Mission Papers

Bishop Wuthrich "unlocked" Ruby's mission papers! She got right to work on them, despite the fact that she is about to not graduate from high school unless she finishes her computer tech packets. The mission papers are far more fun! Ruby will leave for Ghana August 8 to teach music, so much of the mission stuff will have to be completed before she leaves, along with immunizations, a visa, packing, earning money and whatnot. It's an exciting time! She came to the music store and booked her flight to Ghana the other day. What a rush! Here she goes, and I'm so excited!

Color March

When I heard that the Davis High band was going to march in the Macy's parade next fall, my first thought was, "This is going to cost us money." We don't even have a kid in the band, but when band parents unite to fundraise, believe me. They will get you! Not that I'm upset about it. I loooove te Davis High band, and I'm happy to support them. For the Moonlight Serenade, I had the chance to donate a basket of music goodies from my store for the silent auction. Scott donated a trust worth $800. It's so fun to be part of the energy.

That's why our family participated in the Color March. It was early on a. Saturday morning, and none of the kids knew what to expect. They weren't exactly thrilled, but that all changed as soon as they started getting hit with colored chalk along the route. At the end, the explosion of colors had us all laughing and squealing. I wish the whole town had been there. There's nothing quite like feeling part of a community, and I'm thankful the Davis High band encompasses all of us in theirs.

RIP, School Year

School started 12 minutes ago and Ptolemy is asleep in a cardboard box. School year's time of death: 9:02 AM, May 23, 2017.

I wish I had it in me to fight this, but nope. I'm not entirely sure I even have enough energy to be happy about the end of the school year. I'm so tired! I need a big cardboard box, three days of sleep and some kind of vitamin cocktail IV.

That's not going to happen, is it. Darn. I was a big academic failure this school year. I pushed Araceli because her grades count, but the others just sailed though the best they could. I kept meaning to do better, but the school year flew by so quickly, and before I knew it, there was a stack a mile high of homework packets in Ptolemy's backpack. It seems like every week, we made a valiant effort on Monday if we were ambitious, or Thursday night if we weren't, but somehow, there was always an extra packet to do. How were we always a week (or 4) behind?

The best I can say about this year is that, being Ruby's senior year, I wanted to take time to hang out with her, and make time for the other kids to be with her. We did. They did. It still went by too quickly, but I know we spent nights up too late in the kitchen, cracking up, dancing, talking, and just not worrying about anything. So there's that. And in the end, that's really all there is.

Spring Show

 Just look at this sweet little dance and what she turned into. Ruby has been devoted to dance since she was three. At that time, she was too young for Clytie's, so I enrolled her in a to class where they had a snack in between classes. She loved it. Fast-forward 14 years, and she's in the Company class at Clytie's and president of Davis High Dance Company. 14 years of dedication right there.

 Coco and Bill left for Paris right before Dance Company spring show. Darn! They had a great trip.

 Dress rehearsal, I took pics. Ruby is so graceful, and her movements are so unique to Ruby. I love watching her dance.

 President Ruby after the show.

 Story of my life: going to Pat's for new ballet shoes. They keep customers on file, but we have so many kids, I have to make sure I'm getting the right shoes. I got home last week with a new pair of boys' shoes a half size bigger than last time, but the girl had looked up Freestone instead of Ptolemy. Oops! Freestone doesn't need bigger shoes.

 Ruby wrote her bio back when she was planning on nannying for Heidi and Pierre. Plans have changed, but I still think it's a good bio!

 We have the best fans. I guess this was Ruby's biggest night in terms of her lifetime achievement so far, at least in dance. It felt monumental, and I'm glad we could share it with our people.

 Kim and the presidency

 Dance Company 2017

The seniors. I try not to think about how many hours these precious gilrs have spent together. Most of them this age have been in ballet together from the beginning. I found a roll from one of my ballet classes with three of their names side by side: Ruby Dopp, Kara Frasier and Abbi Wagstaff. They grew up together in the carpools and in the dressing rooms and on the Marley floors. It's sad it all has to come to an end, but if it didn't, there would be no new adventures. I love Ruby's dance friends. I feel like they're mine in some way, and I'm grateful to them for being the girls who are always there for Ruby. And guys. Conner Erickson came back for this performance and danced a piece he's done at Weber. He has grown so much as a dancer, but more importantly, he has always been a friend that Golda and Ruby could rely on. Dancing together just opens you up for a deeper kind of relationship. I still remember the tiniest details about my ballet friends growing up, and I love them to this day. I'm sure Ruby will have the same feelings about her Dance Company girls (and Conner and Gabe).

I commend Ruby for her job as president. She took on the role with her whole self and devoted her senior year to it. I'm proud of her.

Sister Dopp's Call Home

Talking to Golda on Christmas and Mothers Day is thrilling, but I sure am glad it doesn't happen more often. It makes me miss her more to see her face and hear her voice!

The call had some special highlights. Golda bore her testimony in Cantonese, which is about the most impressive thing ever. I still can't believe she can speak that language! She also memorized a passage of scripture in Cantonese that Scott challenged her to memorize and said it to us in Cantonese. Golda had mentioned that she hoped Evyn could be there, so he came over. Coco and Bill and Josh and Emily and their kids came over last-minute to see Sister Dopp's blurry face on our computer. We had some technical glitches, and then it was all good. The picture could have been better, but at least the sound was good.

My favorite moment was during Freestone's turn when he and Golda were talking about ballet. She asked him to do a pirouette, and he did. It was on carpet, not great, but he's made such progress that Golda could clearly see that he's a dancer now. Her mouth dropped open and she just stared. Then she covered her mouth with her hand and started crying. As she wiped away tears, she kept saying, "Wow. Wow." She said, "You're probably better than I am, Freestone." He's not great at humility, so he agreed and said, "Yeah. Probably." In truth, it would be hard to compare, and dumb. They're both beautiful dancers. I just loved that Golda shared that moment with Freestone where she totally "got" his thing. She recognized his efforts in the sweetest way. I know Freestone was touched. It comforted me that Golda was so happy for her brother as he lives her fondest dream, dancing at Ballet West.

Golda wanted to have the whole family say a prayer together, so we all knelt around the computer. All the Kings had left, so it was just us and Evyn. Golda gave the prayer in Cantonese. I wanted to record it, but I didn't want to ruin the spirit of the moment. I wish I had it on video. Golda' prayer was so heartfelt. Of course, we couldn't understand anything she said...until she started saying our names. I though she was saying mom and dad in Chinese, then she continued, "Ruby...Araceli...Freestone...Xanthe...Ptolemy...Tizzy...Frank...and Evyn." I could just feel her love for each one of us, and I felt how much she has learned to love each individual. Golda has developed a truly remarkable humility and character. 

That phone call was maybe the last one. She might be home before Christmas this December. If not, it will be soon after. I'm not in a hurry. Golda is right where she is meant to be. I do have a big hole in my heart when I think of how much I miss her, but as golda always says, "I love you more than I miss you."