the moment in Church

I forgot to record this funny moment we saw in Dad's ward. There was a little 14 month old girl two rows in front of us and she mostly stood on the bench with her mom holding on to her arm. The mom had several other children and during the sacrament she was looking the other way.
The 14 month old was on the end of the bench. The deacons had just finished passing the water and were waiting in line to return. The little girl looked at the trays, reached for one, then removed her binky and reached out again. The deacon never flinched or moved and she was successful in grabbing a cup of water from the tray. Her mom was still looking the other way. As the baby tried to put the cup to her mouth, a young teen boy in the row behind her took the water cup from her. She turned and gave him the meanest scowl I have ever seen. And she kept scowling at him for a few minutes. She had been successful in getting something and he had taken it away from her!
It was sort of hilarious and we were quietly laughing and glad we had witnessed the whole thing.

The other great moment in church was when I sat next to dad in his wheelchair and shared the songbook with him. My tears started flowing as I listened to him sing the hymns and hear his voice. I don't know why, I guess it is the spirit that is so present when we sing of the Savior and ponder the words.

great moments

I just returned earlier this week from a 4 day visit with my 94 year old father. The care center is pretty nice and the nurses and CNA's really like him. The dining room server is really darling with him and tries so hard to encourage him to branch out in his eating habits. He recently has been asking for peanut butter and jelly sandwiches at every meal. When he ate soup and a pasta dish she was ecstatic. I'm grateful they are so nice. I got kind of attached to some of the sweet patients there - they have such interesting stories and are so kind. I made sure I said goodbye to four of my favorite ladies when I left them last Sunday. Dad and I spent time talking about different stuff and he was so pleased to hear all about my travels in Calgary recently. He loved talking to KC and Michelle on my cell phone. I loved shaving his face, combing his hair, pushing his wheelchair and sharing clementines and sweet grapes. We ate fresh raspberries together and talked about how to care for my raspberries in my garden. We ate Japanese food at one activity and he told the funny story about my mom who got stuck squatting over a 'toilet hole' that was so common in Japan. Dad had to go in and rescue her! Dad went to the morning devotional on Sunday and I joined him. I got pretty teary eyed as we were singing hymns from other churches - the words referred to walking with the Savior, meeting him when we die etc. It touched my heart to think that so many of the patients there are close to the end of their lives and may see their Savior soon. I loved hearing Dad's voice sing the songs. I could hardly hold it together when the activity leader asked Dad to give a closing prayer. He gave the sweetest, strongest prayer of love and appreciation for family and the Lord. His voice was clear and strong and he definitely knew what he was saying. Several of the people in the room acknowledged what a nice prayer he had said.

Here he is - almost 4 months after he went to ICU with aspiration pneumonia, a ventilator, and septic shock. I just wish he had not lost so much strength in his legs, requiring him to have so much help transferring from bed to chair, and to the toilet. He has taught me about patience.

On another note, since I have returned to Provo we have been having some gorgeous sunsets.
Today as I was about to close down my computer, I watched a beautiful golden light come through the trees and light the tops of the mountains. It was amazing to watch from my second story office window. I walked out the west door and watched the clouds turn to pink and the white snow covered mountains turn a soft pink. It was spellbinding. I walked through the yard to the side walk and began my trek to the far off parking lot. I saw at least 6 students on a path stopping to take pictures of the sunset. Two minutes later I heard a noise. Looking back I saw a deer darting out of the yard I had just come from, running and jumping across the road in front of cars, in front of people, and back across the road to the back side of the Faculty Office Building. And then I saw a second deer, and then a third! They all did the same thing and followed each other. It happened in just a few seconds but I won't forget it. I was happy that the girl about to cross the street had seen the deer, because if she hadn't they surely would have run into her. The darted past her only three feet away. It was a great moment to share with random strangers on their way home in the gorgeous light.

Here's one photo I took from our deck: Looks like a fire doesn't it?

A great moment.

The most gorgeous place

We just returned from Calgary Canada. We drove to a place I have always wanted to see - Lake Louise in Banff National Park. It was a dream come true! The water was SO SO blue and dreamy.

The color of the water is startling.
Eating in the hotel, looking out at the postcard beautiful scene: priceless.

And this. I loved looking at it. Do you know what it is?