Thoughts and stories, by Pal

  Why being an imperfect mother is a gift Excerpted from “To Cheer and To Bless: Celebrating 20 Years of Time Out for Women.” Address delivered by  Emily Watts   August 04, 2023 07:00 AM MDT If you read to the end, I'll mention things that show I was a very imperfect mother, especially with my firstborn son! Email Prin “One of the gifts of imperfection [is] that we get the chance to learn and to grow and to become.” Vera Livchak/Getty Images The following excerpt comes from a Time Out for Women address given by Sister Emily Watts in 2015. To read more Time Out for Women addresses, check out  To Cheer and To Bless: Celebrating 20 Years of Time Out for Women , available now at Deseret Book. This past summer, we bought a new car. Well, a new used car—new to us. We only do it about every eight or ten years. It seems like there’s always some innovation in cars; cars do things differently than they used to. And the innovation for me in this car is that when you turn it on,...

This is another great author, with creative ideas for families! How to Thrive When You’re Trapped Inside By  Nicholeen Peck  · March 19, 2020 Trapped! That’s what many people feel like they are right now. Many children are complaining of being bored, or worse, having way too much screen time. Stress is infiltrating more homes globally by the day because businesses are closing their doors, people are losing their jobs, bills are still coming due, social distancing is making people feel disconnected, and there are shortages of basic necessities at the stores. My Facebook friend, Jason, phrased it like this, “We’re all getting to understand what freedom really is now that it’s slowly being taken away from us…” So, is that trapped feeling the absence of freedom? Yes, that’s why it’s so hard to take. Having More Freedom When Freedom is Taken Freedom helps societies thrive. Luckily, in our homes, we are in charge of our own family-governments and sel...

Beautiful thoughts for the Sabbath Day! Latter Day Light DAILY DEVOTIONAL February 17, 2019 Our Responsibility SCRIPTURE OF THE DAY Doctrine & Covenants 4:1-7 "Now behold, a marvelous work is about to come forth among the children of men. Therefore, O ye that embark in the service of God, see that ye serve him with all your heart, might, mind and strength, that ye may stand blameless before God at the last day. Therefore, if ye have desires to serve God ye are called to the work; for behold the field is white already to harvest; and lo, he that thrusteth in his sickle with his might, the same layeth up in store that he perisheth not, but bringeth salvation to his soul; and faith, hope, charity and love, with an eye single to the glory of God, qualify him for the work. Remember faith, virtue, knowledge, temperance, patience, brotherly kindness, godliness, charity, humility, diligence. Ask, and ye shall receive; knock, and it shall be opened unt...

This is how I hope to live my life -- In CRESCENDO! What We Can Learn from Church Leaders About Growing Older, "Living Life in Crescendo" by LDS Living  | Aug. 24, 2018 Makes You Think On December 19, 2008, Steven R. Covey wrote in a blog post, “I am now 76 years old and could easily retire. But I’m not retired and I don’t plan to retire. I don’t believe in retirement. Why, people ask me? Simply, I have a life motto. It is: Live life in crescendo.”  This week, my friend Randal Wright gave 11 talks at BYU Education Week 2018. I first met Wright as an EFY counselor in Illinois in 2011 and he has remained a mentor and friend, so I was intrigued to see that he would be teaching 11 classes over the course of Education Week with the same title “Living Life in Crescendo.” I wasn’t familiar with the Steven R. Covey quote beforehand, so when I sat down with Wright on Wednesday afternoon, I asked what inspired this theme. After making it c...