cc: file, Grandma Hafen via Tony Hafen, Pauline Nelson via mail, Sara and Des Penny, Claude and Katherine Warner, Lloyd and Luana Warner. Diane Cluff, Andrea Nielson, and Heather and Nate Pace
It's already 10:15 PM on Tuesday night and I am just starting this week's Thoughtlet. Oh well! And to top it off, since it is a new month and I am now using the calendaring system in MicroSoft Outlook I don't have my `memory' about what happened prior to last Thursday. So this week will not include the normal diary statements of how busy I have been. As we at lunch at Andrea's on Sunday, Uncle Des turned to me and said `We are into simplifying our lives. We can watch you from a distance, and it just makes us glad we are keeping things simple.' I understand.
I decided on my topic because I had the wonderful opportunity to give two priesthood blessings this week. One day at work I got a call from my friend Joe Roberts who had been to the Doctor and has some health problems. He was quite upset and wanted me to pray for him. I told him I would bring an elder with me and go by his house after work. Brother Bill Hagen, who is also in the High Priest Group Leadership, went with me. Joe was glad to see us. After talking a little about how things are going, I read from James 5:14-15, where it says:
We asked Joe if he would like a blessing, and he said he would. Then Bill annointed Joe with oil consecrated and set apart for healing the sick in the household of faith, and I sealed the annointing and gave Joe a blessing. It felt good. It reminded me of when we used to live in the Dallas 1st Ward and we would get calls to go to Parkland Hospital (where President Kenedy was taken after he was shot) and to other major hospitals in downtown Dallas to visit and to administer to the sick with a priesthood blessing. I particularly rememeber a young man (older than me at the time) who had been flying a plane crop dusting and had crashed the plane. He had a punctured lung, several broken bones, and was in a lot of pain. I remember feeling the spirit and how suprised my companion for the evening, Ken Gaisford, was with the blessing given. So was I.
Saturday evening, after Priesthood, I gave Paul a different type of priesthood blessing, a father's blessing. Audrey, Melanie, and Sara were getting ready for a date, and everyone else had gone to rent a movie: The Saint. Paul and I were still in our suits and had stopped by Andrea's house to find out what the plans for the evening were. Andrea was our witness, and after the blessing Paul bear hugged me, turned to Andrea and said, `That's my Dad!' It was really a very special experience for me. I hope there will be times when each of you will prayerfully request a father's blessing from me. I have mentioned before the fact ever since my mission I wanted my Dad to give me a Father's blessing. He didn't know how to. I asked him a couple of times after he got cancer, and he was not comfortable doing it and so I didn't press it. I remember talking to my cousin Darrell about this after Dad's death and after the divorce. I remember the blessing he gave me, and the blessing I was privileged to give him, back in March of 1997.
I did a search in the Thoughtlets and found I wrote about priesthood blessings in Thoughtlet's 9709.html, 9716.html, 9733.html, 9751.html, 9840.html, 9907.html, and 9909.html. Since we had a chance to visit Mom and take her to lunch on Sunday, I also recall the priesthood blessing Harold Hiskey and I gave to her 16 years ago April 1st. It is a definite priviledge to carry around a little vial with consecrated oil and to hold the priesthood and to have the opportunity to give priesthood blessings every once in a while. They are an important part of my life.
Ben and Sarah, we had a wonderful weekend in Utah. Wish you both could have been with us. We flew into Vegas Thursday night. Rob, Sara, Melanie and I went to Star Trek: The Experience at the Hilton. I'd been before and enjoyed it again. We got to Cedar about 1:30 in the morning. Andrea and I went for a run/walk from 7-8:00 Friday morning, then had engagement pictures taken from 9-11. After lunch Brian, Sara, and Des, joined us for an afternoon in Zion. I did dutch oven chicken and potatoes and carrots. It was OK. The tennis racket baseball was probably a lot of fun. Saturday we went watched the first hour of General Conference, went to St. George and took Mom to lunch, visited Grandma and had homemade apple and cherry pies, and got back to Cedar just in time for Paul and I to go to General Conference priesthood meeting.
There were many good conference talks, and I would like to quote from Elder Faust's Priesthood meeting talk because it is a different type of priesthood blessing. He said: `A key element of freedom is trust.' He quoted President McKay as saying `It is better to be trusted than to be loved.' He continued teaching us `Like Joseph we can be trusted, and it must be earned.' He also taught `when obedience becomes our goal, it is no longer a stumbling block. Obedience to spiritual promptings brings joy. Freedom and liberty are precious gifts that come to us when we obey.'
After Paul's priesthood blessing we went over to Sara and Des' and watched The Saint. Sunday morning we watched conference at Andrea's and had a big family dinner with Des and Sara, Andrea's Mom, her youngest brother Steve and his family, and a friend of Audrey's. It was a little rushed to get us to the airport in Vegas on time. I miscalculated the time it took to drive to Vegas and we got there an hour early. Then the plane was late out of Phoenix and Rob, Sara, and I did not get home until 1:30 this morning. As I write my thoughts tonight, I think of the words of those of you who said they feel like they are on the Truman Show or Ed TV, and by implication do not want to be mentioned in these Thoughtlets. I think of those who are angry at me and put me down with misrepresentations or make sure to let me know there are things which are `none of my business.' Then I think of those who `enjoy the Thoughtlets,' who `don't see any bragging in what I write,' and who share a sincere interest in what we each are doing. I wish I knew how to be a better father to each of you. Hopefully someday you will each accept me with my limitations and realize I do the best I can with the tools I have been given. I especially hope you will each remember to call on me if you ever need or want a priesthood blessing. Have a great week."