AT THE OPERA ..HAENSEL UND GRETEL

Dear Family,

Mom and I had two dates this weekend and it was fun. Friday night we went to the Hale Theater and saw "Born Yesterday" which was about New Yorkers trying to pull off a deal in Washington DC. The actress played a ditsi Blond who spoke in a great New York twang that I recognized. I told our friends that this was New York in the 1940's because that is how people talked to each other.

After the play we met the actors and the actress and I told her she reminded me of my childhood. "Did I get it right?" "You nailed it" I replied. It was a fun evening.

Saturday night we went to the Opera and saw Haemsel and Gretel. The Capital Theater is right next to Sigfrieds which is a pretty good imitation German Bistro and had Schnitzel and Sauerkraut.

I love this opera which is a very popular children's opera in Europe. It is about two little German kids who get lost in the woods and run into a Witch who likes to turn little children into gingerbread kids. She lives in a great ginger bread frosted house. It is really one of those German fables put to beautiful music.

A tender scene occurs when the two children get lost in the woods and have to sleep in the dark forest. The Sandman comes, sprinkles dust in their eyes and they settle to go to sleep but before they do that, they face the audience, kneel in prayer and sing the Abendgebet or Evening prayer and it is a beautiful duet. Here is the Abendgebet sung so well in German. Here is the song sung in English

The first verse goes like this:

When at night I go to sleep
Fourteen angels watch do keep;
Two my head are guarding,
Two my feet are guiding;
Two are on my right hand,
Two are on my left hand,
Two who warmly cover
Two who o'er me hover,
Two to whom 'tis given
To guide my steps to heaven

Then as they go to sleep, fourteen Angels come on stage. This is the Angel Ballet and they gracefully surround the two little kids and watch over them as they sleep.

I used to think about this song and played it at home especially when Julie was in the ICU during her treatments. I used to visit her early in the morning before my hospital rounds and I often wondered whether these Intensive Care Units might also be sacred places where unseen angels might be providing protection as some of the miracles I have seen over the years could not be explained simply by good care. As Doctors or surgeons, we are not always in total control of outcomes.

Well we do not talk about Guardian Angels much but I think our family has employed legions of them along the way.

We had a great weekend... Love, Dad

A HAPPY BIRTHDAY AT CHURCH

Dear Family,

I took this picture today at church with my Droid X of Eldred G. Smith and his wife, Hortense.

Today was his 104th Birthday!!!

We went to our class this morning and his birthday was announced. We all sang him happy birthday. To top that off, the group leader wheeled in a cake with 104 burning candles. When they wheeled it in he grumped,"Not supposed to eat in our meeting" but then broke into a big smile. It took four men to blow out the candles. They cut it up and we had a piece of his church birthday cake and it was yummy.

The class lesson was on "Fasting"!

He is the oldest General Authority (now Emeritus) living and the oldest General Authority ever. He was Patriarch to the church until that office was retired by President Kimble.

As you know that was a hereditary office starting with Joseph Smith senior and Br. Smith is a direct descendant of Hyrum Smith through Hyrum's oldest son John.

As the church grew and there were Patriarchs in all the stakes, it was considered that there was not a need for one to the whole church. In the past, the Patriarch to the church would give blessings to those in the mission field who came to Utah. My mother had hers from the Patriarch to the Church in the 1920's. Eldred G. Smith has given over 20,00 blessings in his lifetime. I see him each Sunday and ride up with him in a small elevator they have in our Church building. He says he retired himself and does not give blessings now but does have an office in church Headquarters

After I took this snapshot, he got into his little red Cadillac and drove his wife home from Church.

He is still very sharp and a great example to all of us.

Alles Gute, Dad

A GREAT HOLIDAY SEASON

Dear Family, Now that the holiday is over and everything is put away, I believe I can report on a truly great celebration and time of reflection and Thanksgiving.

It has been a cold season and we have had snow. Becca and Paul who live on Grandpa's farm in Heber had a lot of snow, couple feet, and had to warm up the chicken coop for their chickens. We had snow and then a melt to start off the Holiday.

The day before Xmas Eve, a refrigerated box arrived as Jeff sent down a half dozen lobsters flown in from New England. (lobsterguy.com) and they looked alive. I had to drop everything and boil them so they would not spoil and that great treat lasted through the holidays. Way to go Jeff and Tammy!

We gathered on Christmas Eve which is called "Heiliger Abend" in Germany or Holy Night. Mom and I usually get into our Bavarian outfits for the Nativity play. Rick, Gemina and Madeline were there; Doug and Christina and their family, Emily and John and their kids, Mike and Rayanne and all their kids and Becca and Paul with their gang too. All were so well behaved and we had such a good time sitting around and chatting.

We had a big Christmas Eve dinner and served a standing rib roast and all brought their favorite side dishes and desserts. There was less confusion with such a smaller group and it helps to have the adults go through the line first. But here are some of the grand kids sitting at a long table in the living room. Don't they look great? Pete Olsen gave me a license plate holder that says, "My grand kids look better than yours! He put that on the FJ Cruiser. But is is kinda true.

Becca dressed her kids in the

Lederhosen and Dirndl she picked up when they visited us in Munich so here we all are getting ready for the Nativity Play.

We have always done this as a little tradition. I read from Luke 2 in the Bible and the kids dress up and play the parts. We usually have a parent act as the director signaling which group would arrive on the scene. We read about the birth of he Savior and think on this great event

.

Here are three Shepards, "sore afraid". In the backgrounder is Opa .. usually reading out of the old Family Bible but this year I read out of my new Xmas Ipad with the Churches Scripture AP. (We have to work on the Shepards not slugging each other with their staffs).

And here they all are including the star that guided the Wise Men. We always have a baby and plenty of players. We did this earlier this year so that all could return home and get ready for Christmas Morning.

On Christmas Morning, Rick, Gemina and Madeline joined us. There is a picture of Rick getting a couple of knives for his farm near the Sierras. Mom got a new wedding band for Xmas and for the 50th anniversary. The stones are embedded in the mount so she will not lose them. It was a fun morning and then we jumped in the car and traveled to Heber, and then over the mountain to Mapleton for our Christmas morning rounds. We got back late and then Rick and Gemina went back to Los Angeles the next day.

New Years Eve we went over to Cheryl and Paul and had Fondue and I cooked crepes for all the kids. We stayed up to watch the ball drop and it was 2011 already. On New Years day which was Sunday, we went over to Doug and Christina's for FHE and dinner. For the FHE, Doug read the churches Proclamation to the Family and I wondered where he was going with that. Then he made an announcement; Christinia is expecting a baby by the end of summer!

The kids went nuts; Tom-Tom and Spencer ran around the house hooting in delight, Catherine smiled from ear to ear. What a great way to start the New Year I thought, we celebrate a future birth and growth of the family.

We wish you all the blessings of Heaven in this new year.

Mom and Dad