Off to Utah

A New Visitor at the Pond

There is a park with pond across the street. We go there often to exercise in the mornings. We often see a few kinds of wild life there such as deer, this week we saw two fawns just lying down in the area. There are numerous turtles some of which are enormous, probably measuring 18 or 20 inches across. There are lots of birds, mostly doves, red wing black birds, Canadian geese, wild ducks and an occasional blue heron. This last week we a new visitor, a white heron.

Utah Here We Come

We leave in Wednesday, August 13 to go to Utah. We will accompany Nicole back to school, participate in Dana's graduation festivities, visit with Grandma Johnson, and other relatives and attend Campus Education Week at BYU. It will be a whirlwind of activity.

Each year when we do this, we leave just as the garden is producing at its peak. We hope that Holly will enjoy the produce while we are gone.

Other Family Doings

Mom and Nicole are happy to see Dad so enthusiastic about his birdfeeders. We know it will keep him out of trouble until the BYU football season engages his full attention.

Yum-yum, cheesecake! And sweet friends Mary Finnigan, Ninon McGinn, and Ann Bowler. Mary Finnigan arranged a celebration lunch for Mom at the close of her BYU classwork at the Cheesecake Factory. Even more honorifics came as the wait staff sang "Happy Birthday" (not having "Happy Graduation" in their repetoire) and presented a sweet morsel of fudge sundae. The whole afternoon was a wonderful treat. Two weeks later, BYU posted an "A" for Mom's final grade for her last course -- a very satisfactory closure for her academic career.

Our Michael noted that Nana's graduation will yield him some personal benefits. A request for a Friday night sleepover had to be denied because of the pressure to complete a research paper. He said, "Now that Nana is graduating, we can come over for sleepovers more." Then he added, "And when Grandpa gets released from stake president, we can come over even more."

Nicole had her last day of work on Friday. Steve Koncurat in our ward has been so kind as to give her employment at his office for the past two summers also gave her a generous gift card. Thanks to Nicole's earnings, she now has a healthy bank account to get her through this last year of school. On Saturday, she dragged the suitcases up from the basement, spread them out in the spare bedroom, and started sorting and packing. On Monday, we will take a quick trip to the outlets in Leesburg to pick up wardrobe essentials. Another summer has flown by all too quickly.

Nearly every Saturday Dad has been helping Steve finish their basement. Putting up sheetrock has been especially grueling but they have felt pressured to complete the work in time for Wendy to teach early morning seminary there by the last week in August. Last week Wendy called a sheetrock professional just to finish up the ceiling but he offered such a reasonable price to complete the whole job and worked so fast that he has put Dad and Steve out of business. Dad will miss his Saturdays working with Steve but we are sure we can find plenty of Saturday activities to keep him occupied.

Our blackberry vines are full of big juicy berries and Mom gathers a couple quarts every other day or so. Last summer a garden snake poked his his little green head out of the vines to say hello as she was reaching for a nice cluster of berries. Snakes must like berries, too, or perhaps they like the shade and the stalks to slither around in. Fortunately, Mr. Snake has not been seen this summer. Having all these fresh-picked berries inspired Mom to bake a blackberry pie that turned out heavenly and disappeared within hours.

Elder Bruce R. McConkie's Last Testimony

Elder McConkie had been suffering from cancer and as the end approached, so did General Conference. He was determined to speak one last time. Thirteen days before he did he spoke at conference about the life and atonement of Christ and he closed with this powerful testimony. "And now, as pertaining to this perfect atonement, wrought by the shedding of the blood of God-I testify that it took place in Gethsemane and at Golgotha, and as pertaining to Jesus Christ, I testify that he is the Son of the Living God and was crucified for the sins of the world. He is our Lord, our God, and our King. This I know of myself independent of any other person.
I am one of his witnesses, and in a coming day I shall feel the nail marks in his hands and in his feet and shall wet his feet with my tears.

But I shall not know any better then than I know now that he is God’s Almighty Son, that he is our Savior and Redeemer, and that salvation comes in and through his atoning blood and in no other way.”