A Tribute to Megan N. (Liz's best friend)

A Short...By Elizabeth Farnsworth

I found this paper in Elizabeth's backpack this morning. It brought a smile to my face.

Happy Mothers Day

First of all, I am so grateful for my mother and the wonderful example she is to me of selfless service. There are hundreds of memories I have of my mother giving to others. She would constantly ignore her own problems and with a glad heart, help those in need. She has more energy than a entire army of men and can to this day beat me in arm wrestling. She raised six boys, no small feat in itself and managed to keep her sanity. I love and am grateful for my mother and the wonderful person that she is. I love you mom!

Now I would like to say a few words about my wife and mother of my three children, Paulette. I am grateful for the opportunity that I have to be with this remarkable person for eternity. Every day I see something new and wonderful about her and cannot imagine what I will learn throughout the remainder of my life. At first glance, you see a soft spoken women but upon further review you will find so much more. Paulette is a women of tremendous faith and her faith grows with each trial that comes her way, I have never seen her take a step backwards, she has only moved forward and grown.
There are a couple of experiences that stand out to me that illustrate this point. A few years ago in our ward in St. George she was asked to be the ward organist, something that she has never done and is very different than playing the piano, but without hesitation she accepted this call with faith in the Lord. On another occasion she was asked to be the ward choir director. Again, something she was completely unfamiliar with yet without hesitation she accepted her new calling and the Lord again strengthened her.
Then three years ago when Paulette learned that she was pregnant with twins but then immediately found out that we had lost them both. Since she was so far along Paulette still had to give birth to these babies knowing that she would never be able to hold them in her arms. The strength and unshakable faith she showed that night is something I will never forget. There are the hard times and bad days but I am amazed that she continues to move forward and become a better person because of it.
Paulette is a wonderful, gentle, kind, patient and beautiful person and our children love her and she loves them. Thank you Paulette for the many sacrifices you make for our family, we love you!!

The "Perfect" Talk

So...Elizabeth was assigned a talk on Sunday, with no topic. She's been a little fascinated with the story of Moses since she watched a "Scripture Bugs" video about him. So, naturally, she wanted to talk about Moses. It was sweet, simple, and to the point. All she did, with a little help from her daddy, was get a piece of scrap paper and simply write out what she wanted to say. She even included a scripture reference about prophets (Amos...) and then I helped her find some pictures to go along with what she was saying. (the big picture packet that the church sells came in handy). She practiced a few times to make sure she was saying the words right and so she could remember what pictures went where until she was confident.

Sunday morning she stood at the pulpit and read her (written) talk perfectly. She spoke of prophets and explained how they transmit messages to us from the Lord and she also spoke of Moses and how he was slow of speech, but the Lord strengthened him and he was able to write down the commandments, part the Red Sea, and led the Lord's people out of Egypt. It was excellent. After she finished the Primary President stopped her from sitting down and explained to everyone that it was an example of a perfect talk. She wrote it herself, had a scripture reference, added her testimony and provided pictures. Kevin and I were so proud! I can't believe how much our little girl is growing up! It is so neat to see her testimony grow!! I love it!

Fun Run? By Kevin Farnsworth

Well I bought new running shoes tonight. I must say it's kind of like buying a really cool toy for your kids on christmas eve and then realizing, oh no, now I have to put the dang thing together. Then it goes from being a really cool toy to hell on earth. This is kind of how I feel about my new shoes. The idea was great! I stared at those beautiful blue trimmed sneakers, displayed so proudly on the shelf of the shoe store. Could it be destiny? I mean, they were half off and perfect in every way. I picked up the shoe and turned it over in my hand, feeling the meshy fabric that would allow my feet to breathe as they triumphed gracefully through the streets and up the hills. I anxiously tried them on and was relieved to find that they were a perfect fit. I proudly paced across the floor and did lunges down the aisle. People stared, probably because they were amazed at my awesomeness. The decision had been made and the shoes were purchased. Everything was going superb, until we arrived home. I heard a voice in my head saying, Kevin guess what moron, now you have to run, isn't that fun! No, there is no such thing as a fun run, I hate running. When I run I feel like my lungs for some strange reason are trying to get to the outside of my body via my throat which makes it extremely hard to breathe, and breathing is absolutely necessary if you are going to be able to keep running or live for that matter. I was reminded of a church movie where this boy carries a rattlesnake to the top of the mountain against his better judgment and even with the promise the snake makes not to bite him. Alas, when he got to the top of the mountain and let the snake down he was promptly bitten and as the snake slithered away he uttered these words, "You knew what I was when you picked me up." That sums up how I feel about my new running shoes, they sat there at the store all beautiful, hiding there true selfs and there true purpose from me. As I sat at home staring at my shoes on my bed, I think I heard them say, "You knew what I was when you picked me up." So, I guess I have no one to blame but myself.

Hurricane 5K...I am a Champion!

I did it! I woke up early Saturday morning (before the sun), put on my running shoes, pinned my number to my shirt, grabbed my MP3 player, and headed out the door. I arrived at the high school just in time to catch the bus ride over to the starting line (the park on La Verkin's Main Street). The weather was perfect for a run...a slight chill with a slight breeze (I am grateful that the wind didn't kick in). The moment of truth had arrived and I was anxious to prove to myself that I could actually conquer this race and meet my goal of 40 min. It seemed a bit slow...13.3 min miles...but it was doable for me.:) This was, afterall my first race EVER.

I kept a nice steady pace starting off. I didn't want to burn out and have to walk the rest of the way. Surprisingly the first mile of the race seemed the hardest. My body had to get warmed up. Finally by the time I turned the corner to get on State Street I found my jive, and thanks to Coldplay's "Twisted Logic" I made it to the bridge and found the stamina to continue up that dreaded hill. It proved to be not too bad, and through my concentration, I was able to wave at a few random honking cars and a bystander who called out my name (sorry...whoever you were...I still am not sure who you are, but thank you so much for the encouragement)!

I just kept going....I found the strength to stick it out and not slow down. By the time I reached the curve I had caught up with Alex Santiago and waved to him as I passed.:) No offense...but I was proud that I could at that point of the race, actually pass anyone. I was tired, but I kept on moving my legs, knowing that the end was near, all I had to do was hold out for a few more blocks. I ran hard and then slowed down and then ran hard again. I had to get to that finish line and I figured the more people I could pass at that point the better. (I think I passed 7 people during the last leg...but 4 of the 7 passed me back.) My favorite part of the race, by far, is when I turned that corner (on the west side of the tennis courts) and saw the finish line! Ah blessed finish line! My wonderful family and a few devoted friends greeted me during that special moment. I'm so glad that they were there...it was so nice to see them!

Kevin had the video camera out, but because he wasn't expecting me to be there so soon...he didn't get a shot of me crossing the line...only after.:) So, you could say that I beat expectations and you can see for yourself how I did (see image below). I definitely did much better than I ever expected to...and I hope to improve this time next month when Kevin and I race together!

Paulette Farnsworth did it! And I am so proud! It is something I would have never imagined myself doing even a year ago!:) Wahoooooooooooooo! I feel good! (Oh, and in case you were wondering, there were 120 runners in the 5K).