Only God Knows Me

When my husband and I were on our first mission in California, I would get up early each day and study my scriptures.  I brought with me a book my daughters has recommended.  It is named "He Did Deliver Me from Bondage."  It is a workbook that asks you to examine the Book of Mormon and relate it to the 12 Step Program.  It makes you really take an in depth look at your life.

It was a really beautiful experience for me.  My husband would find me sitting in my chair with tears flowing.  Not sad tears, but tears of deep feeling for I had just spend some very personal time with the Lord looking back at my years and talking about what I had done and learned in my life.  Those were conversations that I would never had had with another human being.  We all have parts of us that are embarrassing or shameful to remember.  We also have successes that if shared with another it might appear we were vain.  Or maybe the whole experience is life a family slide show.  On a few can really enjoy. . .

I remember those times with deep gratitude and joy for I knew the Lord was there with me and that much was resolved in my heart.  There were no hidden places.  I felt cleansed and sanctified.  

My Family

This poem is not about my immediate family.  It is about the entire human family of man which I claim as my own.  When you stop and think about the fact that we are literally brothers and sisters.  We lived with Heavenly Father as siblings before we came down to earth.  We knew each other.  We are the very ones who together shouted for joy when Father presented the plan for the earth and for our experience here.  Surely, given all that, we could do a better job of getting along as the family of man.

Ever since I can remember, I have been fascinated by the people of the world.  I have always wanted to meet different people and get to know them.  I love the places, the foods, the dress, the languages, everything that makes us different.  I have wanted to learn about the cultures, the music, the customs.   I have just wanted to get to know "my family".

And so, it grieves me that we just can't seem to get along.  Why are there wars?  Why can't we live in peace? Why can't we just love and respect each other?  It makes no sense to me.  I look at the individual pictures of human beings and I just feel love for them all.

My Quiet Place

I am retired now but I was blessed to teach elementary music.  When we did movement of any kind in the classroom the children needed a way to define their own space or else there were bumps and collisions.  We defined that space as a bubble and they were to make sure no one invaded.  The responsibility was put on each of them to protect that space.

Don't we have the same problem in life?  We have our own personal space and we create a climate that we enjoy there.  Yet we let other things invade and interrupt our peace.  It might be angry thoughts or it could be just trying to do too much in a given time period.  There is so much that can just take over and disrupt our lives.  So I think it nice to think about a protective bubble around us and to not let anything invade that takes away our peace.

Night Sky

I long to see the night sky.  I feel that we who live in cities are being cheated.  It is out there.  Every single night it is out there.  It is just blocked by city lights.  I sometimes want to just jump in the car and drive to the middle of nowhere and spend an entire night lying on the ground looking up at stars and planets and galaxies.  How about if we just all agreed to turn our lights off?

Longing

I think a lot about all of the things there are to do in this world and all the places I might want to visit.  It is an incredible place with a vast array of natural wonders.  I wish there was enough time and money to see it all.  But there is another whole part of our world that exists among all this beauty and it is not such a pretty picture.  In the midst of it all, there is war, destruction and violence in all its forms.  So if I could have just one wish, I would give up all the travel and the sightseeing, all the days on beaches, and the mountain hikes.  I would give up anything if I could have my wish of peace on earth.  So this is my poem for peace.

Sunrise

I love the sky.  My husband Lynn and I are often found calling each other and saying "Come, look at the sky."  And often, the beauty is momentary as light and clouds and color move and combine and then it is gone!  We will run to grab a camera only to return and realize we have missed the picture. Maybe that is why it is so fascinating.  It keeps changing.

Because the school where I taught was eastward, I watched sunrises daily as I drove to work.  They affect me differently than sunsets.  They are peaceful and offer promise of the new day before us.  I find them filled with hope.