Joys and Sorrows

My oldest brother was taken home today to that God who gave him life. While I seek to come to terms with the profound lessons intrinsic to the experience of losing a sibling, how appropriate that tonight I would stumble onto a quotation I had not read in many years:

"We knew before we were born that we were coming to the earth for bodies and experience and that we would have joys and sorrows, ease and pain, comforts and hardships, health and sickness, successes and disappointments, and we knew also that after a period of life we would die. We accepted all these eventualities with a glad heart, eager to accept both the favorable and unfavorable. We eagerly accepted the chance to come earthward even though it might be for only a day or a year. Perhaps we were not so much concerned whether we should die of disease, of accident, or of senility. We were willing to take life as it came and as we might organize and control it, and this without murmur, complaint, or unreasonable demands"
--Kimball, Faith Precedes the Miracle, 106

May we all take life as it comes, "and this without murmur, complaint, or unreasonable demands." May we all see the big picture, reflecting in our actions the understanding that comes therefrom.

Another Great Quotation and an Update

I stumbled onto another uplifting quotation for difficult times today, and I did not wish to pass it by without finding a permanent home for it. Bits and Pieces is as good a storage place as any, so here it is:

"The Lord gives us a spirit of hope and a feeling of comfort and confidence that we can overcome the obstacles we face. He has shown the way to gain strength during our struggles. With His assistance, we have the ability to succeed. Listen to His words of counsel and comfort: 'Fear not, little children, for you are mine, and I have overcome the world and none of them that my Father hath given me shall be lost.'"
--L. Lionel Kendrick, "Strength During Struggles," Ensign, Oct 2001, 24

I have not before heard the name of Lionel Kendrick, but he is clearly a wise man. I will do my best to take his words to heart.

On another subject, for those who may still wonder about my fried brain from last March, I have recovered nicely. Despite the grueling nature of the Praxis II test, I managed to score 199 out of 200. Trust me, no one was more surprised than I!

I was very pleased to receive in the mail a Certificate of Excellence for my efforts on that test, but I was even happier with the results of my writing test for the VCLA exam. I spent hours in front of a computer in DC taking the Virginia Communication and Literacy Assessment for potential teachers. As I left the center when my time was up, the center director said, "Let me print out your score." Almost immediately her printer began to spit out a document that had my name and identification numbers written boldly at the top. In the middle of the document, the printer ink had formed these words: "Percentage of multiple-choice questions answered correctly on the Writing subtest: 100%."

I have tried and tried to think of another time that I might have achieved a perfect score on a standardized test. Sorry, but there isn't one.

Will my brain ever recover?

Here are the questions of the day: Who is the author of Wide Sargass Sea and for what piece of classic literature does this book claim to act as a prequel? No looking, no cheating, no checking Google; just read and answer the above in one minute or less.

Here is the important part: When you've correctly answered this question with no looking, no cheating, and no checking Google, please send the answer to ETS and tell them to put it in my test booklet.

While you're at it, you can help with a few more: What is the name of the first epistolary novel ever written? In what century was that epistolary novel written? Does anyone know what an epistolary novel is? Just tell me; no looking, no cheating, no checking Google.

If, off the top of your head, you can answer these and 118 other obscure literary questions in fewer seconds than 60 with no looking, no cheating, and no checking Google, you should ask to take the Praxis II ELLC test.

That's what I did on Saturday morning WITHOUT the Arco guide pictured--not that the Arco guide would have done me any good beyond the picture of the sliced-into-fragments brain on the cover. That's what the test did to my own brain: fragment it and then fry it. As of tonight I don't think I'll ever recover, but at least I'll forever remember, sliced up brain and all, the names of Jean Rhys, Samuel Richardson, and an 18th century Pamela, topped off with one we all love: Jane Eyre. I'm still wondering, however, about that strange "epistolary" word, which, despite an adult life completely immersed in the world of words, I had never read nor heard prior to Saturday.

Since we're already caught in this grind, go ahead and check the title of my post. Does its structure reflect MLA or APA guidelines? If you can answer that one with no looking, no cheating, and no checking Google, you will have answered perhaps the easiest question of the day. Shall we keep going?

Sorry. Can't do it. For now, I need a good night's sleep and a brain surgeon.

Zealotry or Old Age?

I love looking at the blogs of my friends whose children are still at home.  If I were in the same season of life, I have no doubt my blog--whenever I could get to it--would contain pictures of my young children living their completely adorable lives. 

I have looked at my own blog only sporadically of late and realize it has become of string of thoughts from General Authorities.  I stopped adding to it for awhile (a) because work has become more and more time consuming and (b) because I felt as though I might appear just a little zealous. 

I realized this morning, however, old age has its perks:  First, concern about appearance matters much, much less than it did in earlier years.  Second, the gift of time (whenever work schedules don't interfere) reappears, allowing for the kind of reflection one cannot engage in when the house is full of five children under the age of six.  Third, old age is a reminder that heaven is not far away, so why not get ready for it?

All of this is a prelude to the thought I stumbled across this morning and wanted to save on my blog.  Written in 1989 by the much beloved Howard W. Hunter, here it is:

To fully understand this gift of agency and its inestimable worth, it is imperative that we understand that God's chief way of acting is by persuasion and patience and long-suffering, not by coercion and stark confrontation.  He acts by gentle solicitation and by sweet enticement. He always acts with unfailing respect for the freedom and independence that we possess.  He wants to help us and pleads for the chance to assist us, but he will not do so in violation of our agency.  He loves us too much to do that, and doing so would run counter to his divine character.--"The Golden Thread of Choice," Ensign, November 1989, 17

Strung together beautifully, these words portray a magnificent concept--one that no doubt has the power to change lives.

Speaking of change, my next effort will involve a computer tutoring session to learn how to add blog pictures in the precise spot intended, as opposed to whatever spot the computer decides.  I don't know whether this will help me get ready for heaven or not, but even in old age having at least a few skills is a good thing.

Tender Mercies

When words cannot provide the solace we need or express the joy we feel, when it is simply futile to attempt to explain that which is unexplainable, when logic and reasoning cannot yield adequate understanding about the injustices and inequities of life, when mortal experience and evaluation are insufficient to produce a desired outcome, and when it seems that perhaps we are so totally alone, truly we are blessed by the tender mercies of the Lord and made mighty even unto the power of deliverance.--David A. Bednar, Ensign, May 2005.

Is it just me, or do these words bring the comfort of warm blankets in winter?

FHE--a little late, as usual

Ok.  I admit it.  Now that 24 has come back to television, Monday night FHE's in the empty nest of Alice Haddow consist mostly of TV-tube face time with none other than Jack Bauer.  To offset our over-indulgence in stories surrounding the greatest American (albeit fictional) hero of all time, Alice Haddow is adding to her blog the following thought, one that is actually appropriate for FHE, from Dieter Uchtdorf:

"The things we hope for lead us to faith, while the things we hope in lead us to charity.  The three qualities faith, hope, and charity working together . . . lead us to abound in good works."--"The Infinite Power of Hope," Ensign, November 2008.

Thankfully, there is nothing fictional about Dieter Uchtdorf.  He is the real deal.

Sunday Post - 16 hours early!

"Forgiveness is freeing up and putting to better use the energy once consumed by holding grudges, harboring resentments, and nursing unhealed wounds.  It is rediscovering the strengths we always had and relocating our limitless capacity to understand and accept other people and ourselves."--James E. Faust, "The Healing Power of Forgiveness," May 2007 Ensign

Judging from recent Sunday posts, as well as miscellaneous thought cards stashed here and there, Alice Haddow has concluded she finds great wisdom in the words of James Faust. This is quite surprising, given her understanding that he was a life-long Democrat while Alice Haddow remains faithful to the other side of politics.  Alice Haddow's father and grandfather, however, were also life-long Democrats, and she loved them, too. Many parts of our existence obviously transcend politics.  

Alice Haddow is thinking it would be great if ALL parts of our existence transcended politics. Unfortunately, thoughts like these are the stuff dreams are made of.

A New Me

I stumbled onto a fantastic blog tonight.  I thought it would serve as a nice companion to the "Biggest Loser" contest going on among my friends.  

Don't worry.  I would have joined the contest if my work schedule would allow it.  Instead, I am going to enjoy this great find and the links that go with it.  If this lady can lose 100 pounds (and it looks as though she's already lost 42), I can certainly lose four--definitely, maybe.

Just wanted to share.    Here is the link:  http://anewmeitsuptome.blogspot.com 

Oh, and sorry about the recent dearth of pictures on my blog.  I need my hubby to teach me how to insert them again. :)

42 hours late, but still an FHE thought

"Perseverance is demonstrated by those who keep going when the going gets tough, who don't give up even when others say it can't be done."--James E. Faust, "Perseverance," Ensign, May 2005, 51

The thought expressed in the quotation above is dedicated to my remarkable husband, whose strength of spirit seems nearly unmatched among those whom I've had the pleasure of meeting in this world. No matter how difficult the circumstances might be, he remains willing at all times to work through problems and to persevere.

The nit-picky details of the quotation above are left to Alice Haddow, ever the editor, who couldn't help but notice the typist of the original quotation had inserted unnecessary commas and, adding insult to injury, placed the sentence period outside the quotation marks when everyone knows that's against the rules.

The appearance of the word "persevere" also strikes Alice Haddow as extremely odd and causes her to wish to pronounce the word incorrectly. Decades ago, Alice Haddow's college friends referred to her as their "computer speller," but age has now deprived her of that once appropriate moniker.

No doubt our computer savvy friends are saying, "Just look it up online, already!" However, no one has ever, for good reason, referred to Alice Haddow as computer savvy. Obviously, she will have to break down, get out her dictionary, and report her findings, for which she is certain you simply cannot wait.

Eleven Minutes Late but Still a Sunday Thought

Closely related to our own obligation to repent is the generosity of letting others do the same. . . . We don't want God to remember our sins, so there is something fundamentally wrong in our relentlessly trying to remember others' sins. . . . It is one of those ironies of godhood that in order to find peace, the offended as well as the offender must engage the principle of forgiveness."--Jeffrey R. Holland, "The Peaceable Things of the Kingdom," Ensign, Nov. 1996, 82.