Quasi cabbage patch kid dolls and 3rd grade memories

1985 was the year of the Cabbage Patch Kid doll.

And every girl had to have one. And every girl brought them to school to put back by the coat rack. That was the doll of my dreams that year when I was nine and in Mrs. Jones's (Miss Leslie to start the year) 3rd grade class. 

My mom knew what was on my wish list that Christmas, but we also couldn't afford the price tag that came with it. Instead, my sister Angie and I got replicas. I took that doll to school with pride, and each night we both put them to sleep in their "beds."

This memory came back to me as I've watched several little girls across the hall at school bring their "babies" to school each day.

That 3rd grade year we could become part of the I.C.M.M.C. which stood for I Can Manage Myself Club. I don't recall exactly what we had to do to be a part of this club hosted by my teacher, but I did get a laminated card to prove I was a part of it. I carried that card for many years.

She also would post our classroom jobs by coming up with funny names. I remember coming into class one day to see Ocean Man next to a class job. I figured out that it must be me since my last name was quite similar -- Seamons.

This was the year I thought it would be funny to pull the chair out from underneath my classmate who sat next to me. As they went to sit, I pulled the chair, causing them to fall hard to the floor. I was reprimanded quite sternly for that.

Many of my friends came back from Christmas break with pierced ears. I would listen to them explain the process of a gun that would shoot a needle into your ear. I imagined someone standing 15 feet away and aiming this device at my head and hoping they were a good aim. To this day, I still haven't pierced them.

One day Mrs. Jones had her back to the chalkboard. The entire class began to snicker at the rip she had in the seam of her pants showing off her pink underwear. A safety-pin took care of that until she came back after lunch wearing a different pair of pants.

I happened upon an old Bible in our basement and took it to school. Whenever I finished an assignment and had some free time, I would pull that Bible out to peruse and read. I'm sure I was the only student to bring such reading material.

Exchange

The highlight this week was going on an exchange with my zone leader Elder Swallow. We had a really good time, and it was fun to work with him. He has been out for 17 months, and never once ridden a bike, so he was really excited we got to ride bikes to one of our lessons. We ended up leaving a little late, and when we got there we found out Eli had to go into work early the next day so he canceled on us. I'm glad Elder Swallow got to bike, even if it didn't end up being for anything.

The other cool thing from the week is they started opening up vaccines to faith leaders. We were able to get scheduled, so I'm going in tomorrow for the first shot. From what I've heard vaccines haven't actually had an effect on us going back to our original assignment, but maybe that'll change.

Lastly, I'd invite you to read this talk I read this last week:
Watching with All Perseverance
https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/general-conference/2010/04/watching-with-all-perseverance?lang=eng

He gives some great counsel on how we can help others gain and strengthen their own children. I know that the Apostles and all other speakers for conference give wonderful counsel, and have been called of God to help strengthen and support us. I'd invite you each to come to conference with a few specific questions, and I promise if you do you will gain the answer you need. I testify of this in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

p.s. look at this crazy snow fort we made as a zone after shoveling snow for seven hours. It includes a slide, an arch, a throne and a dungeon in the back that the only way to enter or exit is through a tunnel in the wall. 

Life History - Camping

I've attempted to write a history of my life on and off over the past 30 years and was given the challenge to try again last week at a Relief Society activity. It can be quite daunting. Especially when I start perusing old photos and get so immersed that I come away feeling so overwhelmed. But I'll attempt something.

Growing up we didn't do expensive vacations. Our summer fun was camping in the mountains above Ferron in our yellow truck that would haul 5 kids, a dog, camping gear and food to last through the millennium, a picnic table, and usually a few cousins thrown in there.

We would head up to Ferron Reservoir, take a right at the top and continue on to Duck Fork lake. But before getting there we would take another right down a incredibly rough road down to McEwan Flat.

What I remember about a lot of those camping trips was the pine boughs dad would use to create a canopy over the bed of the truck. Tonight I came across a similar photo of a jeep that I believe belonged to my Grandpa Seamons (Grandma Seamons is in the front passenger seat) which also had the same type of bough system over the back. I now know where my dad got such a fun idea for our camping trips.

Dad is a twin and our cousins from Logan frequently came camping with us. One one such trip toward the end of June in 1986ish, it began to rain pretty steadily. The decision was made to just leave. Leave everything behind and get home. The ride down the mountain was a good 45 minutes. We arrived home soaked and cold and muddy. And the next day we went back up to get our camping gear and discovered it had snowed.

Snowstorm

The craziest part of this week was the snowstorm over the weekend. I don't know if or how much other places were affected, but here it snowed for a day and a half straight. I know some places got around two feet of snow; I'm not sure exactly how much we got but it definitely could've been that high. Church was canceled in person, and we did it virtually over zoom. We also got to go help three people get their cars unstuck. The other Elders and us kept seeing people out our window start sliding, and then their wheels just start spinning without going anywhere. We  would go out and push them into parking spots and out of snow drifts that they slid into. It was cold, but still pretty fun.

This week I read a talk from Elder Bednar called, Therefore They Hushed Their Fears. Here's the link if you would like to read it. https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/general-conference/2015/04/therefore-they-hushed-their-fears?lang=eng
He talks about how Christ can take away our fears as we trust in Him. My favorite quote from it was, "Correct knowledge of and faith in the Lord empower us to hush our fears because Jesus Christ is the only source of enduring peace." He truly can bring us peace, no matter the circumstances. I testify of that in the name of Jesus Christ, amen. 

Elder Gong

The highlight of the week was by far Elder Gong! He came and visited us on Saturday, but when I say visit I mean we had a zoom call. It was amazing though! We got to hear from him and his wife, Elder and Sister Jaggi, our Area 70, Elder and Sister Balli, and Sister and Brother Abuerto from the Relief Society General Presidency. We prepared all week by reading Elder Gong's talks, cleaning our apartments, and praying together as zones to be ready and for him to be blessed with revelation.

It really paid off. He gave us some amazing advice to answer questions we came with. He talked about our calling, how to be united as companions, how to listen with love, and miracles. The others that came also got to talk for a minute, and they had some amazing quotes and ideas. My favorite quote was from Sister Gong, "gratitude is not a gospel truth, it's the gospel core." She talked about how gratitude leads into every other good attribute that we desire, and I loved that. We also found out yesterday that Elder Gong loved our preparation so much that he is coming back tomorrow to join our weekly Tuesday Training call. We're very blessed to have an extra hour with him, and I can't wait to see what else we learn.

Lastly, something I focused on this week is the Savior's name. Reading over Elder Gong's talks, I noticed he always says the full name of the Book of Mormon: Another Testament of Jesus Christ. I thought about how we can make sure that He is at the center of everything we do. I'd encourage each of you to read Elder Anderson's talk from last conference, "We Talk of Christ." I know that as we make Him a greater focus we will be able to feel His love more in our lives, both for us, and for those around us. I say this in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

All my love,
Elder Leary 

Transfers

Hey all, this week was transfers, although I am staying with Elder Rosenlund. It snowed again, and we got to bike through that which was fun for sure, but definitely harder. We've had some really nice weather since then, and so most of it melted, and we even went disc golfing again today. We got a bunch of new missionaries in our zone, and it's been fun to get to know new people.

We get to hear from Elder Gong, who is coming to visit our mission on Saturday. It's been cool to go back and read some of his talks. I'd encourage each of you guys to go back and read or listen to conference talks in preparation for upcoming general conference. I want to testify that each of the apostles are special witnesses of Christ and receive revelation for the church, and for you. I hope you all have a great week!

Love,
Elder Leary 

My First Blessing

It got really cold this last week, we even hit negatives, but I hear there's crazy storms hitting the whole country. It sounds like Texas got destroyed, but we don't get a lot of news, so keep the whole state in your prayers I guess. I've started teaching piano out here as service, which has been awesome. It's been fun to do that again, but I have to see if it'll last because we have transfers this week.

On Saturday, our district had three baptisms, which was our goal for the transfer so that was awesome. The sisters taught a kid named Rovan who was one of the three, and I got to confirm him on Sunday in Sacrament meeting,  which was a really cool experience.

I also gave my first blessing on Saturday to a couple who have been staying at the children's hospital. They were so nice, and it's hard to see them go through a hard situation like this, but I know they'll be ok. I know the power and authority of the Priesthood are real. I know the Holy Ghost guides what we say when we are worthy. I'd challenge you to all read a talk called Ask in Faith by Elder Bednar, it really shows us what we need to do to receive answers to our prayers. I love you all!

Elder Leary