Party, Live and Learn Vacation

Marriott Center~BYU

A few weeks ago we went to Utah for what is known in our Church as Education Week.  I spoke about it briefly in my last Daybook entry a week or so back.  This is held every year between summer and fall semester at BYU in Provo, Utah.  It runs from Monday to Friday for that one week.  When our kids were teens we had a long standing tradition of going back and letting them have a feel for what college might be like at BYU.

There they hold lots of wonderful youth classes on the Savior, dating, music, etc.  All the classes are geared to uplift the kids and helping them make wise decisions in those most crucial years between 14 and 24.  And they also have many classes for adults.  Over 1,000 classes offered in all, with classes running all day from 8:30 am to 9:00 at night.  They also have a variety of plays and concerts in the evening that are delightful if you are not too exhausted from the day.  We did attend the Scarlet Pimpernel production one evening with Robert, Ross, Spencer and Laura.  It was pretty fun.

Most members of our church pay tithing, ten percent of our increase to the church.  This maintains and pays for all of our chapels and temples, and many other programs of the church including a substantial amount to our church universities to help families better afford a top rated, wonderful and more reasonably priced education for their children.  We also fund a perpetual education fund to help young people in struggling nations attend colleges and universities in their nations and to receive vocational training in many aspects of life that they might better support their families later.  The monies also support our humanitarian aid all over the world to people and places when disaster hits.  There is more, much more but you get the idea.

 Education Week is very reasonably priced to attend so I would imagine the price we pay only covers a portion of the cost to the University.  There are usually about 30,000 attendees.  It is one of those deals where a lot of the locals hide out at home until the throng of visitors goes away at the end of the week.  Can't blame them...just the traffic alone is overwhelming.

One night we thought we'd go here!

Mistake, there must have been 100 Ed. Week

Attendees in front of us in line.

Anyway, Education Week this year was special for our family because Spencer got to go all week and Piper accompanied him on Monday and Tuesday.  Her time was cut short as she started high school on Wednesday so it was a pretty exciting week for her all the way around.  It was fun having part of three generations there attending classes.

A class by Randal Wright that Carol and I

 attended on Happy Families.

I have been attending Randal's classes over many years.  He is like an old friend. This is the immense Ballroom at BYU and holds about 800 seats for Ed Week participants.  (Best part~being with Carol!)
And that is saying a lot as the class was excellent!  But there is nothing quite like being with a wonderful friend doing something so uplifting.  I wish you all could know her like I do.

Richard Eyre~another excellent and 
long time friend and teacher at Ed Week. 

 Love this man for his wisdom and faith.
Jim and I and Carol and Laura attended his classes.

The teen kids had so much fun being set free all day to attend classes they chose in a wholesome and safe environment.  Robert was out in Utah at the same time taking a class for his work and so all of them came out.  Kids under 14 are not permitted to attend so Ross spent time with Aunt Jen, Aunt Missy and Robert's parents so we could do this.  We could not have done it without all their help.   Jim and I and Laura and Spencer stayed in the college dorms as I had also previously mentioned.  Spence loved that!

Spencer and Piper having a ball?

At 14 it must be irrevocably decreed that when your mother is taking the photo you are not allowed to smile and act like you are having fun.  But if it is someone else it is OK?   Spencer did have a great time, I promise you because I witnessed it!  And he confessed to it when no cameras or recorders were visible from his vantage point.  Sheesh!

So even though it was not our official year for our family reunion it turned out to be a mini one anyway.  Anytime we are all in one place we call it that anyway.  Some of the family had not seen Robert since August of 2011 before he deployed to the middle east. 

The first Sunday we were there after church in the late afternoon we went up to Mt. Nebo and had a BBQ with Jen and Laura's family at a camp grounds near Payson Lakes.  Talk about gorgeous.  It is about 7000 feet in elevation and the forest is just remarkable the air is fresh and the view spectacular.

Auntie Laura and Hazie reunion!

Chloe Jo and Uncle Robert

 

 Ross getting his Grampa group hug with Julia

Hazie and her Grampa.  The lighting was so weird

 up here with all the shadows and the setting sun in our eyes.

Julia and Piper sharing Girls' Camp songs~ 

While Piper plays the ukelele.

Chloe, Piper and Spencer around the campfire

Uncle Lowell tending the BBQ
while Chloe and Hazie watch at a safe distance.

Cooking and keeping a nice hot fire
 for S'Mores after dinner!

Sadly Chris and family could not be there but we had a great time with them the next weekend at a BBQ they held in their beautiful backyard.

It was just a great week with the family and with our friends the Holladays.  It completely wore both Jim and me out but we loved it.  All the walking and the altitude takes its toll on this old lady as you know. I'll be fully recovered about the time I go back next Saturday.

Jim took a day and spent it with Ross (because all the other kids had started school) and they rode their bikes for 20 miles.  He is one amazingly physical person.  All that and needing a hip replacement in a couple of months.  He claims though that riding does not hurt his hip at all.  So good deal.  Ross says his Grampa wore him out.  I could only smile and nod and think I get it one hundred percent!  Been there, done that with Grampa!  He was also able to squeeze another trip in with Spencer on the Saturday before we left.

Good job Rossie!

A rest along the way~20 miles is not easy!

Alpine Coaster at Park City

 They went to Park City for this particular ride which was extremely fast and fun.  3 hours in the car for a 180 second thrill.  But Jim's says the driving conversations were robust though.   One topic...How Life is Like a Chess Game!  That is Ross in a nutshell.

Spencer ventures back onto a bike.

He did great but his leg was sore 

for a few days, particularly his ankle.

It was Spencer's first time riding a bike since he broke his leg last spring.  That was one nasty break he is still wearing a brace on his leg.  That brace, by the way, is most intriguing to Hazel!  If she ever saw him without it she would admonish him to get it on!  So cute.

They stopped along the river at the big swing so

 Spencer could rest and put on his brace for awhile. 

 Hazie would be so proud! 

We have learned one thing for sure...we need to travel less between May and September in the future.  Since that is basically the only time we usually travel...it means traveling less in any given year.  This whole year has been a big blur, if it wasn't for my occasionally blogging about what we do I would be hard pressed to recall it all.  Far too many days living out of a suitcase.  They were good days though, nonetheless.

The new North Heritage dorm 
where we stayed ~ #25 on campus!

The Invention Prototype

The dorms are very new and very modern and extremely industrial to maintain their niceness as long as possible.  One things about Spencer is he is a born engineer.  He is always thinking of things that people need to improve their living environment or life style. He and Grampa had a little project going on the entire time we were there and this was what they invented for the showers in the dorm.  There is no place within the shower stall for a bar of soup.  So they got some PVC pipe and created this.  Actually it was quite awesome.  Now Spencer and Connor are thinking of marketing it at BYU for the students.  It will be very inexpensive and quite serviceable.  And the best part...a new crop of students every semester!  Sweet entrepreneurial opportunity for two young teens.   I am sure they won't have too much trouble finding a willing backer/investor.

We had to be out of the dorm by Saturday so Laura and her kids and Jim and I moved over to a Comfort Inn for a few nights which was barely a hiccup in our fun with family. That same day Jen had planned a surprise party for Julia, our granddaughter, who turned 13.  Funny she was surprised out of her mind considering she had been asking for a surprise party for three years.  Isn't that so cute?  It was special to have all her cousins from our side of the family and many friends too.  It was a bit crowded in the condo as it was threatening a big thunder storm that night.

Julia's Birthday table display.

This is kind of what I use to do for
 our kids when they were growing up.

  It is fun to see Jen has kept that 
tradition from her youth.

 

The sky after it rained cats and dogs!

 

Finally we got a chance to go outside and have

 cake and ice cream which helped keep 

some semblance of order in the condo.

Jewels in the goofy glasses her

 Mom bought her for the party!

  It was "condo cozy" but very fun and everyone

 was dancing and it was just perfect for her.
They are actively looking for a new house now.  Yay! 
Space is the ultimate luxury Jim and I have discovered.

The Whole Bunch

For some odd reason when we all get together we usually do end up dancing at some point.  I am forbidden to publish those videos on punishment of death from Jennifer.  I believe her threats are real, but oh how I do want to!    The dancing is usually brought on by our hilarious daughter, Jennifer.  She can make our grandkids laugh like no body else.  She is usually doing some funny antics when we take their group pictures and it is the only way we can guarantee all of them laughing (not necessary in a synchronized way...note above) not just smiling to the clicking shutters.

We had fun with every one of our grandkids and you know what?  It had only been a few weeks since I had seen some of them and they still all seemed older and more mature for some reason.  Maybe a new school year??  Even Hazie seemed more grown up but then she did start kindergarten after all.  Can you believe she will be SIX on September 24th?  Me neither. Sigh...

My next post will be about some of our time with Chris' family and his new book and his award from President Samuelson at BYU the day before we left.

Independence Day~Revisited

Pinterest photo

Jim and I spent the entire month of May on the east coast.  We had the opportunity to revisit our American Heritage and to gain a new appreciation for the price paid by thousands for the independence and liberties we all enjoy.

 Diorama of the Mayflower found 

in the Provincetown Museum

There is nothing like having your consciousness raised about your patriotism quite like discovering  that you have ancestors that were pilgrims. That would have never happened had we not been working and learning all the time we have been serving in the Oakland Family History Library.  If we hadn't been working hard to learn Family Tree and it hadn't come out when it did we would have missed this opportunity of a life time.  The trip was planned to the places we visited long before we knew any of this.  There is also nothing quite like having Bob Trapp sit beside you and guide you through verifying it all in "The Mayflower Families Through Five Generations" that we have right there on our shelves in the Library.  The Silver Books are the authoritative source for verification of those five generations and is a compilation of thousands of researchers' findings.

The Mayflower Society Building 

is directly behind this gorgeous house.

The thing about this discovery is not in being related to an historical figure or in being able to join a society.  The pearl is found in actually knowing who our ancestors are and knowing the information for them is well-documented and that they are a part of our lineage.  We were the first in both of our families to do family history so being able to discover this has been so wonderful. When I put the first pencil to a paper pedigree and had only a handful of names, I could not have imagined that 35 years later this could happen.  It is nothing short of a miracle.

We went on our first family history trip and learned the best vacations are those with a purpose beyond just touring and sightseeing.  I don't see any regular vacations in our future ever!  We understand now we need to go to several places and walk where they walked and stand by their graves.  We saw many beautiful places and learned so much along the way but the very best days were spent doing family history. 

Parishioner Cemetery, Truro, MA

Some ancestors are buried here

As much as we love the websites like Find A Grave and Billion Graves it is just not the same as being there. Through our experience in the Library we have learned many things pertinent to our family history and were prepared to search when we arrived.  We are so grateful to all the wonderful and brilliant people we work with that have taught us so much.  Our prior learning helped us know just what to do, where to go and how to find what we needed.

We learned all about Jim's immigrant Grandfather's real life experience in his first town in America after coming from Italy at 18. In New Jersey he would  join his brothers in the grocery business they established in Montclair just across the river from Manhattan.

We could browse through countless articles and city directories and old postcards and feel what his life was like in the early years in 3D...not just online!  We saw their first home and toured it because the current owner just happened to be home and invited us in.

Gramma and Grampa's first house.  

Their last house was our first house!

This home was featured in Scientific American in 1890! 

We found it in the local library!

We sat in their church, because it just happened to be open right when we passed by for a special event.   We saw his mother's elementary school because the one lady walking down a little side street just happened to know and we were prompted to stop and ask.

The place they worshiped God,

Our Lady of the The Immaculate Conception

Catholic Church in Montclair.

We found  the store, Ferrera and Co, at 425 Bloomfield Avenue because the city directory gave us the name and location of the business in about five minutes. We found them at the Historical Society because Jim was prompted to see if they even had one that very morning as we were driving in.   Montclair's Historical Society just happened to be open on Wednesdays only.  It felt like divine help and inspiration at every turn. (Because it was!)

Jim standing in front of the old grocery store

Now a self-described High End Thrift Shop!

We could just picture Grampa 

in his green bib apron 

taking care of the produce.

 It was the perfect day and one of the most wonderful genealogy experiences we could have ever hoped to have.  All  this was possible because we live in America!   We had the liberty to move about freely within our country and this is the place where people could immigrate to find opportunities they didn't have in the old country.  Right there in that little town our American branch in Jim's family was begun.

Jim visited Patriot's Cove in Charleston, South Carolina and toured the ships, the USS Yorktown and a sub and a battleship that gave him a glimpse at the courage and bravery of the young men,  including my father who served in WW2.  That just deepened our appreciation for our freedoms and liberties so much.  He saw the tiny spaces they lived in for months and months and with the danger all around them and how extremely young they were.  It was all very sobering and poignant for both of us.

Love this Rag Flag

From there we went to Plymouth, Massachusetts where we learned much more than we had ever  known about the pilgrims and gained a true appreciation for their immense sacrifices to come here and establish a place where we could have religious freedoms like in no other place on earth.  We gained a deep appreciation for the Native Americans that helped them learn how to raise corn and mentored them in the ways of their new country.

Pilgrim Hall Museum

My favorite museum of all time

In The Pilgrim Hall Museum we saw the artifacts the passengers owned and the treasures they carried with them on the Mayflower.  They had the original bible brought over on the voyage and used by William Bradford for his entire life.  They had lots of pilgrim clothing and so many wonderful books and things for sale.  We bought  a video entitle One Small Candle and it is positively fabulous.  We have watched it many times since we have been home.  We also bought the book, Plymouth Plantation by William Bradford, and it is amazing.

Plymouth Plantation

A replica of the first colony

Very touching and meant a lot to us to visit here.

My favorite treasure in the Museum

The White Cradle brought by Susannah White

 on the Mayflower voyage.

Only one baby was born on the voyage,  the son of our ancestor, Stephen Hopkins.  I had a strong feeling that I was gazing upon the borrowed bed of that little relative.  There were three pregnant woman on the voyage.  They had to have bonded deeply on the perilous voyage.  It just makes sense that Susannah would have lent this to her friend, Elizabeth for her infant son, Oceanus.  That's just how most women are, right?  I could just picture that little baby boy sleeping there. The White baby was consider the first child born in the colonies.  He was actually born in Plymouth Harbor as they waited to get a secure place to begin the colonization, build their homes and for winter to pass.

Monticello, Charlottesville, VA

We saw the place where the Mayflower Compact was signed in Provincetown Harbor.  The concepts and principles it included became the basis for the Declaration of Independence. We also visited Monticello, the home of Thomas Jefferson, who was as you know, the primary author of it. We didn't know it then but though recent research we have discovered we are also related to Thomas Jefferson! It was an entire trip of learning to love our family, our American forefathers, our military personnel and their sacrifices, and this great country even more than we had before.

We had this life altering experience because of this country we call America, our love for Family History and our dedication to making learning more a life long pursuit.

 

The First Congregational Meetinghouse 
Thomas Newcomb 'of Eastham'~ Minister 

One of my favorite parts was being able to stand in Truro, Massachusetts in front of the oldest church on Cape Cod.  It was built in 1707 and to know that one of my great-grandfathers was the minister there and had baptized six of his children in that very place in 1717.  It was a joy to discover that The Savior has been an important part of our heritage for many generations.

 Suddenly we felt a lot bigger than our one little family and it was wonderful and will always make for a more special Independence Day for us.  And a more meaningful Thanksgiving too for that matter!  We are already talking about going the Dakotas next and then on to Wales and Sweden.  Thank you co-workers and great teachers and Family Search/Family Tree.  We are believers in your new program and will be patient as you sort things out!!  Take all the time you need Family Search.....it is worth the wait!

Boone Hall is Mont Royal!

Well I must admit it was me pushing to get us there when the gates opened on this morning.  I truly wanted us to have a chance to get unpopulated photos and we were pretty successful at that.  For us the secret to all our traveling is beat the crowd, beat the heat.

When you first enter the Plantation you see some lovey landscapes like this.  We spent quite a bit of time in this area just breathing it all in and taking some photos.  It was cold and windy which was good.  Other than the leaves rustling in the trees, there was complete serenity all around us.

We meandering around for awhile on the packed 

gravel road and then turned a corner and saw this.  

Can I just say this view pretty much stops you dead in your tracks.  This is so impossible to capture in two dimensions.  You just cannot imagine the majesty and beauty of these trees or their scale compared to a couple of humans.  It is not often I feel small...here I did.  These trees were planted along this almost mile long drive in 1743.  They are a priceless treasure.  If I were prompted to pray for the endurance of any trees in the world it would be these.  It would be beyond heartbreaking if anything were to happen to them. 


This amazing Plantation has THE MOST BEAUTIFUL life oaks on the planet.  I am convinced of that because there could not be any more magnificent than these. This is the world famous

Avenue of The Oaks

The Live Oak is native to the Southeastern United States and Northern parts of South America.  The thing that makes these unique is that they are evergreens.  Oaks have long been one of my favorite trees, but I did not know there are some that are evergreen.  That is something to love about them in itself.  They can grow up to 50 feet tall with wide spreading branches reaching up to 70 feet.  Adding to this stunning vision, they often have huge clusters of Spanish Moss hanging in exactly the right places.  It looks like someone added it like one would with tinsel on a Christmas tree. This is what heaven looks like.  It literally brought tears to my eyes.

 

The Plantation Home is drawing closer and closer. 

This is where Patrick Swayze would ride his horse 

like the wind to and from the house
The little white dot down the Avenue is the house!
Check out the Spanish Moss below!

We drove along very slowly, 

often stopping to just be there. 

 In the distance we could see the mansion now

 but we were savoring it like a yummy dessert

Not wanting it to be gone too quickly! 

Looking slightly to the right is a large fenced
 area for horses and some out buildings.

  

A pristine white barn...

And perhaps a caregiver's small home?

This is a couple of the slave houses.

  
And then the Plantation home...Mont Royal!

We really were there!  Mont Royal! 
(Pinching myself to see if it's real!)

From the Gate looking back on the Avenue of the Oaks

James standing in front of the carriage landing pad! 

 Just jump out and walk in!

We were about to go on the house tour.  No photos are allowed inside but it was very very nice.  Could recognize a lot of the rooms from the mini-series.  They only let you see the downstairs as the current owner lives here upstairs.  Poor thing.  Who gets to live in a place like this?  One lucky lady!

 A side view of the front of the Mansion
both sides of the veranda have steps leading up to the house. 
This antebellum architecture is gorgeous.

Google image

There is a river behind the house.

This view is part of the backyard.

Slave Cabins

Borrowing this photo from their website  http://boonehall.com as it was raining pretty hard when we went to the slave houses. At one time in their history there were 27 out here, today 9 remain.  They are located along The Avenue of the Oaks on the left hand side as you come in.  They are strategically placed back far enough from the road so as not to detract from the beautiful entrance.  These cabins were for the house staff and slaves with a higher than average standing.  The plantation was a cotton plantation and the field workers lived in another area of the plantation in smaller less desirable conditions.  The owner at the time built  them out here for a reason.  He was a builder and he wanted to show off his work.  He also wanted others to know how well he treated his slaves.  Sometimes several families would live in these brick cabins and there was one common one set up like a church for the slaves to meet together in small groups to worship God and sing hymns.

The interior of the meeting cabin

It is sad that their way of life had to bring such sorrowful conditions to the slaves.   It is even sadder that our history is tainted by the buying and selling and abusive behavior towards other human beings.  I am grateful to Abraham Lincoln and the Abolitionists that worked and fought so hard for their freedom.   I understand the economic reasons for slavery but find the principle of using people like that deplorable. 

Each little cabin has displays and historical information
 in them and were decorated to simulate what they
 would have been like back then. 

This was a poignant and sobering experience.

Thank Heavens for this Civil Rights Act of 1866!

Most of the slaves that worked in the South in those days were from Angola, Africa. Today there are 500,000 of their descendants living in the Carolinas and other southern states.  Their ancestors started being captured and brought over here to be auctioned and sold in the 1500s.  For nearly five centuries their lives have been politically and economically tied to the cash crops of the south; rice, cotton, tobacco, and now even tourism.  

They were captured and retained in holding cells and on the west coast of Africa.  The imprisonment brought a lot of Africans under one roof and formed the basis of what would become the Gullah Culture.  These Gullah Salves made, many of the southern plantation owners very very wealthy.  They were so knowledgeable about the farming techniques used that they were the most desired of any slaves. 

One of the descendant of these early slaves does a one woman show there at the Plantation.  Her name is Jackie. The name "Gullah" it is thought has some reference to Angola.  They have these story telling shows every day and if you ever go I hope you get Jackie.  Her story was tender and sweet and told without guile.  I always have that 'guilt by association' thing going on and the way she spoke and sang and related to all of us was just beautiful.  

boonehall.com

What she said in a nutshell without saying it was...I don't blame you for what happened to my forefathers and mothers.  She would say repeatedly... 

"This is my story (pointing to herself) 

  this is your story (gesturing in our direction)

  this is our story (encircling all us all with her arms)

  this is His story (pointing up to God.) "

I felt that from now on the word  history would be spelled like this in my heart..HisStory.

 That was just so touching to me and made me feel we all just need to have peace about the things we cannot change now and move forward making this a better place to be for all.  I just loved Jackie and so did Jim.  At the end of her presentation we went up and thanked her and hugged her and we felt a sense of communion and peace that went beyond the three of us to include those who had gone before.  It was an experience that will stay with us for a long time.

*******************

This old mill is being retrofitted and preserved

 in another area of the Plantation.

It is to be reopened as a restaurant when completed.

Today many events are hosted At Boone Hall and 

Ryan Gosling recently got married here.

He was in "The Notebook" and part 

of that was filmed here as also!

The Plantation offers four things to do:  The Gullah Cultural experience, a House Tour, a Boat Tour and the open air Train Tour.  All are included in the admission price of 20 dollars.  It was worth every penny and more just to see the Oaks.  But all of the other things I have mentioned made it a wonderful day, never to be forgotten.

As we left I felt like I was caught somewhere between the story of Mont Royal and the reality of Boone Hall.  My perspective had changed  and was made different by this day as I was made more aware of how it really was.  The Pollyanna part of me wants to just stay in the movie but the reality of slavery is more poignant than ever to me.

There were so many things to ponder about this day.   I think we may have been unusually quiet on our hour and a half trip down to Savannah.  This type of experience makes things you have always known about, take on a whole new clarity.  It adds dimension to your understanding of the Family of Man in a fresh new way.  I remember having similar feelings when we toured Anne Franks' House in Amsterdam, years ago.  There is something about being there that heightens your sense of humanity and understanding.  This is truly educational.   And that is probably what I love about traveling more than anything else.  That and being with my best friend!