Door Bell....

..it's Brett and Judy Johnson....

Honestly, they look just exactly the same!

I can't even remember the last time we saw them.  It was one of those joyous surprises that just makes a heart happy.  We lived in the same ward for 30 years!  Now, that's a long time to get to know someone!

Brett was our Bishop, Judy was just the most fantastic person ever.  Also, at one time RAH and Brett served in a bishopric together with Robert Murray Wilkes, the very best of men.

We had a delightful time catching up on their family and our families.

Judy has macular degeneration; she can no longer drive, can't read; and if you look closely you will see a chain around her neck which holds a magnifying glass she uses to look at things like her phone.  But, here's the deal; she's so happy and positive and filled with gratitude.

Brett and Judy served a mission to the Navajo Indians in Monument Valley, Arizona; they talked about the challenges of serving there.  But, you see, they are the perfect fit for it because they would have grown to just love and accept the people just the way they were.

After they had been there a couple of hours, RAH asked if they would like some dinner.  Well, I couldn't even imagine what we had available to eat, but he whipped up some salmon - delicious, and some burgers from Bar 10.  Nothing else, just meat and fish.  And bread if wanted.  It was good.

Then we watched one episode of ALONE.  It was such a memorable and fun evening.  And, it made me so grateful for good friends; long-ago friends, new friends.

Such blessings.

A Granddaughter and Her Dog!

She's beautiful, talented, smart, happy, unselfish.

And, she now owns a DOG.  He's cute, for sure.

But, he's a DOG.

I'n just glad her belongs to HER - not US!

Regarding Parenthood - Sad Post Ahead!

I just read a very short essay that our son, Justin wrote.

It was about a time that we asked him to stay in Rexburg because his younger brother had to work at JB's on Thanksgiving Day.

Broke my tender heart to read that little short essay.

Because...WHY didn't WE stay?  WHY did I think it was necessary to drive to Salt Lake while our young teen-age son worked?  Why didn't I stay home and make a big turkey dinner for the young worker?

WHAT IS WRONG WITH ME?

That is a question I ask too often.

And, sadly, I do NOT like the answer.

I want a RE-DO of my life as a parent.

From the Past - 2011 in China

04/09/11 Hi Donna,
Thanks so much for the call this week; it's always fun to hear from you. You and your kids are the very best on the planet!

Donna, if ever there were a movie recorder of life, I would have wished for one for this entire week! It was so fun to be with Kristi and Jeremy. Everything we did was such a grand adventure.

But I want to share with you one of the truly momentous highlights of the entire week.
Since we wanted our students to meet our two children, and since we will be missing one week of classes in May, we got permission from our department and university to hold an evening class, which would serve as a make-up class for May.

We got an extra big room, and decided it would be best to meet in two sessions; my classes were to meet at 6:30, Allen's at 8:00 p.m. on the final day of one of their holidays. So, they had no classes during that day, but we were asking them to come at night. When Kristi heard that, she said, “Well, that would make me mad to have to come to school on my holiday!” I agreed with her and thought perhaps not many would show up.

The outline for the evening was to be an introduction of our family, then Jeremy would tell a little about his time on the aircraft carrier. Kristi would talk about what is involved in becoming a doctor. They would each sing a couple of songs, and Allen would sing some songs.

So, about 6:30, the students began to file in....amazingly, most of my students showed up...very few were not able to come.
Now, donna, I think that I have told you this. But, the students have an innocence and goodness that is just hard to describe. They get very involved in things...like they will say...”ohhhhh,” or “ahhhhhh,” when something unusual is said or shown on a screen. They just giggle and laugh over romantic pictures or songs. They, in a word, are very child-like. I love that about them.

So, Jeremy showed a presentation with pictures and the students were just enthralled. Plus, he has been working out, so he looked pretty muscley in his tee shirt and they commented on that.

Then, Kristi talked, and she's such a good people person, it was just great. She said hello to them in Chinese and they just laughed and clapped.

Jeremy sang and then Kristi sang. It was so great. In some of the songs, the students clapped or sang along. 

Allen wanted to sing the final number, so he sang, “Have I

Told you Lately That I Love You?” to me. He had the words and a picture of me up on the screen.

After the song was over, he asked me to stand up, and he walked over and kissed me on the cheek...now, in America, college students would have thought that was very silly, but all these students went wild...and I do mean wild. They clapped, they yelled, they snapped pictures like crazy. 

It was just an amazing moment in time.

The next day, a student said to me, “mrs. Hackworth, all of us at the meeting last night are addicted to your husband...he is so handsome, so romantic.”

Several students have commented about that kiss – even the boys think Allen is so romantic. Donna, I cannot even begin to describe what an incredible evening that was.
Then, it was all repeated for Allen's students...same structure, same moment of kissing. Same wild reaction. Kristi just couldn't believe what was happening!

Anyway, it was a great event. And, besides that, the entire week was such fun to share it with Kristi and jeremy. We just laughed, and talked, and just had a marvelous time. It went by much too rapidly!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I will be forever grateful for this incredible experience. It has been a rich, rich opportunity that so few people even know about or care to do. But, for me, I am grateful.

Love, Loni

ONE YEAR!

Hey grandma. One year today!!! Can you believe it. Time flies and goes slow at the same time it's a weird thing. It already feels like I've been put in a time capsule when I hear about all of the things that are goimg on in the world though. 

Good job, Elder Hackworth!  We are proud of you.  You've had some unique challenges in your life, and the fact that you are on a mission is a great thing.

Here's to one more year!  

Take a Look at THIS!

Holy cow!  That's a lot of steps....

Indeed...999 to be accurate!

And RAH and I climbed this very staircase ten years ago when we were in China.

AMAZING!

And, for sure I couldn't do it now!

It was such a hearty challenge and I loved it when I got to the top.  I looked like a red beet, tomato, apple,  and every other red food.

BUT, we did it and it was great!

The Christmas I Decided .....

not to decorate.

That would be the year 2019.  Now, I didn't totally abandon decorations.  I put a lovely Christmas planter on my hot chocolate table; a wreath on the door, and a centerpiece on the kitchen table.

That's it; no stockings hanging by the fire, no tree, not outdoor decorations ( we have permanent lights and we did change those to red and green!), not even my many Nativities.  In defense of that I have about three that are permanently up; they are very small, but if you looked, you would see them!

A couple of days after Christmas, I put everything away.

It was absolutely liberating.

This year, our family came for turkey day....everyone was here.  No one was coming back for Christmas.  We went somewhere else for Christmas day and several days following.  Why put it all out for NO ONE!

The Spirit of Christmas was strong in our home; we played Christmas music; we went to a few concerts, a nativity display, drove around to see the lights and drove some elderly people to see the lights.  There was definitely a feeling of gratitude in  our home.

The other day, I was over at DC's home.  Now, there is a decorated home.  It looks like a magazine spread.  She's very classy, so it's all so tastefully done.  In her large living room, music room, kitchen.
On the day I visited, she was taking the decorations down.  Her husband was hauling up boxes, bins from the storage shed; he was huffing and puffing over it all.  I got a headache thinking about all of it.

I'm sure she loves to do it, her family was there for several days, and they would have done the usual oohing and aahing, which makes me happy for her.  She did just want she wanted.

I DID JUST WHAT I WANTED!

And, who knows, maybe in 2020. I'll do the same thing!

Sorrow That the Eye Can't See

It all seemed so normal.

But, how could I have known about the hurt going on underneath?

I should have been more aware, more sensitive, but I wasn't.

So, I was very surprised yesterday to learn about a dear friend, who is having serious issues with one of her children.  She is devastated and suffering.

Which causes me to feel that way also.

And, I wish I could help her.  I can listen, but she's not ready to talk yet.  She has some dark tunnels to wade thru, and when she wants to talk, I'll be there to listen.

I have a favorite scripture that I yearn for it to come to pass:  Revelation 21:4

And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away. 

In the meantime, I will pray for this person and family.

In the past month, two of my good friends have been devastated by behaviors of their children.  It is so painful to watch and know about.

In one of the cases, I blame social media and the bullying that goes on; it's so horrific.  Sometimes, I just want to take my entire family and move to Mongolia...except that I hate the cold.

I will think of President Hinckley's message of HOPE;  "It will all turn out!"

That will be my mantra.

I Just LOVE

...getting pictures of our missionary.....

Blurry or not; I'll take them any way I can!

I also love getting pictures of any family member, like this one:

I LOVE this; it has not one, but Two family members!  Go, Jordan and Kristi D!