Influences

Today and last Saturday I attended funeral memorials for very beautiful, wonderful people who have left great legacies for their families and friends. I am grateful for these kinds of people and for the many people like this who have touched my life for good. I don't think any of us realize how much of an influence we have on each other. One of these people was my aunt who had a very great influence on my life. I loved her and I know she loved me. I learned so much from watching her faith up close.

The other woman I wasn't real close to, but seeing her occasionally, hearing about her from others, and watching her from afar taught me so much about love and faith. This has made me think about so many other people who have gone on but who have greatly influenced my life--both those close to me and those in the periphery of my life. There are so many and I am so grateful for them.

This has also made me think about the many people who are still alive who encourage and lift and help me to be a better person. Again, some of them would be surprised to learn what they have done for me because I don't interact with them that much. Others are close to me but are unaware of how much I learn from them. I need to tell them. But in the meantime, I think all of us need to realize that we do have an influence on those around us, even if we don't know it. We can't do life alone and God has sent all of us amazing people to help us through.

Truth In Tandem

I received the nicest letter this week from a woman who had attended one of my classes at BYU Education Week. She was in the class on “Faith Works by Words” and she came away from the class impressed with “how important it is to be positive.” She had attended with a friend and so they decided to help each other turn negatives into positives. While doing this she discovered some things about herself: “I never realized how many times we were negative in a day. We had to catch ourselves so often and each other and turn our comments around. We could either be frustrated and hot while waiting in lines or we could engage in conversation with those around us! At the end of the day we could be tired or filled with new inspiration.”

She sums up what it means to change the way you think so well I just had to share this. But besides being spot on in her analysis, she is sharing something else that is important. When we want to change and grow one of the best things we can do is enlist the help of a friend who also wants to change and grow.

We get so entrenched in our habits that often we don’t realize how they dictate our days or keep us from being the person we want to become. But when someone is helping us they see things that need to be corrected that we don’t see, and they encourage us when we get it right. Having a helper is a great way to learn to Live in Truth.

Best Friends

We talk a lot about the importance of family in the Church, and we should. Family is very important not only in this life but in the eternities. But as I was ready in the book of Ether this morning I was struck again with the importance of friends.

At the time of the tower of Babel when the language of all the people was changed, the brother of Jared first prayed that he and his brother’s language would not be confounded. And the Lord had compassion on them so that they could still communicate. But then Jared asked his brother to pray that the language of their friends would not be confounded and again the Lord answered his prayers so that they and their friends would retain the same language and be able to continue in their relationships.

This indicates to me that yes family relationships are important, but so are friendships. It is important that we cultivate and maintain strong friendships with people who share our common beliefs and will encourage and help us along the path of righteousness.

Friends!

At the beginning of the year I shared with you that my word for the year is “rejuvenation.” I explained that instead of a goal, I pick out a word and then everything I do I apply the word while doing it. For example, if I’m working in the garden, I think rejuvenation and do all I can to rejuvenate the garden and myself through the work. I love this because it doesn’t add work or stress to my life, it just enhances all of life.

But one of the things Mr. J. and I wanted to consciously rejuvenate were old friendships. Partly because we moved eleven years ago, we haven’t seen some of the people who have played an important part in our lives. So in January we made a list of the people we wanted to see again and the most amazing thing has happened. They just keep showing up in our lives without us doing anything.

Mr. J’s father died when he was only twelve years old and there were a few men who stepped in to mentor and help him. One of those men was especially instrumental in guiding and nurturing and after we married we became good friends with he and his wife. They moved from Bountiful before we did and we haven’t seen them for about twenty years. Well, four weeks ago they called and told us they were in the neighborhood and wanted to stop by. We had a wonderful visit and arranged to go out to dinner with them later. That later was last night, and again we had a marvelous evening eating dinner and then driving up to the cabin they are building in Midway. Renewing old friendships, seeing the beautiful view from their cabin, catching up on all that has happened in the intervening years, and just being with people who have played such an important part in our lives was amazing.

This isn’t the only time this has happened since we choose to rejuvenate. It has been like a miracle. The people on our list keep turning up and we are enjoying every minute of it. There are still many people on the list and I’m looking forward to rejuvenating more friendships. It is always nice to make new friends, but there is something deeply satisfying about being with people you have known for many years.

As Proverbs tells us, “Ointment and perfume rejoice the heart: so doth the sweetness of a man's friend by hearty counsel” (Prov 27:9). And I would add that simply "being with old friends rejoices the heart."

Celebration Time!

Yesterday at 8:57pm the 40,000th visitor to Good News! stopped by to visit. The location of the person is unknown but their ISP is Road Runner and their ISP address is 97.117.60. It was an exciting time for me and I wish I knew who you are so I could thank you. As a matter of fact I wish I knew who all of you are!

I got into blogging because D7 got me into it, but I have loved it. I love sitting down each day and thinking about all of you—you have all become my invisible friends! I really appreciate those of you who have left your pictures as followers. It helps me envision who I am writing to. I appreciate those of you who leave your comments and thoughts because a one sided conversation isn’t a conversation.

I used to reply to all of the comments, but I’d ask people questions and they wouldn’t answer so I began to think that no one went back and read my replies. But I miss that—so let me know if you’d like me to start that again or if it doesn’t matter because you don’t have time to go back and read.

In short, thanks to all of you. I hope in some small way I’ve encouraged and brightened your days. A lot of readers dropped off after it was obvious I was going to live, and Mr. J jokes that the only reason anyone read this was to see if I’d die. So thanks to those of you who still come around even though I’m alive and thanks to those of you who share the Good News! with your friends. I’m hoping some day to have 100 friends in the box to the left!

I’m a writer at heart. I love to write as much as I love to read, but half the fun of writing is having someone read what you write! So thanks for stopping by. I love you all! And I hope that RR 97.117.60 fesses up so I know who you are!

Thanks for the "Radiation"

I start each day with a brisk walk along the Provo River with two friends. It begins my day right as I soak in the beautiful natural surroundings, listen to the birds and the rushing water, and enjoy the company of two amazing women. But one of my favorite things is that on the way back home we stop on a bridge for a morning meditation. First we face down stream and I think about jettisoning all the negative things that have accumulated in me and watching them float away downstream. I mentally rid myself of all the bad baggage and spend a few moments thinking about my Savior—the one who heals me. After that we turn around and face upstream. Then I think about being filled with good and positive things. I imagine that the water rushing toward me is flowing through me to cleanse and purify me—that it comes from the Fountain of Living Waters, Jesus Christ. It is a wonderful time that I look forward to every day. But this morning was extra special.

Usually as we walk onto the bridge, we space ourselves over about thirty feet of the bridge and then meditate, but this morning for some reason we ended up almost elbow to elbow in the middle of the bridge with me between my friends. As I meditated besides feeling the usual strength from the thoughts I was surprised by an empowering feeling coming from both sides of me. It was a radiation of love and goodness that seeped into me from my friends and it was so strong I could actually feel it warming me like sunlight.

It made me wonder how often others have influenced me in this way simply because of what they are. I think in the next life we are going to be surprised to find out how much other people actually helped us and encouraged us just by their presence. It is a very real thing, but since it is unseen it too often goes unnoticed. I am so grateful for my many friends and others who over the years have shared their goodness and love with me through the radiation of their character. Thank you! I love you all!

You Make My Days

Today I leave for Texas to visit D7. Sunday we will be there for the blessing of our 30th grandchild. I haven’t a clue how I got to this point in life—ten children, 31 grandchildren, a home with my own secret garden, and Grizelda. I vaguely remember being overwhelmed with children, laundry, cooking, cleaning, and millions of errands. All I know is that “It came to pass.”

I’m turning a year older tomorrow. My long hair is short. My blond hair is gray. My running feet now walk, and as my grandson Eli recently told me, “Nana, you need to get that cream I saw on television that takes away wrinkles. It really works.” But my spirit is still twenty-one and raring to go and do.

Looking back one of the greatest blessings of my life are friends. I love people. I love getting to know them and learning from them. I love sharing with them. I just love people. Mr. J and I have often commented that one of the things that has made our lives so good is that we have lots of different friends. We have rich friends and poor friends, old friends and young friends. (At one point in our lives we were socially active with three couples that were three generations of the same family—the grandparents, the parents, and one of their daughters and her husband.) We have extremely educated friends and friends who aren’t into education. We have musical friends and non-musical friends, friends who like the same things we do and friends who don’t like any of the same things we do. I’ve always felt sorry for people who only make friends with people like themselves or people they consider to be “in.” Oh what those people miss out on.

And I love you! (I hope you feel that!) Thanks for the comments you add and what you teach me. Thanks for making my birthday wonderful by adding your picture or silhouette as a Follower—even you lurkers who don’t like to comment thanks for stopping by. Just knowing someone has come to visit Good News! makes me happy. People—that’s what life is all about—and the more we reach out and connect with each other, the better life gets!

Traveling Memory Lane

I went to lunch this week with a dear friend I’ve known since I was about three years old. Until we were nine and my parents moved, we were inseparable. I haven’t seen her in a long time, and it was so fun to visit and catch up on everything. Ever since our visit, I’ve been inundated with memories of the many things we did together—all of them warm wonderful experiences. I went on many trips with her and her family. Her parents were like second parents to me. We spent hours and hours together baking, making costumes out of crepe paper, swimming, putting on circuses, climbing trees, picnicking, and sailing cucumber boats down the irrigation ditches.

I can’t believe how wonderful the last few days have been because of all these memories. It made me realize that we need to spend more time thinking about the good things of life. We read the newspapers and hear the TV news which not only are depressing themselves, but they make us remember all the bad in our lives. Instead we need to place things around us and do things, like getting together with old friends, that constantly remind us of all the good in life.

Remembering the good is like putting gas in your car. It facilitates your travel down the road of life.

The Blog World

I’m in a funny mood today, so please take anything I say lightly! The sun is out! The rain has stopped. And I’ve been thinking a lot lately about this blogging world. And I mean world literally. Blogging is like entering a new habitat. I’ve been blogging for about two years now and have learned some interesting things. (1) You get more readers if people think you are dying. (2) Most older people (like my mother) can’t find their way into a blog. (3) Blogging is addicting. (4) Blogging causes me to wonder how daily experiences, like a bowl of spilled cold cereal, can meaningfully fit into my blog.

I hope you are laughing. As I said, I am in a strange mood. And thinking about blogging has made me stranger! By blogging I’ve connected with friends I haven’t seen for years. I’ve met new friends. I’ve learned wonderful things from the comments you’ve left. But what is odd is the connection I’ve felt to total strangers. I see from the site meter that there are some of you that stop by daily and I haven’t a clue as to who you are. And yet I feel so connected to you. I’ve come to know you simply as my friend in Encinitas or Lake Mary, or Waterloo, or Merritt Island. A friend with the address Bryantstratton.edu used to stop by daily and then all of a sudden stopped as did one in South Africa. That’s part of what I’m feeling as strange—almost weird. I’ve missed Bryantstratton and South Africa ever since. But how can I miss someone I’ve never met? I could walk past you and not even know you are my blog friend! And yet I do miss Bryantstratton and South Africa! This technological age creates some weird phenomenon!

Of course there are others of you that I recognize from the address and it warms my heart to think of you each time I see your address. I especially love all my friends in South Carolina, Utah, and Texas who stop by daily and the one in Livermoor and so many other places. I love seeing the addresses of students that came through my classes or that worked for my husband. And I appreciate those of you who have put a link on your blog to mine. It's such a delight to think you want to pass my blog on! Especially I love those of you who say hello or add a few words or ask questions. I love comments like the wonderful one yesterday from Anonymous! Anonymous, and everyone else who leaves comments, I love you!

In short, blogging is fun and I appreciate all of you for making my days so wonderful--in this weird technological way!

Make it a great day!

Where Would I Be Without Them?

I’ve been thinking a lot lately about the many people who have influenced my life for good. As I’ve thought about it, I've realized that very few of them have even an inkling as to how much they have influenced me. Some taught me much from afar. I didn’t even interact with them, but I saw what they did and how happy it made them and so I wanted those same things.

Other people actually taught me. One man in particular would answer my gospel questions any time I called him. But even he doesn’t know how very much he taught me or how much that teaching and his example and wisdom have meant to me. Others have loved me when I didn’t deserve to be loved—several Young Women leaders fall into this category. Some befriended me and despite all my faults have been there when I needed them.

I am who I am because of many, many people who have loved, guided, directed, taught, and patiently put up with me. I am so very grateful for all of those people. Hopefully someday I’ll be able to thank them in some adequate way. Until then I'll carry thoughts of them around in my heart, because words will never be enough to thank them.