Here at the Lund house, my kiddos would really like to just sleep in every morning, stay up late every night, and just watch tv and play video games every day.  I think that would be their ideal summer. Unfortunately for them, I am not that mother.  I do not put too many expectations on them during school.  They each have their various activities and homework and if they are over 12, I expect them to manage their own laundry and do their nightly chore or responsibility in reference to dinner—which translates to, they either wash the dishes, empty the dishwasher, take out the trash and sweep the floor, or clear and wash the table and put away the food.  Yes, I have to spell it out that clearly, or it doesn’t get done.  And sometimes even when they are busy, they do not do their job and I end up doing it in the morning.  Ugh!

But!  During the summer, they are mine, Baby!!  I try to help them keep some kind of a schedule, just because this group of kids will do nothing if they can get away with it.  This is probably the most structured summer we have ever had!

I thought you might like a look into our schedule.  So here it goes.  I gave each of the kids a day to plan, prepare, cook, and clean up after dinner.  They voted to do the whole enchilada one day, instead of having little jobs each day.  That was fine with me, as long as they do the job!!  For dinner this week, this was the menu:

Monday (Sun’s Day):  Hawaiian Haystacks.  Rice, broiled chicken, homemade gravy, pineapple, olives, and peas.

Tuesday (Shorty’s Day):  Potato Pizza (ya…I thought this would not be so great….but it is actually pretty good…..as long as you provide some kind of vegetable…..I’ll throw out a recipe for this one in a few days).

Wednesday (Spike Spike’s Day):  Breakfast Souffle.  This is hysterical.  Spike has been planning on cooking since I told the kids they would be doing this.  Every day, he wants to know if it is his day.  This morning, when I went to wake him up for prayers before Drew left for work, he says, without moving any of his body and laying on his face, “What time is it?”  “7:30.”  Still not moving, “What day is it?”  “Wednesday”  “You mean my souffle day?”  “Yes!”  He whipped the covers off and jumped out of bed…….”I am the cook today!”  I died laughing!  Yes, your souffle day.  He doesn’t even like eggs.  He just asked for a cooking set for Christmas and this recipe was one in the kit.  So this morning, we put together the souffle.  It is sitting in the fridge, ready to be pulled out and cooked later tonight for dinner.  I’ll be totally shocked if he actually eats it!

Thursday (Speedy’s Day):  Chili Egg/Potato skillet.  I’m not terribly excited about this one either…but I’ll let you know later how it was.

Friday (Smiley’s Day): Campbell’s Bean Soup, fried bread, carrot sticks, and pickles.  I have been trying to encourage more use of vegetables and carrot sticks and pickles is the extent Smiley would compromise.  So be it for this week.

Saturday (Mom and Dad):  Tuna Sandwiches and Salad

Sunday (Mom and Dad):  Asian Salad and Rice

We ask them to get up at 7:30 a.m. so we can say prayers as a family before Drew leaves for work.  I have also been trying to get my teens to do their own scripture reading so they can develop those habits for themselves.  Shorty probably does the best at this.  He is the most organized and on top of managing himself and his stuff.  I never have to remind him to do his work, or wash his laundry, or shower, or anything!  Speedy is taking some summer classes, so he is still a little bogged down.  But he and Sun both are trying to finish their seminary reading of the Old Testament, before we start the New Testament in the fall.

I also gave each child a specific day of the week for their laundry.  Again, Sun and Speedy have trouble with it.

Sun also has a hike next week, so we are trying to walk some each day to help her prepare.  By next week, she needs to be able to do five miles.  We are still at one……working……bit by bit, right?

And so that we weren’t bored this summer, I decided that each day we would focus on a specific area that we could do together as a family.
Monday:  Bedroom day–each person spends some time in their bedrooms to organize, clean out, dust, etc…
Tuesday:  House day—clean out a major room in the house including deep cleaning–maybe by the end of the summer our house will show the work we put in???
Wednesday:  Brain day—today we are going to the library and doing logic problems  We also have to do some of our house cleaning since yesterday we planned and prepared for girls’ camp and worked on Sun’s quilt.
Thursday:  Yard day—-weeding and weeding and weeding……need I say more?
Friday:  Play day–this week Shorty is trying to complete some merit badge requirements for his Geo-cashing merit badge.  So we are going to do a few of those as a family.
Saturday;  Sun still has rehearsal for three hours and Drew is home (so the schedule fluctuates).
Sunday:  Reserved for observance of the Sabbath.

That is what we are doing this summer.  We don’t have any specific family plans.  Later in the summer the boys have scout camp and Sun and I have girls’ camp and a trip to Disneyland for her KidCo group.  When we get back, school starts!  Crazy!

And I am hoping I can convince my sweetheart to spend some money and let us all swim at the neighborhood pool for a month.  Everyone swims except Spike.  So if we could just go almost every day and play for a couple of hours, that would help him to begin developing some of the skills necessary.

Spike Spike is also working on his reading skills, as he will be entering kindergarten in the fall.  I know he doesn’t need to be reading for kindergarten, but the schedule and demands of conforming to someone’s schedule beside his own is going to be difficult enough for him.  If he doesn’t have to stress about the academics, it will be an easier transition for him.

What plans do you have for your people this summer?  Do you have specific goals, temporal or spiritual for each of those little ones who live with you?  Now is a great time to make up things, or prepare for what is coming….when we don’t have other matters pressing in upon us!  Make the most of your time with them, and have fun!!

copyright:  Karen Larsen photography

Yesterday, Drew’s dad told us a fabulous story!  He is the High Priest’s instructor for his ward and yesterday he was responsible for teaching lesson 12 in the Howard W. Hunter manual.  As he presented and read these words:

While I was serving as a stake president in the Los Angeles area, my counselors and I asked our bishops to carefully select four or five couples who wanted to further their progress in the Church. Some were less active, others new converts—but they were motivated to spiritually progress. We got them together in a stake class and taught them the gospel. Rather than emphasizing the temple, we stressed a better relationship with our Heavenly Father and his Son, Jesus Christ. Our careful selection process assured success, and the majority of these couples did become active and go to the temple.

he realized that his family is a current example of these specific efforts of President Hunter.  My father-in-law grew up in the Los Angeles area.  He currently resides there.  President Hunter was his stake president when he was a boy.  When President Hunter became their stake president, my father-in-law’s father was completely inactive.  His mother was not a member.  He was 12.  They were asked to participate in these classes.  Eventually, over time, Drew’s grandfather became active.  His grandmother joined the church.  By the time my father-in-law was 16 and his sister (I think) was 7, his family was prepared to attend the temple and they were sealed as a family.  From this beginning, my father-in-law’s sister married in the temple, her three sons served missions, and three of her five children have intact temple marriages.  My father-in-law has three children who have each married in the temple,   Drew is serving as bishop, his sister’s husband is currently the bishop of their ward, and the other sister’s husband is serving in the bishopric.  Three of the grandsons have served missions and one is out.  President Hunter’s efforts and the efforts of his bishops, and home and visiting teachers have directly affected the lives of generations of our family!!  Can you imagine the feelings and emotions that must have washed over him as he read and taught those principles realizing the happiness of so many of his descendants are the beneficiaries of such time and love and effort?

Contrast that with my family.  My parents were sealed two months before I was born.  I am the oldest child.  By the time I was 18, both of my parents were excommunicated.  None of my siblings, or their families are active in the gospel.  Neither are my parents.  At this point in time, those generations are lost as to the blessings of the gospel. 

I have the gospel largely due to the efforts of my young women, girls’ camp, and seminary leaders.  Though they may not know the results of their efforts, those leaders kept working, and teaching, and serving, until I was receptive enough to take what they were offering and run with it.  They not only saved a girl, they have saved generations of people—-because my children have leaned and been taught the gospel, have served missions (teaching it to others) and will look for and find spouses who will be willing to teach these principles to my grandchildren, hopefully down on through the lines.

Isn’t that amazing???  We often think that our efforts don’t matter that much.  We never touch very many people—-that is just not true.

I also had another amazing experience this week.  A missionary who had served in our ward contacted me.  When he served in our ward, I could tell he was struggling.  I felt the need to write him a letter.  I will share it with you, because it is my letter.  But here is what I said to him:

copyright:  Karen Larsen photography

February 4, 2009

This week, he let me know that he still has this letter and still pulls it out to share it periodically, when he feels its contents will help the person he is speaking with.  It really made my heart swell!!  I am so grateful for the words of Christ!  The doctrine really does change lives, not just one life, generations!!!  And not just down the line, but backward too, as we do those temple ordinance for our deceased ancestors!

copyright:  Karen Larsen photography

I just want you to know that I know this work is true!  It is God’s work!  We are His children!  He desires all of us to come unto Him and to come into the fold.  He denies none to come unto Him.  Any that will pay the price are invited to attend and will receive the blessings that come with keeping His commandments!

Don’t quit working!  You are making a difference!!  You just may not know how much!  Have a great day!

Congratulations Speedy!!!  We are so very proud of you!!  Speedy is graduating an entire year early!  In January, we thought we were going to be moving this summer.  We spoke with the officials at his high school indicating that we didn’t want him to lose any ground if we actually made the move and needed to transfer to a regular high school.  It was early enough in the semester that they said, “If you change his classes like this, by Friday, he can graduate this semester!”  So we did it!  And then we didn’t move.  But we had already rearranged his classes.  So he did it!!

Speedy will stay home one more year and finish up his AA at our junior college, and finish his last year of seminary, and then next year, he will apply for college and a year after that put in his mission papers.

Grandma and Grandpa came up for the event!!  They only got lost twice!  But they made it in time for the ceremony!!  Afterward, we went out to eat at the Stuft Potato—amazing, authentic Austrian food!  Since Drew served his mission in Austria, it is his personal favorite.  And Speedy hadn’t ever been—so off we went.  I wish that I had taken photos of the entrees, but I only got dessert……checkout these beauties!!

For me, the best part was that Drew has been teaching me to golf!  Dad took us to the course and we rented carts and Dad and Drew played.  I rode along.  I wanted to play and they paid for me to play, but I was a chicken.  So…..next time.  I was worried I would hold everyone up.  But I can see why men really love the game—little cars to drive all over, hitting a ball and then hunting for it…..hours outside with an objective.  Even with the wind it was a ton of fun!

You would be proud of me….at the driving range I actually hit a couple!  It is really hard for me to figure it all out.  Even though I was really athletic in high school, golf uses totally different muscles!  I’m still trying to figure it out!

And you should know that graduation was three weeks ago.  It has just taken me that long to get things together and to blog.  But here we finally are!  We are so proud of you Speedy!!  Way to go!!
Congratulations!  Love Mom and Dad.

Over Memorial Day, the kids and I went to Fern Canyon.  I hadn’t ever been, even though we have lived here for more than 17 years now.  The drive is about an hour.  We packed up lunches and snacks so we could just spend the entire day out in the sun.  It was breath-taking and beautiful!  I have never seen anything like it!   I guess it is even famous for being where they filmed a part of Jurassic Park—maybe part two or something.  Anyway, we got all the way out there, then remembered that we hadn’t brought any cash with us—-they only accepted cash and checks…..bummer.  So we had to go back out into the nearest town and get cash, then back into the park—-dirt roads in my mini-van.

Once we got there, we had a blast!  Here are some of the photos!

After our beautiful day, we drove out and got back on the road, deciding to head to the beach for an hour or so before heading home.  Instead, just as we hit the 101, our car broke down.  The check engine light started flashing at me, the car was running super rough and there was a burning smell I didn’t recognize.  Fabulous!  I decided to pull the car over and call Drew.  He suggested that I limp the car along until I was closer to civilization, which was only another 3 miles. When we got there, we called a tow truck.

My husband had a great day!!  He decided that living for half of a century is actually a pretty cool accomplishment.  He doesn’t feel old or bad about his age and he isn’t having any mid-life crises about hitting that 50 milestone.  He really sees things differently than the rest of the world.  He even told me that he was born about 1:30 a.m.  And in the middle of the night of his birthday, he was awake then.  He just thought is was so cool that he was awake when he hit the true hour of his 50th year on earth and then he stayed up for two more hours contemplating how amazing his life is.  See?  Just a strange man I am married to.

But I wanted to play it all up anyway.  So the kids and I planned a wake.  Here is his tombstone cake:

copyright:  Karen Larsen photography

I don’t get them.  At all.  I am one.  I should understand them.  I don’t.  Maybe it is because I have spent so long denying my feminine side because I felt it was a weakness.  I don’t know.  I don’t feel that way anymore, but it doesn’t mean that I understand my gender any better.  Today was exhausting, and it is only 9:40 a.m.

I had an amazing seminary lesson planned–Isaiah 53, all about the Atonement.  It was super important!  I couldn’t get my little girlie out of bed today.  I usually go in and wake her up once before it is time to leave.  On the hard days, I have to do it twice.  She gets up, puts her shoes on, throws on a sweater, grabs her scriptures and walks out the door.  No bathroom stops, no hair or teeth brushing, none of it.  Getting up and getting to seminary is all that she can manage at that time in the morning.  Did I tell you that she is not a morning person?  I am……not such a good combination.

I went in at 5:45 a.m.  She wasn’t sleeping in her bed.  She slept with Spike again.  She does that sometimes because it is hard for him to sleep by himself.  I don’t know why.  I really like sleeping by myself!  I roused her, pulled the covers off and said, “hey, it is time to go….get out of bed.”  Then I left the room.

I came back in at 5:50 ish….she was in exactly the same place she was before I left—covers on.  So I repeated the process.  Back at 6:00 a.m.  “Hey, get up!! It is time to leave!”  This time before I left the room, she has grabbed the covers and pulled them up.  At that point, I let it go.  If I fight this any more, I will be late and she will be mad.  ugh!  So off to seminary without her.

Seminary was OK.  The lesson was OK–not great!  I had two boys on their phones the entire time, not paying attention, one boy sleeping (that was mine), and I was having trouble keeping the girls’ attention.  Whatever.  It ended OK.  We finished with a nice video and my testimony was good, the Spirit was there—not in abundance, which I would like, but functional.  I have learned that I cannot control how much of the Spirit is present.  All of the students in my room play a role in that and what they are doing at the moment.  I have brought this up to the class and taught them this principle.  Anyway.

So when I got home, I wasn’t in the greatest of moods because my lesson didn’t fly the way I wanted it to and my daughter slept through it and when we arrived home, no one, except Drew, was awake.  Which means, Shorty hadn’t made anyone breakfast, everyone was still in bed and sleeping.  Mind you, when we arrive home from seminary, we have exactly 12 minutes to throw down some breakfast, put together a salad for Drew’s lunch, say prayers as a family and walk out the door in order to catch the bus.  That obviously was not happening today.  And it is even more significant since we are down to one car.  The van has been in the shop for two weeks and will be another week at a different shop.  Drama for another day.

Anyway, that is our timeline.  It is super tight and obnoxious when you have to deal with as many attitudes as we do here in our house.  I went to find Drew, and expressed how frustrated I was with our daughter.

His solution:  She is overwhelmed.  She needs consequences for not taking care of her responsibilities.  She obviously has not had enough or any that mean anything to her.  Take away her music.  Take away her Chrome book (which belongs to the school, by the way).  Take away her babysitting for her favorite person tonight.  Take away her performing arts classes and performances.  Take it all away and make sure she gets the message!!

Ok.  I will think about that.  I certainly do not give enough consequences.  But that is how you deal with boys.  When you do that with Sun, she shuts down more, and more and then does less and less.  It is not a motivating scenario for her and then she stops doing everything and becomes more and more overwhelmed and she falls into this self-fulfilling prophesy where she really can’t do it.  I have seen her do it over and over again to herself and then tried to help her dig out of the hole she puts herself into so she might be able to function and be successful.  Ugh!  That is an exhausting process in and of itself!!  I do not want to do that!

I take Drew to work.  On the way, I decide that I have to go back to the house and get Smiley before I take Speedy out to school or Smiley will be late.

I get home.  Smiley is ready.  He comes to the car.  I take a minute to peak in on Sun.  She is sitting in the family room eating a pear—appears ready for school.  “What are you doing today?” I asked her.  “Going to school I think,” she responds.  “Are you ready?”

“Yes.”

“Then go and get in the car.”

As we are getting into the car, Spike throws open the front door and screams, “Moooooommmmm!!!”

“What?!”

“I don’t want you to leave!!”

“I am sorry.  I have to take people to school.”

“Don’t leave Mooooommm!”

I drive away with him screaming at the front door with Shorty.

We drop Smiley off.  He isn’t late.

Driving away, I tell Sun, “Dear, we need to have a little talk.”  The entire time I am praying because I don’t know what I need to do to have her respond the right way.  If I say it wrong, I will tank the entire situation and she will crumble.  And if I don’t give the right consequences, she will get off the hook and not take her responsibilities seriously.  Did I mention that I am also driving the car and she is sitting behind me, so it isn’t like I can see her face except for occasional glances into the rear view mirror.

“Are you feeling overwhelmed?”

“I don’t think so.  Maybe.”  She also talks really quietly when she is insecure, like you can hardly hear her even sitting right behind you.

“Well, are you behind in school?  Are you overwhelmed with your classes right now and school work?”

“Maybe.”

“Can you tell me what you are feeling right now?”

Three minutes up the road, I can see the tears welling up in her eyes through the rear view mirror.

After a few more requests for her to communicate her feelings with me and now with the tears streaming down her face, I pull the car over to the side of the road.  Luckily we are at a place where there is space.  There isn’t always space on the way to school.

Five more minutes of me asking her to please share her feelings with me.

Finally in a squeaky voice, she says, “I miss Sport!!”

Oh.my.goodness!!!  Is that what this whole thing is about?!  He left almost a month ago!!  And just now this is coming out?!  Holy cow!  What have you been doing girl?!

I let her cry it out.  Good thing Speedy didn’t have to be to school until 10.  We talked about how each of us manages our sad and hurt emotions.  Sun shuts down and only participates in behaviors that makes her feel happy, that soothe her aching heart.  She reads books, listens to music, eats….just coping behaviors that help her to feel better all the while letting the world go on around her and the work just pile up because she is busy trying to soothe her sad feelings.  I on the other hand, work myself to death.  I am more productive when I am hurt or angry because I channel all of that emotional energy into work—the house is never cleaner than when I am ticked off!  I have to make myself S.T.O.P. and feel.  I have to think about why I am doing what I am doing and what I am really feeling.  We are two girls who deal with our emotional drama at different ends of the spectrum.  Sun stops the world and wallows, I ramp it up and squash the feelings.  If only we could somehow blend both philosophies so we both have balance!  That would be awesome!

Long story shorter—I let her know she would have consequences for missing seminary.  She won’t get to babysit tonight.  (Her brothers will fill in for her so we do not leave that other family hanging.)  She will have to manage her school stuff and get caught up.  She won’t get to sit around and listen to music with headphones in.  But she feels loved, and heard, and validated.  We were only 30 minutes late for school–30 minutes well spent.

Now I get to deal with the boy drama here at home.  Lovely!  Spike now screams at people when he is mad.  So awesome!  My favorite!

Maybe we’ll both eventually figure out how to manage these stinky emotions that make up so much of our personality!

This one is my favorite design so far!  It was a pain in the rear end!  But once I figured it out, it wasn’t too bad.  But the other ones come together so much faster!

And yes, those are still Sport’s tubs waiting to be put up in the attic, until he returns from his mission.
This week, we actually had 80 degree weather!  Just one day, of course.  But I weeded the gardening area next to the deck, which I haven’t done for at least two years.  And I transplanted the raspberries that were growing the grass of the back yard into that little patch of earth.  Of course, my cat thought it was too hot.  I thought it was hysterical that he was trying to keep his body in the shade of the basketball hoop!

Missionary #4 (#5 including Tams!!) is out the door!!  Hip hip hooray!!!  Super excited!  This is the photo from Scuff and Tams dropping him at the MTC!  His first week there and gets to have General Conference!  Super cool!

I am really not sure what I want to say about it.  Sport has put in more time and more effort getting himself prepared to serve his mission than any of those brothers before him.  It has been a long road and we have had many struggles and set backs, but he is out!  In three weeks, he will be in the field!

It has never ceased to amaze me how different each of us is from one another, even those who come from the same home.  Yes, there are similarities.  We have similar likes and dislikes.  We can usually agree about food, books, and movies.  But each of my children learns so very differently.  Each has such a different view of themselves, others, and the world around them.  The experiences each one needs to develop their character into the character God wants for them takes such a different path to growth.  Sport is probably the most humble of all of my children to go out.  His self-esteem the most fragile and yet he has had to work the hardest and put in  the most time to be ready to serve.  He has done it on his own time-table.

I am so very grateful that our loving Father in Heaven has a plan for each and every one of us!!  That He knows us so completely and so totally values our agency that He patiently waits until each heart is prepared.  He doesn’t push us.  He will force no man or woman to heaven.  It has to be our choice, to choose to make the sacrifices He is asking of us.  He will take us when we are ready and not before.

It is me, the mortal woman, who gets so very frustrated with other people. I do not have that eternal perspective.  I want people to make the choices I think they should and I want them to do it when I think they should.  I am so grateful God does not operate that way!!!  Especially concerning me……so shouldn’t I be a little more patient with others and their time-table?  Shouldn’t I be a little more forgiving and willing to let others grow and learn on their time-table and God’s?  Do I really not understand that spiritually learning really only takes place with a broken heart and a contrite spirit—a willing participant?  If the heart is not given freely, it hasn’t really been given, and though the behavior may look right, the heart is not converted.  If we want true conversion, it will only happen as the individual makes the sacrifice to give it freely.  Only then do we approximate the ultimate sacrifice of our Savior Jesus Christ.  His gift, was given willingly, to comply with the desires of the Father, but only because of His (Jesus Christ’s and the Father’s) great and eternal love for us—a love that would never violate our agency!!!

If we want our children to learn, really spiritually learn, we cannot violate their agency either.  Teach them? Yes!!  Train them?  Yes!!  Have expectations of them?  Yes!!  But we can never force their behavior—because if we are, as soon as they are in a place where they are no longer under our influence, or control, they will do what their heart truly desires, regardless of what we want or taught.

And that, I guess, is my rant for the day!  I am glad that my Sport is out there!!  That it is the desire of his heart to be there!  And I will pray that he will have the strength he needs to stay there and overcome the challenges and difficulties that are yet to face him in the mission field!!  You can do it Sport!!  With the help of our Father in Heaven, you can do all things!!

since I have blogged!!  I cannot believe it has been so long.  Things have been super crazy at my house.  For the last few weeks, we have been super, super busy.

Good news first, Sport received his mission call!  He is going to Fort Collins Colorado!  The crazy thing about that is Fort Collins is the same mission Scuff spent an entire year in while he awaited his visa to Brazil.  Upon hearing the news, the mission president’s wife contacted Scuff via Facebook and said, ‘We get your brother!!’  That will be great for Sport!  We are so grateful to know where he is going and that he won’t be too far away.  Sport is suppose to report the to MTC at the end of March.

copyright: Karen Larsen photography

That being the case, we have been busting our rear ends trying to get things ready for him to go, which has played a part in our busyness.

On the crazy side of things, my sister had applied for a job here at the court where Drew works.  We have had her visit during her interview and we have waited for three weeks to get the results.  But alas, she did not get the job, which means she and her five daughters will not be moving in with us.  It would only have been for a little while, but trying to figure out how we would manage all of that and then having those conversations with my sister took some time.

Also on the crazy side of life, it appeared that Drew was going to be getting another job.  Out of nowhere, he was recommended to be the interim CEO for a neighboring court.  The plan was for him to travel there twice a week and work here the other three days.  We were suppose to do that through July.  We even signed papers to that extent.  That was at the end of January. Then things got super complicated and people changed their minds, after he attended a CEO conference for the state and was introduced as the interim CEO.  Anyway, he ended up only traveling one day and not staying the night and later that week they had reconsidered and decided to go a different direction.  Super crazy.  In the same week, they reached out to him and asked him to apply for the job when they opened it.  The announcement went out on Friday.  Drew and I are not even sure we will apply.  I don’t think we are going to.  But we will see.  I guess we have the right to change our minds too.  So….that’s where that is.

On top of all of that life craziness, I have just been feeling overwhelmed with seminary and the rest of life.  I have been on an emotional roller coaster.  I think I am finally settling down.  On a good note, I have not been eating my feelings, so that is a huge positive.  And my relationship and communications with my husband are definitely improved.  Through all of this chaos, Drew and I have had to communicate much more effectively in much shorter intervals, which has meant we had to clarify our positions and feelings.

While we were trying to figure out what our life was looking like, we rearranged Speedy’s schedule so that he could graduate early in case we actually moved.  But now we aren’t moving, but are still graduating him early.  That was more chaos and speaking with people and figuring out what that would look like and how it would work.  Now we have to plan graduation and college attendance for Speedy.  I think he is going to stay home this next year and finish at the junior college where he’s at and then apply for next summer (2017) at the Y.

And in the process of all of this, two computers have bit the dust.  Yes, seriously.

copyright:  Karen Larsen photography

Friday night I watched an Evening with Elder Ballard for the seminary and institute personnel.  It was amazing and exactly what I needed to hear to help me feel like I can teach seminary and manage my life.  Just so you know, he told us there are 11 essays on lds.org that we should all read, know and be familiar with so we can answer the questions of our students in accordance with the position of the church.  They were a little hard for me to find but you click on ‘scriptures and study’ then under learn, click ‘gospel topics’ then click the link that says ‘explore the essays.’  Essays are the links on the right.  Or just click here.  I have read through three of them and am still working on the rest.

He also asked us to pay the price to know our scriptures and know the doctrine and to know the students, then we will be able to be the teachers inspired of the Lord needed to help this generation gain knowledge necessary to give them a testimony born of study and faith, and to become converted to the doctrine, to know it, participate in it, live it, and defend it—which is what I think every seminary teacher wants.  I just want to be able to help my students gain a testimony that will help them withstand the trials of their mortality because they are willing to pay the price necessary for it.  And that through their obedience as they exercise their faith unto repentance, their faith will be strengthened and enlarged.  But those things don’t come because I force information into them.  They do not even come because they read their scriptures or memorize scripture mastery.  It only comes because they are willing to experiment upon the doctrines as they exercise their faith through their obedience–even unto repentance.  That decision can only be made by each individual inside of their own heads and hearts.  The goal then, becomes to do what inspires each individual to desire to do that for him or her self, for I cannot violate their agency in the process.

He also told us to hold a personal interview with ourselves periodically to assess where we are spiritually.  Here are the scriptures he told us to use:
2nd Nephi 26:29-32
Alma 5:14-30
D&C 121:33-46

I have yet to do that.  But here is my favorite line from the evening.  “James didn’t say, ‘If any of you lack wisdom, let him Google.”  Elder Ballard.  He was trying to explain to us that we all have to pay the price to know the doctrines.  That price is to learn by study and by faith, which requires experimenting upon the word, and enduring to the end.  We don’t get that knowledge because we can find it on the internet.  We get it because we are obedient to the principles and through our study and faith (which implies action—because faith is acting on the information) we receive the knowledge and testimony promised.  Faith is hard work–more so, I think than the physical work necessary to have a great body or that ripped six pack.  It requires bending our whole will to do what He asks of us, which will be what is hardest for each of us, because that is where the growth is necessary.

But instead of continuing on, I really do have to get people ready for church today and take care of the responsibilities I have at home.  Poor Sport is feeling kind of sick.  He had his flu shot on Wednesday.  It is finally catching up with him……

copyright:  Karen Larsen photography

Have a great Sabbath day!  Enjoy leap day tomorrow!  And I will try not to be such a stranger to the blog sphere.  But no promises–until summer!