Stronger Through Him

  Driving through Massachusetts, I pulled up Google Maps to help navigate, as George was getting increasingly frustrated with the route recalculating that his kept doing. To my surprise, Satan's Kingdom popped up as a nearby location.   I laughed and curiosity led me to research the area. It turns out there are a few possible explanations.   One story says that a pastor gave a particularly strong fire and brimstone sermon in which he warned that the people's sins were going to land them in the fires of Satan's Kingdom.  As they were leaving church, they saw a forest fire sweeping through the area on the other side of the Connecticut River. One man pointed out it must be Satan's Kingdom like the pastor had just been speaking about. Another story suggests the woods were a gathering place for ruffians and criminals.   Regardless, I kept thinking about how nice it would be to be given maps that clearly showed the boundaries of Satan's Kingdom so we could stay away.  Tha

  It's been a busy few weeks for me as I adjust to new schedules.  I was having a checkin conversation with my boss and she asked how my new year was going.  I told her I was tired but figuring it out.  But that I wasn't finding time to take pictures or get out in nature as much as I like.  I'm just too worn out after work.  She reminded me that a truly balanced life finds room and time for our creative spirits as well as our duties.   Sometimes that is easier said than done. But I do believe it's important. For many reasons.  As President Russell M Nelson so wisely shared,  "Hobbies can aid in spiritual development. Worthy music, dance, art, and writing are among the creative activities that can enrich the soul. A good hobby can dispel heartache and give zest to life."

 I came across this poem today that I had saved and felt impressed to share it:  After All We Can Do by Elder Robbie Pierce I had been in that hole for a very long time— In the dark and the damp, in the cold and the slime. The shaft was above me; I saw it quite clear, But there’s no way I ever could reach it from here. I could not remember the world way up there, So I lost every hope and gave in to despair. I knew nothing but darkness, the floor, and the wall. Then from off in the distance I heard someone call: “Get up! Get ready! There’s nothing the matter! Take rocks and take sticks and build up a fine ladder!” This was a thought that had not crossed my mind, But I started to stack all the stones I could find. When I ran out of stones, then old sticks were my goal, For some way or another I’d climb from that hole. I soon had a ladder that stood very tall, And I thought, “I’ll soon leave this place once and for all!” I climbed up my ladder, a difficult chore, For from lifting those bo

 I desperately needed to run some errands today.   I was feeling pretty run down from my meds, so I asked Ella to come along and be my runner.  She is always a good sport about that. She ran packages into the post office.  She helped me itemize the list of Goodwill donations and take them inside.  We did curbside pickup at Kohl's for some last minute college shopping.  And then we needed to get groceries.   As we approached the store Ella casually asked when the last time we checked in with our ministering sisters was.  I felt a quick pang of guilt; it's been a busy summer.  I had prayed for them, but I agreed that it had been too long and said we would have to add that to our list and figure out when to do it.  She looked at me and simply asked, "Could we pick up some of these flowers and take them to them on our way home?" I didn't feel great.  I hadn't gotten ready to go visiting.  I didn't have a plan.  But here I was with my daughter and her willing h

 This picture has hung in my bedroom for many years.  I love the image of the woman teaching her child the scriptures. D&C 93:40 "But I have commanded you to bring up your ​​​children​ in ​​​light​ and truth." When I read that scripture today I had a distinct memory of sitting in a Relief Society with my oldest child, a tiny infant in my arms as we sang "Teach Me To Walk In The Light".   I couldn't take my eyes from his sweet little face as I let the lyrics speak to my heart.  "Come, little child, and together we'll learn Of his commandments, that we may return Home to his presence, to live in his sight-- Always, always to walk in the light." The way that we bring our children up in light and truth isn't for us to figure it all out and then tell them.  It's our job to take their hands, show them the light we have found and continue the journey together.  To teach them to trust in divine light and truth as we take our own steps in faith.

 

 Today I was helping a young kindergartner who by afternoon was tired and overwhelmed.  He missed his mom and dad.  He struggled to grasp even the bulky starter crayons.  With tears rolling down his cheeks he turned to me and said,  "It's just too hard." I let him cry on my shoulder for a couple of minutes and then we took a walk to find the principal's office because he really was wondering what that looked like.  (He was surprised to find out that she is so nice). Then we went back to his classroom and I helped him with his crayons and he finished his picture and returned to playing with his friends.   My heart certainly went out to him in His moment of difficulty, but I also knew the growth and opportunities that school would provide for him.  I knew there was great good that would come from his suffering, as very real as it was to him at the moment.  I had the bigger picture. Several of my close friends are going through some extreme adversities right now.  Job lo

  "Organize yourselves and prepare every needful thing."  This scripture from D&C 88 is perhaps one of my most guilt inducing verses of all.  Because my house just isn't always orderly.   I am not sure where I got the idea that organized means ready for a Better Homes & Gardens spread but I did.  Bonus points for seasonal decor and meals from scratch.  And of course I should look like a model too.  Right?  Now I do feel better and can work better when things are clean and taken care of.  And there are occasional moments where I can achieve it.  But that's not always our reality.  Because we live here.  And we eat and wear clothes and put things down when we are done with them.  And sometimes we are tired or choose to have fun instead.  But while reading tonight I paused for a moment and looked up what organized actually means.  Here is the root Latin meaning: to form into a whole consisting of interdependent parts. Whoa.  What if I use that meaning to redefine

  When Ella was little she one day came to me quite upset.  She had learned in Family Home Evening and at Primary about the Holy Ghost but she didn't think she had ever felt it.    We spent some time reassuring her and reading about the many different ways people might feel the presence of the Holy Spirit.  Feelings, being moved to tears at times, thoughts, whispering, clarity, warmth, etc.   Her siblings shared their experiences and we read scriptures together.  Yet none of them resonated with her.   She became discouraged.  We encouraged her to be patient.  Then in preparation for a Stake Conference we were issued a challenge to read a specific scripture as a family 2 Ne 32:4-5.  We followed the challenge because it's a pattern that has richly blessed our lives.   "Wherefore, now after I have spoken these words, if ye cannot understand them it will be because ye ask not, neither do ye knock; wherefore, ye are not brought into the light, but must perish in the dark. For b

 If there is one thing that connects us all as humans it is our opportunities to feel like failures. Today I had a kindergarten parent who felt like a failure.  After working her night shift she was so tired she didn't wake up in time for pickup on her child's first day of school. A bad moment absolutely does not make a bad mama! My heart went out to her.  At that moment what felt like her child's biggest day ever didn't go as planned, and she was responsible.  Yet here was her beautiful, well-spoken daughter who was obviously loved and cared for.  Her mom was working as hard as she could to provide for her and the little girl showed me her new shoes and her backpack full of supplies her mom had taken her to walmart to purchase over the weekend. We kept her child safe, but then also reassured the mom and grandma (who ended up coming to retrieve the child) that it absolutely didn't constitute parental failure no matter how bad it felt at the moment. Because let's

 I love the Olympics.  It's a time for countries to come together as we watch athletes visibly show us what dedication and hard work can look like.  What true self-discipline can allow the human body to achieve.  And that some days things just don't go our way and it's someone else's turn to shine. There are often small stories behind the scenes full of inspiration and beautiful human spirit.  There are moments that showcase the entire breadth of human emotion.  Sprinter Alysson Felix shared about one of those - fear- and some inspiring thoughts on one of the lessons she has learned.  "Fear • When I line up for a race I’m normally afraid. Of course, I’m always a little nervous, but if I’m honest I’m afraid. • I’ve never been afraid of my competitors, I’m willing to race whoever whenever. In the past I’ve lost major races to people who have gone on to test positive and again if I’m honest, I knew they had an unfair advantage before I lined up next to them, but I’ve

 A friend shared this blessing with me this morning and it made my heart happy. And so I share it with you!  Read it slowly and take it in. "Look about you! See God's gift of creation as Earth opens wide her arms. Look above you! See the billowing clouds and brilliant blue of the sky showering and shining their wonder upon you. Look around you! See the love of Christ In the faces of those before you. Enjoy these gifts! Delight in God as God delights in you." (Dominican Sisters Grand Rapids, Michigan) Have a beautiful day!

  "We see a lot of fog in the mornings here in Goshen.  I love how beautiful it makes everything adding an element of mystery and distorting the colors of the sunrise.  Its just one more thing that reminds me that the Master Artist is in control. " (My journal- August 6, 2014) Fog might add beauty but it also obscures paths.  It reminds me of this story related by President Elaine S Dalton about a swimmer who let the fog obscure her goal. "Sometimes it may seem almost impossible to keep shining. You encounter so many challenges which may obscure the source of all light, which is the Savior. Sometimes the way is difficult, and it may even seem at times that a thick fog obscures the light. Such was the case with a young woman named Florence Chadwick. From the age of 10, Florence discovered that she was a talented swimmer. She swam the English Channel in record time of 13 hours and 20 minutes. Florence loved a challenge, and she later attempted to swim between the coa

  My principal loves music and often uses it to inspire and make us smile.  Today she was singing her own twist on this gospel favorite: This joy that I have, the world can't take it away. This joy that I have, the world can't take it away. This joy that I have, the world can't take it away. The world didn't give it and the world can't take it away. It made me smile.   It's so true. And it's one of Satan's lies.  He can't take away what wasn't ever his to give.

 I found this meme in a journal entry from many years ago.  I included a single sentence that said I needed to remember this and keep working on not caring so much what others think.   I contemplated on the progress I have made.  It's definitely something I think gets easier as we age, but there is one thing that helps me more than anything else.  When the disparaging looks of others, harsh or cruel words, or the whispering doubts in my own head try to make me feel less, I look to Heaven.  I pray at that very moment.  I shut off my phone or the tv.  I recall and read scriptural truth.  I read journal entries that remind me who I am.  That's on the good days.  On the bad days I replay and recall every other time that I've been hurt, left out, or overlooked.  I assign motives to the people involved.  I pull into cycles of negativity. In short I do everything but the helpful. I'm incredibly human.  I'm having more good days than bad now.  It's a process and habit

  I've said it before but the miles, time and money are worth it to see our family, both by blood and the additional friends who love us and help us celebrate life that we choose to be family as well.  You may have to rotate the people you can see each time.  We have so many people we love we can't fit them all in each visit and perhaps some only once every decade or so for only a brief moment, but we do the best we can.  We have to balance and share and love to the best of our ability.  We also have found that we need time for just our small, if expanding, nuclear family.  Time to be intentional as we choose what we embrace and pass on and what we want to be the heritage of our next generation. It's something my parents did in taking us to their timeshare at Stoneridge each year.  It's something George's parents did with family road trips to see new places. It's what we did as we blended Potter and Hines traditions and teachings and tried to root them in our li