Arches and Canyonlands in One Day

After our epic road trip to Vegas, Imperial Beach and Mexico, not to mention Yellowstone, Grand Teton, Bryce, the Grand Canyon and Zion, anything seemed possible.

It would have been insanity to leave Arches and Canyonlands on the table, right? Nobody dared say no to the idea of doing both parks in one day. In fact, Chloé, when I suggested leaving at 4 am, countered with,  "Why not 3 am?"

The student becomes the master! Challenge accepted!

By 7:30 in the morning, there was some fine dining happening in the parking lot of the Arches National Park Visitor Center.

An hour after that, we were at the famed Delicate Arch. It was a short, tough hike, and so worth it.

We stayed in the shadow of the arch for at least an hour. If you make the effort to get there, you'd better enjoy It! I felt a lot of satisfaction that we'd gotten there. It's on our license plate. How could we not show our friends?

Speaking of friends, I accosted more Chinese tourists this summer than any other American. After spending 4 years in violin making school working and living with Chinese guys, I can recognize Mandarin. And every time I do, I whip out a picture of Golda Gold and start telling people that she's moving to Hong Kong. I was eyeing this woman as a target as Araceli and I took selfies.

I like this picture that I took by accident.

Sofía posted a picture like this with the caption, "Getting up early is our thing." So true! Everything is 4 hours away from Kaysville! The downside of getting up early is that you're drooling with fatigue by noon.

Victor looks good carrying Ruby's purse, no?

By the time we made the exhausting hike down from Delicate Arch, nobody gave a damn about anything red, rocky or remarkable. So we went to Wendy's in Moab, where they have free WiFi.

Feeling somewhat rejuvenated, we took on Canyonlands. Our destination was Mesa Arch. Why? Because we stopped at the visitors center, and while everyone was using the bathroom, I cornered a ranger and said, "Look.  I have a car full of tired teenagers. What is the closest, most majestic thing we can see?"

This guy won my admiration when he answered, "You could probably trick them into hiking to Mesa Arch. It's only t miles away, it's a short hike and it's the biggest payoff in the park." Done. He was absolutely right, even if we didn't see any kangaroo rats.

Shoot, I didn't get the most important animal in this picture. The kangaroo rat? It's a rodent whose kidneys are so efficient, it pees crystals. The things you learn at national parks!

And then the drive home. Araceli's sign sums up why we do these things. The drive was nice. Everyone was sleepy but me, traffic was light, and the landscape was incredible. I never get tired of driving to see new vistas, or old ones, for that matter.

Summer Snapshots

Scott teaching Ptolemy about being a debonair man.

The Euros taking a test for Bonnie Flint at the school district.  It was a teacher training, but all the kids got a certification that they took this test, which they can use if they ever want to teach English in the U. S.

Xanthe on one of her many "dates," when she talks Mom or Dad in to taking her to get a treat after ballet or something.  Pretty darn cute girl!

Almost Through the MTC

Golda and her five beautiful friends leave on Monday!  The nine weeks have flown by, even as it seems like a lifetime ago that Golda was here.  Every week on P-Day, the missionaries go to the temple.  Sister Briggs' grandfather works there, and they see him each week.  In fact, he treats the six sisters to lunch every week in the temple cafeteria.  You know who took this sideways picture?  I did.

Yep.  One P day, Golda emailed me and said, "I always hope you'll be one of the women sitting in the temple when I walk in."  That hit me in the heart like a fireball.  I imagined Golda walking into the chapel and scanning the room for familiar faces, always seeing none.  I emailed her, "That's funny, because I was planning on going to the Provo Temple next Wednesday at 10:40."

I thought she would admonish me not to do that, but she didn't, which I took as tacit approval. So I had to go.  I had no way of communicating to Golda that I wouldn't go, since she can only email on Wednesdays.  I couldn't bear the thought of her scanning that chapel and not seeing me.  At the same time, I was apprehensive about going.  There is a lot going on in the summertime, and taking 5 hours out to drive to Provo to do a temple session is no small feat.  And I didn't want to make Golda feel guilty or uncomfortable.  The next Wednesday, I half expected an early email telling me not to visit the temple, but none came.

Coco and I drove to Provo. I was so glad my mom came with me. I was nervous! Upon arrival, I was shaking like Don Carlos!  I thought I'd forgotten my temple recommend, but it was in my bag.  I couldn't believe I might see Golda, and I was scared that we'd somehow miss her and disappoint her.  We got ready in just the right time to be in the chapel for the 10:40 session, which wasn't easy.  There are sessions every 20 minutes, so we had to time it just right.  Sitting in the chapel with my mom, I felt really peaceful.  It didn't matter if we didn't see the missionaries.  The Lord was watching over them, and it was OK either way.  At 10:35, the beautiful, radiant sisters walked in.  Sister Dopp whispered to Sister Briggs, "Yep. There's my mom."

They came over to us, and I watched Coco when she spotted Golda.  Her eyes got big, and a smile of wonder spread across her face.  The other sisters seemed genuinely thrilled to meet us.  I instantly loved each one of them.  We sat by Sister Dopp throughout the session.  I just kept thinking, "I'm sitting next to Golda, and I won't see her for 17 more months after this."  I just basked in her presence as I took in the sacred feeling of the temple. I noticed Golda's elegant, familiar hands and thought of all the hours of flute practice and ballet and studying, and how much good she's about to do with those hands on the other side of the world. We sat in the Celestial Room and visited after, and the missionaries invited us to have lunch with them and Grandpa in the cafeteria.

Having that time to chat and catch up was incredible.  That it didn't seem weird was the weirdest part.  It was a gift. A pure and simple gift that Heavenly Father gave me, Coco and Golda.  I knew Golda wouldn't escape from this experience without some guilt, which she expressed over lunch.  A mom visiting the temple at the same time as her missionary daughter isn't expressly prohibited, but I guess you could say it is taboo.  Sister Briggs, Coco and I all assuaged Golda's guilt by saying, "Look!  You got your mom and grandma to the temple!  This is what the purpose of missionary work is, and you're doing it for the people you love the most.  You're a great missionary!"

I don't regret the visit for a second.  It was a sacred experience that I'll always treasure.  I hold close to my heart the memories of seeing Golda in the field, as a missionary.  My mom said to her, "Golda, you seem like you're on another plane."

She answered, "I am."  She was on another plane. She glowed from the inside out with a remarkable spirit, and I got to see it in action.

All that said, a visit like that wouldn't be a good idea for everyone.  Scott chose not to go because he could not have handled the good-bye.  One good-bye is hard enough!  I wouldn't necessarily recommend going through two, unless you felt inspired to.  And if it had been earlier in her MTC stay, rather than the week before she was leaving for Hong Kong, I think it could have been disruptive for her. The missionaries are so in the zone at the MTC, distractions can really take them out of that zone. As it was for Golda, it was a sweet good-bye and a touchstone of love before she goes out.  Like Golda emailed me later, "I love you more than I miss you, so I wasn't sad to say good-bye."  She wrote to Coco and said that that day was "one of the most spiritual experiences I've ever had, having three generations of women together in the temple."

I'm proud of Golda for what she's doing, and in awe of her extremely strong and courageous spirit.  I don't for a minute wish that she were anywhere else, and neither does she.  But just for a single moment in time, she needed her mom and her Coco to be two of the faces in a crowd of strangers.  And I daresay, we needed it too.

July 24 Festivities

The day after we got back from the Grand Canyon, I took Araceli and her friends on an overnighter to Park City.  It was Georgia's birthday, so the girls arranged to kidnap her without talking, and wait to reveal who they were.  Awkward!  But they loved it.

We drove up to see Sarah and Roland's brand new cabin.  Their view is extraordinary, and the cabin is beautiful.

I forgot the key to the Ranch, so Scott drove it up.  Is he the best, or what?  I wish he could have stayed longer, the pool was so relaxing.  Freestone was there too, because I wanted him to be my friend while the girls were doing their thing.  He's a fun kid.

Celi, Sofia, Riley and Georgia

The next day, we came home in the morning and went to the pool.  It was the 24th of July, so everyone in Utah had a holiday.  Tziporah really wanted to get a treat at the pool.  I took a lot of pictures of her begging.  She's a champion beggar, and I don't know why she's so persistent.  It rarely works, because I can't just give in to the whining, can I?  She's a nuisance.  But a really cute one.

Grandma and Grandpa had the family over for a big barbeque for the 24th.  I so appreciated having someone else prepare a meal.  I'm not the best meal planner, and having over a dozen people around for three meals a day all summer was hard, just from a logistical standpoint.  I was always buying food.  I don't mind doing it; I'm just not great at it.  Marlene is, though!

Ah, these guys.

Marlene's extra grandkids!

We tried to squeeze in lots of pool days, but it's never enough.  I love when the Scheullers are at the pool.

The epitome of summer.  If only more moments were this relaxed and carefree.  We'll take what we can get, huh?