Here we go again! A knock at the door and our little dog Snitzel rips down the hall as fast as his little dachshund legs can maneuver, barking ferociously. Baby’s been asleep for thirty minutes but he’s absolutely awake now. How can one little puppy create such a disturbance? Part of me wants to discipline the dog so he’ll never do that again. Then I think of how that little bark may warn me someday and save my family or myself from an intruder.
That’s not the only time I’ve been frustrated with a potential warning. “To warn is to notify in advance, caution, forewarn.” Life is full of warnings, physical, spiritual, and emotional. Warnings of potential danger can be annoying, unpleasant, frightening, or down right painful. In the past, instead of taking action based on warnings, I’ve put a lot of energy into quieting them or downright getting rid of them. Today I am learning to see them as gifts from God. I’m learning to act on them as I would if I smelled smoke in the house. Listen to warnings! Appreciate the caution! Take action! The message might save my life. I am learning to appreciate the power of divine notification.
By Nannette W.
Posted Tuesday February 3, 2009
Copyright 2008 by Nannette W.
All rights reserved. Making or sending copies is permitted if the page is not changed in any way and the material is not used for profit. This notice must be included on each copy made or
Tuesday, February 3, 2009
Monday, February 2, 2009
The Message From the Cedar Waxwings – Step 2 Hope
Step 2 says, “Come to believe that the power of God can restore you to complete spiritual health.” One of the pivotal words in this step is the word “you.” Can restore you Nannette! You restore you ______ (Fill in the blank with your own name.) It doesn’t help me at all to believe that God can and will help everybody else. I have to progress in my belief that He can and will help me. One of the things I’ve learned to do to foster this belief is to keep my eyes open for little signs, personal signs, witnesses to me that the Lord is minutely aware of my situation at every moment.
A day in the life of a Home School mom is full of one-on-one tutoring. In my case I had the challenge of teaching five children who were all at different ages and stages. Five levels of reading, writing, and math – Five children with varying interests and attention spans – It’s really quite a challenge! I was always on the lookout for methods I could use to teach something to all five children at the same time. It had to be something that would hold everyone’s attention. It had to be a method that allowed everyone to learn at his or her own speed and on his or her own level.
I found the good old-fashioned flash card met the criteria perfectly. One picture is worth a thousand words, especially if half of your class is too young to sit and listen to a thousand words. I made large 8x10 flash cards. It allowed us to learn the names of hundreds of things – colors, shapes, animals, Presidents of the United States, Presidents of the Church, musical instruments, leaves, flowers, famous works of art, anatomy, the planets, geographical land and water forms, countries and their capitals, events in history etc. I made good use of every simple picture I could find – old calendars, use discarded out of date textbooks that were filled with great pictures. I had a great time collecting, but I had an even more wonderful experience rotating through various subjects and presenting new cards to my children. There’s nothing like walking into the Visitor’s Center on Temple Square and having your five year old say, “Look, that picture is ‘Gethsemane’ by Harry Anderson.
We had a great experience, but I have to be honest and say that there were times when it was hard and I was weary. There were times when I wondered if it was all worth it and if I was really doing what the Lord wanted me to do. Was he really aware of me and my little class of five? Would He help me keep up the pace day after day?
One night I sat on my bed until late cutting up an old calendar and gluing pictures of different kind of birds on to cards. I remember going to bed and telling the Lord that I was worn out, that it had been a hard day, and “was I doing the right thing?” The next morning we resumed our regular school day schedule. Half way through the morning I gathered everyone together. We sat on the floor in the living room and I drew out the ten new cards flash for the week, all pictures of birds. I flashed each of the cards one at a time, stating the name of the bird. The children repeated the name. We reviewed the ten cards following this same format three times. One of the birds I had selected the night before was the Cedar Waxwing, a lovely little bird, crested, mostly soft brown, black around the eyes, a yellow tipped tail, and red spots on the wings. I had never had the opportunity of meeting this bird, and when I flashed it for the children I commented that I wished we had something besides robins and sparrows in our neck of the woods. With that I finished up, put the cards away, and fixed lunch.
After lunch my oldest daughter walk her little brother over to a neighbors house. She was gone only a minute when she came bounding back into the house. “Mom, Mom, you’ve got to come and see. In the trees by path to the church there are hundreds of Cedar Waxwings.” We gathered and followed my little bird watcher to the path. Sure enough, a numberless flock of soft brown, crested, blacked eyed, yellow tip tailed birds with red spots on their wings rested in the neighbors trees nibbling away at the left over autumn fruit that hadn’t yet fallen to the ground. I stood there in amazement. I stood there looking up for a very long time. I looked up at the birds in wonder and I looked to Heaven in awe that the God of the universe would send a flock of birds to bring my children and me a message. "I am aware. I care very much. And most important, if I can deliver the birds to match you little flash card I can help you with anything."
I’ve looked every year since and never seen another Cedar Waxwing in those trees, but if I keep my eyes and heart open I can have a "Cedar Waxwing day" seven days a week. The Lord loves to manifest Himself to us. There are always Signs.
Take a look at these beautiful birds: http://www.ownbyphotography.com/newpage5.htm
By Nannette W.
Posted Friday January 30, 2009
Copyright 2008 by Nannette W.
All rights reserved. Making or sending copies is permitted if the page is not changed in any way and the material is not used for profit. This notice must be included on each copy made or sent.
A day in the life of a Home School mom is full of one-on-one tutoring. In my case I had the challenge of teaching five children who were all at different ages and stages. Five levels of reading, writing, and math – Five children with varying interests and attention spans – It’s really quite a challenge! I was always on the lookout for methods I could use to teach something to all five children at the same time. It had to be something that would hold everyone’s attention. It had to be a method that allowed everyone to learn at his or her own speed and on his or her own level.
I found the good old-fashioned flash card met the criteria perfectly. One picture is worth a thousand words, especially if half of your class is too young to sit and listen to a thousand words. I made large 8x10 flash cards. It allowed us to learn the names of hundreds of things – colors, shapes, animals, Presidents of the United States, Presidents of the Church, musical instruments, leaves, flowers, famous works of art, anatomy, the planets, geographical land and water forms, countries and their capitals, events in history etc. I made good use of every simple picture I could find – old calendars, use discarded out of date textbooks that were filled with great pictures. I had a great time collecting, but I had an even more wonderful experience rotating through various subjects and presenting new cards to my children. There’s nothing like walking into the Visitor’s Center on Temple Square and having your five year old say, “Look, that picture is ‘Gethsemane’ by Harry Anderson.
We had a great experience, but I have to be honest and say that there were times when it was hard and I was weary. There were times when I wondered if it was all worth it and if I was really doing what the Lord wanted me to do. Was he really aware of me and my little class of five? Would He help me keep up the pace day after day?
One night I sat on my bed until late cutting up an old calendar and gluing pictures of different kind of birds on to cards. I remember going to bed and telling the Lord that I was worn out, that it had been a hard day, and “was I doing the right thing?” The next morning we resumed our regular school day schedule. Half way through the morning I gathered everyone together. We sat on the floor in the living room and I drew out the ten new cards flash for the week, all pictures of birds. I flashed each of the cards one at a time, stating the name of the bird. The children repeated the name. We reviewed the ten cards following this same format three times. One of the birds I had selected the night before was the Cedar Waxwing, a lovely little bird, crested, mostly soft brown, black around the eyes, a yellow tipped tail, and red spots on the wings. I had never had the opportunity of meeting this bird, and when I flashed it for the children I commented that I wished we had something besides robins and sparrows in our neck of the woods. With that I finished up, put the cards away, and fixed lunch.
After lunch my oldest daughter walk her little brother over to a neighbors house. She was gone only a minute when she came bounding back into the house. “Mom, Mom, you’ve got to come and see. In the trees by path to the church there are hundreds of Cedar Waxwings.” We gathered and followed my little bird watcher to the path. Sure enough, a numberless flock of soft brown, crested, blacked eyed, yellow tip tailed birds with red spots on their wings rested in the neighbors trees nibbling away at the left over autumn fruit that hadn’t yet fallen to the ground. I stood there in amazement. I stood there looking up for a very long time. I looked up at the birds in wonder and I looked to Heaven in awe that the God of the universe would send a flock of birds to bring my children and me a message. "I am aware. I care very much. And most important, if I can deliver the birds to match you little flash card I can help you with anything."
I’ve looked every year since and never seen another Cedar Waxwing in those trees, but if I keep my eyes and heart open I can have a "Cedar Waxwing day" seven days a week. The Lord loves to manifest Himself to us. There are always Signs.
Take a look at these beautiful birds: http://www.ownbyphotography.com/newpage5.htm
By Nannette W.
Posted Friday January 30, 2009
Copyright 2008 by Nannette W.
All rights reserved. Making or sending copies is permitted if the page is not changed in any way and the material is not used for profit. This notice must be included on each copy made or sent.
Friday, January 30, 2009
“What Time House Close?” – Step 3 Trust in God
Several years ago we had an exchange student from Japan, Koichi, stay with us for week. While he was here he asked lots and lots of questions which I attempted to answer. There was a definite language barrier. There is one question he asked that I will never forget. It had been a crazy busy day of attending to the needs of my husband and five children, our home school, housework, homework, my calling to the Young Women, and the exchange student. It was growing late. I was weary. Koichi watched as I finished one of many conversations I had on the phone that evening and put the last dish into the dishwasher. As I hung up the phone he asked me a question that still makes me laugh and gives me pause when I remember it. He asked, “What time house close?”
One of my great temptations is to squeeze absolutely everything I can out of the day, until late in the day, and still go to bed unsatisfied. It’s a problem! I think it’s actually a sin.
We have been promised that the scriptures contain answers to our problems. As I have studied with this problem in mind I have been taught some things that are helping me. I want to share two references with you.
First, one day I was reading the first chapters of the Old Testament in the Book of Genesis. The seven simple words that spoke to my soul were these, “and God saw that it was good.” Every day for five days He looked at what had been accomplished and called it good and on the last day of creation He looked over the divine project and “saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good.” (Genesis 1:4, 10, 12, 18, 21, 25, 31)
I took note. God never came to the end of one day of creation wishing He had accomplished two. As day five came to a close, the day He created the great whales and all the birds of the sky, He was at perfect peace about waiting until tomorrow, day six, to create man. His daily work was done in wisdom and in order and at the end of the day God looked over His work and “saw that it was good.” This speaks to my insatiable appetite for doing more than should belong in a single day.
In Psalms 118:24 I found a verse that touched me in regard to my dissatisfaction at the end of the day. It reads, “This is the day which the LORD hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it” (Psalms 118:24). My days are under the watchful eye, the loving orchestration, and the grace and mercy of Jesus Christ. How can I be dissatisfied over the little daily trifles of life?
“What Time House Close?” I want to learn to quit at the end of the day, well before the today threatens to become tomorrow, and while I still have energy to “rejoice and be glad in it.” And then I want to look over the day with an optimistic grateful eye, trusting that this is the day the Lord has made. Tomorrow will come soon enough, and if I trust God it too will be full of creation just perfect for another day.
By Nannette W.
Posted Friday January 30, 2009
Copyright 2008 by Nannette W.
All rights reserved. Making or sending copies is permitted if the page is not changed in any way and the material is not used for profit. This notice must be included on each copy made or sent.
One of my great temptations is to squeeze absolutely everything I can out of the day, until late in the day, and still go to bed unsatisfied. It’s a problem! I think it’s actually a sin.
We have been promised that the scriptures contain answers to our problems. As I have studied with this problem in mind I have been taught some things that are helping me. I want to share two references with you.
First, one day I was reading the first chapters of the Old Testament in the Book of Genesis. The seven simple words that spoke to my soul were these, “and God saw that it was good.” Every day for five days He looked at what had been accomplished and called it good and on the last day of creation He looked over the divine project and “saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good.” (Genesis 1:4, 10, 12, 18, 21, 25, 31)
I took note. God never came to the end of one day of creation wishing He had accomplished two. As day five came to a close, the day He created the great whales and all the birds of the sky, He was at perfect peace about waiting until tomorrow, day six, to create man. His daily work was done in wisdom and in order and at the end of the day God looked over His work and “saw that it was good.” This speaks to my insatiable appetite for doing more than should belong in a single day.
In Psalms 118:24 I found a verse that touched me in regard to my dissatisfaction at the end of the day. It reads, “This is the day which the LORD hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it” (Psalms 118:24). My days are under the watchful eye, the loving orchestration, and the grace and mercy of Jesus Christ. How can I be dissatisfied over the little daily trifles of life?
“What Time House Close?” I want to learn to quit at the end of the day, well before the today threatens to become tomorrow, and while I still have energy to “rejoice and be glad in it.” And then I want to look over the day with an optimistic grateful eye, trusting that this is the day the Lord has made. Tomorrow will come soon enough, and if I trust God it too will be full of creation just perfect for another day.
By Nannette W.
Posted Friday January 30, 2009
Copyright 2008 by Nannette W.
All rights reserved. Making or sending copies is permitted if the page is not changed in any way and the material is not used for profit. This notice must be included on each copy made or sent.
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
“That’s Not On My Schedule!” – Step 3 and Step 11
This week my daughter shared the following conversation that took place between her and her 5-year-old, Maddie:
"Maddie, it’s time to go outside and play"
"That's not in my SCHEDULE Mom"
"What schedule?"
"Well you said the other day that it was good to have a schedule of what you do each day, so now I keep mine in my brain, and going outside is not in my schedule"
"Well going outside IS in my schedule so come outside with us...OK"
NO mom!!!! (and on and on)
This was Madeline's new thing this week. Although it’s cute it’s driving her mother crazy. Apparently Maddie’s mom was planning her own day and told Maddie that she schedules her days so she can be prepared for what’s coming up. Maddie’s daddy also makes a record of his appointments and plans for the week. My Granddaughter is learning by example.
Maddie’s mom reports that she has come up with a solution for these scheduling conflicts. “I am going to encourage Madeline to tell me her schedule in the morning, the one that’s ‘in her brain’ so that I know what she’s thinking, and then I will tell her what she needs to add or take away to have a good day! I am hoping this will work, but we'll see.”
The other morning apparently Maddie’s plan called for her to wake up at 3:30am and play with her doll in the front room with the hall and living room lights ablaze. Her exhausted mother wandered in and explained that it was time to be in bed and that everyone in the state was asleep. Maddie said, "No they aren't I just heard a car drive by.” He mother’s reply to her precocious little lady was, "Except for him!” (Thanks buddy, for driving by at just the wrong moment!) Maddie finally fell asleep. It was just part of her new little schedule!
This little interchange made me laugh. I could see myself in Maddie. I have a schedule in my brain too. Sometimes it doesn’t exactly coordinate with the Lord’s plan for my day. What works best for God and me is the very same thing that my daughter is trying with her five-year-old budding organizational genius. These are my instructions from the Lord, “Nannette, tell Me the schedule that is ‘in your brain’ in the morning, and then I will tell you what you need to add or take away to have a good day!”
By Nannette W.
Posted Wednesday, January 28, 2009
Copyright 2008 by Nannette W.
All rights reserved. Making or sending copies is permitted if the page is not changed in any way and the material is not used for profit. This notice must be included on each copy made or sent.
"Maddie, it’s time to go outside and play"
"That's not in my SCHEDULE Mom"
"What schedule?"
"Well you said the other day that it was good to have a schedule of what you do each day, so now I keep mine in my brain, and going outside is not in my schedule"
"Well going outside IS in my schedule so come outside with us...OK"
NO mom!!!! (and on and on)
This was Madeline's new thing this week. Although it’s cute it’s driving her mother crazy. Apparently Maddie’s mom was planning her own day and told Maddie that she schedules her days so she can be prepared for what’s coming up. Maddie’s daddy also makes a record of his appointments and plans for the week. My Granddaughter is learning by example.
Maddie’s mom reports that she has come up with a solution for these scheduling conflicts. “I am going to encourage Madeline to tell me her schedule in the morning, the one that’s ‘in her brain’ so that I know what she’s thinking, and then I will tell her what she needs to add or take away to have a good day! I am hoping this will work, but we'll see.”
The other morning apparently Maddie’s plan called for her to wake up at 3:30am and play with her doll in the front room with the hall and living room lights ablaze. Her exhausted mother wandered in and explained that it was time to be in bed and that everyone in the state was asleep. Maddie said, "No they aren't I just heard a car drive by.” He mother’s reply to her precocious little lady was, "Except for him!” (Thanks buddy, for driving by at just the wrong moment!) Maddie finally fell asleep. It was just part of her new little schedule!
This little interchange made me laugh. I could see myself in Maddie. I have a schedule in my brain too. Sometimes it doesn’t exactly coordinate with the Lord’s plan for my day. What works best for God and me is the very same thing that my daughter is trying with her five-year-old budding organizational genius. These are my instructions from the Lord, “Nannette, tell Me the schedule that is ‘in your brain’ in the morning, and then I will tell you what you need to add or take away to have a good day!”
By Nannette W.
Posted Wednesday, January 28, 2009
Copyright 2008 by Nannette W.
All rights reserved. Making or sending copies is permitted if the page is not changed in any way and the material is not used for profit. This notice must be included on each copy made or sent.
Monday, January 26, 2009
The Foundation of All Aftercare – Step 1
Last year I accompanied my nephew, Jonathan, to the hospital and waited while he had surgery on the collarbone he broke playing Ultimate Frisbee the first week of the new semester at the university. When the surgery was complete the doctor came in, showed me the x-ray of his mended bone, which was now full of tiny little screws. Ouch! Then he chatted with me about the particulars of his recovery from surgery, his aftercare plan. He gave me detailed information and instructions. While recovering it was important for Jonathan to take seriously the reality of what his body had undergone and the healing that needed to take place.
As the doctor walked out of the room I had some time to think before they released my nephew from the recovery room. While I waited I thought about my own recovery and my own need for aftercare. So often in support meetings I hear people say they are back on Step 1. For me it’s still important to take Step 1 every day and sometimes multiple times a day. Even after 20 years of working to apply the 12 Steps and 90 pounds of recovery from compulsive eating I have to stay in tune with the correct answer to this question. By whose direction and power do you remain in recovery? It’s true that admitting our own powerlessness is the first step we take, but its also true that acknowledging my humble need for divine help continues to be critical to my aftercare.
It is good to remember that I am powerless. It’s OK to feel like I’m at risk, like my recovery isn’t all sewn up, like it’s tender and new, like I’m vulnerable. These feelings help me take seriously the reality of what I have undergone and the healing that needs to take place and continue to take place. These feelings keep me suiting up and showing up, and participating in all the activities that not only speed my progress along but also strengthen and deepen my recovery for the long haul.
I hope I always remember that I’m at risk. When I am in that frame of mind I am more likely to take Peter’s advise: “Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time: Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you” (1 Peter 5:6-7). When I keep in mind that I am in a state of recovering, that I need to heal, and that my condition is fragile I feel the greatest need and willingness to surrender my care to the Primary Care Physician, Jesus Christ.
By Nannette W.
Posted Sunday, January 25, 2009
Copyright 2008 by Nannette W.
All rights reserved. Making or sending copies is permitted if the page is not changed in any way and the material is not used for profit. This notice must be included on each copy made or sent.
As the doctor walked out of the room I had some time to think before they released my nephew from the recovery room. While I waited I thought about my own recovery and my own need for aftercare. So often in support meetings I hear people say they are back on Step 1. For me it’s still important to take Step 1 every day and sometimes multiple times a day. Even after 20 years of working to apply the 12 Steps and 90 pounds of recovery from compulsive eating I have to stay in tune with the correct answer to this question. By whose direction and power do you remain in recovery? It’s true that admitting our own powerlessness is the first step we take, but its also true that acknowledging my humble need for divine help continues to be critical to my aftercare.
It is good to remember that I am powerless. It’s OK to feel like I’m at risk, like my recovery isn’t all sewn up, like it’s tender and new, like I’m vulnerable. These feelings help me take seriously the reality of what I have undergone and the healing that needs to take place and continue to take place. These feelings keep me suiting up and showing up, and participating in all the activities that not only speed my progress along but also strengthen and deepen my recovery for the long haul.
I hope I always remember that I’m at risk. When I am in that frame of mind I am more likely to take Peter’s advise: “Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time: Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you” (1 Peter 5:6-7). When I keep in mind that I am in a state of recovering, that I need to heal, and that my condition is fragile I feel the greatest need and willingness to surrender my care to the Primary Care Physician, Jesus Christ.
By Nannette W.
Posted Sunday, January 25, 2009
Copyright 2008 by Nannette W.
All rights reserved. Making or sending copies is permitted if the page is not changed in any way and the material is not used for profit. This notice must be included on each copy made or sent.
Saturday, January 24, 2009
How Effective Is Your Self-Talk? – Step 11
In the world of popular psychology there has been much talk about “Self Talk.” It is generally advised that we keep the conversation that goes on in our heads positive. I find single-handedly holding down a “Positive Mental Attitude” to be a big order.
In recovery I am learning to replace “self talk” with a running conversation with the Lord. I figure that if I’m commanded to counsel with the Lord in ALL my doings (Alma 37:37) that doesn’t leave much time for self-talk, positive or negative. It requires a conscious effort to turn the thoughts that play in my head to Him, but it is well worth the effort. I find that if I take my honest thoughts, positive or negative, to Him, He does direct [me] for good (Alma 37:37).
The Lord has ALL wisdom. We have received the invitation to talk everything over with the God of all wisdom! What an opportunity! Sometimes I allow a problem or a decision to ramble around in my head for hours. I think I just assume or take for granted that the Lord knows my thoughts and must be listening in. When I finally get sick of talking to myself and getting nowhere I remember that I actually haven’t addressed the Lord at all. I forget that His respect for my agency requires Him to wait until called. And when I finally do invite Him into the conversation I find what the Lord said to Isaiah to be true:
“For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts” (Isaiah 55:9).
His thoughts are better than my thoughts. He has invited me to think with Him. He wants to be involved in my thought life. When the Lord and I put our heads together it is far more effective than thinking things through with me, myself and I.
By Nannette W.
Posted Saturday, January 24, 2009
Copyright 2008 by Nannette W.
All rights reserved. Making or sending copies is permitted if the page is not changed in any way and the material is not used for profit. This notice must be included on each copy made or sent.
In recovery I am learning to replace “self talk” with a running conversation with the Lord. I figure that if I’m commanded to counsel with the Lord in ALL my doings (Alma 37:37) that doesn’t leave much time for self-talk, positive or negative. It requires a conscious effort to turn the thoughts that play in my head to Him, but it is well worth the effort. I find that if I take my honest thoughts, positive or negative, to Him, He does direct [me] for good (Alma 37:37).
The Lord has ALL wisdom. We have received the invitation to talk everything over with the God of all wisdom! What an opportunity! Sometimes I allow a problem or a decision to ramble around in my head for hours. I think I just assume or take for granted that the Lord knows my thoughts and must be listening in. When I finally get sick of talking to myself and getting nowhere I remember that I actually haven’t addressed the Lord at all. I forget that His respect for my agency requires Him to wait until called. And when I finally do invite Him into the conversation I find what the Lord said to Isaiah to be true:
“For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts” (Isaiah 55:9).
His thoughts are better than my thoughts. He has invited me to think with Him. He wants to be involved in my thought life. When the Lord and I put our heads together it is far more effective than thinking things through with me, myself and I.
By Nannette W.
Posted Saturday, January 24, 2009
Copyright 2008 by Nannette W.
All rights reserved. Making or sending copies is permitted if the page is not changed in any way and the material is not used for profit. This notice must be included on each copy made or sent.
Friday, January 23, 2009
My Goodly Parents, Carrying the Message by Teaching “Somewhat” - Step 12
Today would have been my Father’s 80th Birthday. That’s hard to even comprehend, because when he left us thirty-eight years ago he was the forty-two year old daddy of two daughters and five sons, ages ranging from sixteen (me) to age three. I write this as a tribute to him and as a reminder to me.
The first words of the Book of Mormon are these. “I, Nephi, having been born of goodly parents, therefore I was taught somewhat in all the learning of my father…” Nephi credits his parents with laying his educational and spiritual foundation. I believe that this is no truer for Nephi than it is for me. My time with my father was cut short. My father was a brilliant scientist and a well-read student of the gospel. He died when I was only sixteen years old. How can I possibly say that I was taught somewhat in all the learning of my father?
I guess that the most instructive word in this sentence is, “somewhat.” It means “to a considerable degree, significantly.” My father’s legacy of learning, passed to me, truly was complete. Not that my head is full of all the facts and figures and understandings that comprise the body of his knowledge. No, that is not it at all.
What my father passed on to me is three fold. During his lifetime he had learned that the three most important things in life are God, Family, and Country. He truly qualifies as a goodly parent even though he left me early in my life, because he gave me a love for learning in these significant areas of life.
He showed me by example what it looks like to put God first and to love the word of God and His restored gospel. I saw him get out of his bed and bend his cancer-ridden body before the Lord in prayer time and time again. The gospel was what he loved to discuss. We have been commanded to talk of Christ and to rejoice in Christ, and “talk of” and “rejoice in” he did. This is not common in today’s world and I am most grateful for his example.
My father valued his family. It was important to him that we be given truth. He was never too tired to explain Heavenly Father’s plan one more time to a frightened little child (me) who could not sleep. Family night and family scripture study were important to him and were carried out before most of the church even attempted that challenge.
When I say he loved his country he did, but when I think of the love of my father for “land” I don’t just mean our homeland. My dad was a scientist because he loved the whole earth and everything therein. He was curious about everything from the tallest mountain to the tiniest electron.
Several summers ago I had the experience of being reminded of this inheritance as I stood with my children in the California home I grew up in and in the classroom where my father taught chemistry until he died. It was wonderful to share the past with my family, but to me it was more than that. I stood in these sweet places of my past, surrounded by memories, with tears rolling down my cheeks. I believe that it was a reminder of who I am and where I come from. I am not the scholar my dad is but I love the things he loved and I hate the things he hated. I think that means I was taught somewhat (significantly) in all the learning of my father.
Nephi says that he was born of “goodly parents,” of a goodly father and mother, “therefore [he] was taught somewhat in all the learning of his father.” The greatest gift a child can receive is the like-mindedness of his or her parents in regard to what needs to be taught. I was given this blessing. It turned out to be very significant in the lives of my brothers and sister and I that my mother was “goodly” because we lost our father to cancer at the age of forty-two. It is a wonder to me that though my father was there and my mother was here, the goodly teaching in word and example went on and still goes on today. The diffusion of the learning of my father with my mother as chief agent is a divine example of the goodly parents principle.
If we are to progress in this life it is important to be very aware of the truth the “goodly” have passed to us. We are not our own, and the truth we have inherited is not our own. I thank my goodly parents with all my heart for their unified, un-disrupted teaching.
In the fellowship of recovery we come to the challenge of teaching, or carrying the message to others in Step 12 from a great variety of prior experiences. As a result of applying these 12 Steps to our lives many of us are just now coming to understand what is most important. I believe that the transformation in our lives today shines a very bright light on what we now desire to pass along. I want to remember that in only sixteen short years my dad was able to teach his young daughter what was most important to him. I’ve more than tripled my age since then, but what he taught me still really matters. I testify that it’s never too early to teach “somewhat” and it’s absolutely never too late either!
Happy Birthday Dad!
By Nannette W.
Posted Friday, January 23, 2009
Copyright 2008 by Nannette W.
All rights reserved. Making or sending copies is permitted if the page is not changed in any way and the material is not used for profit. This notice must be included on each copy made or sent.
The first words of the Book of Mormon are these. “I, Nephi, having been born of goodly parents, therefore I was taught somewhat in all the learning of my father…” Nephi credits his parents with laying his educational and spiritual foundation. I believe that this is no truer for Nephi than it is for me. My time with my father was cut short. My father was a brilliant scientist and a well-read student of the gospel. He died when I was only sixteen years old. How can I possibly say that I was taught somewhat in all the learning of my father?
I guess that the most instructive word in this sentence is, “somewhat.” It means “to a considerable degree, significantly.” My father’s legacy of learning, passed to me, truly was complete. Not that my head is full of all the facts and figures and understandings that comprise the body of his knowledge. No, that is not it at all.
What my father passed on to me is three fold. During his lifetime he had learned that the three most important things in life are God, Family, and Country. He truly qualifies as a goodly parent even though he left me early in my life, because he gave me a love for learning in these significant areas of life.
He showed me by example what it looks like to put God first and to love the word of God and His restored gospel. I saw him get out of his bed and bend his cancer-ridden body before the Lord in prayer time and time again. The gospel was what he loved to discuss. We have been commanded to talk of Christ and to rejoice in Christ, and “talk of” and “rejoice in” he did. This is not common in today’s world and I am most grateful for his example.
My father valued his family. It was important to him that we be given truth. He was never too tired to explain Heavenly Father’s plan one more time to a frightened little child (me) who could not sleep. Family night and family scripture study were important to him and were carried out before most of the church even attempted that challenge.
When I say he loved his country he did, but when I think of the love of my father for “land” I don’t just mean our homeland. My dad was a scientist because he loved the whole earth and everything therein. He was curious about everything from the tallest mountain to the tiniest electron.
Several summers ago I had the experience of being reminded of this inheritance as I stood with my children in the California home I grew up in and in the classroom where my father taught chemistry until he died. It was wonderful to share the past with my family, but to me it was more than that. I stood in these sweet places of my past, surrounded by memories, with tears rolling down my cheeks. I believe that it was a reminder of who I am and where I come from. I am not the scholar my dad is but I love the things he loved and I hate the things he hated. I think that means I was taught somewhat (significantly) in all the learning of my father.
Nephi says that he was born of “goodly parents,” of a goodly father and mother, “therefore [he] was taught somewhat in all the learning of his father.” The greatest gift a child can receive is the like-mindedness of his or her parents in regard to what needs to be taught. I was given this blessing. It turned out to be very significant in the lives of my brothers and sister and I that my mother was “goodly” because we lost our father to cancer at the age of forty-two. It is a wonder to me that though my father was there and my mother was here, the goodly teaching in word and example went on and still goes on today. The diffusion of the learning of my father with my mother as chief agent is a divine example of the goodly parents principle.
If we are to progress in this life it is important to be very aware of the truth the “goodly” have passed to us. We are not our own, and the truth we have inherited is not our own. I thank my goodly parents with all my heart for their unified, un-disrupted teaching.
In the fellowship of recovery we come to the challenge of teaching, or carrying the message to others in Step 12 from a great variety of prior experiences. As a result of applying these 12 Steps to our lives many of us are just now coming to understand what is most important. I believe that the transformation in our lives today shines a very bright light on what we now desire to pass along. I want to remember that in only sixteen short years my dad was able to teach his young daughter what was most important to him. I’ve more than tripled my age since then, but what he taught me still really matters. I testify that it’s never too early to teach “somewhat” and it’s absolutely never too late either!
Happy Birthday Dad!
By Nannette W.
Posted Friday, January 23, 2009
Copyright 2008 by Nannette W.
All rights reserved. Making or sending copies is permitted if the page is not changed in any way and the material is not used for profit. This notice must be included on each copy made or sent.
Thursday, January 22, 2009
You don’t have to be a Hinckley Scholar to use the tools of reading and writing!
I never imagined that reading and writing would become so important to me. I wasn’t an early reader and even to this day I can read faster aloud than silently. My elementary school grades in reading and spelling always remained in the B/C range. I grew up when phonics instruction was nonexistent. Instead of teaching phonics in the 1960s they used the “see it and say it” method which didn’t help my reading or my spelling. One of my hallmarks today is that I always carry a bad spellers dictionary. I was accepted to BYU on the grounds that before graduation I would take and pass a class designed for those who didn’t fare very well on the spelling portion of the ACT. I took the special class my senior year, just before graduation. I reviewed the rules that were supposed to help and took multiple tests. Before the final exam I went to my teacher and said, “Look, if you give me the words in advance I’ll memorize them and pass this class, but if the words are randomly chosen I’ll flunk and I won’t graduate.” He asked to see all my previous tests. I sat nervously as he reviewed each of them. Finally he looked up at me and said, “You are a smart bad speller. Don’t come back to class, and promise you will always carry a bad speller’s dictionary. Finally my handwriting never advanced beyond the elementary school level. I never did develop the recommended mature slant with a creative flare. My cursive to this day is straight up and down and as round as the sample alphabet running above the black board in my 5th grade classroom. Don’t worry! I did graduate.
Today reading and writing are an essential part of my recovery. I share my early struggle with these subjects as part of my witness that reading and writing are not tools of recovery reserved for the intellectually elite.
The scriptures, recovery literature, and the classics have expanded my vision and understanding of living in recovery. I’m not so concerned with the speed of my reading as I am with the quality. Reading allows me to have a glimpse into the minds of those who have done what I am endeavoring to do. What do they think? It also allows me to peek into the lives of those who have done what I am endeavoring to do. How do they live and why? Through the tool of reading I have the opportunity to learn very detailed, personal, applicable things from folks I will never meet. I benefit from the experience of those who have been successful. That’s a real gift.
I find that if I am willing to write as I read I am doubly blessed. I often record in my little notebook the thoughts and feelings that come to me as I read. I am constantly asking the Lord to help me see what I can learn about myself from this event or that character. I am always taught. I’m familiar with the saying, “When the student is ready the teacher appears.” Sometimes I wonder if the very act of holding a willing pen and grabbing my notebook is a sign to Him that I am serious about receiving instruction. Writing is an essential part of my recovery. As I am prayerful and watchful of the thoughts that come to my mind, Jesus Christ, through the gift of the Hoy Ghost teaches me about myself using the language and experience of others. He helps me see myself in them. And long after the reading has been put down, if I continue to listen to my own thoughts and feelings, He often teaches me more. He seems to be ever willing to extend my learning beyond the page that stimulates the initial thoughts.
I also use the tool of writing as a lifeline and as a spot check. I write based simply on my need to talk to God in the middle of the day or night about what’s going on. When I take time to write down my thoughts, no matter how confused or frustrated I am, He always extends to me the gift of clarity. Solutions, ideas, perspectives come to me that are undeniably from above and absolutely beyond my mortal capacity. He gives me sanity. He gives me peace. He gives me vision. He allows me to see real possibilities.
Prayerfully reading inspired literature (scripture, recovery, or classical) with an ear cocked in God’s direction, a pen in my hand and a notebook on my lap brings powerful recovery. Addressing God and learning from Him and being willing to take notes on what He teaches me is my way of putting God and His word to me first in my life.
You don’t have to be a Hinckley Scholar to use the tools of reading and writing! Reading and writing are not tools reserved for the intellectually elite. They are however tools reserved for those who are willing to set the table and dine on the word of the Lord.
By Nannette W.
Posted Thursday, January 22, 2009
Copyright 2008 by Nannette W.
All rights reserved. Making or sending copies is permitted if the page is not changed in any way and the material is not used for profit. This notice must be included on each copy made or sent.
Today reading and writing are an essential part of my recovery. I share my early struggle with these subjects as part of my witness that reading and writing are not tools of recovery reserved for the intellectually elite.
The scriptures, recovery literature, and the classics have expanded my vision and understanding of living in recovery. I’m not so concerned with the speed of my reading as I am with the quality. Reading allows me to have a glimpse into the minds of those who have done what I am endeavoring to do. What do they think? It also allows me to peek into the lives of those who have done what I am endeavoring to do. How do they live and why? Through the tool of reading I have the opportunity to learn very detailed, personal, applicable things from folks I will never meet. I benefit from the experience of those who have been successful. That’s a real gift.
I find that if I am willing to write as I read I am doubly blessed. I often record in my little notebook the thoughts and feelings that come to me as I read. I am constantly asking the Lord to help me see what I can learn about myself from this event or that character. I am always taught. I’m familiar with the saying, “When the student is ready the teacher appears.” Sometimes I wonder if the very act of holding a willing pen and grabbing my notebook is a sign to Him that I am serious about receiving instruction. Writing is an essential part of my recovery. As I am prayerful and watchful of the thoughts that come to my mind, Jesus Christ, through the gift of the Hoy Ghost teaches me about myself using the language and experience of others. He helps me see myself in them. And long after the reading has been put down, if I continue to listen to my own thoughts and feelings, He often teaches me more. He seems to be ever willing to extend my learning beyond the page that stimulates the initial thoughts.
I also use the tool of writing as a lifeline and as a spot check. I write based simply on my need to talk to God in the middle of the day or night about what’s going on. When I take time to write down my thoughts, no matter how confused or frustrated I am, He always extends to me the gift of clarity. Solutions, ideas, perspectives come to me that are undeniably from above and absolutely beyond my mortal capacity. He gives me sanity. He gives me peace. He gives me vision. He allows me to see real possibilities.
Prayerfully reading inspired literature (scripture, recovery, or classical) with an ear cocked in God’s direction, a pen in my hand and a notebook on my lap brings powerful recovery. Addressing God and learning from Him and being willing to take notes on what He teaches me is my way of putting God and His word to me first in my life.
You don’t have to be a Hinckley Scholar to use the tools of reading and writing! Reading and writing are not tools reserved for the intellectually elite. They are however tools reserved for those who are willing to set the table and dine on the word of the Lord.
By Nannette W.
Posted Thursday, January 22, 2009
Copyright 2008 by Nannette W.
All rights reserved. Making or sending copies is permitted if the page is not changed in any way and the material is not used for profit. This notice must be included on each copy made or sent.
Wednesday, January 21, 2009
“Mommy, I Just Wanted To Get A Violin, Ya Know, Just Have One!”
Helping children with music lessons is definitely upper division training for parents. I can’t even imagine how many hours I’ve spent tutoring at the piano, encouraging from the kitchen sink, and sitting through lessons. My biggest adventure into the unknown came when my youngest daughter asked if she could please play the violin. Having no idea what that involved but being open to her young desire to go where no musician in our family had ever dared go, I went to the local music store and brought home a very tiny violin, rent to own. I hired a teacher and for over a year my little girl and I worked together Suzuki style.
I will spare you all the details, mostly because I don’t remember them. What I do remember is that much of the time it was not a very happy experience. Let’s just say that there was great resistance at the requirement to practice. During one such trying crying session my five-year-old little musician and I had the following conversation.
“Am I finished Mom?”
“Just one more thing to practice honey.”
“But I don’t want to practice. I just wanted to get a violin mommy, ya know, just have one!”
I recorded her words in my journal in 1987 because they made me laugh, but also because I can relate, though not in regard to the violin. There was a moment in my past when my Father promised me the opportunity to learn to work with an instrument of His creation and I “shouted for joy” at the prospect. Even so, there are days when I could have the following conversation with Him:
“Am I finished Heavenly Father? Have I learned enough today?”
“Just one more lesson honey.”
“But I don’t want to practice. I just wanted to get a body Heavenly Father, ya know, just have one!”
Our daily rehearsal is carried out between body and spirit. Our spirit is the living player and our otherwise lifeless body the magnificent instrument. The body, although excellent and intricate, having been wonderfully made by The Master Craftsman, is as lifeless as a fine violin sitting in its case. But when brought together with the living spirit, as violin to violinist, there is tremendous promise. Together our body and spirit have magnificent potential.
May we continue our daily practice! May we never give up! May we internalize the truth that at one time we literally stood in the presence of God and cheered at the prospect, not only of having a body, but working with it, practicing, training, taking lesson after lesson, rehearsing with this Godly gift until we reach our full potential, until we become like Him!
By Nannette W.
Posted Wednesday, January 21, 2009
Copyright 2008 by Nannette W.
All rights reserved. Making or sending copies is permitted if the page is not changed in any way and the material is not used for profit. This notice must be included on each copy made or sent.
I will spare you all the details, mostly because I don’t remember them. What I do remember is that much of the time it was not a very happy experience. Let’s just say that there was great resistance at the requirement to practice. During one such trying crying session my five-year-old little musician and I had the following conversation.
“Am I finished Mom?”
“Just one more thing to practice honey.”
“But I don’t want to practice. I just wanted to get a violin mommy, ya know, just have one!”
I recorded her words in my journal in 1987 because they made me laugh, but also because I can relate, though not in regard to the violin. There was a moment in my past when my Father promised me the opportunity to learn to work with an instrument of His creation and I “shouted for joy” at the prospect. Even so, there are days when I could have the following conversation with Him:
“Am I finished Heavenly Father? Have I learned enough today?”
“Just one more lesson honey.”
“But I don’t want to practice. I just wanted to get a body Heavenly Father, ya know, just have one!”
Our daily rehearsal is carried out between body and spirit. Our spirit is the living player and our otherwise lifeless body the magnificent instrument. The body, although excellent and intricate, having been wonderfully made by The Master Craftsman, is as lifeless as a fine violin sitting in its case. But when brought together with the living spirit, as violin to violinist, there is tremendous promise. Together our body and spirit have magnificent potential.
May we continue our daily practice! May we never give up! May we internalize the truth that at one time we literally stood in the presence of God and cheered at the prospect, not only of having a body, but working with it, practicing, training, taking lesson after lesson, rehearsing with this Godly gift until we reach our full potential, until we become like Him!
By Nannette W.
Posted Wednesday, January 21, 2009
Copyright 2008 by Nannette W.
All rights reserved. Making or sending copies is permitted if the page is not changed in any way and the material is not used for profit. This notice must be included on each copy made or sent.
Tuesday, January 20, 2009
“I’m Going To Count To Three and Then…” - Step 12 Having Had A Spiritual Awakening
The parenting skill that requires moms and dads to count to three, to think of a consequence that will get a child’s attention, and then follow through, must be new to my generation of parents. I don’t remember my mom or dad ever counting. I adopted the technique as a seventeen-year-old freshman at BYU when I was enrolled in a class for potential elementary school teachers. As part of my experience I was required to spend a semester as an aid in an actual classroom. For three months I watched as a seasoned teacher, in the face of thirty plus seven-year-olds, lifted his voice above the clamor with these words: “I am going to count to three and if you do not _______ I will _______!!!!! The response was usually striking. I took note.
By the time I finished student teaching my junior year I was a “counting” professional and I was about to bring my first child into the world. For some reason “professional counting” is much more effective than “mother counting.” As my children got older I found myself counting higher and slower (three, ten, nineteen, nineteen and a half). In addition I became less inventive and had less energy. It was difficult to think of just the right consequences. “Natural consequences” were what parenting specialists suggested. And sometimes the punishment I had to enforce felt more like a punishment for me than the child.
One day I was sitting in Relief Society listening to a lesson on how to discipline children when I heard these words come out of the teacher’s mouth. “I occasionally tell my children that by the time I count to three I want them to ______. I don’t know what I would do if I ever got clear to the number three.” That did it! I didn’t know what I would do either and I always got way past the number three. By the time I was raising my fifth child I would say, with the smile of a mother who has grown a little less serious, “I’m going to count and if you don’t ______ something really really bad is going to happen.” This technique delighted my newly acquired son-in-law who couldn’t wait until the day he could count for little ones of his own.
How I relished the times (and I have to say there were many) when my children were obedient because they wanted to be, because they knew it was right, because they loved me, and because they could see the good that comes from being good.
I’m not so different from the little children in my life. I have been propelled to be “good” based on my desire to stay out of trouble with earthly parents and with my Heavenly Father. I know that if it becomes necessary for God to count to three and levy consequences He is willing. What ever it takes! Enos, speaking of his people says, “…And the people were a stiffnecked people…And there was nothing save it was exceeding harshness preaching and prophesying of wars, and contentions, and destructions, and continually reminding them of death, and the duration of eternity, and the judgments and the power of God, and all these things—stirring them up continually to keep them in the fear of the Lord. I say there was nothing short of these things, and exceedingly great plainness of speech, which would keep them from going down speedily to destruction…”
Perhaps the greatest miracle of applying the 12 Steps and “recovering” our relationship with our Heavenly Father and His Son is the change in our own motivation to do the thing they’ve asked us to do. Today I use the tools we have been given (prayer, scripture study, meetings etc), not to stay out of trouble with God, but to come unto Christ because I love Him and I need His help. As I apply each of the steps to my daily life with His divine assistance I feel His love for me. Today I want my obedience to be motivated by love and humility not “I’m counting to three and then…”
By Nannette W.
Posted Tuesday, January 20, 2009
Copyright 2008 by Nannette W.
All rights reserved. Making or sending copies is permitted if the page is not changed in any way and the material is not used for profit. This notice must be included on each copy made or sent.
By the time I finished student teaching my junior year I was a “counting” professional and I was about to bring my first child into the world. For some reason “professional counting” is much more effective than “mother counting.” As my children got older I found myself counting higher and slower (three, ten, nineteen, nineteen and a half). In addition I became less inventive and had less energy. It was difficult to think of just the right consequences. “Natural consequences” were what parenting specialists suggested. And sometimes the punishment I had to enforce felt more like a punishment for me than the child.
One day I was sitting in Relief Society listening to a lesson on how to discipline children when I heard these words come out of the teacher’s mouth. “I occasionally tell my children that by the time I count to three I want them to ______. I don’t know what I would do if I ever got clear to the number three.” That did it! I didn’t know what I would do either and I always got way past the number three. By the time I was raising my fifth child I would say, with the smile of a mother who has grown a little less serious, “I’m going to count and if you don’t ______ something really really bad is going to happen.” This technique delighted my newly acquired son-in-law who couldn’t wait until the day he could count for little ones of his own.
How I relished the times (and I have to say there were many) when my children were obedient because they wanted to be, because they knew it was right, because they loved me, and because they could see the good that comes from being good.
I’m not so different from the little children in my life. I have been propelled to be “good” based on my desire to stay out of trouble with earthly parents and with my Heavenly Father. I know that if it becomes necessary for God to count to three and levy consequences He is willing. What ever it takes! Enos, speaking of his people says, “…And the people were a stiffnecked people…And there was nothing save it was exceeding harshness preaching and prophesying of wars, and contentions, and destructions, and continually reminding them of death, and the duration of eternity, and the judgments and the power of God, and all these things—stirring them up continually to keep them in the fear of the Lord. I say there was nothing short of these things, and exceedingly great plainness of speech, which would keep them from going down speedily to destruction…”
Perhaps the greatest miracle of applying the 12 Steps and “recovering” our relationship with our Heavenly Father and His Son is the change in our own motivation to do the thing they’ve asked us to do. Today I use the tools we have been given (prayer, scripture study, meetings etc), not to stay out of trouble with God, but to come unto Christ because I love Him and I need His help. As I apply each of the steps to my daily life with His divine assistance I feel His love for me. Today I want my obedience to be motivated by love and humility not “I’m counting to three and then…”
By Nannette W.
Posted Tuesday, January 20, 2009
Copyright 2008 by Nannette W.
All rights reserved. Making or sending copies is permitted if the page is not changed in any way and the material is not used for profit. This notice must be included on each copy made or sent.
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