Karl's Personal History

MY STORY
Karl Jarvis

I was born on the Navajo Indian Reservation in 1947. My mom said I looked pretty pale lying in the hospital nursery surrounded by all of those Navajo babies. When my mom brought me home from the hospital, my four-year old brother came running out to the car excited to see his new baby brother. He jumped in the back seat of the car exclaiming, “Where’s the baby! Where’s the baby!”
“Get up. Get up,” my mom said. “You’re sitting on him!” So I began life being squashed by my older brother.
My Dad was a cattle rancher and farmer. Most of my growing up years we lived in the small town of St. Johns, Arizona. But we also lived in Phoenix, Arizona, where my Dad ran a feed lot; Durango, Colorado where my Dad owned a potato farm; and Florida, where my dad worked on the second largest cattle ranch in the United States.
I was four and five years old when we lived on the farm up the Animas Valley north of Durango, Colorado. My first memories of life are living on that farm bordered by huge mountains on the east and the Animas River on the west. I loved it. I had a big imagination. I loved pretending I was a farmer like my Dad, and a bull rider like my cousin. My mom says she walked out of our house one day and I was waddling thru the middle of our garden stepping on plants as I came. I looked up at my mom and exclaimed, “Here comes Don Acaboy on Bull number ten.” I don’t know where I got the name Don Acaboy. Made it up I guess. I say I waddled thru the garden because I was about three feet tall and about three feet wide in my denim bib overalls.
Another memory I have on that farm happened on a Sunday. Our family would drive eight miles into Durango to attend church meetings. It was a beautiful, sunny August afternoon when we drove home from church this particular Sunday. All of my older brothers and sisters ran into the house, changed out of their Sunday clothes, and headed outside. Like most little kids, I copied what my older siblings did, so with a little help from my Mom, I changed my clothes and followed them outside. They all sat down on the wide wooden bridge that spanned the irrigation canal not far from our house. They had rolled up their pant legs and while dangling their feet into the refreshing water were loudly singing “Cruising Down the River on a Sunday Afternoon”, a popular song of that time.
It was a very hot day and they were going, “OOO AAwww. This feels so good.” I quickly rolled up my pant legs and plopped down on the bridge beside them, anxious to get my hot feet into that cool water. I sat at the edge of the bridge reaching my toes down to the refreshing water. But as I told you, I was a very short, chubby, little guy, and my toes wouldn’t quite reach the water. So I scooted closer to the edge of the bridge and stretched my legs as far as I could. The next thing my brothers and sisters knew they heard a big plop. They looked where I had been, and I wasn’t there.
Yep. I had slid off the bridge into the icy cold water. I can still remember hitting the bottom of the five-foot-deep canal and the current pulling me under the bridge. Somehow I knew to hold my breath, but I can still remember thinking in my four-year-old mind, “I’m dying. This is what it’s like to die.” I floated all the way under the twelve foot wide bridge, and the next thing I knew, a hand grabbed hold of my arm and jerked me out of the water. It was my older sister. I guess I looked like a drowned rat. I can remember gasping for air. When my brothers and sisters saw I was okay, they all started laughing. I didn’t think it was funny at all, and I started bawling my head off. My parents came running out of the house to see what the commotion was. They soon found out what had happened, and seeing I was okay and crying loud enough to wake up the whole county, they started laughing too. I guess in my own little way I had a “cruise down the river on a Sunday afternoon”, although I’m not quite sure the way I did it was what the writers of the song had in mind.
Well, I survived that adventure. A year later my Dad sold our farm in Colorado, and we moved back to St. Johns, Arizona, where he bought a ranch, and went back to raising cattle. I started first grade in St. Johns in 1953. I loved school and thought I was the smartest kid in the class, but I was afraid of my teacher. She was about six feet tall and older than the hills. If you think I look old, you should have seen her. Her hair, which was always tied up in a bun, was totally gray, and her face was as wrinkled as a dried prune. Her name was Natalia Greer and she had taught first grade to my Dad and my mother’s mother. They let teachers keep teaching longer in those days. She actually was a good teacher. She knew what she was doing, and I learned how to read very quickly. But if you ever got off-task and started playing around or talking to your neighbor and she saw you, she would walk over and rap you hard on the knuckles with her gigantic black pencil. It only happened to me once, and that was enough.
When I was in the middle of fifth grade, we moved to a huge ranch owned by the LDS church near Orlando, Florida. I would love to live there today because the ranch was only about fifty miles from where Disney World is today. My brothers and sisters and I rode the school bus thirty miles into St. Cloud where I finished up fifth grade. All of the kids in my class had the funniest accent. One day in January it started snowing when our class was outside for recess—just a few flakes floating down. My classmates had never seen snow before. They thought someone must have built a fire nearby, and it was ashes floating in the air. It took a while for me to convince them it was snow.
When I was in sixth grade they started a two-room school on the ranch, so we wouldn’t have to ride the bus thirty miles into St. Cloud. Grades one through three were in one room. Grades four through six were in another. Sixth grade was my most exciting year of school. Some day I will tell you more about my adventures living there on that ranch in Florida.
In the middle of seventh grade we moved back to Arizona where I went to high school and spent summers working with my dad on a big ranch that he was running. In high school I loved sports and girls, and somehow managed to do a little studying in between. I played football, basketball, and baseball, and learned to love history and reading and writing stories and poems.
I attended college at BYU where I met my wife. We got married in 1972. We have six children. They are all married but one. We have ten grand-children. The last grandchild was born about ten days ago in Virginia. I would only be telling you the truth if I told you that no other grandkids are quite as cute and smart as mine.
I have spent most of my life teaching school (28 years) and it has been a lot of fun. I have known a lot of really neat kids. I taught sixth and seventh grade my first year of teaching in 1974. Those kids are now forty six years old.
So you can see I’m not as young as I used to be, and I don’t move as fast, but I still love kids and reading and writing and studying history. Learning new things can be so much fun. Life should never be boring. We have so many opportunities to learn and grow and prepare for a good life, and in my small way I hope I can help you prepare for the great future that is ahead of you. Before you know it you will be married and have families of your own, and you will have jobs and you will be the leaders of our communities, our state, and our great country. I know that you will prepare well and be good parents and leaders when that time comes.

Cool LDS Tech site and blog

I just learned about the following websites and blog:

http://beta.tech.lds.org/

http://www.familysearchlabs.org/

http://familysearchlabs.blogspot.com/2006/12/new-ornament-for-your-family-tree.html

I am very excited about the Pedigree Viewer and the upcoming Life Viewer. Try out the Pedigree Viewer and tell the techies what you think.

Jared and Jenna's new baby, Jacob

Chrismtas Photo

Newsletter

Good Morning Everybody,
It is a fine Tuesday morning. Mom and I are struggling along day to day trying to enjoy life as much as two old people can. Yesterday we bottled a bunch more applesauce. The Rowleys, who are in our ward, have a bunch of orchards here, and they let me go in and pick the apples that were missed when their pickers went through and picked. Now did that make sense? That could be a tongue twister with a little work. Anyway, we were able to put up quite a bit of applesauce this year, and we didn't have to pay a penny for the apples.
Jenny and Sergei are heading over to Vernal for a few days to help Jeremy frame his new house. Sergei and his Dad both have colds etc., but they just keep working. Jenny also works hard everyday and is very busy raising and teaching three very sharp and active kids. We sure are enjoying the eggs their chickens are producing.
Nathan and Haylee are coming over Thursday evening and we are looking forward to that. Little Hannah Loree is growing up fast. Ashton was sick last week, but is doing better. Nathan is busy helping Deseret Book get ready for the Christmas season, and I know Haylee is also very busy taking care of little Hannah and keeping up with Ashton.
And Stephanie also has two active little busters to keep up with while David is off playing around at school. Actually, David, I'm sure, is very busy keeping up with school. He sends us pictures of them and their place and their two kids. We love those pictures, David. Keep them coming
Spencer and Heidi are lost somewhere out in Virgina. I think they shut off their phones so I won't call them too much. Anyway, last we heard they were doing well and had a neat trip to Washington DC. (Thanks for the email Heidi. We loved it.) Law School is really keeping Spencer hopping from the sounds of it, and Heidi's job doesn't keep her busy enough, sounds like. Mom and I are currently planning on a trip to Virginia in March. There is some kind of Family History Conference going on out there that her bosses want her to attend to promote their business. (Our main reason for going is to see Spencer and Heidi.)
We haven't heard from Jared and Jenna for a while. When we saw them a couple of weeks ago, they seemed to be doing well. Jenna looked like sure enough she is going to have a little one pretty soon. We are very excited. Wow, all of these cute little girls that are joining our family! Jared is doing well in school sounds like, and Jenna is keeping busy at home.
We also haven't talked with Ben for quite a while. Last we heard he is still living in Mapelton and working for Sergei most of the time. How are you, Ben? Give us a call, or come and see us.
We are still planning on having Thanksgiving dinner here at our house. We would like to get a more accurate count of who all is going to be here, so let us know. We wish all of you could be here.
We are looking forward to seeing Spencer and Heidi on December 16. We have been working on David and Steph. to get them to come too, but we understand if they aren't able to.
Mom is real busy with her Family History Online business. It doesn't pay anything money-wise, but she enjoys it a lot, so I guess she gets paid for her efforts in other ways. She also is getting started into her new church job as a counselor in the Stake Relief Society Presidency. She loved her old jobs and didn't want to change, but I know she will do great at this job.
I keep fairly busy taking care of Grandad and the yard and helping out with the house and meals etc. I am kind of an assistant Mr. Mom.
Grandad is hanging in there pretty good. He is getting a little slower and weaker and quieter, it seems. He and I were talking this morning about Sergei's parents and how they miss Russia and plan to return someday. And Grandad said that's how he feels about St. Johns. I know he misses it a lot and is kind of lonely here, but he tries to make the best of it.
We love all of you very much. We really do believe that we have the most wonderful children and their spouses and grandchildren in all of the world. You guys bring us a lot of joy! We pray for you everyday that you will be blessed and protected, and that you will be successful in what you are doing, and that you will live the Gospel and be close to your Heavenly Father, and that you will teach and guide and love your children. You are doing very well. Keep up the good work. Have a good day. Love, Dad & Mom

P.S. Good thought:

Wherefore, if ye shall be obedient to the commandments, and endure to the end, ye shall be saved at the last day. And thus it is. (1 Ne. 22:31)