Sunday, March 6, 2016
Re: Letter 64 of 3
Dear Riley:
The morning dawned wet and cold, but the weather last week was simply beautiful. Insects were out, birds were everywhere, Crocuses were in full bloom in the flowerbeds, and the temperatures were in the 60’s. I’m a little concerned that an early spell of warm weather could spell disaster for my apricots which now look a week from full bloom, but took advantage of the sunshine bringing the yard back from winter and getting the spring fertilizer on the grass. (I still haven’t gotten to the pruning or spraying.) Your mother would like a window well installed for Cambry’s room within the next couple weeks, so I started excavating the pit in front of the house. I was surprised by how very much dirt had washed down from the original hole and filled up the bottom. 14” and I was just hitting the cement remnant from the window cutout. At any rate, I’ll be installing something I build myself because I don’t like any of the local options and the out of state options I prefer, are far too costly to ship to Utah. I have an over engineered plan, a project cost, and motivation. We’ll see if it goes as smoothly as I hope. These projects frequently have a way of surprising you with a few curve balls.
With all the birthdays we’ve had recently, a real getaway weekend date has been somewhat elusive. Last Friday we finely got away for an evening out. We’ve equipped the tandem for night flying and had just gotten the bike back from the shop where it underwent a complete overhaul. These facts combined with astoundingly good weather opened a whole new world of possibilities. We rode down to the movie to see Brooklyn which came highly recommended but surprised and disappointed us with some objectionable content. Can’t say I would recommend it for this reason. Anyway, we still had some evening to burn following the movie, so rode back up to Orem and over to Wendy’s for real lemonade and fresh French fries (highly recommended!). We were fairly flying and had it maxed out a good portion of the time. It’s surprising what a tune up and good cleaning of the chain and gears will do. We LOVE that bike and keep scheming on how to squeeze a little more performance out of it. One thing the technician at the bike shop mentioned when I went to pick it up was the high quality and lightness of the frame. He said the old KHS bikes with the Tru Temper steel were much higher quality frames than they make now for tandems less than $4,000. Sweet! That was a great find for a couple hundred. Light and strong means more of your energy is translated into speed. I now feel even better investing a little in getting more out of our bike. It doesn’t seem we’ll wear out the frame for a considerable time, if ever. Your mom wants to go to Yellowstone when it’s open to bikers and closed to automobiles. Wouldn’t that be an adventure?
Our sacrament testimony meeting was a little different today but very sweet. A number of individuals who had had faith and worthiness struggles got up and bore testimony. Several were from the same family which was visiting for a baby blessing. These were former members of the ward I had watched grow up for years. Whatever their faith struggles or poor choices, they had all come full circle and were now sharing heartfelt testimony borne of trial, tribulation, and God’s hand in their lives. It just drove home the point that we need never give up hope for those who stray. Here, three individuals had their separate divergent paths which eventually led them back to the gospel of Christ.
Cambry and C have picked out a ring, have a date (the 3rd of June), a venue (The Manor at the Riverwoods), and are picking colors, flowers, and food. I imagine we’ll be sitting down for a chat with an aspiring young man within a week or so. They’re so happy together and we’re pleased to see Cambry with someone who truly brings out the best we’ve seen in her. C asked her if she was prepared to be mistaken for a Hispanic when people see her name. I feel a little bad you’ll be missing the event, but rest assured we’ll be thinking of our missionary and that you’ll be represented on some level.
The old Dodge van is sold and gone. We had a lot of memories in the vehicle, but it went for a good cause. The family that bought it felt it was a blessing and answer to prayer just as we felt the Honda Odyssey was an answer to ours. I’ll leave the longer version of the story to your mom. The next thing to go is the RV, which I offered to Cambry and C as a cheap first home option….they declined. Someone’s bound to be excited over the camper if the price is right. I just want it gone.
Well, time to sign off. We missed hearing a complete report last week, so are really looking forward to your letter this week. We did enjoy the picture of the Ostrich which we hope you’ll expound on this week. We just met the son of a member today who served in your area for 6 months. That was years ago, but he just loved it and was excited to meet the family of a missionary who was currently there. Keep the faith and keep working hard. We expect more miracles and so can you.
Love,
Dad
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