Stuff, as my cousin, Verda, would say

According to The Washington Post,

Trump has told more than TWO THOUSAND lies during his first year in office.

That's an average of 5.8 lies per day.

From the president of the United States.

This is a democracy:

"Our new president will FLAT-OUT LIE to us ... He blatantly, and overtly, bluntly, simply LIED."

Donald Trump has lied about nearly everything that has happened since he became president.

He inflated the number of people at his inauguration. He falsely accused President Obama of wiretapping him. He insists he won the popular vote – a claim 3 million votes away from the truth – yet also swears millions of illegal votes were cast. And he's lied again and again about his campaign's ties to Russia.

A song I used to love to hear Jesse Evans Smith sing in her massive contralto voice, keeps trolling through my head:

He that hath clean hands and a pure heart

Who has not lifted up his soul unto vanity,

Nor sworn deceitfully.

…Who may ascend into the hill of the LORD? And who may stand in His holy place? He who has clean hands and a pure heart, Who has not lifted up his soul to falsehood And has not sworn deceitfully. He shall receive a blessing from the LORD And righteousness from the God of his salvation.…

New American Standard Bible

The song is a direct quote from The King James version of the Bible: He that hath clean hands, and a pure heart; who has not lifted up his soul unto vanity, nor sworn deceitfully. 

The Tab Choir would sing The King of Glory and she would solo with “He that hath clean hands and a pure heart”.

Jesse Evans Smith sang with the Tabernacle Choir for fifty years, longer than any other member, starting at age 15.  Jessie Evans and Joseph Fielding Smith were married in 1938, when Jessie was 36 years old and he was 62. By then she had developed her full character and was completely secure in herself. She is most noted for her flamboyance and confidence; a real character we should admire. She made life full and invited all those around her to come along for the ride, including her prophet husband.

“While Joseph Fielding Smith was a stern man in public, his wife, Jessie Evans Smith, was vivacious and outgoing. When asked by her husband to speak during a priesthood meeting to which she had accompanied him, she opened with, “Brethren, do you know what you get when you grow marijuana on the stake farm?” Startled, the men looked at each other waiting for the punch line. “High priests!” she chuckled.”

“One day President Smith gave a talk in conference and for his subject, he chose being in the world and not of the world. Eventually, he got onto the subject of loose women and how to spot them. One of his criteria of a loose woman was that she wore too much makeup. ‘Let this be a warning to you women: don’t wear too much makeup,’ he said sternly. And all the while there sat Aunt Jessie behind him in the choir section, smiling and waving at everyone–with her lipstick on three inches thick.”

“The Smiths’ home was invaded by reporters and cameramen wanting to interview Jessie Evans. As one cameraman tried to take a picture of her she screamed, ‘No, you can’t take my picture. I’m not wearing my Bible dress.’ When the reporters asked her what a Bible dress was, she smiled–she’d been waiting for them to ask. She just patted her ample bosom and said airily, ‘A Bible dress–you know–low and behold.”

“One time President Smith gave a strong talk on how the brethren should preside in the home and not their wives. Afterwards, Sister Smith got up and said how much she agreed with her husband’s remarks, adding, however, that although President Smith might preside in their home, she conducted.”

She’s a woman after my own heart. I remember being in the Ladies’ Room at BYU after a devotional* when she sang “He That Hath Clean Hands and a Pure Heart.”  She came in and hoisted her dress up to fix something underneath. She’s just one of us, I smiled to myself.

This is the devotional where her husband

made a comment about the Gods in the heavens

were laughing their heads off at the thought of 

man landing on the moon.

Less than ten years later,

all of Mama's children and grandchildren

were gathered in Mama and Uncle Ed's living room in Orderville,

watching Neil Armstrong take the first step on the moon.
July 20, 1969

I was shocked at how many names I erased from my birthday list. These are the people nearest and dearest to me. Sad. I haven’t done it for several years. I wanted to keep them in my memory.

The Physical Therapist told me not to do repetitive things like swimming, vacuuming, mopping, washing windows cleaning the bathtub; (I whole-heartedly agree with all of them except the swimming.) then he gave me three exercises to do for my shoulder: 3 sets of 10 each, twice a day, seven days a week. That’s what I call repetitive repetition. A classic paradox.

One evening in Vegas, there were two women in the hot tub with me. The older one struck up a conversation. They were from Pennsylvania. Eventually, she revealed that she had brought her young friend on a vacation because her 9-year old son had died in February. He had strangled on the dangling shower cords. Only his 12-year old brother was home with him. He was busy playing video games and didn’t hear a thing, so he blamed himself. The mother blamed herself because she was at work. She thought he was murdered by the landlord who had access to their 8-bedroom, 4-bathroom home they rented for $1000/month, through an underground tunnel. Her sister thought her boyfriend murdered him. The older woman confirmed that the police are 99% sure that he was not murdered. The autopsy report showed not a bruise on him. There was so much talk and speculation in the town of 3,000 that they decided to get away for a week. Her family moved her out of the house and she is now renting a 1-bedroom house in town for $1,200. She had four other boys, one just 1-year old. She wants to go back for closure but the landlord will not let her in. They were flying out at 3 the next morning. When I reported back to DeRay & Clare in the condo, they both thought of suicide. I didn’t even think of that. I just thought “accident”.

We’re not home a week when Clare text DeRay: Her son, Matthew, Kristina & family live in Phoenix.

Matthew’s kids are in Utah. Evie was playing outside at her cousins and almost hung herself on the swing set with a jumping rope. Her cousins were there but didn’t notice. She was making a Ninja Training Game with the rope. She was able to get on her tip toes and undo herself. It was a close scary call. Kristina took her to the hospital and she is OK but has whip lash.

Matthew flew up that night.