What message would you send from the moon?

I learned about this last week and I thought that I would share it with you. This happened almost 40 years ago. It probably wouldn't go over so well today. It's amazing how much things can change in 40 years. Somehow back then they could get away with it, as if it is some sort of crime. I guess orbiting the moon gives you a different perspective of the earth we live on.

Apollo 8, the first manned mission to the Moon, entered lunar orbit on Christmas Eve, December 24, 1968. That evening, the astronauts; Commander Frank Borman, Command Module Pilot Jim Lovell, and Lunar Module Pilot William Anders did a live television broadcast from lunar orbit, in which they showed pictures of the Earth and Moon seen from Apollo 8. Lovell said, "The vast loneliness is awe-inspiring and it makes you realize just what you have back there on Earth." They ended the broadcast with the crew taking turns reading from the book of Genesis.

William Anders: "For all the people on Earth the crew of Apollo 8 has a message we would like to send you". "In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters. And God said, Let there be light: and there was light. And God saw the light, that it was good: and God divided the light from the darkness."

Jim Lovell: "And God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And the evening and the morning were the first day. And God said, Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters. And God made the firmament, and divided the waters which were under the firmament from the waters which were above the firmament: and it was so. And God called the firmament Heaven. And the evening and the morning were the second day."

Frank Borman: "And God said, Let the waters under the heavens be gathered together unto one place, and let the dry land appear: and it was so. And God called the dry land Earth; and the gathering together of the waters called he Seas: and God saw that it was good."

Borman then added, "And from the crew of Apollo 8, we close with good night, good luck, a Merry Christmas, and God bless all of you - all of you on the good Earth."

Can't Take the Heat?

If you can't take the heat this summer you need to get up in the mountains. We drove from 92 degrees to 64 in about 20 minutes. Here Brooke is playing Karate kid. To think that I was bummed that I only got my snowshoes out once last year. Who would have thought I would be using them in June.

A Sister’s Love

So my sister called me a few days ago and she said, “Alicia, why don’t you just marry ____?” After listing the reasons why that wouldn’t be such a great idea she says “Well, you just need to get married so you can have babies.” OK so I know that most of you single people out there have heard this from some well meaning family member or friend. Also Cate just had a baby 4 months ago and now that the memory of the pain has subsided she wants me to have this life changing experience. For most people the issue would be resolved right there. Well, Cate doesn’t give up that easily apparently. She called me a few nights later and she said, “I found your husband.” I guess she was looking around on Facebook and she found a guy that I had been in Sunday school class with from ages 12-18. She decided to email him and here is how she decided to go about arranging our marriage…

Cate- I need a favor...It is really no big deal at all...you don't need to move a couch or anything if you are not really dating anyone right now could you please marry my sister...she is nice and she will learn to cook in time.
Think it over...no big whoop.
I will wash your car for you as a pay back...
Later,
Cate

J--- Well, let me get this straight...you'll wash my car, but will you vacuum out the inside too? That gets really dirty.
J---
PS...which sister are we talking about?

Cate- listen...i will shampoo...vacuum and polish the leather interior which I am sure you have since you are a baller. Hook it up bro,
Cate
PS...Alicia is the foxy lady I am refering to. Enjoy

This would probably mortify some of you out there but I am over it and you just need to know my sister. The thing is that this story continues. No joke, 45 minutes later I get a call from my good friend Marla. She says, “Alicia I found your husband.” I asked her if she has been talking to Cate. She said “No, why?” She goes on to tell me why this other guy is perfect for me.

If only it was that easy! Well I guess I just need to be grateful that I have people looking out for me, and a sister that is such a crack-up! I hope that you are all as lucky as I am. ;)

HALLELUJAH - Praise ye the Lord.

So there is a song written by Leonard Cohen called Hallelujah. Cohen is a Jewish poet turned songwriter. I knew the definition of the word so I wanted to get to the bottom of the message he was trying to convey. I looked up the lyrics and I was struck by how it was talking about David in the Old Testament. He was a man highly favored of God who fell from grace. I thought about the ups and downs in his life and about how at the end of his life he devoted much time to writing the Psalms. I was impressed that although he could have chosen to curse God he wrote praises to his name instead. I also thought about Job. He probably had more reasons than most to curse God and he never did. Because of that he was blessed. We don’t only praise God when he does nice things for us or because we are richly blessed. We praise God because of his perfect attributes and character; because he is our Father in Heaven. We praise and worship him best when we strive to gain the characteristics he possesses. I couldn't find anything telling what Cohen's intentions were writing the song, so if you have any thoughts on the subject I would like to hear them. Those are my deep thoughts for today.

Land O'Lakes

I have just been on a trip to Minnesota. I forget how much I love it here. I was able to spend a bit of time with family and friends. It was my mom's birthday, who I have to say looks fantastic for a woman 70 years old. I also spent time with Marie and Ian. Ian is now three and a half months old. It must have been crabby time when this shot was taken. Luna is gettig to be a big little lady. Here she is at three and a half. She thinks she is a princess. I believe that Cinderella is her favorite and she wants to wear dresses everywhere she goes. I even saw some old High School friends one of which I have not seen since High School. For My mom's birthday we went to Minehaha Falls. That is one of my favorite places. There is a great hike that takes you down to the Mississippi River from the falls. But mostly this trip I enjoyed the lakes. I went for a run with my Aunt and we saw 4 lakes in a hour and a half run. We saw Brown Lake, Cedar Lake, another I can't think of the name of and Lake of the Isles. Here is a picture of Lake of the Isles with a great view of the Minneapolis skyline. Then two days later I went on a run around Lake Calhoon and I also ran up to Lake Harriet. I don't know why I wasn't more of a runner when I lived here. There are so many great places to go running. A few of the lakes are so close that you can canoe many at the same time. They are connected by these cool water ways. To finish up my trip we went to a dance in a hanger. They had people dresses up in World War two style, like these two... and then they had thes bag pipe guys who where amazing that came to play for us. It was just a really well done event. They had a live band and even had some professional swing dancers come and do a routine for us. Do we have anything like that in Utah? Here is Marla and me plaing near the war Jeep.The only thing I regret is that I didn't get a chance to do any rollerblading around Lake Harriet. I guess that will have to be a priority next time.

My Mom is Amazing!

I was watching an interview with Lenny Kravitz a few weeks ago and when the interviewer walked into his home she saw a picture of a woman that covered an entire wall. She asked him, “Who is that beautiful woman on your wall?” He said, “It is my mother. In every home I design I find a way to honor her.” Since then I have been thinking about the way I honor my mother. I think that the greatest thing I can do for her is to live my life in accordance with the things she has taught me and have respect for others. Here she is holding me.It is time to pay tribute to my mother. I know that Mother’s Day is past but it is going to be my mom’s 70th birthday on the 28th of May and I feel the need to tell you all that she is pretty great. This is us again the day I was baptized. I sure loved that pink coat I got for my 8th birthday. I tell my friends so many stories about her that are just funny and random. I also do the mom impersonation so people want to see if she really talks like that. When she does come to town they just want to meet her and they are all shocked when they find out that she is going to be turning 70. I guess that is the benefit of having children later in life, you stay young longer. Lucky me. I get to be with her in Minnesota on her birthday. She has been there for me through it all. Thanks a million Mom!

I am moving

I know that you are all not too surprised, seeing as how I like to move across the country every year or so. The shocking thing about this move is that I am going to be staying within my complex. I really can’t remember the last time I have stayed in one place for 2 years and 9 months. During the move I was trying to reach some pots and pans for Jen that were way back in the back of the cupboard and I didn’t think too much about it till Jen started to laugh at me. You know I really should have tried to see if I could fit my whole body in the cupboard. Once I got my shoulders in it was quite roomy.
I have two great new roommates to move in with, Heather and Marianne. I am looking forward to some fun times this summer.