1 The end is here

The end is here. No, not the end of the world. Planet Earth will still be spinning beyond whenever the Mayan calendar was supposed to have ended. But, as you may note in this issue's Final Word, we are discontinuing the Cleverly Newsletter, after 39-plus years, to go serve a mission. This is our final issue. Maybe.

While we are serving as missionaries, we will be unable to continue bringing you reports on what is happening in the family that has grown from Ivard and Dorothy's original nine children to probably a couple hundred people spread now across multiple generations. Or bringing you excerpts from Dorothy's diaries of 50 years earlier. Or sharing pieces of family history.

Some elements of the newsletter will actually still be available to you in different formats: Dorothy's diaries, for example, have already been available at the blog site Dorothy's Idaho Diaries (click on the link or go to http://dorothy-idaho.blogspot.com/). The posts there are the complete entries she wrote half a century ago, not just the excerpts I've shared in the monthly newsletter. I hope to prevail upon one of my children to continue that daily labor of love.

I have compiled a collection of my little Final Word essays from the nearly four decades I have been publishing the Cleverly Newsletter in a book, A Final Word: Messages to My Family. It is available at Lulu.com in paperback for $16.00 (order through me, and I can get it for you for $11.00). It is also available on Amazon.com for the same $16.00. You can search for it by title or its ISBN (978-1-105-88652-2).

Similarly, the collection of family histories I completed some years ago and distributed fairly widely, Batt & Lee Ancestors, is also available at Lulu.com as an eBook for $1.99. 

I do not see clearly what the future may hold. Perhaps after our two-year mission to Winter Quarters we may revive the Cleverly Newsletter in some form, although Claudia and I are hoping that this is just the first of multiple missions we might serve. 

I currently plan to send our immediate family a weekly e-mail reporting on our mission. At this point, I plan to send it as an e-mail, not publish it as a blog. If you care to be added to that mailing list, send me an e-mail saying so and giving me your current e-mail address. My e-mail address is dcleverly@gmail.com.

It's been fun. 

1 "A Day of Publick Thanksgiving and Prayer"

General Thanksgiving

By the PRESIDENT of the United States Of America

A PROCLAMATION

WHEREAS it is the duty of all nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey His will, to be grateful for His benefits, and humbly to implore His protection and favour; and Whereas both Houfes of Congress have, by their joint committee, requefted me "to recommend to the people of the United States a DAY OF PUBLICK THANKSGIVING and PRAYER, to be observed by acknowledging with grateful hearts the many and signal favors of Almighty God, especially by affording them an opportunity peaceably to eftablifh a form of government for their safety and happiness:"

NOW THEREFORE, I do recommend and affign THURSDAY, the TWENTY-SIXTH DAY of NOVEMBER next, to be devoted by the people of thefe States to the fervice of that great and glorious Being who is the beneficent author of all the good that was, that is, or that will be; that we may then all unite in rendering unto Him our fincere and humble thanksfor His kind care and protection of the people of this country previous to their becoming a nation; for the fignal and manifold mercies and the favorable interpofitions of His providence in the courfe and conclufion of the late war; for the great degree of tranquility, union, and plenty which we have fince enjoyed;-- for the peaceable and rational manner in which we have been enable to eftablish Conftitutions of government for our fafety and happinefs, and particularly the national one now lately instituted;-- for the civil and religious liberty with which we are bleffed, and the means we have of acquiring and diffufing useful knowledge;-- and, in general, for all the great and various favours which He has been pleafed to confer upon us.

And also, that we may then unite in moft humbly offering our prayers and fupplications to the great Lord and Ruler of Nations and befeech Him to pardon our national and other tranfgreffions;-- to enable us all, whether in publick or private ftations, to perform our feveral and relative duties properly and punctually; to render our National Government a bleffing to all the people by conftantly being a Government of wife, juft, and conftitutional laws, difcreetly and faithfully executed and obeyed; to protect and guide all fovereigns and nations (especially fuch as have shewn kindnefs unto us); and to blefs them with good governments, peace, and concord; to promote the knowledge and practice of true religion and virtue, and the increafe of fcience among them and us; and, generally to grant unto all mankind fuch a degree of temporal profperity as he alone knows to be beft.

GIVEN under my hand, at the city of New-York, the third day of October, in the year of our Lord, one thousand feven hundred and eighty-nine.

G. Washington

This historic proclamation was issued by George Washington during his first year as President. It sets aside Thursday, November 26, as "A Day of Publick Thanksgiving and Prayer." Signed on October 3, 1789, the decree appointed the day "to be observed by acknowledging with grateful hearts the many and signal favors of Almighty God." Original spelling and punctuation has been preserved.

There were Thanksgiving observances before Washington's proclamation, but this represents the first to be so designated by the new national government.

After their first harvest, the colonists of the Plymouth Plantation held a celebration of food and feasting in the fall of 1621. Indian chiefs Massassoit, Squanto and Samoset, joined in the celebration with ninety of their men in the three-day event. The first recorded Thanksgiving observance was held on June 29, 1671, at Charlestown, Massachusetts, by proclamation of the town's governing council.

During the 1700s, it was common practice for individual colonies to observe days of thanksgiving throughout each year. A Thanksgiving Day two hundred years ago was a day set aside for prayer and fasting, not a day marked by plentiful food and drink as is today's custom. Later in the 18th century each of the states periodically would designate a day of thanksgiving in honor of a military victory, an adoption of a state constitution, or an exceptionally bountiful crop.

Such a Thanksgiving Day celebration celebration was held in December of 1777 by the colonies nationwide, commemorating the surrender of British General Burgoyne at Saratoga.

On October 3, 1863, in the midst of the Civil War, President Abraham Lincoln issued a proclamation calling for the observance of the fourth Thursday of November as a national holiday.

In 1939, during the lingering days of the Great Depression, President Franklin D. Roosevelt moved the holiday to the third Thursday of November to extend the Christmas shopping season and boost the economy. Following a storm of protest, President Roosevelt in 1941 changed the holiday back to the fourth Thursday in November, where it stands today.

1 Hanging it up

The Cleverly Newsletter currently appears in the early-morning hours on the first day of each month. A month ago, as a part of A Final Word, I wrote the following about the possible future of the newsletter:

"With our upcoming mission call beginning in January, we are either going to have to curtail what we have been doing with the newsletter, turn it over to someone else in the family, or discontinue it all together.

"That's where your present help is needed. Please weigh in on these (or even other) options. Please let us know what elements of the newsletter you particularly like. Or don't like. What you want us to keep? Or not keep? When you want to inherit this job? (I thought I'd just throw that in for any who want to execute a friendly takeover.)"

Having received no comments one way or the other, I have concluded that I will discontinue publication of the newsletter before we leave to go on our mission. Nearly 40 years. That's been a pretty fair run.

1 Wisdom in phrases

Shared by a friend from work

Sometimes, when I look at my children, I say to myself, "Lillian, you should have remained a virgin."
- Lillian Carter (mother of Jimmy Carter)

Last week, I stated this woman was the ugliest woman I had ever seen. I have since been visited by her sister, and now wish to withdraw that statement.
- Mark Twain

The secret of a good sermon is to have a good beginning and a good ending; and to have the two as close together as possible.
- George Burns

Santa Claus has the right idea. Visit people only once a year.
- Victor Borge

Be careful about reading health books. You may die of a misprint.
- Mark Twain

I was married by a judge. I should have asked for a jury.
- Groucho Marx

My wife has a slight impediment in her speech. Every now and then she stops to breathe.
- Jimmy Durante

I have never hated a man enough to give his diamonds back.
- Zsa Zsa Gabor

My luck is so bad that if I bought a cemetery, people would stop dying.
- Rodney Dangerfield

Money can't buy you happiness. . . . But it does bring you a more pleasant form of misery.
- Spike Milligan

Until I was thirteen, I thought my name was SHUT UP.
- Joe Namath

I don't feel old. I don't feel anything until noon. Then it's time for my nap.
- Bob Hope

I never drink water because of the disgusting things that fish do in it.
- W. C. Fields

We could certainly slow the aging process down if it had to work its way through Congress.
- Will Rogers

Don't worry about avoiding temptation. As you grow older, it will avoid you.
- Winston Churchill

Maybe it's true that life begins at fifty. . . . But everything else starts to wear out, fall out, or spread out.
- Phyllis Diller

By the time a man is wise enough to watch his step, he's too old to go anywhere.
- Billy Crystal

And the cardiologist's diet: If it tastes good, spit it out.

1 Lyle and Nina marry

On Saturday afternoon, July 21, Lyle married Nina Mae Williams in a simple, brief ceremony in the cultural hall at Lyle's church in Parma. There was an opening song, "Could I Have This Dance?" Afterward Lyle's bishop gave a few words of counsel and then performed the marriage. Chairs were rearranged, and the guests were able to enjoy cake, punch, nuts, and candies.

Some, but not all, of Lyle's children and grandchildren were present for the occasion. And four of his brothers and spouses (Jerry, Gene and Cheryl, Dean and Claudia, and Dale and LeAnn). A number of others were present, from both our family and Nina's family. Kay and Karen were unable to come up from St. George, and Rex and Jackie were at a Sayer reunion at Red Fish Lake.





Apparently Lyle and Nina first knew each other way back when they were students in high school at Adrian.

Both Lyle and Nina have houses of their own. Lyle told me that for now they were going to live in her house in New Plymouth.

1 About Moms

A lot of wisdom in these answers by second graders

Why did God make mothers?

1. She's the only one who knows where the scotch tape is.
2. Mostly to clean the house.
3. To help us out of there when we were getting born.

How did God make mothers?
1. He used dirt, just like for the rest of us.
2. Magic plus super powers and a lot of stirring.
3. God made my mom just the same like he made me. He just used bigger parts.

What ingredients are mothers made of?

1. God makes mothers out of clouds and angel hair and everything nice in the world and one dab of mean.
2. They had to get their start from men's bones. Then they mostly use string, I think.

Why did God give you your mother and not some other mom?
1. We're related.
2. God knew she likes me a lot more than other people's mom like me.

What kind of a little girl was your mom?

1. My mom has always been my mom and none of that other stuff.
2. I don't know because I wasn't there, but my guess would be pretty bossy.
3. They say she used to be nice.

What did mom need to know about dad before she married him?
1. His last name.
2. She had to know his background. Like is he a crook? Does he get drunk on beer?
3. Does he make at least $800 a year? Did he say NO to drugs and YES to chores?

Why did your mom marry your dad?

1. My dad makes the best spaghetti in the world. And my mom eats a lot
2. She got too old to do anything else with him.
3. My grandma says that mom didn't have her thinking cap on.

Who's the boss at your house?
1. Mom doesn't want to be boss, but she has to because dad's such a goof ball.
2. Mom. You can tell by room inspection. She sees the stuff under the bed.
3. I guess mom is, but only because she has a lot more to do than dad.

What's the difference between moms and dads?

1. Moms work at work and work at home and dads just go to work at work.
2. Moms know how to talk to teachers without scaring them.
3. Dads are taller and stronger, but moms have all the real power 'cause that's who you got to ask if you want to sleep over at your friends.
4. Moms have magic, they make you feel better without medicine.

What does your mom do in her spare time?
1. Mothers don't do spare time.
2. To hear her tell it, she pays bills all day long.

What would it take to make your mom perfect?

1. On the inside she's already perfect. Outside, I think some kind of plastic surgery.
2. Diet. You know, her hair. I'd diet, maybe blue.

If you could change one thing about your mom, what would it be?
1. She has this weird thing about me keeping my room clean. I'd get rid of that.
2. I'd make my mom smarter. Then she would know it was my sister who did it not me.
3. I would like for her to get rid of those invisible eyes on the back of her head.

These were shared with me by a secretary at my work. I do not know the original source.

1 Father's Day

In honor of Father's Day in a few weeks, we reprint here the life sketch that Ivard R Cleverly (1915-1988) wrote back in the early 1960s. He is the father that got this whole family of ours started. As far as I am aware, this is the only story of his life he ever wrote.


I was born in Bountiful, Davis County, Utah, on April 7, 1915. My father built the house himself. He lived in it all of his life. It was a brick home.

I was born a twin. My twin brother [Irvin] was born eight minutes after I was. I had six brothers and six sisters. My mother and father had thirteen children. My father's name was Henry William Cleverly, and my mother's name was Olive Ellen Ritchie.

My father was born in England and came to this country when he was one year old. He came to Utah and lived on the same farm all his life. He married my mother when he was 28 years old.

My mother was 18 when she married my father. She came from Kansas when she was a small girl.

I belonged to the South Bountiful Ward. I went to the South Bountiful Grade School, to Bountiful Junior High, and to Davis High School in Kaysville, Davis County, Utah.

I was married December 17, 1934, to Dorothy Batt by the bishop of the South Bountiful Ward, Ezra T. Hatch. We were married at my father's house. I worked at my father's house. After I was married I worked at different jobs: farmed, peddled milk, poured cement. I was working in a grocery store in Bountiful when I quit and started to work for the railroad, my present job.

Dorothy and I were married in the Salt Lake Temple on September 16, 1935.

I never did much in the Church. I went to seminary two years. I was elected M Men president of the South Davis Stake. I was made a seventy when I was 19 years old. I served as secretary of the seventies quorum in Bountiful from about 1939 to 1941. I served two stake missions (as a home missionary) in the Weiser Stake and the Nyssa Stake from 1948 to 1952.

We have lived in a lot of houses since we were married. The first house was that of Clint Mills. It was a farm, and we ran it and got our house to live in and $10 a month. We lived there a year, and then Clint got married, so we had to move.

We moved in with my father for three months, where our first child, Lyle Batt Cleverly, was born [in 1936].

Then we lived in Kaysville and worked for my sister and her husband. He was in the Army and was away from home running a CCC camp. We lived there a year, then moved to West Bountiful and lived in an apartment house where our second boy, William Gail Cleverly, was born [in 1937].

Then we moved to Woods Cross and lived in George Salter's home. Our third son, Jerry Batt Cleverly, was born [in 1938] while we lived at Salters'.

Then we moved from there to Pern Yerter's house and lived there a year. Then we moved to Bountiful and lived in a small white house. Then we moved to a house that the city of Bountiful owned. Kay and Gene were born while we lived there [Kay in 1941 and Gene in 1944].

Then we bought five acres of land at North Salt Lake and built us a house. That is where Ray was born [in 1945].

Then we moved to Oregon and lived in Malheur County, where Dean [in 1949], Dale [in 1952], and Jackie [1n 1956] were born.

Then [in the spring of 1959] we moved to Nampa, Canyon County, Idaho, where we are living now.

My main interests and talents are sports. I was a member of the Amateur Athletic Association. I played baseball, basketball, and football when I was in high school. I've been on M Men teams that went to all-Church tournaments and several interstake tournaments. I have coached M Men teams. I've watched my boys play ball.

My wife and I have traveled a lot but not in a big area. We used to take our boys camping in the mountains and stay a week at a time. In 1957, 1958, and 1959 we traveled all over the state of Oregon with baseball teams from Adrian High School and to St. Joseph, Oregon, with the football team. We've been to California, Nevada, Oregon, Idaho, Utah, Montana, and Washington.

1 My daily grant of breath

I wrote the following poem, entitled "My Daily Grant of Breath," in the Spring of 2003, at a point when I learned that the diffusion capacity of my lungs was something less than 50 percent and appeared to be headed even further downward. It was inspired by a passage in the Book of Mormon where king Benjamin was delivering his final address to his people.

If ye should serve him who has created you from the beginning, and is preserving you from day to day, by lending you breath, that ye may live and move and do according to your own will, and even supporting you from one moment to another—I say, if ye should serve him with all your whole souls yet ye would be unprofitable servants.

And behold, all that he requires of you is to keep his commandments (Mosiah 2:21–22).

O Lord, my Father and my God,

Who lends me breath

And thus preserves my life from day to day,

That I may live and move and have my way

Upon this earth,

By this one truth I’m humbly awed:

That all that Thou requirest of me

Is this one thing:

That I employ that daily grant of breath

In keeping Thy commandments until death

Shall one day bring

Me safely, surely home to Thee.

For first Thou hast created me,

Granted me life,

Wherein already I am indebted,

In Thy perfect image thus created

With breath of life

Freely given that I may serve Thee.

For wisdom counsels: If I serve

My fellow being,

I’m only in the service of my God

And am again indebted to my God,

Blessed for being

Obedient to Thy call to serve.

And through the mercies of Thy Son,

Israel’s Holy One,

Who granted me both life and daily breath,

My aspiration in weakness or in strength

Is to be one,

Submissive in all, as a son.

1 Say again!

A coworker e-mailed me the following headlines. These are not made up. They are from actual newspapers. Apparently they don't use proofreaders much anymore.

Man Kills Self before Shooting Wife and Daughter

Police Begin Campaign to Run Down Jaywalkers

Panda Mating Fails;

Veterinarian Takes Over

Miners Refuse to Work after Death

Juvenile Court to Try Shooting Defendant

War Dims Hope for Peace

If Strike Isn't Settled Quickly,

It May Last Awhile

Cold Wave Linked to Temperatures

London Couple Slain;

Police Suspect Homicide

Red Tape Holds Up New Bridges

Man Struck by Lightening;

Faces Battery Charge

New Study of Obesity
Looks for Larger Test Group

Kids Make Nutritious Snacks

Local High School Dropouts Cut in Half

Hospitals Are Sued by 7 Foot Doctors

Typhoon Rips through Cemetery;
Hundreds Dead

Isn't this a crazy, marvelous language that we have?

1 Love and Marriage: A Kids' View

February is for Valentines and romance and love. A friend at work shared with me some views of love and marriage as seen through the eyes of children.

1. HOW DO YOU KNOW WHO TO MARRY?
You got to find somebody who likes the same stuff. Like, if you like sports, she should like it that you like sports, and she should keep the chips and dip coming.  [Alan, age 10]

No person really decides before they grow up who they're going to marry. God decides it all way before, and you get to find out later who you're stuck with.  [Kristen, age 10]

2. WHAT IS THE RIGHT AGE TO GET MARRIED?

Twenty-three is the best age because you know the person FOREVER by then.  [Camille, age 10]

3. HOW CAN A STRANGER TELL IF TWO PEOPLE ARE MARRIED?

You might have to guess, based on whether they seem to be yelling at the same kids.  [Derrick, age 8]

4. WHAT DO YOU THINK YOUR MOM AND DAD HAVE IN COMMON?
Both don't want any more kids.  [Lori, age 8]

5. WHAT DO MOST PEOPLE DO ON A DATE?

Dates are for having fun, and people should use them to get to know each other. Even boys have something to say if you listen long enough.  [Lynnette, age 8]

On the first date, they just tell each other lies, and that usually gets them interested enough to go for a second date.  [Martin, age 10]

6. WHEN IS IT OKAY TO KISS SOMEONE?

When they're rich.  [Pam, age 7]

The law says you have to be eighteen, so I wouldn't want to mess with that.  [Curt, age 7]

The rule goes like this: If you kiss someone, then you should marry them and have kids with them. It's the right thing to do.  [Howard, age 8]

7. IS IT BETTER TO BE SINGLE OR MARRIED?

It's better for girls to be single but not for boys. Boys need someone to clean up after them.  [Anita, age 9]

8. HOW WOULD THE WORLD BE DIFFERENT IF PEOPLE DIDN'T GET MARRIED?

There sure would be a lot of kids to explain, wouldn't there?  [Kelvin, age 8]

9. HOW WOULD YOU MAKE A MARRIAGE WORK? 

Tell your wife that she looks pretty, even if she looks like a dump truck.  [Ricky, age 10]

1 Don't laugh . . . your day is coming

The coming of another new year reminds us of the ongoing march of time. And the fact that each of us is getting older. A friend recently shared with me the following about how Age-Associated Attention Deficit Disorder (AAADD) manifests itself. Thank goodness there's a name for it. It explains a lot.

I decide to water my garden. As I turn on the hose in the driveway, I look over at my car and decide it needs washing.

As I start toward the garage, I notice mail on the porch table that I brought up from the mailbox earlier.

I decide to go through the mail before I wash the car. I lay my car keys on the table, put the junk mail in the garbage can under the table, and notice that the can is full.

So I decide to put the bills back on the table and take out the garbage first. But then I think, since I'm going to be near the mailbox when I take out the garbage anyway, I may as well pay the bills first.

I take my checkbook off the table, and see that there is only one check left. My extra checks are in my desk in the study, so I go inside the house to my desk, where I find the can of Pepsi I'd been drinking.

I'm going to look for my checks, but first I need to push the Pepsi aside so that I don't accidentally knock it over.

The Pepsi is getting warm. I decide to put it in the refrigerator to keep it cold. As I head toward the kitchen with the Pepsi, a vase of flowers on the counter catches my eye. They need water.

I put the Pepsi on the counter and discover my reading glasses that I've been searching for all morning.

I decide I better put them back on my desk, but first I'm going to water the flowers. I set the glasses back down on the counter, fill a container with water, and suddenly spot the TV remote. Someone had left it on the kitchen table.

I realize that tonight when we go to watch TV, I'll be looking for the remote, but I won't remember that it's on the kitchen table, so I decide to put it back in the den where it belongs.

But first I'll water the flowers. I pour some water in the flowers. Quite a bit of it spills on the floor. So, I set the remote back on the table, get some towels, and wipe up the spill.

Then I head down the hall trying to remember what I was planning to do.

At the end of the day: the car isn't washed, the bills aren't paid, there is a warm can of Pepsi sitting on the counter, the flowers don't have enough water, and there is still only one check in my checkbook. I can't find the remote, I can't find my glasses, and I don't remember what I did with the car keys.

Then, when I try to figure out why nothing got done, I'm really baffled because I know I was busy all day, and I'm really tired.

I realize this is a serious problem, and I'll try to get some help for it, but first I'll check my e-mail.... (Do me a favor. Forward this message to everyone you know, because I don't remember who I've sent it to.)

Don't laugh--if this isn't you yet, your day is coming!

1 No Room in the Inn

The Christmas story, as told in the book of Luke, tells of Joseph and Mary traveling from Nazareth to Bethlehem and, while they were there, Mary bringing forth her firstborn son and laying him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn (see Luke 2:4-7; emphasis added).

Each of us, some two thousand years later, plays the role of innkeeper. Each of us decides whether there is room for Him in our hearts and in our lives.

What? you may say. No room for Jesus?

Yet, we may unwittingly, unconsciously leave no room for Him because of the cares of daily living, the very busy-ness of our lives, especially at this hectic season of the year.

If we ignore the needy and less fortunate, the lonely and suffering, the aged and the children, or those whom Jesus referred to as the least among us (see Matthew 25:40), then we are saying we have no room for Him.

If we fail to keep His commandments (see John 14:15), which center in loving and serving God and in loving and serving our neighbor (see Matthew 22:36-40), then we are saying we have no room for Him.

If we forget to take time to ponder and pray and to thank Him for His abundant blessings and tender mercies (see D&C 59:21), then we are saying we have no room for Him.

As the final verse of one of our beloved carols, "O Little Town of Bethlehem," reminds us,

How silently, how silently
The wondrous give is giv'n!
So God imparts to human hearts
The blessings of his heav'n.
No ear may hear his coming;
But in this world of sin,
Where meek souls will receive him, still
The dear Christ enters in.

Our Christmas wish is that our inns will not be too full and that we will allow the dear Christ to enter in.

1 "Many a truth is spoke in jest"

It's an off-year for electing presidents or members of Congress, but many communities have municipal elections in November. Perhaps it's timely to share some homespun wisdom (both past and present) about politicians and this messy form of governance we call a democracy.

1. In my many years I have come to a conclusion that one useless man is a shame, two is a law firm, and three or more is a congress. [John Adams]

2. If you don't read the newspaper you are uninformed, if you do read the newspaper you are misinformed. [Mark Twain]

3. Suppose you were an idiot. And suppose you were a member of Congress. But then I repeat myself. [Mark Twain]

4. I contend that for a nation to try to tax itself into prosperity is like a man standing in a bucket and trying to lift himself up by the handle.  [Winston Churchill]

5. A government which robs Peter to pay Paul can always depend on the support of Paul.  [George Bernard Shaw]

6. A liberal is someone who feels a great debt to his fellow man, which debt he proposes to pay off with your money.  [G. Gordon Liddy]

7. Democracy must be something more than two wolves and a sheep voting on what to have for dinner. [James Bovard, Civil Libertarian, 1994]

8. Foreign aid might be defined as a transfer of money from poor people in rich countries to rich people in poor countries. [Douglas Casey, classmate of Bill Clinton at Georgetown University]

9. Giving money and power to government is like giving whiskey and car keys to teenage boys.  [P.J. O'Rourke, Civil Libertarian]

10. Government is the great fiction through which everybody endeavors to live at the expense of everybody else. [Frederic Bastiat, French economist (1801-1850)]

11. Government's view of the economy could be summed up in a few short phrases: If it moves, tax it. If it keeps moving, regulate it. And if it stops moving, subsidize it.  [Ronald Reagan (1986)]

12. I don't make jokes. I just watch the government and report the facts.  [Will Rogers]

13. If you think health care is expensive now, wait until you see what it costs when it's free!  [P.J. O'Rourke]

14. In general, the art of government consists of taking as much money as possible from one party of the citizens to give to the other.  [Voltaire (1764)]

15. Just because you do not take an interest in politics doesn't mean politics won't take an interest in you!  [Pericles (430 B.C.)]

16. No man's life, liberty, or property is safe while the legislature is in session.  [Mark Twain (1866)]

17. Talk is cheap...except when Congress does it.  [Anonymous]

18. The government is like a baby's alimentary canal, with a happy appetite at one end and no responsibility at the other.  [Ronald Reagan]

19. The inherent vice of capitalism is the unequal sharing of the blessings. The inherent blessing of socialism is the equal sharing of misery.  [Winston Churchill]

20. The only difference between a tax man and a taxidermist is that the taxidermist leaves the skin.  [Mark Twain]

21. The ultimate result of shielding men from the effects of folly is to fill the world with fools.  [Herbert Spencer, English philosopher (1820-1903)]

22. There is no distinctly Native American criminal class . . . save Congress.  [Mark Twain]

23. What this country needs are more unemployed politicians.  [Edward Langley, Artist (1928-1995)]

24. A government big enough to give you everything you want, is strong enough to take everything you have.  [Thomas Jefferson]

25. We hang the petty thieves and appoint the great ones to public office.  [Aesop]


And in conclusion

1. You cannot legislate the poor into prosperity, by legislating the wealth out of prosperity.

2. What one person receives without working for . . . another person must work for without receiving.

3. The government cannot give to anybody anything that the government does not first take from somebody else.

4. You cannot multiply wealth by dividing it.

5. When half of the people get the idea that they do not have to work, because the other half is going to take care of them, and when the other half gets the idea that it does no good to work, because somebody else is going to get what they work for, that is the beginning of the end of any nation!

1 Say again!

Schools have been back in session for more than a month now. How well did you pay attention in your English classes? We thought it would be fun to have some word play with this marvelous language we call English. A friend at work shared these with me.

A man's home is his castle, in a manor of speaking.

Dijon vu - the same mustard as before.

Practice safe eating - always use condiments.

Shotgun wedding - A case of wife or death.

A man needs a mistress just to break the monogamy.

A hangover is the wrath of grapes.

Does the name Pavlov ring a bell?

Reading while sunbathing makes you well red.

When two egotists meet, it's an I for an I.

A bicycle can't stand on its own because it is two tired.

What's the definition of a will? (It's a dead give away.)

Time flies like an arrow. Fruit flies like a banana.

In democracy your vote counts. In feudalism your count votes.

She was engaged to a boyfriend with a wooden leg but broke it off.

A chicken crossing the road is poultry in motion.

If you don't pay your exorcist, you get repossessed.

With her marriage, she got a new name and a dress.

The man who fell into an upholstery machine is fully recovered.

You feel stuck with your debt if you can't budge it.

Local Area Network in Australia - the LAN down under.

Every calendar's days are numbered.

A lot of money is tainted - It taint yours and it taint mine.

A boiled egg in the morning is hard to beat.

He had a photographic memory that was never developed.

A midget fortune-teller who escapes from prison is a small medium at large.

Once you've seen one shopping center, you've seen a mall.

Bakers trade bread recipes on a knead-to-know basis..

Santa's helpers are subordinate clauses.

Acupuncture is a jab well done.

1 We're back!

After a well-deserved summer break, the Cleverly Newsletter is back. Our last issue, for those who were wondering, was posted three months ago on June 1.

This issue, number 403 since we started this endeavor, begins our 39th year of publication. The maiden issue of the Cleverly Newsletter came off the presses 38 years ago today. "The presses" consisted actually of a typewriter in our rented house in Provo and a copy machine somewhere on the BYU campus. It was the first day of September in 1973, just the day before our first-born son Michael was born. Three cousins followed in short order: Chad on October 8, Gena on October 23, and Curtis on December 4.

That first year we were a quarterly newsletter. In other years we have been monthly, weekly, and various other frequencies. This past year we were fortnightly (as in every two weeks). As we move forward into our 39th year, we will be a monthly again.

We invite your continued support and welcome any input, family news, or other comments—preferably by e-mail (to dcleverly@gmail.com)—but we will also gladly accept phone calls, text messages, Facebook messages, or even plain old-fashioned postcards or letters.

1 Idaho Census Results

The Constitution requires that a census be conducted every ten years. We have counted ourselves as a nation every decade since 1790.

Idaho, home to many in our family, had 1,567,582 people living in it, as of the 2010 Census. That represents a 21 percent increase over 2000, making the Gem State fourth in terms of fastest growing states. Idaho ranks 40th among the states in overall population.

The Census also showed that the five most populous cities in Idaho are:
- Boise, 205,671 (a 10.7 percent increase since 2000)
- Nampa, 81,557 (a 57.2 percent increase)
- Meridian, 75,092 (a 115 percent increase)
- Idaho Falls, 56,813 (a 12 percent increase)
- Pocatello, 54,255 (a 5.4 percent increase)

The five most populous counties in Idaho are:
- Ada, 392,365 (a 30.4 percent increase since 2000)
- Canyon, 188,923 (an increase of 43.7 percent)
- Kootenai, 138,494 (an increase of 27.4 percent)
- Bonneville, 104,234 (an increase of 26.3 percent)
- Bannock, 82,839 (an increase of 9.6 percent)

Boise and Meridian are located in Ada County. Nampa, Caldwell, and Parma are in Canyon County.

1 "We are in BIG trouble this time"

Adapted from a story my secretary at work shared with me

Two little boys, ages 8 and 10, were excessively mischievous. They were always getting into trouble, and their parents knew if any mischief occurred in town, the two boys were probably involved.

The boys' mother heard that a preacher in town had been successful in disciplining children, so she asked if he would speak with her boys. The preacher agreed, but he asked to see them individually.

The mother sent the 8-year-old in the morning, with the older boy to see the preacher in the afternoon. The preacher, a huge man with a deep booming voice, sat the younger boy down and asked him sternly, "Do you know where God is, son?"

The boy's mouth dropped open, but he made no response, sitting there wide-eyed with his mouth hanging open. So the preacher repeated the question in an even sterner tone, "Where is God?!"

Again, the boy made no attempt to answer.  The preacher raised his voice even more and shook his finger in the boy's face and bellowed, "WHERE IS GOD?!"

The boy screamed, bolted from the room, ran directly home, and dove into his closet, slamming the door behind him. When his older brother found him in the closet, he asked, "What happened?"

The younger brother, gasping for breath, replied, "We are in BIG trouble this time! God is missing, and they think we did it!"

1 Four hundred and counting

This Cleverly Newsletter marks the 400th issue we have published since that first quarterly issue came out of my typewriter on the Labor Day weekend in 1973. That was nearly 38 years ago. The family has grown substantially since then. The world has changed a lot. Technology has altered the way we communicate across the miles.

And, yet, some things are still very much the same. The love of family members. The importance of our heritage. Appreciation for our country. Faith in God.

I don't plan on doing another 400 issues, but we'll keep it going for as long as feasible. Any friendly takeovers will be welcomed at any time.

1 Easter

This coming Sunday is Easter, the central feast of the Christian calendar. It celebrates the resurrection of Jesus Christ following His crucifixion three days earlier. It celebrates the triumph over death and sin. It commemorates the very foundation of the Christian faith: that Jesus Christ was the Messiah, sent to earth by His Father, who is God, to redeem all mankind from physical death and His people (those who come unto Him) from spiritual death.


As the Apostle Paul wrote in his letter to the early Saints in Corinth, "If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men most miserable.

"But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the firstfruits of them that slept.

"For since by man came death, by man came also the resurrection of the dead.

"For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive.

"But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ’s at his coming" (1 Corinthians 15:19-23).

The date for Easter varies each year. Simply speaking, it is the Sunday that follows the first full moon that occurs after the spring equinox. The actual calculations are a wee bit more complicated than that, resulting in differing dates being observed during most years between Eastern Orthodox and western branches of Christianity. Under the existing formula, the earliest date Easter can fall is March 22 and the latest date is April 25.

Last year Easter Sunday fell on April 4. This year on April 24. Next year on April 8. And the year after that [2013] on March 31.

There have been efforts throughout the years to reform the dates when Easter is celebrated, such as simply selecting the second Sunday of April, but none has gained traction.

In many countries, particularly in Europe, the day following Easter is celebrated as a legal holiday known as Easter Monday.

Aside from its strictly religious importance, many pagan influences (and more recently commercial influences) have crept into the observance of Easter: such things as Easter bunnies, Easter baskets, Easter egg hunts, and Easter candy. Such secular customs in today's celebrations are often observed by Christians and non-Christians alike.

1 What your kids really want for dinner

Researchers at one of America's most prestigious universities have called family dinner an essential ingredient in the recipe for raising happy, healthy children. In addition, family dinner is a predictor in keeping children away from unhealthy behaviors.

More than a decade of research by the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse at Columbia University has consistently found that the more often children eat dinner with their families, the less likely they are to smoke, drink or use drugs.

"If I could wave a magic wand to make a dent in our nation's substance abuse problem, I would make sure that every child in America had dinner with his or her parents at least five times a week," said Joseph A. Califano Jr., chairman and president of the center.

According to researchers, frequent family dinners are associated with lower teen substance abuse.

Compared to teens who have five to seven family dinners in a typical week, teens who dine with their families fewer than three nights in a typical week are two times more likely to have tried marijuana, more than twice as likely to have tried cigarettes and one and a half times more likely to have tried alcohol. . . .

The report also found that frequent family dinners are associated with higher academic performance. . . .

All in all, there are numerous benefits to family dinners.

Families that eat together have children who:

• Eat healthier meals.
• Are less likely to become overweight or obese.
• Are less likely to drink alcohol.
• Are less likely to try marijuana.
• Are less likely to use illicit drugs.
• Are less likely to have friends who abuse prescription drugs.
• Will get better grades in school.
• Will talk to their parents more.
• Will be more likely to tell parents about serious problems.
• Will be more likely to feel that their parents are proud of them.
• Will live in homes where there is less stress and tension. . . .

The First Presidency declared . . . that "however worthy and appropriate other demands or activities may be, they must not be permitted to displace the divinely appointed duties that only parents and families can adequately perform."

Family dinner is one of those things.

In a day when experts have warned against what they call overscheduled children, it seems the best thing parents can do for their children is to stay home and sit down for regular meals.

Research confirms it will do them more good than soccer and piano combined.

So when you are at the end of your wits, trying to meet the demanding daily needs of your family, it may be helpful to remember the catch phrase promoted by the National Center on Addiction and Abuse: "What your kids really want for dinner is you!"

This post excerpted from "Viewpoint" in the March 27, 2010, issue of the Church News.