Love, from the mouth of babes!

"If you want to learn to love better, you should start with a friend who you hate,"

Nikka - age 6
(we need a few million more Nikka's on this planet)

"When someone loves you, the way they say your name is different.
You just know that your name is safe in their mouth."
Billy - age 4

"Love is when a girl puts on perfume and a boy puts on shaving cologne and they go out and smell each other."
Karl - age 5

"Love is what makes you smile when you're tired."
Terri - age 4

"Love is what's in the room with you at Christmas if you stop opening presents and listen."
Bobby - age 7 (Wow!)

"When you love somebody, your eyelashes go up and down and little stars come out of you." (what an image)
Karen - age 7

"Love is when Mommy sees Daddy on the toilet and she doesn't think it's gross."
Mark - age 6

You really shouldn't say 'I love you' unless you mean it. But if you mean it, you should say it a lot. People forget."
Jessica - age 8

And the final one -- Author and lecturer Leo Buscaglia once talked about a contest he was asked to judge.

The purpose of the contest was to find the most caring child.

The winner was a four year old child whose next door neighbor was an elderly gentleman who had recently lost his wife.

Upon seeing the man cry, the little boy went into the old gentleman's yard, climbed onto his lap, and just sat there.

When his Mother asked what he had said to the neighbor, the little boy said,
"Nothing, I just helped him cry"

Life is Fragile, What will I do with it?

I want to share a few words today from our beloved Prophet, President Monson...

How fragile life, how certain death. We do not know when we will be required to leave this mortal existence. And so I ask, “What are we doing with today?” If we live only for tomorrow, we’ll eventually have a lot of empty yesterdays. Have we been guilty of declaring, “I’ve been thinking about making some course corrections in my life. I plan to take the first step—tomorrow”? With such thinking, tomorrow is forever. Such tomorrows rarely come unless we do something about them today.

Let us ask ourselves the questions: “Have I done any good in the world today? Have I helped anyone in need?” What a formula for happiness! What a prescription for contentment, for inner peace—to have inspired gratitude in another human being.

Our opportunities to give of ourselves are indeed limitless, but they are also perishable. There are hearts to gladden. There are kind words to say. There are gifts to be given. There are deeds to be done. There are souls to be saved.

Because life is fragile and death inevitable, we must make the most of each day.

There are many ways in which we can misuse our opportunities. Some time ago I read a tender story written by Louise Dickinson Rich which vividly illustrates this truth. She wrote:

“My grandmother had an enemy named Mrs. Wilcox. Grandma and Mrs. Wilcox moved, as brides, into next-door houses on the main street of the tiny town in which they were to live out their lives. I don’t know what started the war between them—and I don’t think that by the time I came along, over thirty years later, they remembered themselves what started it. This was no polite sparring match; this was total war. …

“Nothing in town escaped repercussion. The 300-year-old church, which had lived through the Revolution, the Civil War, and the Spanish War, almost went down when Grandma and Mrs. Wilcox fought the Battle of the Ladies’ Aid. Grandma won that engagement, but it was a hollow victory. Mrs. Wilcox, since she couldn’t be president, resigned [from the Aid] in a huff. What’s the fun of running a thing if you can’t force your enemy to eat crow? Mrs. Wilcox won the Battle of the Public Library, getting her niece, Gertrude, appointed librarian instead of Aunt Phyllis. The day Gertrude took over was the day Grandma stopped reading library books. They became ‘filthy germy things’ overnight. The Battle of the High School was a draw. The principal got a better job and left before Mrs. Wilcox succeeded in having him ousted or Grandma in having him given life tenure of office.

“When as children we visited my grandmother, part of the fun was making faces at Mrs. Wilcox’s grandchildren. One banner day we put a snake into the Wilcox rain barrel. My grandmother made token protests, but we sensed tacit sympathy.

“Don’t think for a minute that this was a one-sided campaign. Mrs. Wilcox had grandchildren, too. Grandma didn’t get off scot free. Never a windy washday went by that the clothesline didn’t mysteriously break, with the clothes falling in the dirt.

“I don’t know how Grandma could have borne her troubles so long if it hadn’t been for the household page of her daily Boston newspaper. This household page was a wonderful institution. Besides the usual cooking hints and cleaning advice, it had a department composed of letters from readers to each other. The idea was that if you had a problem—or even only some steam to blow off—you wrote a letter to the paper, signing some fancy name like Arbutus. That was Grandma’s pen name. Then some of the other ladies who had the same problem wrote back and told you what they had done about it, signing themselves One Who Knows or Xanthippe or whatever. Very often, the problem disposed of, you kept on for years writing to each other through the column of the paper, telling each other about your children and your canning and your new dining-room suite. That’s what happened to Grandma. She and a woman called Sea Gull corresponded for a quarter of a century. Sea Gull was Grandma’s true friend.

“When I was about sixteen, Mrs. Wilcox died. In a small town, no matter how much you have hated your next-door neighbor, it is only common decency to run over and see what practical service you can do the bereaved. Grandma, neat in a percale apron to show that she meant what she said about being put to work, crossed the lawn to the Wilcox house, where the Wilcox daughters set her to cleaning the already-immaculate front parlor for the funeral. And there on the parlor table in the place of honor was a huge scrapbook; and in the scrapbook, pasted neatly in parallel columns were Grandma’s letters to Sea Gull over the years and Sea Gull’s letters to her. Though neither woman had known it, Grandma’s worst enemy had been her best friend. That was the only time I remember seeing my grandmother cry. I didn’t know then exactly what she was crying about, but I do now. She was crying for all the wasted years which could never be salvaged.”10

May we resolve from this day forward to fill our hearts with love. May we go the extra mile to include in our lives any who are lonely or downhearted or who are suffering in any way. May we “[cheer] up the sad and [make] someone feel glad.”11 May we live so that when that final summons is heard, we may have no serious regrets, no unfinished business, but will be able to say with the Apostle Paul, “I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith.

Baby!

Just thought you all might want to know that Brian and I are excited to say that we will be having a girl. YEAH!!!

"These Things have I spoken unto you, that ye should not be offended." John 16:1

It still amazes me how much Heavenly Father love each of us. I have had this witnessed to me so many times, and it still ceases to amaze me. This past week I was once again blessed as He answered my prayers in the form of a Sacrament Meeting talk. I was struggling with a heavy heart and had been earnestly praying for several days. This was part of the answer to those prayers. I got a copy from the person who spoke. I hope this might be helpful to whoever takes the time reads it.

"Psalms 119:165, Great peace have they that love thy law, and nothing shall offend them."
Today I will use Elder Bednar's talk from October 2006's conference as the base for my talk called "And Nothing Shall Offend Them."
Most of you have probably heard the phrase "turn the other cheek." It comes from Matthew 5:39. "But I say unto you, that ye resist not evil: but whosoever shall smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also." Christ said it, and it exemplifies His attitude. President Monson said "As we develop our ability to avoid taking offense and to forgive we become more Christ-like."
Sometimes it's really easy to become offended, but when we are offended, what do we gain? WE become resentful towards whoever has offended us. This fills us with that resentment (which isn't a pleasant feeling), prompts us to break one of God's most all-emcompassing commandments (love one another). and we get absolutely nothing good in the bargain. We rob ourselves of guaranteed blessings just to hold a grudge. In his talk, Elder Bednar uses those who are offended out of the Church as an example of this self-deprivation. To these people he states, "Let me make sure I understand what has happened to you. Because someone at church offended you, you have not been blessed by the ordinance of the sacrament. You have withdrawn yourself from the constant companionship of the Holy Ghost. Because someone at church offended you, you have cut yourself off from the priesthood ordinances and the holy temple. You have discontinued your opportunity to serve others and to learn and grow, and you are leaving barriers that will impede the spiritual progress of your children, your children's children, and the generations that will follow."
Not all instances of taking offense are that dramatic, but the principle is the same. Being offended gains us nothing: it only limits our happiness. I don't know about you, but that is one thing I don't want to put limits on. Why do we want to surrender our control over joy to someones else's careless word? We don't, but that is exactly what we do when we choose to take offense.
And it is a choice. Elder Bednar said, "it is ultimately impossible for another person to offend you or me...To be offended is a choice we make; it is not a condition inflicted or imposed upon us by someone or something else."
As usual, Christ is the best example of how to react to potentially offensive situations. Put yourself in his shoes for a minute. Here you are, the Only Begotten Son of the Almighty God, come to bring salvation and eternal life to your younger brothers and sisters. You try to tell them the good news, and what do they say of you? "Is this not Jesus, the son of Joseph?" In 1 Nephi 19:9 it tells us of those who ridiculed him further: "And the world, because of their iniquity, shall judge him to be a thing of naught; wherefore they scourge him, and he suffereth it; and they smite him, and he suffereth it. Yea, they spit upon him, and he suffereth it." It even goes on to tell us why. "Because of his loving kindness and his long-suffering towards the children of men."
So not taking offense ties back into charity. When you love someone, it's hard to stay too angry with them for too long. Last Sunday our family was in McCall, Idaho attending church in an echoing barn. As the sacrament was being passed, a small child could be heard saying, "I wanna do it, I wanna do it." Within seconds, a louder yell could be heard quite clearly saying, "you're mean mommy, I hate you!!! Followed by a loud spitting sound. The mother, though most likely embarrassed, probably wasn't offended, and she didn't loose control. This is in part because she undoubtedly loves her child, and in part because she knows that the child didn't fully understand what they were saying. C. Richard Chidester said, "If you are perceiving compassionately and unaccusingly we won't have to take thought about exercising self-control. We will automatically demonstrate self-control because our hearts will be right and we will be kind."
Along the lines of the child not understanding, the same goes for many of the other people who could offend us. Oftentimes they don't mean to cause offense. Sometimes their criticism is meant to help, or sometimes they speak without knowing the full situation, or sometimes they are just oblivious. For example, when my children were much younger, I was hauling the 4 younger children from the Summerfest to our traditional parade-viewing spot to meet some other people. The kids were hot and tired, and I was carrying the twins, one in front and one in back. I also had Devin hanging on a belt loop and Kurt staying close. A woman I know very well saw me and waved. I acknowledged her with a smile and a hello, then continued on to my destination. Later on, I learned that the woman had been offended that I didn't stop to talk to her and she thought I didn't like her. I hadn't even thought of that. I was just trying to get where I was going before my back gave out. Elder Bednar states, "If you feel offended by another's words or actions, you might try to see the situation from the other person's point of view. Did he or she really mean to hurt, or was it a mistake with innocent motives? Forgiving the other person at this point will save much pain and worry. I have adopted the philosophy that usually people try to do what is right. They should be given credit for their intentions, not for the unintended outcome." End quote. If the person offends us out of ignorance, or just because they are seeing the situation from a different viewpoint, taking offense is doubly nonsensical because nothing malicious was meant. When my daughter was in first grade, a silly boy carelessly called her "fat" while they were on the playground. He hadn't meant anything by it, but it was one of the few times that she has taken offense at something. After she and I had a little talk about how he probably hadn't meant it, she quickly got over it and forgave him. Shortly after, they became fast friends, and they still are to this day. If she had harbored that offense, even in a small way, she would have missed out on one of the best friends in her life.
Remember Pahoran from the book of Alma. Remember, he was the chief judge who received a rather long and not exactly kind letter "by way of condemnation" (Alma 60:2) from Captain Moroni. Moroni accused Pahoran of neglecting the soldiers by not sending them supplies and more or less put most of the army's problems at Pahoran's feet when the chief judge had nothing to do with any of it, and had been dealing with a rebellion that had put him out of power. But instead of rebuking Moroni by saying something like "You don't know what you're talking about, you fool!" he instead chose these words, recorded in alma 61:2 and 9, "Behold, I say unto you, Moroni, that I do not joy in your great afflictions, yea, it grieves my soul...And now, in your epistle you have censured me, but it mattereth not, I am not angry, but do rejoice in the greatness of your heart." Pahoran knew that Moroni acted out of love for his men, not out of a desire to hurt Pahoran. Pahoran gave Moroni credit for his intentions and neglected the unintended outcome.
Of course, malignant intent does occasionally drive the work or action that could cause offense, but that doesn't change anything. It comes back to giving the capacity to limit our happiness to others. Of all the people to give the power over our happiness to, the last one we want to give it to is a person who wishes us ill. When we take offense, we are giving up our agency and allowing others to dictate parts of our lives while we receive no benefit in return.
But let's be honest: we aren't perfect. We are going to get offended sometimes. These things happen. What are we supposed to do then? Vengeance is out, because that probably isn't going to go over well. Other options include moping, moaning, sulking, and avoiding the offender completely. None of those sound very good either, and though the last option is tempting, I would necessarily classify it as charitable or Christ-like.
In and article in the August 1998 Ensign, Denise Turner says, "We have a responsibility to freely forgive, even when we have not been asked to do so. We need to exercise patience with others." close quote. When we exercise patience, we allow people to change and grow. If we don't forgive, even if they change, we will never see them as having done so, and to us they will always be that person who offended me that one time and I haven't liked them since.
It is not only for the benefit of others that we must forgive. According to Alexander Pope: "To err is human; to forgive, divine." George Herbert, a seventeenth-century poet said "He that cannot forgive others breaks the bridge over which he himself must pass if he would ever reach heaven, for everyone has need of forgiveness." And we certainly all need forgiveness when it comes to offending others.
In James3:2 it says, "For in many things we offend all. If any man offend not in work, the same is a prefect man, and able also to bridle the whole body." Last time I checked, I wasn't perfect, and I don't think anyone else in this room is either. I could be wrong, but I don't thing so. We must to try very hard not to offend others, but in the instances when we inevitably do, we should do our best to reconcile ourselves with them. Some will insist on holding their grudge. Proverbs 18:19 says, "A brother offended is harder to be won than a strong city." but that doesn't mean we shouldn't do everything we can. And even if they don't forgive us, if we are truly penitent, God will. That's what the atonement is for--it is a way for us to become perfect in Christ. Amen

Fun at the County Fair

Yesterday we went to the Utah County Fair. We being Dennis and I, Mark, Elain and their family, Alisha, Randy and their family, and Amanda and her kids. It is definitely much smaller than the State Fair, but that was very nice as there were not tons of people.

It was cool to see the Lego display. Since I have not had young kids for years, and not been to Lego Land, I was amazed at the things you can do with Lego's. On their display were 2 Star Wars villages, Trains, Indy Race Car village, garden village, Gotham City, and even Thanksgiving Point, and that was about a third of the display.

I enjoyed looking at the quilts as I am getting into that. I have finished my first quilt top, but have yet to put a back on it and quilt it. I wish I had room for and money to buy a quilting machine. That would be way cool! The kids got to listen to Tommy Tomato and make a necklace for their little seed. (See picture) Dennis favorite thing is to look at the animals. I for one am glad to not have to go through a whole building of cows, then another whole building of sheep, and so on with pigs, horses, etc. We were able to see cows, sheep, chickens, pigs and tons of flies that like to fly in places to gross to mention. Only two sections of animals. That was just right. After the first one, they all look alike.

They got to crawl around on an Army Tank, and sit on several older model Tractors. One was even pink. That definitely was for the girls. They even had small tractors for little kids to ride on. Poor Porter, his legs are always just a bit too short to make the petals go round.

No fair would be complete without rodeo type events. We watched several teams do horse roping. It looks like a scary thing to me. Horses and men chasing down other horses. One of the referee's almost got clotheslined by a rope. After the roping we decided it was time to have a snack and tried the giant scones from the Orem Kiwanis booth. It's a good thing there were 5 0f us to share it. While we ate we listened to Greg Simpson an LDS singer.

Afterwards the kids got to go on a few carnival rides. It is fun to watch their faces. Especially the little ones who experience something for the first time, like Lydia on the cars and Clay on his first big grown up ride. It was so worth the cost just to hear Porter say "That...was...FUN!!! One of those priceless moments.

It was a very enjoyable evening spent with my family. The only thing that could have made it better was to have Steve and Malinda and Brian with us. Thanks everyone for coming. Clay, I hope your neck is not hurting today after your first wicked adult ride.

I apologize if music comes with this slide show. I don't know how to get rid of it.

New Bloggers

Hey, Steve and I are going to try this thing out. Hopefully we can get a hold of it and run with it. It will be fun to share with all of you the new things going on in our lives.

Triathlon or Crazy?

Dennis has had the time of his life this summer. He ran in the Wasatch Back Relay, participated in many 5 and 10k's and most recently swam in a triathlon in the team division. The swim was 1.5 miles at the Provo boat harbor. The bike portion was done by someone he works with and I don't know his name. He had to bike like 25 miles all around south Provo and Springville. The run portion was a half marathon 13.1 miles ran by a running friend who happens to be an ER doctor at UVRMC. They all had a great time. I think they must all be crazy. Anyway it keeps Dennis young, healthy and happy. I'm glad he has something that he loves doing. FYI: Did you know that Dennis loves swimming above all other sports? Did you know that Dennis and Calvin both swam for AAU at BYU when they were young? He is a fish in the water, and a mountain goat in the mountains. I bet you can guess what he watches during the Olympics? Swimming and track and field are his favorite.

2nd Annual Nash Family Reunion

Oh, what do you do in the summertime,
when all the world is green?
Do you sit in a stream,
or lazily dream or
watch as the clouds roll by?
Is that what you do?
No, we have family reunions!

Saturday August 9 was the day for our 2nd annual family reunion. Who knew it would be such fun. Of course the first thing we have to do is EAT!!! Yummy rocky mountain (barbecue) chicken sandwiches, all kinds of delicious salads, chips, watermelon and of course desserts!
After eating we played some hilariously funny water relay games. Who knew getting wet could be so much fun. Do you know what is really funny? Watching grown men and women try to put on soaking wet sweat pants and try to run in them.

One of the highlights of the day for me was when Mark and his family surprised us. We had no idea they were coming from Fargo, North Dakota for a visit. While we were doing the water relays, someone called my name and I turned around and there they were. WOW!!!

What would any party be without a PINATA! The kids seemed to have a great time trying to hit the pinata that some fat lady kept raising and lowering and making it very hard for them to do. It was fun to watch, and of course the best part is eating the candy the worked so hard to get.

We missed those who couldn't be with us this year. I was lucky that with Mark surprising us the only one from my family that couldn't come was Randy who had to work. From Nancy's family we missed Angie and Brett and their cute boys, Matt (who is on the Lord's errand), and Kim who we saw briefly because she had better things to do like plan a wedding shower (just teasing Kim). From Lisa's family we missed Tiffany and Colt who have moved to Tremonton. We also missed Vanese's husband Gary as he had to stay in Salt Lake and run their store. It was fun to see Tyson and Amanda's new baby for the first time. So all in all it was a great day......Good weather, great food, plenty of water, and lots of fun. Here are some random reunion photos for your enjoyment.