Thoughts and stories, by Pal

I was born and raised in St. George, Utah, with original pioneer ancestors!  I also was baptized, endowed, and married in this beautiful Temple.  My grandfather and great-grandfather helped build it, and were strong in the community! It is my home, even though I now live in northern Utah with my oldest son and his wife.  I will be buried there next to my eternal companion, Wayne D Eckman -- 1930-2016.   The St. George Utah Temple renovation: A look at what has happened during the first year by Newsroom of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints  | Nov. 05, 2020 From the Church Editor's note:  Newsroom  released the following update on the St. George Temple renovation in recognition of one year of progress. Read a summary and watch the video below, or find more pictures on  Newsroom . Sounds of machinery and construction crews plying their trade echo across the property of a beloved landmark. Its familiar white walls that glisten in the aut...

  A nice change, after all the political stuff!  Let's get back to basics! How Well Do You Listen — REALLY Listen? By  Rodger Dean Duncan  · November 4, 2020 To read more from Rodger, visit  HIS BLOG . No one on his deathbed ever said “I wish I’d spent more time at the office.” Don’t get me wrong. Work is a wonderful thing. It can be very fulfilling and can provide meaningful service to others. But personal relationships are the most important things in our lives. It’s through relationships with others that we learn about ourselves, about how to make choices, how to self-correct, how to grow and develop, how to contribute to the human community, how to turn dreams into reality. And listening is the most important  behavior in those relationships.  Really  listening. This requires using your eyes and your heart as well as your ears. Effective people listen to learn and understand rather than to rebut and overpower. They exercise influence rather t...

  For those of you who may be following my notes on the New Testament, this is Chapter 4.  #1279 was on Chapter 1, and #1282 was on Chapter 2. Chapter 4, New Testament, Matthew 8 - 12.  (12)  after name indicates latter day apostles. These chapters continue telling about Jesus teaching, preaching, and healing all manner of sickness in the area around the Sea of Galilee.  Capernaum was a prosperous town, located on the famous Roman road, the Via Maris, which linked ancient Egypt with Syria and Mesopotamia.  It was the home of Peter, and his brother Andrew, who became Apostles.  More miracles are recorded at Capernaum than any other site.  Elder Bruce R. McConkie (12) tells us of Peter’s mother-in-law being healed by the Savior to teach that “Jesus’ specially selected disciples were married men with wives and children and families of their own, as his specially called servants should be in all ages.” It appears that “Son of man” was the Savior’s pre...

   I'm posting more articles today, as they are pertinent today, and all good! Take your choice!  This isn't about the political situation, but very heart-warming! Will We Have Our Pets in Heaven? By  Joni Hilton  · October 28, 2020 When it comes to animals, I’m a pushover. Every dog and cat I’ve ever had has been spoiled rotten, but every one of them has had a happy personality along with loyalty and devotion (well, as much as a cat can muster). It pains me to kill spiders and insects, and I try to relocate them outside. I cannot watch dog or horse movies because I know I’ll be sobbing by the end. If a detective movie shows a cat wandering through the home of a murder victim, I forget all about the victim and my concern shifts to who will now care for the cat. But my most telling confession is that when our cat kills a mouse or bird, I pray that Heavenly Father will make the prey forget how it died, and just help it have a happy reunion with its relatives beyon...

   I'm posting more articles today, as they are pertinent today, and all good! Take your choice! Keeping Cool During High Political Drama By  Nicholeen Peck  · November 1, 2020 The political climate is pretty hot right now! Threats, scandals, verbal attacks, social unrest, corruption, and control tactics are all part of the current political scene. People are preparing for the worst no matter what the United States election turns out like. What preparations are the most effective? Preparing your own heart to be calm and focused on truth is the best way to prepare. Having self-government during times of political drama is what principled people do to stay calm. However, to have self-government a person must plan ahead. Lessons Learned From The Last Presidential Election Following the election of President Trump, four years ago, angry rioters took to the streets destroying property and making cities unsafe. Some US cities became hotbeds of hate. When I was at the Unite...

 I'm posting more articles today, as they are pertinent today, and all good! Take your choice! The Dangers of Censorship: Static Science, Diminished Liberty, and a Population in the Dark By  Jeff Lindsay  · November 1, 2020 To read more from Jeff, visit his blog:  Mormanity . A few weeks ago, I made a post on Linkedin.com that cited a report on the apparent media censorship of information on a certain compound that many doctors were finding helpful in treating COVID patients at an early stage. The article summarized the latest peer-reviewed findings and argued that the media’s reliance on only the negative studies, even one that was fraudulent and had to be withdrawn, was putting the nation at risk and reflected harmful and inappropriate bias. I said that “if this story is true, it will decrease my respect for the media.” I was not saying that everyone should start taking any particular medication, but was pointing to an article offering a different perspective on th...

  This article has very deep meaning!  And I'm going to learn from it!   Must Everything Be Political? By  Steven Smith  · October 29, 2020 The following first appeared in Public Square Magazine. You’ve been a devoted member of the local Birdwatchers Association for . . . how long has it been? . . .going on fifteen years now.  Although you initially joined almost on a whim, your membership has become important to you: it’s pleasant getting together on a sunny Saturday morning with people you wouldn’t otherwise encounter to go out into nature and appreciate, together, the many-hued marvels of your feathered friends. This is something you’ve come to look forward to. Then, last week at the association’s annual meeting, something changed.  There was the usual business: officers were elected, scheduling discussed, association dues set for the coming year.  And then one of the members, Robert, proposed that the Association’s website should add an e...