My Valentine

Do you know, I would quietly

Slip from the loud circle, 

When first I know the pale 

Stars above the oaks

are blooming.

Ways will I elect

that seldom any tread

in pale evening meadows-

and no dream but this:

You come too.

~Rainer Maria Rilke

Tim and I spent Valentines Day in Waterton. Tim is always so good about planning things and arranging the babysitter. We brought out snowshoes and then met friends afterwards for Mexican.

 Waterton in the winter is a whole new experience. It's wild and changing and the best part is getting the whole park all to yourself. 

 The water had 3 parts- flowing water, thick gel-like half frozen water and then crunchy ice shards along the shore. The waves made a tinkling noise like chimes.

 This is where I slipped on an icy rock trying to get a picture. My iphone was drowning so I plunged my bare arm into the heart stopping freezing water and rescued it. I then proceeded to give it mouth to mouth. I'm not kidding. It was instinctive. I began sucking the water out of all the outlets and it worked. I saved it's life.

I was reading about family recreation and took these notes:

I like the term "recreation" as opposed to, say, "vacation". "Vacation" implies an empty, vacant time-a period of loafing, of having out, of passing the time. Recreation, by contrast, reminds us, by definition, that periods of time-out can serve the serious purpose of renewal. At it's best, recreation allows us to re-create ourselves in order to retune to ordinary life renewed, refreshed, and reinvigorated. The highest function of play is re-creation… Let us not only remember the Sabbath to keep it holy. Let us make time in a hectic, harried 24/7 world for re-creation.

Dr. John Tanner

How we can intentionally create and protect space and time for recreation:

1. Make recreation and/or family fun a priority

2. Minimize distractions of media and technology

3. Recognize the rejuvenating power of brief moments of freely chosen experiences

4. Simplify life

We are tempted to think that our little "sips" of online connection add up to a big gulp of real conversation…Connecting in sips doesn't work when it comes to understanding and knowing one another… We expect more from technology and less from one another and seem increasingly drawn to technologies that provide the illusion of companionship without the demands of relationship… We think constant connection will make us feel less lonely. The opposite is true. if we are unable to be alone we are far more likely to be lonely. If we don't teach our children to be alone, they will know only how to be lonely. 

~Alone Together by Sherry Turkle

An immature or misguided spouse may devote an inordinate amount of time to playing video games, chatting online, or in other ways allowing the digital to dominate things as they really are. Initially the investment of time may seem relatively harmless, rationalized as a few minutes of needed relief from the demands of a hectic daily schedule. But important opportunities are missed for developing and improving interpersonal skills, for laughing and crying together, and for creating a rich and enduring bond of emotional intimacy. Progressively, seemingly innocent entertainment can become a form of pernicious enslavement.

~ Things as They Really Are

Elder David A. Bednar