What we "Think" is What We Are

Today, I hope no one will think poorly of me for sharing something I have written in my journal. I am studying a book, "Mind Management" and I am keeping a journal about my thoughts and about what I am learning and/or desire to remember. I have always been intrigued by the power of our thought-processes and the power of our thoughts and I find this book very motivating. I know the scripture, "As a man thinketh in his heart, so is he," is true. Now, here is my journal entry:

"I am so intrigued by the power of our minds. I could study about this for hours a day. This morning I read the chapter, 'Your Mind Thinks Boundlessly.' I know I was told once after my brain activity had been tested because I was blanking out, that my brain waves were overly active and that even in my resting state they were overly active. Doctors determined that my blank-outs were my brain's way of getting a quick rest. Right or wrong on this analysis, I have always known that my mind never stops. Even Jeff becomes weary (I think--no pun intended) because I share so much of what I am thinking. He frequently says, 'Lori, you are such a deep thinker. Your brain never stops.' Now this morning I read this thought by Mark Twain and I am intrigued:

'What a wee little part of a person's life are his acts and his words! His real life is led in his head, and is known to none but himself. All day long, the mill of his brain is grinding, and his thoughts, not those other things, are his history. These are his life, and they are not written, and cannot be written...Biographies are but the clothes and buttons of the man--the biography of the man himself cannot be written.'

Thus, I see how important it is to control our thoughts. 'As a man thinketh in his heart, so is he,' is a truth revealed. I am what I think about. I do not have the time or convenience (for lack of better words) to waste my thoughts on ridicule of myself or others. Nor should I waste thought on selfish wants and petty imaginings.

Our minds need 'jump-starts' and the searching of scriptures and the reading from the 'best books' do this for me and others. Small children are truly blessed if they have parents read to them. Older children are blessed if they develop a love of reading.

This is so simple as stated on paper and yet so powerful if remembered and put into action!"

Julie B. Beck Women's Conference 2010

I hope you will take the time to listen to Julie B. Beck's talk at the 2010 Women's Conference. Here is the link: http://www.byutv.org/watch/175-1401

Her advice is sound and strong and I can say that she knows what she is talking about. Please take the time to listen to it often. You can also find it to print for those of you that like to read something over and over again.

Best wishes!

Our Nation WILL Stand!!!

With all the negatives that are around us, it is good to remember that we must have hope not fear and faith not worry. A good friend of mine (Dorothy Loveridge) sent me the quotes below. I had the thought that these thoughts should be ever-present in our minds. The best thing we can do for our spouse and our children is to trust that our leaders know what they are talking about and establish homes of positive remarks regarding the future of our nation. May we never forget to pray morning and night that our faith will overcome all worry and that we will truly trust in the Lord.

BRUCE R. McCONKIE

“It is our firm conviction as a people that the stars and stripes will be waving triumphantly in the breeze, as a symbol of the greatness and stability of the United States of America , when the Lord comes. This nation was established to be the Lord’s base of operations in this final gospel dispensation. From it the gospel is to go to every other nation and people. The greater its influence among the nations of the world, the more rapidly the gospel spreads. But the Lord has told us that all nations, the United States included, shall cease to be when he comes” (The Millennial Messiah, 491).


JOSEPH SMITH
We are fast approaching that moment prophesied by Joseph Smith when he said: ‘Even this nation will be on the very verge of crumbling to pieces and tumbling to the ground, and when the Constitution is upon the brink of ruin, this people will be the staff upon which the nation shall lean, and they shall bear the Constitution away from the very verge of destruction” (Church Historian’s Office, Salt Lake City, July 19, 1840) (The Teachings of Ezra Taft Benson, 623 - 624).


JOSEPH SMITH
Words of James Burgess: “In the month of May 1843, several miles east of Nauvoo, the Nauvoo Legion was on parade and review, at the close of which Joseph Smith made some remarks upon our condition as a people and upon our future prospects, contrasting our present condition with our past trials and persecutions by the hands of our enemies; also upon the Constitution and government of the United States, stating that the time would come when the Constitution and government would hang by a brittle thread and would be ready to fall into other hands, but this people, will step forth and save it. . . .I, James Burgess, was present and testify to the above” (The Words of Joseph Smith, 279).


EZRA TAFT BENSON
The Lord told the Prophet Joseph Smith there would be an attempt to overthrow the country by destroying the Constitution. Joseph Smith predicted that the time would come when the Constitution would hang, as it were, by a thread, and at that time ‘this people will step forth and save it from the threatened destruction’ (Journal of Discourses, 7:15). It is my conviction that the elders of Israel, widely spread over the nation, will at that crucial time successfully rally the righteous of our country and provide the necessary balance of strength to save the institutions of constitutional government” (The Teachings of Ezra Taft Benson, 618 - 619).


There are some extraordinary and very timely thoughts from President Harold B. Lee (speaking in October 1973)


President Lee:

Men may fail in this country, earthquakes may come, seas may heave beyond their bounds, there may be great drought, disaster, and hardship, but this nation, founded on principles laid down by men whom God raised up, will never fail. This is the cradle of humanity, where life on this earth began in the Garden of Eden. This is the place of the New Jerusalem. . . . This is the place where the Savior will come to His temple.

We are living in a time of great crisis. The Country is torn with scandal and with criticism, with faultfinding and condemnation. There are those who have downgraded the image of this nation as probably never before in the history of the country.

I plead with you not to preach pessimism. Preach that this is the greatest country in all the world. . . . It is the nation that will stand despite whatever trials or crises it may yet have to pass through.

We must be on the optimistic side. This is a great nation; this is a great country; this is the most favored of all lands. While it is true that there are dangers and difficulties that lie ahead of us, we must not assume that we are going to stand by and watch the country go to ruin. We should not be heard to predict ills and calamities for the nation. On the contrary, we should be providing optimistic support for the nation.

You must remember . . . that this church is one of the most powerful agencies for the progress of the world, and we should . . . all sound with one voice. We must tell the world how we feel about this land and this nation and should bear our testimonies about the great mission and destiny that it has.

If we do this, we will help turn the tide of this great country and lessen the influence of the pessimists. We must be careful that we do not say or do anything that will further weaken the country. It is the negative, pessimistic comments about the nation that do as much harm as anything to the country today. We who carry these sacred responsibilities must preach the gospel of peace, and peace can only come by overcoming the things of the world. Now, we must be the dynamic force that will help turn the tide of fear and pessimism.

(Excerpts from a talk given at Ricks College Devotional Assembly, “Have Faith in America,” October 26, 1973, and printed in two sources:Ye Are the Light of the World: Selected Sermons and Writings of Harold B. Lee, 340, 350-351, and The Teachings of Harold B. Lee, edited by Clyde J. Williams, 365-366.)

Something to Think About; Something to Talk About

As I read the following scriptures and commentary this morning, I thought that it was something to remember and apply and teach to our families on a regular basis—we must never forget:

“And now, in the first place, he hath created you, and granted unto you your lives, for which ye are indebted unto him. And secondly, he doth require that ye should do as he hath commanded you; for which if ye do, he doth immediately bless you; and therefore he hath paid you. And ye are still indebted unto him, and are, and will be, forever and ever; therefore, of what have ye to boast?” (Mosiah 2: 23-24)

To go with this, I read the following by Joseph F. Smith:

“I believe that one of the greatest sins of which the inhabitants of the earth are guilty today is the sin of ingratitude, the want of acknowledgement, on their part, of God and his right to govern and control. We see a man raised up with extraordinary gifts, or with great intelligence, and he is instrumental in developing some great principle. He and the world ascribe his great genius and wisdom to himself, He attributes his success to his own energies, labor and mental capacity. He does not acknowledge the hand of God in anything connected with his success, but ignores him altogether and takes the honor to himself; this will apply to almost all the world. In all the great modern discoveries in science, in the arts, in mechanics, and in all material advancement of the age, the world says, ‘We have done it.’ The individual says, ‘I have done it,’ and he gives no honor or credit to God. Now, I read in the revelations through Joseph Smith, the prophet, that because of this, God is not pleased with the inhabitants of the earth but is angry with them because they will not acknowledge his hand in all things.” (Gospel Doctrine pp. 270-71)

Brigham Young said:

“We are not our own, we are bought with a price, we are the Lord’s; our time, our talents, our gold and silver, our wheat and fine flour, our wine and our oil, our cattle, and all there is on this earth that we have in our possession is the Lord’s….
“...There is no man who ever made a sacrifice on this earth for the Kingdom of heaven, that I know anything about, except the Savior. He drank the bitter cup to the dregs, and tasted for every man and for every woman, and redeemed the earth and all things upon it. But he was God in the flesh, or he could not have endured it. ‘But we suffer, we sacrifice, we give something, we have preached so long.’ What for? ‘Why, for the Lord.’ I would not give the ashes of a rye straw for the man who feels that he is making sacrifice for God. We are doing this for our own happiness, welfare and exaltation, and for nobody else’s. This is the fact, and what we do, we do for the salvation of the inhabitants of the earth, not for the salvation of the heavens, the angels, or the Gods.” (Discourses of Brigham Young, pp. 176-77)

Family Home Evening--The Responsibility of Choice

Once a month I make a Family Home Evening Lesson to share with those who are in my church. I thought others may benefit from this, too. I apologize to those in my church who may have already used this lesson. Here it is:

LESSON IDEA:“The Responsibility of Choice” Please adjust lessons to age, time & needs of your family members.
Hymn #240, “Know This, That Every Soul Is Free”
Scriptures to Reference: Moses 4:1, 3; Moses3:15-17; Moses 5:15.

David O. McKay said the above “three passages demonstrate three fundamentals of life. First, that the Lord considered man’s free agency, his right to choose, so vital that he permitted what is referred to as a war in heaven; so vital that those who were with him in the spirit world had their choice to follow the dictator, known as the Evil One.

“The second was the privilege that those first parents had to take upon themselves mortality. You may choose, but remember, if you choose to take upon yourselves that mortality referred to as The Fall, then you shut yourselves out from his presence and you ‘shall surely die.’

“Third, Adam heard the voice of God ‘toward the garden.’ And the Lord gave him commandments, and said: ‘Offer unto me (Unto God) the firstlings of your flocks,’ and by inference we conclude ‘the best that you raise in the garden and the field.’ See what that means in developing spirituality? The first of the flock is the most luscious, the most tender, the best fleece. Selfishness, the animal nature, would say, ‘I want that,’ but God, knowing that the highest purpose of man is to develop the spirit within him, said, ‘Give the firstlings to God, thinking not of self, but of something higher.’ What a sublime purpose! What an essential purpose! It was as if the Lord said: ‘You who live in the earth need the experience to know good from evil, and to live not for yourself but for God. Whatever you do, do in his name. Therein is glimpsed the whole purpose of life.’” (Stepping Stones to an Abundant Life, pp 47-49.)

Goethe said, “Life is a quarry, out of which we are to mold and chisel and complete a character.”
We can choose but we must always remember, “For inasmuch as ye do it unto the least of these, ye have done it unto me.” (D&C 42:38) We can choose:
1) Selfishness or we can deny ourselves for the good of others.
2) Indulgence of appetite, passion, or we can develop restraint & self-control.
3) Licentiousness or chastity.
4) We can encourage hate or develop love.
5) We can practice cruelty or we can be kind.
6) We can be cynical or we can be sanguine—hopeful.
7) We can be traitorous—disloyal to those who love us, to our country, to the Church or to God or we can choose to be loyal.
8) We can be deceitful or we can be honest and have “our word be our bond.”
9) We can be slanderous or we can control our tongue.

No matter what problem you face in your daily life, always remember:

You are the person who has to decide
Whether you’ll do it or toss it aside.
You are the person who makes up your mind
Whether you’ll lead or will linger behind
Whether you’ll try for the goal that’s far
Or just be contented to stay where you are.

Whatever it is you are wanting to be,
Remember, to fashion the choice you are free.
Kindly or selfish, or gentle or strong,
Keeping the right way or taking the wrong,
Careless of honor or guarding your pride, All these are questions which you must decide.

Yours the selection, whichever you do;
The thing men call character’s all up to you.
(author unknown)

At this point in the lesson, you might ask family members if the world would be a better place if everyone tried to live the above 9 positive sides of the choices listed. If they can see that doing good to others, having self-control, being chaste, kind, etc. would make the world a better place, you can bear testimony that these things are true and right because the world would be a better place and our Father in Heaven and Jesus would be very pleased.

Refreshment idea: Make two or three desserts for family members to choose from. Tell them they can only choose one. Make all desserts look nice but make one particularly attractive and appealing. In this dessert add salt instead of sugar. Then, when one or all family members eat this, point out that they chose it. Make the comparison that there are always choices to be made in life and often the things that seem to be the funnest, most adventurous, most beautiful, etc. can be very appealing. One must be prayerful and cautious and look for possible consequences for choices that face them. A guide might be to ask themselves: “What would Jesus do?” “Would my choice help make the world a better, safer place?”

Guide for Responsible Decision Making

1- Define the problem.
2- Explore the alternatives.
3- Apply criteria for responsible decision making to each alternative:

***Would the results of my decision be healthful?
***Would the results of my decision be safe?
***Would the results of my decision be legal?
***Would the results of my decision show respect for others?
***Would the results of my decision follow my parent’s or guardian’s guidelines?

4- Identify values.
5- Make a prayerful, responsible decision and act upon it.
6- Evaluate your actions.


A CHANCE FOR THE FAMILY TO INTERACT:

Prepare in advance:
A Pot of soup or stew.
Attach spoons to arm-length dowels or get enough arm-length wooden spoons for each family member. Be prepared to attach a spoon to each family member’s arm by tying or taping the spoons above the elbow and on the forearm thus making it impossible to bend the elbow (You’ll understand why in a minute).
Read the following story so that you can understand the purpose for the long spoons.
Without telling family members the story, invite them to eat their soup or stew. Have fun with this. Take pictures, laugh, enjoy.
Later, you can share the story if needed. And if there are those that never thought of helping each other, assure them that that’s why we are still on earth—to learn from our experience. Ask them what they might do to assure that if a similar experience occurs in a real-life situation, that they will “think” to put others before themselves.

STORY (author unknown): A man had a dream that he had a conversation with the Lord and he asked, “Lord, I would like to know what Heaven and Hell are like.” So, the Lord led the man to two doors.

He opened one of the doors and the man looked in. In the middle of the room was a large round table. In the middle of the table was a large pot of stew which smelled delicious and made the man’s mouth water.

The people sitting around the table were thin and sickly. They appeared to be famished. They were holding spoons with very long handles that were strapped to their arms and each found it possible to reach into the pot of stew and take a spoonful. But, because the handle was long and attached to the length of their arms, they could not get the spoons back into their mouths.

The man shuddered at the sight of their misery and suffering.

The Lord said, “You have seen Hell.”

The Lord led the man to the next room and opened the door. Everything in the room appeared to be the same. There was the large round table with the large pot of stew which made the man’s mouth water. The people were equipped with the same long-handled spoons, but here the people were well-nourished and plump and they were laughing and talking. The man turned to the Lord and said, “I don’t understand.”

“It is simple,” said the Lord. “It requires but one skill. You see they have learned to feed each other, while the greedy think only of themselves.” Again, it’s all about CHOICE!

Ask yourself: Which position would I find myself in? Remember, when Christ died on the cross, he was thinking of you. Remember, “I will always share my spoon with you.”

Lazy Lady Stew

2 lbs. cubed stew meat
10 oz. pkg. frozen peas or 16 oz can of tiny peas
1 C sliced carrots
2 onions, chopped
2 potatoes, pared and sliced
1 tsp. salt
Dash of pepper
1 can cream of tomato soup
1/2 soup can water
1 bay leaf

Serves 4: Mix all ingredients in a large casserole. Cook, covered, in a 275 degree oven for 6 hours. The stew meat can be put in frozen, but increase the cooking time by 1 hour. Not only is this stew delicious, but it is unbelievably easy. Serve with Home Style Cornbread and a green salad. (You can easily double or triple these proportions and feed a crowd.)

Home Style Cornbread

1 C yellow cornmeal
1 C flour
1/4 C sugar
4 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1 C milk
1 egg
1/4 C vegetable oil

Make 1 dozen muffins, 14 corn sticks or 1 8-inch square pan: Mix cornmeal, flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Add milk, egg and shortening and beat until smooth. Pour into greased or lined muffin tins, or corn stick pans and bake at 425 degrees 15-20 minutes. It can also be baked in a greased 8-inch square pan at 425 degrees for 20-25 minutes.

Some Helps for Children with Special Needs

“Playgroups are a great opportunity for a child with a physical disability to gain a little more motivation to move and to mimic the movements of other children. The child with a physical disability may need some Velcro to keep his hands on the handlebars of the tricycle and maybe his feet on the pedals, and then, certainly, a caregiver should be very close by while the child is riding on the ride-on toy. A child may need Velcro on a glove to help her catch a ball. Or a particular size paddle to help her bat at a beach ball. The idea is that the adult thinks ahead about the equipment so the child with the disability will be able to participate.” (Kristi Sayers Menear; Ph.D., CAPE Assistant Professor of Human Studies at the University of Alabama at Birmingham)

I use the above as an introduction to “Special Needs” children. Because of my interest in “Special Needs” children brought on because of my grandson, Joe, I have learned that there is a natural love for nature that comes to these children. Without fail, if we have been in a store with Joe and then wheel him outside, he senses the fresh air coming and perhaps the rays of the sun in his face. He becomes animated with joy and begins to laugh the minute we burst into the fresh air—and it doesn’t matter how cold it is. I thought it was just his special spirit but I have since read that even children with ADHD “find their symptom decreased with any kind of direct exposure to nature,” Richard Louv, author of Last Child in the Woods: Saving our Children from Nature-Deficit Disorder, has said and concludes, “We’re beginning to learn that playing outdoors in nature increases the ability of a child to pay attention.” Everyone needs fresh air and sunshine. May I just say here, spend more time outside.

For children with slowed physical abilities, consider substituting a silk scarf in place of a ball to slow the falling effects of an object (now, the scarf), thus allowing a child more time to catch. Here, success, however it’s accomplished, is the goal. Be creative and be an advocate for your special needs child. If you aren’t his advocate, who will be?

One thing I have learned with Joe is that “Special Needs” children don’t break. They love to be played with, to rough-house a little. Joe loves the motion of dancing and the rhythm from music. He loves to tease and loves animation from me as I say, “Joe, what the heck are you doing? Are you teasing Grandma?” We do this over and over again because he requires repetition.
I feel I really connect with Joe when I can forget all that is around me and just “play” with him. I become a little child, too. I forget what others might think and I just have fun with him. This has been an important lesson for me. Who cares if I might look silly to those looking on? For those few special moments I have with Joe, nothing else matters. The joy he expresses by laughing and clapping his hands tells me we are friends and have made a connection. And for me there is no greater joy.

On Growing a Child's Brain

“When they get to school, the teachers tell us today’s children can’t negotiate; they’re having trouble with social conversations. They’re having trouble because they’re accustomed to just pushing a button and the machine they’re on just reacting to them. The other thing that’s declining now is fantasy play, the ability to imagine, the ability to think up new scenarios, new stories, new ideas, and new concepts in your own head. Kids are having all these stories brought to them so vividly on the screen that they’re not playing imaginatively themselves; and this has got to be a great loss in terms of the future of creativity of the people in this country.” (Jane M. Healy, Ph.D. educational psychologist and author of Your Child’s Growing Mind)

Let’s not wait until our children are in school to decide television should be limited. Also, let’s not wait until our children are in school for them to begin learning different concepts that could and should be learned at home.

For example, you can start teaching your wee babe basic mathematics by counting everything that is familiar to him. Start with his body. Talk to him. Say, “This is your mouth. This is your ear. Oh, you have another ear! Here is your nose. These are your toes.” Count them, “One, two, three, for five toes!” Count actions such as blinking eyes, climbing stairs, “One, two, three stairs.” Count everything with your child: toys, blocks, bites of food eaten, books, steps, people, chairs, etc.

Always talk to your baby and tell him what he is experiencing—what he is tasting, what he is smelling, what he is feeling. If your are tickling his back, tell him that is what you are doing.

Why is it important to do these things? Picture a little seed for each of your child’s 100 billion brain cells. As the child is exposed to a variety of stimulating experiences, each cell is capable of sprouting up to 20,000 different branches to store the new information. So, in a way, the child literally grows his own brain. So, with this in mind, you are helping your child grow his brain if you try to give him every opportunity to develop it through his play (which is really a child’s work). See “Learning Fundamentals,” by Colin Rose and Gordon Dryden; pg. 10.

Penelope Leach, Ph.D. (Psychologist and author of Your Baby and Child) said, “If you’ve been around kids, particularly young kids, for any length of time, [you know] it’s absolutely true that all the most important things in life are learned through play.”

Now, my question is, is there enough play going on when a child sits in front of a television or a video game? Kids are mesmerized by television and video games. Thus, stuck to the “Boob tube,” they make less demands on their parents time and this gives parents the freedom to play the things they want to play. Ahhh! Could this be true? Yes, I’ve been there and done that. Perhaps not consciously, but the T.V. can be a great babysitter. Is that really what you want for your child--your grandchild? If so, then read no further. If you want a list of things you and your child can do to minimize time spent in front of the screen, here’s some things your child and you can do together:
1) As my mother-in-law used to call it, “water your toes.” Turn on the hose, fill a bucket, paint the sidewalk with water, make handprints with water, splash water. Use a cup and count how many cups of water are in the bucket 2) As you kick a ball, feel the wind in your face or the warm sun on your face, neck, head. 3) Chase each other. Include friends in a game of tag. 4) Have a tea party—even with your son(s). Dress up and let children pretend they’re adults. 5) Learn how to bounce and dribble a ball. 6) Wear each other out learning how to jump rope again. 7) Lift up rocks and boards and find creatures under them. Look at them through a magnifier. 8) Catch grasshoppers, frogs, lady bugs, ants. What do their bodies feel like—smooth, slimy, rough? 9) Make some mud and squish your hands and toes in it. Make mud pies. Let the mud dry on your skin. How does it feel. (I was just thinking the children are such a wonderful excuse to play and be a kid again.) 10) Find caterpillars and learn about them as you touch them. 11) Pull up grass by its roots and eat the white end of the root and pretend that you’ll never run out of food as long as there’s “grass-root soup” to be made. (Make sure no chemicals or fertilizers have put on the lawn recently.) 12) Blow up balloons and then let the air out slowly. Be animated by the sounds they make. Let them fly. 13) Fill balloons with water and...you know the rest. Does your child? 14) Roll and tumble on the ground. This will lead to acrobatics. 15) Play in sand—make sandcastles, sift sand, bury each other in the sand. 16) Play on swings and gliders. Talk about what going high does to the tummy. 17) Have jumping time and hopping time and skipping time. 18) Find a hill (not too big) and roll down it. 19) Take turns being pulled in a wagon. Carry treasures in a wagon. 20) Find a little stream or ditch and let different things float down it. What things float or sink? 21) Practice taking turns drinking water from a hose, crossing tricky bars, going down slides, putting pieces to a puzzle together. 22) Get large boxes and have fun pretending you’re in a spaceship, a car, a jail, a boat, etc. 23) In winter, make snowmen, angels in the snow, catch snowflakes on your tongue but never stick your tongue on frozen metal. 24) In Spring, take a close look at blossoms from a tree. 25) In summer, enjoy fresh produce from a garden you work together on. 26) In Fall, study leaves and critters that are preparing for winter.

In conclusion, Just play for the joy of it all. Oh, and check out www.intermountainlive.org for some humorous reminders about our lifestyles.

Teach Children to Save

Today is "National Teach Children to Save" day. As I saw this on my calendar, I had the thought that this is one thing that is probably ignored quite a bit by today's society. All around us are the enticements to satisfy a want with the mentality that the things we want are "needs." I do not profess that I know how to teach children to save because I know how easy it is to ask myself, "Is this a need or is it a want?" When I conclude that it is a want, I still will usually buy it with the justification that I will do better next time. How many of us are like this? And, what is the solution?

In my parent's day, they didn't use credit cards. Thus, when the money ran out, the buying power was gone. I think the adage was, "No mun, no fun."

Perhaps it all comes down to teaching children to have integrity with themselves. If they can ask themselves, "Is it a need? Is it a want? Can I live without it?" and then be honest with themselves when the answer to all three questions is "no." They will learn a self-discipline that will help them throughout their lives.

Another rule a child might give him or herself would be to wait at least 24 hours after deciding that he/she wants to buy an item and see if the item is still important to him/her.

Benjamin Franklin said, "A penny saved is a penny earned." This is so true. Perhaps you could have some fun with this idea and have your child make a bank in which he deposits every penny that he resists spending on something and after a period of time let him count it and evaluate the importance of how much money he/she has saved. I know I have been amazed at how much money collects in a jar when I always put my change in it.

Instant gratification becomes a weakness for all of us. We can set an example for our children by teaching them that we can resist our "toys and goodies" too. Once again, I think I will work on practicing what I preach.

Who said the following?

I thought it would be fun to see if anyone could guess who said all of the following quotes. The same person said them all and I think he or she pretty much says it all about how I feel about the home, too.

"I look upon the home as the basis from which radiate all good influences. If, in every home in the land, there were a competent father and a helpful mother, our officers of the law would have much less to do in protecting society from the lawless."

"Homes are made permanent through love. Though you neglect some of your business, though you neglect some of your cattle, though you fail to produce full crops, study to hold your children's love."

"In every well-ordered home in the Church, the glad free spirit of childhood is led to honor its country and to worship its God; and every man sees in the home the nucleus of eternal companionship and everlasting life."

"The relationship of the children to the parents should be one which would enable those children to carry out ideal citizenship as they become related to the neighborhood, the Church, and to the larger forms of society. Be extremely careful of those activities which require you to be away from your small children. The secret of good citizenship lies in the home. The secret of instilling faith in God, faith in his Son, the Redeemer of the world, faith in the organizations of the Church, lies in the home. There it is centered."

"The home is truly the basic unit of society, and parenthood is next to Godhead. Let us see that our home is such that if an angel called, he would be pleased to remain."

"In no better way can high achievement in life be better realized than in excelling in the art of home building. In that kind of home we may experience on earth a taste of heaven."

"Would you have a strong and virile nation?--then keep your homes pure. Would you reduce delinquency and crime?--lessen the number of broken homes. It is time that civilized peoples realize that the home largely determines whether children shall be of high or low character. Home-building, therefore, should be the paramount purpose of parents and of the nation. The secret of good citizenship lies in the home."

"I praise God for the instructions he has given his people regarding the sacredness, the sanctity, and permanence of the family relationship and the home. We are living in a most momentous age. We see on every hand manifestations of commotion. The world seemingly is stirred as it has never been stirred before. In the midst of this world of confusion, the home, the fundamental institution of society, is also threatened. One of the highest ideals of life is to keep secure and free from sorrow the homes of the Church and of the nation."

I am making this a contest. In "comments" tell me who you think said all of the above quotes. If you guess correctly and if more than one person guesses correctly, I will put you name in a drawing and give you a game if your name is chosen. Of course, you will need to identify yourself and give me information so that I can get the game to you. Have fun.

Conversation Ball (An Object Lesson) & Lovely Thoughts for Your Conversation Jars

Getting conversations rolling during dinner may be difficult; especially if you have older children that have learned that they don’t have to talk if they don’t want to. So here’s an idea to help you bring the point home on the importance of learning to converse with one another: 1) Gather several balls. 2) Have family members sit on the floor on the opposite side of the room. 3) Throw the balls to individuals with the instruction to “catch it and hold it in your lap.” 4) When all have balls in their laps, just sit and look at them for a moment or two until someone asks you what point you are trying to make. 5) At this point say, “It really isn’t much of a game until you throw the ball back to me is it? Then point out that conversation also requires people to toss their ideas back and forth to one another. Point out that if your “catch” another person’s comment but fail to return a comment of your own, it is like holding the ball in you lap. The game is dead-ended. 6) Now, practice “throwing” words back and forth with family members. You might ask, “Joe, Did you have a good time with Grandma, today ?” If Joe responds, Yes,” then he has caught your words but has failed to return any words back to me. If Joe responds with, “Yes, we had ice cream!” Joe has learned to return the conversation ball. 7) Be sure to point out how well family members are playing conversation ball during the passing days.

Although I could supply you with lots more conversation questions for your Conversation Jars, I got thinking in the night that good quotes are fun to talk about, too. So, look up “conversation starters” on Google if you want more of them. Here now, I will include some lovely quotes that might add meaningful conversations to your meals (They can be copied and then pasted into your word processor. Print them up, cut them and add them to your Conversation Jar:

You gain strength, courage and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face. You are able to say to yourself, ‘I lived through this horror. I can take the next thing that comes along’….You must do the thing you think you cannot do. Eleanor Roosevelt

Sometimes God calms the storm raging around us, and sometimes He calms us and lets the storm rage on.

To Have striven, to have made an effort, to have been true to certain ideals—this alone is worth the struggle. We are here to add what we can to, not to get what we can from life.—Sir William Osler

This is the beginning of a new day. You have been given this day to use as you will. You can waste it or use it for good. What you do today is important because you are exchanging a day of your life for it. When tomorrow comes, this day will be gone forever, in its place is something that you have left behind...let it be something good!

Security is not born of inexhaustible wealth but of unquenchable faith. Spencer W. Kimball

A heart stitched with prayer is more precious to God than a tapestry of gold.

God made you as you are in order to use you as He planned.

When one door of happiness closes, another opens; but often we look so long at the closed door that we do not see the one which has been opened for us. Helen Keller

Worldly hope is wishful thinking, gentle dreaming of fairies, magic wands, and limitless credit card balances. Christ-centered hope focuses on the truth that with God nothing is impossible.

The Lord saved for now those spirits who would have the courage and determination to face the world, and all the powers of the evil one and who would build up the Zion of our God, fearless of all consequences. George Q. Cannon

Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover. Mark Twain

There is no such thing in anyone’s life as an unimportant day. Alexander Woolcott

We can do no great things; only small things with great love.
Mother Teresa

Time is too slow for those who wait, too swift for those who fear, too long for those who grieve, too short for those who rejoice, but for those who love, time is eternity. Henry Van Dyke

You will find as you look back upon your life that the moments when you have truly lived are the moments when you have done things in the spirit of love. Henry Drummond

I think that God means that we shall do more than we have yet done in furtherance of his plans and he will open the way for our doing. Abraham Lincoln

Women of God can never be like women of the world. The world has enough women who are tough; we need women who are tender. There are enough women who are coarse; we need women who are kind. There are enough women who are rude; we need women who are refined. We have enough women of fame and fortune; we need more women of faith. We have enough greed; we need more goodness. We have enough vanity; we need more virtue. We have enough popularity; we need more purity. Margaret D. Nadauld

We salute you, sisters, for the joy that is yours as you rejoice in a baby’s first smile and as you listen with eager ear to a child’s first day at school which bespeaks a special selflessness. Women, more quickly than others, will understand the possible dangers when the word self is militantly placed before other words like fulfillment. You rock a sobbing child without wondering if today’s world is passing you by, because you know you hold tomorrow tightly in your arms. Neal A. Maxwell.

The right way to pray for the answer to all your problems is to feel and know that the Indwelling God knows only the answer. Because this is true, you will only know the answer and recall the truth: God never faileth. Joseph Murphy

Time is really all we have. And every individual has an equal portion of it. The trick is to get more out of what is available to us. Gordon B. Hinckley

Truly, there is nothing more vital to our success and our happiness here in mortality that learning to hear the voice of the Spirit, for it is the Spirit who reveals to us our identity-which isn’t just who we are, but who we have always been. Sheri L. Dew

Life is an opportunity, benefit from it. Life is beauty, admire it. Life is bliss, taste it. Life is a dream, realize it. Life is a challenge, meet it. Life is a duty, complete it. Life is a game, play it. Life is a promise, fulfill it. Life is sorrow, overcome it. Life is a song, sing it. Life is a struggle, accept it. Life is a tragedy, confront it. Life is an adventure, dare it. Life is luck, make it. Life is too precious, do not destroy it. Life is life, fight for it. Mother Teresa

There is no obstacle too great, no challenge too difficult, if we have faith. Gordon B. Hinckley

Self trust is the essence of heroism. Ralph Waldo Emerson

Only the Lord can compare crosses, but all crosses are easier to carry when we keep moving. Neal A. Maxwell

For the faithful, our finest hours are sometimes during or just following our darkest hours. Neal A. Maxwell

Be glad of life, because it gives you the chance to love and to work and to play and to look up at the stars. Henry Van Dyke

Solitude is bearable only with god. Andre’ Gide

You can’t do anything about the length of your life, but you can do something about its width and depth. Shira Tehrani

The art of being wise is the art of knowing what to overlook. William James

If...we truly want the best for our sons and daughters, we would want for them—not status—but more meekness, mercy, love, patience, and submissiveness. Neal A. Maxwell

With every ounce of...obedience comes a bushel of blessings. Neal A. Maxwell

No one can make you feel inferior without your consent. Eleanor Roosevelt

If you suffer pain and heartache, for the good that you have done, God has honored you and blessed you, to become just like His son. Peter G. Czerny

Motherhood is not what was left over after our Father blessed His sons with priesthood ordination. It was the most ennobling endowment He could give His daughters, a sacred trust that gave women an unparalleled role in helping His children keep their second estate. Sheri L. Dew

Nothing is so strong as gentleness, and nothing is so gentle as real strength. Ralph Sockman

I wonder sometimes if we realize the importance of music. I wonder if we know that the Lord himself is concerned about it. Pres. George Albert Smith

We must be clear about our most crucial role as women if we hope to stand steadfast and immovable regarding the issues that swirl around our gender. For Satan has declared war on motherhood. He knows that those who rock the cradle can rock his earthly empire. And he knows that without righteous mothers loving and leading the next generation, the kingdom of God will fail. Sheri L. Dew

To withdraw into our private sanctuaries not only deprives others of our love, our talents, and our service, but it also deprives us of chances to serve, to love, and to be loved. Neal A. Maxwell

I am asking that we stop seeking out the storms and enjoy more fully the sunlight. I am suggesting that as we go through life we “accentuate the positive.” I am asking that we look a little deeper for the good, that we still voices of insult and sarcasm, that we more generously compliment virtue and effort. Gordon B. Hinckley

All my life I’ve wanted to be somebody. But I see now I should have been more specific. Jane Wagner

I attribute my success in life to the moral, intellectual and physical education which I received from my mother. George Washington

Don’t let life discourage you. Everyone who got where he is had to begin where he was. Richard L. Evans

God does not begin by asking us about our ability, but only about our availability, and if we then prove our dependability, he will increase our capability! Neal A. Maxwell

Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man’s character, give him power. Abraham Lincoln

There are only two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as if everything is. Albert Einstein

We can do no great things—only small things with great love. Mother Teresa

Although the world is full of suffering, it is also full of the overcoming of it. Helen Keller

Here is a test to find out whether your mission in life is complete. If you’re alive, it isn’t. Richard Bach

Prayer should be the key of the day and the lock of the night. Thomas Fuller

If wickedness never was happiness, then righteousness never was misery.

I do not pray for success. I ask for faithfulness. Mother Teresa

Normal day, let me be aware of the treasure you are. Let me learn from you, love you, bless you before you depart. Let me not pass you by in quest of some rare and perfect tomorrow. Let me hold you while I may, for it may not always be so. One day I shall dig my nails into the earth, or bury my face in my pillow, or stretch myself taut, or raise my hands to the sky and want, more than all the world, your return. Mary Jean Iron

And in the end, it’s not the years in your life that count. It’s the life in your years. Abraham Lincoln

Only God can fully know what absolute honesty is. Therefore each of us has to conceive what this great ideal may be to the best of our ability. Bill W.

Kind words can be short and easy to speak, but their echoes are truly endless. Mother Teresa

What you possess in the world will be found at the day of your death to belong to someone else. But what you are will be yours forever. Henry Van Dyke

Most folks are as happy as they make up their minds to be. Abraham Lincoln

If you judge people, you have no time to love them. Mother Teresa

If we find nothing of interest where we are, we are likely to find little of lasting interest where we wish to go. Edwin Way Teale

The greatest happiness you can have is knowing that you do not necessarily require happiness. William Saroyan

Be such a man, and live such a life, that if every man were such as you, and every life a life like yours, this earth would be God’s Paradise. Phillips Brooks

We are each of us angels with only one wing, & we can only fly by embracing one another. Luciano de Crescenzo

When you were born, you cried and the world rejoiced. Live your life so that when you die, the world cries and you rejoice. Cherokee Expression

We should not complain about our own life’s not being a rose garden when we remember who wore the crown of thorns. Neal A. Maxwell

Don’t ask yourself what the world needs; ask yourself what makes you come alive. And then go and do that. Because what the world needs is people who have come alive. Harold Whitman

We are more than what we do, much more than what we accomplish...far more than what we possess. William Arthur Ward

We are not human beings on a spiritual journey. We are spiritual beings on a human journey. Steven R. Covey

It is not how much we have, but how much we enjoy, that make happiness. Charles Spurgeon

When you’re having a genuine bad hair day and someone says, “Have a nice day,” simply respond with, “Thanks, but I’ve made other plans!”

Virtue and morality surely must be true principles of God; otherwise, why would we feel so badly when those we love are not virtuous or morally clean? Lori Nelson Bennett

Inspiration comes more as a feeling than as a sound. Elder Boyd K. Packer

It is the grand privilege of every Latter-day Saint...to have the manifestations of the spirit every day of our lives. Pres. Lorenzo Snow

Every man has the privilege to exercise these gifts and these privileges in the conduct of his own affairs; in bringing up his children in the way they should go; in the management of his business, or whatever he does. It is his right to enjoy the spirit of revelation and of inspiration to do the right thing, to be wise and prudent, just and good, in everything that he does. Pres. Harold B. Lee

Because it raises our spirits and helps us resist evil and seek good, the feeling of uplift that is communicated by reading the scriptures or by enjoying wholesome music, art, or literature is a distinct function (as well as a form) of revelation. Dallin H. Oaks


Restraint is one of the most common functions of revelation. It often comes by surprise. Even though we have not asked for revelation or guidance on a particular subject, if we are keeping the commandments of God and living in tune with his Spirit, a restraining force will steer us away from things we should not do. Dallin H. Oaks

A person may profit by noticing the first intimation of the spirit of revelation; for instance, when you feel pure intelligence flowing into you, it may give you sudden strokes of ideas...and thus by learning the Spirit of God and understanding it, you may grow into the principle of revelation. Prophet Joseph Smith

All of us are entitled to the spirit of prophecy & of revelation in our lives, both for our personal affairs & in our ministry. The prayerful study & pondering of the holy scriptures will do as much , or more than any other single thing, to bring that spirit, the spirit of prophecy and the spirit of revelation, into our lives. Elder Bruce R. McConkie