set me free to find my calling

I've listened to this song many times. It's become one of my favorite MoTab pieces. But for some reason when my brother and sister sang it at Grandma's funeral the words stood out to me and I heard a different meaning to them...then I lost it and I was blubbering mess.

Homeward Bound

In the quiet misty morning
When the moon has gone to bed,
When the sparrows stop their singing
And the sky is clear and red,

When the summer's ceased its gleaning
When the corn is past its prime,
When adventure's lost its meaning
I'll be homeward bound in time

Bind me not to the pasture
Chain me not to the plow
Set me free to find my calling
And I'll return to you somehow

If you find it's me you're missing
If you're hoping I'll return,
To your thoughts I'll soon be listing,
In the road I'll stop and turn

Then the wind will set me racing
As my journey nears its end
And the path I'll be retracing
When I'm homeward bound again

Bind me not to the pasture
Chain me not to the plow
Set me free to find my calling
And I'll return to you somehow

In the quiet misty morning when
The moon has gone to bed.
When the sparrows stop there singing....
I'll be homeward bound again.

(Music and Text by Marta Keen Thompson. Arranged by Mack Wilberg. 
Performed by Mormon Tabernacle Choir.) 

The lyrics could mean many things to different people. To me, they remind me that this life we are passing through is not our final home. We were meant for a greater existence. And there is Someone waiting for us to return.

coming soon...in three weeks

Xiamen, Gulang Island, South Putuo Temple, Golden Beach, Jimei School village, Overseas Chinese Museum, Huli Hill Fort, Hakka Round House, Nanjing, Zi Feng Tower, Confucius Temple, Sun Yat-sen`s Mausoleum, Xiaoling Tomb of the Ming Dynasty, Massacre Memorial Hall, Yangtze River Bridge, Presidential Palace, Zhonghuamen City Wall, Xuyuan Garden, Guilin, Reed Flute Cave, Elephant Trunk Hill, Fubo Hill, Seven Star Park, Panda Hall,  Universal Hotel Guilin, Li River cruise, Yangshuo, West Street, Bamboo Rafting on the Yulong River, Impression of Liu Sanjie, Tangrenjie Hotel Yangshuo, Big Banyan Tree, Moon Hill, Xian, Hanyangling Tomb, Grand New World Hotel, Tang Dynasty dinner and show, Terra-Cotta Warriors & Horses, Huaqing Hot Spring, Shaanxi History Museum, Big Wild Goose Pagoda, Great Mosque and City Wall, Beijing, Qianmen Jianguo Hotel, Tiananmen Square, Chairman Mao`s Mausoleum, Forbidden City, Hutong rickshaw tour, Great Wall at Badaling section, Jade factory, Bird Nest, Water Cube, Embassy, Summer Palace, boat ride on Kunming Lake, Confucius Temple, Temple of Heaven, Hongqiao Market,  798 Art Zone, Hong Kong, LDS Hong Kong Temple, more TBD.

captured moments

A few weeks ago my dad gave me a project to work on. A slide show of some of our old family pictures. Some would know that this is a real treat for me because I have a love for old black and white photos. I love how they capture a little of the way things were in that moment in time. The styles. The scenery. The personalities. The relationships. Over the last few weeks I enjoyed getting to know my grandpa and his eight brothers and two sisters little more. Here are few of my favorites.

Great Grandma and Grandpa (1935)

The Old Family Car

Grandma in the ticket office where she worked (Early 1940s) This is where she first saw Grandpa.

Grandpa and Grandma

While in the middle of this project, Grandma decided she had fought a good fight in this life and went on to be reunited with Grandpa. I was privileged to be at her side as she left. After she passed, I began sorting through her pictures and reading her personal history. I was reacquainted with the lively, generous grandmother I had known and loved and the amazing, fun life she led. I am so blessed to call her grandma.All these events have reminded me what a stellar heritage I have. 

Gma, Gpa, and Me

Al and Vi –Together Forever

 

Untitled from sarah.n.dip.i.ty on Vimeo.

PS. My dad calls me a photo geek. I like to call it family historian.

Viola Faye Blevens Hintze "I'm Glad I Winked" Born January 25, 1922, she quietly passed away, surrounded by her family, May 18, 2011 due to causes incident to age. Mother's parents were Elbert Blevens and Evva Abbott. When she was born they were living on a homestead on the "dry lands" south of Lamar, Colorado where she started her education in a one room country school house and later received an Associates Degree at a Junior College in Lamar. While working as a theater cashier, Mother noticed a "good looking stranger" passing by and she winked at him. She later married that stranger, Alan Sears Hintze, February 14, 1943 in Colorado Springs, CO; marriage solemnized in the Salt Lake Temple May, 1945. They initially settled in Taylorsville, Utah but due to Daddy's work they also lived in Schenectady, NY, Hamilton, OH, Cleveland, OH, and Germantown, MD. Everywhere they lived Mother and Daddy made wonderful friends they will always treasure. When Mother became a member of the LDS Church, she embraced it completely. The rest of her life was spent serving others in the Primary, MIA, Relief Society and as an ordinance worker in the Washington DC Temple. One of her fondest memories was teaching the youth of the Cleveland Ohio Stake to ballroom dance. Mother never met a stranger. Mother and Daddy opened their home to literally hundreds of people who needed a place to stay so they could attend the DC Temple. Mother's children are: Jan (Wendy), St. Marys, PA; Helen (David) Harlow, Provo, UT; Frank (Marla), West Jordan, UT; and Olia (Bill) Shearer, Chino Valley, AZ. Mother loved her grandchildren and great-grandchildren. Our warmest appreciation to the staff at Alta Ridge Assisted Living, South Jordan and Millcreek Home Health and Hospice. Christie, and so many others, thank you for everything. Funeral services will be held Saturday, 11:00 a.m. at the Mountain Shadows 7th Ward, 7925 South 2700 West. Viewings will be held Friday, 6-8:00 p.m. at McDougal Funeral Home, 4330 South Redwood Road and Saturday at the church, 10-10:45 a.m. Interment, Holladay Memorial Park, 4670 S. Highland Dr.

ten years ago today...

...I was here.

Windermere and the England's Lake District

How do I know this? Because this is where I turned twenty.

PS. I would have my actual pictures. But they are in a box up in my parents garage and daddy has vowed never to get it down until I have a permanent place to keep it so he doesn't have to keep moving it wherever I go. It might be a long while till that happens.  In his defense it is a heavy box and he had a heck of a time getting it up there.

what do you think the office would say...

if I showed up to work with one of these?

"Umm?"
Yeah, I thought the same thing. But, I am convinced that we human beings were not made to sit for 8 hours a day. My back is not convinced. My rear is not convinced. And my legs would thank you not to bring up the subject.  They forget that they are adults now and must remain still and composed. We all agree we need one of these.  This, with a sitdown desk to mix it up, offers a viable solution we could be happy with. Thank you.

may day, may day

Happy May Day! I hope your day was lovely like mine. Today, once again, marks the beginning of the lovely month of May. And you know what that means.