49 Years

Tuesday was the anniversary of our wedding which occurred on December 17, 1964 (49 years). While we were working in the Library that morning we had a lovely bouquet of flowers delivered to us from our oldest daughter, Jennifer. We celebrated that evening with a nice dinner at Market Street Grill. We have had a great life together and look forward to the coming years.

Flowers for our 49th Wedding Anniversary

We have seen lots of snow this week. In fact, it snowed all day Tuesday and was bad enough that the Library closed at 1:00. We walked very carefully to and from work watching every step as we went so as to avoid falling. On Thursday afternoon one of the sisters from the British zone fell just outside the front of the library and sustained a head fracture. She expects to be in the hospital for several more days and has a severe headache.

On Monday morning Byde went to Temple Square to take a picture of a special tree that someone told us about. Apparently this Cedar of Lebanon tree is only "lit" every other year to help to preserve it. I looked up the story online and here's what I found:

"The Cedar of Lebanon was brought to Temple Square around 1949. At that time it was 7 inches high. It was packed in a suitcase of a Mrs. Petty who lived in Sugar House. Planted in a corner of Temple Square, it was later threatened ruination by an accident. The top was completely sheared off. So gardeners forced a branch up to become the new leader. Today you can see the trunk has a slight wiggle. However that was not the end of the challenges this cedar would face."

"Brother Emil B. Fetzer, then Church architect, was given the responsibility of designing the new South Visitor's Center. Part of his design contemplated a plaza just outside that Visitor's Center. Accordingly, the Cedar of Lebanon was first marked for removal, then plans were changed. As construction began, however, due to some oversight, the Cedar of Lebanon was still slated for removal. By the time Brother Lassig noticed, construction crews were within two hours of taking out the tree. Brother Lassig hurried to Brother Fetzer's office with documentation showing the oversight. Brother Fetzer immediately halted the construction crews and the Cedar of Lebanon was saved."

Cedar of Lebanon facing East

Cedar of Lebanon Aerial View

A few more lights on Temple Square that we hadn't taken last week.

Nativity shooting North

Nativity on pond west of the Temple

Shepherd scene West of the JSMB

Snowman in front of apartment building - (note the name badge)

Sunday morning we walked to the Tabernacle Broadcast in light snow and it was COLD (again).  In the "Spoken Word" today, Lloyd Newell talked about the song "The First Noel."

"Noel is originally a French word related to the Latin natalis, which means 'birthday.' Today, of course, noel connotes not just any birthday but a birthday that would change the world and everything in it; a birthday that, for much of the world, reset the calendar, marks time, and is celebrated still today."

"Over time, the word noel has come to refer both to Christmas and, more specifically, to Christmas music. 'The First Noel,' then is a song about the first Christmas carol - the one sung by a choir of angels to humble shepherds gathered in a lonely field outside of Bethlehem. We can only imagine what their glorious music sounded like, but in a sense, our carols today are each an echo of that first noel. Whether it's our own rousing declaration of 'glory to God in the highest' or a gentle affirmation of peach on earth and 'good will toward men,' we humbly join the angels in singing praises to the newborn King.

How grateful we are at this special time of year to sing praises to His name and reflect on the blessing of His birth..