In the beginning . . .

 Looks like I'm about a year old in this picture. There is a picture of me at about 6 months - and another at about 3 months - then this one - and one when I look about 3. Then there is probably one for every year of my childhood but they are not labeled and so I'm really not sure. Someone didn't label photos!

I have random, spotty memories of my childhood. They are lovely, happy memories for the most part. I am pretty sure I had a happy childhood - some minor trauma - but forgetting seems to help that aspect.

As I grow older and can't always find the right word, or remember what I came in to say, or forget something I had every intention of doing - I am pretty amazed that I recall as much of my childhood as I do!

I'm waiting for the technology that shows you a video of your life!!

I wonder how much would feel familiar?

On Birthdays

 My May birthday calendar is full of birthdays - close family birthdays, extended family birthdays, friends birthdays, strangers birthdays - lots and lots of birthdays.

And I have a birthday in May. As a child, birthdays were pretty important to me - but they really weren't terribly important in my family. I have not done any research, but I suspect that in times past, birthdays might not have held the significance they do today.

Some of that probably has to do with the fact that many did not even know their date of birth. Before written language and recorded history, birthdays were often a matter of conjecture. Recently listened to a Daily podcast that enumerated the societal problems caused - in our day - by the unavailability of birth - and death - records for a large portion of the earth's population.

So I was delighted many long years ago when my sister planned a surprise 22nd birthday party for me. And my mom curled your hair the night before your birthday - a random pretty hair day was a treat indeed. She also let you choose the dinner menu and cake flavor. Best of all though, you didn't have to do your chores on your birthday.

My grandma Stevens always brought us gifts. Alice had a birthday in April, so she brought them both out in April - they were always the same, just a different color, so the surprise element was muted. But as kids who didn't get lots of new stuff, the gifts were still a delight.

I have been celebrating birthdays this month - in person for several - which isn't always the case - but I love it. Polly's 8th. Lee's 4th, Francis' 8th, Zeke's 2nd - and more to come.

"If I had a wish, then it would be, a happy, happy birthday to you from me!"

A special day in May!

 May 19th is my mom's birthday - and our grandson Lee's birthday too. I recall wishing that I had been born on my mom's bday - they are only 4 days apart. And hoping that I might share a birthday with one of my kids. 

But my mom had a couple of grandsons who shared a birthday with her before Lee was even a twinkle in someone's eye - and it didn't seem real significant to her. And ultimately birthdays are often just another day in the week. 

But it's good to stop and think about someone and their impact on your life. My mom definitely impacted my life - and I would be hard put to be able to adequately explain that impact. Suffice it to say, I think of her often - as the years go by since her death, I think daily of a question I'd like to ask her. Because the answer would be helpful now! Simply reflecting on her life always brings insight.

And Lee is a delightful little guy. I am significantly older than him, and when he's a teenager, I will be pushing 90 so he might not find my presence in his life incredibly significant. But that doesn't mean I can't enjoy watching him grow - he is a beautiful boy - and truly brings me joy with his smile and his chatter and his absolute love of books and puzzles. 

And his conviction that he can do anything he sets his mind to.

May and Birthdays!

 My birthday is in May. My mother's birthday is in May. I have a son born in May, a daughter-in-law born in May, a great grandson born in May. I also have quite a few nieces and nephews born in May. And three grandsons and one granddaughter. And a host of friends who call May their birth month.

I didn't think much about it as a kid. Your birthday is your birthday. But then you have a child born in a particular month and that starts dictating other facets of your life. It's easier to have a birthday party in some months rather than other months. I have a nephew born less than a week before Christmas, so his mother started celebrating his birthday in the middle of July - called it a half-birthday - and the kids who came certainly didn't care.

All families and cultures don't celebrate birthdays - and I have become aware of that over the years. I had a friend whose birthday had always been a very big deal. Her husband came from a family where birthdays were hardly noted. It created conflict. I advised her to just celebrate herself - and we'd help her so she didn't have to get upset every year.

I grew up in a large family - and was one of the older children. There were years when my mom barely remembered - she could usually get a cake made - but not always. She did start a tradition of not having to do your chores on your birthday - and frankly I thought that was better than a present.

I try to remember birthdays. I send lots of cards. I have a perpetual birthday calendar. But as I get older, I start thinking that I won't always be able to do this. And wonder how I should taper off. 

 If you usually get a birthday card from me, you'll know when that happens!

Plenty to Be Thankful For: Day 30

 Month of Gratitude, day 30:  It seems so fitting to end the month with memories of our beloved Charlie Graham, who died 19 years ago today. He was a blessing in all of our lives - a blessing we have sorely missed over the years.

But he left a beautiful family - and they are a blessing in our lives. I remember a month or so before he died, he got up in Testimony meeting and said he wondered "Why me?" Then he went on to say,  Why should I have such a wonderful wife and family?  Why should I be privileged to live on the earth now? Why was I so fortunate to find the gospel?  Why did I have the great blessing of being sealed to my family? Why did I get to become a grandpa?

We all learned a great lesson that day. And I for one have never forgotten that lesson.

Plenty to Be Thankful For: Days 23-29!!

 Month of Gratitude got put on the back burner! We had to take our computer in - and it's still not working the way I wish it would.

But we have been thankful for a lovely Thanksgiving dinner with Donna, some great weather on Black Friday - not for shopping but for sewing, a happy Saturday that was pretty laid back, a delightful Sunday at church, a happy celebration for Harry W's birthday, and tonight we celebrated Isla!

I may get on the ball tomorrow - but I need some instructions for the new operating system I guess.

Technology is a blessing - but it's almost a full-time job!

Days 21 and 22: Plenty to Be Thankful For

 Grateful for these good women in my life - they came at different times - and left at different times too - but they all had an influence:

My mother - always there for me - always encouraging.

Helen - raised a wonderful son to bless my life.

Marjorie - Dawn's mom - was soon very much a "part of the family."

And Donna - Happy Birthday to you!!

You are a wonderful sister - a real blessing in my life.

 

DAYS 19 and 20: Plenty to Be Thankful For

 

We actually have had 4 cats over the years - but Baby Kitty didn't really like us much - and the feelings were reciprocated - and he ran away the first chance he had - and mostly we don't have a photo of him!

But Cosmo was dearly beloved and we were so sad when he disappeared - we are pretty sure a coyote got him - he was older. He was very independent and refused to be a house cat. He was an abandoned kitten when we got him - someone just left him on the street.

Amado was our first cat - when Harry taught at the MTC, the elders he was teaching found a stray kitten and took him in - and we ended up with him. We had to hide his existence since the apartments we lived in didn't allow pets. Then we lived in a house and the owners were okay with it - he was not a house cat - came and went. 

 

He disappeared - we ran an ad - he got returned. Then a few months later he disappeared again. It was a sad day.

 

Then we got Elizabeth - from Paul and Sharon - they had too many cats - needed to get rid of one - so we took her in. We loved her for several years - then she got cat leukemia - we did our best for her but she didn't survive. The last photo is shot of her backside - no other photos of her.

 

So that's the saga of the Terrills and cats. Pretty sure there won't be any more.

 

But very grateful for the cats in our lives!!

DAY 18: Plenty to Be Thankful For

 Grateful indeed that we once had a VW van - I feel like it just sort of qualifies us for coolness! It was fun - had it less than a year - and had to pay extra to get seat belts installed - 1978.

We sold it to afford a mortgage and a piano. A worthy trade but it would have been nice to keep all three. And many years later we got a Dodge Ram Van - 15 passenger. So "vanness" stayed in our description!

It was a beauty!

Day 17: Plenty to Be Thankful For

 As a teacher at Clifton Middle School, I had the privilege of being the mentor teacher to a student teacher candidate. She was not a former student per se, but when I was a substitute, I had had her in many of my classes. 

I started teaching on an emergency credential, so my student teaching consisted of paying the tuition and having an administrator come and observe me a couple of times! After a few years of teaching, I realized that being a student teacher would have benefited me greatly.

So I truly enjoyed the opportunity to grow and learn myself as I helped Bailey achieve the goal of practice teaching.

The experience was a good one and I am grateful that I had the opportunity!

Day 16: Plenty to Be Thankful For

 When I taught at Clifton Middle School, there were 4 of us who had been born the same year. And so we called ourselves "The Girls of '45." And we had a glamor shot taken. And we went out to dinner often and celebrated ourselves. And everyone at school knew we were formidable!!

Ah, the joy of wonderful colleagues - so grateful!

Day 15: Plenty to Be Thankful For

 We've had a lot of weddings in our household - 6 to be exact - and they were all wonderful affairs. I could write a book about all the adventures and misadventures.

I am so grateful for the brides and the grooms and the dancing and the food and the cakes and bridesmaids and the family members who gathered with us!!

I do have more than plenty to be thankful for!!

Day 14: Plenty to Be Thankful For

 This wall no longer exists between the dining room and kitchen. And we no longer have a landline. And there's just paint, no more wallpaper. And the fridge is over on the other side of the kitchen. And I am certainly older and heavier - maybe even shorter!

But I am truly grateful that the good memories remain.

Day 12 and 13: Plenty to Be Thankful For

 Once again I am doubling up - and getting behind. I am grateful indeed for the funny things kids do - like putting olives on your fingers - every child does that - I wonder why.

And I'm grateful for photos so that I can remember those funny things kids do!

Days 10 and 11: Plenty to Be Thankful For

 Missed yesterday - had Noah's boys here and certainly had my hands full! And now Veteran's Day is almost over!

I am grateful to have grandsons who come and stay with us - they are a joy and a blessing.

And I am grateful for those men and women who have served so valiantly over so many years to keep us all safe.

There is indeed much to be thankful for in this life!

Day 9: Plenty to Be Thankful For:

 When we bought our house in 1983, there was a wonderful apricot tree in the backyard. The neighbors all said it had been there as long as they could remember.

I love bottling apricots, making apricot nectar, and cooking up apricot jam. We were in heaven for a number of years with a plentiful crop and lots of delicious apricots to enjoy throughout the year.

And then one year, we came home from church and our tree had been stripped! We are not at all sure who did it - the tree was in back and fairly well hidden from the street. We suspected workmen who had been in the neighborhood and noticed the full branches. But we wondered how they knew that we would be gone for 3 hours on Sunday morning? Maybe someone who had observed that?

We never found out. And then one year, the tree simply didn't bear any fruit - nary a fruit. And then there started to be lean years. And leaner years. And finally the reality that the tree would no longer be bearing fruit.

We took the tree out - it was dying. I bought  new tree - paid good money to get one with some growth. But it was not to be. Between a bear who whacked off some key branches and the deer who nibbled away at the new growth and the birds who pecked at the fruit that did manage to make it, there was not much left for us. I recall one year I picked a small bowlful of apricots - combined with a can of crushed pumpkin, I was able to make one batch of apricot-pineapple jam.

And oh, my, it was delicious. I was grateful for that little batch of jam.

And upon reflection, grateful for so many years of delicious fruit.

And grateful too for our wonderful sycamore tree in the front yard.

Day 8: Plenty to Be Thankful For:

 Grateful indeed for "make-believe" and how wonderful it is to observe it in children. I'm sure we played "make-believe" when I was a kid, but no one described it or emphasized it. Not that it is necessary. I suspect most children just figure it out.

I remember trying to facilitate it with my own children, but I'm pretty sure they would have done well enough without me. I especially recall a moment many years ago, when I was pregnant with Noah. It was a warm spring day and Hannah and Eliza were playing in our backyard, which was mostly dirt. They were doing something with sticks and twigs and apricots that had dropped on the ground. 

Hannah came over to me bearing an old pie tin with dirt, old apricots, and twigs pushed in here and there as birthday candles. "Oh" she said, "I wish it was my birthday."

Thankful indeed for make-believe!

 

Day 7 - Plenty to Be Thankful For:

 This is an old photo of my dad - one I had not seen before. My brother sent a bunch of pics and this was in it. What I like best about it is it's really the way I remember my dad in my growing up years. He became frailer at the end of his life, and that image sometimes obliterates the many years of memories I have of him looking much different.

Today is my dad's birthday - a good time to reflect and remember the blessing it is to be a daughter of a man who loved you and cared for you and left you lots of good memories to celebrate.

Happy Heavenly Birthday Dad!

Day 6: Plenty to Be Thankful For:

 Phoebe was a much anticipated blessing in our lives. Bonny kept asking for a baby sister. We finally suggested we fast and pray as a family for a new baby - since we had been trying for awhile. I guess Phoebe thought if she told people we were expecting a baby, I would make good on her assertion!

Phoebe's name means light, and her middle name, Elizabeth, means gift of God. She is certainly aptly named. She was in her little infant seat at church on evening, and our bishop's wife was sitting behind us. She tapped me on the shoulder and said, "The light of Heaven is still in her eyes."

I think she was right!

Day 5: Plenty to be Thankful For

 I am so grateful for Isla and her joy in the wonder of magic and fairy tales and always seeing good and potential. And I hope she carries this gift and blessing with her always.