Dearest Family,
I didn't get to write my letter yesterday as I
usually do so I'm writing today. I don't get sick very often but when I do
I have found there is only one way to get better and that is to just "give
in to it" and stay in bed. I had a wonderful time in Star Valley until
Thursday when I started feeling really sick and it just wouldn't go away. I
have been on an antibiotic for an infection and I really think I am allergic
to the sulfa in the medicine. I am just fine today!!!
BRETT - Congratulations!!! I went to the State
"drum line competitions" on Saturday at Davis High and Brett's drum line won
first place. Their program was by far the best - their theme was
"Silhouettes of a city: A Tribute to New York" and their scenery was
outstanding besides the perfection of the drumline members. I am constantly
amazed at how they can play their drums while doing such precise marching
and dancing - I am so uncoordinated I know I would stumble. Katie - thank
you for coming to sit by me. She left her friends to come sit by me but
they found her and it was fun to see them again. Claire - thank you for the
picture of Katie and me. It was good to see Bob and Alice again and I'm
impressed that they could climb to the top of the stands - that's hard for
me. I'm proud of Sharon Ezell too - for those of you who take the Church
News - her picture is with a group on the front page of this last week's
issue. The church has made a missionary video to help members in sharing
the gospel and I believe this video will be available on DVD soon and she is
part of the group. She is married to Claire's brother, Steve and has a
beautiful singing voice.
ANNIE - thank you for your long and newsy letter
and RON congratulations on receiving the SAE Technical Paper of the Year
Award - that's GREAT!!! They have gone to Detroit to receive the award and
Susanna and Steve are taking care of Jimmy (as if he needed someone to take
care of him - Ha!!!). I know Ann & Ron are much more relaxed when they are
away from home if Sus and Steve are there. JESSIE - I'm SO proud of you for
being in your Relief Society Presidency in your singles ward in San Diego. I
hope your eye problems will be resolved - it's great that you have a good
ophthalmologist at the University of California Med School in San Diego to
help you. I think Lee Anna's friend is mighty lucky to have her help him -
he had his wisdom teeth taken out and she was worried that he might bleed to
death so she had him go stay at the Woolleys until he was better.
RUSSELL - I LOVED your letter and I am SO
impressed that you are having such great leadership opportunities. The home
you found for the new missionaries sounds fabulous - how many missionaries
get to live in a former Prime Minister's home??? AND to have 40
investigators at a meeting sounds like a bonanza for new missionaries - it
sounds like the work there is going fabulous. You must have a good command
of the Malagasy language to be able to translate for President Hill. I
remember how impressed I was with the Thai missionaries who could translate
for us in Bangkok - they were such a big help!!!
BOB - thank you SO much for coming over last
night. Bob had Stake Meetings all weekend so he was very busy. Ellen Mae
called me last night and said she had seen you and Claire at the meetings.
Claire spent Sunday morning at Utah State with Laura for "Parent's Day" and
Laura gave the Relief Society Lesson.
BARJI - thank you SO much for your phone call
last night and I was SO sad that you couldn't come over with Preston (I was
worried that I might have the flu bug). JEANNIE - thank you SO much for
coming over this morning. She came over to check to see if I felt better
and Barji and Preston were waiting out in the car so I went out to see
them. That little Preston has changed a lot since I saw him last - he has
gone blonde like his Dad and is a little doll!!! MARY ANN - thank you SO
much for your phone message - it was WONDERFUL to listen to it when I came
home from Star Valley and I hope to see you soon - it has been a long time.
You wouldn't believe all the snow in Star
Valley! We got up to leave on Friday morning and discovered Margaret had a
flat tire in her Tahoe. She has Triple A so she called them and it was
funny to have her try to describe where we were to people she was talking to
in Portland, Oregon.
I heard her say, "Look, we are way up in the
mountains and the car is deep in snow". They finally directed her call
Afton, Wyoming which is about 50 miles away and they kinda' knew where to
find us but it took them three hours so we were late in getting home. It
was VERY cold - the thermostat on Margaret's porch read -5 one morning and
it didn't ever get above 10 but her home is nice and warm with a huge
fireplace burning all the time.
One of Margaret's friends had passed away so she
went to the viewing in Afton one evening while we were there - we had fun
driving in there with her and we had a pizza. There was a group of young
women at the pizza place and they were celebrating a birthday party and they
were all dressed up. There must have been about 15 of them and they were
having such alot of fun and it was good to be with them - Afton is such a
small town that you wouldn't think there would be much going on but there
always is. There is only one mortuary in that entire area.
The television repairman came on Wednesday and
worked until Thursday afternoon - we teased him and said many people would
think he was practicing polygamy - Ha!!! They have a big satellite dish out
in their front yard and of course it was deep in snow so he had to carry his
ladder out there and work in the snow. They have 12 television sets besides
their large screen in their family room but he finally got them all working
- he is still going to have to go back and install some more relay stations
or something.
Margaret drove us into Alpine so we could see
the place where the State Fish and Game Dept. feed the elk each year - WHAT
A SIGHT!!! There are thousands of elk who gather there to eat the hay that
is provided for them and then in the Spring when the snow melts they go back
into the mountains. I couldn't believe there could be that many!!!
I am definitely going to the Pack wedding on
Wednesday night and I would be thrilled if any of you could go with me -
please let me know if any of you can possibly go to it.
That's all the news - I THINK!!! I LOVE EACH
ONE OF YOU SO VERY, VERY MUCH. PLEASE BE SO VERY, VERY CAREFUL IN
EVERYTHING YOU DO. Grandma B XXXXXXXXXOOOOOOO