Five Minute Friday - The Hard Love

I am participating today with The Gypsy Mama for Five Minute Friday.  This is a time for us to just write and not worry whether it is just right or not.  
Here is the way it is done:




1. Write for 5 minutes flat with no editing or tweaking.
2. Link back here and invite others to join in.
3. Go and tell the person who linked up before you what their words meant to you. That is all. Here are my few words for my own Five Minute Friday.

The Hard Love
by Patricia A Pitterle


My sweet baby, toddled forward
weaving to and fro
left and right
on two chubby unsteady legs.
She wobbled too far to one side,
and like a tree in the wind
toppled over.
I picked her up
kissed her tears away
and set her on her feet
to try again.
Love can seem so hard!
She did not understand
why I would not rescue her
from the trials of her world.
Her vision only saw 
the pain.  
The rewards to come
were hidden from her view.  


My sweet daughter
wondered out into 
the big, bright, beautiful world.
She skipped off to school
holding a backpack in one hand
and a lunch box in the other.
With a smile and a wave
she started her journey.
The bus brought her home
later that day.
With tears streaming down her face
and a sob in her voice, 
she told me about the children
who made fun of her 
that day.
The ones who would not understand
That is was OK not to be like the rest.
I hugged her tight
and kissed her tears away
and set her on her feet 
the next day
to try again.  
Love can seem so hard!

She did not understand

why I would not rescue her

from the trials of her world.

Her vision only saw 

the pain.  

The rewards to come

were hidden from her view. 

Often, 

I have discovered that 

I am like my sweet child

who only sees the world 

from her own point of view.

I want the pain of living

to go away.

I want the trials to end.

I want the heartache to cease.

I cry out to a loving Heavenly Father

who dries my tears 

and sets me on my feet

to try again another day.

Love can seem so Hard!

I do not always understand 

why He will not rescue me

from the trials of my world.

My vision only sees

the pain.

The rewards to come

are still hidden from my view.  

Home, At Last

Today, I am linking up for two prompts.  The first is over at Undercover Mother for the bigger picture moment.  The second is over at Mama Kat's for her weekly writing prompt. 

The Prompts are:

1.) Something students these days should know.

2.) If my Mom were a blogger.

3.) Describe a phone call you won’t forget.

4.) A list of 10 Celebrity DON’TS

5.) Write a poem about your favorite place to be.

I went with a poem about my favorite place and added a spitual twist on it.  I hope you like it. 

 

Home, At Last

by Patricia A Pitterle

The waves

Wash in with a whoosh

And break away

With a tug and a whisper

Of silk, against my skin.

Each and every time

I feel the

Push and pull

Of the sea,

My mind clears

And I breathe in

The sweet tang

Of the ocean breeze.

I taste the salt

On the air that surrounds me.

I see the blue-green hue

Of the tumbling water

And watch the clouds dance

Across the blue, blue sky.

The waves

Are cool upon

My bare legs

And the sand

Is gritty and shifting

Beneath my feet.

I stand there,

In awe of the world

That encircles me.

My mind clear of the fog

That constantly surrounds me.

I utter a quiet sigh,

And feel home, at last.

Life is much like

The ocean that I love

The waves of trials

And adversities whoosh in,

And then break away

With a tug and

A whisper of hope

They ebb and flow

In constant contact

As I make my way

Along the path

That leads back home.

I experience life

In all of it’s many moments;

Light and darkness,

Joy and sorrow,

Pleasure and pain,

Birth and death.

The sands of my trials

Shift and move

Beneath my feet,

Until I am not sure

Where adversity ends

And faith begins.

I stand in awe of heaven above

And the love of my Savior,

Who is the rock beneath my feet.

When my journey is over

And the sand is all swept away

I know I will find myself

Standing on the solid ground

Of His Eternal Love.

I will truly be home at last.

Wordless Wednesday - Science Can Be Fun

Living Water

Today, I am doing a post over at MMB
The Post is titled Living Water and is about the Savior.  I hope that you each take a few moments and go over there to visit and read. 
I will be back tomorrow with my favorite Wordless Wednesday!

Honesty- The Best Policy

"Honesty is more than not lying.  

It is truth telling, truth speaking, 

truth living, and truth loving."  

James E. Faust

Honesty, It should be the only policy.  This past Sunday, the lesson in Relief Society (the women's meeting) was on honesty.  It was a very good lesson.  It is one that has made me rethink my own stand.  You see, I have always believed in honesty.  Sometimes, I was naive enough to think that everyone else expected and admired that trait. Years later, and a life lived much longer has taught me how much the culture we live in does not admire or want honesty.  Think for a moment about the advertising that you see all around you.
The advertising world would have us believe that everyone worthwhile is skinny, or beautiful, or sexy, or single, or married, or childless, or wealthy.  And hopefully, if we really think about it, we will realize that all of those things are actually an endorsement of dishonesty.
If you are old like me, you will remember the days when cigarettes were advertised on TV.  When the man smoking them was always a rugged "man's type of man".  When he was a cowboy, rough, lean and totally physically fit.  The Marlboro man comes to mind.  Yet, they did not tell you in those long ago days, just what cigarettes could do to your body.  They did not tell you the risks, only the perceived benefits.  I am sure that is the way with many things today.  When you want to know about those things, you really have to ask yourself is, "do they care about me?  Or are they trying to sell a product or service?"  If you answer, yes, to the second question, take a longer and closer look at what you think you want in your life.
There is an old saying:  "A half truth is a whole lie."
In our lesson we talked about three ways of being dishonest.  The first was telling a lie,  the second was stealing, and the third was cheating.
Lying is intentionally deceiving others.  This can be with the spoken word as well as the unspoken silence.  We can intentionally deceive with a gesture or a look, by silence, or by only telling part of the truth.  Whenever we lead people to believe something that isn't true, we are guilty of dishonesty.
The scriptures teach us, "Thou shalt not steal."  Stealing is taking something that doesn't belong to us.  It can also be copying pictures, poetry, CD's, movies, or written words.  I found this one interesting because of all the stealing of photography that is going on over the internet right now.  I know photographers who have found their work on another's site, advertised as someone else's work.  It seems to be a big problem.  Taking words or thoughts that aren't yours and claiming that they are.
Cheating is also dishonest.  Cheating is more than when we get something we don't deserve.  Some people cheat their employers by not giving a full day's work for a full day's pay.  Maybe they extend their lunches, or take extra breaks, or check their email, or write on their blog.  Yet, those employees are more than happy to accept full pay for their less than stellar performance.   Some employers are not fair to their employees (hence, I have lots of extra work to do with grievances).
One of the things I found most interesting in all of this is that we must never excuse our dishonesty.  To the Lord, there are no acceptable reasons for being dishonest.  When we excuse ourselves, we cheat ourselves, and we become more and more unrighteous.
The promise is that if we work on becoming completely honest, we cannot be corrupted.  We are true to every trust, duty, promise, and agreement, even if it costs us money, status, friends, or our very lives.  By being honest, we know where we stand.  We know our own character.  We know what we have done, what we will do.  We know that we will have nothing to be afraid of.
We talked about being dishonest about our own feelings, our faults and our desires.  How many of us receive complements, that we worked really hard for, we deserve them, but we cannot take them.  We have to offer and excuse, we have to put ourselves down.  Part of honesty is accepting the good as well as the bad.  Part of honesty is being able to look at yourself, with all your faults and failings, and still know who you are and what you want to become.
The 13th Article of Faith states:

We believe in being honest, true, chaste, benevolent, virtuous, and in doing good to all men; indeed, we may say that we follow the admonition of Paul—We believe all things, we hope all things, we have endured many things, and hope to be able to endure all things. If there is anything virtuous, lovely, or of good report or praiseworthy, we seek after these things.

Today, let us all reflect and find a few more ways to improve our honesty with our fellow men (and with ourselves).  Remember just who the "father of lies" really is.  I don't know about you, but I want to stay as far away from him as possible.

"Once it was said among our people that a man's word was as good as his bond.  Shall any of us be less reliable, less honest than our forebears?"  Gordon B. Hinckley

Sunday Devotional - Easter Sunday

“In our hour of deepest sorrow, we can receive profound peace from the words of the angel that first Easter morning: ‘He is not here: for he is risen.’”

“As one of His special witnesses on earth today, this glorious Easter Sunday, I declare that this is true, in His sacred name—even the name of Jesus Christ, our Savior—amen.”
—President Thomas S. Monson

A Simple Moment - Baby Steps

This Moment

A single photo – no words – 

 capturing a moment from our lives.

A simple, special, extraordinary moment.

A moment 

I want to pause, savor and remember.

A moment 

that brings a smile to my lips, 

and joy to my heart.

On Distance - Five Minute Friday

Linking up this week for five minute Friday from The Gypsy Mama.  The rules are simple.  

Just write and not worry if it’s just right or not. Here’s how to play along:

1. Write for 5 minutes flat for pure unedited love of the written word.

2. Link back here and invite others to join in. 

3. Go leave some comment love for the five minute artist who linked up before you {and if you love us, consider turning off word verification for the day to make it easier for folks to say howdy}

It’s a great way to catch your breath at the end of a long week.

This weeks challenge is simply: On Distance

I am thirty three years away from the time I held my very first baby girl in my arms.  When I felt her heart beat next to mine.  I am so many years away from watching her first smile, her first step, her first laugh, and her first hug.  The one where she used to want to hold me instead of having me hold her.  I am so far away from the young mother that I used to be then.  From the days sat on the edge of a lake to the days spent in my new found mountain home.  I am 32 years away from  my first son who learned to run before he ever learned to walk.  I am miles away from the days when he would sit on the top of the fridge and throw eggs down on the floor for his dog to eat, then help himself to a Popsicle, before he climbed back done to the floor .
I am 31 years away from the little boy who always wanted to be like his big brother.  He was the one who climbed high up in a tree and couldn't get himself down.  He was the one who always had a kind heart and a tender soul.
I am 30 years away from the daughter that we called affectionately "Muppet". From the girl who cut her own hair short because she hated to have it long.  She cut it so short that the only way to save it was to cut it into a very short little pixie cut.  From the girl who always laughed and smiled and quietly played by herself when necessary.
I am 28 years away from the son who always got lost!  No matter where I took those children, that boy could disappear in the blink of an eye.  He was the one who always loved to be held and read to.  He was the one who didn't want to grow up too fast one moment, and in the next moment wanted to be big like the brothers.
I am 27 years from the daughter who was the baby for so very long.  The one who slept with me, snuggled with me, loved me through the hurt and pain that life brought.  The one who was so emotional and who always tried her best to be who she wanted to be.
So many things have happened in my life, and yet, no matter how far along the road I go, it is just a glimpse back to find the joys of yesterday.  For my love and joy is wrapped tightly in the arms of my family.So much distance has passed, and yet, it isn't very far at all.  It all seems like yesterday and I am left looking down the road of things passed and knowing that life is good.  

STOP

I am a crooked line

I am Linking up for two things today.  The first is for this poetry challenge at Danabugseyeview for the poetry bus.  There are no rules except that it has to start with this phrase:  I am a crooked line. 
The second is for the Bigger Picture Moments over at Alita's Place 
Spend a few moments visiting others as they also write.  I Hope you like it.

I Am A Crooked Line
by Patricia A Pitterle

I am a crooked line,
Wondering across the pages of life
To and fro,
From side to side.
I want to go from here to there
In a straight line,
But that does not seem possible
For me.
My way
Weaves along the light.
I can see the path;
It beckons me,
But when I try to walk it
Something always seems
To get in my way.
I wonder off into the wilderness
Of life
Until I see the light again.
I warms my heart
and beckons my soul.
Until, once again
I work myself
Back to the narrow way.
I am a crooked path
And that is OK
Because He knew that I would wonder,
He knew what I would be.
And yet,
He still loves me.
He straightens the path behind me,
And lights the way before.
Until, finially,
I see my path
Becoming not quite
As crooked as before.

We're seeing the Bigger Picture through simple moments -- moments that force us to stop and take notice of the ways our worlds are important, meaningful, and beautiful. Please join us today at Alita's place! Grab the button, link up and share your Bigger Picture with us!

Wordless Wednesday

Strength in Togetherness

Teamwork: Simply stated, it is less me and more we.

(Sigh) this past weekend, winter returned with a vengeance.  It rained, the wind blew, the hail fell, and finally, the snow covered my mountain home.  Somehow, in the middle of all this white loveliness, I noticed some big, huge, perfect snow flakes.  They were simple and crisp.  They were six sided and totally fragile.  When the girls caught them in their hair, or on their hands, the snow would melt away to nothing.  By itself, the flake was almost nothing.  But when it became part of many falling crystals, it had the power to stop the traffic.  It could trap us in our own driveway, it could keep us from our journey.
Tonight, the girls and I were watching an episode of Mythbusters from Netflix.  It was the show about the myth of the phone books.  For this one, the myth is that you can't rip a phone book if the pages are married together (or interlocked) with another one.
They first tried using human power to pull the phone books apart.  It did not work.  Than they tried to pull them apart using two cars.  Those were also unable to pull the books apart.  Finally, they had to use an armored tank and a personnel carrier from the military.  Those were finally able to pull the phone books apart.    The interesting part is that it took more than 8000 lbs of pressure to pull those books apart.  It is not something that was easy to do.
Think about this for a minute.  How easy are phone book pages to rip?  (Just ask any one year old that has discovered the joy of ripping them!)  I would never have imagined that the phone books had the potential to be that strong.
Any one of us, is probably not as strong as we think we ought to be.  We can be blown and tossed in the wind.  Ripped and torn apart in the trials of everyday living.  But together, we can accomplish those things that need to be done.  We can combine our time, our talents, and our work to accomplish so much more than any of us ever imagined.  Like the soft, white snow, individually, we are not as strong as we would like to be, but collectively, we can be all that is needed.  We can stop the traffic if we need to.  We can change the world.  We can change what people see and what they do simply by making a stand and then standing together.
With all the problems going on around us today, I think we need to remember how much we can change our tomorrows by working together today.  

Vince Lombardi (1913-1970), football coach for the NFL once said:

People who work together will win, whether it be against complex football defenses, or the problems of modern society."

Charity Never Faileth

"I invite you to not only love each other more, 

but to love each other better."  

Bonnie D Parkin

Yesterday, I had the wonderful opportunity of teaching the women a lesson on Charity.  It was wonderful.  I always feel like I learn so much more than the sisters that I teach.  I had a sheet of thoughts that I put together to add to the things taught in my lesson.
"Real charity is not something you give away; it is something you aquire and make a part of yourself".  Marvin J. Ashton
Charity, to me, is the pure love of Christ.  It is the greatest of all the virtues.  Charity is a process, it is not an event.  It takes time to develop.  It takes time to learn.  Love itself, is not a feeling, it is a verb.  It is a doing word.  It requires us to do things for others.  Charity is so much more than just doing things for others.  It is doing them with your heart, and your mind.  It is choosing to behave in a Christ-like manner.  Not only doing a Jesus did, but loving as He did also.  He sees each one of us, and can love us in spite of the things we have done wrong.  He loves us even if we have made bad choices in our lives.  He can look past the outside and find the good that others might not see.
We discussed the parable of the good samaritan (which is one of my favorites!) and we also discussed how it is possible to love others.  We might not be able to love in quite the same way that the Savior did, but we can make Him the center of our lives and follow His examples and teachings as we strive to become more like Him.
There are four ways which we can all work on in order to become more charitable.  They are:

1. Study the life of Christ.  We can follow His example and be more like Him.
2. Pray to have greater charity.  Especially when we have uncharitable feelings toward others. 
3. Learn to love ourselves.  Yes, this is important!  The Savior taught that we must love others as we love ourselves.  He did not say to love them instead of ourselves.  Part of loving ourselves is to try and understand our true worth as children of a loving Heavenly Father.  It is to realize that He forgives us when we repent and we must also learn to forgive ourselves.  
4. Avoid thinking you are better than others.  We can have patience with their faults.  We can seek to understand them and serve them.  It is through service that we find the way to love.  

You don't always know what battles your neighbor is fighting.  The person that you don't get along with may be battling things that you could not bear.  Most of us turn one face to the world and morne and grieve in private.  You have no way of knowing what I am going through (unless I have shared it with you) and if I have, you might not understand what a battle it is for me.  

I used to have a friend who once said to me, "Patty, I do not know how you can endure the things you have endured.  I do not understand how you can be the person that you are.  Any of those multitude of trials would be so difficult for me to handle.  Honestly, I do not know if I could bear them.  I do not understand why you must endure so many while I do not have even a few of the trials that you do".  This wonderful friend later in her life, endured things that I am not sure that I could have endured myself.  

You see, we all walk through times of pain and discouragement.  We all despair, we all lose hope, we all walk to the edge of the cliff and journey along danger's path.  None of us are ever completely alone.  Even though there are times that we feel that way.  Even though there are times that we don't feel His love, It is important to remember that He is there. 

We really can't possibly know what others are going through.  We can imagine, we can vision, we can dream.   But we cannot know.  But, the Savior does.  He loves you perfectly.  He has suffered for all, that we might not suffer if we will only believe, repent and follow Him.  

May you find a place in your heart today for charity.

I shared a recipe for Friendship Fudge
this is the easiest fudge I have ever made, and my children totally loved it.

Friendship Fudge

4 cups Powdered Sugar
3 ounces softened cream cheese
1/2 cup softened margarine (I used real butter)
1/2 cup cocoa
1 tsp. Vanilla
1/2 cup chopped nuts

Mix it all together, roll it into a log, slice and serve.

Just so you know, we made it last night for family night, and there is none left today :-(
I did not need the calories anyway!

The Pure Love of Charity

"Rather than being judgmental and critical of each other, may we have the pure love of Christ for our fellow travelers in this journey through life."  


A young couple, Lisa and John, moved into a new neighborhood. One morning while they were eating breakfast, Lisa looked out the window and watched her next-door neighbor hanging out her wash.

“That laundry’s not clean!” Lisa exclaimed. “Our neighbor doesn’t know how to get clothes clean!”

John looked on but remained silent.

Every time her neighbor would hang her wash to dry, Lisa would make the same comments.

A few weeks later Lisa was surprised to glance out her window and see a nice, clean wash hanging in her neighbor’s yard. She said to her husband, “Look, John—she’s finally learned how to wash correctly! I wonder how she did it.”

John replied, “Well, dear, I have the answer for you. You’ll be interested to know that I got up early this morning and washed our windows!”

From President Thomas S. Monson "Charity Never Faileth".  General Conference October 2010

A Simple Moment

A single photo – no words – 

 capturing a moment from our lives.

A simple, special, extraordinary moment.

A moment 

I want to pause, savor and remember.

A moment 

that brings a smile to my lips, 

and joy to my heart.

Learning to work

"Opportunity is missed by most people

because it is dressed in overalls 

and looks like work." --Thomas A. Edison

My daughter had the opportunity to help her dad lay the tile for our house.  She really loved the hard, physical work.  She spent time with her father and helped him wash down the tile and the grout.  She thought that kind of work was "fun".   She was so proud of her accomplishments.  She was genuinely pleased with the result of her labor.  Yet this same daughter really hates to do her "chores".  The tile work, which is much more physical and labor intensive, held more pleasure for her than a dish drainer full of clean dishes.

Have you ever noticed, that the things we need to do everyday, are the ones we try the hardest to get out of?  It is the normal, everyday chores that get the better of us.  One of the things I am trying to change in my own life is how I look at the work that is tedious and monotonous.  One of the most interesting things that I have read lately was someone who simply referred to the typical housework as her chance to bless her family.  It was her opportunity to show them how much she cares, how much she loves them.  By referring to work as blessings, she was able to change her entire outlook on it and also change the way she did (or didn't) get it done.  

So today, I am working on "blessing" those that I love and live with.  I came home from work to find my visiting daughter Emily, getting the girls to work in the dining room and kitchen and she was cleaning off all the cupboards.  So, I got out all the scrubbing supplies and started on the stove.  (This is probably one of the jobs that I hate the most).  

Honestly, it felt good to scrub and watch the dirt and grime go away.  It felt good to be blessing those that I love.  It felt good to see the change.  I really should have taken before and after pictures, but let us just say that the kitchen looks amazing.  And honestly, I didn't even mind doing it.  Just changing my outlook made it a pleasure and a blessing.  I think I might have learned something to change my life today.  

Work is Love made visible.  

Overcoming

Linking up today with Mama Kat's for the Writer's Workshop.  

Hope to see you there.

OVERCOMING

by Patricia A Pitterle

Trials in my life

Come and go

Like the waves

In the ocean;

Rushing up onto the beach

Of life

With a dash and a swirl

And large splash

Of dismay.

Then running back

Out to sea.

Leaving me gasping

For air;

Amazed

At the blessings

Of relief and solitude.

The ebb and flow,

A constant force

In my daily life.

Often so much

A part of it

That I cannot imagine

What life would be like

Without the continual

Pounding and crashing

Of  waves upon

My shore.

Yet, the storms fade

Into times past

And for a short while

The waves gently

Brush the sands

Of life,

And the sun

warms my mind

With remembering.

Life is often full of

Stormy weather.

And yet,

It is also full

Of the overcoming of it.

Wordless Wednesday

Linking up for Wordless Wednesday over at MMB 

Hope to see you there!

A Small Grain of Sand

Tonight, I was watching the news as they talked about the problem of road rage in the metro area.  There are so many people who, when they get behind the wheel of a car, become someone totally different than they are on a normal basis.  As I listened to the report of yet another shooting due to people cutting each other off, making gestures, trying to ram the other car, and even going so far as to follow a driver home, I am finding it hard to understand how anger can become more important than your personal safety.  

What makes people believe that they are invincible and always right when they jump into the driver's seat?  Last I checked, none of us drive correctly 100% of the time (don't tell my kids!).  We all make mistakes.  I guess, I don't understand how normally rational people become Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde when they get behind the wheel.  

One of the scariest instances of this that happened in my life was when my family was driving with my sister on the freeway.  I truly don't remember what we did when we were driving, but my sister waved the "I love you" sign language sign as a way of telling the driver that we were sorry.  

That driver bumped into the back of our car when we were stopped and then took off.  We had six or seven little kids in the car with us, and it could totally have been disastrous.  No one was hurt, but I learned a lesson I have never forgotten.  

People don't always know or understand what your intentions are.  They become "all right" and "all knowing" when they get behind the wheel of their vehicle.  You really can't trust any other driver's behavior.  So now, I go out of my way to try and not offend other drivers.  I have had too many experiences that have been too close for comfort.    

As the news was reporting on this today, I thought of a poem that is one of the first I ever memorized.  

The Oyster

There once was an oyster whose story I tell,
Who found that some sand had got into his shell.
It was only a grain but it gave him great pain,
For oysters have feelings although they're so plain.

                                   
Now, did he berate the harsh workings of fate
That had brought him to such a deplorable state?
Did he curse at the government, cry for election,
And claim that the sea should have given him protection?

No--He said to himself as he lay on a shell,
Since I cannot remove it, I shall try to improve it.
Now the years have rolled around,
as the years always do,
And he came to his ultimate destiny--stew.

And the small grain of sand that had bothered him so
Was a beautiful pearl all richly aglow.
Now the tale has a moral;
For isn't it grand what an oyster can do
With a morsel of sand.

What couldn't we do
If we'd only begin
With some of the things
That get under our skin.

~ David Cohen ~

So, my point today is simply this, we can't change or decide how anyone else is going to act.  We can't fix those things that we are not responsible for.  All we can do is take care of our own actions and reactions.  I can't change the fact that drivers get mad at me, but I can change my actions that encourage that type of behavior.  I don't have to behave badly back.  I don't have to get angry or upset at the behavior of others.  I can  make my own pearls out of the sand that life gives me.

This is hard!  But I think it is possible.  I am the only one that can change the way that I react.  It is completely within my control. 

"Don't spend your precious time asking, 

"Why isn't the world a better place?"  

It will only be time wasted.  

The question to ask is rather 

"How can I make it better?"  

To that, there is an answer."  Leo Buscaglia

Last Night, I Ate Potatoes

A long time ago, for Halloween, one of my friends dressed up as a sack of potatoes.  On her back, there was a sign that said:  
"You are what you eat;  last night, I ate potatoes".  
We thought it was funny way back then, but today, I have been thinking more and more about that Halloween from long ago.  
I think there is another lesson here.  I think we take things in with all of our senses and not just tasting.  I think we hear things, touch things, see things, and smell things as well as taste them.  If we are not careful about the things that go into our bodies, or our minds or our thoughts, we will start to tolerate and than accept those things.  They will slowly become a part of us.  They will influence who we are inside.  They will influence the person we become.  When I think about that, I realize that I want to be the type of person that others want to be around.  I want to be an example, but more than that, I want to be Christ-like in all I do and say.  
My daughter taught me this great lesson just last night.  We rented movies this weekend to watch after conference.  We all enjoy a family movie night every once in awhile.  Usually we watch kid oriented movies, but the girls are getting older, and sometimes they like to watch what we affectionately term "chick flicks" around here.  So, there was a movie available for rent that I wanted to see.  It has someone starring in it that I normally like.  It did not have a bad rating (PG is our normal tolerance for movies in our home).  We rented that movie and turned it on last night to watch together.  After less than two minutes, my daughter looked at me and said:  "Mom, I don't think this is a movie that we should be watching.  I think we need to turn it off."  
My husband agreed with her, and I am ashamed to say that I did not.  There was a part of me that thought for a moment, "I really want to watch this, why can't you just wait and see if it gets better?"  I thought it, I resented turning it off, but I did not say anything about it.
We turned off the movie and watched Tangled (for the 3rd time) instead.  It took me until this morning to realize what had happened.  (sometimes I am just a little bit slower than I would like to be!)  
Somehow, in my life, I have eaten the potatoes of movies that have dulled my senses to what is right and what is wrong.  I have let the world tell me what is good and what is bad.  I have let the smells, tastes, touches, sights, and sounds that surround me, separate me from those things which are most important of all.  
We are made up of so much more than just the things we eat.  We can be so much more than the world expects us to be.  But first, we have to choose not to partake of those things that take us away from our Father in Heaven.  
I would never dream of telling anyone else what to watch or read or talk about in their homes.  I would never dream of telling you that you are wrong or right in that choice.  But for me, I am choosing to be a little more conservative in my choices.  I am choosing to follow my sweet young daughter whose internal conscience has not be influenced by the things that surround us in the world today.  
I am choosing not to eat the potatoes of the world.
I am choosing to follow the counsels of the Prophet of God
I am choosing to be different.




John 13:17  If ye know these things, happy are ye if ye do them.

Sunday Devotional - To Finish The Race

"In 1968 a marathon runner by the name of John Stephen Akhwari represented Tanzania in an international competition. 'A little over an hour after [the winner] had crossed the finish line, John Stephen Akhwari . . . approached the stadium, the last man to complete the journey. [Though suffering from fatigue, leg cramps, dehydration, and disorientation,] a voice called from within to go on, and so he went on. Afterwards, it was written, "Today we have seen a young African runner who symbolizes the finest in human spirit, a performance that gives meaning to the word courage." For some, the only reward is a personal one. [There are no medals, only] the knowledge that they finished what they set out to do' (The Last African Runner, Olympiad Series, written, directed, and produced by Bud Greenspan, Cappy Productions, 1976, videocassette). When asked why he would complete a race he could never win, Akhwari replied, 'My country did not send me 5,000 miles to start the race; my country sent me to finish the race.' "He knew who he was—an athlete representing the country of Tanzania. He knew his purpose—to finish the race. He knew that he had to endure to the finish, so that he could honorably return home to Tanzania. Our mission in life is much the same. We were not sent by Father in Heaven just to be born. We were sent to endure and return to Him with honor."

Robert D. Hales, "Behold, We Count Them Happy Which Endure," Ensign, May 1998, 76

A Simple Moment

This Moment

A single photo – no words – 

 capturing a moment from our lives.

A simple, special, extraordinary moment.

A moment 

I want to pause, savor and remember.

A moment 

that brings a smile to my lips, 

and joy to my heart.

Jesus wants me for a sunbeam!

My daughter gave me this story today and I loved it.  I don't know if it is really true or not, but I could so see it happening.  I hope it makes you laugh too!!

This is supposedly by Robert Armstrong, MD

I work part-time as a teacher of family doctors.  The program provides training of psychiatric disorders and emphasizes the importance of emotional support.  The new doctor are given plenty of time in clinic to visit with their patients and learn about their challenges.
One of our interns who has never lived in Utah and knows nothing about Mormons is still struggling to understand the cultural climate here.  Last week he was interviewing a new patient and stumbled on what he thought was a raging psychosis.

Doctor:  "Well, Mrs. Olsen, we've talked about your high blood pressure and your medications.  Are you experiencing any particular stress in your life?"
Patient:  "Oh, yes! It's the Sunbeams.  They're driving me crazy."
Doctor: (very surprised)  "The sun beams?"
Patient:  "Yes.  I've never had trouble with them before, but this group won't sit still.  They bounce all over the room, and run out the door and down the hall."
Doctor:  (reaching for a pen) "Have you told anyone about this?"
Patient:  "Of course, I told the president."
Doctor:  "Really!  What did the president tell you?"
Patient:  "She said Sunbeams are like that.  I'm just going to have to learn to deal with them."
Doctor:  "(concerned that he may be missing something)  "I know people who are sensitive to sun beams.  Do they cause you a rash or anything?"
Patient:  (confused)  "A rash?  No."
Doctor:  "What is the biggest problem they're creating?"
Patient:  "It's the noise.  They just won't quit talking."
Doctor:  (astonished)  "The sun beams are talking to you?"
Patient:  "Well, yes.  But mostly thy talk to each other."
Doctor:  (scribbling furiously in the chart)  "I see.  Can anyone else hear them talking?"
Patient:  (after a moment of stunned silence)  "You're not LDS, are you?"

I laugh every time I read this one!  Just in case you are not a Latter Day Saint (Mormon), I will explain.  The Sunbeams are the three year old children.  I just got done teaching that class for the past two years.  They can be quite a handful, still, it is very rewarding as well as challenging.
One of the things about this that I like the most is that this patient was explaining something to her doctor based on her own experiences with the world that she lived in.  She thought he would understand.  On the other hand, he thought he was understanding even though his perceptions of her words were completely wrong.
I have learned that it is totally easy to misunderstand those around us.  Even when we are trying our best to help them.  It is easy to think we know something.  But honestly, we can't possible know unless we have experienced the same types of things in our own life.  I have realized that so many things can be explained simply by asking the right questions and then listening (really listening and not thinking of our answer in return) to their explainations.

"Too often we underestimate the power of a touch, a smile, a kind word, a listening ear, an honest compliment, or the smallest act of caring, all of which have the potential to turn a life around."
Leo Buscaglia