Saturday, July 28, 2007

Latterday Saint Temple, Langley, BC




Here's a photo of what the temple will look like. Today the children and I went to the site to see where it's going to be. There was a children's activity where Stake Leaders spoke to them and afterwards they got juice boxes and granola bars and to plant some wheatgrass that they can take home and nourish and care for and then eat if they want. I have lots of those wheat berries in my cupboard. I am not sure why I didn't think of that! Ours might not grow because they had a pretty rough trip home. Let's just say I had a lot of vacuuming to do INSIDE the car upon our return. The children were given permission to go to a rock pile and help themselves to a rock {and they were much larger than I expected} to bring home. Their rock and plant should remind them of why we have temples today. For more information on this you can visit www.lds.org
My children had a very good time just being outside in such a wide open space. Exploring and digging a little and picking leaves and Marvin even made a trap for me to fall in, like I need another fall. I think I overdid it out there as it is but ice is helping. They just didn't want to leave! So, we dillied and we dallied and hung around with some wonderful members from the Spanish Ward. There were some benches made like when you go to camp with parts of trunks on each end holding a board. We sang some primary songs while Marvin pouted because I wouldn't let him wave around super large sticks. Their voices were beautiful. I just hummed when they sang in Spanish. Anastasia was cuddling up to all of them like she'd known them all her life. I have seen them all before but didn't know any of their names. They were all calling her Dora because of her haircut and apparently she resembles Dora the Explorer. The strange thing is she was so tired and didn't mind the singing. She usually cries a lot if you sing to her or near her or with her when she's tired. She will just have a fit if you try to sing her a lullaby. Sometimes she even wants it but it's just too much for her I guess. Anyway I wish I had brought my camera but here's a few photos I didn't take.

Monday, July 16, 2007

New Glasses








I spent some time hunting around for glasses today and just refuse to pay and arm and a leg because I need those. The children helped as you can see. We had fun but it was kind of stressful with them there. I didn't choose the ones I like the best but I did find some that were good quality, comfortable and a good value. I was surprised at the colour I ended up with because I so didn't want black but people with tight budgets can't be choosy. They won't be ready for ten whole days. Anastasia broke one arm off my glasses a while ago which wasn't too tragic since I really only wear them before bed and in the morning but it was somewhat inconvenient since anytime I bent my head to read or pick something up they swung off my eyes. Well the other day she somehow got her hands on them again and I suddenly heard, "Mom, broken." and when I turned around she had them in her little hands outstretched. Then I only had the front of my glasses and it doesn't feel very good to shove my contacts in first thing in the morning just so I can see what I am doing. It is also difficult to read with one hand on your nose. Anyway I hope I made a good choice. I was glad to find such good prices at Costco and there was a coupon to boot. Marvin will be next for getting himself some eye wear. Here are a few of his choices. He is attracted to the ones with Sponge Bob stickers on the glasses even though I told him the sticker won't be there when he brings them home. Anastasia won't have any trouble with glasses because you can absolutely loves them. She only seems to break other peoples.

Congratulations Davina & Daniel ! ! ! !









WoW Davina and Daniel tied the note on June 9th at the Cardston temple in Alberta. This weekend they had an absolutely delightful reception with bubbles and deserts and flowers galore. They looked really good and the live 3 piece band was so good. They made excellent choices and cute little red gingham picnic table cloths we all sat on and got to take home! It's wonderful to see Davina realizing her long awaited dreams come true and doing it with such style too. It was located at Redwood Park in Surrey
What a serene and pretty location. There was a playground hidden on the side but the children were content for the most part to wander in the woods and come in and out periodically. There were two chocolate fountains, one dark and one milk I think. There was plenty of fresh fruit and I loved the mint flavoured water. Davina, you are absolutely fabulous! Daniel you seem extremely unique and fun as well. Good luck and God Bless you in your new adventures.

Tuesday, July 10, 2007

Mmmmm Dairy Queen






Mondays is the $2.99 banana split special at the Dairy Queen in New Westminster. That's what Patrick wanted to get after dinner last night. He had been thinking about it all day and called us on the drive home to suggest it. He had to work an extra long day and loves to daydream so I can imagine him thinking about one of his favorites * i c e c r e a m * Wow the children wolfed their dinner down in a hurry because they were looking forward to some thing different besides getting right into bed after dinner. We brought my mom and sat outside the New Westminster Public Library to eat our treats. That gave us a chance to collapse, I mean relax while the children ran around up and down the ramp and all over the place making us all 3 more tired just by watching them. It was a fun way to unwind in the heat. There's benches there and it was so nice out. My mom was so thrilled to be invited and spend some downtime with her grandchildren. Also I had to use this chance to take even more photos of my family. Now Pat's talking about making ice cream. That means me making it and I realized I haven't got that ice cream maker out in a while. He's gone to the store right now to get some cream and I am sending him telepathic messages since his cell phone was left behind to charge about getting some rock salt too. Maybe I should try making it in the vitamix. We'll see.

Friday, July 06, 2007

Maka fekes...


True to the Faith
Let us resolve here and now to follow that straight path which leads home to the Father of us all.
President Thomas S. Monson
Many years ago, on an assignment to the beautiful islands of Tonga, I was privileged to visit our Church school, the Liahona High School, where our youth are taught by teachers with a common bond of faith—providing training for the mind and preparation for life. On that occasion, entering one classroom, I noticed the rapt attention the children gave their native instructor. His textbook and theirs lay closed upon the desks. In his hand he held a strange-appearing fishing lure fashioned from a round stone and large seashells. This, I learned, was a maka-feke, an octopus lure. In Tonga, octopus meat is a delicacy.
The teacher explained that Tongan fishermen glide over a reef, paddling their outrigger canoes with one hand and dangling the maka-feke over the side with the other. An octopus dashes out from its rocky lair and seizes the lure, mistaking it for a much-desired meal. So tenacious is the grasp of the octopus and so firm is its instinct not to relinquish the precious prize that fishermen can flip it right into the canoe.
It was an easy transition for the teacher to point out to the eager and wide-eyed youth that the evil one—even Satan—has fashioned so-called maka-fekes with which to ensnare unsuspecting persons and take possession of their destinies.
Today we are surrounded by the maka-fekes which the evil one dangles before us and with which he attempts to entice us and then to ensnare us. Once grasped, such maka-fekes are ever so difficult—and sometimes nearly impossible—to relinquish. To be safe, we must recognize them for what they are and then be unwavering in our determination to avoid them.
Constantly before us is the maka-feke of immorality. Almost everywhere we turn, there are those who would have us believe that what was once considered immoral is now acceptable. I think of the scripture, "Wo unto them that call evil good, and good evil, that put darkness for light, and light for darkness."1 Such is the maka-feke of immorality. We are reminded in the Book of Mormon that chastity and virtue are precious above all things.
When temptation comes, remember the wise counsel of the Apostle Paul, who declared, "There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it."2
Next, the evil one also dangles before us the maka-feke of pornography. He would have us believe that the viewing of pornography really hurts no one. How applicable is Alexander Pope’s classic, An Essay on Man:
Vice is a monster of so frightful mien,
As to be hated needs but to be seen;
Yet seen too oft, familiar with her face,
We first endure, then pity, then embrace.3
Some publishers and printers prostitute their presses by printing millions of pieces of pornography each day. No expense is spared to produce a product certain to be viewed, then viewed again. One of the most accessible sources of pornography today is the Internet, where one can turn on a computer and instantly have at his fingertips countless sites featuring pornography. President Gordon B. Hinckley has said: "I fear this may be going on in some of your homes. It is vicious. It is lewd and filthy. It is enticing and habit-forming. It will take [you] down to destruction as surely as anything in this world. It is foul sleaze that makes its exploiters wealthy, its victims impoverished."4
Tainted as well is the movie producer, the television programmer, or the entertainer who promotes pornography. Long gone are the restraints of yesteryear. So-called realism is the quest, with the result that today we are surrounded by this filth.
Avoid any semblance of pornography. It will desensitize the spirit and erode the conscience. We are told in the Doctrine and Covenants, "That which doth not edify is not of God, and is darkness."5 Such is pornography.
I mention next the maka-feke of drugs, including alcohol. Once grasped, this maka-feke is particularly difficult to abandon. Drugs and alcohol cloud thinking, remove inhibitions, fracture families, shatter dreams, and shorten life. They are everywhere to be found and are placed purposely in the pathway of vulnerable youth.
Each one of us has a body that has been entrusted to us by a loving Heavenly Father. We have been commanded to care for it. Can we deliberately abuse or injure our bodies without being held accountable? We cannot! The Apostle Paul declared: "Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you? . . .
"The temple of God is holy, which temple ye are."6 May we keep our bodies—our temples—fit and clean, free from harmful substances which destroy our physical, mental, and spiritual well-being.
The final maka-feke I wish to mention today is one which can crush our self-esteem, ruin relationships, and leave us in desperate circumstances. It is the maka-feke of excessive debt. It is a human tendency to want the things which will give us prominence and prestige. We live in a time when borrowing is easy. We can purchase almost anything we could ever want just by using a credit card or obtaining a loan. Extremely popular are home equity loans, where one can borrow an amount of money equal to the equity he has in his home. What we may not realize is that a home equity loan is equivalent to a second mortgage. The day of reckoning will come if we have continually lived beyond our means.
My brothers and sisters, avoid the philosophy that yesterday's luxuries have become today's necessities. They aren't necessities unless we make them so. Many enter into long-term debt only to find that changes occur: people become ill or incapacitated, companies fail or downsize, jobs are lost, natural disasters befall us. For many reasons, payments on large amounts of debt can no longer be made. Our debt becomes as a Damocles sword hanging over our heads and threatening to destroy us.
I urge you to live within your means. One cannot spend more than one earns and remain solvent. I promise you that you will then be happier than you would be if you were constantly worrying about how to make the next payment on nonessential debt. In the Doctrine and Covenants we read: "Pay the debt thou hast contracted. . . . Release thyself from bondage."7
There are, of course, countless other maka-fekes which the evil one dangles before us to lead us from the path of righteousness. However, our Heavenly Father has given us life and with it the capacity to think, to reason, and to love. We have the power to resist any temptation and the ability to determine the path we will take, the direction we will travel. Our goal is the celestial kingdom of God. Our purpose is to steer an undeviating course in that direction.
To all who walk the pathway of life, our Heavenly Father cautions: beware the detours, the pitfalls, the traps. Cunningly positioned are those cleverly disguised maka-fekes beckoning us to grasp them and to lose that which we most desire. Do not be deceived. Pause to pray. Listen to that still, small voice which speaks to the depths of our souls the Master’s gentle invitation, "Come, follow me."8 By doing so, we turn from destruction, from death, and find happiness and life everlasting.
Yet there are those who do not hear, who will not obey, who listen to the enticings of the evil one, who grasp those maka-fekes until they cannot let go, until all is lost. I think of that person of power, that cardinal of the cloth, even Cardinal Wolsey. The prolific pen of William Shakespeare described the majestic heights, the pinnacle of power to which Cardinal Wolsey ascended. That same pen told how principle was eroded by vain ambition, by expediency, by a clamor for prominence and prestige. Then came the tragic descent, the painful lament of one who had gained everything, then lost it all.
To Cromwell, his faithful servant, Cardinal Wolsey speaks:
O Cromwell, Cromwell!
Had I but serv’d my God with half the zeal
I serv’d my king, He would not in mine age
Have left me naked to mine enemies.9
That inspired mandate which would have led Cardinal Wolsey to safety was ruined by the pursuit of power and prominence, the quest for wealth and position. Like others before him and many more yet to follow, Cardinal Wolsey fell.
In an earlier time and by a wicked king, a servant of God was tested. Aided by the inspiration of heaven, Daniel interpreted to King Belshazzar the writing on the wall. Concerning the proffered rewards—even a royal robe and a necklace of gold—Daniel said: "Let thy gifts be to thyself, and give thy rewards to another."10
Darius, a later king, also honored Daniel, elevating him to the highest position of prominence. There followed the envy of the crowd, the jealousy of princes, and the scheming of ambitious men.
Through trickery and flattery, King Darius signed a proclamation providing that anyone who made a request of any god or man, except the king, should be thrown into the lions' den. Prayer was forbidden. In such matters, Daniel took direction not from an earthly king but from the King of heaven and earth, his God. Overtaken in his daily prayers, Daniel was brought before the king. Reluctantly, the penalty was pronounced. Daniel was to be thrown into the lions' den.
I love the biblical account which follows:
"The king arose very early in the morning, and went in haste unto the den of lions.
"And when he came to the den, he cried with a lamentable voice . . . O Daniel, . . . is thy God, whom thou servest continually, able to deliver thee from the lions?
"Then said Daniel unto the king . . .
"My God hath sent his angel, and hath shut the lions' mouths, that they have not hurt me. . . .
"Then was the king exceeding glad. . . . Daniel was taken up out of the den, and no manner of hurt was found upon him, because he believed in his God."11
In a time of critical need, Daniel's determination to remain true and faithful provided divine protection and a sanctuary of safety.
The clock of history, like the sands of the hourglass, marks the passage of time. A new cast occupies the stage of life. The problems of our day loom ominously before us. Surrounded by the challenges of modern living, we look heavenward for that unfailing sense of direction that we might chart and follow a wise and proper course. Our Heavenly Father will not deny our petition.
When I think of righteous individuals, the names of Gustav and Margarete Wacker come readily to mind. Let me describe them. I first met the Wackers when I was called to preside over the Canadian Mission in 1959. They had immigrated to Kingston, Ontario, Canada, from their native Germany.
Brother Wacker earned his living as a barber. His means were limited, but he and Sister Wacker always paid more than a tenth as tithing. As branch president, Brother Wacker started a missionary fund, and for months at a time he was the only contributor. When there were missionaries in the city, the Wackers fed and cared for them, and the missionaries never left the Wacker home without some tangible donation to their work and welfare.
Gustav and Margarete Wacker's home was a heaven. They were not blessed with children, but they mothered and fathered their many Church visitors. Men and women of learning and sophistication sought out these humble, unlettered servants of God and counted themselves fortunate if they could spend an hour in their presence. The Wackers' appearance was ordinary, their English halting and somewhat difficult to understand, their home unpretentious. They didn't own a car or a television, nor did they do any of the things to which the world usually pays attention. Yet the faithful beat a path to their door in order to partake of the spirit that was there.
In March of 1982, Brother and Sister Wacker were called to serve as full-time ordinance workers in the Washington D.C. Temple. On June 29, 1983, while Brother and Sister Wacker were still serving in this temple assignment, Brother Wacker, with his beloved wife at his side, peacefully passed from mortality to his eternal reward. Fitting are the words, "Who honors God, God honors."12
My brothers and sisters, let us resolve here and now to follow that straight path which leads home to the Father of us all so that the gift of eternal life—life in the presence of our Heavenly Father—may be ours. Should there be those things which need to be changed or corrected in order to do so, I encourage you to take care of them now.
In the words of a familiar hymn, may we ever be
True to the faith that our parents have cherished,
True to the truth for which martyrs have perished,
To God's command, Soul, heart and hand,
Faithful and true we will ever stand.13
That each of us may do so is my humble prayer, in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

I keep remembering and rereading this talk by Thomas S. Monson and rereading it. Something about it is really powerful for me. I love anything about Tonga and think President Monson is the cat's meow {hence Lucky picture at the top}. It was on the back of our Primary newsletter a few months ago and spoken in General Conference April 2006.