Tender Mercies in Taiwan

When Scott and Daniel returned from the mission field we took the opportunity to pick them up. By doing that we were able to meet the wonderful people that they introduced the gospel to. That was a bigger challenge with Joseph being that he served in Taiwan. As luck would have it Bob's work was taking him to Taiwan so we planned a vacation in conjunction with a business trip a year after his return.

We title this blog Tender Mercies because of the wonderful experiences we had each day as we walked the streets of Taiwan. Several of the days we did not have things lined up with people he wanted to see and things always worked out so beautifully. Things feel into place so that we could see so many of the people Joey wanted to see. Joey was to be both our tour guide and interpreter for the week and he did a great job by helping us learn about and meet the people he came to love.

We landed in Taiwan and took a taxi to the Taiwan Temple patron housing. The next morning as we came outside to go to church two full time missionaries walked out of the mission office. One of them was Elder Hammer, one of Joeys companions. After a long embrace and some pictures it was off to church. We took the subway to one of the Chinese branches that Joey attended. It was a great reunion (Joey was afraid no one would remember him). One of the speakers didn't show up and Joey was asked to speak. We wish we knew Chinese but the holy ghost helped us to feel much of the meetings spirit.

That night we went to a members home for dinner. We enjoyed pigs feet, jelly fish, shark and more. We helped him call the missionary in the USA that baptised him years ago. Home on the subway and looking forward to an adventure down south.

We ate breakfast "on the street" which was very good. then on to the subway and then the 3 hr train ride to Hualien. The train ride was grand with ocean and mountain views. When we arrived Joey mentioned that even though he couldn't contact any people in this city he still wanted to be there. He suggested that we just go to the church and see what happens. On our way to the church we passed a member that drives a taxi and Joey gave him a shout. The church was locked but a member (custodian) let us in. The custodian happened to be the big sister of the taxi driver that Joey knew. They called him and he came and he wanted to be our tour guide for the day in his taxi. So he grabbed his camera and off we went to Taroko Gorge. (They claim it is the 3rd prettiest place in the world)

Amazing canyons, gorges, cliffs, etc. But after 5 hours of nature viewing, Miriam actually said..I never thought I would say it but " I am tired of nature". I think she was just tired but we never thought it would happen. Back to the city by way of the cemetery and ocean. That evening we went to a outdoor show of traditional aboriginal dancing. We spent the night in a bed and breakfast type hotel. The owner was wonderful to us and Joey even had the opportunity to teach parts of the first discussion to a group of guests that asked some questions. Later that evening (11:30 pm) a nurse that went to English classes that Joseph taught and joined the church came over with her son and visited with us. She brought us mulberries and juice for a nice treat.

The next morning it was the best street breakfast with Jeff, a young man that Joseph taught. We had a great lunch with the Lu family then off to the train station where we barely hopped the train to continue our journey to Taidung. (literally)

Mountains and rice patties as far as the eye can see. An entertaining taxi ride (110 in a 60), a hotel with mattresses on the floor but free bikes, yet another great breakfast on the street, and an adventure with the Lu family. They took us to the hot springs where we sat in natural hot springs while our raw eggs were cooking close by in really hot hot springs. We enjoyed meeting and talking with the very friendly people at the resort.

Now to the airport for a flight back to Taipei. (Well, Bob just stepped away from the computer and told me it is my turn. This is going to be consolidated compared to his.) We had a few more days in Taiwan. We went to the temple for 2 endowment and 1 sealing session. That was really sweet for us. We ate great meals with Bob's work people, Daniel and Amber who are younger friends of Joey's. They accompanied us up to Danshui where we had such a great time together. Walked and walked just like missionaries on the streets. We found his favorite Mexican restaurant and Eddy. Each evening we had dinners with people he worked with on his mission. They love him and you should see his face with the people he spent so much time with and grew so close to. He really glows.

One particularly special experience was looking for a Filipino girl that he found and taught on his mission. We passed her on the street going to her home. She has not been able to come to church because of situations with schedules. He was able to get a hold of the missionaries that speak her language and find a branch that will meet in the afternoon so she can attend. He talked with the missionaries and this girl and got commitments to attend and get a hold of each other. The Elders told him they were going to keep helping her to come now. So she was happy and so was he. It was fun for me to see him in action and testifying to her of the importance of the covenants and remind her of the blessings of keeping them. They speak English but she prefers Tagoli.

We got up early and a member taxi driver drove us to the airport. Joey waited for many hours for his plane. We got on our plane and went to Cambodia for Bob's work. The people of Taiwan are the some most gracious and giving people we have ever met. We are so privileged to have had this beautiful experience. We are so grateful that Joey had the opportunity to serve his mission here and feel the tender mercies of the Lord on this blessed land and himself. (Oh, Bob had successful meetings and enjoyed the people at work as well) CHECK OUT THE PICS IN THE ALBUM LINK

Bryce Canyon in the Winter

We decided to take a winter weekend and went to Bryce Canyon. They have received 10 feet of snow since Thanksgiving and had about 3-4 feet on the ground when we arrived. We stayed at Ruby's Inn. When we arrived we took off into the park and visited the visitor center and a few look out sites. Then we put our snowshoes in our back pack and hiked down Navajo loop where we met a couple of guys from Switzerland. They showed us a shortcut over to PeeK-a-Boo Loop and off we went. They had been the only ones there since the last snow so we had a lot of snow to hike through. We did one section of Peek-a-Boo then turned around and returned. The canyon was beautiful. With all the snow, and freeze thaw action going on you can hear rock falling all the time. One large rock fell on the trail right after we passed that was about the size of a loaf of bread. Weird! One thing we thought was so amazing was where everyone came from. No one was from Utah. We met people from British Columbia, Switzerland, India, Florida, Georgia, California, Nevada, and New York. On Saturday we cross country skied along the rim then headed for home. Wow what a drive home! On I15 we ran into a white out, icy roads, dozens of cars sliding off the roads....crazy! A white knuckle experience. Go to the Album and look at winter pics of Bryce Canyon.

Coyote Gulch

Our family has loved Coyote Gulch for many many years thanks to my cousin Myra. I have probably been down there 7 or 8 times. Coyote Gulch is south of the city of Escalante in the Glen Canyon National Rec. Area. It feeds into the Escalante River which flows into Lake Powell. We drive down Hole in the Rock Road and enter at Crack in the Wall. Over the years we have also gone in Red Well. We have exited through that as well as Hurricane and Jacob Hamblin Arch. We love the big red walls, echo chambers, quicksand, playing in the fun creek, the beautiful fall leaves and in the spring we love the little frogs all over everywhere. (Especially loved the frog races) Jacob Hamblin Arch is spectacular as well as Coyote Bridge and the Steven's arch area. We love lowering the packs down the 26 foot cliff (Scott G's estimation) and entering by way of the narrow crack. We love scrambling up on the waterfalls and playing frisbe off of the narrow canyon walls.
We love climbing up to where the Indians lived in the cliffs and finding clues of their past lives. The pictographs, graineries and possible kivas, little corn husks and ends of squash or pumpkins. We found pottery shards, storage bins made with some type of mortar and even the kind of rock that arrowheads are made of. The grinding rocks and where they ground were right there. Ten years ago it was the same way. Although we found a piece of sandle or moccasin too. I checked with the park rangers and these artifacts are relatively new. They are only around 1500 years old.
I love the kind of hikers we meet that will pack in and be so respectful of the canyon and friendly to everyone who passes. I love sleeping under the stars without a tent especially with my 5 kids and Bob under a tarp when the wind and rain came up. Walking out the canyon the next day we found skipbo cards for a long while. In the heat of the sun your bag of gummie worms turns into a huge glob of gunk (but they still eat it).
"A word of caution: In planning a trip to Coyote Gulch, you're committing yourself to more than you know. The Escalante Canyons are addictive. Hike Coyote once in the spring and you'll be cursing yourself to a lifetime of violent and undeniable springtime "desert cravings." Coyote will awaken appetites, emotional and spiritual, you didn't even know you had." This caution is not mine but I agree with it.
Well this week Myra invited 3 friends and myself on another such adventure. I loved being with Candy, Myra, Trudy and Mark. What kind, generous and compassionate people. I would love to go on another such adventure with them. We really would not have made it through the canyon this time without Mark's muscles in helping get the group up some of the falls. Trudy and Mark even had our car waiting for us at the Hurricane trailhead for us so we didn't have to hitchhike back to crack in the wall. I guess they did that for us. Thank you. We will forever be so very grateful to Myra for sharing her canyon and love with us. Look at the pictures with captions under "picture albums" to the right.

Visit the Albums!

Ok this short blog is to inform all of our loyal followers that we have loaded a bunch of albums for all to enjoy. If you know Miriam at all you know she loves the seasons. Included in the albums are hikes taken throughout the year. You will find us in Winter, Spring, Summer and Fall. Enjoy the journey!

Lambs Canyon Sleepover

Peter Crookston has a wonderful lot up Lambs Canyon. We enjoyed a friday night with Pete, his boys, Scott, Kylee, Dylan, Grandpa and Hadlee. We enjoyed the great weather, had a fun bon fire, cooked hotdogs, and played well into the evening. Scott took Grandpa and the girls home and Miriam I, Pete and his boys spent the night. In the morning Miriam and I drove up to the top of the canyon and WOW we saw a family of Moose or is it Moosi or Mooses?? Miriam and I slept on the roof of Petes bowery, went on a great hike, had our traditional destination kiss and just had a great time. Look for the dirty face which is an indication of how much fun Dylan had! Go to the pics..enjoy the albums.

Lake Powell Adventure

We were invited by wonderful family members to spend a week at beautiful Lake Powell. We enjoyed a house boat, ski boat and wave runners. We ate, then ate some more and oh then we ate some more. We enjoyed hiking, swimming and did I mention we ate....a lot?

We visited Rainbow Bridge, visited hole in the rock (how did they do that?) and went up 50 mile canyon and took some incredible pictures of the Lake Powell cliffs reflected in the waters of Lake Powell. Thanks to Craig and Annette for their hospitality. Enjoy the Pics of Southern Utah.

Wonderful Michigan trip

In June we had the wonderful opportunity to fly to Michigan to be with Jared, Rachel and the family. The plane ride was NOT a pleasant experience! We ended up stuck in Denver for the night then flew to Illinois the next day then finally to Michigan. Once we got there we had a great time! Congrats to Ammon on a swell baptism. We camped, hiked up sand dunes, went bowling and ate lots of food. Joey, Mir and I had a great time. Enjoy the Pics.

Wow this is really late. Last april Elder Joey came home. What a grand celebration it was! Elder Langford served an honorable mission in Taiwan, loved it, worked hard, and had great experiences. Our family was very blessed through his service. The pics show his return and family party afterwards.. Enjoy!

Jackson Hole Retreat with Good ol' Friends

Our dear friend Ann Lynch has been living in Chicago for the past 10 or 11 years. The last we saw her was when she came to Utah during the 2002 Olympics. She & her husband were visiting their son Eric in Jackson Wyoming. Carrie Williams, Chris Dedrickson, Cathy Whiting & I drove up there to visit her on Friday, Feb. 8th and we came home on Sunday after Sac. Mtg. in Jackson. We kidnapped her from her family for 24 hours and had the greatest time. We cross country skied with the backdrop of the Tetons in the Colter Bay area. It was sunny, warm and spectacular. The sky was blue and the snow was sparkling and still powdery dry. Chris taught us about hoar snow and was a great tour guide. We ate everything from healthy snap peas to decadent Marie Calendar Pie and Moose Munch etc. The best was just talking and being with the dearest of pals. Miles are not a bearier with friends like these. Annie, we love you like a sister and will look forward to fulfilling a bucket list item in 2010. Make sure you see the pictures on the link to the right.

Was It A Dream?

Bob wrote right away after we got back. It has been harder for me. I have been heartsick to leave New Zealand. I know that I will probably never get back there or to the wonderful islands that we visited. I will miss many many things but mostly people. I had a friend tell me recently that she wished she had a quarter for every time I spoke of it. I guess it was just like we were gone for a little bit to our friends and family. Maybe I need to let it go. It feels like a glorious dream now and I don't want to let it go. What a tremendous blessing it was for Bob and I to have that opportunity. I am so very grateful to our Heavenly Father. Wow, there is so much I never want to forget. The glorious diverse world that God created for all of us. But most importantly the people all over were so incredible. The wonderful openness and love of the cultures. We will never forget these amazing people and hope these relationships will never change. How our Heavenly Father blesses all of His children and how much very many of them appreciate it. How grateful I was to serve as a Church Service Missionary for the Auckland New Zealand Mission. Wow, that opportunity was so precious to me. Antony being baptized before we left. Serving in the Nursery. Bob's and my special togetherness and unique lifestyle there. Was it only a magical dream?