Welcome to Freiburg Germany

It is hard to believe we have finished the first week at the MTC.  It has been an experience that I have never imagined.  We have been very busy and on a schedule every day.  I have had to get used to eating at 7:00 AM, 12:00 noon and 4:30 PM.  We walk a lot and that is good with all of the good food we are eating.  We have learned teaching skills, personal refinement, met wonderful people that have made the same commitment to leave home and family and serve the Lord.  We have studied our scriptures, taught lessons, listened to General Authorities, and attended many devotionals and meetings.  Today we were each given assignments for our church meetings.  I was asked to play the piano for the church services and in Relief Society (meeting for women).  Russ was asked to lead the music in Priesthood meeting (meeting for the men).  One of the Sisters could not be at church and asked me to do her assignment.  I taught a discussion group in Sunday School.  We then had a 3 devotionals with wonderful speakers and musical presentations.  It has truly been a full day.

We had Saturday as a preparation day to visit family, get laundry done, shop, etc.  We were able to go spend time with Emily and her family.  I made cinnamon rolls for my Dad for his 97th Birthday.  We spent Saturday with family, about 80 of us celebrating this remarkable man.  We had a family picture taken and good food and visiting.  A cousin came that we had not seen in about 45 years.

I had acquired tickets to the Mormon Tabernacle Choirs Pioneer Concert for Saturday night.  Emily, Ian, Russ and I went out to dinner and then to the concert.  We were at dinner and were leaving.  As I passed by a table with a family of 4 children and the parents, the young children started yelling and jumping up at down.  I looked to see if I knew them.  I asked, "Did you think I was your Grandma?"  They said no, and were so excited I was talking to them.  Their mother said, "They are so excited to see a missionary."  It was a very touching moment for me.  The realization that the name tag on my chest carries a great responsibility.  I had almost forgotten that it was there.  We had a great visit with them as we explained where we were going.  I hope we are received as well in Germany!
The Concert was absolutely wonderful.  They sang with the guest artists songs from Rogers & Hammerstein musicals.  They ended appropriately with The Sound of Music.

                                                                 The famous Map

                                                     Companion couple - The Barney's

                                                                Language Tutor, Natalie Moto

                                                         District at MTC - friends forever

Letters to my family

I have tried to write weekly to my family in January 2015.  I have been using email, but would like to change over to my Blog.  This will keep a better record of my thoughts and feelings for my children and grandchildren.
I am still learning how all of this works and hopefully can make this a worthwhile effort.

You can see I did not get very far in 2015.  It is now July 18, 2018 and a new chapter of my life has begun.  I am at the Missionary Training Center in Provo, UT preparing to go to the Alpine German Speaking mission.  We have been assigned to serve in Freiburg Germany.  It is a college town in Southwestern Germany close to the French and Swiss borders.  I look forward to documenting the next 18 months through words and pictures.

Welcome to Motherheart

I have thought about this Blog for a long time.  I decided to name it Motherheart because of a beautiful talk given by Julie B. Beck, then First Counselor in the YW General Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, entitled A "Mother Heart".  My youngest son was 17 at the time and he was very touched by the talk and shared his feelings often about it.  She says, "What is a mother heart and how is one acquired?  To paraphrase Proverbs: 'Who can find a ...woman(with a mother heart)? for her price is far above rubies...she..worketh willingly with her hands...With the fruit of her hands she planteth a vineyard...She stretcheth out her hand to the poor...Strength and honour are her clothing...She openeth her mouth with wisdom; and in her tongue is the law of kindness.  She looketh well to the ways of her household, and eatheth not the bread of idleness"   A women with a mother heart has a testimony of the restored gospel, and she teaches the principles of the gospel without equivocation.  She is keeping sacred covenants made in holy temples.  Her talents and skills are shared unselfishly.  She gains as much education as her circumstances will allow, improving her mind and spirit with the desire to teach what she learns to the generations who follow her."
This has been my guide as I live my life.  I hope as a result of sharing my thoughts and feelings, I will be able to help others find the light of Christ, feel peace and comfort in their lives, serve others, uplift and strengthen the weak, help others delight in motherhood and strengthen testimonies.
I also have found it very important to control the environment in my home for better health.  I have found being healthy makes a big difference in well being and the ability to cope and handle life.  I have made several changes in my life and the products I use and will have in my home.  I look forward to the opportunity of sharing some of the things I have found that have changed my life.
One of the most rewarding was 20 years ago starting to walk with my husband every day.  We started walking and worked up to 2 miles 5 days a week.  We generally walk at 5:30 in the morning and this has been very therapudic for our marriage and individually.

Launching a new Phase in my life

I have wanted to do this for a long time and finally a few weeks ago there was an article in the Church News, a weekly magazine published by the Deseret News in Salt Lake City, UT, that encourage Blogs.  I decided it was time a shared my thoughts, ideas, feelings about daily life and living.  My life has been filled with so many experiences that need to be recorded and shared.  My intent is to share those things that matter to me most in life.  I have a wonderful family and extended family.  I am a wife, mother of 5 children, four living; grandmother of 11, daughter, sister, aunt to 29 nieces and nephews and 60+ of their children.
I am a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.  I teach the adult religion class each week for adults over 30.  I work for the Church in the Seminaries and Institute of Religion as a Support Specialist.  I have had that position for 19 years this year.  My husband and I also are Marketing Executives with Melaleuca, Inc.; a manufacturer of wellness products for our home and health.

I taught a class today from the Book of Mormon, Helaman 10-16.  The main part of the lesson was taken from a General Conference talk given by Pres. Ezra Taft Benson April 1989, on "Beware of Pride".
Some excerpts that caused me to ponder:
"The Doctrine and Covenants tells us that the Book of Mormon is the "record of a fallen people."  Why did they fall?  This is one of the major messages of the Book of Mormon.  Mormon gives the answer in the closing chapter of the book in these words:  Behold, the pride of this nation, or the people of the Nephites, hath proven their destruction."
"As Paul said, they 'seek their own, not the things which are Jesus Christ's'  Our will in competition to God's will allows desires, appetites, and passions to go unbridled.  The proud cannot accept the authority of God giving direction to their lives.  They pit their perceptions of truth against God's great knowledge, their abilities versus God's priesthood power, their accomplishments against His mighty works.  Our enmity toward God takes on many labels, such as rebellion, hard-heartedness, stiffneckedness, unrepentant, puffed up, easily offended, and sign seekers.  The proud wish God would agree with them.  They aren't interested in changing their opinions to agree with God's."
Elder Dallin H. Oaks of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles said, "We ...need quiet time and prayerful pondering as we seek to develop information into knowledge and mature knowledge into wisdom."
Pondering is deeper than thinking or day dreaming thoughts away.  It is deeper, piercing to the heart.  I love the thought of developing information into knowledge and then after prayer, study, pondering, implementing that knowledge into action it becomes wisdom.
I am grateful for the students in my class to are not afraid to ask questions.  I has allowed me to pray, ponder, study and find answers for myself.  I am so grateful for that opportunity and for the questions asked.  I have a testimony of the living Prophet, even Thomas S. Monson.  I know there is safety in heeding his words and council.  I know he is a special witness of Jesus Christ and that he holds all the keys of Priesthood power needed on the earth at this time.
It has been a wonderful day!