Week 21 - September 11-23

Here is Elder Koberstein in the International Floor Zone Leaders office at the Family History Library.  We spend a lot of time on the computers here.

Buddy took us out to a German restaurant for lunch on our anniversary.  It gave the day a little special touch and we enjoyed catching up on family news.

Elder Koberstein gave me this beautiful bouquet of flowers and a card with my name written in old German script.  I have enjoyed them on my desk all week.

Fall is coming to Utah.  It is almost dark when we start our drive to the Family History Library each morning.  The garden outside the front door looks like fall.  It is fun to watch the giant sunflower blossom grow each day.  It is getting quite large.

Friday we ate a quick lunch and then attended the Organ Recital in the tabernacle on temple square.  Andrew Unsworth was the organist.  He played "Prelude in C Major" by J.S. Bach, "Fugue", from Symphony no. 1 by Louis Vierne, "Prelude on 'Margaret'" by Andrew Unsworth, "Come, Come Ye Saints" and "An old melody" arranged by the organist and "Sortie" by Percy Whitlock.

Friday after a day at the Family History Library we went to Indian Curry for dinner.

We rode the "Trak" train to and from.

Elder Koberstein then treated me to the Utah Symphony concert at Abravanel Hall.

We saw Beethoven's "Ode to Joy".  The Utah Smphony Chorus and the University of Utah Choirs along with soloists Joelle Harvey, Kirstin Chavez, Issachah Savage and Patrick Carfizzi provided voice in German.  English translation was given on the over head. Jason Hardink also played "Suspend" by Andrew Norman a composer-in-association.  It was a very enjoyable evening.

Looking toward temple square from Abravanel Hall as we entered the hall.

 A picture inside the hall as they were setting up.  We had second balcony seating.

Elder Koberstein and I took the Front Runner train from Salt Lake City Center Station to the Provo train station and then the bus bridge to the BYU game at the LaVell Edwards Stadium on Saturday.  It was fun to see the BYU football team beat the McNeese State football team.

A THOUGHT FOR YOU
Organize yourselves; 

prepare every needful thing; 

and establish a house, 

even a house of prayer, 

a house of fasting, 

a house of faith, 

a house of learning, 

a house of glory, 

a house of order, 

a house of God;  

D&C 88:119

Week 20 - September 10-16

This week was special as Elder Koberstein and I drove into Star Valley Wyoming for our Research and Temple day on Friday.  We spent Friday afternoon at the Family History Center in the Star Valley Stake Center/Tabernacle but really in the library adjacent to this wonderful old building.  I had the goal to find my great grandfather's obituary in the Star Valley Independent.  I knew it had been published there as a keyed in copy is on family search.

I was disappointed to find the microfilms of the Star Valley Independent only go from 1919 to about 1980.  My great-grandfather Aroet Lucius Little Hale died in 1911.

I had previously noticed that there is not many things about my grandmother, Susan Idella Cazier Hale on FamilySearch.  She passed away April 15, 1938.  This news article was on the front page titled "Mrs. Ben Hale Passes Away" published April 21, 1938.  A rewarding afternoon which made me realize I need more time to search the Independent for it's family treasures.

We then met Ida Beth and Larry for dinner at Agave's Mexican restaurant on Main Street in Afton.  I love the elk horn arch over Main Street in Afton.

We had any enjoyable dinner and visited then drove to the Star Valley temple for a evening session there. 

Saturday morning we enjoyed a walk to Flat Creek in Thayne with Ida Beth and Larry.

Saturday afternoon we drove to Fairview and visited with my brother and his family.  We even stopped to take a picture by the town of Fairview sign.  I grew up in Fairview on a small dairy farm owned and ran by my father.

Sunday found us at church in Thayne with my cousin.  It was fun to meet another Fairviewite, Orson Pead.  We were in the same grade all the way though high school Junior year when his family moved to Utah.

On the drive back to Salt Lake City we drove through a herd of sheep.  A fun memory from the past.  It was fun to see a few black sheep in the bunch.

Our drive was a little early to see the beautiful fall colored leaves but a very enjoyable get away weekend.

A THOUGHT FOR YOU

"Gone To Rest" 
by Bertha Nelson
(This poem was printed in the Star Valley Independent article about my Grandmother Hale's death, April 21, 1938.  The author Bertha Nelson was probably a family friend)

Dear Sister Idella, as we all knew you
With your loving gentle smile,
You have been called to leave your dear ones
But only for a little while.

God has a mission for you
A great and glorious work,
So she has gone to answer
For she was never known to shirk.

You have all cared for her,
Did all that you could do;
And now in return for you kindness
She will be watching over you.

You will miss her, yes, you will miss her
There will be her vacant chair,
You will call and listen,
But mother will not be there.

The eyes are closed, the voice is stilled
Of one you loved so dear,
But O how grand it all will be,
When you meet her over there.

Week 19 - September 3-9

Monday, Labor Day, we spent time going on a tour at the "Dinosaur National Monument-Fossil Bone Quarry" to see where many of the dinosaur bones from Utah came from.  This is an artist interpretation of what a stegosaurus would have looked like on the drive to the visitors center.  It looks quite natural to the setting but not much food for it to eat.  At the visitors center one gets on a bus to ride about a mile to the bone quarry.

This guy would have been good sized.  Look at the size of one bone of his leg.

This is a partially uncovered skull of a dinosaur.  We were allowed to touch this piece.

The fossil skeleton of this dinosaur and an artists idea of what it may have looked like when it was living.

The quarry had a area in a covered building just for us to look at.  Some of the fossilized bones were partially exposed from the rock around them.

This week, 5 August 2018, was the B1 recognition meeting and luncheon.  Elder Koberstein and I received an award for completing two months worth of weekly in-service activities.  There were about 70 missionaries getting this award so pictures were taken in small groups.

Saturday morning was my morning to cut hair for the young elders.  We had four sisters show up and one pair of clippers.  I eventually left.  This is a picture of the young elders walking for exercise as I left.

One of the apartments in our duplex needed a range replacement.  It had a 27 inch range in the counter top.  As we looked at it, it seemed possible the opening was large enough for a standard 30 inch range.  Our manager, who is very good with wood, offered to try and trim the counter tops so we could put in a standard 30 inch range in the kitchen.  He did a beautiful job.  No more crack behind the range to lose things in.  We are so happy with his work.  We also set up to have the outside of the duplex painted this fall.  We hope it can be done before winter comes.

Saturday evening we attended the BYU vs Cal Bears game.  We were sad at the out come, 18 BYU to 21 Cal Bears, but enjoyed being there.

We were really excited to see the thank you to Ralph and Sue Severson.  We know them for California in many ways.  Thank you for your support to BYU.

Here we are waiting for the game to begin.  The stadium was nearly full by the time the game started.

A THOUGHT FOR YOU

"Pursuing divinely appointed responsibilities in righteousness, unity, and equality will prepare us to meet God." -Quentin L. Cook

Week 18 - August 26-September 2

This week, for fun, Elder Koberstein and I took a side trip to see Germany during our lunch hour.   Actually we visited the "Discovery Zone" of the Family History Library.  We then drove to "Sage Market" and enjoyed a bowl of Japanese Ramen.  I had Miso Ramen and Elder Koberstein enjoyed Tonkatsu (pork) Ramen. It reminded us of our time in Japan.  A quick whirl wind trip around the globe in a one hour lunch.

For the labor day week-end we went to Vernal Utah.  The entrance into the Vernal, Utah temple today.

This is a more typical view of the temple which shows the beauty of the old tabernacle it once was.

This is the back of the temple with Elder Koberstein standing in front of the doors.  I wonder if this may once have been the front door into the tabernacle because of the cement circles on each side of the door with the dates 1907 and 1997, the years it was used as a tabernacle.

"Originally, the building served as the Uintah Stake Tabernacle for Latter-day Saints in eastern Utah.  The tabernacle's foundation was constructed of nearby sandstone with walls built of four layers of fired brick from the local clay.  The building was built with considerable donated labor from the fall of 1899 until it was dedicated on August 24, 1907 by LDS Church president Joseph F. Smith.  Smith reportedly said he would not be surprised if a temple was build there some day.'" -Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia on line

Saturday after attending a session in the Vernal Temple we drove to the Dinosaur National Monument-Fossil Bone Quarry.  We attended a fireside by the park ranger about bats.  It was fun but not new.  We then went to another campground for a Star Party led by the park rangers.  They had two telescopes we could look though and pointed out constellations and the milky way.  It was quite spectacular last night.

After our church meetings we did an Auto Tour of the Tilted Rocks.  This is the Green River.  It is the same Green River found in Wyoming.

We saw "Turtle Rock".

Elephant Toes Butte, eroded from the Nugget Sandstone.

We saw petroglyphs about 1000 years old.  The Fremont people made these using sharp tools,they pecked away at the dark natural stain on the rock surface, called desert varnish, to reveal the light colored sandstone  beneath.  If you look close you can see a bighorn sheep and other animals.  We have one thing left for tomorrow to see the dinosaur quarry.

THOUGHT FOR YOU

"You and I can not control the intentions or behaviors of other people.  However we do determine how we will act.  Please remember that you and I are agents endowed with moral agency, and we can choose not to be offended.
- David A Bednar