Need To Catch Up

It has been a long time since I posted anything. I do not have any big event or special thoughts to write about. But here are a few things I have learned lately: (By the way, these are in no particular order)
1. Shingles is AWFUL!! I had no idea how painful it is! I currently have a virus that is related to Shingles in my mouth and on my face. I look HIDEOUS, with sores all around my mouth, but that is truly the LEAST of things. The whole left side of my head is killing me, including my left ear and the left side of my face is swollen. But the very WORST part is that all the teeth on the left side of my mouth feel like they must be totally abscessed or something. They hurt SO BAD!! It is scary to feel -- I worry that, even if I get rid of the virus, my teeth will never be the same and I will be in dentures soon! The doctor says that this virus is caused by 'extreme stress.' Well, I definitely have more than enough of that but still......I have been very stressed before and this has never happened. And, this type of virus is apparently the gift that keeps on giving: once you've had it, chances are you will experience symptoms again any time you are very stressed. YUCK!
2. It is never too late to find love. Tonight, I was talking to one of Roger's lodge brothers. He is 83. He just got married, three weeks ago, to a woman who is 62. They had both been married before. Her husband died in 1991. His wife died two years ago. He said that losing his wife, after 59 years of marriage, was hell. He was devastated. He got to the point where he didn't care if he lived or died. But here he is, at 83, a newlywed and so happy! It made me feel so good to talk to him.
3. Snail Mail is important. Now, honestly, this is NOT something I have just learned recently. I have always loved to write letters and receive them. I look forward each day to going to the mailbox. There is always such possibility there. But I read a story last night about a woman who said that she was once driving along a road somewhere and she saw an elderly man, walking with a cane, slowly making his way to the mailbox at the end of the drive. When he got there, he opened the box and it was empty. She said he had the saddest look on his face. It broke her heart. She decided, then and there, to write at least one letter each and every day, and she said she has pretty much stuck to that. Now, seriously, even if she was only going 25 MPH, it would have been hard to see all of that while driving by. However, it is a very sweet story and an even better goal to have. I am not saying that I will write a letter each and every day, but I definitely want to have the goal of writing at least one or two a week.
4. I have a wonderful, wonderful husband! First, I sustained the injury at work, so for months I have been totally useless as far as doing anything around the house is concerned. He has been so patient and supportive and kind. Driving me around because it hurts my arm to do it. Accompanying me to the doctor's office time after time. Then, this weekend, I break-out with this horrible virus (see number 1, above) so that I cannot even kiss him and I look like a monster. He still tells me I am beautiful to him and hugs me and comforts me. I don't know how I got so lucky to marry Roger, but I will always be grateful and will always be trying to be a better wife to him.

A Tribute to one of the Greatest Men I have ever been Privledged to Know

Today, a wonderful man has fulfilled his earthly mission and returned to our Heavenly Father. This man was Richard J. Pettit. He was my Bishop, and my priesthood leader, but mostly he was my friend. I met Bishop Pettit when he was the high council leader for the Young Adults group in the Glendale Stake. He scared me at first. He had a steely gazed that, when fixed upon a person, could make their knees turn to jello. I remember him shaking someone's hand, then continuing to hold that hand in his firm grip while fixing his eyes upon them and asking, "Do you love the Lord? Do you want to serve the Lord?" Such a person was helpless when Bishop Pettit gave them an assignment. He expected nothing less than their full effort and he tended to get it. One Young Adult conference, in particular, stands out in my mind. We'd taken the boat to Catalina Island, prepared to spend 3 days in the sand and sun. When we arrived at our camp, it was a total disaster. Many of the cabins were not fit to inhabit. I do not believe the staff was even there that was supposed to provide our meals. There were only one or two bathrooms/showers that worked (for a group of probably 80 or more people). We'd arrived there late in the evening and there was little we could do in the darkness. We all ended up spending the first night on the hard, cold floor of the cafeteria. There was much "weeping and wailing and gnashing of teeth!" The next morning, we all awoke to find that someone (undoubtedly Bishop Pettit, although I do not remember whether or not he actually admitted it) had put up a big poster board on the front of the cafeteria. It read, "Camp Quit-Yer-Bitching!" After a pep talk from our leader (The Bishop) we got to work cleaning cabins, cleaning up the cafeteria, etc. Long story short: it was a FABULOUS weekend, at least in my opinion. I still have pictures (somewhere) of that event. That was the weekend we heard the finger-snapping rhyme called "We are the Heavies." It was quite witty. However, for the rest of the weekend, Jill and I improved upon it and shared every updated version with anyone who would listen. At one point, as we stood snapping our fingers and reciting our latest rendition, Bishop Pettit jumped up and began snapping right along with us. He was never one to be left out of the fun. When I went on my mission, Bishop Pettit spoke at my farewell. In his talk, one thing that he said was that I was like Joseph Smith in that we both loved words and language. That meant the world to me, although I have never felt worthy of such high praise. I got one letter from Bishop Pettit on my mission. It was typewritten, filled with spelling and punctuation errors and hard to decipher. The last line was, "If you think my typing is bad, consider the alternative." That made me laugh so hard! I had seen the Bishop's handwriting a time or two. It made the stereotypical 'Doctor's Handwriting' seem like beautiful calligraphy. I doubt that even Sister Pettit could easily read his writing. When I got home from Argentina, I flew into LAX and met my family at the gate. On the way home, we were driving through downtown Los Angeles. I insisted that we stop on Wilshire Blvd at Bishop Pettit's print shop so that I could see him. I rushed inside and gave him a HUGE hug. I was SO happy to see him and he was equally glad to see me. After my mission, I was able to work closely with Bishop Pettit as the Young Adult Co-Chairman and, later, in the Singles Ward. At one point, when I was in his ward, I had a personal problem that had been bothering me for, literally, decades. At that point in my life I was actually seeing a therapist to try to deal with this issue. I had attempted to speak to many a Bishop about it previously, but once they knew what I was trying to talk about, they would always stop me and not want to listen. I was really having a very difficult time and was, at times, suicidal over this. I told my therapist that I needed to have my Bishop listen to me but that I was afraid to even try to talk to him because of my experiences with Bishops in the past. She called Bishop Pettit on the phone and told him that I needed to speak to him. She told him he needed to set aside a good amount of time, ensure that we would not be overheard, and, most importantly, LISTEN to me. I went to the Bishop's house for my appointment with him, because that is where he always met with people. He told me right up front that he'd cleared an hour for me but that he could give me even more time if I needed it. He said that not even Sister Pettit was there, thus ensuring that nobody but him would hear what I was about to say. I was so touched that he cared and that he truly wanted to listen. I poured my heart out to him. I shared with him the most painful moments of my childhood. I cried and he cried with me. He allowed me to tell him everything. He never flinched or acted like he was uncomfortable. He just kept saying, "How could I know you for all of these years and not know that you had this secret?" He apologized for not knowing and for not being able to help me sooner. He gave me the most beautiful priesthood blessing I have ever had. That night, Bishop Pettit literally saved my life. He gave a part of my life back to me that I'd been robbed of as a small child. I will never, ever forget him for that. Bishop Pettit had tremors, much like a person with Parkinson's disease might have. He'd had them the whole time I knew him. I found out that he'd been a pilot during WWII. At one point, he'd been captured by the Germans and put in a concentration camp, where he was tortured. He was there for a number of years, I believe. At one point, he tried to escape and was caught. Because of this, the torture was even worse. Sister Pettit told me once that, even in his later years after he'd retired, he still awoke during the night, having nightmares about his time in the concentration camp. He never, ever told her anything about it. He would not speak of it to anyone. He kept it all inside. He'd wanted to be a professional pilot after the war but, because of the torture, he had the tremors and was not able to qualify as a pilot. He was the only one of his squadron who came back from the war alive. Bishop Pettit gave his all to every righteous cause. I never, ever wanted the day to come when I would hear that he'd passed away, but it came today. As I sit, remembering the many wonderful lessons I learned from him and the great experiences we shared, I can only console myself with the image of him, dressed all in white, free at last from the nightmares and the tremors and the pains of old age. I picture him, greeted by the Savior that he so loved and so dutifully served throughout his life. I picture our Savior, embracing him and saying, "Well done, thou good and faithful servant." I know that if anyone deserves to spend eternal life in the presence of God, it is Bishop Pettit. I only hope and pray that I can live worthy to join him there someday. Thank you for everything, Bishop Pettit. You cannot possibly know how much you have affected my life and, I dare say, the lives of so many others. I hope that you DO know how much I love you, respect you, admire you, and thank you. Till we meet again.....

Listen to this playlist: cindamarie's Playlist

What I Did During My Summer Vacation.....

Each year, as the school year draws to an end, I have to really force myself to think about the good things I've accomplished with my kids. If I do not do this, I tend to feel overwhelmed with the thought that it's almost over and I haven't done anything or done enough. I always try to think of at least a few of my students who I KNOW I have helped and who will be better for having been in my class. Thankfully, I am always able to think of someone who fits into that category.

At the end of summer, I am again overwhelmed with guilt/frustration/worry that I have not accomplished anything/enough during my time off. I, again, have to really force myself to think of good things I have done so that I don't feel like I have entirely wasted the summer. This post, then, is my list of what I did during my summer vacation. I write it so that I can feel somewhat OK about the summer coming to an end.

1. I visited my Dad and Lynne in Placerville.
2. I went to Costume College and taught two very successful classes there.
3. I organized my craft supplies a bit better.
4. I got rid of some of the clothes and things that I no longer use. (I still need to get rid of TONS more!)
5. I taught Sonja and her daughters how to do wire bead wrapping and how to make jewelry.
6. I got Abby spayed, declawed, and innoculated with the necessary shots.
7. I connected with Marci during the summer (as we always SAY we will do!) and had a lovely day with her in Yuma.
8. I talked Roger into hiring someone to take care of the yard. (Sadly, he did not finish everything he was supposed to do and we are going to have to find a different person to take care of things on a permanent basis.)
9. I visited Jon and Judy Ritchie in Glendale for an afternoon.
10. I had my wedding ring check and cleaned.
11. I read some good books. I haven't had time to read for pleasure for MONTHS!

Sadly, there are many things I have NOT accomplished. My list of things to do seems never-ending. But I AM glad for the things I HAVE managed to get done. And, I look forward, (in some ways, anyway) to another school year.

".....the constitution will hang by a thread..."

Today, a California judge (who just happens to be gay) overturned Proposition 8. This is the proposition that was passed by 52% of Californians last year. The proposition states that only marriage between a man and a woman should be legal. We passed a proposition before Prop 8, that basically said the same thing, but it was overturned. So we got Prop 8 on the ballot and passed it. This means that the majority of Calif0rnians have voted TWICE to declare gay marriages illegal. But, rather than listen to the voice of the people as an elected government official should, this judge has overturned the proposition and declared it unconstitutional. In my opinion, what is unconstitutional is a gay judge being allowed to rule on a proposition when he clearly has a bias. But Satan is working harder than ever to do whatever he can to bring all of humanity down to his level and, obviously, today was a victory for him and just one more sign that the last days are here.

At the end of The Book of Mormon, even the so-called 'righteous' Nephites were not obeying the commandments of God and were unable to live together in peace. Rather than have a king or a Judge, they broke into tribes. I see that happening in our country now. Arizona has broken off from the other states in trying to get our President to do his job and protect our borders. Several other states are following their lead while other states, such as California, are calling for a boycott of Arizona businesses. The state of Missouri has voted to block President Obama's healthcare plan. States are basically breaking off into their own entities (sort of like tribes, no?) because of the overwhelming disgust they feel for the idiot that somehow got elected as our current Preisdent and his lack of doing his job properly. I see all of this as the beginning of the end. It scares me and saddens me all at once.

God bless America and God help us all!

How to Make a Paper Wallet

This is my first attempt at a 'crafty' blog/tutorial. I appreciate any comments/suggestions. I saw an article in a magazine about making a paper wallet. It was very cute, but quite complicated. It required a lot of materials, as well. I decided to try to simplify it so that I can do it w/ my afterschool craft class. This is what I came up with.

Materials:

2 pages 12x12 in scrapbook paper (matching papers work best)

1 ruler

1 pencil

scissors

wide, clear package tape

Steps:

1. Lay the scrapbook papers end to end, so that edges are flush together. Tape. You should now have a rectangle that is approximately 12 in x 24 in.

2. Use the ruler to measure 2 inches off one of the long sides of the rectangle. Cut. Your rectangle should now measure approximately 10 in x 24 in.

3. Turn the rectangle face down. Start with one of the short ends. Fold the end up 3 inches. Then fold it back, accordian style. Then take the end (still folded) and fold it forward again, 4 inches.

4. Go to the other short end of the rectangle. Fold it up 6 inches and fold it again (not accordian this time, just over the other fold you just did) 3 inches. This end should go underneath the acccording folded end.

5. You now have two 'pockets' in your wallet: one for money and one for cards. The side edges are still open.

6. Use the package tape to 'laminate' the pockets and the outside of the wallet. Then, use more tape to close up the sides of the wallet. Fold in half, lengthwise, and put it in your pocket/purse!

Interesting Idea......

Today, during the closing prayer for Sacrament Meeting, the gentleman praying was giving thanks for the great meeting, the speakers, etc. Then, he said, "........And help us to record any personal revelations we received......." I have never heard anybody say that in a prayer, but it really made me think. Throughout the ages, Heavenly Father has commanded His people, especially His prophets, to keep records. When the Savior came to the Americas, one thing He said what that there were things missing from their records: scriptures they'd been given had not been written down. It makes sense to me that, in addition to writing down our genealogy and our experiences, we should also write down any personal insights or revelations that we receive. I realize that, to most people, this is not a new idea. You may be thinking, "Well, DUH Cindy!" However, it is a new idea to me. I am going to try to remember to do this more.