Backroads

Oh, I'm on team frozen grapes. I want to get a freeze dryer to dry out cherry tomatoes. That's an amazing snack.

...does it? I noticed the past tense.

Acknowledging the fact anyone can put whatever they feel like into a prayer... Can we pray to change another's heart? Would Heavenly Father work on that person due to our prayer? Such seems like a good thing to pray for, but then, what of agency? What becomes of that person's agency when we pray for a change in them?

I think I'd give it a go. It seems crazy enough to possibly work.

I feel the same way. I respect it as a disease. I don't want to trifle with it. But I also feel it's like society has nothing better to do.

They're probably safer than the hamburger patties I plan to make for dinner. 😁

I was just being glib. I had completely forgotten about my racist neighbor.

Sure, but I'm betting your kids will be more in agreement with that. But what if your kids wanted your grandchildren in a mode of schooling that wasn't your top choice? Would you intervene?

I shuttle my kids around. We got a pool pass and a museum pass. I dream of decluttering the house once and for all. I participate in sneaky ways to water my vegetables and dream of expanding my garden in competition with my new next-door neighbor who is obsessed with gardening and has no appreciation for the fact that for years her home was the place with the ugly yard that made the rest of us look good and she has no right to change the status quo. But right now my lavendar is looking great and she can't get hers to start, so take that!

I'm going to quote myself to add to my string of thoughts. To go back to the gentleman and those like them, could that personal saga of "I'm a hard worker who made many sacrifices to get where I am today" become a sense of entitlement? I worked hard, I made a life for myself, and therefore I am now to be worshipped? LIke, they expect the love and devotion of their family because of what they did, and therefore use money/love to control them?

1. No, we don't. Diversity is a state, not necessarily an ideal or a negative. As the gospel spreads throughout the globe, we will absolutely get diverse perspectives. In and of themselves these are neither good nor bad. 2. I feel the Lord wants us to follow His perspective, but there can be a lot of diversity alongside that. 3. See number 1. 4. I believe there is a single Iron Rod that is accessible to everyone. It may be a straight and narrow path, but there's plenty of room. I believe the world tries to declare the Iron Rod to be things it's not.

My sister had a mission companion who had sold some of her own personal property to fund her mission. Turns out her family had withdrawn all financial support after her baptism and the girl had to withdraw from college. On a practical note, I can understand withdrawing financial support. It's your money, you can do with it as you will. But it seems especially manipulative to withdraw emotional support.

I recently saw a comic elsewhere and, having seen the same sentiment around before, it's on my mind and I wanted to discuss it. A gentleman said he pays for his grandchildren to go to private school because he doesn't believe in public school. That's fine, I'm fascinated by and in love with the range of educational options, and it sure is nice for him to handle the tuition. But the next part of the comment was that he would never let his grandchildren go to public school. No, he did not have custody or guardianship of the grandchildren. They lived with their parents. This being the internet, I have no idea what relationship he has with these family members. But I was rather disturbed at such an absolute statement. As the grandparent, did he really have the authority to make this demand? And, sure, ultimately his kids or grandkids likely can do whatever they want. But he brought up the fact that he had worked hard all his life, therefore had plenty of money, and therefore could do whatever he wanted. My thought is that I've seen this sort of idea multiple times. Grandparents offering money, paying for school, etc, but also doing so with some semblance of control. If these grandparents did work hard to provide for their families, do they have the right to expect such things?

*raises hand* Three of my neighbors are teachers. It's actually weird. I used to teach at this one school maybe four years ago. The lady who actually owns the house next door was one of my coworkers. She rents it to her daughter, who is also a teacher there. Then another one of the teachers from that school moved in across the street.

Probably wasn't me. I actually can't stand the idea of teaching people to think critically. It's something that is developed by observing and dealing with situations. The moment one says "This is what Critical Thinking Looks Like", we've boxed everyone in to one mode of thought.