Truth and Tolerance

I've included this article in my blog because it deals with a very pertinent topic to all of us. Although it mentions a few scriptures unique to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and includes some quotations from the leaders of the church, it is predominantly backed by Biblical scriptures. It has answered a lot of questions for me and I am hoping that it does the same for you.

My dear young brothers and sisters, Kristen and I feel privileged to be with you on this significant occasion. We meet on 9/11, the tenth anniversary of an event that has profoundly influenced our lives and thinking, and will do so for many years to come. It is forever associated with the Twin Towers.
I have felt impressed to speak this evening about another set of twins, the twin ideas of Truth and Tolerance. These subjects were not chosen because they are uniquely your concern as young adults, like the dating, hanging out, and marriage I described to this audience some years ago. My treatment of Truth and Tolerance will invite you to consider and to teach these twin subjects because they are vital to the rising generation, in which you are the senior members.
I. Truth
First, truth. We believe in absolute truth, including the existence of God and the right and wrong established by His commandments. We sing:
Tho the heavens depart and the earth’s fountains burst,
Truth, the sum of existence, will weather the worst,
Eternal, unchanged, evermore[1].
In the words of President Joseph F. Smith:
“We believe in all truth, no matter to what subject it may refer. No sect or religious denomination in the world possesses a single principle of truth that we do not accept or that we will reject. We are willing to receive all truth, from whatever source it may come; for truth will stand, truth will endure.”[2]
The existence and nature of truth is one of the fundamental questions of mortal life. Jesus told the Roman governor Pilate that He came into the world to “bear witness unto the truth.” “What is truth?” that unbeliever responded (John 18:37-38). In earlier times the Savior had declared, “I am the way, the truth, and the life” (John 14:6). In modern revelation He declared: “Truth is knowledge of things as they are, and as they were, and as they are to come” (D&C 93:24).
My young brothers and sisters, we know that the existence of God and the existence of absolute truth are fundamental to life on this earth, whether they are believed or not. We also know that evil exists and that some things are simply, seriously, and everlastingly wrong. You whom I address shun evil and seek truth. I salute you for your righteous actions and your righteous desires. As an Apostle of the Lord Jesus Christ, I seek to help you make right choices in a world that is increasingly polarized between belief and disbelief, between good and evil.
Shocking reports of large-scale thievery and lying in civilized societies in the last two months suggest a moral vacuum in which many have little sense of right and wrong. Last month’s widespread rioting and pillaging in Britain and the scandalous widespread cheating by teachers on state-mandated tests in elementary and middle schools in Atlanta, Georgia have caused many to wonder whether we are losing the moral foundation western countries have received from their Judeo-Christian heritage.[3]
It is well to worry about our moral foundation. We live in a world where more and more persons of influence are teaching and acting out a belief that there is no absolute right and wrong, that all authority and all rules of behavior are man-made choices that can prevail over the commandments of God. Many even question whether there is a God.
The philosophy of moral relativism, which holds that each person is free to choose for himself what is right and wrong, is becoming the unofficial creed for many in America and other western nations. At the extreme level, evil acts that used to be localized and covered up like a boil are now legalized and paraded like a banner. Persuaded by this philosophy, many of the rising generation—youth and young adults—are caught up in self-serving pleasures, pagan painting and piercing of body parts, foul language, revealing attire, pornography, dishonesty, and degrading sexual indulgence.
On the foundation belief in right and wrong there is an alarming contrast between the older and the younger generations. According to survey data of two decades ago, 80 percent of American adults believed “there are clear guidelines about what’s good and evil that apply to everyone regardless of the situation.”[4] In contrast, a more recent poll of college seniors suggests that “three-quarters of [them] believe that the difference between right and wrong is relative.”[5]
Many religious leaders teach the existence of God as the Ultimate Lawgiver, by whose action certain behavior is absolutely right and true and other behavior is absolutely wrong and untrue.[6] Bible and Book of Mormon prophets foresaw this time, when men would be “lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God” (2 Tim. 3:4) and, indeed, when men would deny God (Jude 1:4; 2 Ne. 28:5; Moroni 7:17; D&C 29:22).
In this troubled circumstance we who believe in God and the corollary truth of absolute right and wrong have the challenge of living in a godless and increasingly amoral world. In this circumstance, all of us—and especially you of the rising generation—have a duty to stand up and speak to affirm that God exists and that there are absolute truths His commandments establish. In doing so, we Latter-day Saints rely on the truth we sing in the hymn I quoted earlier:
The pillar of truth will endure to the last,
And its firm-rooted bulwarks withstand the rude blast
And the wreck of the fell tyrant’s hopes.[7]
As I face this audience of committed young people, I know that some of you may be wondering why I am speaking about what is obvious to you, and what you might assume is obvious to others. Recall the survey data I mentioned earlier, suggesting that about three-quarters of all college seniors believe that the difference between right and wrong is relative.
I have chosen to speak about truth because teachers in schools, colleges, and universities are teaching and practicing relative morality. This is shaping the attitudes of many young Americans who are taking their places as the teachers of our children and the shapers of public attitudes through the media and popular entertainment. This philosophy of moral relativism denies what millions of believing Christians, Jews and Muslims consider fundamental, and this denial creates serious problems for all of us. What believers should do about this introduces the second of my twin subjects, “Tolerance.”
II.
Tolerance is defined as a friendly and fair attitude toward unfamiliar opinions and practices or toward the persons who hold or practice them. As modern transportation and communication have brought all of us into closer proximity to different peoples and different ideas, we have greater need for tolerance. When I was a young adult, about sixty years ago, it was only in books and magazines that most Americans were exposed to great differences in cultures, values and peoples. Now we experience such differences in television and the internet, and often in personal interactions in our neighborhoods and the marketplace.
This greater exposure to diversity both enriches our lives and complicates them. We are enriched by associations with different peoples, which remind us of the wonderful diversity of the children of God. But diversities in cultures and values also challenge us to identify what can be embraced as consistent with our gospel culture and values and what cannot. In this way diversity increases the potential for conflict and requires us to be more thoughtful about the nature of tolerance. What is tolerance, when does it apply, and when does it not apply?
This is a harder question for those who affirm the existence of God and absolute truth than for those who believe in moral relativism. The weaker one’s belief in God and the fewer one’s moral absolutes, the fewer the occasions when the ideas or practices of others will confront one with the challenge to be tolerant. For example, an atheist has no need to decide what kinds and occasions of profanity or blasphemy can be tolerated and what kinds should be confronted. Persons who don’t believe in God or in absolute truth in moral matters can see themselves as the most tolerant of persons. For them, almost anything goes. “You do your thing and I’ll do my thing” is the popular description. This belief system can tolerate almost any behavior and almost any persons. Unfortunately, some who believe in moral relativism seem to have difficulty tolerating those who insist that there is a God who should be respected and certain moral absolutes that should be observed.
III.
I will say no more about the tolerance or intolerance of non-believers. I am speaking to an audience of Latter-day Saints who believe in God and in absolute truth. What does tolerance mean to us and to other believers, and what are our special challenges in applying it?
I begin with three absolute truths. I express them as an Apostle of the Lord Jesus Christ, but I believe that most of these ideas are shared by believers generally.
First, all persons are brothers and sisters under God, taught within their various religions to love and do good to one another. President Gordon B. Hinckley expressed this idea for Latter-day Saints:
“Each of us [from various religious denominations] believes in the fatherhood of God, although we may differ in our interpretations of Him. Each of us is part of a great family, the human family, sons and daughters of God, and therefore brothers and sisters. We must work harder to build mutual respect, and attitude of forbearance, with tolerance one for another regardless of the doctrines and philosophies which we may espouse.”[8]
Note that President Hinckley spoke of “mutual respect” as well as tolerance. Speaking at BYU a decade later, a Muslim scholar, Dr. Alwi Shihab, an Indonesian, elaborated that idea in these words:
“To tolerate something is to learn to live with it, even when you think it is wrong and downright evil. . . . We must go, I believe, beyond tolerance if we are to achieve harmony in our world.”
Relying on the teachings of the Quran, Dr. Shihab continued:
“We must respect this God-given dignity in every human being, even in our enemies. For the goal of all human relations—whether they are religious, social, political, or economic—ought to be cooperation and mutual respect.”[9]
Living together with mutual respect for one another’s differences is a challenge in today’s world. However—and here I express a second absolute truth—this living with differences is what the Gospel of Jesus Christ teaches us we must do.
The kingdom of God is like a leaven, Jesus taught (Matt. 13:33). A leaven—yeast—is hidden away in the larger mass until the whole is leavened, which means raised by its influence. Our Savior also taught that His followers will have tribulation in the world (see John 16:33), that their numbers and dominions will be small (see 1 Ne. 14:12) and that they will be hated because they are not of the world (see John 17:14). But that is our role. We are called to live with other children of God who do not share our faith or our values, and who do not have the covenant obligations we have assumed. So it was that at the conclusion of His ministry, Jesus prayed to the Father, “not that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil” (John 17:15). We are to be in the world, but not of the world.
Since followers of Jesus Christ are commanded to be a leaven—not to be taken out of the world, but to remain in it—we must seek tolerance from those who hate us for not being of the world. As part of this, we will sometimes need to challenge laws that would impair our freedom to practice our faiths, doing so in reliance on our constitutional rights to the free exercise of religion. As described by an attorney supporting a Lutheran school in a case now before the United States Supreme Court, the big concern is “the ability of people of all faiths to work out their relationship with God and one another without the government looking over their shoulder.”[10] That is why we need understanding and support—including your understanding and support—when we must contend for religious freedom.
We must also practice tolerance and respect toward others. As the Apostle Paul taught, Christians should “follow after the things that make for peace” (Rom. 14:19), and as much as possible “live peaceably with all men” (Rom. 12:18). Consequently, we should be alert to honor the good we should see in all people and in many opinions and practices that differ from our own. As the Book of Mormon teaches
“all things which are good cometh of God; . . . wherefore, every thing which inviteth and enticeth to do good, and to love God, and to serve him, is inspired of God. Wherefore, take heed . . . that ye do not judge . . . that which is good and of God to be of the devil” (Moroni 7:12-14).
That approach to differences will yield tolerance and also respect.
IV.
Our tolerance and respect for others and their beliefs does not cause us to abandon our commitment to the truths we understand and the covenants we have made. That is a third absolute truth. We are cast as combatants in the war between truth and error. There is no middle ground. We must stand up for truth, even while we practice tolerance and respect for beliefs and ideas different from our own and for the people who hold them.
While we must practice tolerance and respect for others and their beliefs, including their constitutional freedom to explain and advocate their positions, we are not required to respect and tolerate wrong behavior. Our duty to truth requires us to seek relief from some behavior that is wrong. This is easy as to extreme behaviors that most believers and non-believers recognize as wrong or unacceptable. For example, we must all deplore murder or other terrorist behavior, even when done by extremists in the name of religion. And we must all oppose violence and thievery.
As to less extreme behaviors, where even believers disagree on whether or not they are wrong, the nature and extent of what we should tolerate is much more difficult to define. Thus, a thoughtful LDS woman wrote me about her concern that “the world’s definition of ‘tolerance’ seems to be increasingly used in relation to tolerating wicked lifestyles.” She asked how the Lord would define “tolerance.”[11]
President Boyd K. Packer gave an inspired introduction to this subject. Speaking to an audience of Institute students three years ago he said:
“The word tolerance does not stand alone. It requires an object and a response to qualify it as a virtue. . . . Tolerance is often demanded but seldom returned. Beware of the word tolerance. It is a very unstable virtue.”[12]
This inspired caution reminds us that for persons who believe in absolute truth, tolerance for behavior is like a two-sided coin. Tolerance or respect is on one side of the coin, but truth is always on the other. You cannot possess or use the coin of tolerance without being conscious of both sides.
Our Savior applied this principle. When he faced the woman taken in adultery, Jesus spoke the comforting words of tolerance: “Neither do I condemn thee.” Then, as he sent her away, he spoke the commanding words of truth: “Go and sin no more” (John 8:11). We should all be edified and strengthened by this example of speaking both tolerance and truth: kindness in the communication, but firmness in the truth.
Let us consider how to apply that example to some other behaviors. Another thoughtful LDS member wrote:
“In Mosiah 18:9, Alma tells us that when we are baptized we covenant ‘to stand as “witnesses” of God at all times and in all things, and in all places that ye may be in.’ . . . What does this scripture mean for our day and how can it be applied by Latter-day Saints?
“Living in the mission field, I often hear the name of the Lord taken in vain, and I also have acquaintances who tell me that they are living with their boyfriends. I have found that observance of the Sabbath is almost obsolete. How can I keep my covenant to stand as a witness and not offend these people?”[13]
Profanity, cohabitation, and Sabbath-breaking—excellent examples to illustrate how Latter-day Saints might balance their competing duties to truth and tolerance in their own lives in these different circumstances.
I begin with our personal conduct, including the teaching of our children. In applying the sometimes competing demands of truth and tolerance in these three behaviors and many others we should not be tolerant with ourselves. We should be ruled by the demands of truth. We should be strong in keeping the commandments and our covenants, and we should repent and improve when we fall short. As President Thomas S. Monson taught us in the conference where he was sustained as our prophet:
“My young friends, be strong. . . . The face of sin today often wears the mask of tolerance. Do not be deceived; behind that façade is heartache, unhappiness, and pain. You know what is right and what is wrong, and no disguise, however appealing, can change that. The character of transgression remains the same. If your so-called friends urge you to do anything you know to be wrong, you be the one to make a stand for right, even if you stand alone.”[14]
Similarly, with our children and others we have a duty to teach—such as in our Church callings—our duty to truth is paramount. Of course, teaching efforts only bear fruit through the agency of others, so they must always be done with love, patience, and persuasion.
I turn now to the obligations of truth and tolerance in our personal relations with associates who use profanity in our presence, who live with a partner out of wedlock, or who do not observe the Sabbath day appropriately? How should we react toward and communicate with them?
Our obligation to tolerance means that none of these behaviors—or others we consider deviations from the truth—should ever cause us to react with hateful communications or unkind actions. But our obligation to truth has its own set of requirements and its own set of blessings. When we “speak every man truth with his neighbour,” and when we “[speak] the truth in love,” as the Apostle Paul taught (Eph. 4:25, 15), we are acting as servants of the Lord Jesus Christ, doing His work. Angels will stand with us and He will send His Holy Spirit to guide us.
In this sensitive matter we should first consider whether or the extent to which we should communicate to our associates what we know to be true about their behavior. In most cases this decision can depend on how directly we are personally affected by it.
Profanity consistently used in our presence is an appropriate cause for us to communicate the fact that this is offensive to us. Profanity used out of our presence by non-believers probably would not be an occasion for us to confront the offenders.
Cohabitation we know to be a serious sin, in which Latter-day Saints must not engage, whatever the circumstances. When practiced by those around us, it can be private behavior or something we are asked to condone, sponsor, or facilitate. In the balance between truth and tolerance, tolerance can be dominant where the behavior does not involve us personally. If the cohabitation does involve us personally, we should be governed by our duty to truth. For example, it is one thing to ignore serious sins when they are private; it is quite another thing to be asked to sponsor or impliedly endorse them, such as by housing them in our own homes.
On Sabbath observance, Latter-day Saints know that we are taught to observe the Sabbath Day in a different way than many other Christians. Most of us are troubled by packed shopping centers and other commercial activities on the Sabbath. Perhaps we should explain our belief that our observance of the Sabbath, including our partaking of the sacrament, restores us spiritually and makes us better people for the rest of the week. Then, to other believers, we might express appreciation for the fact that we share common ground on what is most vital because each of us believes in God and in the existence of absolute truth, even though we differ in our definitions of those fundamentals. Beyond that, we should remember the Savior’s teaching that we should avoid contention (see 3 Ne. 11:29-30) and that our example and our preaching should “be the warning voice, every man to his neighbor, in mildness and in meekness” (D&C 38:41).
In all of this we should not presume to judge our neighbors or associates on the ultimate effect of their behaviors. That judgment is the Lord’s, not ours. Even He refrained from a final mortal judgment of the woman taken in adultery (John 8:11). Tolerance requires a similar refraining in our judgment of others.
V.
Having discussed the balancing of truth and tolerance in our personal behavior and in our relations with associates, I come to a different and more difficult circumstance. When believers enter the public square to try to influence the making or the administration of laws motivated by their beliefs, they should apply some different principles. As young adults, you may wonder why I am speaking to you about the principles we should follow when we seek government action, such as by the legislature. You might say, “That is a matter for senior Church authorities to handle.” I describe these principles to you young adults because you are current members and future leaders of the Church of Jesus Christ, and you will need to decide these kinds of questions sooner than you think. You need to understand how our efforts in the public square are informed by the balance between truth and tolerance.
Whether or how we might seek to obtain laws that would compel or influence behavior that we deem desirable because of our belief in God and His commandments is too large a subject for adequate treatment in the concluding few minutes of my talk. I will, therefore, limit myself to describing four paramount principles that should govern such an effort.
First, when believers in Jesus Christ take their views of truth into the public square they must seek the inspiration of the Lord to be selective and wise in choosing which true principles they seek to promote by law or executive action. Generally, they should refrain from seeking laws or administrative action to facilitate beliefs that are distinctive to believers, such as the enforcement of acts of worship, even by implication. Believers can be less cautious in seeking government action that would serve principles broader than merely facilitating the practice of their beliefs, such as laws concerning public health, safety and morals.
In any event, as defenders of the faith, believers can and must seek laws that will preserve religious freedom. Along with the ascendancy of moral relativism, the United States is experiencing a disturbing reduction in overall public esteem for religion. Once an accepted part of American life, religion is now suspect in the minds of many. To them it has become something that must prove its legitimacy as a part of our public life. Some influential voices even question the extent to which our constitutions should protect the free exercise of religion, including the right to practice and preach religious principles.
This is a vital matter on which we who believe in a Supreme Being who has established absolute right and wrong in human behavior must unite to insist on our time-honored constitutional rights to exercise our religion, to vote our consciences on public issues, and to participate in elections and debates in the public square and the halls of justice. In doing so we stand with angels. We must also stand shoulder to shoulder with other believers to preserve and strengthen the freedom to advocate and practice our religious beliefs, whatever they are. For this purpose we must walk together on the same path in order to secure our freedom to pursue our separate ways when that is necessary according to our separate beliefs. Guided by Heaven in this righteous cause, our words will be sweet and find place in the hearts of many.
Second, when believers seek to promote their positions in the public square, their methods and their advocacy should always be tolerant of the opinions and positions of those who do not share their beliefs. We should not add to the extremism that divides our society. As believers we must always speak with love and show patience, understanding, and compassion toward our adversaries. Christian believers are under command to love their neighbors (Luke 10:27), to forgive (Matt. 18:21-35), and to do good to those who despitefully use them (Matt. 5:44). They should always remember the Savior’s teaching that we “bless them that curse [us], do good to them that hate [us], and pray for them which despitefully use [us], and persecute [us]” (Matt. 5:44). As believers we should also frame our arguments and positions in ways that contribute to the reasoned discussion and accommodation that are essential to democratic government in a pluralistic society. By this means we will contribute to the civility that is essential to preserve our civilization.
Third, believers should not be deterred by the familiar charge that they are trying to legislate morality. Many areas of the law are based on Judeo/Christian morality and have been for centuries. Our civilization is based on morality and cannot exist without it. As John Adams declared, “Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other.”[15]
Fourth, believers should not shrink from seeking laws to maintain public conditions or policies that assist them in practicing the requirements of their faith where those conditions or policies are also favorable to the public health, safety or morals. For example, even though religious beliefs are behind many criminal laws and some family laws, such laws have a long-standing history of appropriateness in democratic societies. But where believers are in the majority they should always be sensitive to the views of the minority.
We Latter-day Saints are sometimes accused of being self-righteous and intolerant of others, especially where we are in the majority or where others are in the majority and our beliefs cause us to oppose them. Surely Latter-day Saints do need to be more wise and skillful in explaining and pursuing our views and in exercising our influence when we have it.
That is the spirit of the two-sided coin of Truth and Tolerance. President Thomas S. Monson has provided an excellent example of the practice of these twin virtues. Throughout his life he has been exemplary in reaching out and working with the members and leaders of other faiths, in cooperative efforts on matters of common interest, and in the Christian fellowship and concern that have no denominational boundaries.[16]
Finally, the spirit of our balance of truth and tolerance is applied in these words of President Gordon B. Hinckley:
“Let us reach out to those in our community who are not of our faith. Let us be good neighbors, kind and generous and gracious. Let us be involved in good community causes. There may be situations, there will be situations, where, with serious moral issues involved, we cannot bend on matters of principle. But in such instances we can politely disagree without being disagreeable. We can acknowledge the sincerity of those whose positions we cannot accept. We can speak of principles rather than personalities.”[17]
VI.
I close with this assurance and this testimony.
The Bible teaches that one of the functions of a prophet is to be a “watchman” to warn Israel (Ezek. 3:17, 33:7). In revelation the Lord added this parable for modern Zion: “Set . . . a watchman upon the tower,” who will “[see] the enemy while he [is] yet afar off” and give warning to save the vineyard “from the hands of the destroyer” (D&C 101:45, 54).
I have spoken to you as one of those watchmen, on the subject the Spirit has assigned me. I assure you that my message is true. If you have doubts about this or if you have questions about how to apply these principles in your own life, I urge you to seek guidance from the same Source.
On the broader question being widely agitated by the atheists of our day, I proclaim my knowledge that God lives! His creations witness His existence and His servants hear and proclaim His voice. Modern revelation teaches that some have the gift to know that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, crucified for the sins of the world, and that it is given to others to believe on their words (D&C 40:13-14). As one who knows, I invite you to believe on my words.
I testify of Jesus Christ, the Lord of the vineyard. He is our Savior, and He reaches out to each of us with the timeless invitation to receive His peace by learning of Him and by walking in His way (D&C 19:23):
“Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.
“Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.
“For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light” (Matthew 11:28-30).
In the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

tp://newsroom.lds.org/article/-truth-and-tolerance-elder-dallin-h-oaks

Chou-chou's Growth Chart

Leah wanted to see what Chou-chou looks like now, so it follows that everyone should know from whence she came. This is one of her very first baby pictures. She was about 5 months old and weighed about 350 pounds. She was dirty because she wouldn't let anyone near enough to groom her. She was very stubborn, we hadn't bonded, and all she cared about was food. I didn't like her much back then and hoped she'd pretty-up. But she was mine.

This picture was taken one year later. At this stage she was a teeny-bopper, or preadolescent. If one takes note of how large she is compared to me, one may see the growth spurt apparent in the next photos. Notice that she is still eating and ignoring me.

This is Chou-chou about a half year later. I like this one because she is actually attending to things going on around her, letting me groom her, and is somewhat civilized. She is a genuine adolescent horse at this point, and I might add, very attractive.

Finally, we have a current picture of Chou-chou. Need I mention how BIG she is?!! Her size directly contradicts my wishes. I wanted, "a short horse. (Never climb on anything taller than you are willing to fall off of.)" Craig and Steven specifically looked for a fox trotter foal with small parents. That's the way it goes. She is a late adolescent and weighs about half a ton. She will continue to grow for at least another year. What that means is that if push comes to shove, she will win. What THAT means is that I have to be a very clever trainer if I want to get my way.
This is my current favorite picture of Chou. Is she gorgeous or what? And, in answer to the running question, yes, we finally bonded.

Letter to Hetheringtons

Dear Mike and Katherine,
I apologize for dissing your warning. It is true that a trailer is "something that makes a hole in the air into which you pour money." Cases and points:
Trip #1: Mammoth Hot Springs, Yellowstone.
Distance Traveled: 110 ml.
Duration: 3 days, 2 nights.
Goal: Hear elk bugle; see thermal features.
Report:
Leaving at 0-dark:30 gave us a head start sufficient to get a camping space this time. We set up camp, took a walk around the campgrounds, ate dinner, and waited for nature's symphony to begin--which it definitely did. The moon was full and love was in the air: bull elks were bugling to their harems and coyotes were howling to their mates. The pheromones were flying!
The next morning, after consulting our Yellowstone 101 textbook, we took a walk around the thermal attractions just so we could say we'd done it. My how they've changed since...well...last week, come to think of it. This is because the park is migrating north. Contrary to popular belief, this is due neither to global warming nor the national debt. It is a natural phenomenon that has been going on for centuries. It just wants to get away from the tourists.
And a fine job it's doing. Because of its migration rate of one inch per year, some of the most popular features are drying up. But then again, some new ones are being born. For instance, although Cleopatra Terrace looks more like Lucifer's Living room and Canary Spring should be renamed Mud Sculpture, there is a new, lovely terrace that is completely unnamed. We would submit the name Lemon Land because it's kind of yellowish, but could find no "Name the Thermal Feature Contest" entry forms.
After taking some pictures, we returned to camp. That evening we decided to do some field work, so we drove to the common area of Mammoth to observe the drama. At the prospect of watching a grand spectacle, cars full of fellow researchers were parked all over the place, just like a drive-in movie. The bulls were again bugling, but this time we witnessed and could literally interpret their dance of passion. It went like this:
Bull Elk: Bugle, bugle! Translation--Girls, get back here! There's another bull and harem too close for my own comfort.
Herd's reaction: Huh? Did you hear something? Oh, this looks delicious.
Bull Elk: Big sigh I better round them up and push them back to our lawn.
Herd's reaction: Have you tasted this stuff? It's pretty good.
Bull Elk: Bugle, bugle! Go back to the other lawn. Watch the traffic and move it! I'll never get any dinner at this rate.
Herd's reaction: What's my calf doing over there? Ah! Eating! Maybe there's enough for me too.
After watching the poor bulls run around trying to herd their ladies, and worrying themselves to death, we had to wonder how in the world the bulls got enough to eat to sustain life during the winter months. As mere witnesses, we were exhausted, so after about 45 minutes we had to return to camp and rest up.
As is good practice, we checked our meters.
Concern: Why is our energy supply running out so quickly? What if we can't pull in the slide-out when it's time to leave?
Solution: Do not use any conveniences, go home early (tomorrow morning), buy a generator. Ca-ching!!!
Trip #2: Dead Indian Campground
Distance Traveled: 45 ml.
Duration: 3 days, 2 nights.
Goal: Relax and recreate with the Banks family.
Report:
Day 1: We got into camp late due to a slew of mini setbacks. We spent 45 minutes parking the trailer, visited with the Banks, cooked, ate, and ate, and ate, played a parlour game, and ate.
Day 2: We observed the snow that fell on the mountains during the night. We also observed that the inside of the trailer was filling with gravel because we had no mat outside on which to wipe our feet. (Previous conversation; Steve, "Why do we need two sets of door mats?" Me, "One on the outside of both doors and one on the inside." Steve, "That sounds like over-kill." Me, "Never mind.") Then we ate, ate some more, did some crafts, played a parlour game, ate and retired. (This is where it starts falling apart.)
In the middle of the night we noticed that the water pump was still running. We also observed that it had rained during the night and that now, not only was the trailer filling up with gravel, it was also filling up with mud.
Concerns: Why didn't the water pump automatically turn off? After all, it's called--an automatic water pump. What if the pump burns up? Do you think the linoleum used in this trailer can withstand muddy gravel?
Solution: Go home early (tomorrow morning). Take the trailer in for service. Ca-ching!!! And while we're at it, buy door mats--an inside and outside doormat for each door.
Again, our sincerest apologies for dissing your sage warnings. You were so right! We thought a horse was going to bankrupt us--we had no idea!
Love,
The Bauers
P.S. Since Yellowstone is Mother Nature's breeding ground, I suggest they rename Liberty Cap, Cialis Peak. Am I wrong?

Anniversary in Seattle

Monday, Sept. 12, 2011
We left Cody at 8:30 A.M. and drove all day, stopping twice. We stopped in Bozeman to reminisce about all the furniture we had bought at the Gallatin Furniture Store and in Cour d'alene to look at an Irish import store which I found fascinating and cute as a button. We finally stopped in Ellensburg, WA. *(II Nephi 7)
Tuesday, Sept. 13, 2011
We left Ellensburg and visited my cousins, Valine and Marianne (maiden names Tobler. I have no idea what their last names are now). Valine lives just outside of Seattle and has just lost her husband. I wanted to visit with her about the suicide since we had gone through a suicide ourselves at the beginning of our marriage. Marianne was there as a support after the trauma. It was a good visit, but not as personal as I had wished.
We continued to Seattle and checked into our hotel. We went to look around a little and stumbled into Bothell, a town just outside Seattle. We ate in a sushi restaurant there and returned to our room. (II Nephi 7)
Wednesday, Sept. 14, 2011
Because I was not feeling well, Steven gave me a priesthood blessing. Among other things, he said that people don't have power over me. That evening I read, "fear not the reproach of men, neither be afraid of their revilings...I ma he that comforteth you. Behold, who art thou, that thou shouldt be afraid of man...And forgettest the Lord thy maker...and hast feared continually everyday, because of the fury of the oppressor, as if he were ready to destroy?" (II Nephi 8: 7, 12, 13)
Seattle is beautiful! We visited Pike Market (Seattle's Fisherman's Warf). Besides fish, there were tables and tables of flowers; big bouquets of glorious flowers for $5.00 a bunch. Steven reflected on how nice it would be to have a party and pick up some flowers to have all over the house for guests to enjoy. We could not resist the fruit stands. We bought white peaches and enjoyed them as we walked. There was also a stall that offered lavender products. I had always wondered why lavender was sold in the garden centers as herbs. Since we had never eaten a food with lavender in it, we bought some lavender cookies and enjoyed them.
There was so much to see at the market that seemed to have no end. There were curio shops galore. Some were ethnic, others featured collectible treasures. Some were art shops featuring local artists and some defied explanation.
(Special note: It was at this juncture that I noticed that Steve was taking pictures of me but refused for me to photograph him. I told him--and I'm perfectly serious--that I will no longer pose for him until he lets me take a picture of his beautiful countenance. This occasioned his promise that he would from then on take pictures of my backside, which he did, but which are not included.)
Jared was eagerly waiting for us on campus so we hastened there and met up with him on the University of Washington quad. He gave us a tour of the campus. I was impressed by several things: First, no matter how much I love BYU and the University of Utah, they can't hold a candle to the University of WA. Second, Jared was very well informed on campus architecture and spoke at length on the subject as we passsed each building. He also took us through the herb gardens and finally to his office, where he gave us each one of his business cards. (My son has business cards!)
The three of us went downtown to see Anna Sexauer (she confirmed my assumption that she got a lot of teasing over that name during high school), Jared's new girlfriend. Anna is very interesting, intelligent, considerate, and attractive. I could go on and on, but time prohibits my singing her praises. At dinner, Jared and Anna presented Steven and me with an anniversary gift basket. (Score big time!) It held scone mix, smoked salmon and some other treasures.
All of us ordered sea food, which caused me to think that perhaps Jared was not as devout in his vegetarianism was as he once was.
After dinner, Jared gave us a special tour of Seattle. We walked through several parks (the names of which have completely fled my memory. Getting old has its down-sides) and photographed Troll Street, in particular, the end of Troll Street. Check it out: What else would you expect to find under a bridge on Troll Street? Notice that in his right hand he is holding a real, no kidding Volkswagen Beetle. (II Nephi 8)
Thursday, Sept. 15, 2011
Before checking out, Steven found a news paper with reports on the biggest news-makers from each state. Our states of interest were CA and WY, of course. Compare and contrast their big news items. California: Novato--Police are trying to determine the source of a rocket-porpelled-grenade launcher found in the back seat of an SUV being driven by a 15-year-old... Wyoming: Casper--Wildlife officials are looking for help solving a weekend deer poaching case.
We left the hotel early and drove north to Anacortes Island. From there we caught the ferry to Friday Harbor on San Juan Island. The crossing took about an hour so I found a puzzle in a passengers' area and amused myself to Steven's dismay. "How can you work a puzzle when there is so much scenery out there?" "I dunno. I guess I like puzzles about as much as you like great scenery," was all I could come up with.
San Juan Island is beautiful, historic, and brimming with artistic input. We checked into our Bed and Breakfast, the Kirk House. The owner showed us to our room. But of greatest interest was the recycled glass art in the yard. Now I have a new way to express myself artistically--Thanks a lot.
We drove completely around the island, stopping to pick the wild blackberries which grow rampant there. One of the most beautiful places was Roche Harbor. It looked like a European village and boasted the many celebrities that have stayed there, including John Wayne. However, I was most taken by its post office, which consisted of a closet and this one door.
We were appropriately impressed with the island's alpaca farm but even more impressed with the prices they charged. Obviously, the owners are very proud of their products. But the pride of the island is Mona. Everyone on the island knows about Mona, but they don't put her in the tourist guide books, which makes no sense. Here is a picture of her, smiling for the camera: Is she a beauty or what? Rumor has it that she is a retired circus performer. I'm sorry, but I'm having a hard time believing that any circus has a retirement plan sufficient for a camel to retire to San Juan Island. It's very expensive. We spent a great deal of time at the Westcott Bay Reserve Sculpture Park. Some of the art was wonderful and some of the sculptures we didn't fully appreciate.
After a big day of sight seeing, Steven and I dined at Friday Harbor, watched a movie in our room, and retired.(II Nephi 8)
Friday, Sept. 16, 2011
Happy Anniversary to us! This is the first anniversary we've spent together in five years. We will celebrate with Jared and Anna tomorrow. We did some pre-Christmas shopping in Friday Harbor. Books are always good and there were a plethora to choose from. We also drove out to Pelindaba Lavender Farm (where I left my heart). There are over 400 different types of lavender. (I am honor bound to find the kind that grows in Cody.) The shop featured 200 or so locally made lavender products, consisting of soaps, sachets, foods (including ice cream), pesticides, and skin care products, to name just a few. (II Nephi 9)
Maybe I was having too much fun on the San Juan Islands or maybe I was too busy visiting with Jared and Anna, or maybe the lavender really was inebriating, but I failed to make entries for Saturday, Sunday or Monday. Rest assured that we had scripture study together and I had personal scripture study every night. On Saturday we returned to the lavender farm to bask again in the greatest herb ever created. While I harvested my own intoxicating armful, and since photos from the shop ran about $50.00 (No way!), Steven spent the better part of the visit photographing the rows. Taking about 100 pictures, he was disappointed that we arrived at the end of the season, when the color had begun to fade. I thought he'd done admirably with what he had to work with and I plan to display them in the attic bath. (This is considered a great honor in Bauerberg.)
We met up with Anna and Jared in the Farmer's Market. Seattle produce is impressive, to say the least. We had already bought Jared some Halloween things because he loves Halloween, so we presented him with them at this time. He liked the orange hand towel that featured a spider and the caption, "Website under construction." Anna got an armful of lavender.
Reservations to go whale watching with San Juan Safaris had been made the day before. "In August we saw orcas 45 out of 47 trips," the crew boasted. So we boarded the ship and set out to sea with Captain Jack Sparrow. Here are a few of the things we saw: exotic deer, lazy sea lions, bald eagles, and possibly some dolphin backs. But they were too quick for me to tell whether they were hallucinations or the real thing. Here is what we did NOT see: Imagine our disappointment. Imagine our emotions as we realized we'd been lead down the rosey path. We fell for it: this was September, not August. Silly us! Everybody knows that September is the month that all Orcas go back to school. Not to say that the Whaling people were entirely underhanded. First, they did state right up front that it was supposed to be a three hour tour. It was not their fault that we were not paying attention to their warning (Gilligan's Island--disaster waiting--get it?) And second, they rode us around for about 4 hours trying to scare up a whale. So we had to admit that for a bunch of pirates, they treated us relatively fairly.
Reservations had been made to dine at 7:00 which gave us some time to show Anna a little of the island. Jared, having lived on San Juan for a summer (actually there are very few places in the world that Jared has NOT lived for a summer), took us to a local's beach. It was a drift wood collector's paradise and I wanted a little piece of the island as a rememberance. As soon as we hit sand, the most magnificent rock in the world (a three inch granite sphere) begged to go home with me. It practically jumped into the car! As we walked, we found two completely adorable pieces of drift wood to add to my modest collection.
Enough is enough and we still wanted to introduce Mona, of camel distinction, to Anna. However during our return walk, Steven, being the friendly guy that he is, asked a man with two little boys why he brought firewood to a beach literally choked with driftwood. "Because you're not supposed to use it." (Curse his gregarious nature!) Steve turned around and read the sign, "State Beach" and we gently put our finds down and sulked back to the car. As a last gesture, I booted my pet rock out of the car and we drove away. Sometimes being a good citizen is painful.
After we visited Mona, who was not as amenable to visitors as before (possibly because she had had a full day of posing for tourists), we sought out our restaurant. Once again we dined sumptiously on seafood, reserving space for dessert in honor of our 41st anniversary-- we always have some sort of decadent dessert, even when Steven and I are separated by two states. It was rather late and Jared was very tired after all his studies and a full day of sight-seeing, so we said good night.
On Sunday we checked out and started the drive home. We spent the night in an outrageously expensive Hampton Inn in Butte. (Go figure! We spent about the same money at a Marriott in Salt Lake with a blown-glass chandelier and some points of interest nearby.) We returned to Cody at about 6:00 P.M. During our journey we read "The Places in Between" and "The Full Cupboard of Life." Everyday during our trip Steven and I read from the Book of Mormon and I studied II Nephi's recordings of Isaiah.
*Scriptural references indicate my reading that day.

Steve and Leslie's Trailer's Maiden Voyage

My uncle Noall was one of those playful, adventurous people who loved nothing more than to take risks and terrorize his nieces. I vividly remember an incident when I was about 10 years old when he took us out on his ski boat and raced it full speed toward jagged cliffs, screaming, "I can't stop the boat! We're all going to die!" At the last nanosecond he would veer away, saving us so he could repeat his little joke multiple times. For a finale, the boat stalled and we had to row it home.
I strongly suspect that he learned to fly just to see the horror in my eyes as he buzzed the sheep pens near the family home site at Lakeside, UT. Why did I ever get in his airplane to begin with?
Need I discuss how much I hated the motor home he bought? Suffice it to say that the one and only trip I made in it screwed up my biorhythms for quite some time. Would it come as a surprise to anyone that I never wanted to enter another RV/boat/private airplane as long as I lived?
Enter Steven, the woodsie; at one with the mountains and pines; Mother Nature's Son. Before we were married, he invited me along on an overnight camping trip with his father and brother. (Notice that his mother and sister declined the opportunity.) We slept out under the stars and got dirty. This, in essence, was what I got out of it.
So what would be more natural and practical than a camping honeymoon? We hold these truths to be self-evident: It's a great way to get to know one another. I caught a cold and lived in the tent among a growing mountain of Kleenexes--pink ones to match my nightgown. We went home early.
Back-packing: New pack, new hiking boots, new sleeping bag, just for me, and another cold.
Boat camping with Cecil Bullard: What was I thinking? Just shoot me!
Then the Lawrences bought a motor home. It was sleek. It was clean. It was easy to operate. They were generous enough to lend it to us for a quick trip to Yosemite. I HAD to go. They were our best friends and it would be an insult not to, albeit I went under duress. It was then that a miracle occurred: I wanted one!
Think about it: I could appreciate the great our-of-doors through double-paned windows while Steven ran amok in the wild. He could build all the campfires he wanted while I read a book wraped in a down-filled duvet. He could bring me interesting natural stuff to look at while I feigned interest. It all made sense! There was a place for me in nature too!
Unfortunately, with four young adolesents at home, it was not in the budget. We promised ourselves that we would find a way in the near future. We caluculated the benefits and liabilities of such an expense to a disappointing resolution. The years slipped by. As empty-nesters, we researched the options and resolved to get at at least a trailer.
We were getting older and time was running out on us. One day Steven asked me, "When are we going to stop saving for a rainy day and spend some money that we can well afford and enjoy ourselves?" He had a point. We resumed our research, waffled several times on our resolve, and bought a 24 foot, Cougar, bumper-pull. Oh happy day!
Oh happy day shopping for it (towels, cups, storage gizmos, kitchen necessities, hoses, wheel covers, state-of-the-art toilet paper, etc.). What joy finding superfluous things around the house that would work very well in the trailer (the down duvet--as previously imagined--, flat ware, pitchers, yaddi, yaddi, yadda). What rapturous bliss when we finally packed for our maiden run to Yellowstone--only 50 miles away, just over the pass.
But first we had to get it out of the driveway. It had to be easier than the hour and a half of hell we endured backing it in. Right? How naive I was! Cutting to the chase, it took just as long and just as much blood, sweat, and tears to get it out as it did to put it away.
BUT we were on our way! Excitement! Adventure! Steve was in control and he is the MAN! He can do anything (with the blanket exception of anything to do with electronic devices).
We stopped at a gas station and cooly fueled up. We cruised the highway like old hands. We swooped through the Yellowstone check station with total confidence.
I had brought the "Definitive Yellowstone National Park Guide" and we studied up as we drove along looking nature right in the eye, dodging buffalo, scaring ground squirrels out of the road, and scouting for wolves.
After about three hours of unabated eudaimonia, we pulled into the Mammoth Hot Springs Camp Grounds. Although sparse on vegitation, we had especially selected the site because it was noted for its elk population. (This was mating season when the bulls bugeled and we thought that was quite the thing to experience.) Besides, I was keen to see the mud pots and paint pots which we had always avoided because of the crush of tourists.
But this was the shoulder season--just after Labor Day; when kids had to be back in school; when they started closing down the park; when elders' rhumetism started acting up due to the cold, just before the snow flies. What better time for a couple of locals to commune with nature?
We pulled into the RV campground and waited patiently for the park official to process the rig before us. The pick-up and fifth wheel finally pulled ahead and a man dressed in forest green approached us smiling.
"We're all full. You'll have to find some place else, folks."
"What?" we asked incredulously. "But, but, but..."
"Yeah. The fifth-wheel got the last space." When the nice man saw our sorrowful faces, he benevolently volunteered to call around to the other campgrounds in the park.
Minutes later, "Sorry, folks. No room in the inn. Come back next year."
Alas, too late we realized that every other local with a trailer would have the same idea as we but with the added foresight to make reservations.
We left the campground sadder but wiser. After about an hour of driving, I announced that I was hungry. Another 45 minutes later, Steve finally found an empty pull-out (pull-outs being a prime commodity for all the other hungry would-be campers that neglected to make reservations) and we lunched at the table in our little home-away-from-home.
Then we drove home and spent 95 minutes parking our trailer.

Horse Business

The Bauers Jr. came to visit over the 4th. We went to the parade, had friends over for an outdoor bar-b-que, and watched the fireworks from our front porch. That evening I exclaimed that I was the luckiest person in the world.

However, the 5th was just as eventful. Bro. Dansie let the children ride on his "next" World Grand Champion, Fancy.

Henri got to ride her while Bro. Dansie led her around.

Hazel got to sit on her while Daddy steadied her and Bro. Dansie led Fancy.

But Harriett got to ride he all by herself, of course while Bro. Dansie hovered.