Today is one day; one moment

"The Spirit can guide us when to look ahead and when we should deal with just this one day, with this one moment." D. Todd Christofferson

Thoughts for the day

From About.com's Bob and Sheri Stritof, marriage guides: "Don't put yourselves on hold, either personally or as a couple. Take care of yourself both emotionally and physically. Make time to take a walk, read a book, relax in a hot tub, laugh, listen to music you enjoy, get a good night's sleep."

I am definitely doing this - as soon as I get a chance:) Right now the priority is Jon's wedding, but then it's "me time" - really! I'm planning my future to head in a positive direction and decrease stress ASAP!

A sign I saw inside a mobile pizza by the slice/soup shop parked on Main Street at lunch time:  "If I had my life to do over again, I'd find you sooner so I could love you longer."  Amen - (and though none of us ever know exactly how much time we have, as I get older it's a given it will be shorter rather than longer).

Getting a second chance at happiness is a huge and rare blessing. This time I'm not letting anyone or anything get in the way.  That's a promise I'm making to myself.

Thought for the day

Bitterness only prolongs our own misery and harms our own health.

Honesty thoughts

"No man has a good enough memory to make a successful liar."  ~Abraham Lincoln

"It is not without good reason said, that he who has not a good memory should never take upon him the trade of lying."  
~Michel de Montaigne, translated

"The truth is the only thing worth having, and, in a civilized life, like ours, where so many risks are removed, facing it is almost the only courageous thing left to do."  ~E.V. Lucas

I like the Pinocchio concept.

Self control is hard

Literally, we can't seem to stop touching the stove, even though we suspect it's a bad idea.

"One problem with gazing too frequently into the past is that we may turn around to find the future has run out on us."
"Michael Cibenko~

"We must be willing to let go of the life we have planned,
so as to accept the life that is waiting for us."
~Joseph Campbell~

"You can only lose what you cling to."
~Buddha~

“Don't ever give up on something or someone that you can't go a full day without thinking about.”

We can never fully grasp, until heaven, how what we do or say has impacted another’s life.

How humbling to see Christ in another, and for them to possibly see Him in you – if you allow it.

Thoughts from a "fellow" blogger,  Lisa Sanchez.

Wise words

"It takes courage … and humility to put away old hatred, divisions and traditions that constrict and confine people into a blind succession of destructive behavior toward others," said President Uchtdorf, second counselor in the church's First Presidency [in his speech to the Los Angeles World Affairs Council]. "It is within our reach to breach barriers of hate and build bridges of brotherhood and understanding between opposing cultures, beliefs, religion and world views."

Good suggestions for all of us.  Read the article here.

I have witnessed miracles which have solidified my beliefs.  Faith precedes the miracle and I know this is true, but after our faith and with our obedience and trust, we are able to witness miracles like Jesus performed on the earth.

Random Quotes I like

"Sometimes it hurts instead..."Someone Like You (recorded by Adele)

"In the arithmetic of love, one plus one equals everything, and two minus one equals nothing." ~Mignon McLaughlin, The Second Neurotic's Notebook, 1966

"I never knew until that moment how bad it could hurt to lose something you never really had." ~From the television show The Wonder Years

"As soon as forever is through, I'll be over you." ~Toto

"I don't know why they call it heartbreak. It feels like every other part of my body is broken too." ~Missy Altijd

"We treat the lowering of standards as a moral obligation and then, as our consciences darken, we congratulate ourselves on being more enlightened." (Mark Chamberlain, Wanting More - The Challenge of Enjoyment in the Age of Addiction)

Being the nice and predictably boring woman will quickly put you in the "she's sweet but it's just not there" category. (Christian Carter)

"Care about people; not just FOR people and don't let issues get in the way of relationships." Pamela Atkinson at Global Health Conference, Provo, UT 3/18/11

To love another person is to see the face of God." Jean ValJean (line in Les Miserables)

"Happiness is not a goal; it is a by-product." ~ Eleanor Roosevelt

"A single man is like half a pair of scissors." ~ Benjamin Franklin

"Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up, doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil; rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth; beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things." ~ I Corinthians 13:4-7 (KJV)

"I would rather have thirty minutes of wonderful than a lifetime of nothing special." from Steel Magnolias (thanks, Nat)

"True love is not so much a matter of romance as it is a matter of anxious concern for the well being of one's companion." ~ President Gordon B Hinckley

"I came here tonight because when you realize you want to spend the rest of your life with somebody, you want the rest of your life to start as soon as possible." (Harry in When Harry Met Sally)

"Beginnings are scary, endings are usually sad, but it's what's in the middle that counts. So, when you find yourself at the beginning, just give hope a chance to float up. And it will." Hope Floats

"Trying to forget someone you love is like trying to remember someone you've never met."

"Don't cry because its over; smile because it happened."

"Life is too short - laugh when you can, apologize when you should, and let go of what you can't change, love deeply and forgive quickly."

"Trying to find lasting love without obeying God is like trying to quench thirst by drinking from an empty cup—you can go through the motions, but the thirst remains." ~ John H Groberg

"I know of nothing which gives us a greater love of all that is good, than teaching this Gospel of Jesus Christ." ~ Heber J Grant

"We look forward to the time when the power of love will replace the love of power. Then will our world know the blessings of peace." ~ William Gladstone

"America is great because she is good. If America ceases to be good, America will cease to be great." ~ Alexis de Tocqueville

"Although the world is full of suffering, it is also full of the overcoming of it." ~ Helen Keller

The great Prophet Isaiah, whom the Savior frequently quoted, warned, “Woe unto them that call evil good and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness!” Isaiah 5:20

Good thought

I like this thought that Ashli shared: "What Satan means for evil, God can use for good."

And for "gee whiz"... This is the number that came up on my stat counter tonight. 0000044444!  I happened to glance at it at the right time. Thanks for coming!

Today's thought

If we must part forever,
Give me but one kind word to think upon,
And please myself with, while my heart's breaking.
 
~Thomas Otway

Some thoughts...

“To be trusted is a greater compliment than being loved.” ~ George MacDonald

 

"That person who never forsaketh his trust, should ever have the highest place of regard in our hearts, and our love should never fail, but increase more and more, and this is my disposition and these my sentiments." ~ Joseph Smith

 The great Prophet Isaiah, whom the Savior frequently quoted, warned, “Woe unto them that call evil good and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness!”

“In times like these men should utter nothing for which they would not be willingly responsible through time and in eternity.” ~ Abraham Lincoln

“The time comes upon every public man when it is best for him to keep his lips closed.” ~ Abraham Lincoln

Losers make promises they often break.  Winners make commitments they always keep.  ~Denis Waitley

And be these juggling friends no more believ'd,
That palter with us in a double sense;
That keep the word of promise to our ear
And break it to our hope.
~William Shakespeare

Breach of promise is a base surrender of truth.  ~Mohandas Gandhi

con·fi·den·tialadjective

Indicating confidence or intimacy; imparting private matters: a confidential tone of voice;

having another's trust or confidence; entrusted with secrets or private affairs: a confidential secretary.
—Synonyms
1.  restricted, private. 2.  intimate, familiar. 3.  trusted, trustworthy, private
Keeping confidences is a major feature of integrity.   

Imperfect Marriage

Don't be fooled by the Christmas letters and pictures of perfect families.

Marriage is never what it appears. Behind every beautiful facade....
Is a complicated power structure.
Behind every hand stitched memory...
Behind every well-placed piece of furniture or decor...
Is a dust ball, a broken ornament or that missing extension cord needed to light that star on your tree.

~ Andrea Fraser (Good Housekeeping 11/29/10)

This said, even in divorce - "there is no better reason for being on your best behavior during the holidays than your children." ~ Cathy Meyer

And with more and more marriages going down the tube, now we have "sexting" - which basically falls in the category of emotional affair or infidelity. People defend this behavior by saying it isn't cheating if they didn't have sex. Just another sign of today's attitudes toward marriage, commitment and infidelity. Yvonne Thomas, PhD, an L.A. psychologist says, "When you're going outside the boundaries of what you're supposed to share, emotionally and physically, only with your partner, cheating is cheating." It would seem though that some have a skewed idea of the boundaries in marriage.

In fact, it seems boundaries are the cause of many problems we have in relationships of all kinds.

In "sexting" the desire for outside sexual stimulation is more important than the pain it would cause the spouse he/she had vowed to be faithful to. I liked Cathy's observation that sometimes much more effort goes into planning an elaborate wedding celebration than in planning how to have an effective, committed and long-term marriage. Setting goals as a couple and making the health of the relationship the main focus is often forgotten these days.

Good counsel from Elder Scott

A few thoughts from a talk, To Have Peace and Happiness, given at a BYU CES Fireside on Sept. 12, 2010.

Are you faithful to your spouse mentally as well as physically? Are you loyal to your marriage covenants by never engaging in conversation with another person that you wouldn’t want your spouse to overhear? Are you kind and supportive of your spouse and children?

As a husband, be aware of what you might unconsciously communicate by how you treat your wife in public. As I shake hands with members at the end of a meeting, occasionally I note that a man is in line in front of his wife. That is inappropriate—as a matter of fact, it’s just plain stupid. It is demeaning to her. The simple gestures like opening the door on the car or in a room for a woman show you want to give her the respect she deserves.

As husband and wife, work as a partnership to build on each others' strengths. Listen to each other and help each other. I have seen men reject counsel from a wife who likely has struggled for a long time to find just the right moment to mention something the husband needed to change. Don’t do that.

Some of you may feel lonely and unappreciated and cannot see how it will be possible for you to have the blessings of marriage and children or your own family. All things are possible to the Lord, and He keeps the promises He inspires His prophets to declare. Eternity is a long time. Have faith in those promises, and live to be worthy of them so that in His time the Lord can make them come true in your life. With certainty, you will receive every promised blessing for which you are worthy. I pray that it will be on this side of the veil.

Of course there is more. Click the post title to read the transcript of his talk. These thoughts apply to both spouses and the bottom line is respect, loyalty and true love!

The Guest Book for my dad

It won't be online for long so I wanted to record the kind thoughts that were posted (most recent first).

October 05, 2010

I remember talking to Mr Madsen when I was just a little kid..my brother worked for him and Gary came over to our house all the time...I used to talk to Bill in the pits at the races..I remember growing up always wanting to be WILD BILL because he was the best racer...thank you for the memories rest in peace GOD BLESS ~ Jay Roper, Reno, Nevada

October 01, 2010

To Bill's family, he was always so kind and helpful when it came to our many cars. He pasted, wired, and glued many a car back together for us and kept them on the road. It was always our pleasure to chat with Bill and Sandy when picking up or dropping off cars. I hoped this day wouldn't come. Thanks Bill for your friendship, didn't know you were a South High Cub, that must be one of the reasons you were a special friend. Love Mark, Trish Wheeler and kids ~Trish Wheeler, Marion, UT

September 30, 2010

So good to visit with old and new friends of my dad. Thanks for the tributes and memories. We love you all! ~ Debbie Madsen Miller, Bountiful, UT

September 29, 2010

Colleen,
I am so sorry to see that your father has passed away, it is not easy losing a parent. I knew this was your dad, I remember you always talking about Wild Bill. As you look back on the wonderful memories that you have of your dad, those memories will help you through these hard times. ~ Debbie Larsen (Itokazu), Salt Lake City, UT

September 28, 2010

Memories of the Chevron Station, Racing,and the Airplane are on my mind when I think of Bill..many wild and crazy times..thanks Bill..Kay Blackburn

September 27, 2010

Madsen family we were sadden by the lose of bill we have many happy memories of him are thought and love are with you ,miss you wild bill #65 love claudia lloyd, connie, troy

September 27, 2010

I love you grandpa you will always be missed!! ~ Felicia Didericksen, West Valley, UT

September 27, 2010

Dear Sandy, I am so sorry to hear of Bill's passing. He was a good man and will always be remembered. ~ Shirley Montoya, Kearns, UT

September 27, 2010

Gary, sorry to here of your dads passing he was a wonderful man and will be deeply miss.we offer are deepest sympathy to you all. Ith family

September 27, 2010

Sandy and Family,
We are so sorry to hear of Bill's passing. We have many, many great memories of him, and thought the world of him. Our thoughts and prayers are with you all, The Bruggeman Family

September 27, 2010

Madsen Family, We are deeply saddened to hear about Bill. We will always cherish many memories of the years racing together at the Fairgrounds and Bonneville. He will be missed by many . Our prayers are with all of you at this difficult time. Sincerly, Monte and Collette Pendleton ~ Monte Pendleton, Arroyo Grande, California

September 27, 2010

We are sorry to hear of the loss of legend.. Our thoughts and prayers are with all the family. Sorry we can not attend the services but I know Bill understands, since we are out of town watching racing!! Love the Williams Family. Ric Sherry Marty and Cree ~ cree williams, slc, UT

September 27, 2010

ol billy, you taught me everything i know about cars. If it weren't for you I wouldn't know anything about mechanic work at all. You were the best tutor I could have asked for. I wish I could have been around more over this last year so I would have had more time with you. I love you old timer... Your most recent trainee, ~ Derek Bolton, Oakley, UT

September 26, 2010

Must have been a T.Time available the best golf partner and friend ever ~ Darrell & Dianne Roberts, Oakley, UT

September 26, 2010

Oh so many years have passed, but Bill was always one of my favorite drivers to "pick on" at the old Fairgrounds Speedway." He had a great life, too many friends to count, and I always felt honored to be one, tho in the background...RIP Bill...Gizzy ~ Jim "gizzy" ` Platt, Riverton, UT

September 26, 2010

I WAS SORRY TO HEAR OF THE PASSING OF A LEGEND.I REALLY ENJOYED WATCHING HIM RACE.I TALKED TO HIM NOT LONG AGO AND HE WAS TRYING TO HELP A NEIGHBOR REPAIR THEIR CAR.TYPICAL BILL, GO WIN THE BIG RACE IN THE SKY FOR THERE WILL NEVER BE ANOTHER "WILD BILL", RIP. BEST REGARDS FOR HIS FAMILY, ~ JOHN (-J-MAC RADIATOR -) PARKS, TAYLORSVILLE, UT

September 26, 2010

I fondly recall the many years of racing that I watched "Wild bill" drive. The competition between his Rear engine car and the roadsters was fearce. I've often said the best race I ever watched was at Idaho's Super Oval track between him and "Crazy Horse" Hendricks. I prey God will assist his many loved one's in their greiving now that Bill has taken his final Checkered Flag. Boy, What a winner. ~ Lew Timothy, Vernal, UT

September 26, 2010

"Wild Bill Madsen" Wow!!! I have such wonderful memories watching Bill race at Bonneville. He was always the first driver I wanted too see after the race. Rest In Peace "Wild Bill" ~ Terry McCray, Salt Lake, UT

September 25, 2010

What a reunion it must be with my dad, Morrie (Morris Peay) and Bill... Born 1 day apart and best friends til the end... There are so many wonderful memories with the Peay's and Madsen's. I love all you guys and love that I have such wonderful memories. God bless. ~ Pamela Peay, Tooele, UT

September 25, 2010

I was so saddened when I saw that Billy had passed away. He was truly a wonderful, wonderful man! I haven't seen you in a few years but I will greatly miss Bill. My heartfelt sympathies go out to you Sandy and Bill's children. Gary, go win one for "Wild Bill"! ~ Kathy Phillips Larson, Tooele, UT

September 25, 2010

You will be deeply missed "Wild Bill". You are in our prayers and thoughts. My you Rest In Peace, and keep racing with the best up in heaven! ~ Trista Lindberg James Deyerle (Fudd), West Valley City, UT

September 25, 2010

We will miss Bill so very much. He has been such a big part of our lives for so long. All our love, thoughts, and sympathies. Jayson, Kory, Jack, Matthew & Amanda Strachan Heber City, UT

September 25, 2010

Our heart felt condolences to the Madsen family. You are all in our thoughts and prayers. Rest in Peace 'Wild Bill' ~ Doug & Jodie Palmer

September 25, 2010

I'm sad to read of Bill's passing. He was my friend -- and my mechanic -- during the 1960's. I offer my deepest sympathy to Sandy and Bill's family. ~ Beverly (Ray) Kennedy, Taylorsville, UT

10 Axioms for Life

Elder Robert C. Hales: "Ten Axioms to Guide Your Life."

An axiom is "a universally accepted principle of truth." (Dictionary.com)

Click the post title to read the full context of his article since this is just a summary.

Elder Hales' Ten Axioms to Guide Your Life:

1: It's not the obstacle that counts, but how you overcome it.
2: Pursue your goals with all your heart, might, mind, and strength. You are doomed to failure if you pursue them in a vacillating manner.
3: From a tiny spark can come a large fire.
4: Our greatest strengths can become our greatest weaknesses.
5: Failure is one of the greatest teachers if we have the faith to learn from it.
6: It is not how you start the race or where you are during the race. It is how you cross the finish line that matters.
7: If you wish to get rich, save what you get. A fool can earn money; but it takes a wise man to save and dispose of it to his own advantage.
8: You cannot learn the Lord's will without exercising your agency and becoming accountable for your decisions.
9: The more things change, the more they stay the same.
10: The temple of God is the greatest university.

I would add to number 10, read about Hezekiah and Josiah in 2 Chronicles. Without the temple, people turn to idolatry and lose truth. There is protection here. Also, God can make a positive out of every negative and the trials of this world cannot even compare with the glories of the next one (Education week thoughts by Michael Wilcox on Adversity).

Shared by a friend

Trust takes years to build, seconds to break,and forever to repair. If its lost it's not easily found and if it is found its never the same again. (not sure who said it - probably many people)

Thought for the day

“Real love is when you become selfless and you are more concerned about your mate's or children's egos than your own. You're now a giver instead of a taker.” ~ Sylvester Stallone

This was added later to clarify...
Sylvester Stallone is hardly a hero to me, and ego is perhaps a poor choice of words.  But the idea of being selfless and putting the other person's needs ahead of your own does show real love. 

Important truths

Sheila shared this - kind of a classic and one of my favorite talks. Thanks for reminding me.

1. Hard things will happen to you. But you can do hard things!
2. When things don't go the way you'd planned, make the best of it.
3. T.T.T. - Things Take Time

Taken from a talk by Jeffrey Hill

Thought for Sunday

Scott G. Winterton, Deseret News Photo - click to read story

"To love means loving the unlovable. To forgive means pardoning the unpardonable. Faith means believing the unbelievable. Hope means hoping when everything seems hopeless." ~ G.K. Chesterton

And, speaking of forgiveness, here is an interesting article on baptism and various faiths.

Thought for Today

Justin shared this one.
I'm a bit puzzled about the recovery plan. While it's great to see prosperity come to America, I worry about the price tag of this plan. It doesn't help my budget to get further into debt in an effort to become financially stable. I hate to see the burden this puts on our grandchildren who will have to deal with this "fix." Something had to be done, and there were signs along the way for a very long time that we were in trouble here but throwing more money into the debt pool and putting our country in a vulnerable position for losing freedoms because of the bondage of debt worries me. Ever since the gold standard was removed and we just started printing money, the writing has been on the wall. It frightens me.

Congratulations, Krista (who completed the classwork and sat for her CBA (credit professional designation) exam on Monday. She has been in school along with working full time. This is quite an achievement. Now she is waiting for the results, but I know she'll do great!