Sometimes a wrong turn turns out to be the right turn after all. This was the case Sunday afternoon when Elisa and I took the wrong exit off of I15 and were awarded the opportunity to view an unknown treasure in northern Utah… A replica of the Vietnam Memorial Wall. Dedicated in 2018 in Layton, Utah, the replica is 80 percent of the original size of the monument in Washington, D.C. and is reported to be the only one of…
I grew up with Uncle Marvin being part of my life. He and Aunt Connie lived just down the street. While technically my great-Uncle, his son Richard, Stitch as we called him as kids, was my age and we were cousins who grew up together. Uncle Marvin passed away October 28 at the age of 95. Read his obituary here. Uncle Marvin was the local milkman when I was a kid. He worked for Ideal Dairy, bottling the milk and…
There was a time I thought no one saw me. I felt invisible. I felt like the good in the world bypassed me and only the bad found me. I was invisible. An unknown. A cipher. If you haven’t yet heard of the word “cipher” in this context, it means “a person of no influence; nonentity.” I first learned it from the short film “Cipher In The Snow.“ That’s the story I told myself for a long time. But like…
If in hindsight we can see our trials of yesterday were exactly what we needed for today, perhaps we can create a new perspective on our trials of today. I shared this thought with a friend last week and it has really stuck with me. You know, kinda like “hindsight is 2020.” I realize by now the whole 2020 vision thing is totally overdone, but that doesn’t mean it’s not accurate. Perspective is more than just a perspective, it really…
Les and I took the wonderful opportunity this weekend to travel to visit our son, Brenin, who works on Cannon Air Force Base outside of Clovis, New Mexico. It has been a while since we’ve seen him and our parent hearts needed to spend some time with him. I was a bit apprehensive about the trip because this was our first time flying post-COVID. Because of the lengthy quarantine period we have all been through and the civil unrest I…
When I deployed to Iraq several years ago, my dad gave me his first year AA coin from Alcoholics Anonymous to carry with me. It’s the coin right in the center of the photo with the Roman Number ( I ) Number One on it. I remember him saying to me, “Son, if I could make it through and survive my first year of sobriety, you can make it through and survive a year in Iraq.” When my dad passed…
If you could go be with God, to “Hie to Kolob,” would not your soul be filled with beautiful peace? Would knowing where the “Gods began” bring comfort and solace? Such is the promise of this beautiful hymn. We invite you to simply feel that peace as Elisa plays this beautiful arrangement by Jason Tonioli. Have a beautiful Sunday. We love you! Les & Elisa
There’s a lie when it comes to grief. We think grief should be done and over with quickly. Others tell us to just move on. And life dictates we keep going, jumping back into our routine after a brief pause to say goodbye. And that’s the lie. Grieving in all reality is a complicated mess. A sticky, gooey mess. In “A Grief Observed,” the quintessential book on the subject, C.S. Lewis describes just how messy grief can be. “They say…
“Why set a goal when we can make a promise?” This is the question Jason Hewlett proposes in his new book, “The Promise To The One.” The word “goals” has lost most of its meaning and purpose. New Year’s goals and resolutions, for instance, seem as effective as blowing dandelions in the wind. PERSONAL MANTRA A few weeks ago I introduced you to my Personal Promise Proclamation. I have had a version of it for several years and called it…
James Stockdale was a United States Navy vice admiral and aviator awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor for his actions in the Vietnam War. He was shot down over Vietnam and held captive for over seven years as the most senior naval officer in Hanoi, North Vietnam. Also of note, Stockdale was a candidate for Vice President of the United States in the 1992 presidential election, on Ross Perot’s independent ticket. Interviewed by Jim Collins for his landmark book “Good…