August 27, 1990 Orem, Utah

Dearest John; Roy, Patrice & Emily; Bob, Claire, Michael, Laura, Brett & Katie; Rick, Jean, Ricky, Barbara Jean, Mary Ann & Sarah; and Ron, Ann, Susanna, Jessie, Russell, LeeAnna & Jimmy:

A beautiful day here in Orem - Fall is in the air and we LOVE it!!! As I listened to national news this morning when they told about the forest fires here it was hard to believe because everywhere we look everything is so green. I guess up in Midway where the fires are it is very dry and the wind is bad - they said there have been fifty Summer homes destroyed and two firemen were killed last night - so sad!!! Our friends, Marian & Malcolm Jeppsen have a Summer home up there and they are in Vermont for their son's wedding. I hope their home isn't one that was burned.

We have been in touch with each one of you except for the Bob Mellors this week - we tried to get them last night but they weren't home. Roy & Patrice are doing fine - little Emily came on the phone and said, "Hello Grandma B" and after we hung up Daddy said, "I didn't get to talk to Emily". She sounds so grown up and Jeannie says she is a little doll. Roy said it is hot and uncomfortable in Little Rock and we remember those days - we went from one air conditioned place to another - but it will soon start to cool off and you will have a gorgeous Fall & Winter. Annie & LeeAnna came over on Saturday with ma plate of cookies just fresh from the oven and I just about ate all of them before Daddy & John came home!!! What a treat!!! Jeannie called yesterday and told us that Rick had just been called as a counselor to the Stake Mission President. Their stake is so large and they were dividing it so they all had to go to Salt Lake to meet in that tabernacle was really special. WE'RE PROUD OF YOU RICK. Little Mary Ann is going to have a mouth piece put in to stop her from sucking her thumb - it will be hard for a day or so but after that she will feel so a real sense of accomplishment. Both Ann & Jean have talked to Bob and said they are doing fine.

John went backpacking this weekend - he went with two other boys and they went into the Uintas. He left Friday afternoon and just took boxed macaroni & cheese - he said they would live on the fish they caught!!! They hiked in six miles from where they left their cars and said they caught lots of fish (fly fishing) and just had a wonderful time. He got home yesterday afternoon about 5 o'clock and was SO tired that he was sick - he went right to bed. He went to the airport in Salt Lake early this morning to see Gayla off. She can't get her visa to go to Spain yet so she has been assigned to go to Anaheim, California. I asked John if she were excited and he said, "I have seen her more excited". This is a very difficult time for both of them and we really admire them. Did you all hear about the two missionaries being killed in Peru? Gayla told John that all the missionaries who had been assigned to go to Peru have been sent other places.

Daddy also went backpacking - Ha!!! He, Ray & another man went on their elk scouting trip. They left on Thursday in Ray's pickup camper pulling a trailer with their four-wheelers. Daddy had made a big stew, Ray's wife Carol had made clam chowder and they took a dutch oven and meat & vegetables to cook in it. They got home on Saturday afternoon and Daddy was SO excited - they had seen lots of elk and know exactly where to go on their hunt. They will leave on September 7th for about five days and then will go every other weekend until they get just what they want. They want "trophies"!!! Daddy is feeling good - he still has that cold and nagging cough but it is better.

Daddy, John & I went to the cabin last Tuesday afternoon. Daddy worked some more on the forms for the cement and John hammered a big rock down level with the forms. They brought the cement on Wednesday morning and we all decided that it was a BIG JOB!!! I have never seen anyone work harder than Daddy & John and it had to be done so fast because it was a hot day and it set up fast. It is a big improvement. We really needed a little bit more cement and another man in the area needs some too so he & Daddy are going to try to get more delivered sometime this week. Daddy extended the forms out to contain another yard.

I gave my lesson in Relief Society yesterday and it was on the importance of learning a foreign language. John had made some posters for me in Spanish and I had a lot of people take part-one sister in our ward is deaf so I asked her to tell a little how we could better communicate with her and then she "signed" the words to a song while we all sang it. They told us yesterday about a group of missionaries who have been assigned to go to Romania to care for the orphans over there - they are all professionals; pediatricians, teachers, etc. One of the women going is from Ann's ward - Beverly Cutler - and she has been a professor in child development at BYU. They said there are three orphanages and 6,000 orphans who will receive their help.

The crisis in the Mideast is really a worry, isn't it? Every time I see the news where they show service men & women out in that desert preparing for chemical warfare I get sick all over. We're SO grateful that Roy is out of the active reserve - he said yesterday that if it gets really bad he could be called because he is still in the inactive reserve. I personally believe it will be resolved soon but WHAT DO I KNOW!!! I am reading Jehan Sedat's book "a Woman of Egypt" that I highly recommend - it is really good and especially with all the news now.

They are digging up more grass in the back of us again. The need to dig it up and replace the pipe clear to the end of the street to the West. That has taken them most of the Summer. They always replace the grass but we're hoping it won't take as long as the last time.

We love each one of you so very much. PLEASE BE VERY CAREFUL IN EVERYTHING YOU DO. Let us know how we can help you.
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