Stops Me Warm

My favorite radio station, Classical 89, has a weekly "Friday Favorites" program so listeners can choose their favorite music for everyone to hear.  One man recently described an experience hearing his choice: Beethoven's Piano Concerto No. 5, Emperor.  "I have experienced a few times when a piece of music 'stops me cold', and this is one of those."

I can relate; except with me, those times literally "stop me warm".  Take Grieg's Piano Concerto (1868), for example, aired 6:23 AM yesterday.  I knew it shouldn't stop me from working, but like other times, I was overcome by that feeling … like warm sunshine streaming through the window on a cold winter's day.

Without fail, when Symphony No. 3 in C minor ("the Organ Symphony", 1886) nears the end, I am compelled to stop and feel the full impact of "... arguably Saint-Saëns's greatest single composition."  – theguardian.com/music

A piano piece by Chopin that my young daughter played is gone, but the memory is still warm in a melancholy way.  And how can I forget piano concertos by Sergei Rachmaninoff?  Why does such moving music stop me!  Words in this fast-language format cannot do them justice, but the Spirit can whisper volumes.

Too often the warmth is gone, but for me it's never lost.  I beg every day, “Bring back that lovin' feelin’ …”  (song first recorded by the Righteous Brothers in 1964)

Cannon Family piano dated 1873, warmed by winter sun in 2017

Kay & younger daughter with piano played by both in East Mill Creek antique room

Rich Diary 1894

It remains to be seen, but I suspect 1894 was an eventful year for my ancestor, Edward Israel Rich.  My great-grandfather was born 9 April 1868, in Paris, Bear Lake area, Idaho.  My memories of him are associated with family visits to the retired medical doctor, over 90 years old, enjoying life in Ogden, Utah.

I credit “the generous support of the descendants of the Rich family” and the careful curation of “the Special Collections Department, Stewart Library, Weber State University” for making the diaries of Edward & Almira Rich available for generations.

– dc.weber.edu/cdm/compoundobject/collection/RICH/id/242/rec/13

This 1894 deluxe diary speaks for itself.

Partial image of 1894 Rich diary cover, courtesy of WSU, Stewart Library, Special Collections Dept.

Partial image of 1894 diary front leaf, courtesy of Weber State University, ibid.

Partial image of 1894 diary expo page, courtesy of Weber State University, ibid.

Partial image of 1894 diary page, end of "States and Territories", courtesy of WSU, ibid.

Edward I. Rich diary, Monday January 1, 1894 – image courtesy of WSU, ibid.

Language of Love

Happy Valentine's Day!

(Wikipedia:) "Valentine's Day, also called Saint Valentine's Day or the Feast of Saint Valentine,  is an annual holiday celebrated on February 14."

(To my family, especially my eternal companion, Kay:)  I love you!

More to come – every year!  (Loving language, that is.)

Unraveling Minutiae

Just a quick note for this shared journal: I am finally getting to the bottom of “small, precise, or trivial details … the minutiae of everyday life" (Oxford Dictionaries) … and unscrambling every bit of it.

We’ll see how that goes.  It helps to let stuff go by recycling, sending to the landfill, and donating to thrift stores & friends who appreciate “treasures”.  Anything I am tempted to keep … gets scanned by my iPhone or little “spy” Nikon, and stored on a tiny external drive before letting go.
So I avoid being “Frozen” by fear that I will need it someday and unravel ("fall apart emotionally").
(“Top Definition” at urbandictionary.com, a site I normally try to avoid.)

"Simplify, simplify" ... while focusing on more important things!
(Reminds me of a ragged paperback I found this week: my treasured copy of Walden by Henry David Thoreau.  And advice I saw: "Good books are to be shared.")

Sorting out valuable personal and family history is an interesting, albeit challenging, process.  So much to do, so little time to spend, I yearn to stop the clock.

“Seek after those things that are monumentally important and equally available to everyone.  ... things of eternal value ...”

– Elder Lawrence E. Corbridge of the Seventy, speaking at BYU-Idaho

– lds.org/ensign/2015/02…