Thoughts and stories, by Pal

 I found this in the Church News, under "Church News" and I thought it was really interesting! GLOBAL One important way the Church is helping remove barriers to education in Mozambique View 2 more Children in front of the newly built classrooms at Magude Primary School in Maputo, Mozambique. The Church and No Poor Among Us helped the school upgrade to brick-and-mortar buildings in 2022.   Credit: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints   By Mary Richards     Updated 20 MAY 2022 12:15 PM MDT Imagine trying to learn in a makeshift mud classroom that floods every time it rains — or having no classroom at all, only a spot under a tree.  Many students in Mozambique face overcrowding and lack of infrastructure. More than half of girls drop out of school by grade five. Among students who finish primary school, nearly two-thirds leave the system without basic reading, writing and math skills. Recently The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and the ...

  I grew up in St. George in the same ward as Elder Jeffrey R. Holland.  He is 6 and a half years younger than I am, so I didn't know him well.  But my mother, Ruth, was his teacher -- I've never been sure if it was in her elementary 3rd grade class, or in a calling in the same ward.  But at times when I've had the blessing to talk to him he has told me how much he loved my mother!  His mother at one time was given the calling of writing to the ward missionaries.  My daughter Pam was on a mission in Austria, and she received letters from Sister Alice Holland, his mother.  They are treasured, as are times when Elder Holland talks about his early days in St. George.  I have a special place in my heart for him!        In St. George, I ran into him a time or two in a store, and even when he came to visit his mother in the ward.  The area his mother lived in has since been divided off into another ward.    He cal...

Dr. Andrew Barnum who taught at Dixie College for 50 years, passed into eternity today, July 2, 2020.  Around a month ago he fell and broke his hip, and had surgery.  After a rehab, and a few days at home, he spent his last few days at Southern Comfort Care, in St. George. I received a call from his daughter, Annette Barnum, who has so lovingly been taking care of him for a few years.  He was an icon at Dixie College -- now Dixie State University.   This is his story, I posted in 2018.  It was # 1011. ------------------------------------------------ My dear brother-in-law, Dr. Andrew Barnum (Andy to me) is 93 years old, and still working 4 hours each week day!   I was in St. George last week, and went with my daughter Delsy to visit him at his home.  Then the next day, Wednesday, March 7, 2018, we went to his science museum at Dixie State University.   A 2 headed calf, born somewhere in the area, and lived a short time....

This is how I hope to live my life -- In CRESCENDO! What We Can Learn from Church Leaders About Growing Older, "Living Life in Crescendo" by LDS Living  | Aug. 24, 2018 Makes You Think On December 19, 2008, Steven R. Covey wrote in a blog post, “I am now 76 years old and could easily retire. But I’m not retired and I don’t plan to retire. I don’t believe in retirement. Why, people ask me? Simply, I have a life motto. It is: Live life in crescendo.”  This week, my friend Randal Wright gave 11 talks at BYU Education Week 2018. I first met Wright as an EFY counselor in Illinois in 2011 and he has remained a mentor and friend, so I was intrigued to see that he would be teaching 11 classes over the course of Education Week with the same title “Living Life in Crescendo.” I wasn’t familiar with the Steven R. Covey quote beforehand, so when I sat down with Wright on Wednesday afternoon, I asked what inspired this theme. After making it c...