When Storms Come

In the movie The Count of Monte Cristo, the Count is attending the birthday dinner of Mercedes' son, Albert Mondego. He gives the birthday toast and during that toast he says something that has always stuck with me. When talking about the storms of life, he repeats something Albert said weeks earlier when he was accosted in an alleyway, and adds some extra words of wisdom to it. He said, "When those storms come, say to them, 'Do your worst, for I will do mine.'"

Everyone has times in their life when storms rage and you wonder if one of these times you will be washed away with the tide. I know I do. Yet somehow we stand strong. We are somehow gifted with the strength to withstand the raging waters and go on.

We will be told at different times in our lives that God will not give us more than we can handle. He lets it rain and He lets the winds blow, because He knows it is for our good. He knows we must learn and grow and become stronger.
How grateful I am for that.

So when we faces those storms in life, let's quote the Count of Monte Cristo and say "Come on! Do your worst, for I will do mine!" Then learn and grow from the experiences:-)

Suggested Reading

Book: The Peacegiver
Author: James L. Ferrell

The Book
How is Christ the answer to a strained relationship with child, parent or sibling? What if I am being mistreated — what does the atonement say about that? How can I discover the desire to repent when I don't feel the need to repent? These are the challenging questions of daily life, the questions to which the gospel must provide an answer if it is to have living, cleansing, redeeming power.

The Peacegiver is a book about the answers to these questions. In both content and form it is unlike other books about the atonement, for it unfolds as compelling story in which the characters learn about the Atonement as they struggle over the problems in their lives — problems we each share. The book therefore allows us not only to "learn about" the Atonement but also to have an experience with it.

"My peace I give unto you," the Savior declared. The Peacegiver explores in a deeply personal way what we must do to receive the peace he stands willing to give.

No matter how many times I read this book, I always come away learning something new, and even though I still have so much more to learn, this book has helped me to understand the atonement more than I ever had before.
Get your copy of The Peacegiver from your local bookstore or Amazon.com

Our World Is But Our Looking Glass

I have the privilege of associating with a lot of great women. Some are very outgoing and live life with gusto. Some are continually active, striving to do what they can to make our country and our world a better place, while others are shy and a little withdrawn and wonder if anything they do makes a difference.
A few weeks ago I was visiting with one of these amazing women. She is in her sixties, all of her kids are married with kids of their own, and she and her husband raise sheep, goats, and cows.
While we visited, she apologized to me for not reaching out more and said she had a hard time getting to know people. She also said she didn't think there was much about herself that was interesting, and she didn't think she had anything to say that people would want to hear.

I told her she couldn't be more wrong.

Everyone has something special about them because everyone is special and has something to contribute. We just tend to forget from time to time. Some of us forget and never can remember.
We are all of worth and worthy of being loved, if we let ourselves be.
So even if you are shy, introverted, or withdrawn, you're still pretty amazing. If no one ever tells you that, then I will. You're amazing!

Here is a beautiful little poem to help us remodel our outlook on life and ourselves.

Mind is the master power that molds and makes,
And we are Mind, and evermore we take
The tool of thought, and shaping what we will,
Bring forth a thousand joys, a thousand ills,
We think in secret, and it comes to pass -
Our world is but our looking glass.
-- James Allen

Suggested Reading

Book: Stardust of Yesterday
Author: Lynn Kurland

The Book
Inheriting a castle--and a ghost to go with it--Genevieve Buchanan finds herself falling in love with the spectre of Kendrick de Piaget, an arrogant thirteenth-century knight.

Genevieve Buchanan inherited a castle-and a ghost to go along with it. But Kendrick de Piaget was no typical ghost. He was a handsome and infuriatingly arrogant thirteenth-century knight.
At first he wanted to frighten Genevieve, though she was more charmed than scared by his ghostly tricks. But when his thoughts turned to wooing her instead, Genevieve had to face her greatest fear: falling in love.

Dano the Mano!

Today I have been having a major blog-writing block today, so a little while ago, my 14 year old son happened to be in the room and I asked him what I should write about. He said, and these are his words, "Write about me, because I'm cool and people want to hear about me." And this coming from a kid who always gives one-word answers, has a very sneaky smile, and has at least two spastic moments a day. (Wait, actually all my kids have spastic moments!)
So I dedicate today's blog to my son, Daniel, the coolest 6'2, lanky 14 year old I know:-)

Suggested Reading

Book: The Birthright
Author: Loralee Evans
The Book
As a young girl, Miriam must flee her home in a Lamanite village to escape her birthright—to be offered as a sacrifice to the Lamanite gods. During her flight in the deep jungles, Miriam crosses paths with Jacob, a young Nephite soldier who saves her life and leads her to safety among the Nephites. Years later, now a young woman, Miriam meets Jacob again. She is surprised to find that the sisterly affection she felt for him so long ago has developed into something deeper. But before she or Jacob can discover their true feelings for one another, war comes to the lands of the Nephites, and both Miriam and Jacob find themselves thrown into a whirlwind of struggles. As they fight to keep their faith alive, they are drawn even closer together.

I've read this book several times and I enjoy the story more each time I read it:-)

The Route by Gale Sears

I had the opportunity to read The Route by Gale Sears and I was pleasantly surprised by how much I liked it. Since I'm only 45, and nowhere near retirement age (except according to my kids) I don't normally read books where the story is centered around the older generation, but I came away with a lot of lessons from this book, things I have always known but need to be reminded of every now and then. I also reminded myself that 45 is only five years away from 50!:-)

The Book
Zipping along life's highway . . .
Fifty makes you think. Thirty makes you morose, and forty makes you
panic, but fifty makes you think. Half a century, and what is my life?
Does it resemble anything I dreamed at sixteen, or expected at twenty,
or hoped at twenty-five? What am I doing here? . . . I thought of
climbing to the top of a high mountain in Tibet to consult a wise man,
but I like vacations where there is indoor plumbing and vegetation.
Since I already attended church, I thought perhaps I could pay closer
attention. Maybe I'd been missing a great fundamental truth. Well,
come to find out, I had been missing something. . . . (excerpt from The
Route)

Carol, a middle-aged wife and mother, is pondering the meaning
of life. On a trip to the grocery store to find some energizing dark
chocolate, she sees a sign asking for volunteers to deliver meals to
the elderly. When Carol decides to take a chance and help out, she's
in for a life-changing, and route-altering experience.

I loved all the characters in this story because they were all diverse and I know women that are exactly like each one. I've always been one to appreciate what the elderly give to the world and The Route just reiterated to me how special they are, whether they be sweet, cranky, or quirky:-)
To learn more about Gale and her books, visit her website at www. GaleSears.com