Valentine party people

Valentines partying together

We had about 25 couples show up for the party, which is a large percentage of our branch membership. A few single adults came too, and everyone seemed to enjoy themselves a lot. Sherman Grandy is a natural born teacher. He compared dancing to marriage, and taught us some principles of good dancing that apply to life just as well.
These happy couples are Dave and Kristie Marsden, Jim and Kathryn Tripp, Hans and Jody Zeller on either side of Nasook and Dewey Moore, John and Gloria Folker, and Darsha and Harold Stanley.

Valentine Party pictures

Peterson's baby girl made a hit!

Of course, Mike and Nicole beat the other branch presidency competition in the Not-so-Newlywed Game, too.

Dinner at Marsdens included our hosts, Dave and Kristie, Hans and Jody Zeller, Elder and Sister Matt and Becky Pickett, Tom and Mayumi Cole, and Norm and myself. Great group!

 
Sherm Grandy has this way of getting people up and movin' their feet. Nasook just did not want to dance, and her husband Dewey sort of gave up trying to persuade her, but by the end of the evening, Sherm got her following him. I knew I asked the right guy to take charge of this activity!

Valentine Party

It's hard to believe it has been 2 weeks since I posted anything. I have read several other people's blogs in those weeks, and got so busy planning the Yongsan Branch Valentine Party, that I hadn't updated my own...but now I have a few photos to share from last night. Norm and I danced for the first time in several years. It's not because we had not wanted to....It's because we never found anyplace to dance. So, I arranged for fellow branch member Sherm Grandy to provide some general instruction, and then give us free time to have some dancing fun.

But before we got to that point, we all divided into dinner groups and met in 7 branch members' homes in Yongsan military housing. Norm and I dined at Dave and Kristie Marsden's lovely home, which is in the adjacent US Embassy housing. We had our young branch president Hans Zeller and wife Jody, Elder and Sister Pickett, and Tom and Mayumi Cole with us, too. We knew them back in the early 1980's in Heilbronn, Germany, and they are both here as active duty COL and LTC now. We just never know who we'll meet up with in the military community, and especially among the church members. It was a good mix of couples, and the meal was a delicious potluck dinner: tortilla soup, pot roast, rice pilaf, Japanese green salad, fruit salad, rolls...yummy.

Christmas Eve 2008

Jaren and Kris Price heard that we were alone, away from our families for Christmas, and kindly invited us into their home for Christmas Eve, German style. Kris is German, married to an American army major, and they are in our church branch. We ate authentic Deutsch foods for supper, and just relaxed for a while with the whole family as they kept their traditional German customs. Kris even got a phone call from her parents in Germany while we were there, so we heard some Deutsch speaking, and felt like we were back in Germany...where we created lots of Christmas memories in the 1980's and 1990's!

20-40-60

This comment in Relief Society yesterday made me laugh, mostly because it's so true,and it hits pretty close to home...

At age 20, we worry a lot about what everyone else thinks of us;
At age 40, we no longer care what anyone thinks of us;
At age 60, no one thinks of us anyway.

As the years pass, I feel more and more obsolete and tossed aside by a youth-driven world. If I feel this way at 57, just imagine how I will feel at 87.

Something to ponder....

I've always heard "You're not getting older, you're getting better." That may be true, but I AM getting older, too. So are you. Are we any better, really?

Can't get enough of Calvin!

Look at what I am missing in Kaysville, since I still live in Korea! One night this month, Aunty Em and Aunty Beck were given the supreme joy of tending Calvin while his parents went out to dine. What a sweet babysitting gig! He turned 6 months old this month, too. So, even if you readers have seen enough of him, I haven't, and it's my blog! Enjoy the evidence of a doting gramma!

A Senior's Prayer

Sometimes things happen that remind me of this prayer that was given to me by a very wise and lovely senior sister I knew over here in Seoul a few years ago. I decided that this needs to be put somewhere I can find it when I need to re-read it, and also to be shared with whomever wanders by on this blog some day.

A Senior’s Prayer

(Written by Aziza Sleightholm, coordinator for People Helping People in Surrey, BC)

Lord, you know me better than I know myself
That I am growing older
And that someday I will be old.
Keep me from getting talkative
And from the habit of thinking that
I must say something on every occasion.
Release me from the craving to straighten out everyone’s affairs.
Keep my mind free from the ritual of endless details.
And give me wings to get to the point.
I ask for grace enough to listen to the tales of others’ pains.
Help me endure them with patience.
Seal my lips on my own aches and pains – even though they are increasing
And my love of rehearsing them is becoming sweeter as the years go by.
Teach me the glorious lesson that it is possible to be mistaken.
Keep me reasonably sweet.
I don’t want to be a saint – some of them are hard to live with.
But a sour old person is one of the crowning works of the devil.
Make me thoughtful, but not moody; helpful, but not bossy.
But with my vast store of wisdom,
It seems a pity not to use it all.
But you know, Lord,
I want a few friends at the end.

Here are a few extra pictures from the last few months to show a little more of my family's life.

In October, we attended a "repeating of wedding vows" ceremony of our friend John and his sweet Korean bride Hannah...and this week, she joined the ESL class I teach at the Army Community Services.

Calvin gets lots of love and attention from all his aunties and uncles! Someday I will join them with some "grandsmother love!"

Rebecca made some great friends in Korea this fall, and will soon return for more adventures in Seoul.

Drei Koenig Tag

Today, January 6th, is Three Kings Day. In all my years of hearing and reading the Christmas Story, I have never given much thought or concern to the three kings, or wisemen, in the New Testament narrative. Until this year....That's when I happened to read a book I had purchased in the past, but never opened until now. It's called From the East by Jeffrey Holt. I don't want to give away the story, but if you are interested in this topic, and are open to a fascinating idea about the origin of these men from the East, just email me or post a reply here, and I will let you know more. Or even better: go track down the book somewhere, and read it for yourself!

Tangents and Circles

I'm no mathematician, but I remember learning in geometry class about a tangent. It's a line that touches on a circle in just one point. Usually people use that word to express the idea of "going off on a tangent," or, in other words, getting away from the subject at hand. In my case, I feel that my life is a tangent line, barely touching circles of people and experiences, but only in a distant, almost detached manner. It is bothering me a lot this season. As I look back on my past, and ponder the present,I see a pattern that repeats itself over and over again, no matter where, when, and who is part of the circle. I don't get to penetrate to the heart of the circle. I just get to come close, have a peek, meet a few people in the friendship circle, and then I realize I am not fully included in that circle. I have my moment of tangential relationships, and then it is over, before it really began. I need more diameter or radius experiences. I have just finished the Christmas season in Korea, away from my family, trying to feel a sense of the season, but definitely feeling like a tangent line. Next Christmas needs to be different, in the center of the family circle.

Recipe for Life

I love this type of reminder list. That's why I am sharing it with anyone who reads this blog. (It may appear lately that I have no original thoughts to share anymore! Not true--Just appreciating the many examples of wisdom I find all around me!)--sjp

Great Recipe
1. Take a 10-30 minute walk every day. And while you walk, smile. It is the ultimate anti-depressant.
2. Sit in silence for at least 10 minutes each day. Talk to God about what is going on in your life. Buy a lock if you have to.
3. When you wake up in the morning complete the following statement,
'My purpose is to__________ today. I am thankful for______________.'
4. Eat more foods that grow on trees and plants and eat less food that is manufactured in plants.
5. Drink herbal tea and plenty of water. Eat blueberries, wild Alaskan salmon, broccoli, almonds and walnuts.
6. Try to make at least three people smile each day.
7. Don't waste your precious energy on gossip, energy vampires, issues of the past, negative thoughts or things you cannot control. Instead invest your energy in the present moment.
8. Eat breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince and dinner like a college kid with a maxed out charge card.
9. Life isn't fair, but it's still good.
10. Life is too short to waste time hating anyone.
11. Don't take yourself so seriously. No one else does.
12. You are not so important that you have to win every argument. Agree to disagree.
13. Make peace with your past so it won't spoil the present.
14. Don't compare your life to others. You have no idea what their journey is all about.
15. No one is in charge of your happiness except you.
16. Frame every so-called disaster with these words: 'In five years, will this matter?'
17. Forgive everyone for everything.
18. What other people think of you is none of your business.
19. GOD heals everything - but you have to ask Him.
20. However good or bad a situation is, it will change.
21. Your job won't take care of you when you are sick. Your friends will. Stay in touch!!!
22. Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need.
23. Each night before you go to bed complete the following statements:
I am thankful for__________. Today I accomplished_________.
24. Remember that you are too blessed to be stressed.
25. When you are feeling down, start listing your many blessings. You'll be smiling before you know it.

Timely financial advice to us all...

...although it is good advice any time of the year, or of our lives. I seem to agree with this man 100%, so here I go again with a copy and paste on money management:
Four keys to financial successBy Elia Gourgouris
For Mormon Times
Tuesday, Dec. 02, 2008


One of the most important areas in life is that of financial security. We all strive for it with some basic knowledge of what works and what doesn't.

Great counsel is given every year from our spiritual leaders and other so called experts. Defining the "financial expectations" early on in a relationship is key to the overall success of that relationship! Clearly the financial principles that I'm about to share with you are applicable to all of us…married, single, divorced or widowed.

The best counsel I ever received took place while I was single and about to get married. Here I was in graduate school, deeply in debt because of school loans and about to start an eternal union. Luckily for me, my soon-to-be wife had graduated from college (BYU) and was working on the production side at a movie studio in Hollywood. She was extremely responsible fiscally, having been taught well by her parents.

Interestingly, the counsel that I received did not come from her by but from a good friend in the singles ward. He had been working in the financial sector and doing quite well, by the looks of things. One day we started to talk about life, and out of the blue, he stated that finances are easy. That's right, he said they were EASY! I replied, "That's easy for you to say, you have a good job and a nice car and a very nice condo. I live in an apartment, drive an OK car and I'm in debt because of grad school ... do you want to trade?"

He laughed and said, predictably "No, I don't think so!" He did, however, go on to say that if I did four things every month, finances would be easy for me, too. Well, given my circumstances and respect for him, I was intrigued, so I said, "Let's hear it."

He said the first thing you do every month is pay the Lord, meaning tithing, a generous fast offering and any other contribution that would have a meaningful impact in the lives of others. Honestly, I was not too surprised by his comment. Putting the Lord first made total sense to me.

The second principle was to pay myself! Now I was a little taken aback by the simplicity of his comment. He went on to say that paying yourself should always come after the Lord, because it implies that you matter. If in graduate school, it might mean $5 a month (at the time, the price of a movie ticket). In time that could be $50 or even $500 depending on your circumstances. Learn the importance of savings, right after tithing.

The third key to financial freedom and success was to pay your bills and pay them on time. He asked me an interesting question, "Do you know who owns most of the high-rise buildings in most major cities?" I thought for a minute and answered, "Banks and insurances?" He said "exactly," and did I know how they're able to afford to build them? The logical answer was of course that awful word we all dread: INTEREST. So it is, he continued, when we pay interest we're the "slaves." When we pay our bills, credit cards, etc. on time we're the "masters." "Which one do you want to be?" Well, at the time I definitely fell in the first category but eventually and with some discipline and help from my wife, it got considerably better.

The fourth principle was the one that took me the most by surprise. He said if you do the first three every month and there's some money left over, "Well, go out and spend it and have fun with your family!" I loved it!

I'm clearly not a financial expert, as a matter of fact, I really struggled at UCLA with the only economics class that I took (psychology was a lot easier). However, I can tell you that I have followed his wise counsel for almost two decades, and it has blessed my life and that of my family's. Pay the Lord, pay yourself, pay your bills on time (no interest) and then go out and enjoy! I've shared his counsel with many others over the years and although it seems simple, it actually works!


Sara's note: I, too, have put those principles into practice, and can tell anyone interested that it does indeed work. Some of you know well that we have had all kinds of financial difficulties and challenges over our 36 years of married life, but we never have starved, and we certainly have had our share of fun along the way, along with the good lessons in monetary self-discipline that all our family members have learned, whether we wanted to or not! "No experience is wasted!" Enjoy those experiences you have, no matter what they end up becoming!