mother Ilean: Family Reunions and August Slowdown

So we have come off 2 family reunions over the past 2 weekends. The 1st was the Arden and Carol Sampson Family Reunion here in Salt Lake and the 2nd was the Alonzo and Mary Alice Sampson Family Reunion in Delta, Utah. Full and busy weekends and much preparation for the 1st for me. Every 2 years we get together and do this and this one saw 156 people in attendance. We traveled up Big Cottonwood canyon to the Spruce's campground for Friday and spent time in the coolness there, doing hikes, crafts, games, visiting, eating and a campfire program on our ancestors-- Lucinda Bybee, dau, Sally Ann Layne, dau, Mary Ellen Owens and son, Hyrum Bradshaw. We had 4 of us acting as these individuals and telling our story. Surprisingly we kept everyone's attention it seemed. Saturday we had a hike to Ensign Peak for those few who wanted to do that and then to the Salt Lake Cemetery where we placed the headstone of Lucinda Bybee Layne who died in 1895 and was buried there (no headstone though). Casey had done the work of carving this--so that made it just that more special. We had a rededication of her grave with the now headstone, and felt a specialness for the whole thing. I couldn't help but think how tickled she was to see all these young great grandkids helping to mortar the headstone onto the base--kind of like the cornerstone ceremony at the new temples.

Casey and Hallee with more cousins waiting to help put in the mortar for the headstone

Lucinda Bybee Layne--ggggrandmother

Then we had a graveyard treasure hunt--find the graves of notable people and met for lunch at a nearby park. In the afternoon we met down in South Jordan at our church grounds for water activities and games, closing with a program and dinner. All of us siblings did 3 songs, basically bearing our testimonies of families and the gospel, and Lawrence Welk's closing song with us dressed up in costume to say goodby--then we had dinner and cleanup. It was a sweet spirit throughout and cousins re-bonded and family ties strengthen I think--the reason we do these reunions. Its getting to be a bigger and bigger chore to put on, and we will have to spread the workload out, but very much worth it in the end.

The Spruces campground with all of us at the Friday evening program

Saturday afternoon water fun

I even came down the slide once--but of course, not Doug

Roy, Mike, Derek, and Kay--just sitting in the shade

The Delta reunion was more of a vacation, since I didn't have as much to do. Tonna is the big pusher on this reunion. She is driven to keep that going and gaining strength and she is succeeding. Doug and I went down Thursday and met Mark to go out to the fossil dig site. Instead my knee was hurting pretty bad so I opted to drive myself out to McCornick and let Doug go with Mark. I sat myself up with my oil paints and painted that scene out there.

the picture distorts how far away Sugar Loaf Mountain was--it really does look more like the oil painting in real life.

Just to make this clear, this has taken longer than the 2-3 hrs out at the site. Thank goodness for an art teacher to point out problems and help you to make it look better. Overall, I am pretty pleased with how it turned out, and now hope the canvas prints will turn out as well.

McCornick was the only home my Dad really knew as a young boy living there from 1919 (5 yrs old) to 1930 (15 yrs old)--10 years. It was where the family was intact, but was also from where the oldest boys left to go find work and help support the family after my Grandpa suffered a major heart attack and nearly died. Anyway it was near and dear to Dad's heart and the spot has a very special spirit about it that I always feel, so I chose to go capture some of that in an oil painting. I ended up offering prints of the painting at the family auction on Saturday (where the family get the funds to put on the reunion). I had 9 takers at $20/each. Made me feel good. I still need to finish up the painting, scan it and get the digital file to a print place so they can print it onto canvas, and then mail these prints out. Renae Britton is going to help me do that thank goodness. It has been a struggle to paint it, but with my art teacher, Lisa Barton's help, its starting to look pretty good. The reunion was successful too. These "not seen very often cousins" show up wanting to be by family and they do and it touches their hearts--the spirit of Elijah really--testifying of the eternal nature of families and their importance. Its really kind of miraculous witnessing the little subtle ways hearts and spirits are touched. I got to offer a prayer for the group,--rather I was the spokes person for the group--a prayer was suggested to help cousin, Ivone find her car keys. I was guided of what to express, and I was touched at the thoughts that came to me and what to say. I said how thankful we were to be the descendants of our grandparents, thankful for their example, thankful that we all here could derive strength from each other and our grandparents to face the challenges of life together, and please bless us with strength. Anyway there was a sweet spirit there, as we all said goodby and parted and yes--Ivone found her keys and also her husband Dwight, in St George was able to find the spare set that had been lost for years!! We were a little teary eyed over that knowing that the prayers had been answered literally. So yes, family reunions create some remarkable experiences. I have been so blessed to have such wonderful earthly relatives and the deceased ones are I am sure wonderful too, if their stories are indicative of the type of people they are. I always had this affinity for genealogy and wanting to know about my dead ancestors--they seem more real to me day by day (probably because I'm getting closer to meeting them in person). I have been doing the descendancy research for Lee Allen Bybee (Lucinda's father) and all his descendants. Have uncovered many, many of them and we have been doing that temple work over the last year. It has brought a lot of sweet experiences in the temple. I probably ought to share this one.

We had compiled quite a lot of cards on all these individuals, and were needing to do the sealings this past June, so I set up a sealing session in the Oquirrh Mtn temple with Kay, Derek, Beth, Roy, Sean, Kim and Doug and I. Bruce also came at the last minute. It was a 8:00 pm session--a quiet time in the temple on a Saturday night--as the session started there was just a wonderful spirit, and I soon sensed that Mom and Dad were there. I thought, oh how nice, they have come to check on their grandchildren--but then that thought was quickly replaced with, no, they have been or are the missionaries for these individuals (these are on Mom's side of the genealogy chart). That was interesting to think about. They stayed for quite a while and eventually left, but oh how wonderful to have those feelings and it stuck with me as being singular for quite a while after, even weeks after when I would think about it, it would amaze me. I thought, what an interesting place the temple is, with the veil so thin--its like a portal into that other world--and how close you can get to that other world by being there in the temple and in the right frame of mind. Kind of like, whenever I get too homesick for Mom and Dad, maybe I can go there and I can feel them, and how any of my family can have this same experience if they want to. I have thought I will help prepare the names and pass them on to my siblings, so they can take their family members and do a sealing session together, and have their own marvelous experiences. Its available to all.

We finally had a week with little going on and Doug and I snuck off to Yellow Fork for a horse ride. That is always the best. It had been raining the week before and was even threatening rain when we got there, but we went ahead and enjoyed one of the most refreshing rides. Everything was green,, with the air fresh and cool, with some sun, but then some cloud cover. Anyway, to express the peacefulness and enjoyment of being there is hard. When you get to the top of the ridge and look out, you get some awesome views of the backside of Kennecott and the valley, and the Oquirrhs--beautiful and wonderful.

We have to throw in work/service projects to feel like we accomplish things as well. So Saturday was a good day to get new sand in the Hoffman's and our sandbox. It required that we get 2 yards of sand and move it. Starts with some grumbling, but quickly turns into fun association as the cousins get to work along side each other.

Emory helped to babysit Finn and Meg

Jack, Hank, and Lucas spreading the sand

Noble and Grandpa and Roy ran the tractor--loading it from the trailer, then shuttling back to the sandbox

We got some of the sand too. Heaven is fresh sand in a sandbox--and the kids have spent most of their days ever since here

wonderful castles

I have been thinking that the grandkids needed some more education with all the play time going on--summertime, right? So today I decided that it would be a good time to go on a field trip. We loaded grumbling boys into the car and we headed to Ensign Peak and the State Capitol. It was hotter than I thought, but we did have cloud cover that helped. We spent time on the top of Ensign Peak discussing the lay of the land and all the City in front of us. Great views as you know from up there. I tried to use it as a teaching tool for geography and what the valley must have been like with no roads, houses--any signs of civilization. We headed back down. Tom decided he had to go to the bathroom at the bottom of the trail (with me back up the trail coming down slower) and managed to get himself messed up, plus his "business" right by the trail. We buried his business and then tried to clean him up, and took off his pants. I know--how does this all manage to happen in so short of time? I think having gone through motherhood once--this didn't phase me too much. We headed to the state capitol anyway since I wasn't going to bypass an educational opportunity just because Tom would have to go into the Capitol in his underpants. We would use the bathroom facilities there to try and do some more cleanup.

Grandma Ilean, Jack, Hank, Lucas, & Tom on top of the world at Ensign Peak--great view! some other hikers were kind enough to offer to take our picture--proving I was there. The climb was steep enough to tire me out--thank goodness its short.