The Infinite Onion

I took the counsel of Patrick Kearon and sought still moments this season. It is extremely challenging for me because I have been almost addicted to busyness. And I'm trying hard to stop. Think. Be still. Ponder. Repeat. When I expressed a new idea about Christ, my daughter responded with it is the "infinite onion."  While not a profoundly sacred and beautiful title, "infinite onion" is meaningful to me and describes my discovery journey to Christ. The layers of understanding just keep coming day by day and year by year, similar to an onion peeled layer by layer. 

The Christ I understood as a child was the Christ of example. This layer looked like: Be good like Jesus. Be kind like Jesus. We can strive to be like Him. The song "Jesus Once was a Little Child," has always been one of my favorites - the first verse of which is: 

1. — Jesus once was a little child, A little child like me;And he was pure and meek and mild, As a little child should be.So, little children, Let’s you and I Try to be like him, Try, try, try. 

https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/music/text/childrens-songbook/jesus-once-was-a-little-child?lang=eng&_r=1

I loved reading Bible stories as a child. God's dealings with his children throughout history was relevant, insightful and inspiring. The life of Jesus provided a standard where I could look and focus. I felt the compassionate invitation to try, try, try.  

The next layer for me was understanding in a personal way that everyone will be resurrected because of Jesus Christ. My sister died when I was in high school. I thought that wasn't supposed to happen. Always praying for healing, that was where our hope was. I wondered what God's plan was and why she suffered so much before she died. While I don't know all things, I saw the loyalty and strength that trial brought to family members and I eventually felt the peace that God has a plan for each one of us and one day we will see my sister again. She said often, "God doesn't always come when we call, but He always comes on time."

Soon after that the layer for me was seeking the attributes of Jesus. In high school, college and during the dating years, my focus tended to be more on the qualities of Christ. Christ was both kind and direct. He is both just and merciful. He obeyed God the Father and picked corn on the sabbath. He had perfect compassion and divine wisdom. These layers taught me that his perfect character could discern how to apply truth and wisdom perfectly in every circumstance. He knew when to answer the scribes and pharisees and when to leave. He knew how to ask discerning questions and how to teach. He delivered rebukes and comfort. He could create and destroy. It all begins with humility, "Blessed are the poor in spirit..." Here I continued my clumsy climb.

During the years of child rearing, I tried to find answers in the word of God. I prayed. I tried to listen. I received many answers. I tried to follow them. Sometimes I failed and sometimes I succeeded. His love for my children was greater than my love for them. His desires for them were more visionary than my vision. His understanding of them is greater than my understanding. More layers of insight came teaching me God's parental love for the earthly parents of his children. And love for me as his growing child. I recall the scripture to  "...lay hold on every good thing." (Moroni 7:19) I felt God teaching me to focus on the what was working more than on what was not working. ...

Now, face to face with weaknesses, trials and challenges of the years, the layers show I need the strength and healing of Christ, more than anything I've needed in my entire life. No one anywhere, anyplace loves me more and wants to help me more, and is more capable of helping me than this one divine being.

More layers are teaching me:

• I need healing as the woman who reached out to the hem of Christ's garment.

• When I don't have enough of time, or energy or resources and am empty like the wedding jars belonging to Mary, I can ask for God's help.

• The well is Him, and fills. The things of this world can never satisfy like eternal truth.  As Dallin Oaks said: "You can never get enough of what you don't need, because what you don't need won't satisfy you." And the woman at the well said, “Sir, give me this water, that I may not thirst, nor come here to draw.”

• When I fail again and again, I seek His strength and his mercy. He is the God of both.

• Like the cleansing of the temple, I need to cleanse out pride and anger and whatever is keeping me from Him.

• When I don't know what matters, I seek His word. "And Jesus answered and said unto her, Martha, Martha, thou art careful and troubled about many things, But one thing is needful: and Mary hath chosen that good part, which shall not be taken away from her. (Luke 10:41-42)

• A handful of people around me, including family, neighbors and friends, who are constantly seeking to be like Christ, are the people I am drawn to and influence me most.

Perhaps throughout all the layers of the infinite onion, we hear Him say: "Come unto me." Christ says it over and over - it isn't conditional, and His strength comes into our lives the moment we begin. He wants us to try, try, try. 

Abundance at the Table

We just enjoyed a very non-traditional Thanksgiving. And it was delightful. One of my daughters proposed that each of us bring a dish from a country where we have lived and served. The menu included:

• Pinakbet from the Philippines
• Papa a la Huancaina from Peru
• Saucisses aux lentilles and far Breton from France
• Empanadas from Chile
• Mini sweet potato pizzas from Italy (That one used a little creative license.)
• Dumplings from Korea - courtesy of some family friends who are from Korea.

  

The delight was in the busy kitchen for two hours before the meal, each preparing a dish to share with each other. There was a little egg bartering, searching for missing ingredients and healthy competition about whose dish was going to be best. There are many things I absolutely adored about Thanksgiving afternoon at our home, but one I want to focus on is gratitude born of the abundance mindset. Everyone had something to share and no one was diminished by another's offering. No one had to tell another how to prepare and serve their dish. There was a spirit of gratitude and joy all afternoon. Each contribution was received, respected and enjoyed.

Without delving into deep academic, political or theological discussions, can I draw the simplest of analogies with our Thanksgiving table? The spirit of inclusion and diversity in our tiny orbit was instructive, I think, about the broader current culture. Is it possible to bring our diversity of belief to the table and find respect and gratitude?  May we appreciate each personal contribution as unique and valued? Can we make room for each other knowing that the many dishes contribute to the gratitude and joy that can be felt?

The abundance brings a richness to the table. Perhaps in its most simplistic form, scarcity says, if I succeed, you can’t, and if you succeed, I can’t. Abundance says, there is enough for everyone. Is it possible at the heart of the drive to tear down another's success or belief is that somehow there is a fixed amount of belief or resources making the pie and if you have it, I don’t? And when the pie is gone–its gone?

Abundance is also about gratitude. Gratitude inhabits that space of choice between scarcity and abundance. It acknowledges and appreciates what is brought to the table and bridges the gap without trying to criticize or homogenize the result. As I was pondering these thoughts, I smiled at a simple act of kindness that illustrated to me the collective abundance of giving and sharing. Thursday evening we devoured a small pumpkin pie with other desserts. On Friday evening, the doorbell rang and a dear neighbor brought a pie three times the size of the pumpkin pie we ate the day before. I smiled to myself - there is always enough pie to go around.

My Harvest Ritual

It was 11 degrees yesterday morning and a few hours before the cold temperature dip I picked nine more buckets of apples in a swirling snow. A few days before that, we gathered all the butternut to protect them from the frost and a few days before that we gathered the tomatoes. I love bringing in the harvest; squash, zucchini, peppers, tomatoes, rosemary, peppermint, sage and many more plants and fruits. My hands smell like rosemary, caramel apples sit on my counter and squash soup is waiting. The sight, smells and taste of the earth are joyful, warm and inviting. As a I participate in this harvesting ritual annually, I feel a sense of strength, purpose and identity.

Harvesting a garden brings a unique blend of independence, interdependence and dependence, giving me a sense of strength, in terms of the spectrum of self-reliance. Strong feelings of independence come from growing my own supply of food, and interdependence as I work with my family to till, plant, weed, fertilize and harvest. There is none so knowledgeable as a farmer of his dependence on heaven for the rain and sun; for intervention from wind and cold temperatures at critical times.

The purpose or properties of each plant bring joy, healing and delight. I love that sage tea can stop a cough, apples make natural sweeteners, and peppermint adds flavor to my smoothies. The children delight in growing pumpkins for autumn, cherries for dessert, and sugar snap peas for snacking. 

The deep sense of identity comes in part from working with the fruit of my womb to care for the fruit of the earth. For more than 25 years, I’ve worked our garden with my husband and children. Watching the miracle of seeds sprout, grow, and produce, mirrors the growth that each child makes as they grow. Both children and gardens take patience, nurturing and cultivation. Identifying with this natural process gives a sense of connection of our lives to plant life. 

The plants had a premortal genesis - a spiritual beginning before the physical beginning. In Genesis 2:5 it says: “And every plant of the field before it was in the earth, and every herb of the field before it grew.” We also had a premortal place before coming to earth. As William Wordsworth penned; “Trailing clouds of glory do we come from God, who is our home.” The idea that both plants and people were created spiritually then again physically here tells me there is great order and purpose. Just as the fruit “bears fruit of its kind,” so God’s children are made in his image with all the characteristics and attributes in embryo of Him. As I gather the harvest, ponder and wonder, I feel a deep sense of reverence and gratitude for the feelings of strength, purpose, and identity that come to me and feed my soul again each year. 

Radar

My cousin Ray has a license plate with Radar on it. One definition of radar is an indicator of something that comes to the attention of a person or group. Sadly, Ray passed away this month and his children shared what Ray did that had lasting meaning to them. I realized that I wanted these beautiful things on my radar - meaning bring them to attention in my life.  Funerals are powerful gatherings in which great treasures of life may be revealed. Seeing these beautiful children and their spouses together with their children, reflecting on the interactions I've had with my cousin and noticing the many people he loved and served, caused me to weep in acknowledgement of a life well lived.

Here I share from his children and grandchildren what to put on the radar:

• Do things with people and for people. Ray had enthusiasm and actively sought to make a person's day better. He genuinely cared, spent time giving to people and being with people, particularly golf.
• Show up!  He came to the children and grandchildren events. He was there and cheering. They knew he wanted to be there for them.
• Love your spouse. One daughter shared how he loved her mom. He said, "You have the most beautiful mother." He absolutely adored his wife. The powerful marriage these two had radiated throughout all their families. 
• Help your spouse. One son explained how his dad helped him mom with a cross stitch piece at his sports game. At the time he was a little irritated, but now he is grateful for that example. 
• Have a hallmark food. One grandchild loved the awesome pancakes they could always count on that Ray made. 

Perhaps the most powerful attribute that came on my radar that day was the loving marriage Ray and his wife had. We saw a world that day that did not devalue marriage, as so often the world does, but instead testified boldly that marriage is joyous, magnificent and fulfilling. 

Thank you Ray for the life you lived and thank you for your children and grandchildren who shared with us things to put on our radar. A life well lived, is magnified a thousand times through the lives of family, neighbors and others.

The purpose of life is not to be happy.

It is to be useful, to be honorable, to be compassionate,

to have it make some difference

that you have lived and lived well.

-Ralph Waldo Emerson

Three Days with the UN

Together with people representing 138 nations, I spent three days observing and participating at the 68th UN Civil Society Conference, focused on creating inclusive and sustainable cities and communities held here in SLC. So many thoughts and experiences! From that I want to share three things; 1) how international community is a place of beautiful diversity and effective collaboration, 2) how international sharing can bring the light of research, learning and understanding and 3) how individuals and groups can share and innovate in ways that reflect their values and most important concerns in the communities most valuable resource - family.

First, I love the many cultures, kinship and commonalities that one feels in international spaces. The colorful clothing of India and Africa is beautiful. I felt a kinship with the two Canadians who shared the power of conscience with me and a beautiful children's story called "Be the Spark". A new friendship was formed as a woman from an interfaith organization and I collaborated on a service project we plan to do together. I look forward to contacting a woman from Kenya, and a woman who lived twenty minutes down the road from me in Alpine who is interested in Big Ocean Women. 

Secondly, I love informative and insightful workshops. One workshop focused on the research that shows that having a father in the home is the best indicator of child wellbeing on every measurable indicator. Another workshop focused on the power of maternal bonding in the wellbeing of children. We learned from a woman in Senegal about the need to protect women and children from harmful cultural practices. Other topics included climate change, LGBTQ, discussion tables, and much, much, much more. I love learning about challenges and solutions in an international arena. 

Finally, I learned about the power of we the people - what I witnessed about creating solutions with local resources. 

• Over five hundred thousand meal kits for children were put together by volunteers in our community - Latter-day Saint Charities partnering with Feeding Children Everywhere (FCE), JustServe, the United Nations, and American Airlines. There were more volunteers for the meal kits than there were attendees at the conference!  Service is a vital community resource.
• When asked how to finance projects, one panel expert said, "Give ten per cent of your raw food to finance the cause." That is doable for most people and comes directly from the people. This is a bright alternative solution to the more common idea that the money must come from business partnerships and is always outside ourselves. 
• When an international speaker was told she could not come the day before the conference, a group found a venue outside the Salt Palace for her to share her important message. Sadly, many pro-life and pro-family groups, approved by the UN committee were later vetoed by Mayor Biskupski.
• Alternate documents were created for the two UN documents. Two documents were prepared to be UN models for the world to follow with the SLC stamp on it. 

• 1) Youth Climate Compact original here: 
• (https://outreach.un.org/ngorelations/content/youth-climate-compact-0) and 
• 2) Outcome Statement original here
• (https://outreach.un.org/ngorelations/content/68th-united-nations-civil-society-conference-outcome-statement) 

A courageous, local SLC youth group created an alternate for the Youth Climate Compact because they felt their voices were marginalized.  Another group created an alternate document for the Outcome Statement that can be found and signed here:  https://unfamilyrightscaucus.org/. Over 75 nations have signed it. You are invited to sign as well. 

The language in the UN documents is ambiguous and open to interpretation that could exclude groups, marginalize family and other concerns. It has troubling terms like "robust monitoring mechanisms" and "transformative initiatives," without negotiated interpretation. The alternate outcome document is created with negotiated, consensus, UN language, in part which means the words and their meanings have been agreed upon by national delegates in previous UN conferences. It resonates to me wherever you can create and act on something personally, in your family and community that is more powerful than global action and control. It also is reasonable to me that when you negotiate the interpretation of the language in a document then you can seek consensus and support. In contrast, the two UN documents with SLC name received input, but were not negotiated. Accepted by acclamation meant there was applause, not agreement. I marveled at the grass root efforts of individuals and groups to be inclusive of family and contribute in meaningful and civil dialogue.

          

Three days of looking at documents and hearing discussions on how to build civil societies and sustainable communities leads me to recognize it begins with family. A child's first community and lessons on civility are in the home. These families and homes are the building blocks of communities, nations and the world. International space is a wonderful place to share concerns, resources, discuss solutions and network in ways that protect our most important global resource - the Family. 

His Story Can Be My Story

I want to do better. Be better. Progress. And sometimes I feel stuck. How do you get unstuck? Move forward? I found an antidote in a conversation with my mom.

She was reminiscing recently about her father Otto. His father had learned the trade of cement and making cement blocks. From these skills came two companies, and at one point Otto was president of both. She said, Otto was always looking for ways to upgrade. He bought new machinery to create blocks with different textures and better products. The others may not have agreed nor understood, but Otto wanted to improve and offer clients more. He always did so with integrity and fair competition. My father watched his father-in-law, Otto and it made a deep impression on the way he lived his life and his business pursuits. He said, "Otto because he was a visionary man, fit into my concept of what I wanted to in life... He was never satisfied with the status quo."

What mom shared was very helpful to me. I realized the stories of my people are my stories too. His desire to move forward became encouragement for me. Otto had vision. He knew what he wanted. He spent time and effort to create a better experience for others in the cast stone business. Perhaps part of getting unstuck may be to create the vision of where I want to be. I can think about what I want others to experience as a result of my efforts. To do this requires faith in one's abilities to contribute something of value to others. I can envision the results. I can refuse to accept the status quo in my life. After all, I come from him! I can be visionary and push forward as well. New ways to think from one conversation, one example, of one connected to my DNA. 

When we learn about the past, 

we gather strength for the future.

-Hank Smith

Power from the Past and Power to Change the Past

Hanna. Mary. Sarah. William. Carl. Philip. Jane. Marie. Rosine.  While I have never met these people, their DNA runs through my body and their blood through my veins. What were their wishes, hopes and dreams? Their fears and weaknesses? How much of their soul aspirations and struggles mirror mine?  How do they help me now as I stand at the crossroads between them and my children? How do I help them?

I read recently the story of Edwin, a pioneer ancestor of mine. He was on the pioneer trail and the company had not had meat for days. He was assigned to find the deer they had seen previously. Edwin was an excellent marksman, found the deer and quickly brought it down. Almost simultaneously he heard the wolves who began chasing him. He ran as fast as he could to the deer, quickly quartered it, put three pieces in a tree and packed the fourth to take back to camp. The howling wolves came closer and closer until it felt like they were on his heels. Edwin prayed. The thought almost as a voice came to his mind to turn around and shoot the wolf leader. He turned around and fired right between the leaders eyes, and the pack immediately fell on the fresh meat. He was able to safely get back to camp to share the meat and then go back to get the deer in the tree.  

I love this! It gives me courage as I face things that threaten to destroy me. I feel a renewed sense of divine caring and love, knowing I can pray for answers too. When my challenges look impossible, I think of Edwin and his capacity to keep trying even when it looked like all was lost. I draw strength from the past. My past. A dear friend said: 

The more stories you know, the more real the people become, and the more they become part of your family. And it starts to feel like you have a cheering section of family members who have made it through hard things and who know you can too!

It is also true that generational challenges can be passed on to us.  Dr. Judith Rich said:

As you step to the front of the line in your ancestry, the energy they embodied has been passed on and is now expressing as you and those of your current generation in the lineage. As you transform, the energy of the entire lineage preceding you is transformed, for it is all happening now through you, as you. You are the one who can heal old wounds for your entire lineage, forgive old enemies, shift conditioning and beliefs, release pain that has held preceding generations captive for centuries.   https://www.huffpost.com/entry/healing-the-wounds-of-you_b_853632

So my personal struggles may ultimately be my victory. I can change it for those going back, and those following me. Any generational tendencies towards resentment, anger, addictions or any other unhealthy character trait or generational weaknesses becomes my personal battle ground to save thousands, maybe more. What an intriguing idea! I not only have the baton passed to make changes now, but healing goes back through the generations and forward to my children. As we make the trek to overcome any bitter past, we free those before and after us. I alone make the choice. This is one of the most powerful and liberating ideas of our day. 

There is an infinite capacity to influence others by looking to those before us, lovingly embrace and embody their victories, claiming them as our own. There is also eternal meaning and power in persistently overcoming generational challenges, freeing those before and after us.

Ordinary Mothers Can Have Extraordinary Children

Ordinary mothers can have extraordinary children. 

I read this in a blog and realized this a truth to get excited about!  I am very ordinary, yet my children are anything but ordinary.  They read, learn and serve.  They play musical instruments, write, and teach. They think hard, gain skills and set goals. Each at different times in different ways of course, but here's the awesome part. We don't have to be amazing to have amazing children! As I started my parenting journey, I was poorly prepared, had few skills and less experience. And I never cease to be amazed at how forgiving and resilient children are even as we make our many mistakes. Here are my favorite tools for the toolkit of how an ordinary mom can have extraordinary children:

1.  Love them like crazy. When your children know they are the most important people in the world to you, it will give them a security and confidence that no other experience can. Listening to them and responding to their needs will build the trust that love is built on. 

2.  Read good literature to them.  Worlds and lessons of the past will open up to them from the pages you read. There is no substitute for the priceless value discussions you will have as you read from literature that shows character growth.

3.  Provide opportunities to learn and share. Go on museum expeditions, nature walks, hikes, travel, and music lessons.  Find out what they are interested in and find ways to pursue it. Are there lego clubs nearby?  Contests they can enter? What does your community provide that they can learn from?  What about home responsibilities?  Find ways to work together and also for them to complete assigned tasks. Chores or home tasks, provide opportunities to learn caring and be trustworthy. Help them look outward and see opportunities to serve others. 

It has absolutely amazed me how a few simple things have made such a big difference. You can't tell in the middle of the battle sometimes what is working and what is not. And yes! You can do this! These are simple things that bring amazing results. I know ordinary mothers can have extraordinary children! 

Deforestation

The thick 

and lush forest, 

Stood tall for centuries.

One by one the trunks 

Were assaulted with saws.

The trees cried out in pain 

As each trunk went down, down 

To the forest floor.

80,000 acres a day

Gone.

Each day, 

for decades. 

The land cried out:

Where are the trees?

They said 
the forest 

was a burden. 
The trees left
And hearts were empty.

The few trees 

that remained,

Hovered over the seedlings, 

and the young trees,

Giving shelter, nurturing life,

 sustaining culture,

Laboring long to grow a mighty forest.

Knowing strong trees would grow 

that would bear fruit

In time

With joy. 

The Greatest Work

The Colosseum, the Pantheon, and St. Peter's Basilica are monumental works taking a colossal effort to build with relics, walls, and history that have been telling their stories for centuries. Like many more of Rome's historic monuments and other historic places around the world, the remains tell the story of what the people or leaders valued at the time. I just returned from a two week trip to Italy where I spent days walking through amazing architectural and artistic works of the ages. I marveled at the grandeur and detail. I am in awe of the sheer size of these buildings and incredible talent of those that created them.

I also spent the day in the home of a beautiful Italian family. They prepared nurturing and wonderful food for all of us. We walked through their herb and fruit garden sharing the qualities of herbs and the joy of a garden. The wife spoke Spanish and I spoke a little Spanish, both of our husbands spoke Italian and in a raw and enthusiastic fashion we all communicated. We shared about our children, our dreams for them, our aging parents and those that have passed on. We shared about our beliefs in God and values.



The power of Italy and of any nation is not in its tourist attractions, its ancient history or the art left from the centuries. It is in its homes. The homes of the people are the power of the country. I felt that truth strongly as we spent time together. I saw a strong mother and father, who cared deeply about their children, sacrificed and prayed for them, taught them and loved them. The power of this simple pattern carried through the millennia bore witness deeply in my soul. You want to make a difference in your community, your nation? Focus on your children first. The greatest work is not in stone, but in the fleshy hearts of those under the roof of your home. The greatest structure in Rome is the Home.

Motherhood Calling

Waaahhh! The baby calls!  I am a new grandma and I'm reminded that when the baby is hungry, you know it! Mom answers the call. This new little bundle is trying to make sense of the world. Can I trust people to take care of me? Am I safe? The baby calls out for their needs to be met and part of motherhood is providing that food, comfort, and care. This is how the child makes sense of their world. The mother answers the child's call and the baby learns to trust and love.

This baby calling becomes a calling for mothers. Motherhood is a calling. And the calls keep coming as baby grows. What kind of a world is this? How does the child make sense of today's world? It's divisions? It's voices? It's complexities? It's challenges? Who better than a mother? The child calls forth the best motherhood has to offer.  

From her, the child watches how to give, receive, learn, and change. From her, the child learns values and what matters. From her, the child learns how to handle joy and pain, success and difficulty. The child watches how she treats others and what effect that has on relationships with others.  Every interaction is teaching something about how to navigate home and navigate the world. The mother is the most influential voice in her home, in the rising generation, and in shaping the world. The call is to be her to be her best self as a new little person is watching everything she says and does, a powerful pattern that has been in place for thousands of years.

Women everywhere answer this call and calling by giving birth, adopting children, offering love and support to a child and caring about the rising generation.  They answer the calling every time they teach how to listen, share values, meet needs, and declare truth. The culture a mother provides is the best antidote to the current culture divide. I saw in this newest mother's home, multiplied the world over, mothers answering the call of a baby, which will bring trust and peace, not only in one tiny home, but to the world at large. Motherhood, the calling that shapes the world, one mother and baby at a time.

Have You Packed Your Ancestors?

My daughter packed her bags about three weeks ago in preparation to have a baby.  With all the usual is a very unusual packet of papers.  She has packed pictures of her maternal ancestors who are coming to the birth with her. I wouldn't be surprised if Heaven arranges to have her maternal ancestor angels there in person as well.  Angela is going to do what the women in those pictures have done for millennia - bring a child through the veil of mortality.  She will invite a helpless, hungry baby in her life. Her greatest joys and deepest sorrows will be in and around this greatest of adventures. She will take upon her the journey of the ages to raise a child; nurture and love like her ancestor mothers. She will mentor and coach like her mother ancestors. She will teach, train and educate in the maternal patterns of the millennia. She will whisper in her baby's ear, she will read at her bedside and teach the volumes of light and truth in her soul.  Every word she speaks and action she does will speak what she knows and believes. She will defend and protect with her husband as millions before have. She will have more influence on this little soul than any other living person.  

What I love about bringing the stories to birth is the symbolic and actual looking to the past for strength. While new to Angela, the maternal lineup that precedes her coming has been going on for thousands of years. What did they know? And what can they share with this new mother?  

Her great, great grandmother Patty Sessions delivered 4000 babies as a midwife.  Great great, grandmother Rachel told the sheriff who came to take the cows for payment because the crops failed when there was no water; "I have a young baby, and I need the milk." He responded, "Lady, I will leave you the best cow." and he did.  Great, great grandmother Anna crossed the ocean from Germany with her husband, baby and toddler to give them a better life.  Great, great grandmother Jean rode the trolley car every day to go to work to provide food for her six children and great, great grandmother Clara, seven months pregnant made a bed for her three children in the train station when there was no place to stay. These are a few of the stories in the bag.

In these stories, she can find sanctity of life, determination, and courage. She can find compassion, hope, and joy. She can find strength, beauty, and stability. According to the oft-cited study from Emory University,  knowing family history gives a sense of wellbeing, emotional stability, connection and identity.  (Deseret News) Who better to look to for strength than those who sacrificed to love and bring you here?  While my daughter is far away, I know that she and her husband won't be without family. The family is packed in the bag!