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This is Asclepius, the Greek God of medicine and this last week was another of the weeks that emphasized medical catch-up. I saw Dr. Carter on Monday for follow-up on cardiac concerns. No urgent issues here, but I need to go get my Cholesterol levels checked and to come back in six months for a treadmill test.
On Monday afternoon, I had my hearing checked by an audiologist, Mindy Norris, Au.D. Just as we have suspected, I am a good candidate for hearing devices in both ears. Response to lower tones is pretty well intact, but as pitches get higher I have significantly more hearing loss. So, I ordered hearing aids, to arrive in a couple of weeks.
I also learned something as to why others’ speech seems to be more muffled. Apparently, consonants, even when spoken by a lower-pitched voice, have various higher pitched resonances I am not hearing. This causes S, TH, D, T, F, etc. to sound alike. Recently I said to Wendy, “I think you have a lisp. I can’t tell whether you are saying an TH or an S.” Now I learn that it is my ears, not her pronunciation, that make the TH and the S sound the same. I am so embarrassed. I hope I can get back on her good side.
Friday I visited with Dr. Middleton, my urologist, to check up on prostate issues. They got a bunch of fluids to do their tests, so we’ll see. I am on a 6-month check-up cycle here also.
The two biopsies that Dr. Bradley took a couple of weeks ago both came back negative for skin cancer. Wendy, not so fortunate, needs to have some work done next Tuesday to remove a spot on her forehead, just above her left eyebrow.
I am trying to get back on a exercise program and lose some weight. We walk most days, and have been able to lengthen the time and distance. Six weeks ago it was all I could do to walk for 20 minutes. This morning we went an hour. I am down about 7-8 pounds, and need to shed another 25, I think.
There are great places to walk here. Sometimes we walk around the track at the Junior High, and sometimes around the neighborhood. If we have time, we drive to the walking path along the Spanish Fork River that starts at the ball fields just off south Main Street. We also like to walk along the Bottoms road, which is just below the bench along the river toward the canyon.
• For the meals and dishes we were responsible for, the amount of food we planned for coming out about right.
• Patricia and the rest of the puppeteers. • Emphasis on the Lewis Family Creed.
• Hearing the song, “I love my life” composed and performed by Paul, Daniel, Ryan, and Jaron. What a fine, positive, uplifting message.
• Gospel teaching done well by so many family members.
• The missionary presence of Andrew, Paul, and Daniel.
• Getting acquainted with Britain. Having her fit in and seem to like us.
• The emergence of the third generation as strong competitors in horseshoes.
• Clever, creative skits.
• Campfire singing.
• Beautiful sunny days and deep blue sky.
• The cool breeze at night blowing down the canyon.
• No bears.
• That Jamison thought the mouse in our tent was a highlight.
• Air mattress that stayed inflated.
• Family unity that existed and the goodness of every person.
• The friendships among the grandchildren.
• The host.
• Lindsay and Brianna playing in the dirt.
I loved the two morning devotionals, in both of which we received instruction on the Camp Theme from wonderful family presenters.
Friday devotional: “What is the Gospel of Jesus Christ?”
The word “Gospel” is an old English term whose meaning was originally “God story.” It was translated from a term that in the Greek means “Good news” or “Glad tidings.” The word Gospel is very near to the meaning of the Book of Mormon phrases “the plan of redemption”, “the plan of salvation”, or “the great plan of happiness.” Devotional talks followed the outline for the third missionary lesson, from the manual “Preach My Gospel.”
1. The atonement of Chri
st. Valerie taught that atonement was like a friend paying off our debt, providing mercy and at the same time meeting the demands of justice. In this case, of course, the debt come from our sins. The remaining talks described the steps we must follow to make the atonement applicable in our lives.
2. Faith. Paul
3. Repentance. Britain
4. Baptism. Andrew
5. The Gift of the Holy Ghost. Bruce
6. Enduring to the end. Daniel
Saturday devotional: What does it mean to be grounded in the Gospel? (Ephesians 3:17; Colossians 1:23; 2:7, D&C 109:24)
The origin of the Lewis Family theme was from the writings of Elder Neal Maxwell. For simplicity’s sake the word grounded was used, but originally the statement included all of the following words. Speakers presented on the meaning of these metaphors pertaining to the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
1. Grounded. Matthew spoke from the vantage of an electrician. He explained that grounding is creating a
low-resistance pathway to the earth to protect agai
nst electrical faults. Proper grounding is also a protection from the effects of lightning strikes. Buildings catch fire and persons may be seriously injured or killed if they accidently become the conduits for electricity. In the same way that we protect buildings and people from electrical contact and shock, we needed to be spiritually grounded, so that the trials of life cannot hurt or destroy our faith.
2. Rooted. Angela, as a gardener, used the example of a Petunia plant which to maximize its blooms must first become well-rooted. Sometimes a gardener has to make the hard choice to remove early growth in a petunia’s top or even pick off the first buds in order to force the plant to spread and to grow a stronger root, so that there will be more and prettier blooms later in the season. The lesson for us in the Petunia is that we also must make sure our spiritual root system develops before the trials of life come and so we can eventually enjoy the full fruits of our faith.
3. Settled. Quin, using the understanding of a civil engineer, demonstrated the need for settled foundations for roads, bridges, buildings, etc., so that they will be able to stand and to guard against their cracking or falling. In the same way, we need a firm foundation for our faith so that we may not fall as the challenges and storms of life come upon us..
4. Established. Alison, from a lan
dscaping point of view, compared the needs of bare-root plants and of established plants in the process of transplanting. She showed us examples of a bare root plant that has to be tended carefully every day so that it will not die, and also a plant with a root system already well-established in soil so as to be a able to easily acquire the water and nutrients it needs to sustain itself. Established plants can withstand lots of rough treatment and still thrive. Being established in our faith and testimony is an important protection for us as we face the trails of life.
When we are grounded in the Gospel of Jesus Christ, we have responded to the "Good News"of the Restoration, we are firmly committed and faithful to the principles taught by the scriptures, the prophets, and current Church leaders, we have partaken of the basic ordinances of salvation, and we have received assurances of the Spirit that we are on the path to eternal life.
This is Asclepius, the Greek God of medicine and this last week was another of the weeks that emphasized medical catch-up. I saw Dr. Carter on Monday for follow-up on cardiac concerns. No urgent issues here, but I need to go get my Cholesterol levels checked and to come back in six months for a treadmill test.
