Pretty Cool Tuesday

Today the prophet came and spoke and Jacob filmed it for television. Cool, huh? My snazzy, artsy husband. He said it was hard to listen to what Pres. Hinckley said exactly because he had to focus on film things, but he may have some footage on his laptop he can show me later.

At work I met a gentleman with a "John Mayer" guitar. Apparently there are only 400 Mr. Mayer made (huh, I just realized his last name is like the same as "mayor." Wouldn't that be funny if he was Mayor Mayer? Ha ha ha . . . Alright, alright, I'm still a little drowsy from my nap after work) Oh yes, Mr. Mayer--he had these guitars tailored to his precise specifications apparently and I don't know if I really understood/believed this guy until I looked inside his guitar and saw John Mayer's signature (!) with a tag that said #317 of 400. Isn't that neat? And he let me play it! Which of course at this point is like strucking (somewhere between keys and between strumming and picking.)

By the way, for work I am a music specialist in a hospice home, so I sing and play the flute to hospice patients in a BEAUTIFUL group home and out in the community (for those living at their own homes.) And I love it. On Saturday I sang at their annual fundraiser at this fancy hotel which was really fun and went well, for those of you waiting anxiously to hear about it. (Do you like the deer in the headlights look in this one? The night was ending and I told Jacob we had to take a picture, so he did his usual begrudging eye roll and hastily took the picture. He's so funny. Apparently photography is ever so less captivating than film. Though it wouldn't be fair if I didn't mention that I had also run him ragged that day helping me get ready for and then working hard all night as a volunteer at the event.) Anyway, today at work I had an unusual request--to help write a song about a little boy who comes to visit to the tune of I've Been Working on the Railroad. Of course, what else?!

Also today, I apparently won a prize from a Mary Kay lady I happened upon at work a few days ago. I was playing for a patient before lunch and this lady tapped me on the shoulder and said they were honoring working women and she handed me a rose. (Okay! I'm not gonna argue.) I thought there were only winners that one day for their little giveaway, but again, I'm not gonna stop her if she wants to give me more free stuff.

And today is the second time in two days I met someone who speaks Spanish and Portuguese. The first person I met is in my ward. She is one of two new ladies I'm visiting teaching, the other speaks only Portuguese and is from Brazil (she has a beautiful daughter by the way who said she thought I was Barbie, so I like her very much.) My companion, from Panama, speaks Spanish and English and I speak only a very little Spanish. That was an interesting visit. Not because we were speaking 3 different languages and were there for an hour and a half, but because we all knew we liked each other and understood each other despite the barriers. It was the coolest visiting teaching experience I've ever had. And it was a bit exhausting, too. I noticed afterward I had to switch out of translation mode and realized how much of an effort it really was to think and speak in another language.It made me appreciate a little more what my family's former exchange students went through trying to understand English all day. Mari from Japan came home right after school and slept about 15 hours her first day. (And I just happen to have a picture of her, she's on the far left.)



And of course, my sweet little angel nephew turned 4 years old today. He is the sweetest little boy I've ever met. I love this kid with a heart bigger than a human's can normally be. He to me represents everything good in the world. You meet a kid like this and there's hope for the future and life is worth living. Yes, he's that good. Happy birthday Devlin!!