Farewell to a boy

And in two years we will say hello to a man, tried and true after serving as a missionary in Cambodia.

We went to Central Point on Tuesday, July 8th. Six of us went to Ashland that evening to see the play, "A Wrinkle in Time."  It was interesting how they performed it. Grandpa watched Gideon and Joseph while we were gone.

On the 9th, Neil's birthday, we had a privilege of going to the temple with Zachary. Eldon and I were asked to be the witness couple. It was joyful to see Neil, Pam, Emily and Zachary arm in arm in the celestial room.

Neil's birthday dinner was a joint effort--special salad by Pam, tofu and veggies by Emily, and a chocolate torte by Zachary! 

The next day we took off to the coast. We stopped at the Jedediah Smith Redwood State Park. It was amazing walking through those huge trees.

We stayed in Brookings for two nights. We walked at the Harris Beach where Eldon looked for driftwood.

The next morning we headed out early on the Oregon Coast Trail. It was wet with the morning mist and we got soaked up to our knees.

The Whaleshead viewpoint was cool.

We drove up to Gold Beach and visited a myrtle wood store and watched a guy making a bowl.

Then we drove up the Rogue River to the Shrader Old Growth Trail. It was a mile long loop that was self guided.

Not much further on up a steep trail was the largest known myrtle tree in Oregon.

Tomorrow we head back to Central Point so we can go to church and hear Zachary's talk. It will be sad to say goodbye, but we're really excited for this chance for him to serve and know that he's worthy to do it.

I Want to Live the Gosepl

In Primary we are going to learn a song called "I Want to Live the Gospel." It goes:

I want to live the gospel, to know that its teachings are true,
To follow the plan of my Savior and live as he wants me to do.
I will try in all I do and say to live the gospel more each day.
I will try in all I do and say to live the gospel more each day.

It reminds me of a personal experience I plan to share with the children and I think I should share it with you too!

When I was about eleven or twelve I remember sitting up in our old apricot tree reading a book.

I liked to eat the apricots while I was reading! I remember how yummy they were.

The book I was reading was called "Added Upon" by Nephi Anderson. It was the first LDS fiction ever written. It is the story of a boy and girl who knew each other in the pre-existence, before they came to earth. Then they came here and met, and the last chapters were about them after this life was over.

It was the first time I understood about the Plan of Happiness, that this life is just a small part of eternity where we come to earth to live by faith.

I remember a strong feeling came over me that I wanted to know what Heavenly Father wanted me to do so I could return to Him.  If I only knew what that was!

Later I realized I did know.  I had learned it in Primary.  I realized what he wanted was simply 5 things:

1.  Have faith in him and his son, Jesus Christ.
2.  Repent of our sins (which we all need to do)
3.  Be baptized
4.  Receive the gift of the Holy Ghost and let it guide us
5.  Endure to the end (or don't ever stop living the Gospel)

I hope I can do that!

50th Anniversary

Tomorrow is our 50th wedding anniversary. It seems like quite an accomplishment to me!

When Eldon told his Dad he was getting engaged, his Dad told him to think about it seriously because 50 years is a long time to sit across from the same face at breakfast!  But through the good times and the bad, the fun times and the sad, he's been there for me. He made up his mind early on to stick with his commitment, no matter how confining or irritating it might become at times.

I suspect it was one of the kids put an article in the Gazette Times about it. We would never have seen it since we don't take the paper any more, but our friends the Tingeys, saw it and e-mailed a note of congratulations to us.  For those of you who don't take the paper, here's the article quoted:

"Janeil and Eldon Olsen of Corvallis will observe their 50th wedding anniversary on June 8, 2014.

"Janeil Fugal and Eldon Olsen were married June 8 1964, in Salt Lake City, Utah.

"Eldon and Janeil have lived in Utah, Connecticut, Indiana, Montana and Oregon. Eldon was a professor at Oregon State University and Janeil was a secretary at the Latter-day Saints Institute of Religion next to the OSU campus. After retirement they served missions for their church in San Diego, Baltimore and Nauvoo, Illinois.

"They now reside in Corvallis, where Eldon volunteers for Dial-A-Bus. They have five children, all married; 21 grandchildren; and seven great-grandchildren."

Almost reads like an obituary! It's factual except that we only have 6 great-grandchildren. But who knows, maybe another is on the way and I just don't know about it yet!

Thanks to whomever wrote the article. I also think Sheryl and Brenda have plans for an FHE at the reunion that might include mention of our 50th. Can't wait to be together at the reunion.

Maia's dance recital

It's good to see Maia's confidence and grace grow from the last recital I attended. It must make her feel beautiful to wear those lovely costumes. And the music was great!

Brenda fixed her hair while she played with Jasper, the new kitten.

Sydney and Sam watching the show

The theme was Broadway and there was both dancing and singing.

Easter Season

First a funny story. On Sunday as we were leaving church, a cute little 4-year-old boy named Liam who knows me from singing time, looked up at Eldon and asked me, "Is that your Grandpa?" I laughed and assured him it was.

I love the Easter Season with the renewal of the earth--spring rains and flowers coming out everywhere. And as the earth seems to come back to life, it's also when our thoughts turn to the resurrection and a hope in a glorious reunion with loved ones in the spirit world.

I want to quote some excerpts from an excellent talk Mike Andrus gave in church on Easter Sunday. I didn't ask his permission, but Mike, it's okay because this is only going to immediate family! It was too good not to share.

"Today we celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ. I testify that He lives. Christ himself bore witness of his resurrection to his doubting disciples. 'Behold my hands and my feet, that it is I myself. Handle me, and see; for a spirit hath not flesh and bones as you see me have.' (Luke 24:39)

"In our Heavenly Father's plan, we know that He sent His son, Jesus Christ, to overcome physical death through the resurrection, and to overcome spiritual death (or the effects of sin) through the Atonement. As we consider these blessings, I would like to focus my remarks on Jesus Christ's role as the Physician and Healer.

"Brothers and sisters, none of us is whole. Each of us needs Jesus Christ, the Great Physician. All of us here today need to be made whole. Are there any among us who are spiritually sick? Are there any who are lame who cannot move forward on our own strength? Who cannot overcome the obstacles in our path without the help of the Savior and of those around us? Are there any who are blind, who have stopped seeing the hand of the Lord in our lives, who cannot see His purpose for us, or cannot see our divine potential? Are there any who are maimed, or scarred by sin or by poor choices? Are there any who have been maimed or wounded by the choices and abuse of others? Are there any who are unclean, or who are spiritually withered, no longer able to feel His love and His compassion? Are there any who are spiritually deaf, unable or unwilling to hear His word: Are there any among us who are afflicted in any manner?

"Christ's admonition to us is simple, "Bring them hither, and I will heal them." (3 Ne. 17:7)

"How does Christ heal us?

"The prophet Alma prophesied: '...and he will take upon him their infirmities, that his bowels may be filled with mercy, according to the flesh, that he may know according to the flesh how to succor his people according to their infirmities.' (Alma 7:12)

"Christ is the Son of God. Because He suffered and experienced all things, he has a perfect understanding of our pain. He has a perfect love for us. Through His atonement, through his grace, he has taken upon himself our infirmities, our pain, our sins, our sadness. If we will allow him to, he will heal us, strengthen us, and make us whole.

"Much of the healing that I have experienced in my life has been a result of repentance. I have made many mistakes, and felt much sorrow, remorse, and pain as a result of those mistakes. I have felt the Spirit withdraw from me. I've struggled to know whether I have been forgiven. I've struggled at times to have the courage and humility I needed to talk to Priesthood leaders, to confess and to forsake. But I have also felt the joy of healing. I have felt the burden of sin lifted from me. I have felt the Spirit return and with it peace. What a blessing that is.

"Elder Patrick Keaton stated, '...we find healing and relief only when we bring ourselves to the feet of the Great Physician, our Savior, Jesus Christ. We must lay down our weapons of rebellion (and we each know what they are.) ... We must cease fighting against God and instead give our whole hearts to Him, holding nothing back. Then he can heal us.' (Oct. 2010)

"At times the healing we need is not a direct result of our own actions or choices, but a result of our circumstances. When my sister was battling cancer, I remember my dad telling me about how his prayers changed over the course of her illness. They began with many earnest prayers asking Heavenly Father to heal her, to restore her health. As time went on, it became clear that Heavenly Father would not heal her physically. My dad's prayers changed. He began to ask for understanding, strength, and peace. The healing that came to my sister and to our family was spiritual and emotional healing. It was strength to carry a heavy burden. It was perspective, to see with Heavenly Father's eyes. It was joy, peace and hope that we would see her again. And it was gratitude and appreciation for the time we had with her and the things she taught us.

"Brothers and Sisters, our Heavenly Father loves us. His son, our Savior Jesus Christ loves us. I feel that love. He wants to heal us. He has compassion for us. If you feel a desire to be healed, we invite you to 'come unto Christ.'

"Our Savior said, 'Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.' (Matt. 11:28-30)

"We invite all to come unto Christ, the Great Physician, to experience his healing grace, to experience his love, and his peace."

Thank you, Mike, for sharing your thoughts and feelings with us. That invitation the Savior gives us to take His yoke means to me that He is willing to share our load, to help us pull. He is indeed loving. It will all turn out!

Short list

Conference was wonderful. Enjoyed it all. It was fun to have Neil's family visit for the Sunday am session.

I made a short list of things I want to work on over the next 6 months:

1. Fast better
2. Defend my beliefs with courtesy and compassion
3. Let my faith show
4. Love sincerely
5. Be grateful, not bitter
6. Don't roam through garbage!

Canyonlands National Park

Today was our last day of  being tourists! Yay! It's been great, but we're tired and we want to go home!

We spent all day in Canyonlands National Park. The weather was beautiful.

Our first stop was at a place going into the park where two formations have been named Merrimac and Monitor after two ironclad warships from the Civil War. One was Southern and one Union and they clashed. Eventually they both ended up at the bottom of the sea, but these two rock formations have memorialized them forever!

Merrimac and Monitor

Shafer Canyon Overlook

Mesa Arch

Green River Overlook

Our next stop was at an interesting place called Aztec Butte. Along the path we re-stacked some toppled cairns. When we got to the butte I couldn't have made it up or down without some help from Eldon and some friendly fellow hikers. But it was worth it to see a granary the ancient Indians had made.

Rebuilding a cairn

The Indian granary

View from Aztec Butte

Buck Canyon Overlook

The farthest point of the main part of the park was Grand View Point Overlook.

Farewell to the canyonlands. I don't think we'll ever be back. The wonders of God's creations have inspired awe. This was a good time of year to come before it gets hot and too full of tourists! Plus it was a good way to celebrate our upcoming 50th anniversary.