Michealangelo and the Vatican City

The Piata
Hundreds of years after his death, the creative energy and the ingenious spirit of Michelangelo can be felt throughout the Vatican City . His tireless quest for perfection and his assertion of new ideas that empowered the human spirit left me in awe.
During my humanities class in college I learned about Michelangelo's Piata. As a college student, I was impressed with the beauty and insight of the work. Looking at the sculpture in St. Peter's Basillica left me in tears. I am amazed that a young man could have the heart and tenderness to sculp this scene. It is Christmas and Easter in one. It is about the salvation of mankind and the nobility of womanhood. Michelangelo captures the Mother's heart and the Son's sacrifice in a way that brought me to tears. The Piata is one of my favorite works of art.
The ceiling of the Sistine Chapel
I was most impressed that in spite of the conflict and contention that were a part of Catholism during his day, Michelangelo was able to find and understand God in a way that had never been expressed before. In The Creation of Adam, Michelango has captured God's strength and willing, sincere desire to help his children. He has also captured Adam's weak but faithful effort to reach out to God for his influence. Having felt weak and desperate for God's help, I can relate to Michelangelo's interpretation of the creation.
The dome of St. Peter's Basilica, the work of Michelanglo. Favorite Photos of The Vatican City:
Paul, the Patron Saint of Rome.
Rome, from the top of the dome of St. Peter's Basilica
The School of Athens by RaphaelThe Swiss Guard

Istanbul, Turkey

This fall I traveled to Rome with Jim. On the way there we had a 10 hour lay over in Istanbul. We arrived at 5 a.m. Istanbul time, which was 11 a.m. Seoul time. Wide awake and ready for lunch we wandered the predawn streets of Istanbul. When the city finally woke up, we toured the Topkapi Palace where the Kasikci Diamond is on dispay. This diamond is 86 karats and has a fascinating history. In the year 1669, a very deprived man found a beautiful stone in the waste pile of Egrikapi in Istanbul. He bargained it to a spoonmaker for 3 wooden spoons. The spoonmaker sold the diamond to a jeweller for 10 silver coins. The diamond came to be known as the spoonmaker's diamond. This palace also houses the the enormous solid gold and diamond candlesticks, each weighing 48kg.

I knew very little of the Ottoman empire before my trip (I still know very little) but we enjoyed wandering through this palace of delicate opulance.

My Istanbul favorites: the fresh juice, the beautiful Strait of Bosphorus, the Turkish carpets, the honest and friendly people, and being with Jim all day.

Happy 9th Birthday, Anna!

O, Anna! Anna sparkles. She really does. She smiles often and laughs easily. She is an artist at heart and loves color, music, and origami. She plays the piano beautifully, as though she and the piano are one. She does many things well and makes many things look easy. Things seem to naturally go her way. We like to say that she is "charmed"--with one exception, she loses anything and everything. Nevertheless, she is not often distressed and with patience and time the lost item will usually find Anna, again.
Anna is not shy, but polite and demure. She is photogenic and loves to be on film or on stage. Although it is her nature to be gentle and modest, she can and will wrestle with James. This usually starts out with laughter and ends in tears. Anna, has fight in her. It just isn't very often that she feels a desire to use it.
One of Anna's favorite pastimes is playing school with Margaret. She loves to read to her younger siblings. She has also recently acquired a love for reading alone. It began with her discovery of the Percy Jackson series. Late at night, after bedtime, I will hear Anna and Gracie reading together. Their latest book is Goose Girl.
This year we discovered that Anna is a natural basket ball player! This came as a surprise to me. She was also one of the fastest runners in her class.
I love Anna!
Anna is like an apple, simply good for the heart and soul.

27 pieces of luggage, 6 kids, 6,000 miles, 24 hours of travel

and she's smiling!

Eleven is Heaven

Miriam gets sweeter with age. Life is simply delicious with her around. This year, she made her own birthday cake, after riding to "The Store" on her bike to get the ingredients. When her bike broke down, she carried her bike home--on her birthday! She is an independent, creative, fun and thoughtful daughter. She loves any holiday and excuse to throw a party. She loves to shop. She loves to serve others. She can be mischievious. She will not be taken advantage of. She holds to her guns even when things get tough. In an arguement she will have the last word. She is strong willed yet happy hearted. She loves to read. Her favorite book is Stargirl by Jerry Spinelli. The other day I went to her school and watched her flag performance. She stood waving her flags among all the other children with her bright eyes and happy smile. I felt weepy. I couldn't help but think of the character, Stargirl, alone in a crowd, unique and special. She can play the piano beautifully. This year she has learned to accompany a choir. She loves a challenge. When asked to choose a piece for her first time accompanying, I told her to choose something simple. She refused. She chose a difficult piece and I said, "You will be frustrated and fail"(harsh I know--I really regret saying that). She proved me wrong. She loves to prove people wrong for the right reasons. She is reliable. She is helpful. She thinks she's sixteen. She acts like she's eighteen. She knows more about my closet than I do. She loves to lay out my church clothes on Sunday. Anything Miriam wears looks good on her. She loves clothes and accessories. She is beautiful inside and out. She is like a dragonfly. She's quick, and beautiful, and does good things!

2nd Ever Oldroyd Family Triathlon

It's a bust! 2010

This year during our Daniels' family reunion, Papa busted a watermelon-wishing us safe travels and happy returns next year.

Beautiful Midway

Fourth of July

While living in Korea, sometimes I've found myself thinking nostalgically, "Oh say, does that star spangled banner yet wave, Over the land of the free and the home of the brave?"

I can't sing this song anymore without weeping during that part.

Long may She wave! Happy Fourth of July!

Oldroyd Family Party 2010

Hiking Rock Canyon, Provo with 18 children, whew. Food at Meredith's, yumm.

It was good to be with family.