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Show 1 - N E W S Spanish Fork Covering what matters most Scouts in the News WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 12, 2007 • A3 To love — or hate the sunflower Ramblin' Roads Charla Zeeman Steve Hardman / Spanish Fork News FIELD TRIP IN THE RAIN: The Webelos of Pack 3867, Salem 7th Ward, visited the News on Wednesday, Sept. 5. Pictured, left to right, are Kim Davidson, Nathaniel Goodman, Mitchell Stone, James Perry, Hunter Vance, Keller Nelson, Devin Minson and Jan Gordon. Summer ends in Benjamin A baby boy was born on Aug. 7, 2007, to John and Stacie Williams Round and About Forsgren of Longmont, Colo. This Benjamin makes two boys and two girls Kathleen Olsen for the Forsgren family. Dan and A fireside for all Young Women, Karen Williams are the little boy's Relief Society members and Activity Benjamin grandparents. Karen spent Day girls will be held on Thursday, several days in Longmont helping Sept 13. This will begin at 7 p.m. at the family and getting acquainted the Spanish Fork West Stake Center with her new grandson. and will feature guest speaker Dan and Karen Williams, Don Rachel Ann Nunes. Those attending and Mary Ann Ludlow, Jon and are asked to wear best dress. Carol Beck, and Paul and JoAnn ••• The piano that has been used in Ludlow all enjoyed a summer's the Primary room of the Benjamin end trip to Alaska. (Karen had just Church is for sale. It is a Cable piano, gotten home from Colorado.) They about 50 years old. Silent bids will be flew to Vancouver, B.C., where they accepted from interested parties and boarded a cruise ship through the may be given in a sealed envelope Inland Passage and visited various to Bishop David Huff of Benjamin towns along the way, including 1st Ward or Bishop Syd Hayward of Ketchikan, Juneau and Skagway. In Benjamin 2nd Ward. The final day Juneau they viewed the Mendenhall Glacier, and in Skagway they rode for submitting bids is Sept. 16. the White Pass Railroad to the top ••• Members of the Benjamin 2nd of White Pass. Then they sailed Ward enjoyed a summer's end party to Whittier, Alaska where they on Wednesday, Sept 5 at Benjamin boarded a train to travel through the ' Park. A large group enjoyed roasting rugged interior. They stayed at the hot dogs, eating supper and. visiting, McKinley Wilderness Lodge, and while the children played games. in Denali they spent two nights at It was a cool evening but a happy, the Princess Lodge before traveling warm spirit prevailed. In charge on to Fairbanks where they were of the activity were Allen and Pat fortunate enough to see the northern Swenson assisted by Roger and lights. They flew home from Diane Jones and Richard and Janet Fairbanks having had a wonderful time. Erikson. The family of Boyd and Janet Reynolds enjoyed a family history trip to the old town of Widtsoe in the southern part of the state. Widtsoe is where Boyd's parents, Reed and Ilene Reynolds, grew up and lived before moving to Benjamin. Many of the original buildings are gone, but the old school is still there, as is Ilene's girlhood home. They also visited Pine Lake, which Reed had helped build. It was a special, nostalgic visit with plenty of family stories told and pictures taken. From there, the family traveled to Bryce Canyon, staying at Rubys' Inn. Making the trip, in addition to Boyd and Janet, were Allen and Maria Reynolds and their family, Boyd and Jennifer Reynolds and family and JaNell Reynolds. ••• A suggestion for next year: if you enjoy watching exceptional dogs work, and if you haven't already taken the opportunity to attend the Sheep Dog Trials at Soldier Hollow near Midway, we encourage you to do so next Labor Day weekend. The dogs are wonderful, the sheep are obstinate and ornery and the setting is beautiful. We have attended since the event started years ago, and find it fascinating. It is not loud and noisy, but rather quiet and intense as the dogs work with the unwilling sheep under the subtle direction of their handlers. We highly recommend it. It's funny how our perceptions change over the years. When I was a child, for instance, I loved sunflowers. They grew in profusion in our backyard along with the fruit trees and hollyhocks. They grew about as tall as I was and had pretty yellow flowers. I could gather them to my heart's content, along with the hollyhocks, which I also loved. I would gather armloads of them. I would use them as room dividers in my outdoor playhouses under the trees and in the midst of the lilacs, bridle wreath and snowball bushes. I would haul them into the wood playhouse and arrange them in the old vases there. (The vases have become some of my most treasured antiques, which is another column!) I could not take them in the house because of Mama's asthma. She was allergic to just about everything imaginable. I collected just about everything imaginable — sunflowers included. As an adult, I still love sunflowers. I made a dress for one of my daughters with blue denim fabric and, of course, sunflowers all over it. They were one weed I allowed to grow in an out-of-the-way area in my yard. My children would bring me sunflowers to put in jars and vases in my home. In the winter, it is not unusual to see a vase of artificial sunflowers gracing some out-of-theway spot in my home. But my perspective has changed somewhat this year. Two areas of my yard have become overrun with sunflowers, huge overgrown beasts full of wasps! They are driving me crazy. I don't mind the sunflowers, except that they are so huge. The wasps I can definitely do without. There are thousands of them, several vie for a spot on every flower. Now I could blame this problem on several things, but I cannot do it in all honesty. I let the beasts grow because of my love for them. I don't know if it's the color — although . I really am not that fond of yellow — the shape of the flowers, or the fact that they seem to grow easily and in abundance. I really have a brown thumb! If anything survives my care, or lack thereof, I am delighted with it — even the sunflowers which have become a downright pest. A weed is often defined as a plant which is out of place and therefore unwanted. But some plants are so obnoxious as to be identified as weeds all on their own. My mind immediately goes to what we always called marshmallow weeds. The seeds can be eaten and really don't taste bad, although I wouldn't suggest a regular diet for them. Then there are the grass-type of weeds — crabgrass and fox tails come to mind. Well, my beloved sunflowers, although I hate to admit it, have become weeds. They are taking over the area they are in. They are overgrown and they are home to all those wasps. My daughter, the one who had the sunflower dress said it best: "I love sunflowers. If they would just grow where I want them to grow." I feel the same way. If the plants would just stay in a corner of my garden,, and stay smaller, I would not mind them at all. In fact, I would welcome them there. The problem is, they are all over the place. I even pulled a couple from my lawn. But there is always next year. I have jotted the problem in my journal. I will continue to try to remove them this year, now that they have become a priority. But next year they will be yanked out as soon as they appear. And I will cry with each root which comes up because, basically, I still love them. LARRY D. VEST Associate Broker/BSB/ABR List or buy your home with the "VEST" realtor in Utah County. 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