OCTOBER FUN

Dear Family,

I have been getting over a nasty flu and have been grounded for a couple of weeks so there has not been too much going on up at Sherwood Drive.  We did get out on Sunday night to visit old friends from Vienna.  Here we are with the Husz's.  They have been called to preside over the Freiberg Temple in East Germany.  He was my Austrian counselor on our mission to Germany and Austria.  They are great members and his wife is an absolute miracle.  While we were over there, she had an abdominal cancer with spread, had a huge surgery and was sent home to die but her recovery is something that I have never seen before.  They will be great in their Temple service. As we left, I started to sing, "Sag beim Abschied leise Servus", an Austrian song of parting, and at the end we broke out into a duet.  Great friends, great time.

We attended a solemn assembly in the Salt Lake Temple. There are about 5000 who are serving one way or another in the temple and they have these meetings once a year.  They  had two sessions, the first had about 3000 present.  We went to the 11 AM session and there must have been at least 2000 there.  President Eyring gave the address and the whole experience was wonderful.

In the meantime there was plenty going on in the family especially in Michigan.  Rick went back to Michigan.  We have all visited Rick's tree farm in the Sierras and helped with the wood cutting.  This time he came to work with Bryan and Paul in cutting wood.  Here is the doctor of the chain saw, Rick with Paul on their farm getting a winter supply of wood.  He also spent a couple of days with Bryan clearing wood from the additional property that Bry added to our old farm.

Here are the two wood cutters getting a bite  to eat in that hole in the wall place in South Lyon called Chinese Food.  So there is Bryan in his Carhart bib overalls, President of a successful business computer company and there is Rick in his wood cutting outfit, Rick a partner in a Beverly Hills Law firm returning to the earth and.  So great

So while the guys were in the Chinese restaurant in South Lyon, MI, Dr. Doug was actually over in China, eating real Chinese food.  He was there for two weeks on his yearly excursion to better the results of the surgical operation, carotid endarterectomy.  He did not operate on this occasion but gave many talks in many places including Beijing and Shanghai.  We may go back with him next year if I am feeling pretty good.


Here is something that went on at Al's farm.  She went out and bought three Marino sheep who will lamb in December.  Paul put them in the back of their van and hauled them to their farm.  Al wanted this particular sheep for the wool which she will use. There farm goes as far back as you can see in the photo.

Here is Rick and Bryan's daughter, Sarah, going to church in our Bloomfield Hills ward with the Detroit Temple in the background

Then the entire Family clan got together for dinner at Al and Paul's farm in Munci, MI. There was Al, Paul and kids, Mary and Mark with their kids Bryan and Kristina and their kids with visiting guest woodsman, Rick.

I wish we could have been there also.

I will start back in the temple this week.  We have a little get together this weekend with our friends, the Dzierzons who are visiting from Saxony, Germany.

We go to Virginia in November to see our good friends the Manwarings and do a little project in his woods but it won't be wood cutting, ()could be however) . Rick and Gemina come for Halloween and Rob and Eva and their kids will come for Thanksgiving.

Love to all,  Dad