Don't rest too long, along life's song, or you may cease to grow.
Continue on, with heart and song; our Lord's light lifts our soul.

These are strange times, and often cause me great reflection. Most of the time, I feel very disconnected and isolated, and I sometimes wonder if I use the pandemic as a reason to retreat; an excuse to not reach out or communicate. In the beginning of it all, I reasoned that all of us could use this time to plan for a ‘new normal’ that would be ever-so-much better than the old one. We should do that, but as time has progressed, I see much more division and lack of unity and compassion. At first, we seemed eager to help each other out, but now that’s been replaced by a lot of anger and intolerance.

I don’t know for sure what all that means. I’m just trying to keep the family safe and free from the often devastating consequences of the virus. I try to keep fear at bay. I have contemplated ‘faith’ a lot lately, and have come to the conclusion that you can’t have real faith unless you have an eternal perspective, a real vision of who we really are and why we are here in the first place, and what is the purpose of all this….

I treasure your comments. I welcome them. I beg for them. Let’s connect.

July 24 marked 173 years since the pioneers first arrived in the Salt Lake Valley. I think we can best commemorate and celebrate that by being pioneers ourselves.

As in a children’s song—“You don’t have to push a handcart, leave your family dear, or walk a thousand miles or so, to be a pioneer. You do have to have great courage. Faith to conquer fear, and fight with might for a cause that’s right, to be a pioneer.”…or something close to that.

There is a wealth of videos, thoughts, and positive helps in these troubled times by logging onto lds.org

Smaug, that old dragon that strikes fear in all hearts, is jealous of his gold, and seemingly without any redeeming qualities. He could represent darkness, fear, despair, depravity, hate destruction, evil, and all that is not good, hopeful or joyous. And, in our story, we have an unlikely hero by the name of Bilbo, the Hobbit. In the painting, we see a new hero, painted to represent my grandson, and, for you, anyone dear to you.

Bilbo and our figure face extreme danger and seeming hopelessness, Their challenge is much the same, and is aptly described in the Bible (Ephesians 6:12): “For we wrestle not against flesh and blood (your real enemy is not a real dragon) but against…powers, against the ruler of darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.”

When the fellowship of the ring was about to be overcome by this darkness, Aragorn defied the seemingly impossible odds, “A day may come when the courage of men fails..but it is not this day! This day we fight!” In Ephesians, the apostle Paul also rallied others with these words, “Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand..Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked..and take the sword of the spirit, which is the word of God.”

And so, our outmatched heroes prepare for battle, and expressed some fear and sadness, “I wish it need not have happened in my time..” and Gandalf extolled the qualities that made them heroes, “I found it is the small everyday deeds of ordinary folk that keep the darkness at bay. Small acts of kindness and love.”

And so, we can now also exclaim that the day may come when your courage fails, but, it is not this day..this day you fight!

YOU GOT THIS!!!