Merry Christmas (2015)

Isaiah 9:6: For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.

For all that our Savior is in word, deed and character, He truly is Wonderful.  As we strive to heed the words “spoken … by [His] own voice or by the voice of [His] servants” (D&C 1:38), Jesus becomes our Counsellor.  When we contemplate the declaration of Heavenly Father to Moses, “worlds without number have I created; and I also created them for mine own purpose; and by the Son I created them, which is mine Only Begotten” (Moses 1:33, emphasis added), we understand that our Elder Brother is the mighty God.  Through the Atonement, all of the ordinances of the gospel have been activated and when we are baptized and receive the gift of the Holy Ghost we are spiritually reborn; thus Jesus becomes our everlasting Father as we take His name upon us and become a member of His family of saints.  Finally, Jesus is the Prince of Peace as His amazing grace brings peace to our souls in times of favor and in times of trouble.

Merry Christmas

My Reaction To Star Wars: The Force Awakens (SPOILERS)

This is my immediate reaction to The Force Awakens.  Beware there are SPOILERS of some MAJOR PLOT LINES, but if you haven't seen the movie by now, you're either on a mission or you're not interested! J 

*Whatever the case may be, don’t try to claim I didn’t warn you!*

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We saw the new Star Wars movie last night.  Even with all the people who have told me that the movie was good, I still tried to keep a lid on my emotions, but my anticipation had grown with each new positive review.  Now that I’ve had the evening and next day to think about it, I’m ready to give my reaction to what I saw (for what it’s worth). J

Overall, the energy and the pacing of the scenes and the action were definite hallmarks of a J.J. Abrams directed film.  I very much liked the fact that many of the scenes were grounded in the “real world” and not fabricated on a green screen.  This move brought the new trilogy back to its roots as far as its look was concerned.  I’ve mentioned this before, but after going from the grittiness of the first trilogy to the stale, digitized world of the second trilogy, it was nice to have the grittiness back—it made the movie seem so much more grounded in reality.  Yes, I know it's only a movie and it's depicting things that don't happen in our physical world and I know there were scenes in the movie that employed green screen and that CGI characters were used, but I liked the return of real locations as the setting for the action than the heavy reliance on the computer.  The story definitely served as the opening act of the planned 3 parts.  I felt it did a good job of introducing the new characters and reintroducing familiar characters.  I don’t want to discuss every single one of them, but I will touch on a few.

Rey is smart, resourceful and can take care of herself.  She is the one actually attuned to the Force.  From some of the snippets we, the audience, are given concerning her, it appears that Rey was deliberately left on Jakku as though to hide her.  The difference between her and Luke is that she has no one to guide her as she becomes aware of her sensitivity to the Force—but as I’ve thought about this, I can’t help but wonder if she was trained in the Force before being sent to Jakku, but possibly had that training suppressed and is now remembering out of necessity as she gets caught up in the events surrounding her.  Piloting the Millennium Falcon is the first indication I get of this “remembering out of necessity.”  She appears to sense maneuvers and acts on the premonitions she is feeling as she pilots the ship.  At the time, she doesn’t know how she was able to fly the ship the way she did.  Later, when she touches the lightsaber that belonged not only to Luke but to Anakin Skywalker, she feels and hears the history of the weapon as well as moments from her own life and is understandably frightened by it.  The confrontation with Kylo Ren on the Starkiller Base again puts her in a position where she is forced to remember her possible previous training.  What I found interesting is that it wasn't until she calmed herself that she was truly able to use the Force to counteract Ren's mind attack and use a Jedi mind trick on the trooper guarding her.  Why would that be unless this is how she had been taught to use the Force?  The final clue I have for this hypothesis is the lightsaber battle she has with Ren.  How could she defeat him unless she had prior training?  In that one moment when he’s pushing her back toward the fissure and tells her that he can train her in the Force, her eyes open wide and her techniques improve in a way that catches Ren completely off guard.  How could that happen unless what he said somehow awakens skills she already possessed?  When she arrives on the planet where Luke has been hiding and offers him the lightsaber no words pass between them, but I'm already convinced that Rey is Luke's daughter and he’s realizing he can no longer keep from finishing the training he may have already started.  I could be totally reaching with this take, but these are my impressions and reactions.

Finn's character shows that the First Order's practice is to take young children from their families and program them to become fighters.  Finn is someone who has a strong enough inner personality to overcome that conditioning.  He may have a romantic notion concerning Rey, but I think he is also fiercely loyal to those who helped save him.  He told Rey that she is the first person to treat him as an equal, and that made a huge impression on him.  Throughout the movie we see him growing beyond his conditioning as a grunt soldier to someone who is self-aware and gains a strong sense of self-preservation, to someone who then sees beyond self and has a desire to become part of something greater than self.  This aspect really shines through when Finn fights Kylo Ren with a lightsaber to protect Rey after Ren knocks her out with a Force push (all the previews showing Finn holding the lightsaber were red herrings to make us think he had the Force).  It will be interesting to see how his character progresses through the trilogy.

Poe Dameron has a swashbuckling type of attitude in the cockpit of his fighter.  He strikes me as someone who is willing to take risks as long as it doesn't endanger those in his charge, but he is also ready to give his all for the Resistance.  I guess if there was one thing the trailers did give away it was any question that Poe didn’t make it when he and Finn crashed onto Jakku.  Although Finn thought he had been killed, I knew Poe was still alive because I had seen him flying in an X-Wing in the trailers. J

And then there’s Kylo Ren.  His characterization was an interesting choice.  When Darth Vader first appeared on the screen, I could tell that he was a force (no pun intended) to be reckoned with.  Kylo Ren’s first appearance did carry some of that same weight, but as the story progressed, his confidence was shown to be a façade.  If anything, it turns out he's a brat with major anger issues.  Twice during the movie when things didn't go his way he ignites his lightsaber and destroys the room.  From the reaction of other characters during these temper tantrums; it appears they're used to Ren's tantrums.  As the story progressed, it seemed to me that General Hux has more villain qualities even though Ren seems to think it's his destiny to carry on the family bad guy tradition.  Kylo Ren has the Force and can do some impressive things with it (holding that blaster bolt in mid-air, for instance), but I'm not so sure the "resolution" of his daddy issues will totally help him in the way Supreme Leader Snoke seems to think it will.  Maybe; we'll see.

Of course, that comment brings me to Han Solo.  I guess I could say that this movie closes his character arc.  With Disney's acquisition of all things Lucasfilm, they swept away all the previous "expanded universe" stories written over the years and started "fresh" (so to speak).  I've only read the five Timothy Zahn books, so I really don't have much of an idea of the EU story lines.  It appears that part of the new backstory is that Han and Leia got together and had a son they named Ben.  He had a propensity for the Force, but showed signs of liking the dark side more than the light side, so they sent him to Luke to be trained and things didn't go well.  After Ben rejected Luke and went to Snoke, Han and Leia's relationship fell apart as they dealt with the loss in their own way—Han going back to smuggling and Leia leading the Resistance.  During the movie when Snoke told Ren that he needed to kill Han Solo, I immediately knew to prepare myself for Han's eventual death.  Han somewhat plays the role of the teacher to Rey and Finn, but more in a practical way rather in an "open your mind and see the possibilities" way.  When he yelled "Ben!" at Kylo Ren and walked out on the catwalk to face his son, I knew it wouldn't end well for one of my favorite characters of the original trilogy.  When it happened, I wasn't surprised.  Both Han and Leia are shown to be weary.  They've dealt with a lot of loss over the course of the 30 years that have passed since Return of the Jedi, but they do take a moment to remember they had some good moments as well.

Overall, I'd give the movie a solid B+.  I think the thing that bugged me was the sameness of some of the story.  I suppose one could argue this entire movie was a redo of A New Hope.  I’m not going to go that far, but some examples of the similarities are: we're being introduced to new characters, but Rey is living on a desert planet—Jakku instead of Tatooine.  Rey and Finn have to get a droid back to the Resistance fighters—BB-8 instead of R2-D2 (I liked the little beach ball droid).  The older character sacrifices himself to allow his companions a better chance to escape—Han instead of Obi-Wan.  And, finally, the Resistance has to blow up the big, bad technological powerhouse weapon before facing complete obliteration—Starkiller Base instead of the Death Star.  Actually, as far as this last point, I've now see a variation on this theme 4 times in a Star Wars movie (episodes I, IV, VI, and VII).  I think it's time to abandon this plot device.  When the X-Wing pilots and the ground force had 15 minutes to take care of business and get out, I almost started looking to see if Grand Moff Tarkin's ghost was haunting the base's bridge.  There was enough new stories surrounding these familiar themes to allow me to tamp down my disappointment of "going back to the well" in these instances, but it's also the reason why the movie doesn't receive an "A" in my book.  The other thing that slightly bothered me was the whole idea of "Luke is missing!"  It seemed more of a contrivance (an easy plot device) than an actual problem.  I also had to wonder why Luke would leave when the going got rough.  He never struck me as that type of character.  I guess I now understand why Luke isn't shown on the movie poster, but I'm hoping he gets a lot more to do in the next installment (and maybe even explains his actions).  One thing though, if he takes Rey to Dagobah and tries to sit on her shoulder while he puts her through her paces, I'm going to have a difficult time not mentally checking out.

I did like the movie.  If anything, I want to watch it at least one more time in the theater.  Now that I'm more relaxed and (for the most part) happy with what I saw, I think it would be easier to just allow the story to wash over me.  Besides, I always find that I notice more the second time through then the first.

Anniversary Celebration

Usually about a month and a half to two months before our anniversary, Jennifer and I have a conversation that goes something like this. “Have you thought about what we are going to do for our anniversary?”  “I’ve thought about it.”  “Do you have any ideas?”  “Not really, but I’m working on it.”  At that point, I get a look—the patented Jennifer look (it’s true; I’m pretty sure she’s trademarked it and everything J) that says without saying—then you better get on the stick, buddy. J  After that, I put something together and we have a nice time.

This year, I was basically told how things were going to go. J  Last year it was a collaborative effort (she came up with the trip to Forest Lawn, I came up with the jaunt to Griffith Park and, after my first choice for dinner didn’t appeal to either of us, we both picked El Torito).  This year after we had the above conversation, Jennifer came to me about a week later and told me she wanted to go to the Los Angeles Temple, significant because that was where we were sealed, Juniors (a Jewish deli not far from the temple where we had eaten several times back when we came monthly to the LA Temple) and she wanted to see a play (which turned out to be A Christmas Carol).  Actually, I thought it was a nice change of pace.  I didn’t mind at all that Jennifer planned out the whole day; there was no chance for me to screw up our 2oth anniversary celebration. J
 

The drive down to the Los Angeles Temple was uneventful traffic wise.  We had a nice talk as we drove, reminiscing at times, talking about various topics at others.  Before the Redlands Temple was built, LA was our destination each month.  We arrived in time to be able to do some initiatory work before attending an endowment session.  Afterward, we sat quietly in the Celestial Room for about 30 minutes, talking quietly.  We watched a couple who was part of our endowment session group who would be getting married several days later (I talked to the fathers later) and marveled at how young they looked and quietly laughed about how we had once looked that way.  The plan had been to come out of the temple and go to our “proposal tree” to take a picture.  However, even though the day was sunny and nice during our drive to the temple, as we prepared to walk outside, we saw it was raining!  What a bummer.  We hurried to the car and while we were putting our temple bags in the trunk, I accidently banged Jen’s head with the trunk lid (I hadn’t put it up all the way and it slipped from my hand).  Thankfully, I didn't knock her out; I felt bad enough, that would have been mortifying!  The other thing Jennifer wanted to do under our proposal tree was to tell each other how we felt after 20 years.  We decided to do so in the car.  The ambiance wasn’t the same, but the feelings we expressed were.  We had a nice moment.
 

In looking for the address for Junior’s Deli the night before, I found out it is now Lenny’s Deli.  Apparently, Junior’s lost its lease after 52 years back in 2012, but someone new came along and started up the deli again and now it’s called Lenny’s.  I’d say about four or five years have passed since we were last in the deli, but from what we could tell, the menu was pretty much the same.  We were given kosher pickle slices and sauerkraut to start (sweet sauerkraut, eaten in tandem with the pickle it was very good).  I ordered the Emmy (a corned beef and pastrami sandwich) and Jennifer had the Grammy (a corned beef sandwich with Russian dressing).  She actually decided to go with rye bread (I was shocked, she said it was okay, but probably would have liked sour dough bread more J).  We had a nice time there; the food was good, our server was nice; the company was better. J
 

Next, we were ready to go see A Christmas Carol at the Grove Theater Center in Burbank.  Having never been there before, I used Google maps at home to figure out how to get to the theater from Lenny’s before we left that morning.  Unfortunately, we've been having problems with our desktop computer for the last several months and I couldn’t convince the internet to print the map.  I suppose this would have been a good time to have smart rather than dumb phones.  Disgusted, I grabbed a piece of paper and wrote down the directions, but in my rush, I missed one important piece of information when I was writing them down.  We got on the 405 freeway, but when we transitioned onto the 101 I followed what I had written and stayed to the left.  However, staying to the left was something we should have done when we were transitioning from the 101 to the 134.  It wasn’t until we had driven about 20 miles and I realized we were heading toward Thousand Oaks that I knew we were not going in the right direction.  Because of the rain, it had taken us almost an hour to get to that point, the play started at 8 and it was now a little after 7.  Thankfully, traffic coming back wasn’t as bad as going forward.  Finding the theater was a bit interesting as well because it is a small theater (maybe 50 seats) tucked away in the middle of a park, but I finally figured out the way to get to the parking lot and we made it with 5 minutes before the show was to start (we were fine, the play began 15 minutes after 8).
 

Seeing this play brought back memories of our first anniversary when Jennifer and I went to the Doolittle Theater and watched Patrick Stewart perform in his one-man play of A Christmas Carol.  That had been an awesome show.  Stewart would alter his voice and posture as he changed from one character to another.  All he had on stage with him was a table, chair and a couple of other small props.  Although the only person on the stage, he was able to give the impression of many people.  It was an amazing performance.  Jennifer was pregnant with Ben at the time and when we finally left the theater and started walking back to the car, I saw a group of people on the sidewalk and heard someone say that Patrick Stewart would be coming out of the theater there.  I asked Jennifer if she wanted to wait to see if maybe we could get Stewart’s autograph; she was willing.  We waited on the sidewalk for about 45 minutes or so.  When he was ready to leave the theater, an assistant or body guard came out and lined those of us waiting into two lines and told us that “Mr. Stewart” would sign autographs for everyone and to remain calm and not crowd or he would leave.  When Stewart came out, however, it became apparent he was not going to sign autographs for each person as he went to one person in the right line and then a person in the left line.  Some people behind Jennifer tried to push forward and they jostled her.  I tried to move her away from them, but, I think, her being jostled plus the fact she was pregnant brought her to Stewart’s attention.  He walked straight to her and asked, “Would you like me to sign your program?”  She replied, “Yes, please,” and she was the last person who received an autograph from him as he got in the back seat of a car that pulled up and was driven away from the group.  The playbill with his autograph is one of our little treasures.
 

This performance of A Christmas Carol had a three-person cast—two men and one woman.  One of the men played Scrooge; the other man and the woman played all the other characters and the narrator (they took turns).  The stage, much like with Stewart’s production, had very few props.  There was a raised, sloping area in the middle of the stage with a table and a few chairs, but nothing else.  The gender of a couple of the characters was changed in order for the actress to play them (for instance: Scrooge’s nephew became his niece J).  The fascinating part of the performances was how the actor and actress helped the audience to “see” each different character.  Although they did modify their voices, as part of their costume they also had long blankets or capes (his was green, hers was red).  With each character, they would wrap their capes around their bodies in different ways; I thought it was a very clever way to do it.  I also loved the way the play ended.  Tiny Tim was not a depicted character and when it came to his final line, it was spoken, very appropriately by Scrooge, “God bless us, every one.”  Both Jennifer and I very much enjoyed the performance and found it to be a fun ending to our celebration.

Twentieth Anniversary

Newly Minted J

Twenty years.  In one way it seems like such a long time and in another only a blip.  I recall a visit from my sister Joanna in the summer of 1994.  She stayed for about a week as I recall.  During that visit she, Jennifer and I went to Sea World together (I still have the keychain with our picture in the little viewfinder; I wish I could retrieve it and post it J).  Later on, before her visit ended, I confided in Joanna and told her that I planned to ask Jennifer to marry me.  I showed Jo the ring I had picked out and told her I didn’t know when it would happen, but I planned to “pop the question” soon.

 

Jump ahead about a month or so (strangely, neither Jen nor I can remember the date—although I think it was in August).  The time had arrived; I could feel it.  After attending Church (Jen was investigating at the time and had started taking the missionary discussions—merely a formality since she had been asking me many questions by then and I had informally taught her many of the principles J), I told her I wanted to visit the Los Angeles Temple.  We had visited several times by then.  The first time I took her to the temple was a significant event.  At the time, she was still in her “don’t talk to me about the Church unless I ask the questions” mode.  We walked the grounds and then I asked her if she would like to go inside the visitor’s center; she said she would.  At the front door, we were met by an inspired sister missionary (I wish I could remember her name) who took her in tow and showed us the video Together Forever and one or two other videos.  But the first one was the one that really touched Jennifer and opened her up to where she began asking questions in earnest.

 

Los Angeles Temple from the Proposal Tree

I had picked out the place for my proposal probably about 9 months to a year earlier.  At that time, I had gone to the LA Temple, but did not go inside.  Instead, I walked the grounds and thought about things.  I ended up sitting on the concrete wall along the walkway below the fountain area on the west side of the temple grounds.  I had a long talk with Heavenly Father there that had put me on the path to prepare me for the moment when my relationship with Jennifer changed from one of friendship to one that considered long term commitment.  At the time, I didn’t know I would be asking her to marry me, but that moment then had led me to this one.  That wall; that specific spot had major significance for me.  But a minor problem arose when I brought Jennifer there.  At that time, there were no shrubs along the top of the wall, the areas surrounding the fountain on the south side were nice, small patches of manicured lawn and another couple was having a picnic on the grass above my “proposal spot.”  I had the ring in my pocket and the question dancing on the tip of my tongue, but I didn’t want an audience.  I figured that the couple’s picnic might have been close to ending, so I led Jennifer down the stairs to that concrete wall, but sat down a little south of where I wanted to ask her my question under the olive tree.  Once there, I started up a conversation with her while I waited for the picnic to end and the other couple to leave.

 

I waited and I waited and I waited some more; but the couple wouldn’t go away!  Good grief! I thought, How long is this picnic going to last?  My natural man wanted to grab pebbles from the planter area and throw them at the couple, but then Jennifer would have thought I’d lost my mind.  I continued to wait.  One hour, two, three—finally, they got up, cleaned up their things and left.  Hooray!  I had been desperately thinking of new topics to keep our conversation going and I think I was close to running out of things to say.  Now, I was very nervous and a bit self-conscious.  I was still going to go through with my plan, but the wait had curled my toes a bit.  When I suggested that we move a bit to the left (in order to be perfectly positioned in the right spot), my voice was in danger of deserting me.  I think I kept up with the conversation topic we were on for a bit longer to see if I could build some momentum and then with a smooth transition (at least I thought so), I plunged into my proposal.

 

Proposal Tree (Wedding Day)

I couldn’t look at Jennifer.  I think if I had, I would have lost my nerve or melted into a puddle of incomprehensible goo at her feet.  As I told her the significance of the spot where we sat, I stared up at the temple (much like I had that night months before).  The sun was just starting to set and I remember the temple turning from white to orange to pink.  When I finally reached the pivotal moment, I was finally able to turn and look Jennifer in the eyes and ask the question.  By then, I think she sensed what was happening.  She was smiling; her eyes glittered in the fading light of the sunset.  After she said “Yes!” we hugged and talked excitedly for about 5 minutes before I realized the ring was still in my pocket.  I must have looked at her sheepishly (because that’s how I felt) and asked, “Would you like to see the ring?”  We were both so clueless and excited that I put it on the wrong hand.  Yeesh.  It’s amazing how dumb I was back then, sometimes I wonder if much has changed (Jennifer says I have, she’s sweet). J

Fast forward 16 months.  In my mind’s eye I can picture myself hurrying to the front doors of that same temple, carrying a temple bag and a tuxedo.  Traffic had caused me to be a bit late.  The marriage ceremony was to take place at 10 in the morning.  I think we were supposed to be there at 8 or 8:30 (memory, I forget exactly when).  As I hustled up to the temple, I thought that my wife to be was waiting for me, wondering why I hadn't shown up.  When I reached the front desk, however, to my astonishment, she’s not there!  Ack!  What’s the deal?  Turns out she forgot her temple recommend (something that will happen three more times during these 20 years) and she’s running later than I am because she had to go back to get it.  What seemed like forever was only a few minutes (she saw me hurrying to the front doors when the car she was in pulled into to the temple parking lot).  Both of us finally present and accounted for, we were soon brought into a beautiful sealing room in the Los Angeles Temple and the words “for time and all eternity” were pronounced over the altar where we knelt across from each other.  I remember seeing the same glitter in her eyes that I noticed when I proposed to her.

 

Twenty years.  I’ve been told many times by many people that I married a very special woman and I totally agree with that assessment; I married up.  She has been so patient with me and has helped me overcome myself in so many ways.  Thankfully, I’ve seen that glitter in her eyes from time to time.  I admit to not being the most romantic person on the planet, but I manage at odd moments.  I am so thankful she said “yes” to me that day back in 1994.  I am grateful she answered affirmatively in the temple when the question was put her 20 years ago in 1995.  I love my wife very much and am so very thankful to have her by my side not just for this life, but forever if I continue to live true to her and the covenants I have made with Father in Heaven. J



Christmas Decorations

Christmas time is here again!  The way time flies for me nowadays is crazy.  It doesn’t seem all that long ago that we were going through the Christmas season last year and here we are again.  I guess the main difference is that this year is different because Ben is in the mission field instead of here with us.  Jennifer bought a few new decorations for this year and I took pictures to share them with Ben, but then began to wonder if they might make him homesick.  I remember my first holiday season in the mission field and I had my moments when I was feeling a little wistful for home.  Sometimes it’s hard to know what to say in letters.  I want to tell Ben about things that are going on, but I don’t want to take his mind away from what he is doing.  I decided to put the question to him about the pictures.  Turns out I needed have worried, Ben’s reply: “Dad I am ok with you sending pictures to me . . . I know without doubt in my mind were I am is where the Lord wants me to be.  I miss you all, but I am not homesick so it’s all good.”  It’s nice to know that he is putting his all into his service.  I know that will be a benefit and a blessing to him.

Actually, Ben helped me to be more participatory at work.  As part of the Christmas decorating contest announced at work, one of my co-workers sent out an email to the rest of us in my division that she was going to hang up a brick wall theme on one of the walls and have a fake fireplace and such and she wanted everyone to decorate a felt stocking that would then be hung (tacked) to the brick wall.  Confession time: I can be a major party pooper, stick-in-the-mud when I put my mind to it.  When this email first went out, I was less than thrilled with the idea and wasn’t inclined to participate.  Thankfully, I was really busy that day and had that as a ready-made excuse if anyone came to my desk to ask if I had decorated my “stocking” yet.  Then I came home that night and found a letter in the mailbox from Ben.  He had written us a letter and sent us copies of some things he had received recently and wanted to share with us.  As Jennifer read his letter and he talked about missionary work and how important it is to share our testimonies with others, I felt a prompting that I should participate in the stocking decoration and I also had a decorating idea come to mind.

The next day, when I had a moment, I picked out a green felt stocking and took it back to my desk.  The idea that had come to me the night before was to use two scriptures (one from the Bible and one from the Book of Mormon) that would express my feelings about this wonderful holiday and my gratitude to the Savior for condescending to be born in mortality (see 1 Nephi 11:16-20).  With this theme in mind, I immediately chose Isaiah 9:6 and used the first portion of the verse: “For unto us a child is born”.  The Book of Mormon verse as a little more difficult in that sense that I only had so much room on the stocking and if I chose a big verse, it wouldn’t fit.  I had to think of something that would be succinct, but also powerful.  I found my thoughts drifting to 3 Nephi chapter 11 which marks the beginning of the Savior’s visit to the people on the American continent.  As I pursed the chapter, I zoomed in on the verse in which Jesus introduces himself to the people after He appears to them: “Behold, I am Jesus Christ, whom the prophets testified shall come into the world” (11:10).  I added to pictures I found on the Church website that I felt were appropriate and added the standard Christmas greeting to the toe and viola, I had my stocking.

I didn’t create my stocking to proselytize.  I didn’t expect anyone to come racing to my desk to ask me to “tell them more” about my own faith—and no one has.  Each stocking represented the person who decorated it and I hope that mine serves as a representation of me and who I believe in.  I know I’ve had moments in my work life as well as my public and private life where my actions or words may have made people wonder if my belief is for appearance sake or a truly held conviction.  But I hope that my attempts to make things right after my stumbles have shown the full intent of who the Savior is and what He did on my behalf.  I love the Christmas season.  I am grateful for its reminder of hope and redemption.  Without the birth of the Savior in that lowly stable, I would not have the ability to overcome my mistakes.  Without His condescension to walk among His brothers and sisters and live a sinless life, I would have no hope in returning to my Heavenly Father’s presence.  Why not sum up my feeling of gratitude for Him on a Christmas stocking. J