Tidbits

A few months ago I sent a message out to everyone with a video clip attachment.  The clip was about a new book that is out called, "Let's Talk about Polygamy," by Brittany Chapman Nash.  In the video clip she quotes a part of her book that says, "The reality of plural marriage marked the 'beginning of all my sorrows,' wrote Phineas Cook, 'Notwithstanding I was coverted to the doctrine of plurality.'"

I was interested in reading this book for more than one reason, but the fact that my 2nd great grandfather was quoted in the book definitely piqued my interest.  So, Roy gave me the book for Christmas and I began reading.  I quickly found the quote from my ancestor, but to my surprise, just a page or two later, I found another quote from the first wife of another 2nd great grandfather, James Henry Hart (father of my great grandmother, Alice Catharine Hart, whom I was named after.

This quote said: "Emily Ellingham Hart, first wife of James Hart, adapted slowly to her husband's marriage in 1861 to his second wife, Sabina Scheib" [my 2nd great grandmother].  "Eight months after the union, Emily recorded the anguish she still felt when her husband spent the night at Sabina's home:  'I do pray earnestly for grace to bear all things oh! my God thou alone knowest the trial this [is] to me.'"

Maybe it's not that odd that our ancestors would be quoted.  I don't know how many men practiced polygamy, but it did not include all the men in the church, and both of these men left journals and other historic information about themselves, which was not true of all the pioneers. Regardless, I found it interesting to find these quotes in this book.

I've mentioned before how much I appreciate our stake president.  We have monthly stake council meeting and, although I dread getting up to be fully church ready by 7:00 am, my time is never wasted.  Our president always has interesting things to share in the meeting.  We do business, but it is his goal to make the meeting inspiring and not just about the details in our callings.  Today was no different.  President Daines shared with us the story of Naaman in 2 Kings 5, starting with vs. 8.  He asked us to apply it to ourselves.  

8 ¶ And it was so, when Elisha the man of God had heard that the king of Israel had rent his clothes, that he sent to the king, saying, Wherefore hast thou rent thy clothes? let him come now to me, and he shall know that there is a prophet in Israel.

9 So Naaman came with his horses and with his chariot, and stood at the door of the house of Elisha. (He came on his "high horse" so to speak).

10 And Elisha sent a messenger unto him, saying, Go and wash in Jordan seven times, and thy flesh shall come again to thee, and thou shalt be clean.

11 But Naaman was wroth, and went away, and said, Behold, I thought, He will surely come out to me, and stand, and call on the name of the Lord his God, and strike his hand over the place, and recover the leper.

12 Are not Abana and Pharpar, [clean] rivers of Damascus, better than all the waters of Israel? may I not wash in them, and be clean? So he turned and went away in a rage.

13 And his servants came near, and spake unto him, and said, My father, if the prophet had bid thee do some great thing, wouldest thou not have done it? how much rather then, when he saith to thee, Wash, and be clean?

14 [Finally, he humbles himself] Then went he down, and dipped himself seven times in Jordan, according to the saying of the man of God: and his flesh came again like unto the flesh of a little child, and he was clean. 

After Naaman humbled himself, the Lord, through his prophet, was able to work his miracle.  Naaman was clean--his flesh even as the flesh of a little child.  Not only was he restored, but he was fully restored.

President Daines said that many of us are "on our high horse" indignant at some of the things the prophet has asked of us.  We need to ask ourselves if we are being humble when we hear the counsel of our prophet.  Some of the things he has asked us to do: vaccines, masks, use the full name of the church, and so on.  We don't need to blindly follow, but when the prophet speaks, we should listen and rather than form our own opinion immediately, based on our emotions, we should take our questions to the Lord.  

In another letter I quoted some of the words from the primary song, "Follow the Prophet."  I will quote it again, "Follow the prophet...in this there is safety, in this there is peace."  

The prophet is pleading with us to come unto the Savior and make time for Him everyday.  We can ask ourselves, "Is my focus fixed on Christ?"

Remember that prophets bring us unto the Savior, and Christ brings us unto the Father.

Well, that's enough preaching.

Events of the week: 

Not a lot happened this past couple of weeks, but I have a few fun pictures.

Caitlyn is currently teaching Learn to Skate at the Rec Center and coaching Ori as well.  She has to quit her coaching job because she just got a new job that isn't as flexible as the one she has been working at.  She'll still continue to teach Ori, though.  These learn to skate students are extra special: Avie and Ila in the first picture, and Avie, Ila and Effie in the 2nd picture.  In learn to skate, Caitlyn uses a marker to show the children how to do "fishies" which are beginning pumps.  Ila and Avie fell on their bums on the marks and it rubbed off onto their clothing (it's permanent marker).  Ila told her mom, "Just spray it and it will come right out."

Cameron is walking now--and he's a great eater.

Effie and Ori dancing to "No, No, Bruno," a song from Encanto that I'd never heard before.  Apparently it's more popular than, "Let it Go," from Frozen.  They certainly seemed to love it.

Sara--training Camden young.

We had a couple of birthdays to celebrate this week, though we didn't see either Maverick or Jieun.  Mav because he's in Georgia, and Jieun because her whole family is going through the Covid thing.

They share a birthday on the 21st.

It looks like Mav didn't miss us too much.

Beverly is super happy because they had snow in Georgia and she got to wear her winter coat (over a princess outfit, obviously).  They loved the snow, but it was barely a skiff.  In the 2nd picture she's all ready for church.

Nick and Sara were creative on their date night and went to an art class in Farmington.  I'll be glad when masks aren't so important so we can see everyone's faces in all of the pictures.