Finally I’ve made a start on my garden. I bought veggie plants in May and they have struggled in their little black starter pots until just last week. This is really pitiful!! I took a week to dig out a raised bed that ran parallel to my back fence. I wanted it turned 90 degrees because it was difficult for me to reach across 4 feet to get the goodies in the back. By turning my beds, it’ll be easier to work both sides of the box AND the plants will receive more light since they will be out and away from my trees. (Something I didn’t think about earlier). The other box will wait until fall. It feels good to finally get the poor tomatoes into a real home.

They say that gardens always change. As I pull out the weeds, I think of unwanted sin. (All sin should be unwanted….eh?). There are different sins and different weeds. Both have different appearances; have different root systems, and different means of spreading. And for both, the longer they go; the more they both get entrenched and are a bigger pain to get rid of.

If you only rip off the top, it will look good for awhile but the roots fester underground and will soon return with a vengeance. The weed, or sin, will be bigger and stronger than ever. Or, if you kill it after it has cast seeds, then it’s ever so hard to eradicate. One needs to get it early before it goes deep and before it can spread. It is easier to do early than it is later. I think these thoughts very time I weed and don’t get a root. Darn! More sin to go after in my garden!

I’ve been studying up on backyard poultry. I’m thinking about getting some chickens of my own. A poultry magazine I read was very critical of the Cornish Cross chicken which is popular for the commercial meat industry. It matures in 8 weeks rather than taking 6 months as it does for a regular chicken. 4H kids can’t raise them for show because they die of their abnormalities at 12 weeks of age. They topple over from their oversized breasts and often suffer heart failure. I was horrified to learn this.

I visited a farm in Canby to have a look-see at organic, pasture raised chickens. The all natural lady running the place told me Cornish X chickens are just great. They produce only white meat with no fat. Since they grow so quickly, they are cheaper. Chicken feed is 50% corn. Feed costs have gone up 250% in the last year. You can’t afford to raise a regular chicken for 6 months just to be killed.

“Hmmm…,” thinks I. “It must be like breeding English Bulldogs or Irish Wolfhounds. Each has its own bred-in weaknesses but also have their breed specific purpose. I guess I’m OK with Cornish Cross birds. Learning from different sources makes coming to conclusions interesting. Talking to her altered my thinking ….and I might yet change it again. Stay tuned!

Speaking of education, I heard a quote the other day attributed to CS Lewis: Some people say, ‘Lord, thy will be done.’ Others say, ‘Oh, OK Lord. Have it your way!” (Or maybe it was, “OK, Lord. You win. We’ll do it your way.”) Bottom line, we need to give up trusting our own knowledge and realize there is a greater wisdom out there than we have. Yes, we need to study and learn about things. But also accept and trust some things (like the commandments) have been clearly laid out for us whether we agree or not. It is in our best interest to trust God even if we don’t understand the reasoning. Our Heavenly Father is right ~ 100% more often than we are. We might as well do it His way and save ourselves some trouble. Avoid weeds!!

Spring has sprung with enthusiasm. Weeds have been growing for awhile but today is the first day that it’s actually been possible to get out and dig around a little, I’m surprised at how it’s more difficult for me to get up and down than I remember from last year. Really surprised! I know women who are in their 80’s still puttering around in their gardens. Fairly big gardens too. I’m a wuss.

I’m again having fun with my prisoners. The club is building up in numbers again thanks to some recruiting work done by the few who were still left. I often lose men unexpectedly to transfers, or they get released. Both situations are annoying. However, the men like being released, so in that case, the only one complaining is me.

I’m involved with the community “adopt-a-landscape” project in the neighborhood. It’s a massive effort getting through the government red tape, getting permission to do this or that; gather up volunteers, find donations, draw up designs, get irrigation installed, find plants, etc. Somebody else has the vision and doing most of that work – not me. I’m driving the truck!

Next Friday, I’m taking a 17’ U-haul for a drive to fetch all the plants from some nursery near Salem. It should take me an hour or so of driving. I recruited a friend to go with me. She’s in her 70’s, pretty feisty, loves nurseries and always up for an adventure. We’ll be like Lucy Ricardo and Ethel Mertz heading down the highway. Whoohoo!

I haven’t tackled a big truck like that since I moved to this house 16 years ago. Can’t believe it’s been that long. Thinking back, it’s been 23 years since my brother Mike died. It was then that my life changed - overnight, I became a “Pizza Baroness”. The last 8 years have gone faster than the rest. The Y2K scare not a year or two ago, but 8!

Then, there are my boys in blue – the ones serving time. Days, months and years removed from the pace of the world. When we first started the Toastmasters Club, we discussed when we should begin our meetings. Their “call-out” was for 6:30 but sometimes, because of traffic, I couldn’t always get there by then. I said that I hated for them to be sitting around waiting for me if I was going to be ½ hour late.

One of them said, “Oh you forget. We got nuttin’ but time for sittin’ around waitin’.” True, the guys are busy with work and classes but there’s a lot of sittin’ around waitin’ time too. So what to do while you’re waiting? As another man stated in one of his speeches, “You can serve time, or you can have time serve you.” He’s taking advantage of every class offered and works at waking up in the morning thinking that he will be successful and the day will be successful. Some of these men are truly inspirational.
Today is the day that we prepare for tomorrow. One minute at a time

I've been around the same geographical area for most my life. I have had friends long enough now to have watched them marry, have children, and now have grandchildren. It astounds me as I think "I was there before this child was even a 'twinkle in the eye' ~ in all the time that has passed what have I done? Whom have I met? Have I settled into a boring rut?" Possibly. Yet, I'm finding that my connections are circling outward from my one, single, stagnate spot here in the NW.

Last week, my young friend, Heather, was flying back from a trip to LA. She was chatting with her seat partner about life, her expected baby, and moving to a different apartment in Beaverton. She mentioned that a friend, who had never married and didn’t have kids, was letting her store extra things in her garage. The seat partner asked, "Would that be Sherry Chew?" Heather was astounded. (So was I when she told me.) They hadn’t talked of being members of the Church. As it turned out, the lady was from my last ward 16 years ago.

A month or two ago, I was helping another pregnant and very sick friend get caught up on her house work. We chatted while I sorted laundry. I was telling her about my upcoming trip to Oman. I’m going to visit the spot where it is believed that Nephi built his boat with his brothers. As I was telling her that I knew the Australian man who was leading the tour, she stopped me and said, “I was college roommates with his daughter. “No!” True. She remembered that her roommate's parents were just discovering this region while she was in school. I met Mr. Down-Under after his divorce. We’ve dated some and have stayed in touch for the last 8 years or so.

One of my Toastmaster buddies has accompanied me to the prison a few times. He’s Jewish and told me that he is married to a Mormon girl. After we chat, I always tell him to say “Hi” to the wife for me as we part. One day he emails me and says that his wife pulled one of my letters from her purse. I’ve been sending her these letters since I’ve begun writing them. She goes by a married name now of course so I had no idea there would have been any possible connection.

I live in one spot, but the connections reach in all directions. Sometimes I think that maybe someday, one of those circles will bring me to meet someone who will fit with me. My little prayers about finding a husband of course, are still circling the cosmos but these recent events help me realize just how many people I know and how my circles over lap. Maybe having an unusual name (and personality??) have helped people remember me too.

Sooooo..... Why all this? I guess it all comes down to: Heavenly Father knows who we (you) are and how you (we) are. I'm not sure how it all works out but we (people in general) are connected for whatever reasons. (On both sides of the heavenly/earthly curtain, if you want to take it that far).

As I've done temple work for people, I have realized that there are many who have never had a chance to marry. They died single for whatever reason. (2 of my brothers, and a Downs Syndrome uncle, for example). Where they are now, they can't communicate to us if they have found companions on the 'other side' to marry. They must wait for the Resurrection simply because there's no other way to get it done.

Can you imagine that? While I am waiting to find someone to marry, others might be waiting to get married after finding each other. This whole earth/eternity life thing seems to take a lot of "waiting on the Lord". It all takes patience.

The Israelites wandering around in a wilderness for 40 years took some patience too. Many of us are doing a lot of wandering until we reach our own personal Promised Land. I try to see it as a time of refinement and improvement AND as an opportunity to do that which I probably wouldn't be able to do if I was married.

I hope I'm a better person than I was 30 years ago. Maybe I’ve gotten selfish in some ways simply because I didn't have the marriage/children sacrifices to make. However, I've hopefully learned other good things instead. Maybe within the next 2 years (That would make 40 years of wandering in the dating desert), something will happen. That would figure. Right after putting big money into a house remodel, I'd face a decision of what to do with it 'cuz the man of my dreams would live in Morocco or somewhere else other than here. (I certainly hope he doesn't live in Utah!) :D

Just some thoughts.
Sherry, not an administering angel just yet.

Other events – I’m cutting my house remodel in half. The expected estimated expense is mounting and can’t be justified. I still need to replace things that are falling apart – the clothes washer being the latest appliance to go. It died after 20 years of service. It had been so faithful. It was the old horse that had willingly carried out its duties without complaint, without appreciation, for so many years. The dutiful servant finally buckled at the knees, went down and breathed its last. How can one get sentimental over a washing machine?? I can. (Well, momentarily, anyway). I remember making the agonizing decision buying it so long ago. The thought of having to shop to replace it, gives me a headache.

My dogwood is starting to bloom – after the daffodils, it’s nice to see more flowers coming. A lot like life … sad to see the daffodils go….. Like people and washing machines…. but new, fresh, good people, things and flowers are always coming along to be discovered and enjoyed.

Happy Valentines Day and other greetings of the season!

I’ve promised my self that I would visit more people this month and yet the month, like many others, is rapidly disappearing. The good thing about it is that it means that spring is getting closer and closer!! Nothing wrong with that!!

This winter I’m taking a HAM radio class and beginning tap dancing. Unfortunately, I’m going to have to take the radio course over again. Taking 2 classes at once was too much while continuing with my other activities.

I’m enjoying the tap class. My next door neighbor talked me into it. I thought maybe it would be a way to get me to exercise. I already know that I don’t possess any rhythm but I thought it might be fun anyway. During the first lesson, I found out that it also requires balance!!

While standing on one leg, I have to wiggle and tap a pattern with the foot attached to the other leg. After several spastic taps, I feel I’m going to topple over. Maybe if I really work at this, it will help stave off future mental dullness and physical entropy. There’s always that hope. Maybe I can combine it with my HAM radio class and work out a tapping routine where I can do Morse code with my feet while dancing to Frank Sinatra? I don’t think so.

Given this lack of coordination that I have and remembering all my miserably failed efforts to learn to dance through out my life (folk, ballroom, square, etc.), I’ve decided that developing talents means exactly that. If you have a talent, develop it. If you don’t have a talent, don’t torture yourself. I’ve spent a lot of time and frustration trying to learn to sing, dance and otherwise express myself musically. I’m grateful for the exposure and the experience but now I’m just going to call it that without any expectations of anything more.

I’m grateful for my friends who push me into these things. It reminds me of the early lives of the baby sea turtles. The mama turtle comes on shore and lays her eggs in the warm sand. When the babies hatch, they instinctively head for the water. However, for some reason they don’t continue to the water but stop crawling before they get there. It’s only when the others, coming up from behind, bump into them that they start moving again.

If wasn’t for that motivation, none of the little turtles would make it. I wonder about the last ones. There isn’t anyone to bump them. Unless they are unusually determined, they are the ones more likely to be eaten by the cranes or dried up in the sun. I’m grateful to my friends who keep bumping me along and help me gain good experiences and learn new things. Good friends have been my guiding steps through life. I am thankful for them.

My neighbor up the street told me that at her new job, a young co-worker shared that he had testicular cancer. He was going in for an operation and they would have to remove everything. She was just sick about it. She said he was a cute Mormon boy who had served a mission and recently married in the temple. He had already made a donation to a sperm bank so if he survived the cancer, he and his new bride might still be able to have babies in the future. My friend wondered if the church was taking good care of him and if there was anything that she, and her co-workers, could do.
I told her not to worry. His ward would no doubt smother him with care. If she liked, I could contact his ward and see if they could share meal duties. I happened to have a friend who lived in the same town as he did. She might be in the same ward. It was easy enough to find out.
I found my friend vacationing in Arizona. (Thank goodness for the accessibility of cell phones!) She didn’t recognize his name but she just happened to have a new ward directory with her. There he was, listed with his wife. (The fact that my friend had a directory with her is amazing enough but a newly updated one?? How often does that happen?)

From her, I got the name and number of her ward Relief Society President. (The RS Pres. has responsibility over all the women in a ward including tracking “welfare” needs. I’ve held the same position in my own ward since June of 2006).

I called and asked the RS President if she knew the couple. She said yes, the wife had been coming every week but the husband had stopped coming some time ago for no good reason. I explained what the young man was facing and that his co-workers wanted to coordinate taking in meals. She was shocked to hear the news and said she’d visit them right away.

This is the email I received from her the following Monday:
“Thank you so much for your phone call on Saturday morning. I was able to track them down by afternoon and had a good conversation with both of them. Your neighbor’s efforts were an answer to Ann’s [name changed] prayers. So please thank her and tell her that when you talk with her. Ann was being respectful of Ken’s [name changed] tender feelings. They haven’t been married a year yet and this is a big trial for them.
I talked with Ken and shared with him that I had two nephews go through this. “Our ward was fasting Sunday for another member who has cancer of the thyroid and having surgery on Wednesday. After talking with the Bishop, we quickly sent an email around and made a few phone calls. We added Ken to the ward fast. Ann came to church yesterday and received a great deal of love and support. The Elders quorum was going over after church to talk to Ken. We have meals going in and support all over this. Thanks again for the heads up.
“Ken will have surgery on Thursday where they will remove his other testicle. He said that the doctor told him on Friday that it is in his lymph nodes and has spread but they don’t know yet where and how far. So he does have some hard days ahead. I told Ken that the Lord really must love him to answer prayers through a new friend at work. He tearfully was touched that those he works with would even be interested.”

I’m sure being new in the ward, this young couple felt they didn’t have friends yet with whom they could share their personal burden. Maybe they didn’t want to come in feeling like a pity case. For me, it was a testimony about how the Lord works. He knows who we are. He knows what is happening to us. Our secrets aren’t secrets from Him. He knows where we need help and He’ll get it done. It is up to us to take the action that is required. I love how this has turned out for this young, frightened couple. I pray that all will go well. Maybe it won’t. But if it turns for the worst, at least they won’t be alone. Nobody should be.

Everything else is going really well - I have absolutely nothing to complain about. I love being Relief Society President more than I ever, ever thought I would. I'm not the best organized one they've ever had, but I have a couple of wonderful counselors who patiently remind me of things to follow up on. I love them!! And Heavenly Father too. He is too good to me!! I pray that He is blessing your life with great happiness and will continue to do so through out the New Year. Happy 2008!

A year in review……nah… random events as I think of them….Yes, that’s what it will be.

I’m thoroughly enjoying my prison Toastmasters club. I’m at the men’s prison on Thursdays and I occasionally substitute at a women’s prison. One thing I’ve learned about those wearing prison blues: The men miss women and the women miss clothes. I told this to my men prisoners and they responded that women don’t need clothes!

I taught a Boy Scout the merit badge “Service in the Community” to a number of 12 year olds. I also helped get volunteers to ‘adopt a landscape’ and plant daffodils along 2.5 miles of newly improved road. Guess who I got to remove ivy and haul mulch? …..Anyone need a merit badge signed off?

I submitted my DNA to a Genetic data base so I can connect my family line to others. I asked my brother to do it too. It seems that I don't have the "Y" chromosome needed to track my father's line. Interesting isn't it? I was sure I’d have something of my father tucked in me somewhere. I mean, I LOOK like him… but that’s not good enough. The “Y” chromosome is needed to trace male lineage.

According to the tests, I seem to have some Jewish blood. A Norwegian, related 67 generations back, with the same markers contacted me. Since I have my father’s side traced back only 5 generations, and he had only a few more than that, we didn’t find much more in common ~ except maybe a smattering knowledge of Scandinavia on my part. As for the DNA, there aren’t enough people in the pool yet to find anyone closely related to me. I want to make family search and history writing more of a priority this coming year.

Disasters have turned to successes. I was to care for a neighbor’s dog during the Thanksgiving vacation. I knew the dog barked when she was left alone. I knew the surrounding neighbors were angry about the dog’s noise and with the family too. When I checked on her, she was quiet so I didn’t bring her home with me. I couldn't hear her from inside my house so I didn’t know that she barked all night long. (Oops!)

The neighbors didn’t know that I was the one ‘taking care’ of the dog but they sent me emails about the constant barking. (That's what I get for organizing the neighborhood). They said the family was abusing the animal and threatened to call the authorities (a $500 fine). I talked with several and calmed them down. When K returned, I confessed that the neighbors were now madder than ever. K assured me that it wasn't my fault. We both knew that the dog needed more attention than she was getting. Even when the family was home, the dog was always outside ~ alone and barking.

Often K had thought about giving the dog away. She just didn’t know how to find a good home. She was afraid that someone would use the dog for medical experiments or, the new owners wouldn’t buy the medicine the dog needed for her ears or get her the necessary shots. And the children would miss her. She knew that her husband wouldn’t!

It was also difficult for her because of a childhood experience. Back in Russia, when the family moved, her father shot and killed their family dog. K felt terrible and wanted to make it up to another dog. She picked a very sick puppy from a shelter and nursed her to full health. She would never let anything bad happen to a dog of hers. This dog always had the best of everything – except time. It wasn’t because K didn’t try. She walked her daily. Rain or gloom of night didn’t stop her. A year after the pup came into the home, K had a baby. The dog went outside and with two growing children, K’s time and attention was more severely divided.

I put the dog's name on the prayer roll in the temple (God loves His animals too, right?) and then I sent out an ad by email.

As President of the women’s group at church, I send out an email every week. It has little newsy items such as things people have to give away or announcements about events. Members who don’t regularly attend church receive it too. People contact each other directly, so I don’t hear anything unless someone happens to mention it later. That’s how I found out that one sister got the 5 ft dining table (plus 2 leaves) right after she had to sell hers to pay a lawyer bill. Someone else got some free wood to burn. Personally, I now have a clothes dryer! It's been really a great way to connect people and take care of needs.

I announced that my neighbor’s dog needed a home with lots of attention and room to run. I wrote it up with detail about how the dog was good with children and cats and was so smart that she understood both English and Russian.

The best response was from a couple who live a few streets away from me. They were perfect!! He used to breed Labradors. They have a farm in Washington with lots of room. He's retired and needs a dog to follow him around. When K warned them that the dog liked to dig holes in the yard, they responded, “That’s only normal”. It didn't bother them a bit. They like keeping their dogs inside the house with them, not outside, in the back, such as where K’s dog had been assigned.

They spent thousands of dollars into trying to save one of their dogs. They would not neglect any health issues. Their grown children have Labs too. For vacations, family members take turns with each other's dogs. That avoids problems with kennel borne diseases AND provides more socialization. They know how to obedience train through praise and reward. What a blessing!! I'm just so thrilled that there wasn't any question that this was the perfect home for her. So easy!

It was hard for K to see her dog go, but the home and the timing was just right. If I hadn't messed up over Thanksgiving by pushing the neighbors over the edge, it wouldn't have pushed K into finally doing what she knew needed to be done. This brought about a good answer for everyone. Happy new owners, happier dog, much happier neighbors, and a relieved husband for Katy - Praise Heavenly Father!! Mistakes can turn into good things!! I love life!!

Everything else is going really well - I have absolutely nothing to complain about. I love being Relief Society President more than I ever, ever thought I would. I'm not the best organized one they've ever had, but I have a couple of wonderful counselors who patiently remind me of things. I love them!! And Heavenly Father too. He is too good to me!! I pray that He is blessing your life with great happiness and will continue to do so through out the New Year. Happy 2008!
Love,
Sherry