Sixteen Barn Stars

Niue (pronounced NEW-ay) is a tiny island nation in the South Pacific, best known for limestone cliffs and caves, rock pools and coral reef diving. 1600 people live in Niue, which means “behold the coconut.”  In January of 2004 Niue was hit by a category five Cyclone Heta. The storm caused two deaths and more than $85 million in damage there. In a matter of hours, all of the country’s vital records were completely destroyed. Years earlier, FamilySearch volunteers had meticulously microfilmed many of Niue’s vital records and stored them (along with oh so many others) in granite vaults high above Salt Lake City. These priceless documents include more than 30,000 images of birth, death and marriage records, and an index of Europeans who emigrated to Niue. The documents also include genealogies of Niue women, which are used to determine property rights. All of these valuable records were copied and restored to Niue to help them rebuild their lives.

Twin Stars Quilt

This quilt came together in only a few weeks in early spring 2009. We’d just returned from a house-hunting trip in North Yorkshire. Even though the house we’d chosen wouldn’t be finished for a while, we knew none of the rooms would be large enough for Heather’s double bed. She needed a twin-sized bed and a new quilt to match it. I quickly made two dozen 10” blocks from the charm squares I’d swapped with friends in the Clothesline Club. Most of the prints are reproductions, but a few are actually antiques from the 30’s. Then I let Heather select fabric for the sashing, cornerstones, border, back and binding. I knew she’d choose something green, but the pink was a surprise. She was delighted with the finished product and kept it on her bed until we moved back home. Since then it’s served as a picnic quilt. It’s been washed many times, but is still in excellent shape.

Nine Barn Stars

If you were invited to take a trip with total strangers, would you go? Ten friends from Bristol (on the southwestern coast of England) decided to holiday together on the Spanish island of Mallorca. After the vacation had been booked and paid for, they discovered one friend – Joe McGrath – wouldn’t be able to join them. Joe’s ticket was non-refundable, so his friends did the only sensible thing. They trolled the Internet looking for a new mate with the same name. They found a 21-year-old Joe McGrath living in Manchester (roughly four hours north of Bristol) and asked him to join the party. At first Joe hesitated, but eventually he came around, saying, "Something like this will never happen again. I’d always regret if I didn't do it." He and his new friends had a terrific time. "They’re such a great bunch of people," Joe said. "There might be more holidays in future."

Peekaboo Park

What do you do with a zoo stranded in a war zone? For months, as Iraqi forces fought to reclaim Mosul from ISIS, the Montazah Al-Morour Zoo was stuck in the middle. People living in the area had been feeding the stranded animals when they could, even though they could scarcely find food for themselves. As the fighting intensified the humans were eventually forced to abandon the zoo altogether. One by one, the animals starved or were killed – all but a lion named Simba and a bear named Lulu. That’s when Four Paws International came to the rescue. "Even in the worst hardships there are people who care for animals," said Four Paws International veterinarian Dr. Amir Khalil. After a number of setbacks Lulu and Simba finally arrived at The New Hope Center, a rescue and rehabilitation facility in Amman. “From now on,” says Dr. Khalil, “they won’t have to be part of this war.”

Four Barn Stars

In the museum at Rievaulx Abbey (the locals pronounce it “REE-vo”) in North Yorkshire, there’s a half-ton lump of lead on display. It’s all that remains of the abbey’s roof and windowpanes.  Nearly 500 years ago, Henry VIII gave orders for the lead to be melted down and carted south – partly to fill his coffers, and partly because he knew no building would remain standing long without a roof. The only reason this particular chunk of lead is still here is Henry’s men were in such a hurry they accidentally brought down part of the abbey on top of it before it could be hauled off. This spring I’ve wished for a lead roof, or anything more substantial than these flimsy asphalt tiles. We’ve had several aggressive wind storms this spring, and each one sent more tiles flying. Our 19-year-old roof was patched three times, but this year it's a total loss. The new roof was due yesterday, so of course it's raining. All week.

Boxes and Baskets

“The motivation for raising the warning voice is love; love of God and love of fellowman. To warn is to care. The Lord instructs that it is to be done in mildness and in meekness and by persuasion, by long-suffering, by gentleness, and by love unfeigned. It can be urgent, as when we warn a child not to put his or her hand in a fire. It must be clear and sometimes firm. On occasion, warning may take the form of reproof when moved upon by the Holy Ghost, but always it is rooted in love. Witness, for example, the love that motivates the service and sacrifices of our missionaries. Surely love would compel parents to warn their closest neighbors: their own children. This means teaching and testifying of gospel truths. It means teaching children the doctrine of Christ: faith, repentance, baptism, and the gift of the Holy Ghost.” – Elder D. Todd Christofferson

4" Barn Star

Dad had worked hard all day Sunday, so when he got home he went to bed early. Mom sat on the couch with the children but before long she, too, was fast asleep. That’s when the kids got the munchies. The eight-year-old boy grabbed his four-year-old sister, his piggy bank and Dad’s car keys and headed for Mickey D’s. The Golden Arches were a mile away, over the railroad tracks and through four intersections. The novice driver obeyed all the traffic laws, stayed under the speed limit and even  negotiated a left turn. He told police he’d learned to drive watching YouTube videos. He didn’t know he’d done anything wrong; he only wanted a cheeseburger. The story has a happy ending. The kids got their burgers, Grandma and Grandpa were called to take them home, and no charges were filed. I have to wonder, though, if he’s this resourceful at eight, what will he be like at eighteen?

On the Fence

19-year-old Welshman Brian Robson moved to Australia in an assisted immigration program in 1964. Homesick from the moment he arrived, he began to think of ways to get back to the UK. As part of his agreement he couldn’t leave Australia legally for at least two years. He tried stowing away on a ship, but got violently seasick and was sent back. Then he read about Reg Spiers, an Australian athlete who mailed himself home from England in a crate. He talked friends into nailing him (and his suitcase) into a 30x38x26” box and shipping him to London. He had pliers to escape on arrival, but absolutely no room to maneuver. Many miserable hours later he was apprehended in America, cold, unable to move or speak but very lucky to be alive. Robson, now in his seventies, says, “Kids don't think straight. They make their mind up to do something and don't think of the consequences.”

Checkerboard Friends

According to the United States Department of Agriculture 48.1 million Americans have insecure access to food, including 32.8 million adults and 15.3 million children (that’s roughly 1 out of every 5). You might read a statistic like that, think, “how sad,” and move on. Or you could do something about it. You could go out to lunch. Draper enterpreneur Steve Down saw an opportunity four years ago to turn the food industry into a force for good. He created Even Stevens, a sandwich shop that feeds one homeless person for every sandwich sold. Today there are eleven Even Stevens locations: Salt Lake City, Sugarhouse, Draper, St. George, Ogden, Logan, Boise, Gilbert, Phoenix, Tempe and Arcadia. As of last Friday they’d donated 1,244,016 sandwiches. I recommend the Reuben. Or the Pot Roast Dip. Or the Sloppy Joe. They’re all amazing. Best of all, you’ll go home feeling a little amazing yourself.

Towers of Camelot

In 2005 a poacher shot Beauty the bald eagle in the face and left her to die. With her upper beak nearly gone, she could neither eat nor drink. Fortunately animal rescuers found her before she starved to death. Birds of Prey Northwest of St. Marie’s, Idaho nursed her back to health with a feeding tube. When a bird’s beak cracks, it can be repaired much like a broken tooth. But a lost beak will never grow back. Boise mechanical engineer Nate Calvin learned about Beauty during a Birds of Prey educational presentation he attended with his two daughters. He enlisted the help of other engineers, scientists and even a dentist to design a nylon polymer piece to replace what Beauty has lost. The 3-D printed prosthesis can’t be anchored securely enough for Beauty to be released to the wild, but she can eat, drink and preen on her own. 

Square Deal

The photo posted April 14 is the way this quilt top was meant to be except for two things. The first is the sashing, blocks and cornerstones weren’t stitched together yet, so those elements looked larger than they should be compared with the block centers. The second is when I opened the kit and pressed the fabric scraps, a dark brown piece fell behind the ironing board. Instead of hunting for it I swapped a bit leftover pink from the Raspberry Cocoa quilt. Once it was up on the design wall, I wanted to change things even more. It was wide for a table runner and narrow for a wall hanging, and seemed to be begging for a border. So I added a sixteenth block (also from the Raspberry Cocoa) to make it square, and surrounded it with more sashing and cornerstones. I may still add an outer border. I’m waiting for the quilt to say what it wants.

Bear Hug

“Christ’s perfect love allows us to walk with humility, dignity and a bold confidence as followers of our beloved Savior. Christ’s perfect love gives us the confidence to press through our fears and place our complete trust in the power and goodness of our Heavenly Father, and of His Son Jesus Christ. His love will enable us to recognize, trust and have faith in our Heavenly Father’s goodness, His divine plan, His gospel and His commandments. Loving God and our fellowmen will turn our obedience to God’s commandments into a blessing rather than a burden. Christ’s love will help us become a little kinder, more forgiving, more caring and more dedicated to His work. As we fill our hearts with the love of Christ, we will awaken with a renewed spiritual freshness and we will walk joyfully, confidently, awake and alive in the light and glory of our beloved Savior, Jesus Christ.” – President Dieter F. Uchtdorf

Diamond Nine-Patch

At this time of year I'm always reminded of Dr. Irving H. Cohen. When I was a teenager he challenged my peers and me to recite the generations of Adam. (Adam, Seth, Enos, Cainan, Mahaleleel, Jared, Enoch, Methuselah, Lamech, Noah. All these years I haven’t forgotten.) He taught us to call the coming holy day Resurrection Day. Easter is about duckies and bunnies. Resurrection Day is about so much more. Dr. Cohen was raised an Orthodox Jew in Brooklyn. He trained as a dentist and served in Korea in the 1950’s, where he read the Book of Mormon and became converted. When I met him Dr. Cohen was a member of the stake high council from Schenectady. If he’s still living, he’d at least be in his eighties. Over the course of a lifetime, you meet thousands of people. Many you won’t remember; others you will never ever forget. What will you leave the people who meet you today?

County Line

One hundred fifty-two years ago today an embittered Shakespearean actor shot the President of the United States. Abraham Lincoln passed away the following day, April 15 1865, which makes him the first president to be assassinated and the third to die in office. The first, William Henry Harrison, succumbed to pneumonia thirty-one days after his inauguration in 1841. Zachary Taylor was second when he died of acute gastroenteritis (though at the time poisoning was suspected) in 1850. Two more presidents died during their terms of natural causes: Warren G. Harding in 1923 and Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1945. Three more were victims of assassinations: James A. Garfield in 1881, William McKinley in 1901 and of course John F. Kennedy in 1963. There have been dozens of attempts on presidents’ lives, but it has been nearly 54 years since any have been successful.

Hovering Hawks

Quilts Etc. chose this block to represent Lucille Ball. I’ve written about her here already (http://mombowe.blogspot.com/2011/10/home-of-brave.html ), so today I’ll just share a few quotes attributed to the first lady of television: “Love yourself first and everything else falls into line. You really have to love yourself to get anything done in this world.” “Once in his life, every man is entitled to fall madly in love with a gorgeous redhead.” “I'd rather regret the things I've done than regret the things I haven't done.” “Knowing what you cannot do is more important than knowing what you can do.” “If you want something done, ask a busy person to do it. The more things you do, the more you can do.” “In life, all good things come hard, but wisdom is the hardest to come by.” “The secret to staying young is to live honestly, eat slowly, and lie about your age.”

Nine Domino Blocks

Today’s recipe is for Grilled Cheese Sandwich Day. If you’re a purist, skip the ham.

Ultimate Ham and Cheese from Williams-Sonoma Fun Food

2 tablespoons butter

1 tablespoon flour

1/2 cup milk

1/4 cup shredded Gruyère

1 pinch nutmeg

4 slices bread

1/4 pound thinly sliced Gruyère

1/4 pound thinly sliced ham

Melt  1 tablespoon butter in saucepan. Whisk in flour and cook about a minute. Continue to whisk while adding milk. Reduce the heat and cook, stirring until mixture thickens, about 2 minutes. Add shredded cheese and nutmeg. Cook, stirring, another minute. Remove from heat. Lay the bread slices on cutting board. Divide cheese sauce between 2 slices, spreading evenly. Layer a slice or two each of ham and cheese on top of the sauce. Top with remaining bread. Set a large fry pan over medium heat and add remaining butter. Let it melt, tilting pan to coat evenly. Add sandwiches. Fry a about two minutes on each side. Serve warm.

No Room at the Inn

Quilts Etc. chose today’s block to honor talk show host, producer and philanthrophist Oprah Winfrey. Oprah had a love affair nearly forty years ago with a married man who refused to leave his wife. “I’d had a relationship with that man for four years. I wasn’t living with him – I’d never lived with anyone – and I thought I was worthless without him. The more he rejected me the more I wanted him. I felt depleted, powerless. At the end I was down on the floor on my knees groveling and pleading with him.” She became so depressed that on September 8, 1981 she wrote a suicide note to best friend Gayle King asking Gayle to water her plants when she was gone. “That suicide note has been much overplayed,” Oprah said during a magazine interview. “I couldn't kill myself. I would be afraid the minute I did it that something really good would happen and I’d miss it.”

Four Domino Blocks

"Years ago I took the scouts on a campout in the desert. The boys slept by a large campfire. Like every good scout leader, I slept in the back of my truck. In the morning one scout looked particularly rough around the edges. I asked how he’d slept and he replied, “I was cold. The fire went out.” “Wasn’t your sleeping bag warm enough?” “Well, I thought if I didn’t unroll my sleeping bag, I wouldn’t have to roll it up again.” He froze for hours because he was trying to save five minutes of work. We may think: How foolish! Who would ever do that? Well, we do it all the time in much more dangerous ways. We are, in effect, refusing to unroll our spiritual sleeping bags when we don’t take the time to sincerely pray, study, and earnestly live the gospel each day. When we are complacent with our covenants, we are complicit with the consequences.” – Elder Gary B. Sabin

Watermelon Picnic Quilt

I’ve planted a garden every year for as long as I can remember, primarily for tomatoes. I love the color, flavor and variety of heirloom tomatoes. I tuck thick beefsteak slices in my sandwiches and I pop sweet cherry tomatoes just like candy. I can get them from the grocer, but compared with home grown tomatoes, store bought tastes like cardboard. This spring in addition to at least two varieties of tomato, I’m planting carrots. Carrots, dill, parsley, cilantro and parsnips attract mantises, ladybugs, spiders and other predators. More predators = fewer bugs eating my tomatoes. I learned a long time ago some vegetables like growing up side-by-side, and others don’t. Know what you get when you plant cucumbers and cantaloupe too close to each other? It isn’t pretty. Cucumbers aren’t good company for tomatoes, either. Neither are potatoes. But basil, garlic, rosemary and carrots are a tomato plant’s best friends.