Monthly Archives: October 2022

How It All Began!

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I want to tell you a story that began at this amazing bridge.

But first I have to tell you about a very spiritual young man who was born in Minnesota. The family moved to Washington State, where they lived when he was drafted into the army. After training he was stationed at the Presidio, an army base that is right at the base of the Golden Gate Bridge. He met a man who introduced him to the gospel and he joined The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Another person who came to this beautiful Bay Area was a sweet young lady who was ready for an adventure. She came from Salt Lake City and moved to San Francisco for a job and to live with her girlfriends. 

These two precious souls met at church. They became friends, and then fell in love. 

They were married in the Salt Lake Temple, and started their life together in Logan. He went to school and a little over a year after they married she had a baby boy. Then two years later another baby boy. Then a move to a new home and another year later another baby boy. This family was having so much fun with these energetic boys, but wondered if they would ever get a girl. 

On a crisp fall evening this young father and his boys were at a football game at the local college, when over the loudspeaker came an announcement that the new baby was coming and they needed to head for home.

Then the most exciting, wonderful, fantastic and happy thing happened… I was born!! 

This is the beginning of my story! 

The bridge is where the story of my parents’ love began. But it brought them together so that our family could begin, and my story could start.

Use Trees!

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It’s been three years since my Daddy passed on. He has been missed. I think of him often and miss having a Daddy Daughter date once a month.

When he passed, and we were planning his funeral, we wanted to do something that had special meaning for the flowers. I had recently worked at a flower shop and knew how to design flowers, and could potentially do all the arrangements for his funeral.

As I was sitting at the kitchen table thinking about this, a thought came to my mind very clear, use trees! Yes! That was the answer. My daddy loved trees! It might have been him giving me the message from the other side.

My Daddy was a big fan or trees, all kinds. He bought many trees in his lifetime. I think Weeping Willow trees were his favorite. He would buy trees that reminded you of a Charlie Brown tree. Very crooked or an unusual angle on one side. He died traveling with family and one of their destinations on the trip was the Redwoods in California. He would often quote the poem by Joyce Kilmer called Trees.

I also love the- Advice from a Tree: Stand tall and proud, Go out on limb, Remember your roots, Drink plenty of water, Be content with your natural beauty, Enjoy the view.-Ilan Shamir

We decided we could buy trees for each of the children of my parents, and after the funeral we could plant them in our yards. We spent time looking and choosing the trees we felt would best serve the purpose. I have a beautiful flowering Pear tree that sits right outside my office window. I love it! When I look out the window at it I remember my Dad and his love of trees. It was a great idea, and I’m so grateful we did it.

Charlotte the Black Widow Spider

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When the kids were little we lived in on the east bench of our town. It was not unusual to see Black Widows from time to time. They would be in various dark places like the garage or in the basement.

One time we found a Black Widow and decided to keep it and observe it for a while. We bought a little container that was safe and gave us ample viewing area. We would put flies, mosquitoes, and other insect type animals in the container and watch Charlotte do her thing. Wow! It was very interesting.

We saw a juicy and feisty yellow jacket (wasp) flying around the house and we decided to put it in the container, alive, and see what she could do with it. Brett put the wasp in and we all gathered around, and wow! Just, wow! She was amazing, extraordinary! She stayed at the other end of the container while the wasp just buzzed and vibrated. It was very angry. Then Charlotte came crawling over very speedy and bit the wasp, then crawled back over to the end of the container. She waited for a minute or two and then crawled back over to the wasp and bit it again. Then ran over to the end. Pretty soon the wasp was very still and calm. Then Charlotte calmly crawled over to the wasp and started wrapping it up in silk. She went round and around the wasp until it was completely wrapped up. For the next few days she would occasionally be at the wasp drinking it.

Having Charlotte was such a fun experience. We had her for a few months, then decided we were done. I had an idea to call the local Nature Center and ask if they would like to have her for their display. She was a beautiful specimen. They said, “Yes!” We delivered her to the Nature Center and shortly after received a lovely letter thanking us for the donation.

During the few months we had Charlotte, we had become very impressed with her and the amazing abilities she had to kill and eat.

Randomness: 40 Cents and a Warm Radiator

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Our minds are amazing. Have you ever noticed how many times a random thought comes into your mind that is a memory of your past and then there is a story?

I was at work the other day and this cute lady was at the register paying cash for her purchase. The change due for the purchase was 40 cents. She had a handful of change and right away, I noticed on top of the pile- a quarter, a dime, and a nickel. I said, “Oh, there’s the 40 cents!” She stopped moving and said, “Really?” I told her I saw the change needed on the top of her hand full of change. Then I told her about how in junior high school lunch was 40 cents, and how I got used to using a quarter, a dime and a nickel to buy lunch. She smiled as we reminisced about how much things used to cost and how much they are now. On many occasions, my Mama would give me 50 cents for lunch and I would get to buy a candy treat in the candy machines, with the left over dime from lunch. Yes, a candy bar was a dime. I was always excited when I could get a treat after lunch.

That reminds me of a story my Mom has told me. She said that she and her sister would get to walk down to the movie theater in Salt Lake City and watch the Saturday matinee. The movie was 25 cents and popcorn was a nickel. They were able to go to the movie most Saturdays. It was such a fun part of her growing up, and didn’t cost too much.

Another random memory that recently came to my mind is when I used to ride with my Daddy over to the college were he worked and I went to cosmetology school and he would drop me off at the door of the building were my school was. I would arrive earlier than most because of coming with my Dad. It was fall and chilly, and still a little dark outside. I would be cold from the drive and walking in the building, so I used to stand near the door to the building where a nice warm radiator was and enjoy the warmth it would provide. Once I had warmed up sufficiently I would go into the class room and start preparing for the day.