggs and egg salad over the next few days.
Now we thought we might write with chalk over the driveway. We had to locate the chalk. Hayden opened the door to garage and headed right for the shelf where it should have been. But we moved it the day before because we thought we would be playing on the patio. There were rain clouds overhead so I put it on the card table in the family room. I checked there and it was not where I left it. As I crossed the room to go back up the stairs I saw and remembered. Little Miss Bailey determined the little frog in its hammock beside the entertainment center needed to have a piece of chalk to use like a bottle. The bucket of chalk was tucked in the corner and the frog still had it's stick of chalk for nourishment.
I grabbed my camera and we headed out in the front to write on the driveway. Then we realized how windy it had become. Hayden and Bailey were about to blow away. I placed my camera on the little table on the front porch and followed the kids as they ran in the wind. We ended up in the backyard and then down the hill. This little adventure turned into another hike but this time the camera was on the front porch so no pictures. We hiked down to the edge of Eagle Creek and then followed the creek to the bridge that comes into our development. There is a little dam there to slow the water down. My allergies kicked in big time. I only had one tissue in my pocket. I had not planned on this hike. My left eye began to itch very bad when we reached creek level. By the time we got to the bridge it was swollen and very irritated and my poor single tissue was worn out. I finally told Andie I needed to head back to the house. By then Hayden was ready and he and I walked back to our home.
On the way back Hayden explained to me the meaning of the word 'thoughtless'. It means you think more of yourself than you do others. Then he explained that the word 'selfish' is the same kind of word. They are two different words but they both mean you think more of yourself than you do others. He is a fascinating young man
We got home, got a drink, blew my nose, did a potty run, and found the car keys. Hayden was sure we needed to rescue Bailey and Andie. I buckled Hayden in his car seat and got in the drivers seat. Hayden told me to be sure to drive like I had watched Andie drive. Then it would be just right. I did fine getting down the driveway but I realized the emergency brake needed to be released. I pressed down on the emergency brake and it only pushed it down further. That meant I needed to find the release somewhere else. It took me a bit of time but I finally found it and released the brake. By the time I got on the street, Bailey and Andie were about 4 houses down the street. We drove on down and picked them up. Andie said Bailey would have stayed outside forever.
It was time for lunch so we did a backwards lunch. Claude had purchased some Choco-Tacos. They used to be on the menu at Taco Bell. Hayden and Bailey each had a Choco-Taco. They wolfed them down. Then I took sliced of cheese and cookie cutters. They cut out the shape they wanted and ate the cheese shapes. We added some of the hot dogs from the day before and had a great little feast.
Andie took the kids down for a show before quiet time. Then I put Bailey down for her nap and Andie put Hayden down for quiet time.
During quiet time Andie packed up and loaded her car. After quiet time we scurried off to Georgetown for Andie to say hi to Mimi. Then to Brookings Park for a picnic with Papa and Claude and playtime at the park before their drive home.
Years ago we took a family camping vacation with all of Claude's family. We went to Green River Gorge so that most of the family could go white water rafting. Then we went through Yellowstone National Park. While we were camped at Green River, I decided my kids needed a bath and clean clothes. I got water and warmed it up in my mother-in-laws camper. Then I took my kids in turn into the camper shell on our truck and cleaned them up really good and put new clothes on them. With my work all done, I took my good book and a folding lawn chair and determined I would get some sun while I read my book. As most young mothers would, I fell asleep quickly. It was not for long but it was long enough that when I awoke I heard my three kids playing happily nearby. They were laughing and having a great time. I turned around to see all three of them in the pit for a fire. They had ashes rubbed all over their clean little bodies and clean clothes. So the picture above was one of those "When you are a parent you will understand!" moments. Hayden and Bailey found the grills by our picnic table and enjoyed playing in it a bit before we realized they were not in the grass with their cars.
After dinner Hayden and Bailey took their cars to play on the concrete roads. I just love this feature of this park. They have two big concrete tables with roads on them. The kids really enjoy driving their cars. This time the village made of concrete looked like Pinocchio's village.
Then it was time for the Marx family to head back to LaGrange, the Christensen's to head to Sadieville and Papa to head to his apartment.
Papa asked Bailey if she wanted to ride on his shoulders to the car. Hayden took Claude's hand and off we were with the Mini-Marx's to their car.
It was a great Easter and we filled it as full as we could. Claude and I were exhausted in a most happy way. Now I must go make egg salad and deviled eggs!!!
Sunday, April 4, 2010
"I'm Happy" & Other Thoughts...
This week Papa took a drive to the Blue Ridge Parkway. He just get stircrazy in his apartment and after being in all winter really needed a break. We had beautiful warm weather this Thursday and Friday. I picked up Tiny on Wednesday evening after my presidency meeting and took her home with me.
Thursday morning Papa got up, fed Mimi, and then drove to the Blue Ridge. Turns out NOTHING on the Blue Ridge was open. His plan was to camp in his Jeep. About 9 in the evening he found a spot he remembered and pulled his car off the road to bed down for the night. About 1am he heard someone banging on his car window. They told him he could not park there overnight. (Now, I learned that you never argue with an Alzheimer's patient because you'll never win. The same is true about arguing with an 81 year old man.) Papa asked the man why he couldn't park there. He was told in a very firm voice, "This is federal property and you can't stay here!" Papa said, "I know it is federal property, my taxes paid for it!!" Reluctantly Papa woke up and got ready to move his car and him. As he drove further down the highway he noticed a parking lot to a camping/picnic area. In the center of the parking lot were sleeping bags and a bunch of college age kids. They had not been asked to move. Go figure...may an 81 year old is an easier target.
Friday I went into Georgetown at noon to feed Mimi lunch. We worked our way through her eating all her lunch, dessert and two beverages. As I prepared to leave, I wrapped my arms around my mom and gave her a big hug. Then I looked her right in the face and said, "I love you mom." She looked up at me with her big brown eyes filled with a little bit of tears and said, "I'm happy. I'm happy." What a tender mercy!
This last week I have been trying to shift computers. My old PC is really trying to die on me and it is definitely slower than cold tar. Michael found a great deal on laptops and bought two. We bought one of them from him to replace my old PC. This necessitates the moving of files. Loading unique software to my needs. Making sure I know how to use the newer versions of the software on this new computer, etc., etc., etc.
I have now tranferred all my data. Found that I can't load a lot of the software that I really enjoy because the versions I have are too old.
My Palm Pilot software is even too old. Claude has checked on the Internet for upgrades to the software and it seems there is a dirth of help there. Most people are in my same boat and complaining about it already. I even stopped by the AT&T store Friday to see if they had any Palm cell phones. None in stock and don't expect any for at least a month. My other option is a Blackberry. I came home and did a good sync with my old computer. Then I printed out all my files on my current Palm Pilot.
I'll miss my old PC. You get used to them and they are like and old friend. The Mahjongg game I enjoyed will not transfer, the Create A Card Gold software will not transfer, the font CD will not transfer, the PCStitch software will not transfer, etc., etc., etc. These little treasures have provided me lots of help in creating things for others, or, in the case of Mahjongg, given me a bit of a break when things needed to slow down. My Camedia software will not transfer. That was the software from my first digital camera. I like the way it would edit pictures the best so I kept it and used it even after buying a newer digital camera with new editing software. I have lots of pictures and will sorely miss this software. But I'm sure there will be other software on this computer to edit those pictures with.
I think I've got everything moved and have actually used the Word software on this new computer to create a postcard for my Stake Leadership Training this month. I'll make the change and it will be a good thing for me. I'll make new software friends on this computer and I'll enjoy them. And, at the rate things change these days, in about 2 months, this computer will be out-of-date. Yike!!
Claude spent a few days with the Marx family. They purchased a wooden playset for Hayden and Bailey. Claude was called in to help Michael put it together. He came home very tired last night. But Andie tells me Hayden and Bailey are really happy with their new playland.
I'm off to watch General Conference. Then the mini-Marx's are coming for a visit. Can't wait for them to find their Easter eggs in the Easter baskets I got them. I filled plastic eggs with the foam letters that stick on things. The letters are flourescent glittery colors. I put three and four letters in each egg that spell words. Hayden is fascinated with spelling words and will love this Easter egg hunt.
Thursday morning Papa got up, fed Mimi, and then drove to the Blue Ridge. Turns out NOTHING on the Blue Ridge was open. His plan was to camp in his Jeep. About 9 in the evening he found a spot he remembered and pulled his car off the road to bed down for the night. About 1am he heard someone banging on his car window. They told him he could not park there overnight. (Now, I learned that you never argue with an Alzheimer's patient because you'll never win. The same is true about arguing with an 81 year old man.) Papa asked the man why he couldn't park there. He was told in a very firm voice, "This is federal property and you can't stay here!" Papa said, "I know it is federal property, my taxes paid for it!!" Reluctantly Papa woke up and got ready to move his car and him. As he drove further down the highway he noticed a parking lot to a camping/picnic area. In the center of the parking lot were sleeping bags and a bunch of college age kids. They had not been asked to move. Go figure...may an 81 year old is an easier target.
Friday I went into Georgetown at noon to feed Mimi lunch. We worked our way through her eating all her lunch, dessert and two beverages. As I prepared to leave, I wrapped my arms around my mom and gave her a big hug. Then I looked her right in the face and said, "I love you mom." She looked up at me with her big brown eyes filled with a little bit of tears and said, "I'm happy. I'm happy." What a tender mercy!
This last week I have been trying to shift computers. My old PC is really trying to die on me and it is definitely slower than cold tar. Michael found a great deal on laptops and bought two. We bought one of them from him to replace my old PC. This necessitates the moving of files. Loading unique software to my needs. Making sure I know how to use the newer versions of the software on this new computer, etc., etc., etc.
I have now tranferred all my data. Found that I can't load a lot of the software that I really enjoy because the versions I have are too old.
My Palm Pilot software is even too old. Claude has checked on the Internet for upgrades to the software and it seems there is a dirth of help there. Most people are in my same boat and complaining about it already. I even stopped by the AT&T store Friday to see if they had any Palm cell phones. None in stock and don't expect any for at least a month. My other option is a Blackberry. I came home and did a good sync with my old computer. Then I printed out all my files on my current Palm Pilot.
I'll miss my old PC. You get used to them and they are like and old friend. The Mahjongg game I enjoyed will not transfer, the Create A Card Gold software will not transfer, the font CD will not transfer, the PCStitch software will not transfer, etc., etc., etc. These little treasures have provided me lots of help in creating things for others, or, in the case of Mahjongg, given me a bit of a break when things needed to slow down. My Camedia software will not transfer. That was the software from my first digital camera. I like the way it would edit pictures the best so I kept it and used it even after buying a newer digital camera with new editing software. I have lots of pictures and will sorely miss this software. But I'm sure there will be other software on this computer to edit those pictures with.
I think I've got everything moved and have actually used the Word software on this new computer to create a postcard for my Stake Leadership Training this month. I'll make the change and it will be a good thing for me. I'll make new software friends on this computer and I'll enjoy them. And, at the rate things change these days, in about 2 months, this computer will be out-of-date. Yike!!
Claude spent a few days with the Marx family. They purchased a wooden playset for Hayden and Bailey. Claude was called in to help Michael put it together. He came home very tired last night. But Andie tells me Hayden and Bailey are really happy with their new playland.
I'm off to watch General Conference. Then the mini-Marx's are coming for a visit. Can't wait for them to find their Easter eggs in the Easter baskets I got them. I filled plastic eggs with the foam letters that stick on things. The letters are flourescent glittery colors. I put three and four letters in each egg that spell words. Hayden is fascinated with spelling words and will love this Easter egg hunt.
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