Ministering Sisters

            About eighteen years ago my Relief Society president, Sue Smith, came to me with a proposal. She expressed concern that the younger mothers didn’t have the advantage, as we did, of mother education lessons that were once part of the Relief Society curriculum. She asked if I would write a mother education lesson each month that would be printed on the back of the visiting teaching message to be left in the homes of the sisters. She gave me a list of topics, and I enthusiastically agreed to write the lessons if I could remain anonymous. I felt the teachings would be more effective if no one knew who authored them. The plan worked, and the ward sisters were receptive. But as the lessons emerged, I realized that most of the lessons were not specifically for mothers, because all women inspire children, and the lessons were basically the gospel in action—which, of course, applies to everyone. (With the church-wide restructuring of visiting teaching, my lessons have also become a

Chapter 1: The Ministering Dilemma Chapter 2: Can Everyone Find Happiness ? Chapter 3: It's Fine to Have Problems Chapter 4: Parallel Marriage and Grandeur Peak Chapter 5: Surviving Hard Times Chapter 6: Bad and Good Marriage Advice Chapter 7: What's in a Name? Chapter 9: The Code Word is Lift Chapter 10: Why July? Chapter 11: Who Can Help You Reach your Potential? Chapter 12: Praying with Please and Thank You Chapter 13: My Way or God's Way Chapter 14: Continuing or Beginning a Strong Family Legacy Chapter 15: Miserable or Joyful ? Chapter 16: Getting from Regret to Reconciliation Chapter 17: On Living in Someone Else's Home Chapter 18: RebuildingRelationships Chapter 19: On the Street Where You Live Chapter 20: I Was There and I Was Famous Chapter 21: Dining with Jesus Chapter 22: Feeling Another's Pain Chapter 23: Experiencing Experience s Chapter 24: Feeling Unappreciated and Alone? Chapter 25: In Good and Bad Times Chapter 26: See the Good i

              Like many of you, I have been thinking about  ministering . My Relief Society president assigned me a companion and a few sisters to watch over. I am to  minister  to them according to their needs as guided by the spirit—however, whenever, and wherever. As I tried to put this new assignment into practical application, I thought about the geography that is involved. (If you are thinking, “geography? really?,” stay with me.) All ward leaders from Primary president to bishop are limited in their service by ward boundaries. Stake leaders are the same. The stake president has no jurisdiction outside the borders of his stake. Missionaries receive a call to serve in a specific mission and, as assigned by the mission president, have authority to preach and teach in whatever area within the mission he directs. General church leaders have assigned limits. Members of the quorums of the Seventy receive changing local assignments as they organize stakes weekend after weekend. They

            I don't just believe in " the pursuit of happiness ," I believe in finding happiness and capturing it to make it part of my allotted time on earth. Yet I ask myself, is it realistic to think everyone can find happiness or is it Pollyannaish?             Not all lives have fairytale endings. My friend fell in the night and hit her head. By the time her son found her, she had passed away. Her family will remember the day forever, but even more so her oldest daughter, Sherrie, because it was her birthday. At the funeral, Sherrie explained how at first she was angry that her beloved mother was gone and especially angry because forever after, her birthday would be on an anniversary of her mother's death.             Then she told about a business book she had read on reframing and how if you reframe problems, your outlook can change. Between the dreadful day and the funeral, she did reframe. As she spoke of her mother's good qualities, she explained how she

            Mariah, my sixteen-year-old granddaughter, and I exchanged texts:             Mariah: Grandma, I found a quote I thought you would like. “The person who says it cannot be done should not interrupt the person doing it.”             Me: True.             Mariah: Here’s another one. Wayne Gretzky a famous ice hockey player said: “You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take.”             Me: So true. Thanks for sending these quotes. How are you?             Mariah: Good and u?             Me: Same. And it is good to be good.             Mariah: Yep. And it’s fine to have problems too.            I was more than surprised at Mariah’s response and wondered what leads a sixteen-year-old young woman to such a mature awareness. How could she know it is fine to have problems? Doesn’t everyone try to avoid problems at all costs? Aren’t problems ugly and messy and painful and sad and totally unwanted complications to life?             How has Mariah at such a young age discovered this tr

(This chapter contains good, solid marital advice for emotionally healthy individuals. It is not good advice where physical, verbal, emotional, or sexual abuse is involved. If the abuser is not willing to get help, the advice that follows isn't enough.)             Our back living room window looks at Grandeur Peak , which is east of Salt Lake City, where we have lived for more than forty years. From time to time family members have lamented that Grandeur Peak was not more like Mount Olympus, which is about a mile to the south and grander than Grandeur Peak in every way. Mount Olympus is about eight hundred feet higher, has much more vegetation with thousands of stately pines, and has a noble-looking summit. In comparison, Grandeur Peak is barren, rounded, and plain. However, an imperceptible change has incrementally been occurring, and last fall it became a topic of conversation. For the first time, our family and visitors looked out the window in awe. The formerly desolate landsc