Thoughts and stories, by Pal

Zucchini Cookies!  Another great recipe to try!  For anyone who has zucchini squash that you don't know what to do with, here is a great idea!  I will admit I haven't tried these yet, but I have some zucchini in my fridge, and that is what I plan to do with it.  This recipe looks like it will taste great!  But first we will go to the hospital tomorrow, and have my husband's same day surgery on his "fistula", which is the port in his arm to be able to handle dialysis.  It was found to have scar tissue in it, so it needs to be repaired, so his dialysis will be able to have that access.  The "catheter" near his shoulder put in 3 months ago is supposed to last only 6 months. We will appreciate any prayers in his behalf.  In the meantime, we will enjoy Zucchini Cookies!  4.5  from  14 reviews ZUCCHINI COOKIES PRINT This is a DELICIOUS way to use up some zucchini! These cookies are soft and cake like and ta...

I like to think of myself as a person who doesn't get offended, and give people the "benefit of the doubt".  This article helped me analyze myself and recognize some weaknesses I need to work on! Little Offenses: Are They Worth It? By Maurine Proctor  · July 22, 2015, from Meridian Magazine Once Scot and I were at a small social gathering when someone we considered a friend arrived. We greeted him warmly, but he did not respond in kind. Instead, he was stiff and wouldn’t speak to us, obviously leaving the room because we were there. He made it very clear that he not only didn’t want to engage with us, but that he pointedly tended to snub us altogether. We went on conversing with others as if we didn’t notice, but our feelings were hurt. Though it was a small moment, we felt stabbed and wounded. At last when it was time to leave and we were in the car alone, we were bursting with things to say to each other that we had held back for an hour. “Did ...

5 Thi ngs to Never Forget if Your Loved One Leaves the Church Posted by  Andy Proctor   × July 24, 2015 at 8:30 am "This post was originally published on  The Returned Missionary . It is republished here with permission. " I have dear friends who have stepped away from the Church. We are still friends now, some closer than others, but it hit me hard when they told me they were no longer a part of  The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints . This article highlights some things that have helped me still stay close to them while staying true to what I know. Do you know someone who has chosen to step away from the Church? It can be heartbreaking and confusing, especially if you are very close to them and you are an active LDS member. All hope is not lost. Far from it. Here are five things to never forget if your loved one leaves the Church. 1.  Respect their journey. It’s not that simple.  Sometimes when someone we love goes a...

This is a great article telling of the influence of righteous grandparents on a young man.  We are going, in a few minutes, to the homecoming of our dear grandson who was on a mission in Taiwan, which I told about in blog # 470 a few days ago.  I will tell more about that later.  As grandparents we have a greater influence than we realize! The Influence of Righteous Grandparents: the Andy Bolos Story By Mark Albright  · July 19, 2015, in Meridian Magazine Dear Brother Albright, I was blessed to grow up in a home with good influences around me.  My mother, although a life long member, was not active for the greater part of my life. My dad isn’t a member and my parents were divorced when I was a baby. However, I was very fortunate and blessed to have a wonderful grandpa and uncles who honored their priesthood and took me under their wings to mentor me.  I lived with my mom all my life and my grandpa was always there for me. He was a cons...

The Expulsion from Nauvoo By Scot and Maurine Proctor  · July 23, 2015 This is an excerpt from  The Gathering: Mormon Pioneers on the Trail to Zion. Midnight Attacks and a Poisoned Spring By September, 1845, a scattered group of anti-Mormons of Lima and Green Plains, Illinois, met to devise a means of expelling Mormons from their neighborhood. As they met in one of their homes, one of their own number fired upon it. Then they announced through the neighborhood that the Mormons had fired on them—just the excuse they needed to begin a work of death and massacre. They began by burning the homes of the most vulnerable—those who lived in the outlying areas beyond the protection of Nauvoo. The burnings were almost a ritual. The mob would arrive at a house and pull the family out, women and little children being dragged sometimes from beds of sickness. Then the family watched helplessly as their cattle were scattered, their crops destroyed, and their h...