Thoughts and stories, by Pal

This article has great ideas on family stories, and how to make them interesting to the family! Bringing Family History to Life By  Wallace Goddard  · September 16, 2019 Sign up for Meridian’s Free Newsletter, please  CLICK HERE Our usual ways of telling family stories could put anyone in the grave. “Ben was born July 27, 1851 to good parents in Huddersfield, Yorkshire, England. He became a Methodist circuit preacher who followed his girlfriend to the United States. They settled in central Utah where he taught school and sold books.” Not much there to inspire.  Years ago, Nancy and I started gathering photos and papers from our ancestors. We organized them. We evaluated them. Then we copied the best and put them in binders for descendants. We made hundreds of binders which included important documents, written histories, vital pictures, and a chronology of our grandparents’ lives.  Years passed. We gathered at reunions. We told stories and were amazed that

My husband, Wayne D Eckman, and his identical twin Blaine D Eckman, were born on September 18th, 1930 in Murray, Utah.  I want to tell things about him, and his brother Blaine -- some of which have been in previous blogs. There is so much more about both of the twins in different blogs.  Please look under the "labels" tab, for their names, and names of other ancestors to find them.  They were both wonderful, good men, and raised great families! The photos above, Blaine on the left and Wayne on the right, were in the 1949 "Granitian" -- the school year book of Granite High School in Salt Lake City, from which they graduated.  Granite High School doesn't exist now.     Wayne and I, Pal, wrote a book of our life stories up to our Golden Wedding in 2005.  This is what Wayne wrote about his early school days.                      SCHOOL LIFE AT LIBERTY SCHOOL (1936-38)      At age 6 we went to the first grade. There was no such thing as kindergarten back

For those readers who have children or grandchildren who love to read, and go to libraries often, YOU MUST READ THIS ARTICLE! How Publishers and Librarians Are Pushing Gender Identity Politics on Your Children By  United Families International  · September 16, 2019 Sign up for Meridian’s Free Newsletter, please  CLICK HERE United Families International: Dedicated to informing you about the issues and forces impacting the family. Contributed by Tori Black When I was little, I loved to have my mother read to me. I had two favorite stories that I requested over and over:  The Little Red Hen  and  Little Black Sambo.  Poor  Little Black Sambo  has fallen out of favor among some people, but I admired the quick-witted little boy who out-smarted the dangerous tigers threatening to “eat [him] up,” and hoped that I could learn be just as smart as him. When I was about six years old, my mother took me to get my own library card. With her guidance, the first

This touching article tells how much loving and kind caregiving for those who are disabled -- can do for the person being served, and those serving! The Mark of a Good Caregiver By Joni Hilton  · June 19, 2019 Sign up for Meridian’s Free Newsletter, please  CLICK HERE I’ll just say it: I think we need a National Caregivers’ Day. Not only should they receive boxes of chocolates and bouquets of flowers, but friends should step in and take the entire day for them, if they can. It’s hard to imagine any job more exhausting, more tedious, more without a moment’s relief, than constant caregiving. And with the rising numbers of elderly and disabled, caregiving is falling upon more and more shoulders. If you haven’t already experienced it, you may.  As a matter of fact, I feel such admiration for this unheralded group that I wrote a tribute song to caregivers for my upcoming musical about cancer. And this demanding task doesn’t compare to all the young parents

Today is President Russell M. Nelson's 95th birthday.  For those who haven't watched the inspiring program, with wonderful music, and telling about his life, it is now on YouTube.  You can find it at:  President Nelson’s 95th Birthday Celebration - September 6, 8:00 PM 95 Facts About President Nelson for His 95th Birthday by Jannalee Sandau  | Sep. 07, 2019 As we celebrate the 95th birthday of our beloved prophet, here are 95 fast facts about him, from the beginning of his life to today! Growing Up 1. He was 9 pounds and 11 ounces when he was born. 2. His family was not active in the Church while he was growing up.  3. Growing up, he didn’t like liver and would hide it in his pockets and throw it into a vacant lot on his way to school. 4. He learned about the Church by taking a streetcar to Deseret Book. 5. He once broke every bottle of his parent’s alcohol and poured it down the drain in the basement floor as a young boy. 6.