lomal's Xanga

Saturday, November 14, 2009

Sat, 14 Nov 2009 01:28:06 GMT

I love the cool mornings. Karen had a strong impression during her prayers that we needed to pray for David traveling in traffic. We prayed for him and I called and left a message, which he never received. When he called in the evening, it was to ask if he could stay here for the night, since Heidi was having some girlfriends stay over at the house. Karen told him about the impression and asked him to be careful. He called back later to say he had found a place closer by him to stay.

At work, our quality chemical engineer, who used to be a Catholic monk, was talking about the Catholic Church getting ready to release a statement about aliens, as in UFO’s, and how they are our brothers. He also said some people think the aliens might not be guilty of original sin. After he left, I had a good discussion with Destiny, since there were several concepts she was unfamiliar with. Almost every time we talk about the doctrines of Christ’s true church the Holy Spirit again bears a powerful witness to me of their truth.

Today was Karen’s birthday. I looked for a present, but didn’t find one I knew she would like. I looked at lighthouse lamps and the tall clear pole lamps with fake fish swimming in them. She told me she considered our trip to Galveston a gift. When she got home from school I told her I knew she wanted to go to the sushi restaurant (jk), but said I had a bad sinus headache and needed the hot sauce to clear it up. She quickly gave in. Afterwards, we watched Meet the Robinsons. It is very dumb in places, but I really like the moral and the feeling at the end.

Friday, November 13, 2009

Fri, 13 Nov 2009 01:53:44 GMT

It was quite nice and cool outside this morning and for a lot of the day. Work is very stressful, but the Lord continuously blesses and sustains me and teaches me how to solve problems. At the end of the day, my boss called me over for a minute and we were just chitchatting for about 15 minutes. He almost never does that, and it was nice to get to know him a little better. We got another email from Kevin. He sounds very happy and loves the work. He said he and his companion taught an investigator and had a very positive and spiritual experience. The missionaries showed up at 8pm for a visit. They said I had signed up for it, but I always sign up for the 7pm. It was a mistake, but we invited them in anyway and enjoyed their message.

Karen shared a story she said she didn’t think she had written down. She would tell it much better than me, so I will just hit the high points. When the ward was having a missionary class and teaching from the Preach My Gospel manual, they did roll playing and Karen played the non-member and the missionaries knocked on her door. The first time, she slammed the door in their faces, since she dislikes “salesmen” so much. The second time, she loosened up a little, but she kept putting them off as they tried to “sell” her the Gospel. But when one of the Elder’s shared his testimony, the Spirit cam flooding in and she received a powerful witness, even though she already knew, of the truthfulness of their message. I think that is a neat story.

Thursday, November 12, 2009

Thu, 12 Nov 2009 01:56:00 GMT

My experience at the Temple last night was very special to me. I had the recommend list from the Bishop and greeted the girls in the little waiting room inside. Two of the girls were not on the list. One had been interviewed and received a single recommend, but left it at home. I was able to call the counselor who interviewed her and he let me add her name to the list. I couldn’t reach the Bishop, so I waited with Lund girl who hadn’t been interviewed while the other brethren and the young women went in. The Bishop finally arrived and interviewed her and I went in.

I was the recorder, which I enjoyed. At first, I was just trying to do an accurate job, moving the names into place quickly so they could be read and the work done. As we got further along and I became more comfortable with what I was doing I tried harder to be aware of impressions of the Spirit. We had gone through some names from the 1600’s in England and then some from Argentina. Towards the end, when we came back to the Argentina names, I had an impression of sisters clasping their hands in joy and walking away with their arms raised rejoicing as their work was done. After it was over, I prayed and asked if this was my imagining what it must have been like for those sisters or if I had been experiencing what really happened. The Spirit answered that it had been a true experience and I could share it. On the way out, I told the Bishop, and he asked me to share in with the Young Women in their opening exercises on Sunday.

I had a dream last night that I found enlightening. It was a take-off of a movie trailer I had watched for the upcoming movie Clash of the Titans, which deals with Olympus in the modern world and a boy who is descended from one of the gods. In the dream, I was one of the lesser gods and had professed my love (not part of the actual dream) to a goddess who was greater than I. Another very powerful god was angry that I had done so and was intent on destroying me. At first I was very scared. He tried to destroy me with a sword and arrows and a trident and various other weapons. All I was aware of having to fend these off was a large stick of wood. But though I was frightened of dying, I was determined in my love. That love gave me strength and I fended off every attack and became more confident with every success. Now the dream became a little more convoluted, because the goddess, who thought my profession of love was not serious and was mocking her, also entered the battle (I saw her only as a shadow), but I fended her off as well, at the same time continuing to love her. Then both disappeared and I stood looking warily around for the next attack, but it didn’t happen. I knelt down and began to pour my heart out to Zeus (think Heavenly Father). As I did so, I felt love from God well up inside me and the love and light around me grow stronger and stronger until it was overpowering. Then I woke up.

I have been thinking a lot lately about love being the activating power of all the is good on earth and in eternity. There is power in the Priesthood through faith and obedience, but greater power becomes available based on our loving Heavenly Father, Jesus, and those we are serving. If Priesthood is like Drive in a car, then love is Overdrive.

A contractor brought some ham and cheese Kolaches to work this morning. They were really good. I didn’t take a break today, but worked right through lunch. Yesterday I arranged for flowers to be sent to Karen at school for her birthday. I sent them early so she would have them in her classroom before the weekend. She liked them and the card. I was struggling to get a replacement lamp into a projector. I tried and tried with no success. Finally I said a prayer, and then, as it almost always does, it worked. I have been blessed by so many prayers through the years. We finished the arrangements for the luncheon after David and Heidi’s sealing. A man from a part-member family is getting baptized on Saturday and asked me to give the talk on baptism. He said he has been inspired by my other talks. I felt very honored.

Tuesday, November 10, 2009

Tue, 10 Nov 2009 23:15:03 GMT

The Bishop called last night. Because his counselors are not available and he has to stay at work late for a meeting, he asked if I would go to the Temple with the Young Women for baptisms and give the approved list to the workers. I said, “Let’s see go to the Temple or stay at home and watch TV (not that I watch much anyway). I’ll go to the Temple.” We arranged for him to drop off the list to me this morning.

When I told Karen, she said she would be getting her hair styled and wouldn’t be here to remind me. I answered that I wouldn’t forget something that important. So, this morning I head out the door for work and get part way there when I get a call from the Bishop that he is on his way with the recommend. I laughed and turned around and met him at the church in front of the subdivision. It’s tough getting old.

I’ve been able to catch up with my major tasks at work, but I can’t seem to bring the email count down. For it being so late in the year, we are still extremely busy, which is a good thing. I came home and got ready for the Temple and read a little in the Ensign. Karen should be home soon. I just didn’t want to leave before she got here. Cheryl called to say she is having a girl. That is exciting. All she needs is a boy, 2 girls, and a boy to match us.

Tuesday, November 10, 2009

Tue, 10 Nov 2009 00:17:14 GMT

It was a hard day at work. There was much to do after being gone for 2 days last week, and I didn’t begin to get caught up. I took a 15 minute nap at lunch, which definitely helped. The day just went by so quickly. After school, Karen went to an open house at her old school in the Spring ISD. She talked to the teachers she knew, and had taught one of their sons. When she asked about him, she was told that he had died in a car accident during his first month at college. That was so sad.

For dinner, we had some oriental food, egg rolls and such, that Karen had bought at the store. For FHE I read her a talk by Elder Choi from the Priesthood session of conference.

Monday, November 09, 2009

Mon, 09 Nov 2009 02:05:04 GMT

Yesterday during our Leadership meeting, we were given the last 30 minutes to ask questions. I felt impressed to ask a question about D&C 11:30, about us becoming the sons of God. I prefaced it by saying that I had a witness that we are spirit sons and daughters of Heavenly Parents and that I knew we become spiritually begotten of Christ and that He becomes our spiritual Father. I said that I felt impressed to ask if he could give us any additional insight into what that scripture means. He had Elder Robert answer part of it, who said that as we become one, we become His sons, and that receiving this is a gradual process. Elder Christensen said that as we grow in our personal spirituality and then in our Priesthood service we more fully become His sons. He told a story of his daughter having pneumonia and pleading for her to be blessed and he got the answer, “You’re closer. You bless her!” He also told of a Bishop who asked him to help give a blessing to a son. He said he didn’t know the Bishop’s son was sick. The Bishop said he blessed them before they were sick, before there was need. Then, taking off from that last story, the last thing he said before moving to the next question was to say that President Monson’s injunction to rescue the Saints was not just for those who were lost. That is the one that hit me the hardest.

We tried to leave early this morning so we could get a soft seat for Stake Conference, but we didn’t leave the house until about 8:10am, and by the time we got there all the soft seats were gone. President Tolman was so emotion as he started the meeting, and he could hardly sing during the opening hymn. That made it hard for me not to cry watching him. I felt a great love for him. Elder Roberts released the old Stake Presidency and called the president and one counselor back to the new presidency of what will be called the Spring Stake. Even though it is mostly Woodlands wards and 2 Conroe wards, the actual stake center will be in Spring. Our stake had the recent addition of the 3 Spanish-speaking wards and today had the Spring Creek Ward added back to us from the Klein Stake. President Bertoch, our old Bishop is our new stake president. It felt right. They have a lot of work to do filling the positions of those who have gone to the new stake. I think there were 3 or 4 new stakes created in this area in the last couple weeks.

Elder Christensen told some neat stories, such as the conversion of the Endowment into a new language. He told about the first branch being set up in Cuba. The new branch president had been a member for 26 minutes. They were allowed to leave one piece of literature besides the Book of Mormon. They left the 26 page booklet - Family. It has been a great conference. I ate and took a nap when I came home. In the evening I home taught the Brodrick’s and left a message from President Uchtdorf’s PH talk.

Sunday, November 08, 2009

Sun, 08 Nov 2009 03:06:10 GMT

I forgot to mention that on one of my walks along the seawall I saw a lot of vines on the sand right at the wall. Some of the vine masses were pretty thick. Then I saw something in the vines that looked familiar, and I thought, “No way!” I went down to the next stairs and then back to the vines for a closer look. It was a watermelon about 12” long and from thumping it, ready to eat. Looking around I found two more, a little smaller. I was shocked to see watermelons there. I didn’t pick any, because I had no way to open them anyway. Now I’m wandering – If they were growing around seawater, does that mean they were already salted? (grin)

Karen slept in an hour later, since her first class started later. We didn’t have time to stop at McDonalds, since by that time it was quite crowded. So Karen got something at the conference and I ate at IHOP, which was also quite crowded and full of teachers. I finished the packing, gave our gripes to the hotel manager (in a kind way), and mailed Karen’s letter to Kevin. By the time I finished, Karen called and was on her way back. We got gas and went to a couple of gift shops looking for more stuff for Karen, and then went to Stewart Beach, which is a family beach. They usually charge, but it was off-season. We waded in the water and look at shells for a while and then went to one more gift shop on the Strand.

We called David and Heidi and on the way back bought them lunch at the Texas Land & Cattle Steakhouse. David and I got the country fried steak, which was quite good. Then Karen and I came home quickly so I could get ready for the Stake Conference Leadership meeting at 4pm. We had Elder Christensen of the 1st Quorum of Seventy and Elder Roberts of the 5th Quorum. I took lots of notes and felt very inspired. I stayed and saved Karen a seat for the Adult session. Karen went shopping while I was at the meeting, and brought me a sandwich for dinner between sessions. Brother Cook had a huge choir and they did a great job. I was pleased to see Sister Hester there singing.

Saturday, November 07, 2009

Sat, 07 Nov 2009 01:42:54 GMT

We woke up early again. Many of the classes Karen wanted to attend had limited attendance and she had to get there very early. Fortunately, she was able to attend the ones she wanted the most. She came home for lunch and we had soup and salad in the hotel restaurant. Then she went to the conference center next to the hotel for the rest of her sessions. In the meantime, I spent a lot of time on the seawall this morning and read and watched a movie in the afternoon. When Karen was done we went for a short walk on the beach. The sun was just setting, but it was already quite chilly. Karen took off her sandals and waded in the water, and we walked along the beach. We went in the Rain Forest Café next to the hotel for dinner, but then realized we might enjoy Landry’s more. So we went there and really enjoyed our dinner. She had steak and I had the Salmon Hibachi, which had tempura vegetables. It was quite good. I had signed up for a day of internet, so Karen was finally able to check her email. I watched an interesting show on the History channel about some very complex geared machines built by the ancient Greeks to measure time and the movements of the planets.

Friday, November 06, 2009

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 00:43:36 GMT

We got up at 5:30am. The gulf is beautiful in the morning with the sun just rising. We didn’t have time for a sit-down breakfast, since Karen wanted to be there early. So, it was McDonald’s again. I dropped her off at the Moody Garden convention area and went back to the hotel. I read my scriptures and some in my book. Then I went down to the lobby and posted my Xanga from yesterday.

The book I have been reading is called Eat That Frog! It is about overcoming procrastination, and I’m going to read it one of these days. Actually, I’m through principle 8 of 21, and it has been wonderful so far. I have been taking notes and trying to personalize the recommendations. The idea, from Mark Twain, is that if you eat a frog first thing in the morning, nothing else could possibly be worse. He says that we often procrastinate the things which are of most importance and worth. If we equate the most important, but difficult thing we need to do with a big, ugly frog and eat it first thing in the day, everything else will be easier.

I went to the beach and sat on the sea wall and read my book and the new conference Ensign we just received. Then I walked out on one of the jetties and read some more. After that, I just walked along the beach for a while, watching the waves and enjoying the sun while it wasn’t too hot. I went back to the Hotel and took a short nap before lunch, thinking that Karen would call me if we would be eating together. She didn’t call so I went out to find a fish place. Instead, I ate at the Mediterranean Café at the Strand. I had the Gyro and Greek potatoes. They were both wonderful. Then I decided to take a ride on the Ferry, thinking that Karen was still tied up for several hours. On the way, I got a call from Cheryl saying that Karen didn’t have my cell number and was trying to reach me. When I called her, she didn’t answer since her phone was on silent and she didn’t know how to change it. Rolling eyes!

She didn’t get some of the sessions she had wanted and came home to eat with me, but we just missed each other. She tried to get in another class and it was full, so she went back to the hotel and I met her shortly afterwards. We decided to ride the Ferry. On the way we passed several businesses on the beach that were still not open, because they were partially destroyed by Hurricane Ike. We had to wait at the ferry for a while, and when we crossed I drove to a little park that I have been to several times before. Before we had a chance to get out, Mosquitoes swarmed the car. I thought they were trying to carry it away. It was incredible! We turned around and went right back to the ferry, not opening our windows until we were well on the way back. We saw some porpoises leaping through the waves at the bow of a big freighter. On the way back, we stopped at a gift shop near the beach and got some things Karen wanted for her class and a gift for her partner. Then we stopped at Gaido’s. It is a fish and steak place that has been in Galveston since 1911. My dad took our family there a couple times when I was at home with them. I had the Mahi Mahi and Karen had the scallops and shrimp. It was all amazing and we really enjoyed it. I am totally stuffed. And I was proud of myself for not choking when I saw the bill. Then we rushed back to the hotel, so that Karen can watch her Thursday night show, which I will never mention by name. I typed this up and will now run downstairs to post it.

Thursday, November 05, 2009

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 13:40:04 GMT

Wednesday 11/04

It was a very busy day trying to get everything finished so that I could be gone from work for two days. And of course, I never did finish it all. I took my computer with me so that I could do work if it was an emergency. I also have Kevin’s laptop for Karen to use.I got home and packed, but Karen didn’t get home until after 6pm. It was almost 8pm by the time we left. I don’t think that Karen could have driven this by herself. The traffic was pretty heavy in places. We checked in and got our room on the 5th floor of the Hilton overlooking the bay. Then we ran down to the convention center for Karen to check in. We thought the convention center was right next door, but the registration was at Moody Gardens. They were already closing, but she was able to get the book of classes which was being held for another woman who never showed up. There is no wireless in the room and the only free connection is in the lobby. That’s a rip for an expensive hotel. We will have to get up early to get ready and eat and get Karen to the location by 7am.