This week was a time for rejuvenation and rest (to a point). We had our usual duties with extra things thrown in for something different. Monday was coming back to the USA. It felt so good to be back in our own vehicle and the huge sigh of relief after crossing the border with a feeling like, “Ah, we’re home!” Seeing the New York license plates again felt good. It was a sense of, “You’re where you are supposed to be.”

We did some laundry upon arriving to our house after unpacking everything. Erik and I were exhausted and went to bed early. I think it took us a few days to get our mojo back after our whirlwind trips. Tuesday morning we went to our shift at the temple and it was so fun to see everyone again and see the improvements that were made in the temple. The weather is still so glorious and we will enjoy it while it lasts. This week the weather has been in the high 20’s celcius and we are still using our air conditioning.

On Wednesday, it was lovely to see our shift coordinators return after four months off to recover from health issues. We filled in for them and was awesome to see them come back, looking better than ever.

I called the pharmacy to refill the sensor prescription. They don’t usually have them in stock, so I call a few days before the last one ends. This way I should have uninterrupted usage.

It felt great to be back on the rebounder after our travels. Bouncing moves things in your body and gets the lymphatic system draining. Ten minutes on the rebounder is equal to 33 minutes of running (as for the benefits). I like to do thirty minutes on the rebounder and always feel great afterwards. One of my heel wounds from my wedding shoes is still not happy. The ankles are looking better but the poor achilles area is not healed. I’m back to putting a bandage on it. War wounds, I call them.

I had the opportunity to visit with my cousin, Shannon on Zoom on Thursday. It was so good to see her face and hear her voice. She has the most wonderful smile that reminds me of when we were children.

Friday took us to Auburn for me to get bloodwork done. The ladies who run the lab love me and told me that they wish all their patients were as pleasant as I am. I believe that when you treat others with respect and love, it will come back to you. We went to a very large Wegman’s for groceries. It was amazing! The managers do a great job at stocking the store.

On the way home, I said to Erik that it would be fun to stop in at a Bass Pro Sports in the USA to see the difference from Canada. Erik was able to purchase a couple of long sleeved shirts and I found some warm socks. We wanted to see the hunting area and headed to the gun section. My mind was blown with the array of arms. There is a handgun that I wanted to buy when I received my PAL but Lyndon reminded me that it was prohibited in Canada. Well, I got to see something very similar to “The Judge”.

It was fun to see the camping section with all the cooking opportunities; smokers, pits, barbeques and flat tops. We did see the salt guns to be used on flies, but as my cousin says, it’s not for her house because it leaves a little salt pile while doing the fly in. I did see a funny little shooter that has a string attached.

Isn’t that a hoot? It sells for $4.99. I’m not a fan of flies AT ALL and this is something that could be handy.

This past week has been difficuilt emotionally because of the passing of President Nelson but especially because of the hateful vitriol spewed at our church resulting in deaths and injuries and the loss of a building. Some days I feel like it’s getting more dangerous to be a Christian depending on what part of the world you live in. People are being killed who believe in Christ.

The best thing to happen this weekend was General Conference. While rage consumes extremists in Africa, Africa is also seeing huge growth in Christianity. In the past three years, nearly one million people joined The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints around the world. I have always felt that as Christians, we need to band together in prayer and love to thwart the advances of the adversary. If we struggle with what other Christians practice and believe, it’s harder to follow the Savior’s teachings. He taught us to love one another.

It’s cute to see the memes pop up immediately after a session of conference. People are paying attention and being filled with joy at the messages that are delivered. We love our leaders of our church and I look forward to each conference with such anticipation.

Families have conference traditions for snacks. We found a bag of churro chips made by Siete. They are grain free and were delicious for a little snack. Even the apostles have bowls of snacks for conference. There are always a few speakers who touch people’s hearts so strongly with their enthusiasm and “joie de vivre”. Are you a note taker? Sometimes I am and other times, I crochet while listening to talks. I love to ask people what their biggest take away is from conference. It’s great to hear someone elses’s perspective. Did you have a question and receive an answer? This conference I did not have a question. I felt that the question that I had was answered previous to conference.

Elder Cuvelier talked about being a disciple of Christ and being called by the name of Christ. He said that the greatest sermons are not heard but seen “in the quiet, unassuming actions and deeds observed in the lives of ordinary people who, trying to be like Jesus, go about doing good.”

“Our identity isn’t defined by the world,” he said. “But our discipleship is defined by the ordinances we receive, the covenants we keep, and the love we show to God and neighbor by simply doing good.”

I believe that we can continue to do good whereever we are and show love to the people we meet. I look forward to the conference issue where all the talks are printed. I felt like I needed to read some talks to unpack them more fully.

I have ordered these journals from Deseret Book, and they are great for making notes and studying the talks.

This painting by Julie Rogers shows the love our Savior has for us individually and I know that one day I will see Him face to face and will rejoice in our reunion. Meanwhile, I will try to live a life of charity and compassion until that time.

Have a great week and remember to choose God!