Success Is Measured at Home

During one of the devotionals I was watching last night, I heard a couple of quotes that reminded me of my mom.  These are classic quotes that every Latter-Day Saint will recognize.  But I want to post them today in honor of my mother.

This first quote is a longer version of the well-known quote by the prophet at the time, Pres. David O McKay.  This quote is from a talk given at Gen. conference in 1966.

“The home is the first and most effective place to learn the lessons of life: truth, honor, virtue, self control, the value of education, honest work, and the purpose and privilege of life. Nothing can take the place of home in rearing and teaching children, and no other success can compensate for failure in the home.”

― David O. McKay

The other quote is also by a prophet, Pres. Harold B Lee.   I don't have the details of this quote but here it is:

“The most important of the Lord’s work that you will ever do will be the work you do within the walls of your own home.”—President Harold B. Lee

Mom certainly took these quotes to heart and her life epitomized their teachings.  Mom's greatest work  was certainly done within the walls of her home.  Mom may not have been considered successful by worldly standards,  but she was absolutely successful by the Lord's standards.

Thank you, Mom, for prioritizing the Lord and your family over worldly success.  I love you and miss you.  God be with you till we meet again.

That's my two cents. 

Mom's Printed Funeral Program

 

Happy Birthday Mom!

Today is Mom's 77th birthday.  She so wanted to make it to her 77th birthday.  She's been saying for years that she wants to live as long as her mom – who was 77 when she died.  Mom fought hard but fell a week short.  Now that she's on the other side though, and sees how glorious it is, she's probably glad she didn't have to stay here in mortality another week.

Happy birthday in heaven, Mom!

I love you!

Mom's Funeral Information

Mom's funeral will be Monday, May 23, 2022 at the Graham Washington Stake Center located at 13612 224th St. E, Graham, Washington 98338.  Here is a breakdown of the services:

9:30 a.m. viewing in the Relief Society Room

11:00 a.m. funeral service in the Chapel

~12:30 p.m. police escorted funeral procession to cemetery (Fir Lane Memorial Park, 924 176th St E, Spanaway, WA 98387)

1:00 p.m. grave dedication and lowering of the casket at cemetery

~1:30 p.m. luncheon in Cultural Hall back at the church

After the luncheon for those of you who wish, we will meet back at the house for visiting and ice cream.

For those of you unable to attend, you may watch the funeral services on zoom.  Here is the link: 

 https://zoom.us/j/94187270930

Thank you to  Bishop Hellyer and Brother Wennerlind for providing the link and managing the stream.

We look forward to seeing all of you who can attend on Monday.

Mom's Obituary

Darleen Sabin Stone, 76, of Graham, Washington, graduated from mortality on May 12, 2022. Darleen finally succumbed to multiple myeloma which she battled for 10+ years. Darleen was born on May 19, 1945 in Brooklyn, New York to Marvin Elmer Sabin and Sylvia Wall Sabin.

Darleen was raised in Orem, Utah. She graduated from Orem High School in 1963. She then attended Brigham Young University, graduating in 1967 with a bachelor’s degree in sociology. She earned a teaching certificate and taught elementary school in Salt Lake City.

Darleen met Myron (Mike) Hampton Stone at a dance while attending BYU. They were married a short time later on October 29, 1969. Their marriage was later solemnized in the Provo Temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints on December 15, 1990.

Darleen was a wonderful wife and mother. Her number one priority was raising her children in the Gospel of Jesus Christ. She sacrificed to be a stay at home mother and was always there for her children. Darleen loves her family so much. They were always the most important thing in her life.

Darleen loved to dance. She learned ballet, tap dance, and acrobatics and loved dancing to ‘50s music. Darleen loved to garden and won several beautification awards for her yard. She spent many spring and summer days weeding and planting flowers. She also liked to bake and would have treats for her family when they came home.

Darleen was predeceased by her husband, Mike on July 23, 2019. Mike and Darleen would have celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary on October 29, 2019.

Darleen is survived by her children: Tammy Stone, Lisa (Rex) Hamblin, Juliet (Aaron) Gerry, Michael Adam Stone, and daughter-in-law Derrinda Stone Brandis; 13 grandchildren; and 3 great grandchildren.

Darleen is also survived by her siblings: Marvin Don Sabin, Ron (Annette) Sabin, and Gary (Valerie) Sabin.

Funeral services will be held at 11:00 a.m. on Monday, May 23, 2022 with a viewing at 9:30 a.m. at the Graham Washington Stake Center of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints located at 13612 224th St E, Graham, WA 98338.

Interment will be at Fir Lane Memorial Park in Spanaway, Washington.

God be with you till we meet again.

Link to online obituary

Happy Mother's Day!

Unfortunately, my mom will never see this post.  But I still want to pay tribute to the gold standard of mothers.  My mom epitomizes motherhood.  If you look up mother in the dictionary, you will most likely see a picture of my mom next to the definition.

Mom is the most selfless, caring, righteous woman I know.  I could find many adjectives to describe her but those three sum it up.

I am happy that she was able to stay on earth long enough to spend her last Mother's Day in mortality with us today.

I love you Mom!  Thank you for being the best mom ever!

That's my two cents.

Vicious, Lying Snake in the Grass

My last post was hastily written and not edited like I usually do.  It's basically a rough draft that I posted.  But those were my thoughts yesterday.  Now that I've had some time to think more about it, these are my thoughts this morning.

I've been awake since about 2 o'clock this morning – which happens often – so I have a lot of time to lay there and think.  So part of what I was thinking about this morning was about this Johnny Depp defamation trial.  And the more I think about it the more I feel like Amber is a vicious, lying, snake in the grass.  And that's putting it nicely.

Some of the testimony she gave yesterday just doesn't make sense.  For instance, when she was talking about Johnny's tattoo she said she asked him what it said because it looked like black blobs to her.  That makes no sense because how can she not know what her husband's tattoo of a former flame says?

Another incident she mentioned about Johnny's daughter makes no sense.  Everything I've heard about his kids are that they can't stand her.  Why would his daughter cling to Amber like a mother figure when first of all she doesn't like her and secondly Amber is not that much older than her.  Just little things like that that she said don't add up.  I feel like she is being deceptive.

Although, I've got to hand it to Amber, her acting skills are better than I expected them to be.  But then again, most narcissists are good at lying, deceiving, and manipulating.

One of the reasons I found her somewhat believable yesterday is because I just can't fathom how anyone could be so evil to be able to lie under oath in saying such devastatingly heinous, vicious, and cruel things about someone else– and in such detail.  It really makes no sense to me whatsoever that someone would spew such vitriol in claiming physical and sexual abuse when it's not true.  It takes a special kind of evil to be so cruel, but I know there are people out there like that.  Apparently Amber Heard is one of them.

I know Amber and Johnny were both verbally abusive to each other.  They have it on tape.  But even in those tapes, Johnny seems to be more calm and in control than does Amber.  But I really just don't buy the physical and sexual abuse.  I think she's lying through her teeth.  Which, like I said, is hard to fathom for me.  Because I can't understand how anyone could say such horrible things about another person if they are not true.

I just can't imagine what's going through Johnny Depp's head while he has to sit there and listen to such unspeakably horrible things being said about him, which are not true.  There's no way he would have brought this lawsuit against Amber if what she is claiming was true.  Nobody in his right mind would want their dirty laundry aired in public – especially such heinous and evil allegations – let alone such a famous, well-liked person like Johnny Depp.

And the fact that Amber tried to get the case dismissed before her testimony is another huge sign that she is in the wrong.  If she were right, and these horrible abuses were actually done by Johnny Depp, you would think she would welcome the opportunity to tell her side of the story.

It will be interesting to see some of the cross-examination of Amber from Johnny's lawyers.  Like I said, Johnny is no saint, but he's also not the monster that Amber is making him out to be.  Like Johnny, I just hope truth prevails.

That's my two cents.

He Said, She Said

Now that I know little more about the Johnny Depp defamation trial and heard a little bit of Amber's testimony, I have a little more to say on the subject.

I don't know how much truth is being told, but I suspect that Johnny did at least some of the things that Amber is claiming.  Especially knowing that he was often abusing mind altering substances (drugs and alcohol).  So it's not so cut and dried or one-sided I don't think.  I do find Amber to be somewhat believable.  Although I must keep in mind that she is an actress.  They both lie for a living.  So this case is really a he said, she said.

But I also understand that Johnny is the one who filed the lawsuit, therefore I tend to think that he must believe she defamed him, or else why would he want to air all of his personal dirty laundry?  It also seems rather fishy that Amber's attorneys motioned to dismiss the case yesterday before her testimony or her witnesses had testified.  If she's truly the victim, then why motion to dismiss?  Why wouldn't you want your side heard? And it's eerily creepy that Amber is dressing like Johnny.  Wearing a three-piece pantsuit with a vest just like what he wears to court every day.  And some of the other things she wears copy his ties.  Weird.

As in most cases, I think they are both in the wrong to some degree.  Like I said before, Johnny is no saint by any means.  He's an admitted drug and alcohol abuser.  And now I know that he left his family for this floozy, Amber.  He obviously hasn't lived the cleanest, most moral lifestyle.  But, that doesn't make him an abuser.  He actually comes across as very gentle, kind, and honest.  At least in court.

And Amber comes across as angry and mentally unstable.  Although she does do a good job of acting the part of the victim.  Amber is also a drug user and mentioned her wife during testimony.  So obviously she's got serious issues. Seems like two peas in a pod really.

Obviously they both verbally abused each other.  They are both bucket mouths with severe profanity problems.  And the evidence is clear that Amber physically abused Johnny.  As to Johnny physically or sexually abusing Amber, the jury is still out. 

Basically, they are both scumbags.  But, being a scumbag doesn't make anyone an abuser.  I'm still leaning towards Johnny being falsely accused, but Amber is convincing.

I actually feel really sad for both of them.  Fame and fortune are not all they're cracked up to be.

That's my two cents.

Justice for Johnny

I don't watch movies.  I am not a movie fan.  I don't know much about Johnny Depp except that he is a famous actor and portrayed Jack Sparrow in the Pirates of the Caribbean movies.  Why remember this I don't know, but the only other thing I know about him is that my cousin had a crush on him back in the day.  Perhaps she still does.  Brad Pitt is more my type – but I digress.  I haven't seen any Johnny Depp films except perhaps the first Pirates movie but I can't remember if I saw it or not.  I know I've seen clips at least.  So, I'm familiar with the character.  And I would agree, he is a good actor.

Since the Johnny Depp defamation trial is all over the news, I can't help but be aware of it.  And I've actually kind of gotten into it.  I've seen some clips on YouTube of some of the testimony.  And I must say, after getting to know Johnny Depp a little better, I've gained a lot of respect for the man.

I've actually seen quite a bit of his testimony and Johnny Depp comes across as honest, genuine, caring, generous, and human.  I know he's a good actor, but I don't think he's acting during this trial, as some would suggest. He is a real man trying to defend his honor and reputation. 

I'm sure it's not pleasant to have to open up his personal life to the world.  But he understands that it's necessary for truth to prevail.

If there's one thing I can't stand, it's false accusations.  In fact, it's one of the Ten Commandments.  "Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour." (Exodus 20:16)  I don't really believe this is about $50 million.  The man has more money than he needs.  I also don't think that he brought this lawsuit against his ex-wife because he lost his career.  Although, that's not a small loss.  I think it's about defending his reputation.  And I must say, he and his lawyers are doing a wonderful job.

Honestly, I had never even heard of Amber Heard until this trial.  Having not heard her testimony yet, she certainly comes across as a lying, bitter villain. No reaction to Johnny Depp denying abusing her, seems to say it all.  Because if she had actually been abused by Johnny Depp, I would expect some kind of facial grimace or something.  She's obviously got mental issues.  But falsely accusing Johnny Depp of abuse is beyond the pale. It is unacceptable, vicious, and cruel.  Her false accusations have ruined Johnny Depp's life.  Johnny said to Amber that all he has to offer her now is his blood, she has taken everything else from him. Which sounds dramatic, like something an actor would say.  But that's how he feels.  His reputation and livelihood are in the gutter – all because of  Amber Heard's false accusations. 

Now, don't get me wrong.  Johnny Depp is no saint.  He's a Hollywood actor.  He's lived a hard, fast life.  But he also admits his mistakes.  He testified honestly about his drug and alcohol abuse.  But he's certainly not a wife beater.

I actually feel sorry for the guy because of his abusive mother and a father who abandoned their family.  He didn't have the best childhood.  But I respect him for forgiving his mother, and father, and for working to become successful in his career.

Johnny Depp may lie for a living, but he is being truthful in court.  One example that stands out to me – which you may find odd but to me it shows his honesty –  is in his testimony about one of Amber Heard's friends.  Johnny was asked about Amber's friend, Io.  Not sure if I spelled it right.  But anyway, Johnny said that Io was born female but identifies as male.  And during the entire testimony Johnny Depp referred to Io as she.  Except for one time when he called her a he and clarified with, "I guess that's what were supposed to say now".  Or something like that.  But then right after that he still referred to her as she.  To me, that shows his honesty.  He doesn't want to use the wrong pronouns in reference to someone. That may seem insignificant to most, but I find it profound.

After listening to some of Johnny Depp's testimony under oath, I have gained much respect for the man.  Johnny Depp's willingness to defend his reputation and honor is very refreshing.  His convictions and quest for truth are admirable.

In the court of public opinion, Johnny Depp is winning big.  I hope the court of law comes to the same conclusion.  Justice for Johnny!

That's my two cents.