Sharing the Good

“You were taught and prepared for the circumstances you would personally encounter in mortality . . .” – Elder Richard G. Scott

“When in situations of stress we wonder if there is any more in us to give, we can be comforted to know that God, who knows our capacity perfectly, placed us here to succeed. No one was foreordained to fail or to be wicked. When we have been weighed and found wanting, let us remember that we were measured before and were found equal to our tasks, and, therefore, let us continue, but with a more determined discipleship. When we feel overwhelmed, let us recall the assurance that God will not over program us; he will not press upon us more than we can bear.” – Neal A. Maxwell

These quotes have been in my mind of late. When I go through my own spells of doubting my preparedness for the things life hands me; when I find myself looking to God and pleading for assurance that I have been “measured before” and “found equal” to my tasks; a strange thing happens. As I’m brought, of necessity, to focus more wholly on my relationship with God, I question somehow . . . who I am allowed to be to others. Does that make sense? I wonder if there is somehow falsity in sharing my own little bits of insight and joy and happiness and success – if there are even slightly heavier things that exist beyond those.

I don’t know exactly, but yesterday, when Jesse told me, “Mom, even though I really love a lot of money, I’m not ever going to rob a bank.” And when Goldie looked at my blog and sighed sadly that I hadn’t written anything “since July 10th”, I decided that happiness and fun and joy should always be freely shared.

So – this conversation:

Me to Penny (as she prepared for a birthday party she was invited to): What are they going to do at the birthday party? Do you know?

Penny: No. It just said they’d have pizza and cake and ice cream. And, if the pizza has pepperoni, I’ll just try and eat it. I won’t like: hide it in their cat’s bowl – if they even have a cat, or put it in their slippers.

That’s some good behavior there.

Also. Summer, it was a nice ride – you: being the baby. But you’ve had an en entire year now, so I think that “ride” needs to come to an end. (36 weeks pregnant today!)

And: a whole lot of stuff that should be preserved from the cell phone. (Worn out at Costco. Flowers from Jesse. Cocoa Puffs for dinner. Penny’s list of breakfast options. Power outage. Grandpa’s farm. R2D2 lunchbox for Jesse. What Mike gave Penny when she asked for a piece of “plain cheese” the other night. 36 weeks.)