Dream quotes...

I could really relate to these the week they were shared by a youth  in my youth group...enjoy!

A dreamer is one who can only find his way by moonlight, and his punishment is that he sees the dawn before the rest of the world.

Oscar Wilde

A man is not old until regrets take the place of dreams.

John Barrymore

All human beings are also dream beings. Dreaming ties all mankind together.

Jack Kerouac

All men dream, but not equally. Those who dream by night in the dusty recesses of their minds, wake in the day to find that it was vanity: but the dreamers of the day are dangerous men, for they may act on their dreams with open eyes, to make them possible.

T. E. Lawrence

All our dreams can come true, if we have the courage to pursue them.

Walt Disney

Dream and give yourself permission to envision a You that you choose to be.

Joy Page

Our wildernesses will be as the garden of the Lord

"For the Lord will comfort Zion; he will comfort all her waste places, and he will make her wilderness like Eden, and her desert like the garden of the Lord.  Joy and gladness shall be found therein, thanksgiving, and the voice of melody."--Isaiah 51:3

I thought this scripture fitting to describe the joy and peace I feel right now in this transition phase.  I am finding joy and gladness herein, as I have in so many other times in my life where I have been "stuck in the wilderness".  However, normally I only find the joy and blooms when I look for them :).

Thoughts on the different purposes of education out there...

From the American Heritage Seminar I went to last summer (highly recommend it!)

"We must reverse the modern educational concept from “to educate is to liberate us to act on our desires” to “educate us so our passions can be regulated” (See article “Some Thoughts about Personal Freedom”)

Princeton: "personal authenticity=self-mastery"

"Education is to free us from slavery to our passions"

"Fear not" quote by Thomas S. Monson

"As the winds of change swirl around us and the moral fiber of society continues to disintegrate before our very eyes, may we remember the Lord's precious promise to those who trust in Him: "Fear thou not for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness."

"...It is essential that we able to face--with courage--whatever challenges come our way.  Remember the words of Tennyson: 'My strength is as the strength of ten, because my heart is pure.'" (This quote is actually from another talk in that conference, "Dare to Stand Alone", also fabulous.)

The whole talk "Stand in Holy Places" from Oct. 2011 LDS General Conference is fabulous...

Here is another great quote from it:

"I recently read in the Wall Street Journal an article by Jonathan Sacks, Britain’s chief rabbi. Among other things, he writes: “In virtually every Western society in the 1960s there was a moral revolution, an abandonment of its entire traditional ethic of self-restraint. All you need, sang the Beatles, is love. The Judeo-Christian moral code was jettisoned. In its place came [the adage]: [Do] whatever works for you. The Ten Commandments were rewritten as the Ten Creative Suggestions.”

Rabbi Sacks goes on to lament:

“'We have been spending our moral capital with the same reckless abandon that we have been spending our financial capital. …

“'There are large parts of [the world] where religion is a thing of the past and there is no counter-voice to the culture of buy it, spend it, wear it, flaunt it, because you’re worth it. The message is that morality is passé, conscience is for wimps, and the single overriding command is ‘Thou shalt not be found out.'’”¹

"My brothers and sisters, this—unfortunately—describes much of the world around us. Do we wring our hands in despair and wonder how we’ll ever survive in such a world? No. Indeed, we have in our lives the gospel of Jesus Christ, and we know that morality is not passé, that our conscience is there to guide us, and that we are responsible for our actions.

"Although the world has changed, the laws of God remain constant. They have not changed; they will not change. The Ten Commandments are just that—commandments. They are not suggestions. They are every bit as requisite today as they were when God gave them to the children of Israel."

Power of example quote from Bednar

"If our children never know how you are going to respond in a situation it makes it harder for them to see the path (Bednar, Oct. 2009)

I am totally guilty of being unpredictable in my emotional explosions :S...This quote is another good reason for mom to put herself into "time out" when she feels that surge of "irrationality" coming on. :)

Scriptures="packets of light"

Love it!!

"Throughout the ages, Father in Heaven has inspired select men and women to find, through the guidance of the Holy Ghost, solutions to life’s most perplexing problems.   He has inspired those authorized servants to record those solutions as a type of handbook for those of His children who have faith in His plan of happiness and in His Beloved Son, Jesus Christ." 

 Scriptures!!

 "Scriptures are like packets of light that illuminate our minds and give place to guidance and inspiration from on high."

" Learning, pondering, searching, and memorizing scriptures is like filling a filing cabinet with friends, values, and truths that can be called upon anytime, anywhere in the world."
 (LDS General Conference Nov. 2011, pg 6 )

I like friends like those :)...

Temples built up unto ourselves or unto God?

Just reading in a youth history book about the ancient Greeks (awesome book...very understandable and enjoyable called "Streams of Civilization", but anyway :)!), and I loved this quote:
"Their (the Greeks) temples were bot built to hold worshipers, but merely to house the god or goddess." (pg 127)
Made me think, "What am I building my temple (my body) for?  To house the spirit or to house things that I think bring pleasure and temporal comforts to me?" Hmmm.....

...chocolate? :)

Out of the mouth of "Gabes"...

A couple weeks ago at church, a young man named Gabe said this:  

"The role of a mother is to find joy 

and share it with your family".

Truly profound...

basketball, racquetball, and learning

For Valentine's Day, my honey and I tried out a free membership to Gold's Gym for one reason: racquetball.  Quinn is quite the natural with racquetball as he is with other sports, and so the two of us together is somewhat laughable.  The first game, I scored a miraculous 5 as he got back into the groove, and then the next game was more normal with a 21:1 finish, followed by a game of 21:0. (There was actually a game that was 21:13 or 14, but that is definitely the anomaly :)...)

I am okay with this.  It is really quite impressive to watch Quinn's z-serve zap back and forth faster than I can respond to, and sometimes I actually return his serves (very rewarding, I assure you :)...)  He even let me in on the "secret" of how to know what kind of serve he is doing to do based upon where he bounces the ball before he serves it...as if my brain is going to work fast enough to see where he bounces it, translate that to a serve, and then make my old-mom body respond fast enough to actually return it?!  Funny :).  As I told him, it is all I can do to hit the ball when I can, let alone plan where it is going to go when I hit it, or try to figure out where it is going to end up after bouncing all over.

 Towards the end of our second day playing racquetball, part of me kind of gave up.  I mean, my overall score was maybe in the twenties (thinking optimistically), and he was in the 100's--literally :).  What was the point, I thought briefly.  Is he really having fun?  Am I really getting better?

Well, last night, playing basketball with my women, I was in a situation where I was dribbling up to half court with one woman in hot pursuit on the side, and another fixed at the half-court side line, ready to trap me.  As I raced towards the second one and the one on my left closed in, I saw in my mind in a flash what I needed to do, stopped quickly, zipped the basketball across to the left, cut across behind the woman who had been on my side, and dashed left, leaving the two of them to crash together.

 I don't know if I described it well or not, but the point is, I was actually able to see a situation ahead of time, and act quickly to respond to it--just like I had been practicing in that racquetball game!  I am very much a thinker and a planner, hesitant to quick action, weighing out every possibility in my brain before acting:  good in some situations, not good in racquetball :).   Yet, my time on the racquetball court helped train my brain to think and act in a pressure situation.

So, as I am going through my notes from previous seminars, etc, I came across this quote from an article written by Robert Harris, "On the Purpose of a Liberal Arts Education" (my copy is from March 14, 1991).  It is under the heading: "The more you learn, the more you can learn" (which goes against my old belief that my brain would just fill up and run out of room--not logical, but real to me :).)
"Good learning habits can be transferred from one subject to another.  When a basketball player lifts weights or plays handball in preparation for basketball, no one asks, "What good is weightlifting or handball for a basketball player?" because it is clear that these exercises build the muscles, reflexes and coordination that can be transferred to basketball--building them perhaps better than endless hours of basketball practice would.  the same is true of the mind.  Exercise in various areas builds brainpower for whatever endeavor you plan to pursue."

So is that why Yale was content with "Celtic Archaelogy" as a credit towards fulfilling my generals for graduation? :)  [We learned about the "evolution" of the safety pin from the dawn of time, and I wondered how that was going to help in my overall education--now I know :)!]

(For full article, see: Robert Harris: "On the purpose of a liberal arts education" at http://www.virtualsalt.com/libarted.htm)

Love thy enemies...

As I go to my "seminar" (i.e. hide in my parent's room consolidating all my notes from previous seminars while my brother and Quinn watch all the kids for two days), I overheard something I had to jot down:

Avot and Kelraiser were doing some cute dialog back and forth, when I heard Avot say: "Love your enemies!  Pray for them which despitefully use you and persecute you!  When you love your enemies, they are no longer your enemies!"  Made me think....and I like that :)!  While I know there are people who will continue to harbor hatred and meanness despite my feelings, the feelings of enmity I may have towards them will dissolve in the power of love, and I will not be poisoned or burdened with that enmity.

Reminds me of Ghandi, and so many other great thinkers we have studied over the past couple years.  For instance, it reminds me of a story from Buddha, where a young man came up to him, cursing and ridiculing him, telling him he was no sort of holy man, that he was a fake, and the young man couldn't stand him.  Buddha replied something like, "If you go and buy a present and give it to someone, and they refuse the gift, to whom does the present belong?" Taken aback, the young man said, after some thought, "He who purchased the gift in the first place."

"So it is with your anger. I refuse it take it, so the anger becomes yours and I am not burdened with it," replied the Buddha.

Wow.  Love it!

Moving update

Our house has been on the market for a little under a month.  We've had some lookers, but no takers yet, but know it will work out.  Quinn is  a smarty-pants and the lookers say we have it in the right price range, but, since it is a "buyer's market", they can be a little more picky about things like radiant heat.  (I loved it, but the most-recent viewers were concerned about the safety of it...so sad for them :S...and us, I guess :)!)

Meanwhile, I am enjoying organizing, refining what we really need and getting rid of more and more, loving not having so much space to clean up (the kids do too :), imagine that!), spending so much great down time with family (with the occasional Karaoke and dinner group mixed in for extra pleasure), and still being able to see my dear people from where we just moved occasionally...although the brief interactions are never enough!

Oh, and I love, love, love living in a house on a circle...my kids play for hours on their bikes and scooters in the circle with no fear of fast cross traffic.  Loved my old house, but this is definitely a perk of the new one :)!

Covenants-an incredible blessing!

It's funny how leading a group or teaching a class can truly refine and teach you in the process :).

The other week I was teaching a little class on what I thought was an effective way to work with youth in a particular class I have been involved in.  We were discussing the importance of being people of our word, and I used the word "covenant" synonymously with "promise" or "contract".  In my mind, I kept pushing the use of the word "covenant" to signify how sacred it is to pledge our word to someone.  For instance in the Webster 1828 Dictionary it states:

COVENANT, n. [L, to come; a coming together; a meeting or agreement of minds.]
1. A mutual consent or agreement of two or more persons, to do or to forbear some act or thing; a contract; stipulation. A covenant is created by deed in writing, sealed and executed; or it may be implied in the contract.

However, I hesitated to use that term, as I kept also mentally going back to the use of the word "covenant" in my church, part of which matched the above definition, and part of which coincided with the following 1828 Dictionary found after the one above:

3. In theology, the covenant of works, is that implied in the commands, prohibitions, and promises of God; the promise of God to man, that mans perfect obedience should entitle him to happiness. This do, and live; that do, and die.
The covenant of redemption, is the mutual agreement between the Father and Son, respecting the redemption of sinners by Christ.
The covenant of grace, is that by which God engages to bestow salvation on man, upon the condition that man shall believe in Christ and yield obedience to the terms of the gospel.
4. In church affairs, a solemn agreement between the members of a church, that they will walk together according to the precepts of the gospel, in brotherly affection.

Bible Dictionary: COVENANT:" Sometimes denotes an agreement between persons (1 Sam. 23:18) or nations (1 Sam. 11:1); more often between God and man; but in this latter case it is important to notice that the two parties to the agreement do not stand in the relation of independent and equal contractors. God in his good pleasure fixes the terms, which man accepts. The same word is sometimes rendered “testament.”The gospel is so arranged that principles and ordinances are received by covenant placing the recipient under strong obligation and responsibility to honor the commitment.

A gentleman in the class I was teaching pointed out the importance of clarity while teaching youth, and, since most of them only knew the word "covenant" in the religious context, we should use a different term.  It was a good point, but has left me thinking about covenants a lot over the past couple weeks. 

So, when I read the recent (Nov 2011) LDS General Conference address about "Cleave unto Covenants" by Barbara Thompson, the following really stood out:
"In the scriptures we learn of men and women who have made covenants with God. God has given instructions on what to do to honor those covenants, and then as those covenants have been kept, the promised blessings have followed." 

It made me think about my baptismal covenants. As Sister Thompson put it: "We make a commitment to keep the commandments of God and remember the Savior always. We covenant to “bear one another’s burdens, that they may be light.” We indicate that we are willing to mourn with those who mourn and comfort those who need comfort." (ibid)

Nothing in that baptismal covenant (found, among other places, in Mosiah 18) says that Mary needs to take care of Mary first. In fact, it is all about bearing one another's burdens, mourning with those who mourn, standing as a witness and serving those who need it!  However, the promise of the covenant, is that God will take care of me.  You know, when I think about it, I would much rather have Heavenly Father see to my deepest needs and desires than myself, imperfectly trying to make myself happy with equal doses of chocolate chip cookie dough and "Pride and Prejudice" :). 

To be "redeemed of God" and to "always have His spirit to be with [me]" sounds pretty spectacular and would fill my cup easily in my darkest hours...

...and, in fact, it has already.

mathematical depiction of this truth:
service + selflessness = happiness (always)

"

 8 And it came to pass that he said unto them: Behold, here are the waters of Mormon (for thus were they called) and now, as ye are ^adesirous to come into the ^bfold of God, and to be called his people, and are willing to bear one another’s burdens, that they may be light;

 9 Yea, and are ^awilling to mourn with those that ^bmourn; yea, and comfort those that stand in need of comfort, and to stand as ^cwitnesses of God at all times and in all things, and in all places that ye may be in, even until death, that ye may be redeemed of God, and be numbered with those of the ^dfirst resurrection, that ye may have eternal life—

 10 Now I say unto you, if this be the desire of your hearts, what have you against being ^abaptized in the ^bname of the Lord, as a witness before him that ye have entered into a ^ccovenant with him, that ye will serve him and keep his commandments, that he may pour out his Spirit more abundantly upon you?"

Quote by Joseph Smith

“Our only confidence can be in God; our only wisdom obtained from Him; and He alone must be our protector and safeguard, spiritually and temporally, or we fall.” (Joseph Smith, Teachings of, pg 161)

How to teach brilliant kids?

As we prepare to leave the country, I have been pondering how I can teach my teenagers who are taking off in their education.  There is no way I can read all that they read and still be a mom, let alone teach the younger ones.  I have prayed and pondered about the answer for a while, and, yesterday, I read this article in the Ensign that perfectly answered my question.

http://www.lds.org/general-conference/2011/10/teaching-after-the-manner-of-the-spirit?lang=eng

Here are a couple of key quotes that stood out to me, for those who don't have the time to read the whole thing:

"While we are all teachers, we must fully realize that it is the Holy Ghost who is the real teacher and witness of all truth. Those who do not fully understand this either try to take over for the Holy Ghost and do everything themselves, politely invite the Spirit to be with them but only in a supporting role... All parents, leaders, and teachers have the responsibility to teach “by the Spirit.”

"...First, the Holy Ghost teaches individuals in a very personal way. This makes it possible for us to intimately know truth for ourselves. Because of our different needs, circumstances, and progression, the Holy Ghost teaches what we must know and do so we may become what we must be...

"...With the current conditions of the world, we desperately need real learning and teaching in our homes, meetings, and gospel classes. I know that your quest to improve may seem overwhelming at times. Please do not become discouraged with your progress. I think back on my experience hiking with my children (he shared this in the article). We agreed that every time we stopped to catch our breath, rather than focusing exclusively on how much farther we needed to go, we would immediately turn around and look down the mountain. We would take in the scenery and say to each other, “Look how far we’ve come.” Then we would take a deep breath, quickly turn, face uphill, and start climbing again one step at a time. Brothers and sisters, you can parent, lead, and teach after the manner of the workings of the Spirit. I know you can do this. I testify you can do this, and lives will change. <sup>"

This whole article reminded me of a conversation I had with a very wise friend about 7 years ago on the way to a TJEd conference.  The topic was mentors, and I was speculating aloud who my mentor would be who would take me where I needed to go.  She asked why I wanted a mentor...what specifically I was seeking for in them.   As I pondered this question, she said something like, "I think the only true mentor we need to turn to is God, and if we seek His direction, He will mentor us."  We went on to discuss how there are definitely people we meet who teach us specific things and can guide us in specific areas, but she counseled against leaning too heavily on any one mentor,..."they just don't know you and who you are and where you are at...only God does." 

Being reminded of this conversation, I realized that the very intense and personal mentoring I had experienced over the past five years from Heavenly Father could be experienced by my children, and that He could very specifically direct them as He has so specifically directed me: read this book, read this article, go to this class, don't finish this book--you've got what you needed out of it, talk to this person, write this down, share this, forward this article, stay home with your family--you don't need this one, etc.  It has been amazing, and always, always done quietly.  I have learned to trust this voice, this voice of my Perfect Mentor, even if I am not perfect yet at following it.  

However, unlike earthly mentors, He has limitless resources, time, knowledge, and personal acquaintance with me and the needs of my husband, family, and extended family and how my education can fit in with those responsibilities.  It has been amazing to see Him use this cracked pot (me :)...) create wonders and beauty that I have been able to stand back and see His hand in, even while fully aware of my weaknesses.   (I have also learned that He provides the water :)...see the "cracked pot parable".)</sup>

cracked pot parable

I refer to this in the next post, but couldn't find it in my previous posts, so here it is again...well worth twice, if it is already on my blog :):

A water bearer in China had two large pots, each hung on the ends of a pole, which he carried across his neck. One of the pots had a crack in it, while the other pot was perfect and always delivered a full portion of water. At the end of the long walk from the stream to the house, the cracked pot arrived only half full. For a full two years this went on daily, while the bearer delivered only one and a half pots of full water to his house. Of course, the perfect pot was proud of its accomplishments, perfect for which it was made. But the poor cracked pot was ashamed of its own imperfection and miserable that it was able to accomplish only half of what it had been made to do.

After two years of what it perceived to be bitter failure, it spoke to the water bearer one day
by the stream. "I am ashamed of myself and because this crack in my side causes water to leak out all
the way back to your house."

The bearer said to the pot, "Did you notice that there were flowers only on your side of the
path, but not on the other pot's side? That's because I have always known about your flaw and I
planted flower seeds on your side of the path. Every day while we walked back, you've watered them. For two years I have been able to pick these beautiful flowers to decorate the table. Without you being just the way you are, there would not be this beauty to grace this house."

Moral: Each of us has our own unique flaws. We're all cracked pots. But it's the cracks and flaws we each have that make our lives together so very interesting and rewarding. You've just got to take each person for what they are and look for the good in them.

woman takes on the computer...and loses again

The other day, I was being a good homeschooling mom and getting some worksheets and coloring pages ready for a "preschool" class that has actually morphed into a handwriting/cursive/letter class for all but the two oldest kids. [I told the "olders" of the "youngers", that it is geared towards Pipalicious and Hava-lava, but they could come if they want to help, or participate nicely. ]

We have had great fun in this class, but, as with most things I get engaged in for my kids, at one point or another it becomes the battle of the computer!  Something goes wrong, something won't open, the computer freezes, or the printer has some kind of mystical problem with it.

Now, you would think that, being a daughter of a brilliant computer analyst and sister to so many computer geniuses, some of it would rub off.  Well....no.  :)

So, when the computer becomes a living thing to me, a creature with many evil, ugly heads, reared up to attack, I do the only thing I know how to do: rant, rave, shut it off, and curse the thing.  Okay, maybe I just rant a little and shut it off, but these "problems" sure seems to happen often!  Right in the middle of a brilliant mother moment, the only thing that seems to stand between me and success is some fluky bug in the computer. 

Nice. 

So I did what any self-respecting homeschool mom does: I walked away from the computer and my nicely planned lesson, and faked it.

*******
Although, that leads me to another thought (imagine that...me?).  It reminds me about how in the ancient history times I am studying with my "olders", when the people were ignorant of the cycles of nature and basic laws of the universe (as I am of the computer), the world around them became a mystical land, full of demons and gods at war with one another and the humans (just as the computer problems I face seem to be supernatural and "out to get me").

Hey!  And that can relate to our relationships with others!  When we are ignorant of people and their situations (which, most of the time, we are), it is easy to be offended by something they do and say. We create in our minds situations where other people are devious and scheming--out to get us!--, when, really, almost always, there is some kind of story behind why they are acting how they are, often with nothing to do with us.

(See an amazing blogpost on this at: http://www.decentlittlecottage.blogspot.com/...hope that is alright, Julie!) 

Ignorance sure isn't bliss, sometimes. :)

My friend shared a story in Relief Society many years ago that relates to this:  She said that she often has a problem with "road rage".  She read a story about another woman who likes to make up reasons why people are behaving poorly on the road: i.e.  perhaps they cut her off because they were in a rush to get to the hospital to have a baby.  Well, my friend, being the good woman she is, decided to commit herself to applying this.

The next time someone cut her off and she felt her temper rising, she raised her clenched fist at the person, shook it, and shouted angrily (in her car, of course): "Have a nice baby!!!!!"

Good intentions :).

When we shout, do they really hear more?

I have struggled over the years with raising my voice when in situations of stress or high demand...

It came easily as a child as the oldest sister with 6 younger brothers.  It also came in handy while playing hard with the boys of the neighborhood growing up.  As drum major in high school, you could hear my voice across the whole school yard...a great thing when dealing with 150 students--all with instruments.

Whenever I drop something on my toe, or bang something, whether it hurts or not, my first reaction is to let out some little (or big) sound in response.

So, when it came to parenting, unfortunately, "a soft answer turneth away wrath" was not my modus operandi.

It doesn't help, of course, that my volume at full blast far exceeds almost any other human being I have met.  (My mom used to use me to get the attention of a gym full of noisy youth.)  Unlike those delicate friends of mine, whose raging rampages are barely heard outside the room they are in, if I let in to my passionate frustration, the whole neighborhood can hear.

Well, after working on this for long years, I have found techniques to curb this explosive first reaction: deep breaths, personal time outs, and just keeping my mouth closed :).  Yet, it still was a challenge to keep my loud voice in check.

I have also had powerful lessons:
-the exploding peach jar analogy--I'll post this some other time...
-fasting..."some spirits (habits) goeth not out but by fasting and prayer"
-articles like the one about environment for kids (see posting on "amazing blog post on environment in the home") 
-memorizing a scripture on "Charity" in Moroni for a youth group.

For instance, one day I testified to a child (who is subject to the same explosive reactions) that if they knelt down and prayed right where they were, it would make a difference.  The very next day, as I was faced with a choice to give into my sudden (and, as always, "justified" (hahahaha)) feeling of anger, the words I said to that child came to me.  I was mad at the "interruption" of the natural flow of my anger, but knew that I would be a hypocrite: If I could testify to him that it worked, why wouldn't I do it?

With feelings of stubbornness and resentment I knelt in my anger, right where I was.  I started out, unable to say anything, when I found that all I could say was: "Please, Father, help me with my anger...take it away."  I cannot describe what happened next, but my anger was instantly gone, replaced with feelings of humility, as I wept, kneeling at the threshold of my God...on my cold hard kitchen floor, surrounded by my puzzled children.

Experiences like these have truly shaped me, as the Lord has helped me battle through this weakness of mine.

Well, the reason for writing all of that today, is that I read this article in the Deseret News the other day, and thought,  "This man really knows what he is talking about!"

Here it is, totally worth it.

http://www.deseretnews.com/article/865550023/If-God-whispers-to-us-why-do-we-shout-to-others.html

(Funny thing, I normally don't do more than skim the titles of a couple pages of the paper every day or so...this one was right in front of me, left out by one of the kids or someone else where they left it, and it was just what I needed...)

I felt like this article went hand in hand with my quest to learn to parent as Heavenly Father parents us, His children.
 

Saliva...the all-powerful cure?

We watched a show about our awesome bodies the other day, and, according to Discovery Kids, our saliva actually can speed up the healing of our scars and wounds.

Mother's kisses are really magical?

The show also showed how our brains and muscles are made of up a large percentage of water...which proves Quinn's point:
"Drinking more water helps: increase energy, make you feel better, ease headaches, etc. etc. etc."
(My kids just know that if they come to Quinn with some type of ailment or concern, his first response is going to be, "Drink more water...")

The other prodigal

I was thinking this morning about the prodigal son-- of the hearty, warm welcome home he received.   It made me think first of the path of the prodigal. He suffers so greatly, and his father welcomes him home. I then thought about the jealous older brother and the father's comment that “all that he hath” will the older brother inherit—as a way to reassure him. Then I wondered/thought: Our Father doesn't have to divide up His kingdom...if that prodigal fully repents, he, too, may partake of all that his Father hath! Do some of us feel like the older brother: do we really need more than what our Heavenly Father enjoys? Do we really need it all so that others may not have some? [And on that thought, (from “If You Could Hie to Kolob”) there is no end to matter...to space!]

So, the elder brother has always been with his Father...has never felt the heart-wrenching hollowness of separation from Him. The younger brother has suffered greatly for his consequences already. Why can not the elder son just be happy for the younger one? (See the great talk by Elder Holland on “The Other Prodigal” for some incredible thoughts on this...http://www.lds.org/general-conference/2002/04/the-other-prodigal?lang=eng&query=other+prodigal)

our "doors in the wall"

I read “The Door in the Wall” recently to my kids, a book about a boy in the middle ages who becomes lame before he gets a chance to go apprentice as a knight. His world seems hopeless when a monk comes along and starts pointing out “doors in the wall”, or ways to help him get through the seemingly endless walls before him. It touches on work, determination, developing skills like carving and music that he can do, education in other ways—like reading--, and attitude as “doors” in his “wall” of trials. Since then, it seems so applicable when I am faced with obstacles. Even though they seem to stretch on, I love the analogy that if we go along far enough or work hard enough, we can find a door in our wall.

I was struck by a further comparison this morning in my scripture reading: in 2 Ne. 31:7-9, Nephi reminds us of the straitness of the path and the narrowness of the gate, which is the way to eternal life. It made me think that the basics of the gospel: baptism, repentance, faith, and following the promptings of the Holy Ghost. They are precise, but they are the sure gate to happiness and eternal life :). It reminded me of the statement made by C.S. Lewis in “Mere Christianity”: he comments about how people want God to make religion simple, “as if 'religion' were something God invented, and not His statement to us of certain quite unalterable facts about His own nature.” (pg 41) The “doors in the wall” of baptism and repentance are not some hoops God made for us to jump through, but things He knows are eternal principles that will lead us to eternal life and salvation. He wants us to be where He is, so He has told us the way through the prophets and shown us the way through the living example of His Son. So cool!

showering love?

When she deigns to join us in prayer :), Papaya, will stand on the bench up to the table, lower her head until it touches the surface, extend her hands onto the table on either side, and hold that position until we are done. Silly girl. She has also started biting playfully, so I get stressed sometimes with all her loving, hugging and kisses—nervous that she will surprise me with a bite of her sharp little teeth :). She loves everyone in our house, and will go around a room, like in FHE the other night, and give hugs and kisses and smiles...showering love all over...

...what would happen if I were like that? Hmmmmm.....

She also gives her father quite the intense kisses.  When he is laying down on the floor guiding us in scripture study, she likes to run up to him and play with him.  She used to just straddle his head and then squish her diaper down on his face (yummy).  Now, she gives him big slobbery kisses for quite some length of time,...in fact, the other night, she grabbed both sides of his head in a sideways embrace and held on while slobbering all over his mouth and nose.  Daddy asked if she learned that while watching Disney movies :)....

journal-Hava-lava-"isms"

February 3, 2012

Hava-lava pled with me the other day: “I need chocolate to make my body happy,... to make me feel better!” Amen, sister.

Goober did an amazing star presentation for Knights of Freedom the other day. He is quite the genius with creating this presentation. It was on space and black holes and had great info, fun graphics, awesome pictures, and was funny and pure Goober. It is fun to see his personality in the things he creates. The world he creates someday will have lots of awesome animals and colorful, exciting things :)! 

Funny how he can know and do something like that and not know how many months there are in a year...can you say "gaps in education"?  And the joyful part is I have no one to blame but myself :)...Fortunately, he learns fast and the situation has been remedied.    He knows now the number, name, and even the number of days in each month--homeschool success story!!

Hava-lava just said, “Excuse me, mom, excuse me, mom, excuse me, mom....” again and again, and I said, “Please wait for a minute while I finish typing” to which she replied, “Darn it! No!!, mom!” That's my Hava-lava...

Hava-lava tries to insist that I watch her go potty every day, every time. Whew. What a girl. She is in time out a lot, puts her animals in time out, and, if she knows she has done something wrong (normally on purpose :)...) she will ask, “I go to time out?” When I say, “yes”, she will normally say something like, “I don't want to go to time out!” What a spunky monkey.  She is definitely one who likes to see consistency, and likes to test the system :).

Battle of for our brains?

A quote from an amazing article...

“The battle today, between Babylon and Zion, is being waged between the synapses of our brains.”

Article:  http://segullah.org/daily-special/the-battle-in-our-brains/#comments

Just wanted to share it, since it is rather thought-provoking!

Poem about relishing life...

Have you ever watched kids

On a merry-go-round?

Or listened to the rain

Slapping on the ground?

Ever followed a butterfly's erratic flight?

Or gazed at the sun into the fading night?

You better slow down.

Don't dance so fast.

Time is short.

The music won't last.

 

            Do you run through each day

            On the fly?

            When you ask, "How are you?"

            Do you hear the reply?

            When the day is done

            Do you lie in your bed

            With the next hundred chores

            Running through your head?

            You'd better slow down

            Don't dance so fast.

            Time is short.

            The music won't last.

 

Ever told your child,

We'll do it tomorrow?

And in your haste,

Not see his sorrow?

Ever lost touch,

Let a good friendship die

Cause you never had time

To call and say "Hi"?

You'd better slow down.

Don't dance so fast.

Time is short.

The music won't last.

 

            When you run so fast to get somewhere

            You miss half the fun of getting there.

            When you worry and hurry through your day,

            It is like an unopened gift.... Thrown away.

            Life is not a race.

            Do take it slower

            Hear the music

            Before the song is over.

    - David L. Weatherford

a little too fast?

The other day I had an experience that has stayed with me.  My littlest kids and I were with a friend, who was in charge of watching a bunch of little ones for our youth group.  She has this great activity in which the kids take turns being the leader as they all have musical instruments and march around the room.  At first, it was great!  People were taking turns nicely, the ones following did so pretty well, and everyone was having fun.

Then, some of the older kids thought it would be fun to zoom fast and crazy around the room.  Well, it was fun for them, but the sweet littler ones couldn't keep up or follow and rather quickly became confused.  There was no parade anymore.

Of course, the kids were okay with it...it didn't really matter to them :). However, it made me think about speed.

I have had many people tell me that I speak quickly, think quickly, and process and move on with things quickly.  My dad at a very early age asked me to either slow down or speak more clearly...I opted to shoot for the second, for whatever reason. 

While there are definitely advantages to speed  (I can think rather quickly on my feet which can be an advantage with nine children), there are also major disadvantages!  For instance, I think of so many options to any given scenario, I am sometimes paralyzed into inaction when trying to decide between and weigh each one out in my mind.

When I saw those children, I thought back on a moment where I saw myself on a video recording...or I should say, listened to myself.  I talked ridiculously fast! And, I realized that I spoke that way a lot!  I not only spoke that way, but I act that way as well.  It is as if with each kid I gradually began doing and speaking faster and faster to compensate.  The older kids have gotten used to it...the younger ones have been a little lost in the process :).

For instance, I know that my kids do many things well; however, there are definitely some key bits of knowledge missing from their education.  Example:  The other day I watched a dear friend teaching her youngest child a preschool lesson about the calendar and seasons.  "What a great idea!" I thought, and set up my own little time to teach.  As I welcomed some of my younger ones to the activity, some of the "middle" ones trickled in with interest.  I began to ask, "who knows how many months there are in the year?"  Silence.  A couple hesitant guesses finally came out: "two?", "four?" "uh, seven?" (This last one coming from my 10 year old.)

Oh my :).

They quickly learned them (well, the older ones did, and no harm done), but it made me think about some of the dangers of trying to "maximize" my time by accelerating so fast.  My little ones, like the ones in that parade line, are left disoriented and confused, unsure of where to go.

Since then, I have taken time to sit and carefully explain things to my little ones in words they understand, rather than hurriedly rushing towards some level of comprehension and moving on.  I have taken time to s-p-e-a-k s-l-o-w-e-r.

I have also experienced another instance of how my speed needs to be kept in check.  I have a sweet friend whose opinions and thoughts I have missed many times because I haven't been still in our conversations as she analyzes, muses, and contemplates an issue before giving feedback or forming opinions.  I tend to rush from one topic to the next, piggy-backing on idea after idea.  There are so many times when this "piggy-backing" is a good thing...but not so much in friendships and not with people, I am finding more and more :).  Fortunately, like I said, she still loves me after all these years, but I have been grateful with her gentle recent reminder of who she is and how she thinks.

So, speed has its place, but there is also blessings to be unveiled, discovered, and relished in the slow, still moments of life.

(Kid's book to go with it..."Zippety-zoom".)

It is better to look up...

It is interesting how bogged down we can get when we are looking down...or thinking too much about "me".  It has struck me this week that this is the big obstacle with me embracing what God wants me to do as a wife, mother, friend, and daughter.  I came across this cool quote today:

"Experience has taught me that if we, like President Monson, exercise our faith and look to God for help, we will not be overwhelmed with the burdens of life. We will not feel incapable of doing what we are called to do or need to do. We will be strengthened, and our lives will be filled with peace and joy.³ We will come to realize that most of what we worry about is not of eternal significance—and if it is, the Lord will help us. But we must have the faith to look up and the courage to follow His direction." (Elder Cook, Oct. 2011)

Most of what I worry about is not of eternal significance.  As I watch friends struggle through horrendous trials of truly eternal nature, I catch glimpses of how shallow some of my concerns are that I weigh myself down with.  I think a lot of this is due to pride, an inflated sense of worries and struggles in my life, many of which are created by myself :)...all of which can be affected by my attitude.  Awesome.