Thoughts and stories, by Pal

Last week, from March 31st to April 9th, I was on a tour/cruise to the Southern Caribbean!  I went with "Fun For Less Tours", in a group of 12 LDS widows -- It was so fun and I learned so much!  I want to tell about that in this blog, and maybe one more.  There is so much to tell!  Michael Wilcox, (retired BYU professor) was the guest tour guide.  He gave 4 lectures, specifically about the different islands we visited, and their history.  It was fascinating!  I'll try to include some of his thoughts, as they made the cruise so much more interesting. Our ship from the Royal Caribbean, "Jewel of the Seas." On Saturday March 31st, 2018, we flew from Salt Lake City to Atlanta, Georgia, and then to San Juan, Puerto Rico.  The next day we entered the ship around 11 a.m.  It was interesting getting used to the ship, and getting acquainted with the other 11 ladies.  I went with my dear friend from High School, Belva Hunting Gardner....

I posted this on March 27, 2016, but it is really appropriate to post again -- Easter, and the celebration of Jesus' Atonement and Resurrection will be this coming Sunday, along with our General Conference! SUNDAY, MARCH 27, 2016 609. 5 Profound Insights from "The Infinite Atonement" by Elder Tad R. Callister, in LDS Living. This is from LDS Living, and is very inspirational about the Atonement. 5 Profound Insights from "The Infinite Atonement" by Jannalee Rosner  | Mar. 26, 2016 Makes You Think Next to  Jesus the Christ  by Elder James E. Talmage, one of the best books about Christ I’ve ever read is Elder Tad R. Callister’s  The Infinite Atonement . And while you can only absorb the full power of these inspired books by reading them from cover to cover, sometimes there simply isn’t time. So here are some of the most important and interesting ideas from  The Infinite ...

I first posted this 2 years ago today, just 5 weeks  after  my husband Wayne passed away.   It was  Easter Sunday that day, and this coming  Sunday will also be Easter, so  I hope this helps  you feel the spirit of the Easter time! SUNDAY, MARCH 27, 2016 608. Jesus Christ' Resurrection. "He is known by oh so many names, but He's not forgotten yours!" from "The Garden" Happy Easter, all you dear friends all over the world.   I haven't written for a week, and I want to write some of my thoughts today.   Yesterday my daughter Anita, and I went to a local performance of "The Garden", by Micheal McLean and Bryce Neubert.  It brought tears to my eyes.  It is such beautiful music written about Jesus Christ in the Garden of Gethsemane.  The line I like the best is "He is known by oh so many names.  But He's not forgotten yours!"  That really touched my he...

Very insightful article by Darla Isackson.  This may help, when we feel overwhelmed by stress, and possibly not following promptings we have felt, and then had fear of following them. Are you in the Spiritual Stress Cycle? By Darla Isackson  · March 22, 2018 Sign up for Meridian’s Free Newsletter, please  CLICK HERE I’ve sometimes felt spiritually paralyzed by extreme doubt and fear, questioning my beliefs, who I am, and what the Lord wants me to do with my life. LDS Psychologist John C. Turpin pinpointed the most likely reason for these feelings and called it: “the Spiritual Stress Cycle” In his book,  Stress Reduction for Mormons,  he describes this cycle: The Spiritual Stress Cycle is a pattern one gets into by not following individual promptings of the Spirit of the Lord. The Spiritual Stress Cycle can be illustrated as follows: The Spirit prompts an individual to change [or to move forward in some kind of positive act...

HAPPY ST. PATRICK'S DAY -- MARCH 17TH! During the month of March, in the 11th grade, our son Wayne's English teacher had the students write a limerick each day.  He often writes them, and has written a limerick for each family member!  I will include photos of each family member as young adults in our Life Story book:   Dad Wayne, and his favorite leprechaun, Jasper!  (Picture taken about 2004 while he was writing his life story.)  (Family members will recognize some fun family stories referred to!) Dad: Wayne D Eckman When getting together for game nights,  Dad would scheme to improve his sad Rook plights. Though his output was measly,  He would gloat rather freely, ‘Cause he had the red “10” in his sights. Anita made our personalized "score" book, with the red 10 on the back! Years ago, "Dad" Wayne thought he had the "Rook" card, but it was backwards in his hand!  It was the red 10, and the family didn'...