On Sunday 31 May I finished reading the 14 December issue of the Church News.  I enjoyed the articles on the First Presidency's Christmas Devotional talks by Elder Richard J. Maynes, Sister Bonnie L. Oscarson, Elder D. Todd Christofferson, and President Henry B. Eyring;

the article "Joseph Smith Papers partners with FamilySearch.org,"

"Festival of Lights begins" about the Christmas decorations at the Washington D.C. Temple and visitors' center,

"'Music is my life'" about Kendra Lowe,

Kendra Lowe

"Church is recognized for service" on the USS Missouri at Pearl Harbor,

Church members pose on the battleship

and "Joseph Smith's birthplace Nativity and light display in Sharon, Vermont."

It was nice to read of a new stake in Kaysville. Utah.

Eileen enjoyed "Music & the Spoken Word" and that was followed by programming featuring Elder L. Tom Perry of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles who passed away yesterday at age 92.  We enjoyed attending our Ellijay Branch. Our odometer reached the palindrome of 103301.

Opening hymn was #18 "The Voice of God Again Is Heard" text and music by Evan Stephens (1854-1930).

Sacrament hymn was #193 "I Stand All Amazed" text and music by Charles H. Gabriel (1856-1932).

The first speaker was Sister Linda Combs.  She spoke of her baptism in 2000 and activity for two years.  Then she was less active for 11 years.  Now she is active again thanks to the sisters' and missionaries' persistence.  She spoke of Brother Stanley asking her to speak.  Her topic was morality.  "Woe unto them who call good evil and evil good." (Isaiah 5:20).  Lack of morals in her youthful family.  Moonshine, prison, no scriptures, education not a priority, raised by grandparents, hardly knew her parents and siblings until age 7.  She wanted something very different for her children.  Quoted Elder Tad R. Callister.  President Thomas S. Monson said, "Have courage and stand for righteousness."  God's morals are positive and uplifting. Procreative power within the bonds of marriage.  Fornication and adultery.  Same-gender tendencies.  Pornography.  Immodesty.  Apostle Paul, "Modest apparel."  Evil acts preceded by unrighteous thoughts.  God knows if you violate His moral laws.  Be part of a pure generation.  Bore her testimony.

Elder Tad R. Callister

President Thomas S. Monson

The second speaker was Brother Chuck Young.  He spoke on prayer.  Brings our will into harmony with God's.  Elder Neal A. Maxwell on prayer (look up the vault of heaven).  Never outgrow the need for faith and prayer.  President Heber J. Grant prayed that he would stay faithful.  Enduring to the end.  Constantly coming unto Christ.  Total commitment to the Savior and keeping our covenants.  Ancient altars for offering prayer.  Components of a virtual altar.  Scripture study, prayer, family history work, and service.  Be obedient to the answers to our prayers.  Heavenly Father does answer our prayers in His time.  The tree of life in Lehi's dream.  Come unto Christ and be perfected in Him.  Faith is a principle of action and power.  Be patient.  Cling to truth.  Politically correct may be spiritually lost.  Turn our hearts to God.  Give thanks, praise, and adoration.  President N. Eldon Tanner,   "Ingratitude is grievous."

President Heber J. Grant (1856-1945)

Elder Neal A. Maxwell (1926-2004)

President N. Eldon Tanner (1898-1982)

Intermediate hymn was #26 "Joseph Smith's First Prayer" text by George Manwaring (1854-1889) and music by Sylvanus Billings Pond (1792-1871) adapted by A. C. Smyth (1840-1909).

The concluding speaker was Brother Bo Kelly.  Accept requests to speak and to serve in callings.  Serving in the kingdom.  Preparing our spiritual ground.  Alma 34.  Now is the time to prepare.  "This Day" by President Henry B. Eyring.  "Danger in the word 'someday'."  Need to act now, especially in spiritual matters.  Feast upon the words of Christ.  They are the words of eternal life.  Study the scriptures.  Do more than just read.  He knows that Joseph Smith was a prophet.  He loves the Lord. 

President Henry B. Eyring

Closing hymn was #265 "Arise, O God, and Shine" text by William Hurn (1754-1829) and music by John Darwall (1731-1789).

Gospel Doctrine with Darlene Burgess was lesson #20, “Woe unto You, ... Hypocrites" using Matthew 21-23; John 12:1-8.

The purpose of the lesson is help class members recognize and avoid hypocrisy and thus strengthen their commitment to Jesus Christ.

1. Mary anoints Jesus’ feet.

Elder James E. Talmage explained why she did this: “To anoint the head of a guest with ordinary oil was to do him honor; to anoint his feet also was to show unusual and signal regard; but the anointing of head and feet with spikenard, and in such abundance, was an act of reverential homage rarely rendered even to kings. Mary’s act was an expression of adoration; it was the fragrant outwelling of a heart overflowing with worship and affection” (Jesus the Christ).

2. Jesus makes a triumphal entry into Jerusalem. 

Hosanna means "Save us."

3. Jesus gives the parable of the two sons and the parable of the householder.

4. The scribes and Pharisees try to trap Jesus. 

Elder Howard W. Hunter said: “He loves the Lord with all his heart who … is ready to give up, do, or suffer anything in order to please and glorify him. He loves God with all his soul … who is ready to give up life for his sake and to be deprived of the comforts of the world to glorify him. He loves God with all his strength who exerts all the powers of his body and soul in the service of God. He loves God with all his mind who applies himself only to know God and his will, who sees God in all things and acknowledges him in all ways” (in General Conference April 1965).

Elder Howard W. Hunter (1907-1995)

5. Jesus condemns the sin of hypocrisy.

Class members are encouraged to examine their lives for hypocrisy and seek to eliminate it. A sincere desire to serve and obey Jesus Christ, motivated by love for and faith in him, will bring us closer to him and increase our love and faith.

The priesthood lesson was watching President Dieter F. Uchtdorf's talk, "The Gift of Grace" from the Sunday morning session of general conference on DVD.  There was some discussion after the talk ended.  Eileen enjoyed the lesson taught by Donna Redford but she taught about the talk; they didn't watch the talk.

President Dieter F. Uchtdorf

I got with Jason Bivens about switching our next church cleaning with the week following at the end of July.

I got with our branch clerk, Richard Callahan, about Randall Helton and Glen Ogles not being in the branch directory online. 

After church we visited Peggy in the hospital and then to Blue Ridge to get a couple of things from Darlene Burgess for Colleen.  We filled up at Ingles for $2.359.

After getting home we loaded all of our clothes that hang up on the bar across the back seat of the car.  Sabrina called as she was home from work and we visited her, meeting her husband JR for the first time and their daughter Michelle.  We finally got Michelle's address!

After an enjoyable supper we had peaches and blueberries as we watched Rick Steves in Vienna.

A young man in our combined priesthood meeting mentioned a talk by Brad Wilcox entitled "His Grace is Sufficient."  I googled it immediately and saved it on my iPhone.  Brad Wilcox was serving as a member of the Sunday School General Board of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints as well as a BYU associate professor in the Department of Teacher Education in the David O. McKay School of Education when this devotional address was given on 12 July 2011.

I read the talk this evening and it was very good.  You may read it at the following link: https://speeches.byu.edu/talks/brad-wilcox_his-grace-is-sufficient/.

We continued packing and Eileen prepared visiting teacher messages for the nine sisters on our home teaching route.

I got on Mapquest and printed the routes and maps for each day's travel this week in hopes of not using the Map app too much on my iPhone, which uses a lot of data when traveling.

On Monday 1 June we were up and finished packing.  Our mileage was 103372 and we left home at 9:48am.  We went by the post office and the bank.  At the RaceTrac convenience store/gas station in Jasper Eileen had a sugar-free strawberry-banana swirl.  

We stopped at Kohl's in Canton where I replaced my old sandals with identical new ones.  We reached the  Alabama Welcome Center as our odometer reached 103509. At the Tuscaloosa Travel Center I filled up for $2.399. 

Alabama rest stop

"Alabama Welcomes You"

Tuscaloosa Travel Center 

We reached the Comfort Inn in Pearl, MS, at about 5:15 pm CDT. 

We enjoyed supper at the Cracker Barrel in Pearl, our 60th visit to a Cracker Barrel since I started keeping track in December 2011.  It is the 29th Cracker Barrel we've been to and the first in Mississippi.

Cracker Barrel in Pearl

Inside the Cracker Barrel

We fought with the TV and finally an "expert" came and squared things away, the problem being associated with HDMI1 and HDMI2 (I don't know where he fell in their chain of command but he sounded superior and had the gal from the front desk come to our room where he instructed her (once again, he said) on what to do).

We texted with our son-in-law David Opatosky about his mom Irene who passed away five days ago. Eileen called him about a dream his friend Barbara's cousin Gracie had yesterday.  She saw Barbara's husband Lloyd, who also passed away recently, walking with a woman whom she didn't know.  She approached Lloyd to talk with him.  When she told Barbara about the dream, Barbara asked her to describe the woman.  Barbara recognized the description and showed Gracie David's Facebook page which has our daughter Sue on it (she passed away last July).  Gracie said that's who it was!  She had never met Sue when Sue was alive.  Eileen told David that Sue was probably teaching Lloyd.  David said, "Yes, visiting teaching!"

I added David's mom Irene to Family Tree on familysearch.org.

I finished reading Elder Robert D. Hales' talk, "Preserving Agency, Protecting Religious Freedom" to Eileen from the Sunday afternoon session of general conference.

Elder Robert D. Hales

On Tuesday 2 June we were up early, having slept well at the Comfort Inn. We enjoyed breakfast

and left about 9 am and took a break in Vicksburg overlooking the Mississippi River.

Bridges across the Mississippi 

We filled up in Minden, LA, for $2.409.

Minden Travel Plaza

Heading west on I-20 in Texas, we ran into congestion due to an accident and headed north to Grand Saline and then west on US80 back to I-20.  We saw a lot of the flooding of the East Fork of the Trinity River from I-20.

We had supper at Chili's as we traveled to where Margaret Bury was supposed to be in Plano, only to learn that she had been discharged today :(

Eileen called Holly Hughes to see how Ralph was doing.

We checked into the Comfort Inn in Irving, Texas.  We had a nice room but it was only a room with two queen beds.  They said that was what came up on their computer about my reservation.  Then to make matters worse the Wifi was lousy!

Eileen talked to Peggy Espersen to see how she was doing in the hospital in Ellijay.

I called Choice Hotels customer service after I checked on my laptop to make sure that I had reserved a king bed.  She called the front desk here and we were able to have room 105, a king bed accessible room.

Comfort Inn in Irving

Our room in Comfort Inn

On Wednesday 3 June we were up early, having slept well again at the Comfort Inn. 

Breakfast at the Comfort Inn

We got four gallons for $2.699 near Cisco on I-20. We reached the next palindrome 104401 in Abilene.  We filled up for $2.599 later before seeing several for $2.499!

We reached Lubbock and the Clarion Hotel about 3 pm.  We were able to check in early.

Clarion Hotel in Lubbock

Our room in the Clarion

We had a light lunch at 3:30 at the Lite Bite Mediterranean Restaurant.  

Lite Bite Mediterranean Restaurant

Back at the hotel I finished reading "His Grace is Sufficient" to Eileen.  It is a devotional address by Brad Wilcox in July 2011 at BYU.  Super!  The link is https://speeches.byu.edu/talks/brad-wilcox_his-grace-is-sufficient/.

I called the McVey's and Judy Pearce who are our neighbors to let them know we'd be away for two months.  We had already let DJ Johnson know, the neighbor who can see our house most readily.

We both enjoyed a supper salad at the Clarion Hotel restaurant.

We had a very nice endowment session at 7 pm in the beautiful Lubbock Temple.  Prior to entering the temple we had a fellow take our picture with the newspaper.  We ran into Joe and Janelle Wheeler whom we knew from our mission.  I recognized him as soon as he entered the brothers' dressing room.  They are temple workers there.  He officiated at the endowment session.  There were nine sisters and 18 brethren!

Eileen and Ben in front of the Lubbock Temple

We filled up again in Lubbock for $2.539.

On Thursday 4 June we were up early and enjoyed the excellent breakfast at the Clarion Hotel restaurant.  We headed west about 9:23 am.

Breakfast at the Clarion

Our odometer read 105000.  We visited the Roswell Walmart at 11:30 am MDT.

Roswell Walmart

We saw this pistachio along the way.

We filled up for $2.579 at Sam's Club in Las Cruces at 3:30 pm MDT.  We reached the Comfort Inn in Deming, NM, about 4:50 pm.

Comfort Inn in Deming

We enjoyed an excellent salad bar at the Rancher's Grill.

Eileen inside the Rancher's Grill

Eileen inside the Rancher's Grill

Back at the hotel we put on our swimsuits and enjoyed the jacuzzi, meeting another couple who were retiring in Baja Mexico after selling their place in Key West.  We then cooled off in the pool.

On Friday 5 June we were up early and enjoyed breakfast at the hotel.  We headed west about 8:34 am.

Breakfast at the Comfort Inn in Deming

When we crossed into Arizona we entered MST, which is three hours earlier than Georgia's EDT.

We reached the Gila Valley Temple about 10:30 MST.  We enjoyed doing sealings first, sealing ten of our couples.  Then we went on the noon endowment session.  There were 11 sisters and 12 brethren.  We enjoyed one of the older films.  After leaving the temple we had a sister take our picture with the newspaper. 

The Gila Valley Temple

Eileen and Ben in front of The Gila Valley Temple

The Gila Valley Temple

We reached Colleen's about 4:30 pm, beating them home from the shopping they did.

Ashton gave us his baptismal invitation/announcement which was very nice!

After supper I entered the temple ordinances done today into my PAF database on my laptop.  

On Saturday 6 June we very unusually went our separate ways!  I drove to find William and Erin's new home that they are renting for now. Then I drove to Costco to fill up at $2.619.  Then on to Woodman's to see William, Erin, and Weston. I drove William to pick up the 17' U-Haul truck. Erin's brother Ryan and father Jeff were there.  We started loading the truck from stuff at Woodman's.  Erin's mom Debbi arrived with one of Ryan's daughters and lots of food from Taco Bell.  I explained why I declined having any.  

Ben and Weston

Weston and Erin

Then I returned to Colleen's. Meanwhile Eileen had gone with Colleen after the three boys got dropped off at a nearby Pokemon birthday party.   They visited Sean at the show where he was selling his homemade soaps.  He did well considering it was rainy early on. They also went to Costco for gas.  They stopped at a Deseret Book store where Eileen got three small Book of Mormons, two for the upcoming baptism and one for Tanner in February.  Then they returned to Sean and helped him pack up.

I saw the Gilbert Temple along the way.

When I got back to Colleen's Eileen and the boys were there.  Sean and Colleen were running errands, some of which involved the handling of their new bee hive and its honey.  I had removed the hive with its bees from my trunk before going to William's.

Colleen, Ashton, Spencer, Tanner, and Eileen

I finished reading "The Clocks" by Agatha Christie which I began on 26 May.  It is a mystery in which Hercule Poirot appears later in the story and, of course, solves the mystery.

Agatha Christie (1890-1976)

Eileen and I went shopping at Fry's, the supermarket out here that is associated with Kroger back home.  Back home I made salad for Colleen, Eileen, and myself.  I used the new mandoline that I bought at Fry's.

I finished reading "Macbeth" by William Shakespeare which I had begun on 17 May.

William Shakespeare (1564-1616)

I ran out to Walmart for a few things, especially lemons for Eileen's drink she enjoys with grape Fruit-2-O and Caffeine-free Diet Mountain Dew.

I worked on our photos taken as we headed west, organizing them in iPhoto on my external drive which plugs into my laptop.  About 20 or so of them were on my iPhone but not in the photos on my laptop, so I had to email them to myself and drop them into iPhoto.

Later I finished and published the March 22 entry for my blog.

I finished reading Elder Neil L. Andersen's talk, "Thy Kingdom Come" to Eileen from the Sunday afternoon session of general conference.

Elder Neil L. Andersen