Happy Halloween

It's a beautiful thing that my 20-year-old daughter has been inspired by Halloween this year.  First, she made a Link costume (from the Legend of Zelda game) for my son.  Then she painted my daughter's face with scary make-up (I would have never done that for sure.  I prefer cute Halloween over scary.)  And now because some of my siblings are doing a Lord of the Rings ensemble for trick or treating tonight, she is creating a Witch King costume for my son.  I love having talented, creative children.

Looking for Color

Straight from summer to winter, the first light snow fell earlier this week.  Now, it's mostly melted.  Thanks to encouragement from a hair dresser yesterday, today I went out for a bike ride and looked for orange and red.  And found it. 

"Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you:"  Matthew 7:7

Sign

I like the shadow of this sign at Wheeler Farm much better than the whited-over version.  I'm sure somebody thought they were making it more readable-- so unnecessary on a beautiful sunny day.

 

Copper Mine

Kennecott Copper Mine produces 1/4 of all the copper mined in the U.S.  It's one of the only manmade structures that is visible from space.  We went there today.  Not space.  To the mine.  Though going to space would probably have been more fun.  But we had fun at the mine.  They have a great gift shop and the movie they show in the visitor center was educational.  The kids refused to pose for pictures.  I respected that, and I'm weary of seeing pictures of myself, so you get to see an edited view of  me and one of the very large tires of the very large trucks they use to transport the ore from the bottom of the mine to the surface.  It's amazing, and a little sad, what they do to the earth to get to the copper.  The visitor center does a good job explaining how important copper is to our high-tech world and how the company attempts to minimize the negative impact it has on the environment.

On the Island

Did you know that people used to live on islands in the middle of The Great Salt Lake?  We went to Antelope Island last Saturday.  I love that place.

My camera battery died right after I took this picture on the top of Buffalo Point.  The camera wouldn't even turn on so I couldn't see if it turned out until I got home.  After that shot, I saw so many awesome ones.  "You'll just have to remember this in your mind," said my husband.  And I do.  My favorite mental image of the day is of him and my daughter sitting on a rock.  He's wearing a black t-shirt.  She's wearing her hot-pink jacket.  The lake and mountains are in the distant background.  Large, colorful rocks, yellow-flowering tumbleweed, and a single small sunflower are in the foreground.  My husband is smiling.  My daughter is looking at him.  I stood there wishing I could preserve and share the moment.

Learning to Love

Children are good at reaching out and connecting with people.  Generally, they are naturally loving: open about themselves, non-judgmental, quick to forgive, giving, and friendly.  They're not afraid to admit they don't want to be alone.  I've

 wanted to become more childlike.  I've been given the opportunity to practice.  Though sometimes I'm exhausted by the workout, my heart is expanding.  It's a good feeling.

There May Be Giants

My son enjoyed pretending he was a giant at the Swiss Chalet last night.  There are so many interesting places to visit here in SLC.  Last night, just before dark, we visited the International Peace Gardens. It's a beautiful place with all kinds of markers, statues, foilage, and signs representing different countries from all around the world.  The flowers are pretty, but it was too dark to take good pictures.  I'm sure we'll return. 

 I'd heard they have a miniature Eiffel Tower.  We had a little trouble finding it.   Fortunately, we encountered it just before we had to leave. 

 For some reason, I have no desire to visit Paris.  I wonder if he'll ever see it.  Of course, I never wanted to visit England either and I ended up living there for four years.  The future is funny like that.

Cloudy Days are Okay

 

A few locals talked as if the forecasted cloudy, cooler weather was going to be a bad thing. I feel right at home.  I've lived in places like this: England, the coast of Washington State, and upstate New York for a little less than half of my married life.  Clouds, a little rain, soft wind, and cooler temperatures are definitely a good thing.  It was a great day for a bike ride. 

Reflecting

I'm reflecting this morning.

When I was a teenager, I did a lot of babysitting for my parents.  I'm the second oldest of nine.  My youngest brother was born after my oldest sister had already left for college.  One night when my parents were out, my baby brother became very sick.  He had a fever and wouldn't stop crying.  I didn't know what to do.  I didn't want to bother my parents at their friends' house, so I tried everything I could on my own.  I held him. I sang to him.  I rocked him in the rocking chair.  Nothing seemed to help, not even his beloved pacifier.  My heart was breaking for him I was so full of compassion.  I was crying too.  I tried calling my parents, but nobody answered.  So I prayed.  I prayed hard. I sat on my little brother's bed and wept.  I kept praying.  Finally, when I was just about ready to go out and search for my parents, he stopped crying and fell asleep.  He slept all night long.  During the night, his fever broke and he was totally, shockingly fine in the morning.  I felt like my prayers were heard and answered.

I know it doesn't always work that way.  Sometimes, the results of our prayers take much longer to see.  Sometimes, the answer isn't what we'd prefer.  As I've grown older, I have learned to trust.  I know Heavenly Father loves me and that He loves those I love--even though they are hurting. 

Without that trust, I would truly despair.  With it, I know everything is going to be okay.