Truth & Light Is Always Inspiring

"For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he..."
-Proverbs 22:7

I spent my Sunday morning listening to a favorite Inspirational Speaker & Author, Dr. Wayne Dyer...on his book, The Power of Intention. I love the way he articulates his discoveries of our divine power within, based on God's Truth & Light, as to our value and responsibility to live our Best Lives...For our greatest Adventure is Life Itself! We must learn to see ourselves as God sees us. The purity of our intent and heart is truly what defines our character.

What does Your Character say about You?

From A Child's Perspective

"Old Age Isn't For Sissies."

My eldest Grand-daughter, Ella, came to spend some time with Granny & Grandpa this afternoon. We worked for a little while on our Doll House Remodel, she enjoyed some snacks, we practiced her letters and name writing, she played some favorite games on my IPOD Touch and we read some books. I had really hoped that she was enjoying our time together! She had...So much that she began to cry...When I scooped her up into my arms and asked what was wrong, she stated, "Old people forget and I don't want you to forget me! And when people get old, they die. I want you with me forever!" I hugged her and reassured her that I could NEVER forget her in my heart...no matter what! Then I told her that whenever I die, I'd do my very best to always be near her because I loved her so much...She and her baby brother and her cousins! Eventually, she seemed satisfied, or rather, I had managed a successful distraction.

I've been thinking on my conversation with Ella and made two conclusions...I'd better be more vigilant in using my Oil of Olay anti-wrinkle moisturizer so that I can put off looking like the above doggy photo. Although, I suppose that if my wrinkles are ever that serious, I'd be so ugly that others would consider me cute! My other thought was that, while my body may age, I'm determined to keep my spirit forever young and hope to enjoy frequent outings with my girlfriends...perhaps even a game we loved as children! :)

I don't know how long I have until my Mortal Journey is complete, but I hope that I learn all the possible lessons that life can bring, I hope I serve my family, friends and community joyfully, I hope I can maintain good health, I hope to accomplish some of my dreams, I hope I forgive more, I hope others felt the love that is in my heart, I hope my children & grandchildren always know & feel of my absolute Love & Adoration for them, I hope my Sweetheart will never question my Love & Devotion to him, I hope I represented my God & personal Savior well, I hope I make it back to my Heavenly Home! Until then, I'll take each day as a Blessing and try with all my heart to think, speak and act in a way that would please and glorify our Father in Heaven!

2011 Reading Book List

"What we become depends on what we read after all the Professors have finished with us."

-Thomas Carlyle

"Reading is to the mind what exercise is to the body."

-Joseph Addison

• The White Queen By Philippa Gregory
• As You Like It By William Shakespeare
• Annie, Between The States By L. M. Elliott
• Heaven Is For Real By Todd Burpo with Lynn Vincent
• Water For Elephants By Sara Gruen
• Hold Me Tight: Seven Conversations For A Lifetime Of Love By Sue Johnson
• Uncle Tom's Cabin By Harriet Beecher Stowe
• I'll Be Seeing You By Jerry Borrowman
• A Christmas Carol By Charles Dickens
• A Tale Of Two Cities By Charles Dickens
• Till We Have Faces By C.S. Lewis
• The Chronicles Of Narnia By C.S. Lewis
• The Second Mrs. Giaconda By E.L. Konigsburg
• 1776 By David NcCullough
• Not My Will, But Thine By Neal A. Maxwell
• The Enoch Letters By Neal A. Maxwell
• People Of The Book By Geraldine Brooks
• The Secret Life Of Bees By Sue Monk Kidd
• The Memory Keeper's Daughter By Kim Edwards
• Master By Toni Sorenson

God's Great Plan Of Salvation

Over the past 6 months, I've been pondering Personal Agency & God's Great Plan Of Salvation.
I recently stumbled upon a poem that spoke to my heart and had to share it.

Lamentation

And God said, "BE FRUITFUL AND MULTIPLY-"
Multiply, multiply - echoes multiply -

God said, "I WILL GREATLY MULTIPLY THY SORROW-"
Thy sorrow, sorrow, sorrow-

I have gotten a man from the Lord
I have traded the fruit of the garden for the fruit of my body
For a laughing bundle of humanity.

And now another one who looks like Adam.
We shall call this one "Abel."
It's a lovely name, "Abel."

Cain, Abel, the world is yours.
God set the sun in the heavens to light your days
To warm the flocks, to kernel the grain
He illuminated your nights with stars
He made the trees and the fruit thereof yielding seed
He made every living thing, the wheat, the sheep, the cattle
For your enjoyment.
And, behold, it is very good.

Adam? Adam,
Where art thou?
Where are the boys?
The sky darkens with clouds.
Adam, is that you?
Where is Abel?
He is long caring for his flocks.
The sky is black and the rain hammers.
Are the ewes lambing in this storm?

Why your troubled face, Adam?
Are you ill?
Why so pale, so agitated?
The wind will pass
The lambs will birth
With Abel's help.

Dead?
What is dead?

Merciful God!

Hurry, bring warm water
I'll bathe his wounds
Bring clean clothes
Bring herbs
I'll heal him.

I am trying to understand. You said, "Abel is dead."
But I am skilled with herbs
Remember when he was seven
The fever? Remember how-

Herbs will not heal?
Dead?

And Cain? Where is Cain?
Listen to that thunder.

Cain cursed?
What has happened to him?
God said, "A fugitive and a vagabond?"

But God can't do that.
They are my sons, too.
I gave them birth
In the valley of pain.

Adam, try to understand
In the valley of pain
I bore them
Fugitive?
Vagabond?

This is his home
This soil he loved
Where he toiled for golden wheat
For tasseled corn.

To the hill country?
There are rocks in the hill country
Cain can't work in the hill country
The nights are cold
Cold and lonely, and the wind gales.

Quick, we must find him
A basket of bread and his coat
I worry, thinking of him wandering
With no place to lay his head.
Cain cursed?
A wanderer, a roamer?
Who will bake his bread and mend his coat?

Abel, my son dead?
And Cain, my son a fugitive?
Two sons
Adam, we had two sons
Both - Oh, Adam-
Multiply
Sorrow
Dear God, Why?
Tell me again about the fruit
Why?
Please, tell me again
Why?

-Arta Romney Balliff


Each of us will govern ourselves through personal agency, as we navigate our way through this mortal life. Sometimes; however, others will make choices that will impact our own lives...
Each and every decision will bring "Joy" or "Sorrow"..."Truth" or "Untruth"..."Peace" or "Turmoil."
For "there must needs be opposition in all things."
I believe that God's Great Plan Of Salvation is a Gift to all.
Mortal life lends experience that teaches and enables understanding, compassion, wisdom.

While I only see fragments of the whole big picture, each day I know that I must do my best and then allow Jesus Christ, our personal Savior, to bridge the way between us and God, the Father.
Sometimes, our journey feels painful, difficult, overwhelming, lonely, fearful and unbearable, but I'm grateful to have the chance to experience ALL things...
In order to appreciate happiness, contentment, satisfaction, fulfillment, love, joy & peace...
Even if I too must ask,
"Dear God, Why?
Tell me again about the fruit
Why?
Please, tell me again
Why?"

Latest Book

For those who know me well...You know that I love to read!
Two years ago, my darling Sister-in-Law gave me a Deseret Book gift card for my Birthday and I purchased this book. I had a rather lengthy list of "Must Read" books that I was working my way through, so this particular one simply sat on my bookshelf in my office. Very recently, while waiting for some books on hold at our neighborhood Public Library, I decided that now was a good time to familiarize myself with this author.

Oh My Gosh!!!
What A Fabulous Book!

I'm only half way through it and I'm positively loving it and recommending it to Family & Friends! Toni's style of writing is so exceptional! It's not one of those books that one has to get half way through before it comes alive...It pulls readers in from the very beginning. Although it is a novel, it is written from an interesting perspective and is so heart warming and powerful!
I highly recommend this book:

Master
By
Toni Sorenson

A Little Thing Called Love...

There are some things that naturally seem to go together...
Peanut Butter & Jelly
Cake & Ice-Cream
Mickey & Minnie
February 14th & Love

In the final hours of this 1st day of February 2011, I wanted to take a few moments to reflect on this upcoming month that is thought by many to be the Month of Love.
What Is Love?
Love is synonymous with such words as attachment, endearment, affection, adoration, liking, devotion, warmth, tenderness, friendliness, adore, worship, like, cherish and fondness.
In today's world, there are those who define Love as amorous affection, physical attraction, lust, sexy, provocative, pleasurable, satisfaction, temporary and, at times, no strings attached.

Over the past 6 or 7 months, I've given Love serious contemplation.
I've been blessed to have become acquainted with multiple kinds of Love in my lifetime.
~My First Crush~
~Young Love~
~My Parents~
~My Granny~
~My Brothers~
~God & His Son, Jesus Christ~
~The Love Of My Life - My Husband~
~In-Laws~
~5 Fabulous Children - Joseph, Nanette, Geneal, Nicole & Oliver~
~Grandchildren~
~Treasured Friends~
~Wonderful Neighbors~
~Church Family~
~Community~
~Colleagues~
~Clients~
~Students~

Throughout my life, Love is an emotion that has come without restraint.
It is never devalued, never given begrudgingly, nor is it polluted by the world's standard.
It is my Heart that speaks of Love as Sincere, Devoted, Contemplative, Empathetic, Understanding, Compassionate, Tender, Teachable, Nurturing, Protective, Adoring
and unquestionably Sacred.
To open my Heart so fully to others, has, at times, proven Scary, Painful, Anxious, Sorrowful, and yes, even Heart-Breaking! Yet, I'm willing to taste the bad, in order to more fully comprehend and experience the Powerful, Wonderful, Blessed, Joyful and Eternal state of emotion that is synonymous with LOVE.

Here's wishing everyone a Happy February!
May this Month usher in tremendous Love that will last throughout your 2011!

Frances Edna Johnson Thomas

This Is My Beautiful Granny!
Born 101 Years Ago, January 23, 1910, In Gilmer,Texas.

This past Sunday, on the Anniversary of her birth, I reflected on her very presence in my life. Having been an RN, she was there for the birth of all of my Mother's children...except for one...Me. That was the only time that my Granny missed a significant event in my life...until her death in January 1995!

I MISS MY GRANNY SO VERY MUCH!

Widowed for over 40 years,
she is now with her Sweetheart and Treasured Friend, my Grandpa,
George Washington Thomas.

My Granny was the single most significant influence in my life and lived a life of selfless servitude to others.
She was the essence of Beauty, Friend, Intellect, Confidant, Teacher, Nurse,
Artist, Author, Student, Chef, Counselor, Historian & Spiritualist.

As I navigate my own way through this mortal existence, I look back to the Beacon of Light that my Granny was for me. I long to have her wrap her arms around me, to wipe away my tears, to lend me courage when life seems so difficult and I'm frightened of the unknown. I miss her tender compassion and understanding as I struggle to recollect all those shared words of wisdom.
She loved people! She never judged! She was so forgiving!
She loved to laugh and did it often!
I find that I look back often...remembering...savoring my every moment with her! Wishing she were still here!
Did I mention...I Miss My Granny So Much!
But then it dawned on me...She Is Still Ever present in my life!
For as long as I remember, treasure and implement her values into my own character, she will always remain a part of my mortality. And when my journey is complete, I know that she will be waiting with outstretched arms, to welcome me...For then, I know I will be "Home."