The Flagon with the Dragon...

If you can finish the rest of this toungue twister, or if you can even name the movie that it's from, you're a genius. I rented the mystery Danny Kaye movie from Netflix this past week as we have been on a kick of 50's and 60's movies lately like "Cheaper by the Dozen" and "Belles on their Toes" because, well, they are so much more family friendly and equally entertaining. Amanda didn't think the unnamed Danny Kaye movie would be all that good and only reluctantly agreed to watch it with me because she needed something to do while she ate her bowl of Friendly's Blackberry Icecream. Well, by the time Danny Kaye was bumbling over the "Chalice from the Palace" bit, she was all smiles and giggles. She even taught the kids the tounge-twister the next morning and they have been loving it. I can remember my dad saying that Danny Kaye was the Jim Carrey of his generation, and after watching the mystery movie, (leave a comment and guess the title), I'm inclined to believe him. There is something wonderful about wholesome movies.

When I went to Priesthood session last night, I saw my former hometeachee, Matt Christensen of Duke basketball fame sitting with his father Clayton. Matt is an amazing guy and I have always been super impressed by his countenance and spiritual stature as well as his family and have added him to my list of people I should emulate, Matt Call being the other Matt on my list, along with a Jeff, Larry, Clayton B., Steve, and a few others. Anyways, every Harvard Business Student in the Cambridge 2nd ward where we used to attend were always going on about how much they loved their professor Clayton Christensen, who happens to be Matt's father, and how amazing his classes always are. Well, Clayton was diagnosed with lymphatic cancer I believe, last year, and he came to our sacrament meeting where he delivered an amazing talk and I could see where Matt got not only his altitude, but also his spiritual stature as well. So, when Pres. Monson began telling his story about Clayton who decided not to play basketball on Sunday, I was surprised and then again, not surprised to hear the President of the Church speaking about this faithful brother's experience who was only sitting a few rows behind me. Pres. Monson said Bro. Christiansen said that even though his team would be disapointed that he wouldn't be there to help play the championship game "that it was easier for bro. Christensen to keep the commandments 100% of the time, than 98%" and I thought about how I had made a similar covenant not to work on Sunday, and how I had, last semester, went in on a Sunday, the first time in my school career, the night before my final presentation, and worked with the class as I set up and prepared for the next day. I felt it was the right choice at the time as I had a partner depending on me, but Laci even gave me an out saying, "I know you don't normally work on Sundays". I wish I had chosen more wisely, but I know and agree with Pres. Monson's assessment that keeping the commandments 100% of the time is so much easier than 98% of the time. If you are wondering if you should be doing homework on Sundays, I urge you not to, I promise you that your assignments will not suffer, that you will find the time to get the work done that you need to, and that you will not only get the work done, but that you will excel above your classmates for the Lord has promised blessings of knowledge and wisdom to those who keep his commandments. I just want to thank Jenny Skaggs, Kim Frederickson, Holly Linerud, Amy Rumsey, and the other girls of my seminary class who first taught me this valuable lesson about not working on Sunday.
I had to add a contraband photo I took of the Sistine chapel last week when I was in Rome for a class trip. You can't be in the Sistine chapel and not be totally blown away. I went there with an friend and he said, "I don't believe in God, but that was amazing!"