j . a . m . k . m . b: Weekend of Firsts

Pres. Thomas S. Monson, Oct 2008

"This is our one and only chance at mortal life—here and now. The longer we live, the greater is our realization that it is brief. Opportunities come, and then they are gone. I believe that among the greatest lessons we are to learn in this short sojourn upon the earth are lessons that help us distinguish between what is important and what is not. I plead with you not to let those most important things pass you by as you plan for that illusive and non-existent future when you will have time to do all that you want to do. Instead, find joy in the journey—now.

... Professor Harold Hill, one of the principal characters in [The Music Man], voices a caution that I share with you. Says he, “You pile up enough tomorrows, and you’ll find you’ve collected a lot of empty yesterdays.”

f you have children who are grown and gone, in all likelihood you have occasionally felt pangs of loss and the recognition that you didn’t appreciate that time of life as much as you should have. Of course, there is no going back, but only forward. Rather than dwelling on the past, we should make the most of today, of the here and now, doing all we can to provide pleasant memories for the future.

Stresses in our lives come regardless of our circumstances. We must deal with them the best we can. But we should not let them get in the way of what is most important—and what is most important almost always involves the people around us. Often we assume that they must know how much we love them. But we should never assume; we should let them know. Wrote William Shakespeare, “They do not love that do not show their love.”³ We will never regret the kind words spoken or the affection shown. Rather, our regrets will come if such things are omitted from our relationships with those who mean the most to us.

Send that note to the friend you’ve been neglecting; give your child a hug; give your parents a hug; say “I love you” more; always express your thanks. Never let a problem to be solved become more important than a person to be loved. Friends move away, children grow up, loved ones pass on. It’s so easy to take others for granted, until that day when they’re gone from our lives and we are left with feelings of “what if” and “if only.” Said author Harriet Beecher Stowe, “The bitterest tears shed over graves are for words left unsaid and deeds left undone.”

In the 1960s, during the Vietnam War, Church member Jay Hess, an airman, was shot down over North Vietnam. For two years his family had no idea whether he was dead or alive. His captors in Hanoi eventually allowed him to write home but limited his message to less than 25 words. What would you and I say to our families if we were in the same situation—not having seen them for over two years and not knowing if we would ever see them again? Wanting to provide something his family could recognize as having come from him and also wanting to give them valuable counsel, Brother Hess wrote—and I quote: “These things are important: temple marriage, mission, college. Press on, set goals, write history, take pictures twice a year.”

Said one well-known author: “Both abundance and lack [of abundance] exist simultaneously in our lives, as parallel realities. It is always our conscious choice which secret garden we will tend . . . when we choose not to focus on what is missing from our lives but are grateful for the abundance that’s present—love, health, family, friends, work, the joys of nature, and personal pursuits that bring us [happiness]—the wasteland of illusion falls away and we experience heaven on earth.”

Said the Lord in a revelation given through the Prophet Joseph Smith, “In nothing doth man offend God, or against none is his wrath kindled, save those who confess not his hand in all things.”¹⁰ May we be found among those who give our thanks to our Heavenly Father. If ingratitude be numbered among the serious sins, then gratitude takes its place among the noblest of virtues.

Brothers and sisters, my sincere prayer is that we may adapt to the changes in our lives, that we may realize what is most important, that we may express our gratitude always and thus find joy in the journey."

Sunday, May 18, 2008

Weekend of Firsts

First thing's first: thank goodness that darn heatwave has passed us by. Today was a very manageable 85 degrees; have fun all you guys further east...

Brig and I went camping on Friday night, and we had a great time - his first campout, my first fathers and sons as the father. We found a campsite right next to a bunch of our friends from the ward, and it was my kind of campsite - relatively flat ground, room to park the car close to the tents,

picnic table close to the fire pit, and only staying one night. It wasn't until I had pitched our tent (for the first time) that I realize just how big it was. Sure, we didn't need all the extra room, but I wasn't complaining when it came time to move our stuff in and out and being able to stand completely erect without hitting the top. Sure beats the little two man pup tents we used to have when I was a kid! Brig's highlights were (in order): carrying around his own working flashlight, repeatedly kicking off his crocs and ending up barefoot in the dirt, eating a hotdog he watched me cook over the fire, running around with

his buddies from the neighborhood looking for Lions, and being the only person in the whole camp to sleep soundly through the night. A couple of my observations: thank goodness for a whole box of baby wipes so we were actually pretty clean before going to bed; smooth ground while camping is an illusion - what feels pretty good when you first lay down quickly and cruelly turns into a hip-pointer waiting to happen; some people are really good at roasting all-beef hotdogs over a campfire (me) and some people are really good at making dutch-oven potatoes, cobbler, bacon, eggs, etc. (my campmates); the kid with the flashlight is always the coolest when it gets dark - it's worth whatever it costs to stock up your kid with his own; and why is it so easy to wake up at 5:45 while camping and it's already 75 degrees, when it's almost impossible to wake up that early at home? All in all a great trip.

Another first on Saturday was taking all the kids and one friend to the Giants game up in San Francisco. It got chilly, the game was slow (I know you're thinking ... "duh", but this one was actually really slow), but we had a good time. I didn't find out until today at church, but our friends sitting in a different part of the ballpark saw Brig and me on the scoreboard picture as I was throwing him up and down, oblivious to the game. Fortunatel

y it was timed to coincide with a "slow" period of the game in which they were playing music and encouraging people to pretend like they were having a good time so they could film people looking silly, so we fit right in. The kids liked their $17 Giants Dogs (not really, but close), and I think it was a great effort to last u

ntil the 8th inning.

I also got to take Brig on a bike ride during the day while we waited for the girls to get home from their sleepovers the night before. He's a good little kid, and I love him a lot. We had fun hanging out, although there were times when he'd just get this look like, "where's everyone else...where's my mom?" It's been a fun weekend to hang with him, Micah and Morgan. Church went well today, and having the kids actually got me out of counting tithing today, so not too bad. We're definitely all looking forward to Mom and Kennan coming home later tonight, but we haven't been at each other's throats, and the house is actually clean, so I guess it's been a successful weekend without Mom. ..... Maybe that's a first too.

1 comment:

samandbrodi said...: Camping with the little ones can be awesome or can be a complete disaster...glad it worked out.

Giants game...that is very cool and I am very jealous you are so close to be able to go to games. We have gone to a couple of games with the kids to NY and Baltimore, but I am itching to take the kids to a game in SF. Hopefully soon.; May 18, 2008 at 8:05 PM

j . a . m . k . m . b

Pres. Thomas S. Monson, Oct 2008

Sunday, May 18, 2008

Weekend of Firsts

1 comment:

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