I Say It Best When I Say Nothing At All.....

I work from home and have an office with a view towards the valleys and mountains looking to the west of my home.  Several weeks ago, I was working and noticed one of my horses walking across the front lawn.  I stood up, walked over to the window and watched the remaining four walk through the opening in the fence and they began to graze just outside of my window.  Oh did they look happy! I then realized my fences weren't as strong as they appeared.  The fence is made up of several 8 foot posts buried three feet deep around the property and each of the posts has hog panels fastened to them, separated by approximately 10 feet.  I'm learning these posts are not treated and are rotting in the ground.  Each time a horse decides to rub his rump on the fence post, the fences are falling over. I was the only one home and realized I was in a pickle.  I would have to round up each of these horses on my own.  I quickly threw on my boots and went out the bac...

Jenn and I live on the west side of Smithfield, Utah.  We're far enough removed from the busy, hustle-and-bustle of city life, but still have modern conveniences of shopping, dining and entertainment nearby.  We are surrounded by alfalfa fields, cattle, sandhill cranes, blue herons, owls, fox, coyote and any other variety of critters that provide the lifestyle I have always dreamed of. I have always loved my neighbors in every place I have lived and that still holds true today.  I need to make that statement, because this week's event may leave one to believe I may not like having neighbors at all.  As a matter of fact, our neighbors invited us over for dinner on Friday and we spent several hours with them and had a very enjoyable time. My work offers me enough perks I am provided with DoorDash gift cards each week.  I work from home and sometimes the convenience of ordering a meal, delivered to the door, is a benefit. Earlier this week, I placed an order for lu...

A few weeks ago, we were able to attend an Air Supply Concert.  Did you know they have been touring every year since 1975?  Russell Hitchcock and Graham Russell are the duo to the songs we all know and love.  Most of us have memories of high school and college of playing their songs over and over and cherishing first love.  We even played their songs again through arduous breakups.  I can still sing every word. Graham Russell lives near my hometown of Kamas, Utah.  He is 71 years of age.  Russell Hitchcock lives in Georgia. He is 72. They both struggle to sing the pitches they once did.  They still attempt to stroke the guitar with reckless abandon and dance about the stage and throw hand motions to the crowd with their microphone to engage the crowd.  I couldn't help but think someone needed to be nearby to catch them if they fell.  Have you seen men who are my parents age jump up and down on a stage?  You cannot look away!  I...

Meet Clarence!  He has been such a joy to have.  We picked up a few other mates for him, but they don't have the same affection or fondness of people as Clarence does. Each morning and afternoon as I feed the geese, ducks, horses, chickens and goats Clarence will call to me and demand my attention.  He'll approach me and begin telling me about his day.  I share my stories with him and he follows me around. Geese have been known to imprint on people.  He has an attachment to me and Jenn and occasionally, some of the kids.  Other times, he decides the kids may be a threat. The other three geese have only tolerated me.  You have to keep a close eye on them.  If you look away, even for a second, they will approach with heads' down and hiss at you to let you know you're intruding on their space.  They are particularly vocal, especially at feeding time.  The belches, screeches and honks are an indication I took longer than they would prefer to...

I just returned home from Las Vegas late last night after spending the weekend there for a conference. It has only been two weeks since the horrific events at the Las Vegas Village. My flight to Vegas was very different than the returning flight to Salt Lake City. The atmosphere was a bit rowdy and lighthearted. Flight attendants were joking with passengers about staying "hydrated" in the desert and would inspire the passengers to cheer about the party atmosphere. The lady sitting next to me purchased shots of tequila for her and any of the people around her. She continued to offer the drink to me, but seemed mildly frustrated I wouldn't join in with the fun. She and others were amused that she was entertaining the guy next to her who was "no fun." I just pushed my seat back, pulled my hat over my eyes and feigned sleep. I was reflective about the events that had recently transpired and how many families have been affected by the tragedy. Perhaps the ra...

The other night, my wife and I were walking out of Walmart and saw a father with two young children.  Just before he left the store and went out into the cold night, the children both looked up at their dad and raised their arms above their heads, looking for comfort from the cold and icy conditions.  He bent down and scooped them up and carried them in each of his arms. Watching the man carrying two children, Coralee looked at me and said, "I remember those days." We both reflected on how quickly time has passed since our children were little.  Days seem to pass more quickly now and it is so easy to get caught up in the crazy and hectic routine that is our lives presently.  It isn't often there is time to slow down and reflect on those days of early parenting.  I speak as though the best memories have passed, but memories continue to be made everyday. Watching this father caused me to reflect on tender moments.  Our youngest is nearly eight years old. ...

1. I love horses, but I'm terrified to ride them. Even with the countless times I have ridden, I always petition God for a safe experience before climbing into the saddle. 2. I know I'm supposed to be thankful for all things, but I rarely thank God for adversity. I don't like to step   out of my "comfort zone", and difficult challenges are more than I want to face. I realize challenges are for experience and becoming a stronger/better individual, but I'll pass, thank you. 3. I'm a little obsessive/compulsive. You will sometimes catch me pulling whiskers off of my face or hair from my ears. Things that are out of place create chaos for me. Co-workers used to go into my office and move things around just to see if I would notice and put them back into place. They would turn golf balls in display cases slightly askew, pictures slightly out of alignment or move the pen on my desk. I could walk into the room and immediately notice everything that was out of...

You would think after the abuse I've taken since owning horses for the last few years, I may consider getting out of it and dedicating my time to other things.  Most human relationships wouldn't survive similar circumstances an individual does with his/her horse. Last year, I was riding Ebony and decided to open a gate and pass through without dismounting.  As I reached down to open the latch on the gate and pull the gate open, Ebony decided to go through the gate before it was open completely.  She managed to compress herself between the gate and the fence.  Of course her instinct is to go forward.  Another problem was that my leg was hung up on the latch of the gate.  As she continued to press forward, the latch continued to press into the calf of my leg.  Through the pain, I managed to get her to back up, but when I dismounted, I realized at that moment there was no feeling in my leg.  When I stepped off the stirrup, it felt like my leg was m...

Prologue             Have miracles ceased?  I hope you don’t believe that.  Sometimes, people recognize strange events and chalk it up to a coincidence or even luck.  Some recognize it for what it is; truly a miracle.  Perhaps you remember a recent event.  It made the newspapers.  A 19-year old college student was traveling from her parents’ home to attend church in another town.  The car she was driving collided with another vehicle on the highway.  The accident crushed the teenager’s car into a ball of sheet metal that lay on the driver’s side.  Emergency responders from several jurisdictions arrived on the scene.  They blocked off two miles of road near the accident and began working on removing the twisted metal from around the girl.  They worked for nearly 45 minutes with various pieces of equipment trying to remove the debris and extricate the girl.  Th...

A couple of weeks ago my son, a few friends and I went on a Saturday ride to Old Ephraim's Grave.  Who is Old Ephraim, you ask?  He was the last and biggest grizzly bear in Utah.  He roamed the Cache National Forest from circa 1911 until his death on August 22, 1923.  In researching the story about Old Ephraim, I stumbled upon this told in four parts by Blair Henderson on YouTube contributed by Oak Norton.  Join the camp fire with his family and listen to him tell the story.   Old Ephraim Story Part 1 Old Ephraim Story Part 2 Old Ephraim Story Part 3 Old Ephraim Story Part 4 There are several jeep trails that will get to the grave site.  We drove up Logan Canyon and came in from Temple Fork.  The road is narrow and difficult to navigate unless you are on an ATV, jeep or four wheel drive.  In fact, the road is narrow enough that as I was going up the mountain pulling a horse trailer, some girls were coming down in a sedan. ...

We got the kids together and talked about places they wanted to go over summer break. Nathan said he wanted to go to "the place where the President's heads are shaved out of the mountain." Bryse said he wanted to go to Lake Titicaca. After further discussion, I advised the kids we could go to "Lake Kid Did a Caca", otherwise known as the "community swimming pool". I still remember our last visit to the swimming pool, just like it was yesterday: I was floating on my back in the lazy river, enjoying the afternoon when a lifeguard from the spotting tower started blowing his whistle. Loud sirens then started blaring and helicopters flew overhead. A lady next to me started screaming, "Shark! Shark!" Immediately following this, people started to panic and began exiting the water as fast as they could. It was not a pretty scene. Children started crying for their mothers. Mothers started crying for their husbands. Husbands also...

I was entertained by two of my young nephews on Sunday.  One showed the other a toy and said proudly, "this is my car and I'm big enough to take care of it."  The other, not to be bested by this revelation said, "ya, so, I'm five." This caused me to reflect on other young challenges. "My dad is bigger than your dad."  By the way, this is an argument my child has never won.  In unique fashion my child may counter with, "oh yeah, well, my dad has less hair than your dad."  You can hear the boldness of the statement fades in its delivery as my child realizes this may not be something to be proud of. So much in life seems to be a competition.  We have desires to be the first to declare tidings.  News agencies will claim, "you heard it hear first." Athletic teams reunite every year to compete and be declared that season's champion. Chickens have pecking orders, dogs have an Alpha. Horses will have a Boss and this domin...

Do you remember the old Perry Como song, Catch A Falling Star? One of my horses is named Kachina.  I sing to her: Kachina Falling Star and Put It In Your Pocket,  Never Let It Fade Away! Kachina Falling Star and Put It In Your Pocket,  Save It For A Rainy Day! I'm here with Kachina and singing to her.  She's not interested..... Sometimes I'm in the mood for West Side Story.  You know this one too, right? Kachina The Most Beautiful Sound I Ever Heard: Kachina, Kachina, Kachina, Kachina.... All The Beautiful Sounds Of The World In A Single Word... Kachina, Kachina, Kachina, Kachina, Kachina.... I've Just Met A Girl Named Kachina And Suddenly That Name Will Never Be The Same To Me Kachina! I've Just Kissed A Girl Named Kachina..... (it is when I get to this point she has had enough and walks away)

We were driving home late the other night and Nathan said, "I like to think of the tail lights in front of us as devils." "And I like to think of the headlights behind us as Angels." "We are leading the battle of Angels and we're chasing all of the devils." I loved the creativity and imagination.  I had to share.  Driving at night will never be the same.  I have a feeling those words will stick with me. I thought a bit beyond his description and thought of those who pass me on the freeway.  They were once the Angels following me into battle.  Are they now Angels in the lead or the demons we chase?  

Ever since I was a child, I am absolutely terrified of escalators.  Yes, escalators...those moving staircases.  I feel much safer in an elevator and I guess I would be more comfortable with the idea of an elevator cable snapping and then falling to my death inside a box than be sucked into the rolling mechanism of the moving staircase. Did you know 31 people died after a fire that began in the undercarriage of an MH-type Otis escalator in 1987?  In 2003, 30 people were injured on an escalator at Coors Field in Denver when it malfunctioned.  One of those individuals had his leg amputated.  In 2005, a dude in Massachusetts was strangled to death when his sweatshirt was caught in an escalator. Yup, escalators are scary.  The steps look like razor sharp teeth.  The handrails are large rubber bands that could snap at any moment.  It is easy to get a finger or thumb stuck in those large rubber bands and what happens when you get to the top an...

Yesterday was our Stake Lagoon Day, or in other words, a date set aside for our local church group to take a day and spend at an amusement park, called Lagoon, which is located in Farmington, Utah.  There have been times we've had season passes, but in other years we usually make an annual trip with our church or with another function that may provide discounts from the current admission price of $45.95.  With six children, this will add up quickly.  Let's see, take $45.95 and multiply that by eight people.....yes, that's right it is about double the cost of what we spend to fill up our Ford Excursion. I find myself justifying the cost of almost anything with how much we spend to fill up the gas tank on our Excursion.  If we buy country/western attire for our kids, that's about the cost of an Excursion fill up.  If we go out to dinner as a family.  Yup, that's about the cost of an Excursion fill up..... you get the idea.  It makes it less painful ...