How I feel about the Arts

Girl Among the Hollyhocks by John Hafen (1856-1910)
One of my favorite paintings.
Hafen was a Utah artist who was sent to Paris, France
as an art missionary in 1890.

"The influence of art is so powerful in shaping our lives for a higher appreciation of the creations of our God. We should be as eager for it's companionship as we are for food to sustain our lives, for it has as important a mission in shaping our character and in conducting to our happiness as anything we term necessities. Life is incomplete without it."
~John Hafen

Redhead Heroine

Looking forward to this Disney/PIXAR
"BRAVE"
coming this summer!

Light the Fire Within: 10 years later

10 year old Caitlyn at Olympic Plaza.

Folks in our neck of the woods are fondly remembering
the 2002 Winter Olympics.
It was an amazing experience.
A coming together and a healing time for our nation
after the horror of 9/11.

13 year old Coryn playing the Chihuly Steinway in Abravanel Hall.

IOC President Jacques Rogge began a tradition
of assigning each games their own
identity and calling the
2002 Salt Lake City Games
"flawless."

Enjoy a retrospective of photos of those glorious events.
And read about some of the significant moments
HERE.

Remember NYC Officer Daniel Rodriguez
singing a beautiful and emotional National Anthem
and afterwards being signed to a recording contract?

IOC President Jacques Rogges, President Bush,
and Olympic Leader Mitt Romney
salute the tattered flag
which flew over the World Trade Center.

President Bush with the USA Athletes.
(Talking to one of the athlete's moms on the phone.)
My husband bought me one of those coveted hats:)

Remember the "Children of Light"
skating on the ice?
Stunning.

And nightly performers at the Medals Plaza,
like this group called N'Sync...

Oh, and a young Josh Groban and Charlotte Church
singing a gorgeous new duet by David Foster
called, "The Prayer."

And a "scandal" that forced the presenting of
two sets of gold medals to figure skating duos.

Young New Yorker Sarah Hughes
surprised everyone by taking the gold
in figure skating.

And everyone fell in love with
speed skater Apolo Ohno.

Artist Dale Chihuly designed several
unique glass sculptures to adorn the
downtown plaza.

Oh, those mountains, blue skies
and plenty of snow.

Olympic rings lit nightly on the mountain.

The city was aglow
and for two glorious weeks
human kind came together in peace
and unity and understanding.
It was magical.

"...where there's love overflowing..."

Whitney on the Merv Griffin show in 1985

The voice of a generation.
One of my favorites.
Such a senseless loss.
A shame she forgot where to find
"The Greatest Love of All."

A Writer's Words and a Terrific Teacher

Blurry Focus Photography

Went to our beautiful local library on Tuesday
to hear 2010 Newbery Award winning author
Rebecca Stead.

Court with author Rebecca Stead

My daughter and I had some great conversation
with Rebecca last summer at the
BYU Books for Young Readers Symposium.
She is a fascinating person and a talented writer.
We were delighted when she recognized
and waved at us before the presentation.
Fun to visit with her afterwards.
Read more about Ms. Stead HERE.

Court with Mrs. Terry (right) and some of her third grade classmates.

Another treat of the evening was seeing one of Court's
favorite elementary teachers
Merilee Terry.
She had accompanied several of her current students
to the event.
Her students asked the author many excellent questions.

Mrs. Terry taught Court in 3rd,4th and 5th grade
as part of a pilot "community classroom."
She is an outstanding teacher and has received
many much-deserved honors.
Even more amazing, she has kept in touch
with many of her students for over 20+ years.

Hooray for children's book writers
and dedicated school teachers!

Food for Thought

Two of my favorite restaurants : Communal and Pizzaria 712 are run by Colton Soelberg. I met Colton when his restaurants generously sponsored The Rooftop Concert Series in Provo. Eating in either of these spots is an experience to savor. Fresh, delicious, and beautiful food. Worth every penny. I highly recommend a visit.

No Social Network Needed

"God has no Phone, but I talk to Him.
He has no Facebook,
but He is still my friend.
He does not have a Twitter,
but I still follow Him."
~actor, Will Smith