One of the Shakers’ last three members died Monday. The storied sect is verging on extinction.

The Shakers are glad to admit

That sex is a vice they have quit.

They make a good chair

But since they won’t pair

There’s no one left on them to sit. .

My mouth is open

 And thou must open thy mouth at all times, declaring my gospel with the sound of rejoicing. Amen.   Doctrine & Covenants. 28:16

My mouth is open; I rejoice
that God will let me use my voice
to praise His works and testify
that only He can sanctify.

Not for me, a doleful face
when I am running in the race
of life because my Savior sees
I go the quickest on my knees.

I've left behind the darkness cold
and wish to state it very bold
that goodness, mercy, even glee,
overflow in God's bounty! 

Italian Inmates Sip, Smell and Taste Their Way to Rehabilitation

From the New York Times:  Mr. Albanese, 43, is an instructor in an innovative effort at Lecce Penitentiary to teach inmates to be sommeliers, or wine stewards. The courses are part of a program to teach prisoners new professional skills, as well as to help them develop a bond with the Italian region, which is renowned for its Negroamaro grape varieties.

In Italy prisoners stay

behind bars and sip chardonnay.

They nibble on cheese

while scratching their fleas,

and soon are a fine sommelier!  

The Gospel is so broad and deep

How easy it would be to select our favorite gospel topic, draw a bull’s-eye around it, and then make a case that we have identified the center of the gospel.
Dieter F. Uchtdorf


The Gospel is so broad and deep, a lifetime's insufficient
to grasp all aspects perfectly and do them all proficient.
But God has said "Don't complicate my simple little plan!"
"Love me and love your neighbor; all the rest is merely flan." 

Provo Weather Report: More Snow. More Cold.

Weather comes and weather goes,

But falls upon the ice

Bring forth torrents of abuse,

With words that just ain’t nice.

I used to love the snowy peaks,

The swoosh of powder snow.

But now my joints are tenderized

By ev’ry chilly blow.

I totter through the crusty slush

And wonder if my plan

Will cover me when I collapse

While building a snowman.

What happened to the desert heat?

What happened to the drought?

Since when is Provo in the Alps

With penguins all about?

If Global Warming stays like this

I’m moving to St. George.

Or Hades, if I have to,

And put my skis in storage!

Cardinal Calls It a ‘Disgrace,’ still, a McDonald’s Opens Near the Vatican

From the New York Times:  Over the objections of senior Roman Catholic leaders and some area residents, a McDonald’s opened last week just outside Vatican City, within eyeshot of St. Peter’s Square.

Pope Francis will just have to deal
with Ronald McDonald for real.
But word on the street
is things can be sweet
if he gets a free Happy Meal . . . 

Bonus:  Before I was a poet, I was a street performer.  http://bit.ly/2i5PLrX 

When Joseph Wept for Zion

Yea, his weeping for Zion I have seen, and I will cause that he shall mourn for her no longer; for his days of rejoicing are come unto the remission of his sins, and the manifestations of my blessings upon his works.

Doctrine & Covenants. 21:8. 


When Joseph wept for Zion God was near to see his pain.
He told him to rejoice in all the Kingdom would soon gain.
For though of members few were found upon that April morn,
many more were coming, from the grasp of Satan torn!
So Joseph Smith, when murdered by a mob in Carthage jail,
died knowing that his work for God would not begin to fail.  

http://bit.ly/2i5PLrX 

Loyal Rose Parade watchers brave overnight temperatures in the 40s

From the LA Times:  And so it went along this main drag in the hours before the Rose Parade, as would-be parade watchers settled into air mattresses that looked like marshmallows, tucked into neon inflatable cushions, and bundled into furry boots and mittens outside shops like Yogurtland and Lululemon. 

There's nothing to ever persuade
Americans not to parade.
Not drizzle, not damp,
not president, tramp,
and certainly not damn Free Trade! 

And those who will not use his name . . .

Behold, Jesus Christ is the name which is given of the Father, and there is none other name given whereby man can be saved . . . 

Doctrine & Covenants. Section 18:23


Free to think, and free to act, but never free to be
alone and unattended in the vast eternity. 
Ev'ry soul accepts the Christ, except the very few
who really want Perdition as their solitary view.
All other schemes and systems fail; no power in their name
has any hold on God or any valid, lasting claim.
Addressing Jesus Christ by name, who keeps the only gate,
is how we must come home to God, no matter style or state.
And those who will not use His name, nor share it lavishly,
will find the company they keep as vexing as a flea!

Kaeng Guek Eav

As Khmer Rouge guerrillas in the '70s, they took part in genocide. Now, as Christians, they ask for forgiveness
from the LA Times 

There's some people you should not dunk
for glory or even when drunk.
To baptize such vermin
would leave angels squirmin',
and turn the Commandments to junk.