All the Buzz

Phoebe has had quite a week. After getting her braces off on Monday, she got a really cute haircut on Tuesday.

Then on Wednesday she found out she was being bumped from alternate in the school spelling bee to competitor in the school spelling bee. She spent Wednesday evening studying the word packet. Cooper helped by quizzing her.

Thursday morning I finished dropping the other kids off at school and quickly drove to Phoebe's school to watch her compete. I missed the practice round and the explanation of the rules, but made it in time for Phoebe's first round. I watched as the number of kids dwindled from fourteen to two over several rounds. Phoebe and her friend Leo were the last spellers left. Much to her own surprise, Phoebe won the bee!

I was so happy I decided to come and support her! She did a great job and will now move on to the regional spelling bee.

Well done, Phoebe!

The Limner

The fifth graders in our school district learn about colonial life and then pick a colonial career to do a project about. Here's a post about Peter's project, and one about Cooper's project. Phoebe escaped this particular assignment since she attended virtual school for fifth grade.

Sophie spent many hours recreating a limner's workshop and preparing her presentation. I love that she drew several waiting canvases. She used playdoh in those tiny jars to make it look like they're full of paint. And she made a wagon as a traveling workshop, in addition to the diorama.

A few days before it was due she reminded me that she needed a colonial costume. This wasn't too hard for the boys. I just had them roll up their church pants to the knee, wear a pair of Bryan's church socks, wear a white church shirt, and throw on an apron. Sophie's costume was more involved.

I thought we might be able to reuse the Mary costume I made for her for the Nativity movie, and maybe add an apron. The night before the project was due I pulled the costume out from its box in the basement. That's when I remembered that I'd made it quite billowy. That wouldn't work at all. 

And that is how I came to spend the next six hours cutting up and pinning and resewing the dress. I found some pictures online and did my best to approximate what they looked like. I didn't want to add a zipper (because I haven't mastered that skill) and wanted her to be able to pull it on and off herself without help since she'd need to do that at school. That's why it's a little loose. It's definitely a costume and isn't nice enough to wear to church. But it is solidly made and won't fall apart. Considering I really didn't know what I was doing, I think it turned out well.

Sophie loves it, and that's good enough for me.

Concert Attire

Cooper performed with his high school Concert Choir tonight at their winter concert. He did a great job. The choir sounded beautiful. Afterward, he asked if I had any notes for him. I suggested that he smile during their spring concert, otherwise keep doing what's he's doing.

I'm glad that our school district prioritizes music education . And I'm glad that Cooper is taking advantage of that. This semester he's taking Concert Choir, Guitar 2, and Music Tech 2. He's enjoying all of them.

Radical, Dude

We went to an 80s themed roller skating party for Cooper's seminary teachers on Saturday. Bryan and Topher were there too, I just didn't get any pictures of them in the rink. The kids all skated. Bryan and I kept our shoes on and walked Topher around the rink while he flailed his arms and yelled that he could do it on his own and then promptly fell when we let go.

We were invited to dress up in 80s styles, so we looked for costume inspiration in our closets. I got compliments on my jean jacket. I said, "Thanks, I got it from 1998."

Grin

Phoebe had a big day today. She started out like this:

And ended up like this:

She says her teeth feel slimy, but I suspect that'll pass.

Bundle Up

It finally warmed up enough for them to play in the snow. Topher (at the edge of the swale), Cooper, and Sophie all enjoyed the 30 degree weather for the time they were outside. Phoebe opted to take a nap inside on the warm couch. I think I would have made the same choice.

The More You Know

PSA: Always wear protective eye gear when applying polyurethane. Don't take them off, even if you're almost done. Chances are that's when a rogue droplet will fly into your eye and then you'll need to flush that eye with water for fifteen minutes. You might also yell at yourself a lot because you're really mad at yourself for doing something so dumb, but that part's optional.

That is all.

Brrrrr

We had a snow day from church this Sunday. If we had an earlier meeting, I'm sure we still would have gathered in person. But we don't start until 1:00 in the afternoon and the snow was forecast to be heavy from 1:00 until 7:00. Our Bishop, after he polled the ward council, decided to have everyone stay home. It was the right choice. About the time we would have been driving home, the snow was really heavy. I was so thankful not to be out driving in that.

By the time the storm was over, we had about six inches of snow. Topher was looking forward to playing in all the white fluffiness, but the temperatures are dangerously low. On Tuesday morning the schools called a two-hour delay. It wasn't snowing anymore, but the forecast did call for negative temperatures. I suspect the administrators didn't want kids waiting for buses in that kind of cold.

Roll On

After we finished at the Temple on Saturday, we drove the big kids over an hour to go roller skating with the other youth from our Stake.  Cooper, Phoebe, and Sophie were all pretty shaky to begin, but they got the hang of it. They all found kids they knew so they had someone to roll with. Phoebe had so much fun that she now wants her own skates. 

The rink was an hour from our house, so there wasn't time to go home and come back. While the others skated, Bryan, Topher, and I went out to lunch. Topher doesn't usually get that kind of one-on-one time with us, so it was a fun alternative activity, since he wasn't old enough to join the skating.

I'll Prepare Myself While I Am Young

Sophie had a very special day on Saturday. She attended the Temple and did baptisms for the dead for the first time. Cooper performed the ordinance for both Sophie and Phoebe. I tagged along and handed towels to the kids as they came out of the font. Bryan and Topher looked at the pictures in the Visitor's Center and kept warm in the van. They happened to walk out to meet us afterward just in time for a picture. It was a wonderful, spiritual experience.

Beauty All Around

We had snow last night and a two hour school delay this morning. After the kids (except for Cooper, who is home sick today) were all on their buses, I came home and shoveled the driveway and sidewalk. I acknowledge that snow is not my favorite thing. But this morning I looked at the sidewalk and saw so many beautiful colors sparking in the snow. This picture doesn't do it justice. I wanted to snap a photo anyway. This is a reminder to me that there is beauty, even in things I don't enjoy.

Pick Up a Good Book

The floor library is back. I'm prepping to add a water-based matte polyurethane to the bookshelves. That means I had to unload the books and find them temporary homes elsewhere.

I'm looking forward to loading them back onto their proper home. Floor library is not my favorite.

No Fillers Needed

Topher is always on the move. He often has bruises of unknown origin. Bryan and I regularly have to say things like, "Stop! That will break a bone!" 

We had a moment like this yesterday. Topher found a large, flat piece of cardboard and decided it would be a good idea to use it to slide, face first, on our linoleum kitchen floor. I saw him start to do it and thought, "Oh, that's going to end badly."

And it did.

Less than a minute after he started, Topher cried out in pain. I looked over to see his cheek on the floor, his backside in the air, and Topher looking stunned. He had crashed onto his face. Suddenly there was blood coming out of his mouth. I got up and grabbed a warm wash cloth, thinking he'd bitten his lip. But there was way more blood than there should have been. I said I hoped his teeth were all okay. Spoiler: they weren't. At least, one wasn't. It was on the floor next to the cardboard. Thankfully, it was a baby tooth, but it hadn't been ready to leave it's once secure perch.

In addition to knocking out his tooth, he had in fact bitten his lip open. Bryan wondered if stiches would be needed, but it seems to have closed up on its own. This is Topher before school today. His lip is still swollen and it's hard for him to eat on that side of his mouth, but it's not as bad today as it was last night.

Today we was sliding around the kitchen floor in socks. At least he ditched the surfboard.

Boarded Up

I collaborated with the other two Primary presidents that meet in this building to design the two bulletin boards in our room. If there were three boards we probably would have each gotten one, but with three wards and only two boards, we decided teamwork was the way to go. We brainstormed over text, gave approval to act on our plan, then two of us met to put that plan into action.

We decided one board should be about the restoration and the other board should be about the Savior. We bought one picture on Etsy (the large one of Christ), one set of bulletin board posters designed for Primary, and cut up old Come, Follow Me manuals for the rest. Yes, my side (the restoration side) is missing two elements (this is round two since my first version was too chaotic), but I'll add those on Sunday. I'm pleased with how they turned out.

Lumos

We watched Harry Potter 1 and 2 on New Year's Eve, are reading the first book, and watched the 3rd movie on Friday as a family. Topher is suddenly very into the world of Hogwarts and Harry Potter. He's been running around the house casting spells on everyone. I keep having to remind him not to run with a wand.

I'm glad he's so excited about something the rest of us love so much.

If I Only Had a Brain

I haven't written much (or at all?) about my autoimmune disorder. Most of the time I kind of pretend like it doesn't exist. I take some medicine for it first thing in the morning, can't eat dairy until four hours later, and have had to become (mostly) gluten free. Those are the things I deal with daily. They're annoying, but manageable. I'm aware of the symptoms, but, when my medicine is at the correct dose, they're also annoyances. Yeah I'm cold and my skin is really dry, but I can wear slippers and a jacket in my house and apply extra lotion.

But sometimes it shows up more than I'd like. When I've overworked myself and neglected the basics of caring for myself (regular exercise and sleep), the disorder arrives in force. These are called flares. I've been in a flare for most of the last week. 

Profound exhaustion is one of the symptoms that sent me to the doctor initially and led to the diagnosis. I've had to nap nearly every day this week to try to counter the feeling of my head being too heavy to hold up and the realization that I probably shouldn't be driving. I thought I was feeling better yesterday because I didn't need a nap, but today proved otherwise. And I do feel silly complaining about needing to nap. Naps seem like they should be a luxury, a welcome activity. But when they're a necessity and keep you from other things that need to get done, they're not as fun.

I think the worst symptom this time has been the brain fog. My thoughts are sluggish and difficult to put into words. It kind of feels like the hangover I get after a migraine; thinking hurts for about a day. I was thankful this week that the kids provided enough blog material because I couldn't have come up with anything on my own.

Bryan is amazing and encourages me to rest when I need to. He picks up the slack, and there's a lot of slack when flares hit. I am not so good about resting. I've trained myself to constantly be productive and lying in bed with no energy feels more like torture than rejuvenation. Bryan reminds me that rest is productive, but I struggle to convince myself of that.

The good news for tonight is that the brain fog has cleared enough for me to write this post. Maybe the other symptoms will begin to calm down as well.

Style

"Can you take a picture and put it on the blog?" -Topher, pleased with his self-styled fauxhawk.

Maths

"Topher, algebra has lots of variables." - Phoebe, excited to explain the only math she enjoys, after discovering that Topher's math homework had early algebraic elements.

Play Time

Topher really wanted to play Minecraft, but in real life. I asked if that was the same as building with Legos. He informed me that it is not. He put together a "crafting table" that had a drawing board and a few toys and some snacks. After I was appropriately appreciative of his creativity, he agreed to play a board game with me instead. I was thankful for his compromise.

Quick Work

The kids went back to school today. I spent my morning attempting to put the house back in order. I was pleased with how quickly I worked and then realized why I was so effective: no one was following me around undoing all my work.

I love when they're all home, but there are benefits to having them all in school.

Lost In a Book

Peter took this picture without us realizing it. I was reading the first chapter of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone to Topher (who's never heard the books) and Sophie (who read them all for the first time last year). We watched the first two movies on New Year's Eve and occasionally I would stop reading and ask Topher "Who do you think that character is?" and he would guess. He was usually right. It's one of my favorite experiences from this Christmas break.

When Am I?

Topher: (this morning, after waking up and coming in to snuggle) I'm going to have fun cereal because it's Saturday.

Me: Sorry bud, it's Thursday.

Topher: (real confusion on his face) But... it's Saturday.

Me: I know it's confusing because we had pizza and watched a movie last night and we usually do that on Friday, but we did it on Wednesday this week.

Topher: (confusion mingled with acceptance) Huh.

It's okay Topher, I haven't known what day it was for most of the week.

The Biblio Files: 2024

2024's book count was 203. It turns out I really burn through audiobooks while I'm sanding and staining trim, painting walls, and building bookcases. This year I added a bit of additional information on a few of the books I read.

Did you read anything great this year?

 January:

1. The Princess Pact by Melanie Cellier
2. Honorably Engaged by Kasey Stockton
3. The Clockwork Ghost by Laura Ruby
4. Winds of Courage by Melanie Cellier
5. We Were Dreamers by Simu Liu
6. The Case of the Missing Moonstone by Jordan Stratford
7. Burn It Down by Maureen Ryan
8. A Midwinter's Wedding by Melanie Cellier
9. The Princess Game by Melanie Cellier
10. I Will Always Write Back by Martin Ganda, Caitlin Alifirenka, and Liz Welch
11. Spark by Julie Burstein
12. Lore by Alexandra Bracken
13. Storms of Allegiance by Melanie Cellier
14. Tempests of Truth by Melanie Cellier
15. The Princess Search by Melanie Cellier
16. Raising a Kid Who Can by Catherine McCarthy, MD, Heather Tedesco, PhD, and Jennifer Weaver, LCSW
17. The Map of Stars by Laura Ruby
18. The Case of the Girl in Gray by Jordan Stratford
19. Good Inside by Becky Kennedy
20. General Conference October 2023

February:

1. Oath and Honor by Liz Cheney (This is in the top five books I read this year.)
2. A Dance of Silver and Shadow by Melanie Cellier
3. A Tale of Beauty and Beast by Melanie Cellier
4. A Crown of Snow and Ice by Melanie Cellier
5. A Dream of Ebony and White by Melanie Cellier
6. Circe by Madeline Miller
7. A Captive of Wing and Feather by Melanie Cellier
8. The Teenage Brain by Amy Ellis Nutt and Frances E. Jensen
9. Beyond the Wand by Tom Felton
10. Chinese Menu by Grace Lin (This was a great book to read for the Chinese New Year.)
11. Deaf Utopia by Nyle DiMarco and Robert Siebert
12. A Princess of Wind and Wave by Melanie Cellier
13. The Secret Princess by Melanie Cellier
14. The Great White Bard by Farah Karim-Cooper
15. The Giver of Stars by Jojo Moyes
16. The Mystery Princess by Melanie Cellier

March:

1. General Conference October 2023
2. The Devil Made Me Do It by Anthony Sweat
3. Christ In Every Hour by Anthony Sweat
4. The Desert Princess by Melanie Cellier
5. Give and Take by Adam Grant
6. The Air Raid Book Club by Annie Lyons
7. We Are the Light by Matthew Quick
8. The Golden Princess by Melanie Cellier
9. The Rogue Princess by Melanie Cellier
10. Murder at the Polo Club by C. J. Archer
11. Poverty, by America by Matthew Desmond
12. The Loneliest Girl in the Universe by Lauren James
13. My Man Jeeves by P.G. Wodehouse
14. Hidden Potential by Adam Grant
15. Code Name: Lise by Larry Loftis (I think this had the potential to be great, but it didn't quite get there.)
16. The Idiot by Elf Batuman (This was very stream-of-consciousness. And weird.)
17. General Conference October 2023
18. The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield
19. The Dead Letter Delivery by C. J. Archer
20. How to Get Away With Myrtle by Elizabeth C. Bunce
21. Whole In Christ by Robert L. Millet

April:

1. Traitor's Masque by Kenley Davidson
2. A Newlywed's Guide to Fortune and Murder Dianne Freeman
3. Fighting Words by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley (This was a very hard book to listen to, but I'm glad I finished it. It deals with incredibly difficult topics. If you choose to read it, look up the synopsis first to decide if you're up for it.)
4. Goldheart by Kenley Davidson
5. Pirouette by Kenley Davidson
6. General Conference October 2023
7. Shadow and Thorn by Kenley Davidson
8. Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing by Judy Blume
9. Daughter of Lies by Kenley Davidson
10. Path of Secrets by Kenley Davidson
11. The Van Gogh Deception by Deron Hicks
12. The Imposter's Inheritance by C. J. Archer
13. The Golden Thirteen by Paul Stillwell
14. The Dragon With a Chocolate Heart by Stephanie Burgis
15. Cold-Blooded Myrtle by Elizabeth C. Bunce
16. The Uninvited Guests by Sadie Jones (This book was very odd. I don't recommend it. I guessed the twist pretty early on, though I have no idea how I figured it out. If I think about it now, even at the end of the year, it still gives me the shivers.)
17. Mrs. Harris Goes to Paris by Paul Gallico (This is a sweet series.)
18. Mrs. Harris Goes to New York by Paul Gallico
19. General Conference April 2024
20. All Things New by Terryl and Fiona Givens (This is maybe the best book I read all year. I highly recommend it.)
21. The Very, Very Far North by Dan Bar-El
22. Romney by McKay Coppins (This was a great inside look at a politician that I admire.)
23. Hotel Magnifique by Emily J. Taylor
24. The Faceless Mage by Kenley Davidson
25. Marmee by Sarah Miller (I loved this! It's Little Women through Marmee's eyes. It does deal with some adult themes, including the loss of a child, and that's always hard to read. But I still loved this book.)
26. The Wild Robot by Peter Brown (I think I'm the only person I know that didn't like this book. I loved the movie, so maybe my problem was more with the audiobook narrator than the story itself?)
27. The Boy Who Dared by Susan Campbell Bartoletti (This was both very sad and very inspiring.)
28. The Case of the Counterfeit Criminals by Jordan Stratford
29. April 2024 Liahona
30. No Two Persons by Erica Bauermeister

May:

1. The Abandoned Princess by Melanie Cellier
2. Enough by Cassidy Hutchinson
3. The Bookwanderers by Anna James
4. The Echo of Old Books by Barbara Davis
5. The Unseen Heir by Kenley Davidson
6. The Hidden Queen by Kenley Davidson
7. The Captive Throne by Kenley Davidson
8. The Uncrowned Prince by Kenley Davidson
9. The Swifts by Beth Lincoln
10. The Sundered Blade by Kenley Davidson
11. Wintering by Katherine May
12. The Queen's Assassin by Melissa de la Cruz
13. The Queen's Secret by Melissa de la Cruz
14. American Woman by Katie Rogers (A look at recent first ladies.)
15. General Conference April 2024
16. Alex and Eliza, A Love Story by Melissa de la Cruz
17. The Perfectionists Guide to Losing Control by Katherine Morgan Schafler (This book was one I definitely needed to read. In fact, I should probably go read it again and take notes this time.)
18. Pathways by Camille Peters
19. The Nutmeg Tree by Margery Sharp
20. Love and War by Melissa de la Cruz

June:

1. All for One by Melissa de la Cruz
2. The 100-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared by Jonas Jonasson (This was a weird book. I picked it for our book club discussion and it was much odder than I was expecting.)
3. Discovering Wes Moore by Wes Moore
4. How Parents Can Develop Happy Children by Frank Dixon
5. Spelled by Camille Peters
6. I Never Thought of It That Way by Monica Guzman (This is a book about being willing to see things from a different perspective than your own, which I guess is probably obvious from the title.)

July:

1. The Marlow Murder Club by Robert Thorogood
2. Hold Me Tight by Dr. Sue Johnson
3. Mrs. Lincoln's Dressmaker by Jennifer Chiaverini
4. Raising Good Humans Every Day by Hunter Clarke-Fields, MSAE
5. Murder at the Dinner Party by C. J. Archer
6. Death Comes to Marlow by Robert Thorogood
7. 100 Days of Sunlight by Abbie Emmons (This was such a sweet book!)
8. Dirty Laundry by Richard Pink and Roxanne Emery (This and the next one cover a lot of the same material: how to live with and love someone with ADHD. This is definitely a more adult take on the topic than ADHD is Awesome, which I read in September.)
9. Small Talk by Richard Pink and Roxanne Pink
10. Destroy the Day by Brigid Kemmerer (This was the final book in a series that I ended up not liking as much as I thought I would. I kind of finished it out of a sense of obligation.)s
11. The Palace of Lost Memories by C. J. Archer
12. Astrophysics for Young People In a Hurry by Neil DeGrasse Tyson

August:

1. The Screentime Solution by Emily Cherkin
2. Mastering the Art of French Murder by Colleen Cambridge
3. Kingdom of Beauty by Deborah Grace White
4. Tessa and Weston: The Best Christmas Ever by Abbie Emmons
5. Essentialism by Greg McKeown
6. The Woman With No Name by Audrey Blake (I can't say much about why I was impressed with this without spilling spoilers. I really liked the main character.)
7. The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman
8. A Murder Most French by Colleen Cambridge
9. Kingdom of Slumber by Deborah Grace White

September:

1. Scarlet by Genevieve Cogman (The premise: what if vampires were part of the aristocracy that the Scarlet Pimpernel was trying to rescue?)
2. Where the Sidewalk Ends by Shel Silverstein (read aloud with Topher)
3. April 2024 General Conference
4. People of the Book by Geraldine Brooks
5. A Botanist's Guide to Parties and Poisons by Kate Khavari
6. The Echo of Broken Dreams by C. J. Archer
7. The Whisper of Silenced Voices by C.J. Archer
8. The Temple of Forgotten Secrets by C.J. Archer
9. ADHD is Awesome by Penn and Kim Holderness (This was an uplifting and honest look at life with ADHD, for the person that has it and the people that live with them.)
10. Fourteen Talks by Age Fourteen by Michelle Icard
11. The Lost Library by Rebecca Stead and Wendy Mass (This was a sweet and sad middle grade book.)
12. What Happened to Rachel Riley by Claire Swinarski (Sophie recommended this one to me. It's also a middle grade book, and it deals with some pretty grownup stuff. I finished it before Sophie and encouraged her to finish so we could talk about it.)
13. The List of Things That Will Not Change by Rebecca Stead
14. The Prison of Buried Hopes by C.J. Archer
15. The Return of Absent Souls by C.J. Archer
16. Goodbye Stranger by Rebecca Stead
17. The Man Who Died Twice by Richard Osman

October:

1. April 2024 General Conference
2. Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell by Susanna Clarke
3. High Conflict by Amanda Ripley (This was a fascinating look at how to handle people who live and believe the opposite of what you live and believe.)
4. Liar & Spy by Rebecca Stead
5. The Ogress and the Orphans by Kelly Barnhill (This was my second time reading this and I loved it even more than the first time around.)
6. First Light by Rebecca Stead
7. Percy Jackson and the Olympians: Wrath of the Triple Goddess by Rick Riordan
8. The Lost Bookshop by Evie Woods
9. A Botanist's Guide to Flowers and Fatality by Kate Khavari
10. Glass by Kathryn Lasky
11. Thank You for Arguing by Jay Heinrichs (This is one of Cooper's text books for his AP Lang class. The book, which is written in a light-hearted comedic style, felt much longer than it was.)
12. Secrets of the Lost Ledgers by C.J. Archer
13. The Naturals by Jennifer Lynn Barnes
14. A Botanist's Guide to Society and Secrets by Kate Khavari
15. What I Know For Sure by Oprah Winfrey
16. The Greatest Game by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

November:

1. The Bullet That Missed by Richard Osman
2. October 2024 General Conference
3. Lifescapes by Ann Wroe
4. The Small and the Mighty by Sharon McMahon (This is one of the best books I've read all year.)
5. The Light in the Attic by Shel Silverstein (read aloud with Topher)
6. How Not to Die by Michael Greger (His overall message was that everyone should be vegan.)
7. Not Nothing by Gayle Forman
8. The Elephant Whisperer by Lawrence Anthony
9. Seeds of Glory and Ruin by Melanie Cellier
10. Vines of Promise and Deceit by Melanie Cellier
11. Thorns of Hope and Betrayal by Melanie Cellier
12. Forests of Grandeur and Malice by Melanie Cellier

December:

1. The Third Gilmore Girl by Kelly Bishop
2. Revenge of the Tipping Point by Malcolm Gladwell
3. Voice of Power by Melanie Cellier
4. Voice of Command by Melanie Cellier
5. Voice of Dominion by Melanie Cellier
6. October 2024 General Conference
7. A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens
8. Voice of Life by Melanie Cellier
9. The Book of Mormon
10. Every Valley: The Desperate Lives and Troubled Times That Made Handel's Messiah by Charles King (This took a very broad lens to its subject matter and included a lot of information that often felt unnecessary.)
11. To Ride the Wind by Melanie Cellier
12. To Steal the Sun by Melanie Cellier
13. Hamlet's Father by Orson Scott Card (This one was well-written and an interesting take on Hamlet, until the twist at the end that left me feeling awful.)
14. The Tales of Beedle the Bard by J. K. Rowling
15. Seedfolks by Paul Fleischman
16. Christmas Eve, 1914 by Charles Olivier
17. The Mansion by Henry van Dyke
18. An Advent Christmas Countdown by Michael D. Young
19. The Christ Child by Adam S. Miller
20. Come, Follow Me 2024 Manual
21. The Canterville Ghost by Oscar Wilde
22. Power of Pen and Voice by Melanie Cellier
23. The Book of Mormon
24. Sacred Days, Sacred Songs by Michael D. Young