SURVIVING CANCER - AMONGST OTHER STUFF!

I was visiting my family in Australia in 1985 when I  felt a small lump in my breast. Of course it was on my mind until I returned  home and was able to visit a doctor. For many years I  suffered many respiratory infections, and later found  they were caused by my family of origin and others smoking around me; smoking was very popular then. As I was medically inclined, I had been prescribed many antibiotics and anti-respiratory drugs, so after a number of years I was becoming addicted to codeine to manage the pain. Then, side effects began to emerge, especially arthritis, which today would be known as Fibromyalgia, which can be very crippling, and for a number of years I struggled with it and inherited Spinal Arthropathy; then the medicines began to affect my gastrointestinal system.

About 1977 my 3 year old son had glandular fever and was anemic, he was given iron injections; I was  trying to feed him foods high in iron, to no avail.Then he was hospitalized for 3 days while they diagnosed his very painful knee, thinking it may be arthritis, and possibly leukemia as his lymph nodes were swollen, and he would have a fever every few weeks. My husband was a counselor in the Bishopric of our ward (an assistant pastor in a parish) and with his business pressures going on, he did what he could at home to take care everything, so it was a stressful time. Still the doctors gave no valid diagnosis, but to watch him and give him pain medicine as needed, so he came home, thankfully.

 Both my husband and I were jogging regularly in the 1970s;  the Air Force aerobic exercises were introduced in the 1960s by Dr. Kenneth Cooper and had become very popular; but now  I was unable to do anything and resorted to sitting and bouncing  on a mini trampoline. As I had done yoga for years, now that was impossible. I had been taking anti-inflammatory medication which I eventually had to stop because of the side effects. Meanwhile I was still struggling with the pain of arthritis and as I had been introduced to some herbal supplements, I started to try them to see if they could help. Eventually I noticed that my sinus infections decreased, so that seemed to be a start, as I had been hospitalized at one point for it, so I was very encouraged, even though the arthritis was still very painful..

One day I was praying to know if there was anything else I could do.  Was I just going to be stuck with this? I was even using a cane and a wheelchair when necessary; I was too young for all of this!
 I was at my wits end with another infection, we had eaten out the night before, a rich meal, and I woke up with another headache, so I was praying fervently for answers. The telephone rang, it was a friend who had just moved into our neighbourhood and was calling to see how I was doing, that led to me to tears, describing our present circumstances; we had briefly talked about the benefits of herbs and nutrition before, so I was grateful to know that someone cared enough to call me.

This sweet lady then told me about her experience with illness and similar problems and how she had regained her health. So following her suggestions  we went ahead  and for awhile reduced our intake of meat; I would make almond milk three times a week for our 3 year old, it was not available in stores then. We started to use whole grains instead of refined white flour; breakfast became steamed cracked wheat, whole grain pancakes and waffles and we ate eggs and cheese. Goats milk is easier to digest, I heard that it was helpful for children's infections, and we could get it directly from the dairy, I would go to the dairy and watch while the goats were being milked, it can have a strong flavor if not cold enough and is too old. Carrot juice became an excellent source of Vitamin A and iron; I had watched a documentary on a child who had Cerebral Palsy and his mother had found that carrot juice had helped his digestive process. Snacks were almonds and raisins, carrot sticks with a tasty dip, popcorn etc., there are also ways to make vegetables very tasty and I learned  how, meals still have to be appealing both to look at and eat. I read everything I could about preventative medicine. I also had been prompted to read more in-depth the Doctrine and Covenants Section 89, a revelation given to the Prophet Joseph Smith known as The Word of Wisdom; 100 or more years before it was known of substance addictions, and even tea and coffee with its caffeine addiction. Members of the Church of Jesus Christ Of Latter Day Saints on the whole live 10 years longer and have better health than others.


As we progressed with this huge change of diet my son immediately started to look better, his fevers and lumps left; he had been so tired from the anemia, he would lay on the floor or couch and play with his cars and toys; now he was up running around like a normal child. The other children also benefited, becoming more healthy in many ways. What a miracle! Just from this change! Encouraged by his improvement I stayed with the program and eventually felt well enough to be jogging and exercising again, even though I still had remnants of spinal arthritis, especially my neck and shoulders. Lifting the babies and small children had been painful in the past.  By 1980 I was pregnant, with our last child, a son.

 The 1982 recession had taken a toll on us and so as I was doing so well, I started a RN refresher course in 1983, and worked two days a week until an incident with a patient occurred. As I was helping her into a commode, she plopped and I took her full weight that resulted in a back strain; since I had issues with it anyway that exacerbated it!  With all the prior lifting patients in the early years of training, I had been trying to get into an area of nursing that wasn't so physically demanding, and also to keep my RN current. Now, as I still had young children at home, I was grateful I could still manage at all. One daughter had married and as I look back, I know in the Lord's strength I was helped through it all.

When I came home from Australia in 1985  I was immediately hospitalized and woke up from surgery minus my breast. The lump was very small but had spread to the lymph nodes and chemotherapy was prescribed as a preventative procedure. Even though I was loathe to do it, I went ahead with the first dose and immediately began to be very sick, couldn't eat, couldn't sleep, my hair starting to fall out, and children were running around, what a circus! The next dose was even worse and I was hospitalized with a fever, dehydrated, and in constant pain. Could it get worse? I had been praying and my family and friends fasted for me, I felt as though I would die at any minute, I also felt prompted that I should not continue as the chemotherapy would be disastrous. That was confirmed to me as the doctor then told me that he felt he shouldn't continue treatments for now, and told my husband to take me home and that I may not last much longer.

So home I went, so tired and in pain and not able to hardly eat anything or sleep much! Feeling very depressed at this point, I started slowly back into my good nutrition with small amounts and range of motion exercises. Very soon I was feeling somewhat better, though too much exertion left me exhausted; just a trip to the store was enough to go back to bed. So very slowly I improved, my mother had come and was a big help taking the load off my husband who was so stressed himself, the older children pitched in and were a big help. One of the children was making whole wheat bread as I had done, holding the big lump of dough in her hands and asking." is this okay Mom?" Another middle child was "mom," to the 5 yr old. I was grateful for the Relief Society also, a women's charitable organization of our church; they brought meals which helped so much, and helped with the younger children. I was grateful for anything! To try to keep some semblance of order, the children still had their assigned chores to do, and I tried to help them with a normal schedule, it was summer and the swimming pool saved my life! We talked about the fact that I was not ready to die yet and not to worry, the Lord was in charge and all we could do was the best we could.

By 1986 another miracle occurred in the form of an answer to prayer. I was still praying that I would have better health, I still had some arthritis and was very tired. A neighbour told me about some Chinese herb foods that seemed to help with different health challenges. It had been introduced by an  oriental herbalist, and his wife who had become a medical doctor; so working together he had combined some ancient recipes he had inherited from an ancestor. I was pretty skeptical, but two others also mentioned it and as I had been praying, "if there was something else that could help, please help me to find it!" Well since I had found what nutrition could do, why not try some super concentrated nutrition? So I started a basic protein drink, and a caffeine free herbal beverage; I  began to feel more energy, so I added some other herbs especially for the joints; I noticed my shoulders were less painful, and after awhile I could even hold my arms up. I had been wearing clothes I could unzip or open in the front to dress, that wasn't necessary now; for which I did so appreciate, "health is really wealth"!




Now 30 years later, I am so grateful for the answers to prayer. I had been praying I could at least see my youngest through high school; all our children married and we have 27 grandchildren, I love them all dearly. We celebrated our 50th wedding anniversary and my husband died soon after. The artwork is his, I miss him so much, but I am so grateful to be married "for time and all eternity"! Life goes on and we all will suffer through the trials and adversities of this mortal life, and illness is one of those. This my story, each person will choose their path. Our happiness does not depend upon material things. fame or fortune, but in our faith in Jesus Christ, keeping his commandments, and our relationships with family and friends, one day at a time! The thirteenth Article of Faith  of The Church Of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints states, "We believe in being honest, true, benevolent, virtuous and in doing good to all men; indeed we may say that we follow the admonition of Paul - We believe all things, we hope all things, we have endured many things, and hope to be able to endure all things . If there is anything virtuous, lovely, or of good report or praiseworthy, we seek after these things." Following these principles can help all of us in this life for a plan of happiness.

ONCE UPON A MATTRESS

   In The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, temples have special significance, members who make themselves eligible, participate in sacred eternal ordinances for the living and the dead, the latter by proxy by those who attend. The focus is on our Savior Jesus Christ and His teachings, the inscription on the entrance reads, "Holiness to the Lord". There are 144 operating temples throughout the world, chapels are for Sunday worship and other activities to which all are invited and anyone may become eligible to attend the temple. (www. lds.org/church/temples)                                                                                                                                                            
 We were called as temple workers to the Chicago Temple in 2008, it includes a large area, Northern Illinois, Wisconsin, Northern Indiana and Southwestern Michigan. Driving took about three to four hours each way depending on traffic and construction, and that seemed to be going on for the two years we served. The temple is north in Glenview, and to save time we got an I-Pass for the toll roads. Peak hour has heavy traffic so we tried to avoid those times and as our shift was 1pm, we left about 9 am. We would wait to leave about 7pm to avoid peak hour traffic and most times got home about 10.30-11 pm. So it was a long day for us, even though we only did one day every week.

We also would try and go at least once a month besides, we had worked in the Mesa Temple, which being 10 minutes away was not so stressful.  The Houston Temple was about three hours each way but we only worked there a few months until we got a new calling.  Each Temple is autonomous and has a different way of doing some things while following the official guidelines and procedures, but it was a fairly easy adjustment.



One time coming home from a session in Chicago about seven in the evening, I was driving and thankfully peak hour had subsided. Construction was going on and we were squeezed to the far right narrow lane by the wall. Two other lanes were to the left of us, the car behind us was about two cars length, the car besides us about one cars length. The only pull over areas were about every mile or two, so any car problems that happened resulted in an accident unless you were by one. We were doing about 50-55mph, the others 65-70 in a 45 mph area because of construction. The cars would blatantly break the speed limit as the police would have to be where they could pull you over and in the two years we drove back and forth we hardly saw any police cars.

In the distance I could see something grey ahead, I knew we were going too fast to stop, the car behind would have barreled into us as there was no pull over in sight, it was early evening and hard to see anyway. So praying, I just drove over this gray thing, I thought a blanket of some kind. Wood, wire and kapok flew everywhere! It must have been a mattress, possibly a box springs. Our little Honda kept on going, it didn't seem as though we had flat, something was flapping up front, we weren't sure about what happened to the cars behind us!   I pulled over the next chance we had and squeezed out of the driver's side, it was taking was like taking your life in your hands at that, as the cars were so close, whizzing by. All we could see was kapok underneath and a rubber grommet flapping on the right front, no flat tire.  We called the Highway number and reported it, so on we went home no further problems, and thanked the Lord for the protection, I had that feeling that we had had help. The next day we took the car down to have it aligned, not only did it not need it but they just put the grommet back in place, pulled out more kapok stuck to the underneath, and sent us on our way! What a miracle!

FREEDOM IN GOVERNMENT

This is from my former blog written 1 Mar 2009, I thought I would share it.

 FREEDOM IN GOVERNMENT: These are notes I took from a fireside we attended with Elder Ezra Taft Benson, who was an Apostle at the time, at the Salt River Stake, 2 September 1980. He quoted from Doctrine & Covenants 101:76-80, he talked about how Wilfred Woodruff was visited by the signers of the Constitution in the St George Temple and was asked why their ordinance work was not done.

Elder Benson said, " I was assigned to go to the St George Temple... I went into the vault to check on records that they thought might be brought back to Salt Lake City... There I saw with my own eyes the records... the Founding Fathers laid the foundation for this country..."

Elder Benson stated, "We have a serious problem facing this nation, I saw the Iron Curtain drop...I went to Czechoslovakia in 1946 to re-establish the Mission there... I took Welfare supplies... I saw people in the last stages of starvation...economic failure and the start of communism." Then he said this with much emotion and emphasis concerning our country, "IT IS NOT ENOUGH TO LOVE A THING, YOU MUST PROTECT THE THING YOU LOVE", D & C 101:76-80. He continued, "We have a rich heritage and a rich birthright, we are traveling down the soul destroying road of socialism... we must become involved in the political process... this is the Lord's base of operation in theses days, He established it and expects us to safeguard it..." He then talked about his tenure as Secretary of Agriculture with President Eisenhower, (who was President of the United States from 1953-1961) and asked him at the time, 'is not now the time to instigate the Monroe Doctrine?" (see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monroe_Doctrine).

 He further said, " I entertained Khrushchev (who was Secretary of the Communist Party 1953-1964) for half a day, and I was not proud of it, everything I showed him he said we have something better in Russia, he lied to us all morning... Detente is an absolute fraud, (meaning an easing of tension between the U.S. and Russia). "When I was in Russia the Agricultural Minister invited us to see everything in Russia. He said we could visit a Christian church.. he kept putting us off... finally on the road to the airport he located a Baptist Church. I insisted they turn off and stop, they didn't want to go but I insisted. They told us the churches had been converted to museums, the people weren't interested in religion. This church was full to overflowing, the Minister invited us up on the platform and invited me to speak. We used our own translators in order to be safe.

I bore my witness that God hears and answers our prayers and that freedom is God Given and to read the Bible. My heart was touched, the Spirit was there, the entire congregation arose and sang, ' God Be With You Until We Meet Again'. They took off their little head piece and waved good bye with tears. At the airport each press member but one said, 'that was the greatest experience of my life.' Elder Benson then said, "There is no Latter Day Saint living who is living the Gospel fully when he refuses to do his duty to his country... The whole communistic system is economically, socially, and spiritually unsound."
As we face the time that President Benson talked about, five years before he became the President and the Prophet of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, it is wise to follow his counsel. We now have government that is definitely leading us deeper in to bondage, and this was 35 years ago. As all the Prophets have counseled to keep the commandments and, "stand in holy places and be not moved" (D&C 87:8), and, "if ye are prepared ye shall not fear", (D&C 38:30) this will sustain us through the trials ahead. A book, Prophecy Key to the Future by Crowther, (it can be ordered from Bookcraft Publishing),  contains prophecies concerning our country's and the world's future.

                                                                                                                                                                                The Twelfth Article of Faith states: "We believe in being subject to kings, presidents, rulers and magistrates and in obeying, honoring and sustaining the law". Our best protection is faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and knowledge, that is the power to overcome fear.

HE LIVES - AND SO WILL WE!

On this Easter Sunday, how grateful I am for the redeeming power of Jesus Christ. I do not fully understand how He took upon Himself the sins of all people who have lived and died in this world.

 He did this mainly in Gethsemane as Luke tells us that He "sweat was as it were great drops of blood falling to the ground". Many have been crucified but only the Savior submitted to this willingly, He prayed, "Father, if thou be willing, remove this cup from me; nevertheless not my will, but thine be done." (Luke 22: 42-44). The Father sent an angel to minister to Him, no human being could have endured all the sins and pain of all who have lived and died on this earth, only as He was the Son of God conceived of the Holy Ghost and born of Mary.

As this world is turning from the core values of Christianity and Christians are being persecuted because they are Christian, as has been prophesied, the parable of the wheat and tares is coming to pass. I pray more  people will  have  earnest prayer, and turn from the world where necessary, to Jesus Christ. "If in this life only we have hope in Christ,we are of all men most miserable"."For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive". (1Cor 15:19, 22)

We as members are so blessed to have the restored Gospel of Jesus Christ, through His prophet Joseph Smith. Because of the truths from the Book of Mormon, we can know of the blessings of those who live a higher law as did all His prophets  Holding to the iron rod, (the word of God) of Lehi's dream will keep us safe!

 Through the Savior's grace and through our repentance, our sins can be forgiven and we can feel the, peace that He offers.   I know by the power of the Holy Ghost that Christ does live and we can have hope in His glorious resurrection, and that He will come again in power and great glory!

Harvest The Fruit And Nuts Of Your Family Tree

After Alex Haley's book "Roots" was published, there was an increase interest in genealogy and researching family trees, it has become the world's most favorite pastime, outdoing stamps, coin collecting or gardening. Even before this it has been one of my favorite things to do, solving a mystery! If you think "Roots"or other biographical histories are fascinating, start digging into your own family history and you will find you have a great story! As it can be confusing as to, "how do I  start this task?" There are some easy steps to follow:

VISIT AN OLDER RELATIVE AND GATHER FAMILY TRADITIONS:
Sometimes the family traditions were found to be as they were told, others seemed to be embellished or found to be untrue.
  Great Aunt Rose was murdered in her bed; Great Grandpa Edwards was probably not a ships captain as his death certificate said he could not read or write; Great Grandpa Johnson did turn out to be convicted for stealing and transported for 7 years; The Golding sisters, Belle and  Annie (2nd & 3rd front) and Kate, (end front row)  were noted for their work as  members of the Womanhood Suffrage League of New South Wales from about 1893, they lobbied for women's equality and formed the Women's Progressive Association in 1904, an internet search of the Golding sisters will bring up their biographies; Did Great Grandpa Murphy who was a ship's carpenter, help build a ship that sailed from New Brunswick, Canada to Australia? It supposedly wrecked in the islands, but was it the ship that was the only ship found in that time frame? George and Alice White with nine of their twelve children, immigrated to Australia, Alice did die on the voyage; Joseph Golding immigrated to Australia to be the secretary to Sir George Gray, the governor of New South Wales, who at the time of Joseph's arrival to New South Wales in Oct 1850, was the  governor of New Zealand and prior had been the governor of South Australia. Possibly Joseph intended to travel to New Zealand, we'll never know, he was a clerk, but got derailed when he met Ann Fraser on the same ship and married her in Sydney, and then went on to the gold mines of Hill End. Some stories may never be verified only inasmuch as there is a record to prove such.

GATHER FAMILY INFORMATION AND RECORD WHAT YOU FIND:
 Start with yourself and look for certificates, family bibles, trees or journals, military, government, pension, christening or any record that would contain information. Collect into one place so you can sort through as you make your own personal record. Then you can either, record on to a pedigree or family group chart or enter into a genealogical program such as Ancestral Quest, Roots Magic etc. or a subscription program such as ancestry.com This will take some time! Commit some time each week, and hour or two is all is needed.
 Once you don't know much about the next generation always go from the known to the unknown, make up a summary of an ancestor you intend to research. Divide a sheet of paper  in two, one side is KNOWN the other side is UNKNOWN, then go back chronologically from the person's death to their birth and list what you know, from that you will end up with what you don't know and a possible search to find more. Keep it simple! One family at a time!

DO A SURVEY OF GENEALOGICAL SITES:

  Familysearch.org is free and was the first internet sharing file, the Salt Lake City Family History Library is the largest repository of genealogical material in the world and well worth a visit at least one time. All of their original media is stored in an environmentally safe granite mountain site, which I had the privilege of touring before it was closed to the public. They also have satellite Family History Centers throughout the world, their localities are found in familysearch.org, they do not proselyte and for a small fee rental microfilm is available.

Make sure you also correspond or visit the Historical Society and Public Library of your locality, they oftentimes have local records unavailable elsewhere. County records have information you may not find elsewhere, sometimes they will give information over the telephone. Cemeteries and obituaries are a wonderful way to connect families. The  internet is another prime source as many now put their trees online, churches may do so as well, Shrule Parish in Mayo County, Ireland, entered all their records online.  Ireland has  Heritage Centers and for a fee they will check a family name which would be much cheaper than visiting, unless you want the flavour of your ancestors. There are many other sites and historical places of interest to you and you alone.
                           
MY FAMILY TREE IS ALREADY DONE! NO IT ISN'T!
 Some have trees put together by others, just make sure you spot check the sources so you're not on the wrong line! Ancestry trees usually do not have sources, so it is wise to check and make sure. The you may want to go to an end of line family and start coming forward with spouses and children. If your tree goes to the 1500s and beyond this may not be possible, just go to a family where you can get sources, possibly a 2nd or 3rd great grandparents. Everyone is different, so be sure to keep a research log and do what the professionals do, make a report and summary of your research, from that you will know where to search next.

 VISIT THE LOCALITY OF YOUR ANCESTOR:
  If possible do this! It will really root you to your roots!
 My whirlwind visit to Tisbury and Semley in Wiltshire, England was fun and informative! After a two hour train ride from London, ( I nearly missed Tisbury, the train was longer than the ramp!) I found a  very old fashioned village, after a query for a taxi at the local Newsagent store, an old fashioned black car pulled up, driven by an elderly lady, my taxi! I was driven very slowly to the birthplace of the Whites and Burdens. After a perusal of the cemeteries in the drizzling rain ( yes I did have my raincoat and hat and no I did not think to bring chalk or paper to stencil, I just wrote it all down), the taxi driver made sure I got to train in time, I got out of the cab and the train pulled in! Whew!
Another time I was home visiting my family of origin and my brother decided we would take an overnight trip to Hill End,

where the Ackermanns and Krohmanns lived for a number of years in the cottage above, mining the gold fields. The original cottage is still standing and later, one family restored it to its original condition and live there in the summer, charging a small fee to look, to recompense some of  their expense. A wonderful piece of history, as a number of my family lived there, including the Goldings who lived at Tambaroora, a neighbouring town which no longer exits.Sadly the cemetery was just a mess of weeds and any headstones were long gone. Even so what a wonderful unforgettable experience!

COMMIT SOME TIME - LET GO OF FEARS!
Let go of any stumbling blocks such as: "I afraid it will take up too much time", only if you let it, possibly some time could be found from the thick of thin things. "I don't know how" is another

common fear, now is the best time to learn! Why not spend some of it hunting ancestors?  For those who have relatives in the thick of family history, there are other ways to be involved, collaborate with them to find out how you can help. Family Search has an indexing project to digitize all of their microfilm online for free, anyone is welcome to volunteer, how to start is found at familysearch.org, the missionaries are also learning and the sisters have spent some time learning.

Keeping a journal is a great way to pass your history to your posterity. Many local Historical Societies have projects and need volunteers to help, such as extracting names from a local cemetery. They always need help at their site and it is a good idea to become a  member, most will publish a newsletter or booklet each month. An entertaining radio show, "Extreme Genes" hosted by Scott Fisher, is found on mormonchannel.org, it has many ideas and links and gives the latest genealogical news, his introduction is, "Shake your family tree and  watch all the nuts fall out!"

You will find many rewards pursuing this fascinating hobby! A well known saying is," When a person dies, a library burns", makes sure you find those libraries!

From Bondage To Freedom (2)

Today, people can be in bondage in many ways:  debt, drugs, alcohol, gambling, pornography, sexual abuse, to name a few, and hopping a ship to go to another country won't bring healing! To be free from these types of bondage requires a commitment to a twelve step addictive recovery program available in many countries. Committing to a Higher Power of choice, and staying with the program, there will be success and freedom of bondage!

The twelve steps are steps to repentance and forgiveness, focusing on the consequences of our own behavior rather that that of another. This may seem the wrong focus, as many relatives or friends of alcoholics, for example, become obsessed with hiding the liquor or preventative measures so the alcoholic can't imbibe. Actually they themselves become so controlling about it that they can't see" the forest for the trees". Only when we ourselves change, will those around us change, not because we want to force change, but rather allow another their freedom to choose. Sometimes allowing another to suffer the consequences of their behavior, or "hitting bottom", is really a compassionate choice and staying in an abusive situation is not productive to the victim.
 
That came to me clearly as my childhood home was one of chaotic confusion and trauma, I realized later in my adulthood that I had been so influenced, that I was acting out some compulsive addictive behavior, mainly character defects. At one point prescription drugs became a problem, as my childhood illnesses continued in to adulthood, realizing this, I found other ways to overcome this. As alcohol had been a big part of my growing up, where I lived, I was so negatively influenced by this, that I vowed I would never smoke or drink. Cigarettes were very popular in those days and no one knew the negative effects they would have in the future. Dad seemed to be able to manage later on and had ceased smoking and drinking due to some intervention including a mild coronary occlusion with no surgery, this actually elongated his life. Mum on the other hand showed signs of lung disease in her earlier years and struggled with it her remaining years.


I had had some negative memories return later on and with that, and my childhood being such an influence, I started in a twelve step program. As I focused on my character defects and stopped blaming, I started to feel empowered by this program. Also incorporating the Gospel principles and relying on the Savior's grace, I felt as if a big backpack of stones were emptied, the chains fell off, a feeling was that of freedom from bondage! Now twenty seven years later, I am so grateful for that answer to prayer.

Three years ago my husband and I were fortunate to serve a mission in an addictive recovery program in our area, incorporated by our church, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. Specifically we taught that our Higher Power is Jesus Christ and only in and through him can we be released.  One of our Articles of Faith reads, "We claim the privilege of worshiping Almighty God according to  the dictates of our own conscience, and allow all men the same privilege, let them worship how, where, or what they may."


Not everything is ever resolved, we still live in mortality and still face this world of opposition, but there is much good that is happening, and we can choose how we react to life! We still can have some days when nothing seems to go right or as planned, accidents happen, we can't control "people, places or things", all we can do is the best we can!

From Bondage To Freedom (1)

 Many of our ancestors immigrated to escape bondage, some of those were the Irish during the potato famine of 1845-1861, about a million people died and a million fled the country. Some of those million came to Australia, among the number in my family was an Irish orphan lass on an Irish Orphan ship the "Thomas Arbuthnot". Among the Irish tenant farmers who immigrated were John English and his family. Many immigrated for the gold rushes in different countries including Australia at Hill End, New South Wales. In 1857 several ancestors were mining, including Johann Krohmann, who had one the largest veins, Michael Ackermann and his wife Anna Maria Krohmann, Johann's sister, who arrived  about 1870 from the Hunter Valley, and Joseph Golding, the latter another story of success rising out adversity. Some came just for the ability to own land which was unavailable in their home countries, among those was wealthy Peter Arthur Willmott. Another strong religious family was George White whose wife Alice Burden, died en route.  George was left a widower with 9 of the 12 children unmarried, 2 remained in England, his married son Isaiah, was on the same ship. George's sister Patience and husband Thomas Harris sponsored them. Edward Murphy was a ship's carpenter from New Brunswick, Canada, he was shipwrecked in the islands but made his way to Sydney and married one of the English daughters, his skills passed through the family to my father who was builder.
                                                         
England sent convicts to America and twice as many to Australia, "Many of the convicts were transported for petty crimes, such as stealing a handkerchief or a pair of buckles and some were as young as 11 or 12. After their prison terms were spent most stayed in Australia and joined the other settlers, with some rising to respected positions in Australian society". http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Convicts_in_Australia

One such convict was an ancestor William Johnson:

"OLD BAILEY COURT RECORD FOR WILLIAM JOHNSON, WILLIAM TURNER
Theft > simple larceny, 29th February 1836.
Reference Number: t18360229-750
Offence: Theft > simple larceny
Verdict: Guilty > other; Guilty > other
Punishment: Transportation
750. WILLIAM JOHNSON and WILLIAM TURNER were indicted for stealing, on the 17th of February, 72 yards of printed cotton, value 2l. 7s., the goods of George Mead.
PHINEAS BUTLER (police-constable K 222"On the 17th February, about five o'clock in the morning, I was between Bow-bridge and Bow-church, I saw the two prisoners a short distance apart-perhaps twenty yards, walking the same way. I stopped Johnson with these two pieces of cotton tied up in a blue handkerchief, I asked him what he had got there, he said he had got some prints, and he had brought them from Messrs. Lane's, at Harlow, as the patterns did not suit, he was going to take them to Bethnal-Green, to have them exchanged. I thought it was an unlikely story, and took him to the station-house. I called my brother-officer, who went after Turner, and he brought him with another bundle. He said he got them near the Horse-shoes, at Potters-street, which is about three miles below Epping that he took them out of a bale he found in the road, and thought they had dropped from Mr. Mead, the Harlow wagoner. I went to the King's Arms, in Leadenhall Street, and saw Mr. Mead, and found he had lost a small bale of goods of this description.
WILLIAM HOTHER (police-constable K 23.)" I was on duty, and apprehended Turner, in Bow Town-I took this parcel out of his possession I asked him what he had got in his hand he said clothes, I said what clothes,he said it was a gown-piece,I asked where he got it, and where he was going to take it,he could give me no satisfactory account.I took him to the station-house, he there confessed he picked it up on the road, supposing it had dropped from Mr. Mead's wagon." (Other testimony from Mr Mead's son who said, Johnson had worked for his father about 6 weeks prior and had driven the wagon and knew the road).
JOHNSON'S DEFENSE: I am a farmer's labourer, and have worked at Little Canfield Hall, at Essex, twelve years, and had an excellent character the whole time.I had been on a visit to my friends in London, and was returning with William Turner,we found a bundle on the road near Potter-street,we took the pieces out of it, three in number, and proposed to return to London, to see if we could find the owners. On arriving at Bow, we were taken to the station-house,I am innocent of taking them with a felonious intent; I therefore hope, by your just judgement, I shall he acquitted there are twelve in my family,not one was ever accused of dishonesty." ( Turner gave the same testimony).             

"Mangles"

William Johnson arrived in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, on the ship, "Mangles" in !841 so he may have been confined on one of the hulk ships on the Thames River. The prisoners were treated brutally, mostly whippings. Port Arthur in Tasmania was particularly hard as I toured the remains of the buildings on holiday tour of Tasmania. One form of punishment was isolated confinement in a small dark room, when the door closed no one could see their hand in front of their face. When the prisoners were released they became blind from the light.

William Johnson went on to be  a stockman at Gostwyck sheep station, and later a coach driver who ran the line between Armidale, Maitland and Singleton in New South Wales. He received his Ticket of Leave (or Certificate of Freedom), usually given to those with good behavior, before he married Ann Betts in 1845, so he did not have to be confined for his 7 year sentence. He and Ann  had 13 children and many descendents.  

Perfect Is As Perfect Does!

Life is not perfect! I think I tried hard to be the perfect child, nurse, wife, mother, to no avail! I seem to have a knack for accidents, making mistakes, saying the wrong thing at the wrong time, being human! I remember how the movies and television were and are, the epitome of an unrealistic world. I was reminded of a book I read as a child called "Sweet William", the cover picture showing him with his socks hanging down, looking so rumpled, always in some scrape or another, and the PBS show where Elizabeth  would get so nervous around Hyacinthe, she was always spilling her tea or dropping the teacup.

  I realized as life continued, that I was on a fruitless errand,  especially when I read in the scriptures. "Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect". The translation plays a role as the footnote is the key that tells us the Greek meaning is, "complete, finished, fully developed".  That it is not just "doing" or the "outer appearance" of our actions, but how we feel in our hearts. As we progress line upon line, applying the Savior's grace, we can  become perfect in Him.  " Yea come unto Christ and be perfected in Him...that by His grace ye may be perfect Christ".( Book of Mormon, Moroni 10:32). So when I fall I pick myself up, repent if I need to, forgive if I need to, especially myself for not being perfect, and continue on. The Savior takes not only our sins, but our mistakes, anger, fear, loneliness, pride, sadness, sorrow and our hearts that  become "softer" as we walk the Gospel path in doing the best we can.


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Born Free!

  Nobody is ever free, yes we are a free country, we do not have restrictions on: how many children to have, if we can travel to another country  or what we can see on the Internet, etc. We still need a civilized society, with laws to follow, traffic lights, guidelines at school, fireman to put out fires, police to keep our neighborhoods safe etc. or anarchy and chaos follow. Some children  rebel against any parental restraints for their good, but that would only lead to unhappiness and misery.

   With all that is going on in the Middle East, the sacrifice of Christians and others, even women and children,  I  think about them and pray for them. My mother had a problem with the concept of, "why do bad things happen in this life? Why did the Holocaust occur, look at all the terrible things that go on, if there is a God, why would He let it all happen?" I couldn't answer her then, but maybe now I have an idea from the scriptures and the prophets.

Alma and Amulek his companion, had gone to Ammonihah to preach the Gospel to the people there, the people did not receive the word of God and cast them into prison.  There were believers of the word of God among these people and they were thrown into a fire along with their women, children and their records. They brought Alma and Amulek to the place of martyrdom to witness the event. As Amulek saw the pains of the women and children consuming in the fire he was pained, and said to Alma, "How can we witness this awful scene? Therefore let us stretch forth our hands, and exercise the power of God which is in us, and save them from the flames? But Alma said unto him: The Spirit constraineth me that I must not stretch forth mine hand; for behold the Lord receiveth them up unto himself, in glory; and he doth suffer that they may do this thing unto them, according to the hardness of their hearts, that the judgements which he shall exercise upon them in his wrath may be just; and the blood of the innocent shall stand as a witness against them, yea and cry mightily against them at the last day." ( Book of Mormon, Alma 14: 9-11, chapters 9-16)

Spencer W Kimball has said, "If we looked at mortality as the whole of existence, then pain, sorrow, failure and a short life would be a calamity. But if we look upon life as an eternal thing stretching far into the premortal past and on into the eternal post-death future, then all happenings may be put in proper perspective... If all the sick for whom we pray were healed, if all the righteous protected  and the wicked destroyed, the whole program of the Father would be annulled  and the basic principle of the gospel, free agency would be ended. No man would have to live by faith... only satanic controls." ("Faith Precedes The Miracle",  pp 97-98)

" No pain that we suffer, no trial that we experience is wasted. It ministers to our education, to the development of such qualities as patience, faith, fortitude and humility. All that we suffer and all that we endure, especially when we endure it patiently, builds up our characters, purifies our hearts, expand our souls, and makes us more tender and charitable, more worthy to be called the children of:God..." (Orson F. Whitney, Ibid:p 98)

Those concepts reassured me as I continued to find  truths to hopefully increase my faith in Christ and be able to endure my pain and afflictions (sometimes) patiently!

Wars And Rumours Of Wars

     There has always been a war or wars going on since I can remember. I remember walking to the far end of our street with my sister and looking at the huge crater in the road a Japanese submarine had left behind. I don't know if anyone in any surrounding homes were killed, it seemed the homes were untouched, a blessing if so. Our family then, seemed to constantly be in a war, with my parents in an ongoing battle and my sister and I arguing over who would wash and who would dry dishes!  Even so we still had some fun memories too. I didn't seem to know then what peace was, I was always looking at  people, places and things for enlightenment! As I understood more of what the "Good News" really was, I began to understand how to find peace in this turbulent world. I was mostly living the "schoolmaster" of the law, not feeling the "spirit" of the law.

     I  was able to attend a Stake Conference one time to hear a talk by Elder Jeffrey Holland. I always loved his talks, he always spoke with feeling and enthusiasm, he was President of  BYU before being called to be an Apostle of Jesus Christ. I would listen to the BYU devotionals on radio. In this talk he quoted from John 16:33 " These things I have spoken unto you that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation; but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world."
Now where have I've been all these years? I even had that scripture outlined! Sometimes the light bulb of our minds goes on when understanding flows in, the spirit of truth! I have always felt peace, but in the past I was on the run with my growing family, supporting my husband with work, school and his and my church callings and activities. Now as I have got older, I have the time to really ponder, pray and feel more at peace, even in ill health.

     The Savior  said, "And ye shall hear of wars and rumors of wars: see that ye be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in diver's places. All these are the beginning of sorrows...But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved." Matthew 24: 6-8,13; " Look unto me in every thought; doubt not, fear not." Doctrine and Covenants 6:36; "... but if ye are prepared ye shall not fear." D&C 38: 30, (both temporally and spiritually).

How grateful I am for these truths; holding fast to the iron rod of Lehi's dream, (the Word of God); being steadfast in living the Gospel; by doing this we can have eternal life, the greatest gift of all!

Ere You Left Your Room This Morning

The hymn "Ere You Left Your Room This Morning", was one with which I was familiar,  but somehow in the midst of busily helping my husband, raising seven children and experiencing health challenges, prayer seemed to be devoid in my life. At least in the mornings. One day after a frazzled day with the children, these very words came to my mind. No I hadn't! So I made a commitment to remember to pray the next morning, which I did. The results were amazing! Did I solve all my problems? Were the children turned overnight to angels?  No, but somehow the day went more smoothly so I was converted. Then the thought came, "you wouldn't send your children out the door without their winter coat, so why not help them put on the 'Armor of God' by having prayer with them?"  Another bit of inspiration to help me to find peace amidst the chaos!

I Become A Mormon

As I get older, what  legacy will I leave?  Times are changing, especially the technology and my mind is now somewhat cloudy when it comes to the computer! However I've conquered worse things with the Lord's help and strength, and my faith in Christ is strong!

I became a member of the Church of Jesus Christ (the Mormons) when 16 years old, being introduced whilst  in a pre-nurse training program. A missionary had spent some time in the hospital and as I observed his devotion to reading the Bible  (and later on I found out The Book of Mormon Another Testament of Jesus Christ) I was impressed, he seemed so much kinder and considerate than the young men I knew. Later he gave me a copy of The Book of Mormon and as I read I was touched by the Holy Spirit that this was indeed the word of God another witness of Jesus Christ from prophets who had lived on the American Continent long ago.

So began my journey through life as a Mormon!