I have been lost...

My nephew Zack says so. I'll share that story in a moment, but first...

I'm doing well. I know you wouldn't have a clue about that since I have not posted since my surgery. I apologize. I have no excuse. I just didn't feel like it. Also, I really didn't have much to share except having my gallbladder removed has almost been like magic! It has made such a big difference in my overall well-being. Don't jump too far ahead though. I still have my crashes, and usually allow my weekend to be that time. I was talking to my sister Ranna tonight and realized it is basically controlled crashing. I push myself during the week to get to work and be productive there, and on the weekend I let the crash happen, to whatever degree that may be. Some weekends I have felt great, others not so much.

I believe that the greatest difference I have noticed has been my mood. I have felt so positive and it is so nice. When I went back to work I came home and told Steve that there were two words that people said to me that fit so perfectly, "Welcome Back." I have truly felt that way, for myself. I have felt more like myself in the past month or so than I had for a long time. Optimistic, silly, spontaneous and happy. That is who I really am and it is nice to feel that way.

With that out of the way, on to the good stuff. My nephew Zack will be three in a few weeks. He is very silly and he knows it. His personality is so fun. Last week was my sister Amanda's birthday and he went to grandma's while she and Aaron went out. On their way home from picking him up he informed them he was sad. When Amanda asked him why he was sad, he explained "I lost my Charlene." He then proceeded to talk about me being sick and needing to go to the doctor. She explained that the doctor fixed me and that I am all better. He said, "Oh, Steve had to go to the doctor. He bumped his head." She and Aaron were quite surprised with this conversation and have no idea where it came from. But I sure felt special after she sent me the text telling me I was lost. I saw him a few days later and it was fun to have him be so excited to see me.

Last night my mom had a Lia Sophia jewelry party. I decided to go a little bit early so I could hang out. Both Amanda and Britta were already there with their kids. Amanda came into the living room as I was taking my jacket and my shoes off and hollered at Zack to come see "who's here". His excitement when he saw me was so touching. He ran up and gave me a big hug and kiss. Lately Zack has been afraid of the dark. A few nights ago he was crying before bed and Amanda thought this was the reason. Nope, he was crying because he lost his Charlene, again. While it is sad that he cried about it, I have to say, it is darn cute!

These stories make me feel very special. To put this all in perspective, Ranna watches him every Wednesday. Britta watches him about once a week based on my mom's schedule. Because of the regular visit he has with them it is natural for him to have a good connection with them. I don't see him at any regular intervals. But, now I know he likes to see me and misses me.

Basically, I feel very special and loved!!!!!!!

My take on Prop 8

Hello! This one is all me (Steve). It's a hot button topic, but I'm not scared. Please let me know what you think. Yall should have my Email or you can post it here.

California proposition 8- This is one of my hot button issues lately. A good chunk of my non LDS friends have given me grief about it, until I explain to them my beliefs and the facts on the matter. In this blog, I will attempt to show possibly why my church, with others, got involved in this issue and then I’ll explain my beliefs. I'll break it down into parts and then summarize at the end. I’ve included a bibliography at the bottom where you can find my references.

Marriage as a religious ordinance:
To me, marriage is religious at It's core. I personally believe that government got into it, at first, to keep a record and then realized It's monetary potential. Because of that, I choose to use religious context for marriage.
My religion teaches that marriage is ordained of God; sacred₁. Most Christian religions do. Most religions who believe in the bible also believe Leviticus 18:22, Leviticus 20:13 and
1 Corinthians 7:2 to name three examples. So, why would any Christian church, including the LDS faith, even for a minute, support people who engage in what is believed as abomination worthy of death entering into something they consider to be sacred, ordained of God and between one man and one woman?

The Law:
First, The LDS church didn’t violate any laws in their participation in Prop 8.₅ They did lobby- legal. They did encourage members of the church who felt the same way to go door to door and do things within their power according to their own free will, choice and agency- legal. Billboards are legal. They simply cannot spend the majority of their time lobbying, and, as stated before, taking on issues is also legal so long as they do not endorse a single candidate. So, it doesn’t seem like the church did anything illegal nor did they do anything that would jeopardize their tax-exempt status.

Furthermore, They weren’t alone. There was a coalition of religions who all did the same thing that the LDS church did. Catholics, Baptists, Evangelicals, Jehovah’s Witness, and Jews were also involved- to name a few. I find it rather interesting that the LDS church gets singled out. I have not heard of protests at any other churches, temples or synagogues. Now, envelopes with white powder inside were reported at two LDS temples and at a Catholic Cathedral. By the way, that’s multiple federal offenses for the person(s) who sent it.

Now, here’s a little bit of law for you. I'll tie the relevance in during the summary.

UCA 76-5-403: Sodomy- Forcible Sodomy₆
“(1) A person commits sodomy when the actor engages in any sexual act with a person who is 14 years of age or older involving the genitals of one person and the mouth or anus of another person, regardless of the sex of either participant.
(2) A person commits forcible sodomy when the actor commits sodomy upon another without the other’s consent.
(3) Sodomy is a class B misdemeanor. Forcible sodomy is a felony of the first degree.”

That’s right boys and girls! Oral and anal sex is against the law and punishable by six months in jail and a fine of $1,000, per count.

Now, this law was written with rape in mind, but it effectively makes homosexual/lesbian sex illegal. Again, going towards the “why” would people be against proposition 8.

Influence:
I want to address the “separation of church and state” comment. It seems to me that some people think that Utah is somehow the exclusive place in the U.S. that this occurs. I am not going to say that there isn’t some of this going on in Utah, or any other state, but I don’t think it’s as bad as most people might think. Let’s start here in Utah.
Since we in the United States practice government “of the people for the people”, we draw our statesman from our population. According to adherents.com₇, Utah is 71% LDS. With those numbers, you’re probably going to have an LDS majority in government.

Politicians vote according to two principles-
1. What they want/feel
2. What is politically expedient. (Re-elections, party lines, lobbyists, etc.)

Based on that criteria, it’s probably smart to vote and support things that your constituency likes and wants. If you’re a politician from Utah, you’re probably not going to have a long career if you support abortion and taking away gun rights- UNLESS you live/work in Salt Lake County. In fact, Salt Lake City is one of the toughest liberal strongholds in the United States. A Republican/conservative hasn’t been mayor of Salt Lake City since the early 1970’s. So, I don’t think there is a lot of interaction to/with church leaders and politicians saying “do this or that”.

Now, the exception that proves this rule is just what I’ve said. California, Oregon, New Mexico, Washington and Nevada are all liberal leaning states. They also happen to have a large LDS population. So, you can surmise from this that just because your LDS or from Utah, you’re going to vote a certain way or be prone to direct instruction or illegal influence from church leaders.

Now, Utah is not exclusive to this and neither is ‘Mormonism’. For example, the south is predominantly Southern Baptist. The east is predominantly Catholic. Who do you think makes up their governmental body? Just like Utah, religious population percentage doesn’t determine total or illegal influence or anything that would constitute a violation of the legal definition of separation of church and state.

Summary:
To summarize, I personally believe that religious organizations participated like they did as a statement of their beliefs. It appears that they wish to fight/stand up for what they feel is right. Those who follow the teachings of their religion or conscious have made the acts of homosexual or lesbian sex against the law, so too are they making this their law. I believe the religious organizations simply want to defend what they feel is good, holy and sacred.

So what do I believe?

I personally believe that allowing marriage between homosexual or lesbian couples is wrong. I do not support it in any way, shape or form. Nor do I support civil unions for said persons.

However, the last time I checked, this was a free and capitalist country.

I believe that you have the right as an individual to place anyone you wish on your insurance policy, regardless of residency, income, sexual orientation, relationship, or any other person or group protected under U.S. Title VI.

I believe that you have the right as an individual to grant anyone you wish rights of decision in legal and medical matters.

I believe that you have the right as an individual to claim any person you support as a dependant.

I believe that homosexuals and lesbians are entitles to be treated with the same kindness and respect that would be given any other person.




Bibliography: all scriptures from King James Bible
1.http://lds.org/ldsorg/v/index.jsp?vgnextoid=e1fa5f74db46c010VgnVCM1000004d82620aRCRD&locale=0&sourceId=1aba862384d20110VgnVCM100000176f620a____&hideNav=1&contentLocale=0
2.Leviticus 18:22 “thou shalt not lie with mankind, as with womankind; it is abomination”
3.Leviticus 20:13 “If a man also lie with mankind, as he lieth with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination: they shall surely be put to death; their blood shall be upon them”
4. 1 Corinthians 7:2 “Nevertheless, to avoid fornication, let every man have his own wife, and let every woman have her own husband.”
5. http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p1828.pdf
6. Page 540 of the Utah Code Annotated, enacted 1983
7. http://www.adherents.com/rel_USA.html#Number1