Pappa Hardy's Musings on Life.

It has been interesting watching Entertainment programs on the ocean. These people must be incredibly talented. First, they are performing on a deck that is moving to and fro. Secondly, they are away from the land for a significant amount of time, away from family, friends, and the rest of civilization. Third, they all seem to be very talented. It must be a great challenge, and very rewarding to be an entertainer, let alone an entertainer on the seas. They do such a good job at keeping people entertained and happy.

One thing that sets apart The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints is our building of Temples, and Temple Worship. I had the opportunity tonight to be a part of the dedication of the Draper Temple. It was a wonderful experience. The sacredness of this structure and what happens there is peculiar to our religion, but I believe is beautiful.

Contrast that to a recent episode of Big Love, which portrayed for the whole world something which we consider to be sacred. That portrayal in my opinion was unnecessary to and added nothing to the story that show was trying to tell. It was included because the “Mormons” are considered a peculiar people. I was offended by the insensitivity of the producers of that show. What incredible differences there were from the dedication which was a high light, and a crass portrayal on network TV.

My travels around the world, as limited as they are, have taught me some important lessons. First, we have a lot of diverse cultures. I have loved going into new places and seeing how people live, and what they enjoy doing. On a beach in St. Marteen I heard several ladies, natives of that island I assume, talking Creole while we all were laying out on the beach. They were obviously having a good time. None of them were well off, but they have a unique culture.

Despite these differences in culture, all of us have the same basic desires. We love and treasure family. We want shelter, and want meaning in our work and in our existence. It has been a constant that is everywhere I visit. We live together in groups because we are interdependent on each other and need each other’s expertise. It is true that we are different, but also the same.

I watched the Series finale to Battlestar Galactica tonight. A lot of people didn’t like the turn this show took after it’s second season. I have my own doubts about that, but the one thing that I did like about this finale was the fact that sometimes we just need to start over. That was one of the main messages that I came away with from this show. Sometimes despite all that we want for keeping the status quo, we just need to give up the old ways and try something new.

I liked the Series Finale for Battlestar Galactica. I think in my family I may have been the only who did like it.

One thing I will never forget, even though it happened almost 30 years ago, is a situation where a good time turned bad. I was attending a wood badge training in Michigan and it was a night of camp fire programs (this is actually when I would camp out in a tent under the stars). I was a participant in the course, and our patrol had already done our skit. It was the turn of the staff to do their skit. One of the gentlemen in the skit was performing his part when he collapsed. For a minute, all of us just stood there, because it appeared that his collapse was part of the skit. Soon, from the faces of the other staff members, it was apparent something not good was happening. People rushed over to the scouters aid and began to administer CPR. Not long after that, we were all dismissed to go back to our camp sites, and the program suffered an abrupt end. Even worse was the fact that the next morning we found out that the man, after having been rushed to a hospital nearby, had died later that night as the result of the massive heart attack he had suffered. It was a sad time for everyone. I never take anything like that for granted anymore.

I have had the privilege of being on a cruise ship. My dad was on a Troop Ship. What a difference they have been.

I have had luxurious accommodations, food that was second to none, entertainment, and a ship designed to minimize the amount of motion that an person would experience and therefore minimizing the chance of sea sickness.

My dad had a very different experience. His ship had food that was adequate but not fixed to tantalize the pallet. The ship rocked and rolled, and many good very sick from the motion of the ocean. Finally, the only entertainment was that which the men produced for themselves, and lights were out at night because it was the time of a World War, with the enemy often lurking underneath the sea in submarines. You feared that your ship might never make it to it’s destination. I have no doubt that we will arrive just in fine shape. Yes, my dad was a brave man, and he experienced the seven seas in a way different from me.

You know, somehow or someway, or maybe even someday, I must be famous. I get to sit next to “important” people when I am in meetings or dinners. For example, I have sat next to two of three of the Congressman from the State of Utah. I have met both of her Senators and the Governor. I have sat next to the Lt. Governor of the State of Utah in a banquet. I have met two or three Senators from the State of Wyoming and talked to them face to face. One of them even knew me when I would write letters about this or that item. I know all of the City Councilman in Payson as well as the Mayor on a first name basis. I have a son, Christofer, who actually has shaken the hands of former President Bill Clinton when he was running for President in 1992. Another son was a friend of the daughter of the Governor of Wyoming.

You would think with all of the associations I have had with other famous people like my wife, or my kids, or my parents, or my friends, or just my neighbors, that somehow I would be famous. Alas, I am just good old Mike, the guy who lives down the street in the house next to the two story house not too far from Rocky Ridge.

I haven’t yet figured out why I am not on the evening news, widely quoted in the paper or on the local TV networks, or why everyone I meet doesn’t already know who I am. Instead, I am just me, and despite all of my association with the famous, no one knows me. Well, my family and friends know me and that should be enough, don’t you think?