As I ponder tomorrow as a day of thanks and giving, please permit me to share with you those things for which I am most grateful.

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General

M* is proud to welcome prolific Bloggernacle commenter Ben Pratt as the newest permablogger. Interestingly enough, Ben has ties to the original Millennial Star (see Ben’s bio for details).

Ben and I served together as Youth Guides at the Arizona Temple Visitor’s Center prior to our missions and I am thrilled that he has consented to join us at M*. 

 Here is how Ben describes himself:

I am married to a brilliant and lovely woman. Our union has produced two brilliant and lovely daughters! We enjoy reading, going for walks and bike rides, and Friday night pizza picnics in the family room. Descended from Parley P. Pratt (founding editor of this blog’s namesake), Charles Henry Wilcken, Zachariah Bruyn Decker, Jesse N. Smith, Frederick G. Williams, and a host of farmers, missionaries, colonizers, businessmen, and pilots, I was raised in Chandler, AZ. I have degrees in physics from both Brigham Young University (BS) and the University of Washington (MS). Currently on leave from the UW physics PhD program, I live in south King County, WA, where I am (for now) a stay-at-home-dad. My recently rediscovered dream is to work on fundamental theoretical physics where quantum mechanics and general relativity collide.

Administrative

Over the years, I have been impressed with the members of the Bloggernacle who have reached out to those in need.

Today I am posting a request from one of the people I home teach to join in a special fast for a family member injured in an accident. Here is the text of the email she sent me today:

Hi everyone,

Melody and Brett’s oldest, Carter (age 15), was hit by a truck at 9:00 this morning while riding his bike.  It was the truck’s fault.  Carter was not wearing his helmet and has sustained head injuries.  He is in the UMC trauma center pediatric ICU.  His vitals are good but he is in a coma and has been unconscious since the accident.  He has had a CAT scan but Melody is waiting to hear from the neurosurgeon as to the results.  I am going to go to Las Vegas later tonight.

Mike had a great idea to have a family fast.  If we ever needed one, it’s tomorrow.  Their names have been called in to the temple here and Mike and Diane have called their names in to the Snowflake temple.

I’ll keep you posted as I hear anything.

Please keep Carter and his family in your thoughts and prayers. The family appreciates those who can join them in their fast tomorrow.

Any

In the short time leading up to historic votes in Arizona, California and Florida, I find myself pondering the issue of same-gender marriage and the counsel from the Brethren to “maintain and strengthen the family as the fundamental unit of society.”

Here in Arizona, the radio and television commercials in support of Prop 102 proclaim simply, “One Man. One woman. That’s marriage.”

The proposed change to the Arizona state constitution reads, “Only a union of one man and one woman shall be valid or recognized as marriage in this state.”
Read more…

Any

I am grateful to hear the Church call for civility and respect for those with diverging points of view on the subject of traditional marriage.

While I support the Church’s position on traditional marriage, I have members of my extended family and a close, personal friend who disagree with the Church’s position.  In these cases, although we may disagree on this moral issue, there is no loss of love or respect for one another. Read more…

General LDS, Mormon, Traditional Marriage

The Drudge Report reports a printing company in Kansas City that specializes in campaign literature is printing Obama/Bayh material. The site also displays the graphic of an Obama/Bayh bumper sticker.

Feel free to discuss the possibility of an Obama/Bayh ticket.

General

I recently took a trip to Utah to visit family and celebrate my grandfather’s 84th birthday.

After serving in World War II, raising six children and working as a cook and a plumber to support his wife and children, he looks remarkably good for 84. His favorite line after each birthday is, “I have just 10 more years to go.”

My grandfather has lived a long and fruitful life. Seeing him last month caused me to reflect on my own life and what I have to look forward to.

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General, In real life Forever Families, LDS, Mormon

Last Sunday I picked up one of my wife’s books titled “Small Miracles: Extraordinary Coincidences from Everyday Life.” I could not put it down until I had read every page; devoured every story.

The book’s authors note in the introduction:

Coincidences have been variously defined as “luck,” “chance,” “a fluke,” “something out of the ordinary,” or a “random conjoining of inexplicable events that define our sense of the reasonable.

We firmly believe that coincidences are much more than simple accidents or quirks of fate. To us, coincidences are blessings, the spiritual manna that hosts of angles send down to illuminate our Path. They are vivid, striking, awe-inspiring examples of Divine Providence. They are acts of God.

While I read the various stories of “coincidences” in the book, I was reminded of the awe-inspiring examples of Divine Providence in my own life.

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General LDS, Mormon

While recently checking my Facebook account, I noticed an invitation from an old friend to participate in an application called “OWNED!”

Own Your Friends! Give Human Gifts! Put yourself on the market and find out how much you’re worth!

A novel idea, I thought, so I signed-up for the application and quickly discovered my value, or lack thereof, on Facebook. Read more…

General , LDS, Love one another, Mormon

Saturday afternoon, M*’s webmaster Scott Barber emailed me a link to a Mormon Times article announcing a temple for Gilbert, Arizona.

My first reaction to the news was, “Wow!!”

Even today, I am still stunned and excited that another temple is to be built in Arizona. What excites me even more is that I will likely be in the new temple district. Read more…

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