PRESCIENT

When I was in high school I discovered a writer who caused me to think of the world in a much different way than I had considered.  I was a fan of science fiction and had read lots of Ray Bradbury and Robert Heinlein and some of the other popular writers.

One day the librarian in my school suggested this new guy might be interesting so I took home “Slaughterhouse Five” and gave it a whirl.  It was strange but very imaginative and really stuck with me.  The author had a weird name – Kurt Vonnegut – but his style and tempo were fun so I tried a few more of his works.

The other day I was visiting a blog I like and the writer mentioned a story by Vonnegut that I didn't recall so I checked it out.  It’s called Harrison Bergeron and is only a couple of pages long.

But it is almost prophetic in the message (I say almost because despite his flair for writing, Kurt Vonnegut is very far from a prophet in any way) about the future of the United States.  I’m sure Vonnegut meant this as satire (his mainstay in writing) and he has decidedly different political leanings than I do so I won’t project much in that vein.  But still, the message is obvious and very telling.

Take a few minutes and give Harrison a look.  The poor guy could use some customers after all he’s been through.

WHAT???

What is this world coming too?  The new generation… blah, blah, blah…..

The other day we were discussing missionary work in the Church and one of my female students said she had a good tool to use for inviting young men to come join the fold.  She called it 

“FLIRT TO CONVERT.”

Yes, she was referring to the tactic used by women through the ages to get men to follow their bidding.  

FLIRTING!!!

I suppose there may be some use for this method but, at least in my case, it would be VERY unreliable.  Never could really get that flirting thing down.

Think about it and let me know if you agree it could increase the population of LDS men in the world.

PRETTY DESERT

I grew up in the Arizona desert and have transplanted  to Northern Utah.  Both lands are considered desert but I love the variety of Utah and the range of places where we can go to play.  

There are not many things I miss about living in Arizona but there are SOME things I miss a lot.  A short list includes:

1.      MY FAMILY – the majority have chosen not to make the trek to Zion and have continued to live in the land of heat and more heat.  I miss seeing them a lot and know they are happy where they are.  For me, Arizona is too hot and too much like how I envision -- well, think of where it is always supposed to be hot -- but the family sure makes it worth a trip down there once in a while.

2.      DESERT SPRING—yes, this may seem weird, but I miss the beauty of the desert in the springtime.  When the cactus is blooming, the desert becomes a thing of beauty (as opposed to a desolate place the rest of the year) that shows off something amazing.  Our desert in Utah is barren and has little that could be considered beauty (unless you are interested in mesquite brush and cheat grass).  There are some small flowers but nothing to rival the blooms I remember from my days in the confines of the 48th state. 

Though I miss the colors and vibrant images, I will simply look on the Internet when I want to remember the beauties of the desert.  No sense giving up something great for 1 month of really nice and 11 more of misery.

Here is a small sample of what we miss:

Beautiful orange from the Ocotillo cactus

Mom made us pick the pears these flowers make.  She
would make a jelly from them -- didn't taste good to me
but some like it.

Another pretty orange flower but this time from
a prickly pear

Saguaro is the state tree and the flowers are harder
to see but when the desert is blooming it is
really cool

Even the bees like these flowers

Yucca plant in bloom

That’s about it for what I miss from my old home state.  Hope I didn't offend too many with my personal opinions but after nearly 6 decades of life, I think I have got what I like and don’t like figured out pretty well. 

And to those who live in St. George, Utah, you are just wannabe Arizonans.  J