"Weird Al" Returns

One of my favorite performers, the great "Weird Al" Yankovic, returned to Utah on the Bigger & Weirder tour with a stop at the Maverik Center in West Valley City on Monday, June 23. It had been ten years since I'd last seen Al in concert, and I didn't want to miss another one.

So, Pepe and I got tickets (nine months ago actually) and went to the show. This was my eighth time seeing "Weird Al" in concert, and Pepe has been with me through the majority of them.

A performer I'd never heard of before, Puddles Pity Party, was the opening act. He was dressed up like a clown, but once you got over any similarities to a murderous clown a la Stephen King, PPP was actually a pretty fun and talented singer. Our favorite number of his was his cover of the "Gilligan's Island" theme song, set to the tune of Led Zeppelin's "Stairway to Heaven."

When the main man, Al, came on the stage, the whole place went bananas (noise wise). We were treated to a wonderful show. He performed many of his favorite tunes, including "White and Nerdy," "Dare to Be Stupid," "Fat," "Amish Paradise," "One More Minute," "Word Crimes," "Canadian Idiot," "Mission Statement," and so many others.

For a man who's now 65 years old, Al is still pretty limber and athletic, and he moves around the stage pretty easily.

The evening couldn't end without an encore, and this one included Al's two Star Wars-inspired songs: "The Saga Begins" and "Yoda."

Do you feel like you missed out? Well, come with us to the next one. Hopefully, it won't be another ten years from now.

Improvables: Goodbye, Willis

Our resident musician Willis, a big part of the heart and soul of the Improvables since nearly the very beginning, is moving on to new opportunities on the other side of the country (Boston). At Friday night's performance, we had one last hurrah with him in the form of a farewell show.

Naturally, music was and has been a large part of every show we've done with him over the past 15+ years. This show featured favorites "Musical Fairy Tale," "Oscar-Winning Moment," "Predictive Text Song," and "Sing It!" Willis accompanied each singer on piano, guitar, and melodica.

Chance, Keenan, Parker, Richard, Scott, Tanner, and yours truly as MC rounded out the cast across games of "Late for Work," "Back in My Day," "Lie Detector," "Nine out of Ten," and "Director."

The troupe directors created this keepsake a token of our appreciation for the countless hours and performances Willis has given us over the years.

We wrapped up the show with a final "Greatest Hits of Willis," in which Willis himself was the interviewee and focus of our songs. Randy Newman showed up by popular demand (composer of the "Monk" theme song and songs from the Toy Story films, among many other works, whom I have portrayed frequently over time).

As always with improv, you had to be there. Fortunately, I got to be there on stage with Willis (and these other guys) countless times over the years, each performance a memory I will treasure. We can't really replace someone like Willis, because his skillset is unique. We will continue to have music, however.

How the Gospel Protects Me

Today at church in our new ward, JB and I were asked to speak in sacrament meeting. What follows below is the text of my talk.

My topic today is: “How living the gospel of Jesus Christ protects my family.”

I think many of the most powerful sermons are taught in the Primary songs. I love the messages they convey. They are simple, direct, and powerful.

In the Primary song (and in Hymn no. 303), we sing:

“Keep the commandments; keep the commandments!

In this there is safety; in this there is peace.

He will send blessings; He will send blessings.

Words of a prophet: Keep the commandments.

In this there is safety and peace.”

There is protection in keeping the commandments. When we keep the commandments, our Heavenly Father sends the blessings we can claim by no other means than by choosing to obey Him. It teaches us to be truly happy, because “wickedness never was happiness” (Alma 41:10). The adversary would have us choose poorly and even become addicted to things that would take away our free agency and will make us miserable.

When we make mistakes and break a commandment, however, there is protection in repentance through the Atonement of Jesus Christ. When we come to our Heavenly Father in humility and prayer, how long does it take for the Atonement to take effect in our lives? Alma answers this question in Alma 34:

“Now is the time and the day of your salvation; and therefore, if ye will repent and harden not your hearts, immediately shall the great plan of redemption be brought about unto you” (Alma 34:31; emphasis added).

The Atonement will begin to work in our lives just as soon as we ask for it! Immediately the Savior’s healing process begins.

In another Primary song, we sing: “The wise man built his house upon the rock” (Children’s Songbook, no. 281).

In Helaman chapter 5, Helaman teaches us about this rock:

“Remember, remember that it is upon the rock of our Redeemer, who is Christ, the Son of God, that ye must build your foundation; that when the devil shall send forth his mighty winds, yea, his shafts in the whirlwind, yea, when all his hail and his mighty storm shall beat upon you, it shall have no power over you to drag you down to the gulf of misery and endless wo, because of the rock upon which ye are built, which is a sure foundation, a foundation whereon if men build they cannot fall.”

Christ will help us to weather the storms of this life. Sometimes, the storm can be quite literally an actual storm. When I was 13 years old, I lived with my family on the island of Puerto Rico. When I first learned that Hurricane Hugo was headed our way, I was terrified. I’d never been through anything like this before. But we were prepared. The prophets had long taught (and are still teaching) us to prepare for calamities with food storage, including also a first aid kit, clean water, clothing, batteries, etc. As the storm approached, the store shelves became emptied and bare as others panicked and rushed to buy what they would need to get them through the next days and weeks. But we never had to worry about that. All around us there was destruction, but we were OK. Our community and our island rebuilt. Home teachers ensured we were doing well and had everything we needed.

In yet another Primary song, we sing: “Mine is a home where every hour is blessed by the strength of priesthood pow’r” (Children’s Songbook, no. 190). The priesthood can bless not only our homes but every aspect of our lives. Through priesthood ordinances, we make covenants with our Heavenly Father that will protect us as we journey through life.

Elder Dale G. Renlund of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles has taught:

“By making and keeping temple covenants, we learn more about the Lord’s purposes and receive a fulness of the Holy Ghost. We receive direction for our lives. We mature in our discipleship so that we do not remain perpetual, unknowing children. Rather, we live with an eternal perspective and are more motivated to serve God and others. We receive increased capacity to fulfill our purposes in mortality. We are protected from evil, and we gain greater power to resist temptation and to repent when we stumble. When we falter, the memory of our covenants with God helps us return to the path. … Ultimately, our destinies are changed because the covenant path leads to exaltation and eternal life.

“Keeping covenants made in baptismal fonts and in temples also provides us with strength to withstand mortality’s trials and heartaches” (“Accessing God’s Power through Covenants,” April 2023 general conference).

The gift of the Holy Ghost is indeed one of our Father in Heaven’s greatest blessings and a source of protection. He warns us of danger and reminds us of what is good and true. The Comforter has accompanied me when I have experienced the loss of loved ones, including most recently my dear mother, who passed away this past November. In the days and weeks that followed her death, I became reacquainted with the Comforter in ways I never expected. I love her and will always miss her, but I am at peace because of His comfort. I testify that He is real.

The gospel of Jesus Christ protects us in so many other ways, both temporally as well as spiritually. The Word of Wisdom, for example, protects us from many avoidable illnesses, including freedom from addiction to harmful substances. The law of chastity helps us to avoid unnecessary pain and suffering and things that would poison our minds and spirits. Tithing and fast offerings help us learn to be less selfish while also bringing with them specific blessings of a financial nature. In my previous calling in our last ward, I had the privilege to see up close on a weekly basis how our bishop used fast offering funds to help people in our ward in numerous ways. It never ceased to amaze me what good could be done.

I love how devoted the Church is to helping us succeed in every aspect of our lives. From self-reliance, job training, and money management classes to LDS Social Services, including mental health and addiction recovery counseling, to its welfare and humanitarian projects, the Church helps us to make of ourselves the best disciples we can be.

One final thought before I close:  Though the gospel protects us from many things, we may not always be “protected,” at least not in the way we might think, from the difficult, gut-wrenching trials of life. The gospel can help us to protect ourselves against unwanted consequences, yet adversity comes to us all.

For example, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego were protected from burning to death in the fiery furnace, while Abinadi was not. John Taylor was shot and survived assassins’ bullets, while Joseph and Hyrum Smith did not. The 2,060 stripling warriors were saved from death in battle, while other righteous warriors weren’t. Some are healed from devastating illness, and some are not. Some struggle with money problems and job loss, and others don’t. Some missionaries serve with no significant health problems, yet others must return home early and even some contract illnesses, injuries, or challenges that remain with them for the rest of their mortal lives. And so forth.

In my experience, it is not good to dwell on the why or the how of these kinds of things. It doesn’t do any good to speculate when Heavenly Father has not provided a reason. “(We) cannot behold with (our) natural eyes, for the present time, the design of (our) God concerning those things which shall come hereafter, and the glory which shall follow after much tribulation. For after much tribulation come the blessings. Wherefore the day cometh that (we) shall be crowned with much glory; the hour is not yet, but is nigh at hand” (D&C 58:3-4).

What we can do, however, is to decide how we will respond to life’s difficulties and what we will make of the talents that have been given to us. (See Matthew 25:14-30.)

Elder Neal A. Maxwell taught: “The great challenge is to refuse to let the bad things that happen to us do bad things to us. That is the crucial difference between adversity and tragedy” (“But for a Small Moment,” address delivered at Brigham Young University, September 1, 1974). Our free agency is the only gift we really have that is ours to offer our Savior, and His greatest and everlasting blessings are reserved for those who do so.

Elder Dennis E. Simmons of the Seventy spoke on this point in the April 2004 general conference, in one of the best general conference talks I’ve ever heard. I may be a bit biased, as I was sitting in the choir seats behind Elder Simmons for this talk. (Elder Maxwell also spoke in that session; it was his last conference talk before he passed away.)

He said: “When Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego refused to bow down and worship a golden image set up by the king, a furious Nebuchadnezzar told them that if they would not worship as commanded, they would immediately be cast into a burning fiery furnace. ‘And who is that God that shall deliver you out of my hands?’

“The three young men quickly and confidently responded, ‘If it be so [if you cast us into the furnace], our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver us out of thine hand.’ … But then they demonstrated that they fully understood what faith is. They continued, ‘But if not, … we will not serve thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up.’ That is a statement of true faith. …

“Our God will deliver us from ridicule and persecution, but if not. … Our God will deliver us from sickness and disease, but if not. … He will deliver us from loneliness, depression, or fear, but if not. … Our God will deliver us from threats, accusations, and insecurity, but if not. … He will deliver us from death or impairment of loved ones, but if not, … we will trust in the Lord.

“Our God will see that we receive justice and fairness, but if not. … He will make sure that we are loved and recognized, but if not. … We will receive a perfect companion and righteous and obedient children, but if not, … we will have faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, knowing that if we do all we can do, we will, in His time and in His way, be delivered and receive all that He has” (“But If Not …,” April 2004 general conference).

I testify that our Heavenly Father loves us, so much so that He sent His Son, Jesus Christ, into the world to take our pains, sicknesses, and sins upon Him so that we may return to Them, safe and sound. In the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.

Mom's Funeral

How do you measure the life and love of a wonderful mother? I have no idea. I won't even try. (I posted the tribute I gave at her funeral in my previous post, if you'd like to read what I shared.)

Our angel mother passed away on Sunday, November 19, at age 80. We held her public viewing a week later at Russon Brothers Mortuary in Bountiful on Sunday, November 26. Before the public arrived, there was a brief message about death and dying that one of the staff shared with our nieces and nephews, and he did very well with such a difficult topic.

I especially love the above pic of Kira consoling her younger cousin Katy.

Extended family members and good friends and neighbors poured in by the dozens to pay their respects, share their memories, and give hugs upon more hugs. This number included some of Dad's childhood friends, people we've known since we moved to Bountiful in the late 1970s, and even some dear friends from our Puerto Rico years who now live in Utah.

The well wishers on this evening included our (JB's) nephew Spencer, who is now laboring as a service missionary for the Church.

The next morning, on Monday, November 27, a second viewing was held at the West Bountiful 5th Ward building in West Bountiful. (This is the ward Mom belonged to before moving to the care center, and they graciously agreed to host.)

Once again, several extended family and friends were there to mourn with us. Something you're reminded of at times like these is that they really help you know who your true friends are. Gratefully, our family has been blessed with the very best friends, neighbors, and ward families (past and present) that I could possibly imagine.

Our Sanders cousins Shellie and Denny, Jamie and Julie, Scott and Claudia and a number of their kids, and Sherrie and Aaliyah made the trip (from California and Utah County, respectively) to be there with us.

Following a family prayer offered by my sister, the funeral service in the chapel came next. All six of Mom's kids spoke, too—and we actually spoke in the same order we previously spoke in for Dad's funeral in April 2017. Bishop David Wood, Jeff's brother, presided and was the concluding speaker.

Admittedly, it was the musical number, the Primary favorite "I'm Trying to Be like Jesus," performed by our nieces and nephews and accompanied by Summer on the piano, that made me tear up the most.

As one of the pallbearers, I accompanied Mom's coffin, along with my fellow pallbearers (my brothers and three oldest nephews), out to the waiting hearse at the conclusion of the service. Our family friend and neighbor Lance Lindsay stood outside to play "Scotland the Brave," "Amazing Grace," and other folk tunes on the bagpipes as we left. A Brit by birth, Mom absolutely adored the bagpipes, and she and Dad would have savored this precious moment.

(After that, watching the end of Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan will never be the same for me.)

After being provided with sack lunches by the amazing Relief Society of the West Bountiful 5th Ward, we carpooled up to the Smithfield City Cemetery to lay Mom to rest beside our Dad. It was a chilly November afternoon (about 30° F), yet the sky was clear, and the sun still shone upon us.

Since my oldest brother, Mike, had previously dedicated Dad's grave, my siblings decided that I, as second oldest, should be the one to dedicate Mom's grave. This was perhaps the most humbling moment of my life. (I learned a lot about the ordinance by studying the Church's handbook of instructions, just in case you were wondering what a graveside dedication consists of.) I did the best knew how to do with such a significant responsibility.

After that, someone had the brilliant idea to pass out magic markers so that everyone could write one final message to Mom on her coffin. I think that this activity was most therapeutic for the niblings, because it gave them something tangible to do to convey their tender feelings.

No trip up to Smithfield is complete without a visit to Gossner's Dairy in Logan, so we stopped there for squeaky cheese and egg nog for the trip home. We had never tried their egg nog before, as we are usually in Cache Valley either around Memorial Day or in the summer on our way to/from Bear Lake. It was great!

Finally, to cap off the day, we gathered at Joy Luck Chinese restaurant back in Bountiful for dinner together with our cousins. One of Mom's favorite places to eat, where the owner has known her and most of us by name for many years, they provided us with another delicious meal.

You can't spell the word funeral without the word fun, per se, but there's not much about the experience that you'd hope to take part in frequently. Nevertheless, I'm grateful for eternal families, and I'm glad that we did it together.

Pepe Graduates from the TabCho

On Sunday, Jana and I traveled to Temple Square for the first time since the pandemic started. Temple Square renovation began just a few months before that, so really there hasn't been too much going on there in the past few years that we have missed.

Anyhow, the Tabernacle Choir and Orchestra at Temple Square are back as of a few months ago, and they are once again performing new "Music and the Spoken Word" broadcasts for the public each Sunday morning at 9:30. This particular occasion also marked the retirement of more than 30 TCAOATS members, including my lifelong friend, John "Pepe" Abercrombie.

Generally speaking, TabCho members may remain in the choir for 20 years or until age 55, whichever comes first. However, Pepe found a loophole to stay for about 22½ years altogether. He joined toward the end of 1999, and therefore, he reached his 20 years' mark at the end of 2019, with a planned retirement broadcast/concert set for the spring of 2020. As you all know by now, many live theater and musical groups (including Improvables!) closed down or postponed operations indefinitely at that time, which ended up being about 18 months for the TCAOATS. Ergo, this retirement ceremony featured a large number of retiring TabCho and Orchestra members who hit their 20-year marks or reached age 55 during the pandemic.

It was wonderful to be back in the historic Tabernacle. Likewise, it was wonderful to hear the TCAOATS live for the first time in years, because the TV broadcast just doesn't do justice to how great they sound in person. The retirement ceremony that followed the broadcast included conductor Mack Wilberg and Choir President Michael Leavitt (former governor of Utah) presenting plaques to each retiree.

It was good to run into a number of friends and other familiar faces who still perform with TCAOATS or who attended. As for Pepe, he tells me he'll spend the Thursday nights and Sunday mornings he now has free by looking for another musical group or groups to continue to sing with, which I'm sure will include at least his ward choir. It'll be odd not seeing his face among Choir members at future general conferences and concerts, but life goes on.

Improvables: Eleventh Anniversary Show

We members of the Improvables celebrated our eleventh (11th!) anniversary as an improv troupe by holding a reunion show Friday night at the Bountiful Davis Art Center. Returning troupe members Brianne, Ian, Ryan, Scott, and my siblings Biz and Steve joined us on stage, along with Barry, Grant, Guy, and Michael Gibbons on music. Parker was the MC for the evening.

The Gibbons boys on music:

(Honestly, how many Latter-day Saints can say that they have seen a member of their stake presidency play the electric guitar?)

Ian, during his "Lounge Lizards" performance:

MC Parker, Steve, Keenan, and Scott, playing "Marshmallows":

Steve, Keenan, Ian, and Scott, in "Revolver":

The troupe, playing our final game of the night, "World's Worst":

I've been fortunate and blessed indeed to be associated with something as creative, fun, and rewarding as performing with the Improvables, and to have it go on for 11+ years now, to boot, is a rare thing in this business. I look forward to all of the fun we'll have throughout 2020 and again at next year's reunion show.

The First Presidency's Christmas Devotional

It's good to have friends in high places, and one of mine is good old Pepe. We've known each other and have been friends since literally pre-school.

Pepe has been a member of the Tabernacle Choir at Temple Square (or the artists formerly known as the Mormon Tabernacle Choir) for many years now. Most of those years, at about this time of year, he has generously given me tickets to attend the First Presidency's Christmas Devotional down at the Conference Center. It is always a wonderful experience attending an evening of inspirational Christmas messages, as well as listening to music from the TabChoir and Orchestra at Temple Square.

JB and I went on our first date, in fact, to the devotional two years ago. Last year, we attended once more, just a week after we got engaged. And for the third straight year, we attended Sunday night for the first time as a married couple.

The Conference Center was beautifully decorated.

The devotional itself was marvelous. The speakers were Sister Sharon Eubank of the Relief Society General Presidency; Elder Terence M. Vinson of the Presidency of the Seventy; Elder Gary E. Stevenson of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles; and finally our prophet, Pres. Russell M. Nelson. It was incredible to sit just a stone's throw from a prophet of God, hearing his inspired counsel.

The TabChoir and orchestra performed "The First Noel," "Silent Night," "Oh Come, All Ye Faithful," and the "Hallelujah" chorus from Handel's great work Messiah. Years ago, Dad taught me years that you always stand for any performance of the "Hallelujah" chorus, following a precedent set by the British king George II, who was so moved when he first heard it that he stood up.

And so, when in Rome, etc.

After the devotional, we took a stroll around Temple Square, in spite of a light snowstorm, to see the lights, which are always a beautiful sight.

It's an added bonus to have a beautiful person at your side.

Arbuckle Family Dinner/October 2018

So . . .

The thought has occurred to me as of late that I need to get better about posting photos of activities for both sides of the family. I'm still wrapping my brain around this concept, but I am working on it and will try to do better.

Sunday night, it was our monthly family dinner with JB's side. Afterward, our nieces Alex and Olivia played some hymns and Primary songs on the piano:

. . . and the boys (Tatum, Spencer, and Jake) did, well, boy stuff. (To be honest, this is basically what the Plowman boys would probably be doing.)

They're warming up to me, little by little. Sure, it's hard to tell with these few photos, but I can assure you nevertheless that it's a fact.

Don't Need No Credit Card

Blogging has been on my mind lately, because the other day I realized it's ten years ago this month that I started my first blog. (Yes, I think about things like this.) Also, I've been thinking about how I haven't been doing all that much blogging lately besides the occasional family photos and short updates and such, and I feel like I need to work on that right now.

Getting married in the spring is a big reason why I've been so busy. It's also a reason now why I feel like I need to be recording more of my thoughts and such, because marriage is still so new for us both, and I've learned a few things in this last little while; I hope they will be of some use to me and/or my family and friends at some point.

The best piece of advice, at least so far, that I've been given regarding marriage: Put your wife's needs and happiness above everything else. I've not been perfect at following that advice, certainly, but when I have followed that counsel, it has blessed us both immensely. And fortunately, I've been extremely blessed with a companion who tries to do the same thing herself.

It's not uncommon to run into both old and new friends lately and to hear the question, almost always in these exact words: "So, how's married life?"

The short answer is that it's wonderful. In fact, it's far better than I'd imagined it would be. I'd even go so far as to say that marriage is somewhat undersold and understated. As a single adult, and I was one for a long time, I didn't quite grasp this concept, but I get it now, and it's something for which it's worth sacrificing.

A couple of times, some of my single friends have asked what my "secret" was or how I got to where I did, and the answer to that is that I don't have any "secret," nor do I know anything they don't already know.

In the words of the great Huey Lewis:

"Don't need money,
Don't take fame
Don't need no credit card
To ride this train."

Oh yes, and one other thing: perseverance.

Yes, my discouraged single friends, those of you who may still lay awake at night wondering if it will ever happen for you: You must keep on trying. No matter how many times your heart has been broken, no matter how frustrating it's been, not matter how tired you are of the dating scene, you must keep trying.

If the horse has thrown you off, you must get back on the horse. You must be willing to risk, for without risk, there is no reward. You must put yourself out there and be vulnerable and allow someone else into your life with the possibility remaining that you will get hurt and/or burned yet again.

It's a long, tough journey, not unlike Frodo's journey with the One Ring, and it doesn't wrap up nicely in ten hours' time. It stinks. I know it does, because I've been there. But it is, nevertheless, the only way.

One day, you will meet someone who will take the pain away. It will fade into oblivion. It doesn't mean your life will be perfect, but you will have someone at your side to fight your battles with you, and you will know joy like you've never known before.

When I hear my friends in their 20s and 30s complain about it all, I chuckle in my head a little bit and say to myself, "Just wait until you get to be my age." No, that doesn't mean you necessarily have several more years of bad dating experiences ahead, but it might. I also recognize a number of other friends who are my age or older who are still dating, who keep trying and praying and wondering if it will ever happen for them, either. Still others have given up completely, and it saddens me to a great degree.

My advice, for whatever my advice is worth, is the same to you all, and I use the words of the great Winston Churchill: "Never, ever ever ever ever give up."

Or, may I paraphrase the scriptures:

"Cheerfully do all things that lie in (your) power; and then may (you) stand still, with the utmost assurance, to see the salvation of God, and for his arm to be revealed" (D&C 123:17).