learn from the legacy

“We must cherish one another, watch over one another, comfort one another and gain instruction, that we may all sit down in heaven together.”
- Lucy Mack Smith


What do we learn about ourselves and our potential from the history of RS?
What is the Legacy of RS that we need to continue into the future?


The women organized themselves, developed and plan and then followed the direction and the course corrections of the Lord to organize the Relief Society. We need to be proactive in life and move forward while seeking inspiration and following the directions of the Lord.

The Relief Society:
Started hospital services and supported women going East to get medical training to staff it
Began Primary and YM organizations
Created a grain storage system that would eventually respond to a request for help from the federal government
Offered services that have grown into the world wide Church humanitarian services and LDS family services
We can do great things when we work together.

Seasons changed and the RS no longer administers hospitals, Primary, humanitarian and family services. The seasons of our lives change as well. We need to recognize the changing seasons and move on when the time is right.

We can look back and marvel at what they did or we can look for lessons to apply to our future.


Teachings of the prophet Joseph Smith Ch. 39 Relief Society: Divine organization of women
General RS meeting Sept '09 Henry B Eyring The Enduring Legacy of Relief Society,
Julie Beck Relief Society, a sacred work

Scherenschnitte: paper cutting

After seeing the work of Cindy, Heather, and my cousin Ruth, I decided to try paper cutting myself. Paper cutting is a traditional art form in many countries. In Germany it is called scherenschnitte, scissor cutting, and the themes are traditionally scenes from folk tales. Apparently it was quite popular in the 1500's. In the US it cought on later, in the 1700's.

I started with a little leaf design, just to try it out and then went for a more complicated piece that I had brewing in my head. I got the original idea from a couple of portraits a friends of mine has of her boys. They are pure black and white, no gray, in a very graphic style. I loved them.

I started with a photo of Baby Girl. Then did a little photo editing to take out the color, increase brightness and contrast, and applied the "cartoon" filter. I then printed out a copy in the size I wanted the end product to be (6"x6"). I used one of the copies to pencil in the lines for the shadowed areas so that I had crisp lines. I then photocopied the picture with shadow contours drawn in and used this to draw in the black areas so that I could see where the shadows would be when I stacked the papers. I used these two pictures as templates for the paper cutting. I used card stock weight scrapbook paper. I liked the thickness of the paper even though it made it a little difficult to do the details like the eyelashes. If you want to try paper cutting yourself, Cindy has a tutorial video on her website.

I have plans for more. Buddy Boy is next... or maybe something with Jack-o-lanterns and spider webs. I think I need to buy more paper.

Wordful Wednesday: Six little words

The topic for this week's Wordful Wednesday is to describe your life in six little words. Six words. How do you sum it all up in just six words? Hmm...

"Seeking adventure. Contented domesticity, less ordinary."

I can't resist the urge to elaborate a little bit on my six words.

If you looked at what I do on a daily basis it isn't particularly extraordinary, cook, clean, care for kids, repeat. Often what makes a situation ordinary or extraordinary is your frame of mind. I enjoy having my mental energy to myself. (This isn't true of my time or physical energy.) I can take time to think and dream up all sorts of things. It doen't always go beyond that, but that's OK. I rarely took time to do this when I was working full time. It was all work during the day and taking care of the house and family in the evening, along with more work. It is so much better now.

My husband talks about living the life less ordinary and thinking outside of the box. He does this easily. I don't think that he was ever in the box. I have always found that refreshing although it isn't without it's challenges. I have also felt like I am often living outside of the main stream even if it is mostly in my head. It is kind of nice out here once you get used to it. Does everyone feel this way or is it just me? For now we are having fun with the kids and setting the stage for future adventures. I am happy with where we are, but also looking forward to the future.

What six words describe YOUR life?



More Wordful Wednesday here

The crow that got Gimp'd

I have been playing with Gimp, the open source version of photoshop. I love that it is free and can do a lot. It does take a lot to learn. So I am laboriously going through the learning curve. If you've used photoshop before it would be pretty easy.

I made a new header for Halloween with text from the Raven, by Edgar Allen Poe. The photo is of a crow, not actually a raven, that I took in the backyard. The crows are everywhere in the fall and winter. It can be a little creepy.

Happy Halloween!

Fun and stuff

Beach...
Friends were in town and we joined in the fun.
New chair cover...
It's just an old Ikea chair, but I like it so I made a new cover when the old one wore out. This time, no white. White chairs and kids don't mix.

Wet...

It's been hot so we get wet to cool off.

Zoobs...

Fun new toys. We built motorcycles and bugs and of course, glasses.

Kitty...

She loves kitties and chalk. Fortunately it comes off the walls easily.

Thoughts on prayer from the New York Times

Tonight I read an article on prayer in the New York Times. This is hardly what you would call a regular source for spiritual enlightenment, but I found the article quite interesting. If nothing else It showed me how far from the truth so many are. Something as simple as prayer has become something that many see as so complicated and so far removed from them that they need coaches and prayer retreats. The reporter was trying to figure out what prayer was all about. As an athiest he had a hard time wrapping his mind around the concept.

I liked what the Rabbi Marc Gellman had to say:

But really, when you come right down to it, there are only four basic prayers.
Gimme! Thanks! Oops! and Wow!”
“That’s it?”
“Yep. Wow! are prayers of praise and wonder at the creation. Oops! is asking for forgiveness. Gimme! is a request or a petition. Thanks! is expressing gratitude.

It can be that simple. The LDS Bible Dictionary has this to say about prayer.

As soon as we learn the true relationship in which we stand toward God (namely, God is our Father, and we are his children), then at once prayer becomes natural and instinctive on our part (Matt. 7: 7-11). Many of the so-called difficulties about prayer arise from forgetting this relationship. Prayer is the act by which the will of the Father and the will of the child are brought into correspondence with each other. The object of prayer is not to change the will of God, but to secure for ourselves and for others blessings that God is already willing to grant, but that are made conditional on our asking for them. Blessings require some work or effort on our part before we can obtain them. Prayer is a form of work, and is an appointed means for obtaining the highest of all blessings.

I think that in the end he was starting to get it.

There are some 300,000 churches in America, and I could have picked any one to attend on Easter morning, but I liked being in this one. Especially the kids. They didn’t need Reverend Henderson’s prayer techniques, or the high-tech mantras of the Brooklyn Tabernacle. Their prayers weren’t Rabbi Gellman’s suburban Jewish prayers of Thanks! offered to whom it may concern. They didn’t pray to de-center their egos or find transcendence or to set off on a lifelong therapeutic spiritual journey. They prayed to a God with whom they were on a first-name basis, and they believed their prayers gave them power, which they used on behalf of their asthmatic sisters and infirm grandparents and a kid they knew with burns on his body. Sitting in church on Easter morning, I realized that I was probably never going to become a praying man. But if, by some miracle, I ever do, I hope my prayers will be like the prayers of the kids I met at the Love church in Berkeley Springs. Straight-up Gimme! on behalf of people who really need the help.

Charity

The motto of the Relief Society is Charity Never Faileth. Charity are frequently the topics of lessons and talks in church meetings. We must need the repetition. Here are a few thoughts from today's RS lesson.

Charity is an attitude not an act

But charity is the pure love of Christ, and it endureth forever; and whoso is found possessed of it at the last day, it shall be well with him. Moroni 7:47

I would that ye say in your hearts: I give not because I have not…ye remain guiltless, otherwise ye are condemned…for ye covet that which ye have not received. Mosiah
4:24

And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor and though I give my body to be burned and have not charity, it profited me nothing. 1 Corinthians 13:3

And charity suffereth long, and is kind, and envieth not, and is not puffed up, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil, and rejoiceth not in iniquity but
rejoiceth in the truth, beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things. Moroni 7:45

A man filled with the love of God, is not content with blessing his family alone, but ranges through the whole world, anxious to bless the whole human race. Joseph Smith p.426

Don’t be limited in your views with regard to your neighbor’s virtue, but beware of self-righteousness, and be limited in the estimate of your own virtues, and not think yourselves more righteous than others; you must enlarge your souls towards each other, if you would do like Jesus, and carry your fellow-creatures to Abraham’s bosom. Joseph Smith p.427

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

When we think of charity we often think of giving to the poor and needy. Charity is having an open heart and being anxious to bless others. While giving can be a way of helping those in need, giving is not charity.

Charity is long suffering and merciful

The nearer we get to our heavenly Father, the more we are disposed to look with compassion on perishing souls; we feel that we want to take them upon our shoulders, and cast their sins behind our backs. Joseph Smith p.428

...I would that ye should impart of your substance to the poor, every man according to that which he hath, such as feeding the hungry, clothing the naked, visiting the sick and administering to their relief, both spiritually and temporally, according to their wants. And see that all these things are done in wisdom and order; for it is not requisite that a man should run faster than he has strength. And again, it is expedient that he should be diligent, that thereby he might win the prize; therefore, all things must be done in order. Mosiah 4:26-27

In order to lift others we need to be in a position to help, not be dragged down. Also, being long suffering or merciful does not mean that you enable or accept the bad behavior of others.

Having charity is important for us as well as those we serve.

Wherefore, my beloved brethren, pray unto the Father with all
the energy of heart, that ye may be filled with this love,
which he hath bestowed upon all who are true followers of his Son, Jesus Christ;
that ye may become the sons and daughters of God; that when he shall
appear we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is; that we may
have this hope; that we may be purified even as he is pure.
Amen. Moroni 7: 48

charity towards all men..faith…virtue…then shall thy confidence wax strong in the presence of God… The Holy Ghost thy constant companion... D&C 121:45-46

Love is one of the chief characteristics of Deity, and ought to be manifested by those who aspire to be the sons of God. Joseph Smith p.426

An article in the New York Times talked about contagious behavior. According to a group of social reseaerchers everything from obesity to smoking habits to happiness to altruism is contagious. It isn't just the people that we come in immediate contact with. These behaviors are contagious to the third degree, meaning that for the average person we influence up to 1000 people. While both positive and negative behaviour spread, the positive things like happiness are the most contagious.

I hope that I can be more charitable.

Wordful Wednesday: Transformations

I am feeling like fall even though the weather isn't quite there yet. There is a change in the light that makes it different from summer even though this can be the hottest time of year. Maybe it is because it is the time of year when school starts again. Even though I graduated from high school 20 years ago, this always more like a New Year beginning than January 1.

Fall... leaves... changes...

Lately I have been thinking about how our choices at life's cross roads set us in directions that have a profound impact on who we are and who we become. Sometimes those decision points are part of the progression of life around us and sometimes we force them. That can be good or not. Do we need to get out of a rut or are we messing up something good? How do we deal with an unexpected bump or mountain in the road? Where do we go from here? Do we stretch and grow or shrivel and wither? I feel like I have changed a lot in the last 20 years. I am more ME and I like it. No pretending. No trying to please the impossible other. Just me. Ahhh...

During the flush of summer all the leaves are green. It is only when the season changes that we see the color underneath.



More Wordful Wednesday here

Just what every mother needs...

Just what every girl/mother needs, rear view spy glasses. I really can have eyes in the back of my head just like my mother had. Hubby brought these home for me after a guy's outing to the toy store with Buddy Boy last Saturday. He even had them gift wrapped. They kept me smiling all afternoon.

Kitchen science

Here's a site I found while looking for directions for crystal candy. There are a lot of fun cooking science activities. After all, cooking is just chemistry. There are activities with candy, bread, eggs, pickles and more. Looks like fun.