Landslide

Two of my sisters have already posted about this here and here. But if you don't read their blogs (by the way - you should), you might have missed hearing about this awesome group of kids who sing the coolest songs.

Seriously? I want to move my kids to NY and get them in this class. Unfortunately, I don't think they would let Elise in. She can't hit one right note. It is so sad, because she love singing so much.

You can watch all their songs on You Tube but here is my favorite. I love everyone of those kids. They are killing me! I think I have watched it 10 times now.

Did You Love It?

How could you not? The opening ceremonies (although lengthy) were incredible. Favorite moments - the 2008 drummers. That was the coolest thing. I loved the countdown. I was totally impressed by those concentric circles they made with 2008 Chinese. How did they stand in the right place and then move around and still look so synchronized? And the huge globe with the dancers running sideways around it? I loved the lighting of the torch. The whole thing was pretty amazing. It would have been fun to be there - except I don't really love the idea of being in a crowd of 90,000 people. Stress me out.

Hooray for the Olympics. I am a huge fan and now we have endless good TV to keep us entertained. Too bad we didn't have this while we were in the hospital. That would have helped.

The kids are home and I love it. They are so funny. Teague has talked my ear off and has all kinds of good stories and details to share.

I think Kenyon has been making some good progress. We have made it out on a walk every night. We are so slow going (mostly my fault) but we make it and it is good for both of us.

Best TV Watching

How cool was Wimbledon this year? Please tell me that you did in fact watch the greatest match of tennis ever played. Due to rain delay and church, I had to watch this match later but it was so worth it. I wanted Federer to win but really - did it matter. They both played awesome. If you missed it, find a way to watch it. I have it saved on my DVR. Someday, I will actually go to Wimbledon and watch a match. (One day I took 5 month old Teague on a little adventure to Wimbledon. Unfortunately, no one was playing tennis that day.)

I know that is why you all come to the blog. You want to hear about tennis. But, I will tell you a little update on Kenyon. He had his very last dose of chemo yesterday. We hope he never faces that again. He has felt pretty miserable the last couple of days. No fun to be so sick and trapped. We hope that the upcoming days bring an increase in the blood counts and a decrease in the sickness and maybe even a few of the meds. We'll see.

Are you happy?

Last night we had a super late Stake temple night. It was nice but super late. So by the time we got to watch American Idol Final Result Show it was 11pm. I pretty much fast-forwarded through the 2 hours - pausing for things I liked. I was SO tired and by midnight I was finally to the end. Just as Ryan Seacrest said "and the winner is..." my DVR recording ended. What in the world! Last night I hated my DVR (even though it really is one of my most favorite modern inventions). Why can't it stop recording when the show actually ends? Duh! This is has actually happened to me too many times and you would think that I would learn my lesson. So after staying up way too late, I just looked up the winner online. Lame.

However, I am happy. I would have been happy with either one but David Cook is great. Archuleta will still do so well - and who knows maybe even better. I know for sure that one of my readers out there may just be falling apart - she was a DIE-HARD Archuleta fan.

This morning, Kenyon comes sauntering out for breakfast and he was whistling that ridiculous "we are brothers" song that they did last night. I did not want that song in my head all day. Thanks a lot, hon!

Must Read

I have been gone for a while - that is worthy of another post - but while I was away I read a great book called Three Cups of Tea. It is the true story of a man named Greg Mortenson who has an amazing, adventurous life but it is all about his efforts to build schools (specifically for girls) in Pakistan and Afghanistan. It is so incredible what he has done. I am ready to pack up and move with my kids to some crazy place and just teach or do something. We are so spoiled and I want to go somewhere and do something.

A few favorite quotes:
"Haji Ali taught me to share three cups of tea, to slow down and make building relationships as important as building projects. He taught me that I had more to learn from the people I work with than I could ever hope to teach them."

He quoted Mother Teresa: "What we are trying to do may be just a drop in the ocean, but the ocean would be less because of that missing drop."

Alex Lowe (A respected alpinist): "Greg has quietly been moving even greater mountains on his own. What he has accomplished, with pure tenacity and determination, is incredible. His kind of climb is one we should all attempt."

Why you must see Kite Runner

Ok - So I may have too much to say on this topic so only read if you are ready for my soap box....

I have read The Kite Runner twice and it is one of my most favorite books. (I also really loved and was moved by A Thousand Splendid Suns - by the same author). Yesterday I went to see the movie with my mom and sister. I have heard some people say they don't want to see the movie or read the book because it sounds so depressing. And, in fact there are are some heart breaking events and it can be depressing. But, I don't think that should stop you. In fact, I think it is a MUST read and if you have time you should also see the movie (but read it first). It is really such a beautiful story that teaches us about friendship, loyalty, forgiveness and redemption. The main character, Ali, is told "there is a way to be good again." Isn't that what we believe if we believe in a loving Heavenly Father and Savior. We can be good again. We may pay a horrible price for our sins - that is justice - but there is also mercy and forgiveness. One of the challenges of this movie is to reflect on your own life. Surely many of us have faced nothing even close to the social class issues, war, displacement, or terror found in this story but we are all parts of a society and network of friends. What kind of friend are we? Are we only nice to some friends when no one else is around? Do we take advantage of the loyalty our friends offer us? Do we have the courage to stand up for what is right - no matter what? Do we defend our values - specifically the issue of decency? Do we make things right when we have messed up or do we let it destroy valued relationships?

Another reason this book and movie are so important to me is that I think we have a responsibility to be aware of the conditions of the world around us. I know that I was completely unaware of Afghanistan before 1978 and the Afghanistan during Taliban rule. Certainly I had heard things about the Taliban but I didn't really pay attention. This book makes it so real. And because we still have soldiers there we must know what they are up against. I love the way the movie shows how beautiful Afghanistan and its people were prior to the invasion of Russia. It is certainly not fair nor accurate to think of all Afghan people as the Taliban would have us believe.

A third reason that I think we should read this book and see the movie (this is starting to sound like an essay) is that we need to be more aware of the plight of refugees. What a challenge to leave the land you love and have to start over somewhere new. Start over where no one understands your language or customs or makes efforts to understand where you came from and the terror you must have faced to sneak you family out. We forget that they are intelligent, capable, talented, compassionate people who probably served their communities in great ways before they had to leave (obviously this is an generalization). Yet, we see Baba jan and Ali work so hard. Baba jan, despite being a gas station employee, keeps his decency and works hard, as he did before.

This holiday season, I was asked to be involved in a sub-for-santa type project for a refugee family from Burma. Their country has forced the Karen people to leave or be killed. This particular family arrived in Utah in September with nothing but their 5 children (age 2 - 16). They need so much. I loved being a part of the incredible generosity of so many. A group of youth and leaders were able to deliver piles of gifts for each family. I didn't get to be there, but I hear that they were so happy and probably overwhelmed. I know that youth involved were significantly impacted by the experience of being there and giving during the season of so much getting. At a recent concert I went to (The Gift - Peter Breinholt, Ryan Shupe and Sam Payne) I was touched by something Sam Payne said, "Service rendered during this time of the year, saves lives." He was the recipient of of some lifesaving service at Christmas as a boy. We have an opportunity to do that right here in Utah - whether with our neighors in need or the many refugees living here in Salt Lake.

As I looked online for some pictures, I found the greatest website with an entire curriculum for teaching The Kite Runner, the history of Afghanistan and the issues of human rights. Too bad I am not teaching any high school history classes right now. So, since I am not - if there is a teacher out there reading this - go to this website and see if you can incorprate some of this into your curriuclum. It is really well done and comprehensive. http://participantproductions.com/kiterunner/KiteRunnerlow.pdf

So...after that little spiel - I hope it wasn't too much. I hope you will read the book and support the movie. I hope you will think about these issues. And respond to this--tell me what you think of the book and the movie.

-Note - It is PG-13 and the scenes you might be worried about are not quite as graphic as you might be afraid they could be. They are certainly upsetting but they don't show as much as you might think.