LDSVALLEY

I read the 7 habits of highly effective families, in it one person told the author he didn't know if he loved his spouse anymore, that things had gotten bad between them and he just didn't know. The advice was: Love is a verb and a noun. The act of loving (verb) brings about the state of love (noun). If you feel you are not sure you still love your spouse or not fake it. Use Love (verb) grit your teeth and ignore every complaint, go out of your way to do little acts of kindness. After a couple of weeks the other person even if they don't realize it will begin to respond to your love (verb) and do in kind. This will then grow into love (noun) again. My advice is the same. You are doing thing the way you should tithing, calling etc. You have a limited use recommend use it. Assume you have a testimony of it all being true but it is weak. Do little things to make it grow, continue in your calling etc, forget about worrying about having a testimony assume you have one and act that way. Go to the temple as often as you can, the act of growing your testimony will cause it to exist in your case. As to how you figure out how the Holy Ghost communicates with you it took me 3 years after baptism before it became clear. All things in the Lords time.

Oopppsss Sorry got on a band wagon and didn't realize how much I'd typed until I saw it posted.

A big one is Home Teaching of course, but it's hard to really know which Elders need private encouragement or what the issues are when over 1/2 are part of a EQ-HP team and thus report to the HPG. We don't even get the numbers to see how our Elders are doing going out. We only have 3 EQ-EQ teams, 3 EQ-wife, 2 EQ-Youth teams. It's hard to talk up effort when it is so scattered and the numbers we have don't honestly reflect the EQ effort since 1/2 of our members don't show on our reports. Another is the Many EQ who even if they show for sacrament don't stick around for class in the third hour or don't show up at all. Our secretary can track attendance in class but has a hard time getting sacrament info from the Ward Clerk to see who is at least attending service. We are trying to figure out a way to make contact with those Brothers. The logical manner would be asking Home Teachers to make contact and to get feed back from them on how they are doing. But again with the blended Home Teaching list that doesn't work. High Priest Home Teachers don't know when Elders are not present and reports go through HPGL. Since the HPG does not manage even quarterly PPI we can't get information through proper channels. This is one of fixing the system to be in the Lords manner or try and invent a work around like a contact committee etc. We are looking into the work around concept even though it is further away from how it should be. The issue then becomes finding some Elders willing and reliable enough to take it on long term. And trying to tie it into the blended system we have without it becoming a Priesthood committee. Yet a third is that the HPG is supposed to insure newly baptized members are assigned a HP who helps nurture them through getting the Priesthood. While Ward Mission Leader I spent two years trying to get the HPG and Bishopric to understand the importance of this step. In 2006 we baptized 4 potential Priesthood after the Aaronic Interview 3 went inactive because they were scared off by the idea of getting it. Currently we have 2 youth who advanced to EQ and two new members all still hold the Aaronic 1 doesn't understand the priesthood enough, 2 are afraid of it and the last doesn't care if they get it. While I'm not suggesting they would all have it if a HP had been assigned to walk them through the Priesthood I have to believe the numbers who advanced would be far higher. So we spent half an hour debating how to work around the HP responsibility and do it ourselves. Then there is Missionary work our Group should be doing but yet again the lack of information from Home Teachers, and other auxiliary leaders especially the Ward Missionary Group makes this hard to figure out what to do. Correlation used to be used for RS,HP, EQ and the Missionary Group to develop joint plans to care for those coming into or newly baptized in the Gospel. The President said that stuff is not discussed anymore so it makes it hard to know what to do. Really the biggest issue we have is the lack of unity in our EQ. There is no pride or sense of companionship in ours. Due to lack of space we are forced to hold class in the Chapel most members sit by themselves at most two might sit together. Even trying to move them into a couple of pews meets with grumbling. Of course how do you bond as a unit when you only spend 3 30-40 minute classes together and 30-40% of the active EQ members are elsewhere with callings in YM or Bishopric staff. Also over half the time our President gets hauled out by a visiting Stake representative or the Bishop or HPGL. Most of us don't Home Teach together, most don't have EQ home teachers, the first Sunday lesson which should be the opportunity for getting the Elders involved directly is combined with the YM and HP so we only teach it 1 in 3 and it is generic Priesthood. The few EQ activities that had been planned over the last couple of years always get turned into Priesthood ones. Service projects are the same. We don't hold teacher development meetings each quarter as we are instructed to do because of time and we only have two teachers one is me the other is our Ward Clerk who doesn't have time to attend one anyway. As I mentioned we planned a Home Teaching seminar to get EQ members involved and create a ownership but with the list being mixed it's hard to EQ members to feel united when they are part of the HP reporting not their group. And the stake announced plans to ignore the strong members and get the weak ones in, if we don't have time to Home Teach the strong ones after that then that is fine. This would sabotage most of what we wanted the seminar to achieve. I know our President is frustrated by it all, I know I am, I worry about our new secretary since he is newly baptized. I don't know how the President is supposed to be responsible for the EQ when he has to tie everything he does into the Bishop and HPG. I know if I was interviewed for the calling the Stake Representative would get a list of conditions to put the EQ back as a separate auxiliary under the Bishop that the Bishopric would have to agree to before I'd accept. Some people will think that is wrong of me but I refuse to be responsible for something to the Lord that I am not allowed to be responsible for by the local Leadership.

It's Funny Last night we had our monthly EQ Presidency meeting. The President only had one thing on his agenda but we ended up with a half dozen. I know I must have driven him nuts because the simple answers to what seemed simple problems I kept showing were actually band-aids to symptoms of the real problem. Every single issue brought forth was distilled down to the EQ is not in line with how the Lord says we are to operate. We ended up unable to solve anything, we only have three avenues, 1 ignore the problems we have. 2 separate EQ from HPG with 1st Sunday lessons (combined), service and activities (combined), Home Teaching (combined) and Leadership choices (combined) which would involve our President fighting a major battle with HPGL and Bishopric. 3 trying to create work arounds which take us even further off track. I feel bad for our President and I'm trying to be supportive yet feel like I am always sounding negative but it is hard to support choices not in line with what the Lord clearly has laid out for his organizations to follow. Understand when I speak against something or point out flaws in an approach I also explain and offer other options. We took each issue and walked through to find the root cause or problem then what solutions would both be in line with the Lord and solve the core cause. Each time we foundered upon #2. Our current EQ President has been in place for over 3 years now and is the longest serving Auxiliary Leader at present. I can tell he is frustrated and tired and finding it harder to work under our current Bishop. We only have 6 EQ members who would be able to serve as EQ President. 1 is the new clerk, 1 is the new EX sec, 2 are Young Men President and councilor, 1 is Sunday School President, and one is a 2 month baptized member and new EQ Secretary, 1 is the EQ President, and 1 is new 1st C in EQ who is me. It looks like he'll be serving for some time yet unless the Bishopric wants to set off a fourth round robin musical calling change in 8 months. I'm not worried about being asked as I have been very vocal in my opinion of what the issues are and that I could not serve where I can not do things in the Lords way.

I've done the alone thing a few times, when you make a half dozen calls and can't scare up a companion you do what you gotta do. I wouldn't visit a single sister without another body being there but when you get assigned to a companion for 6 months who is inactive and attending another church you learn to do what you can. I never worry about how long I visit, I had a youth in Foster care until this month, I had to visit with her at church and it was a few minutes here and there. Id pray and ask the Lord if it was enough to consider it Home Teaching or just checking in. Another New Member I didn't "Home Teach" for two months but I have visited her with the Missionaries every week since before she was baptized in October. The HPGL was annoyed I didn't call it Home Teaching (Even though I am EQ) but when I told the EQ President I prayed on it and was given it was not Home Teaching he was fine with it.

makes it hard. I don't really get why your Ward would have you home teach non members, that's the role of Missionaries, I could see for a couple of months after the death of the member to see if they desired to join but after that?

Mormonmusic - Part of the idea is that the Elders will realize they will have to report personally to the Leadership on what they did or didn't do. As well as what issues etc are so the Leadership can have more information in who teaches who and with whom. The reality is 3 months in it is of little benefit as far as I can tell. All I do is email the results to the EQ President, since the councilors have no input in the Home Teaching we don't talk about it during meetings nor have I seen where it made any difference when the new home teaching list was generated. Mister T- We are the same 400 on role 120 regular attendance. However our Home Teaching list for the Ward only totals about 140 members. My Home Teaching for the last 4 months has been averaging 20% because they teamed me up with a Youth and two families I taught was inappropriate for him to visit with. I spent 120 days telling them I refuse to take him to those families. Yesterday I finally got a new list. One thing I keep telling our EQ Members is if your companion is not able to get out, call around and find a substitute. Even the Missionaries if you have too. Keep taking the issue to the Leaders however since they often get bogged down in the squeaky wheel issues. And you are right in the Lord does bless us for our efforts and not the results.

Good question. There is no correct or perfect answer to life's problems. It is possible you could lose your entire storage in an emergency. And some people use that as a reason not to create one. We could look at anything from life insurance, auto insurance, eating healthy etc with the same thinking. In some cases we must apply common sense of course, if you live in a flood plain does it make more sense to create a food storage area in your basement or second floor? If you have a shed should you store some out there? If your worried about being in a high potential evacuation area then get together with trusted relatives or friends who live in other areas and form a food storage group where you each spread your storage to each others homes so there is enough to go around for all. If your in a tornado area you should have a strong safe haven for your family, make it bigger for some or all of your storage. We need to be prepared in all ways. With our 72 hour kits we can be out in 2 minutes. 5 more minutes and we can gather our GIT QUICK stuff. Give me 20-30 minutes and our full 8 camping\supply bins will be packed and the utility trailer attached. 50-60 minutes and as much food storage as I can cram in goes with us. We have a small house, we just planned carefully. 72 hour bags are 4 feet from the back door. The git quick stuff is in bedrooms, stuff used daily but kept together on shelves so it can be grabbed fast. We camp so we simply packed the gear into bins in the shed that is easy to grab, load and run. The food storage is in the back hall by the back door in boxes or at the bottom of the basement stairs on shelves with empty storage bins next to them. There are still many things we should do we have not done yet. The key is to first think what is the most likely events, then within your resources how best can you plan for as many of them as possible then begin the process.

As for the space issue, the first apartment we had I threw out our old box spring, put a sheet of plywood down to hold the mattress and put milk crates filled with food storage under it. If I remember correctly 40 cans of soup fit in one. For a queen size mattress use 3 rows of 6 crates two high or 18. boxes and other stuff can fit between the crates if they won't fit in them. More FREE food storage is many stores give points for purchases, turn them into food storage items.

You can do food storage for free. Set up a grocery budget, it helps if you create a meal plan but will work without it as well. Create a shopping list of items you need. Go through sales flyers for your local grocery stores and note any items on your list. Or sales items you can substitute for something on your list. Now the free part. Lets say you wanted 5 cans of soup and they cost $1.00 each. You thus budget $5.00 for soup. In the flyer a local store has a sale on soup for .50. Buy 10 cans you spend $5.00. Put the 5 extra cans away on a shelf, next week buy your normal 5 cans of soup and put them on the shelf using the 5 cans extra from the sale. Thus you created a food storage of 5 cans, by rotating the soup used it stays new and it cost you ZERO dollars. We did this week after week, spending no extra money unless we had some we could throw on a sale item to buy more. After 3 years of doing this bit by bit our family of 5 received 2 blessings from it. 1 because we reached what I call critical mass food storage 80% of our groceries were sales items so our $500 per month food budget purchased $620 or more worth of food each month. 2 When I was unemployed for 8 months and the only income source for our family all our bills were paid each month, we had plenty to eat, and I didn't have to scramble for the first lousy job that came along. Actually I was able to take 3 months and get my mentally ill father the medical help he desperately needed. If your family has little money you need to do this, even if a job loss doesn't happen having a food reserve allows you to divert grocery money to urgent expenses for a time, but doesn't create the temptation to spend on a want like money in a savings fund can.

Things are pretty much the same although we have a secretary now. I'm teaching 2&3 EQ classes each month and still doing PPI's. New Home Teaching list was done for the Ward this week, as 1st Councilor in EQ I was not even shown the new list until it was distributed to the members. Now I'm in a mix EQ HP team with 2 HP and 2 EQ led families to visit. The Stake Leadership came up with a plan where we would visit the LA and New Converts first and only see the "strong" members if we had time. I spent a few hours typing out my thoughts on that and how that differed from the plan the Lord has laid out. That made the rounds in the Stake. I've been ignoring what I can' t change, I use the class time to get the few EQ members we have to see how each lesson we do in the Gospel Principle manual ties into them and Elder Quorum. We tried for an EQ activity but the Bishopric turned it into a Priesthood activity without even telling us, we first heard it when they announced it from the pulpit. We had an EQ Home Teaching conference plan being worked on but I pointed out to our President that unless he was prepared to really push the issue with the Bishopric and HPG to get whatever ideas the EQ members came up with to take ownership of their Home Teaching ( that was within proper church guidelines of course) then it would do more harm then good. Between the Bishopric and the new Stake Plan we stopped working on it. The good news is since I have to take my kids to the chapel every Wednesday anyway and don't have church work to do I am working on my "Learn how to control your Home Finances" business plan again after shelving it for a few years. And I agree about doing good to others no matter if it fits into a calling role or not. I continue to help where I can, and voice my opinion when things are not within the guidelines of the Lord, then I shut up so a voice of warning doesn't become a voice on contention. Thanks again for all those who commented and feel free to continue to do so.

Having had friends come to me years ago for advice with this issue and a friend who used to work with people who you would classify as addicted to this and from what you posted I suggest the following. Understand it might not fit your circumstance as I don't know it nor am I a professional. Since you are only occasionally stray into this pattern I would suggest the issue is stimulation\control. Our brains require stimulation in our lives to be productive. Doing good work, close relations with wife and children, reading good books, church, prayer, good music, hobbies, food all provide stimulation for mind and body. When things are not going well with several or we don't have them, when we are over tired or our body chemistry is out of balance. If we are not exercising enough they all cause our minds to focus on short term things to give us a "rush" of pleasure and a feeling we have control in our lives. Porn and masturbation give an illusion of control and the rush of pleasure. If you are not careful your mind will more and more turn to quick pick me ups, your mind will become addicted to the rush and your sub conscious will actively seek these quick fixes which is how people become addicts to this problem. If you are not engaged in good works, over eating or eating unhealthy, ,not getting enough sleep, worried about work and relationships, not exercising enough. Then you are most likely in this situation. The cure is simple and effective. (do what you must to right things with God and spouse of course as well.) Do more good works, watch what you eat and eat healthy, sleep and exercise. You said work was an issue, look at your situation and see what you can do. Can you talk to your boss about where your training is not taking hold? Spend more time working on it, go slower until you get it etc. Talk to God and ask his help as well, and your spouse. Hope this helped some.

I'm currently a 1st C in EQ but have been teaching the lessons since using the GP book as we don't have a teacher for it. January 2010 Ensign contains an article about using this manual. That we should stick to the basics that it teaches and not add to it. I'm not one for reading word for word which would have only taken 5 minutes since it is 2.5 pages. We have a small attending EQ so we still only took 20 min. I feel the important thing is at the end of each lesson I ask. This is taught in EQ for a purpose. What does this lesson mean for us as members of the EQ? I taught GP class for the last 3 years so this is my 4th time through the manual ( i know this is a new version but its pretty much the same lessons.) Yet this weeks I had no inspiration for a tie in and told the class this. We had a 20 minute discussion on how the creation applied to the EQ. In our Ward the priesthood is blended so much that the EQ members don't think of being part of one group. Our Home Teaching is one blended list with the HP. We had planned an EQ bowling night for this week, the Bishopric changed it on the calender to a Priesthood one, all service projects and priesthood activities are combined the first Sunday class is always combined with HP etc. So I find it is needed to get them thinking as a EQ group with a separate mandate from the Lord. Our President wants a strong united EQ but is too nice a guy to stand up to the Bishopric and High Priest Group Leaders over the issue and I have made my position very clear on the topic and is not my calling to push the Presidents desires but to support his efforts. My advice would be to stick with the lesson manual as the Prophet has counciled specifically for the GP manual and EQ-HP-RS class. Teach it at the basic level and not go deeper into it, ,again as they directed us. Use a chalk board as we retain more by what we see then what we hear. Before we review each section I write the question at the start on the board and we discuss it, then we refer to the lesson simply to validate what is mentioned. And make the lessons relevant to members today and how it relates to the EQ class itself. The EQ Presidentcy is supposed to meet with a new teacher and review in meeting with them at least every 3 months. There is a teaching manual section from the handbook of instruction two that you are supposed to receive which helps provide direction for teaching classes. Most of all have fun with it. I enjoy this over all my duties in EQ.

I agree that we have no real natural ability to establish right from wrong, good from evil etc. We are products on this Earth of our enviroment, history, biology, upbringing, learning etc. What is proper and correct in one society is the worst evil in another. Many run on emotion and not logic with both good and evil results. But this has no bearing on the existence or non existence of God. LDS believe we were in heaven as spirits before coming to Earth. While on Earth we have no knowledge of this pre-existence. We are like empty bottles that become filled with what we are dipped into. But all the things discussed are of the Earth, the different cultures etc are all man made on Earth. Our attitudes constantly change based on our knowledge. in 1830's scientests swore that people would die from lack of oxygen when steam trains went over 40KM per hour. They backed it up with scientific evidence of the times. When it didn't happen they created new theories as to why it didn't. We constantly change our theory of everything around us as "evidence" changes. So it is with all aspects of our world and it's view. Because we lack that natural ability we have the word of God to provide us with the direction needed. In #2 you mentioned about choosing a reaction based on emotion. God gives us the choice to follow his direction. Just as my father on Earth would often give me the choice to follow his advise or not. However if we are simply the product of our situation then we would never have the ability to evolve beyond that. We can not change what is already in our bottle but we can change how we react with it, and what we put into it in the future. We can choose a different path then the one around us. We can become the best or worst of our abilities. Realize we are discussing God not religion, because in most cases large parts of society has mixed with little bits of religion. Thus the point about giving all away to others is not a God based concept but mans in the context you mean. We should give to help and support others, avoid greed, but if we are unable to care for ourselves then we can not help others. We are to strive to be the best we can be, that we should have a balance. In the LDS church for example we are taught our first priority is our employer so we can support our family, our family so we can be strong and good teachers and the church is third on the list. I believe strongly in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. But that does not mean that the workings of the church are perfect. We must always guard that we do things in God's way and not ours. Often in our Ward I see things done with the best of intentions but not in the manner God has laid out. That does not invalidate the Church or God, actually it does the opposite. Because when you then do things the way it is intended it works. Now this is what I meant in an earlier post about the evidence supporting what we choose to belive depending on how we look at it. Your entire answer to me supports the theory of God because we need that guidence to have even survived to this point. peace

Welcome, nice OP gave, you stated your position clearly. I have no intention of attempting to debate your position because both sides of the debate have incomplete data based on the other view point. To someone who does not believe in God the scientific process that has created the theory of Earth's development and that of the universe is evidence that God does not exist. To someone who does believe in God the scientific process that has created the theory of Earth's development and that of the universe is evidence that God does exist. I used Logic to decide God exisited. I used Logic to tell me the LDS church is correct, at least for me. I went into both assuming a scam and looking at the angles. Surprise to me was I came to the realization that both God and the church are real, for me. We could spend endless and somewhat enjoyable hours debating different issues but to what end? If you have specific questions, a couple at a time please, that you would like to discuss then I would be happy to do so although I have not been on here much lately. But the broad spectrum serves no purpose that is useful or meaningful. Heavenly Father has proven to me that he exists in my life and I am grateful for that. While the confirmation is through feeling and spiritual enlightenment I found my faith due to logic. Besides I long ago figured that if he didn't exist then when I die there is nothing so I'll never know I was wrong. If he does and I don't believe then I'll have an eternity to kick myself over it. While alive I feel better believing when my loved ones or myself die we will be together again, I am a better person to myself, my family and others since becoming a member. So for me it is all a win for believing, even if I didn't have personal confirmation of him. I admire your belief in what works for you. I support you in your right to your opinion and your ability to voice it. For me I have no choice to accept that right since I believe God has given us the agency to choose for ourselves, in order to maintain my belief I must support your right to yours. Enjoy life, love and help others and may you be blessed by what you believe.

1) Being out with a new girlfriend, running into an old girlfriends mother and introducing the new one using the old ones name instead of hers! She married me anyway! 2) Putting a steak knife pointing upward in a kitbag to avoid cutting the material, tossing it in the car to go to work then sitting on it!!!!!! That was a real pain in the butt! My wife laughed and laughed until SHE had to examine the wound to see if I needed to go to the hospital or not! 3) Talking to a female supplier on the phone and thinking about having to call my wife then ending the conversation with "I love you" 4) Doing #3 twice. (two different women thank goodness.) 5) Building a peddle powered raft with steering wheel, awning, comfortable seats then realizing there was no way to get it out of the building it was built in. (In my defense it was as a teenager and none of the other 3 thought about it either. 6)Taking all the brakes off the car at the same time to be efficient. Then forgetting how they go back. My wife after laughing then realized she would have to help me figure it out! I wish I could say this was the top of the list but was just the first 1/2 dozen that came to mind from a long list. 7 Rebuilding a kitchen with a friend and using two measuring tapes that were 1/4 inch difference. 8 Getting 3 cars stuck in the same spot at the same time. (I had help doing this one.) 9 fixing a power outlet, led to removing a wall, rewiring 2/3 of house, gyp rocking the same, reflooring the same, etc. etc. 10 Moving to an area I didn't know at all, layout streets etc and taking a night newspaper delivery job using the car for 200 homes over a 40km area, which I didn't know.......lasted 3 days. 11 Standing on a rolling chair to reach something really high up! 12 Grabbing a bowl of water off the cupboard to stop myself from falling!

For some time they were subsidized. When we went to the temple in 1999 they were 1/2 price so we bought enough that we still have a box of unopened under garments. It ran that way for some time before going back up in price.

Short answer is it is where sacred ordinances take place. Sealing for time and eternity, baptism and ordinance for the dead, a place where we can feel closer to God when searching for answers. It is very important, any person, member or not, can attend our Sunday service. The temple requires a higher level of commitment and only open to members. A newly baptized can go do baptism but the rest of the temple you must be a member for a year. (both have to meet the standard of course) If you ever get a chance go to a open house of one before it is dedicated, the only time one is open to the public for viewing. Even then you can feel the difference.

We use 2lt pop bottles with a few drops of bleach in each one. One brethern took a bottle in he had stored for 20 years and the water tested pure and drinkable.

Hope they have enough snow by then. They are having to truck the stuff in! BC usually gets plenty of snow but not this winter!

Funny think is in British Columbia which is a big ski area and where the Winter Olympics starts this week they have had no snow. They are having to truck snow in!

We had a change in a new Bishopric six months ago and things are upside down it seems. I have had so many issues with the new Bishop, who is a friend, that I have told him I can barely sustain his leadership. Understand I am not thinking I know better then he about what to do, but things are being done in something other then the Lord's way. Interviewing two people on several occasions and having them both except the same role then choosing. Then telling the other one who excepted that they decided to go with someone else. Things talked about in the Bishops office making the rounds in the hall, and not spread by the person seeing a member of the Bishopric. etc. Now I am weird in that I do my best to keep a calling position and the person seperate. For example I told him via email that I plan on avoiding the Bishopric as much as possible, don't think I would take a leadership calling at present, I would need to pray about one before deciding. And that I would keep my mouth closed from now on from trying to help repair the damage being done in the Ward. (Spent an hour talking someone out of leaving the church not because of the content but the way the Bishop dealt with them over an issue. pointed out in a loving way issues that the Bishopric is creating etc.) On the other hand the person (not as a Bishop) and I on the same day I discussed my serious concerns over how things are being done also planned a temple run and lunch together. The reason I bring this up is not to hijack this thread with my own issues but to provide some understanding as someone who sees both sides. Our current Bishop is screwing up big time because he is trying to be effective not effective. He is causing many issues in the WArd. On the other hand he is honestly trying to serve the Lord and the members as best he can. Your Bishop I am sure is doing the same. But it is the squeaky wheel idea, the in your face stuff gets priority. Remember they receive no special training on being a Bishop other then some leadership stuff. They are left to create thier own way of handling the vast workloads they have and don't always do things the best way. Remember your belief and the organization of the church are what counts, you must keep them seperate from isues that occur with individuals no matter what title they hold.

Depends on the country as well. In Canada Full Time Missionaries can not perform marriages. The law in Nova Scotia for example states something like they have to be the head of a congregation to marry someone. And apply for a NS license to marry of course. FYI I am basing this on what the Missionaries themselves have told me in the past, I never looked into the specific laws on it.

Exciting Event! On New Years Eve we have a couple of families over and have a meat fondue! My wife actually asked me to heat the oil on the stove and I managed it! Later she asked me to light the tea light for the chocolate fondue, after six matches, ribbing from my Brother\cousin in law I managed that also!!!!!

I NEVER EVER wish to be a teen again. Prior to 25 was almost as bad, I was an idiot who didn't understand life, not bad or anything just no idea what to do. (Non member until 27) Late twenties was the age of 'finding' myself. Thirties were a blast, married, settled, kids, joined the church, moved to the country, purchased a house. Forties (44) are great so far, kids are into double digits, wife and I are able to begin spending more time together. Downsides is finance and weight gain but trying to reverse the direction of both! Unlike many guys I know i don't long for what was. As I have aged my taste in women for example aged with me. My wife at 40 is more radiant to me then any 20 year old I see. I prefer the wisdom I have at 44 to the energy at 22. I have more aches and pains now, less energy, less hair!, more weight, more wrinkles but still the same amount of fun.