Category: Life according to Angela

2 favorite historians

I love reading works of history, and I definitely have favorite historians. I was sad to learn of the passing of two of my favorites this month.

The first was David McCullough. Years ago for fun, I wrote my dream guest list for the best dinnertime conversation, and he was one of my wishlist guests. My favorite books that he wrote are Truman and John Adams, but I have enjoyed many others. Here is a small clip of his voice that is worth listening to, especially from about minute 2 until the end.

The other historian was Kate Holbrook. Her passing was especially sad to me, as she was young and had such a vibrant faith. I have met her, and in the few words we exchanged, I saw a very kind and earnest scholar and mother. I am a fan of her work to get Latter-day Saint women’s stories into the hands of Church members. I am a fan of her efforts to nurture her own living faith. I am sharing a Stanford Convocation address she gave in 2019 if you feel like listening to a smart, wise woman scholar who worked for the Church History Department. I can’t embed the video in this post, but this is the link.

https://youtu.be/SrtmCODK3Ik

Rhythm, melody, and harmony

miniature masterpiece patterns purchaed on Etsy

I have definitely felt a low after coming down from so many high-impact events this summer. I think this is pretty normal, kind of like the days after Christmas. I have retreated from extra events, and count, stitch, and pull strands of thread to reestablish some order in my mind. I have just needed to be still.

I stepped away from reading for a while, but this week, I finally finished a book that I started in early July. It was called The Worst Hard Time 😂, and maybe you can see better than I could that this was not a great reading choice for me this summer.

We are still trying to establish some footing in our new schedule for the school year, but we are getting there. It feels like layering, one piece at a time. Eventually, we’ll find our rhythm, melody, and harmony again.

summation

I am maintaining my goal to work on temple and family history work for a short time each week. One project this month is to go through old mail and cards that I have kept throughout my life. I am letting go of a lot of it. For scale, I would say I have one banker’s box left, and still plan to say goodbye to much more.

I haven’t been reading every letter, just sorting them by sender. Even without reading, I am amazed at what I learn about my grandmothers as I do this. I thought that I had already gathered their writing, but I have found so much more. Perhaps I am coming to know them better after they are gone, when the sum of their words and kindness are laid bare on the sorting table. I always knew they were good to me, but seeing their words from every stage of my life is an incredible gift.

I visualize my Grandma Ruth standing in the grocery store next to the greeting cards, finding just the words and images she wanted to convey. I picture my Grandma Stewart at her writing desk, penning her brief notes, often ending with “Take care–,” which of course meant, “I love you.” I see them, clearly in my mind, and know they are still with me.

Sister leaders

Molly and Karen

There were so many surprises awaiting me when I was called to be a stake Primary president. Actually, everything was a surprise. I didn’t know anything a stake Primary president was supposed to do. (Someone told me that my job was to show up and look pretty… Um, no, but I do find myself smiling a lot.)

I didn’t know how much I would be working with bishops and their counselors.

I didn’t know that high councilors would become my friends.

I didn’t know that in addition to my presidency, I would grow close to the stake Relief Society and stake Young Women presidents. (Pictured above.)

I didn’t know that the stake presidency would take so much time to listen to the concerns and ideas of sister leaders.

I didn’t know how often I would be called upon to speak to different congregations, sometimes with very short notice.

I didn’t realize how much I would admire the ward Primary presidents and see their strengths so clearly. I didn’t know that I would be praying for so many children and parents.

On Sunday, the stake Relief Society presidency was released and a new set of sisters was called. I will miss sitting with Molly in stake council meetings and on the stand during stake conferences. She served in her calling while I was a ward Relief Society president, so she has been a kind of mentor to me for 7 years.

I never pictured myself in this leadership role. I don’t see myself as a Primary leader type, but the more I let go of my ideas, my limiting thoughts, and my personal script, the more I grow.

summertime snaps

We are in the final week of summer break. This morning I took some time to look over some snapshots and screenshots from the last few months, and chose a few to share. These are some of people and places I want to remember. Two really good friends passed away. We have been really focused on wedding preparations. Mark was gone a lot, and his social connections got stronger. Richard worked from home. I lived my own version of The Secret Garden, increasing my strength. We planted a lot of flowers, and I am especially proud of reclaiming my favorite corner of the yard, the one that feels like a forest. We sat beneath outdoor lights on many nights. Paige and Michael were especially helpful hanging the lights. Tim made it to Guam. We said goodbye to friends who are going on a mission. Lots of lasts and firsts this summer. This means growth.

Thou crownest the year with the goodness.

Psalm 65:11

Sara and Christopher

Sara and Christopher’s reception completes our summer as a wedding reception venue. I don’t have many photos, but it was a lovely evening. I love celebrating events and milestones at our house.

Besides the happy couple, my favorite memory is the cousins from Shari, Richard, and Rebecca’s families laughing and joking together in our kitchen as we packed up lots and lots of marbles and flowers. Little things.

Open House for Daniel and McKenna

This is what we have to show for our family’s efforts this summer, a party full of lights and people, a celebration for Daniel and McKenna.

So many people helped us, and I have kept a record of the tender mercies that got us to this day.

Image by Mike’s Photo
Image by Mike’s Photo

watching a flight

We changed the flag in front of our house as our missionary flew from Vancouver to his original mission assignment in Guam this week. It is a time of competing feelings, and we are thankful for the kindness of so many people in Vancouver, and look forward to hearing about Tim’s mission experiences in Guam.
9 pm
around 10 pm
1:30 am
3 am

Because of an email error, when Daniel arrived at his mission, I didn’t hear from him for a week. I just wanted to know he had arrived safely.

This time, Google automatically added Tim’s itinerary to my calendar, so I had updates on my phone for the 27 hours he traveled. I could also check the progress of the flights on a website. Don’t judge me, I was desperate for news last time. I didn’t want the same story this time.

It is a tender mercy just to know.

The kindest thing

On this wedding week, there is no such thing as the single kindest thing someone has done, but this story ranks near the top.

This is the Hernandez family. They live near Vancouver, British Columbia, and they love missionaries. They consistently and lovingly invite our missionary and his companions into their home to feed them dinner and offer support. Bishop and Sister Hernandez recently welcomed home both of their sons from missions, and they are enjoying a road trip in the western U.S.

Tim is flying to Guam on Monday night, experiencing the biggest transfer of his mission, and has a lot of winter gear for Canada that he will not need in the South Pacific. The Hernandez family arranged to drive his and another elder’s extra clothing to Utah.

They drive a sedan and there are four of them, so there was not a lot of room, yet they took Tim’s Blundstone boots and two bags of clothing, plus a similar amount for the other elder. Sister Hernandez reassured Tim that she wouldn’t mind holding a bag on her lap if there wasn’t enough of room in the car.

So, I met these lovely people at the Payson temple. They carried his bags to my car for me, smiling, and then we took pictures. I consider them instant and forever friends.