Pressure Release

I have been fretting for weeks about a presentation I was asked to give at our stake Women's Conference.  Thanks to the wonderful women in our addiction family support group, I have been taken up with the notion that members of the Church don't use the Atonement as we should.  I believe it was meant to address not just big bad sins but all the little faults and weaknesses that we live with every day.  I think we tend to keep them, thinking that it is no big thing.  What a shame not to be working on perfecting our character and overcoming our individual collection of weaknesses and unloving behaviors.  I think the Lord would have us use His gift to overcome any behavior that is not loving.  That is the criterion for judging what it is we should change about ourselves.  So my talk centered on this idea.  I worried that it would come across negatively and would be discouraging to our women.  But I believe the Spirit was with me and that it turned out well.  At least I had some good feedback that I found encouraging.  It has been awhile since I have felt the magic of ideas expanding with the presence of the Lord's Spirit into something more than planned.  It makes doing such things as this joyful.

Lately I have felt overwhelmed by things to do.  Being here has, up to now, been a sweet, comfortable time, with open spaces and plenty of time to make plans to pursue things I have been putting off for years.  But lately I have felt my time taken up with outside assignments and commitments.  This week offered me a partial solution to this condition.  My temple supervisor called me into her office this past Friday, during our regular Friday shift.  She pointed out to me that since we began our temple service here I have missed about half of the shifts.  Hum.  I didn't realize that I was quite that bad at attendance.  She essentially told me that I needed to change my ways and make the temple commitment a top priority.  I told her it was as top as I was prepared to make it.  She was not happy with that.  As the day proceeded I felt quite strongly that my conversation with her was my ticket out.  I told Layne later in the day and he immediately said, "we're out of here."  So we met with the temple president and told him we would be leaving our temple service and would return at a better time for us.  Next week is our last shift.

Serving in the temple has been a joy ever since we began.  But at this temple, it has been problematic.  I have struggled with it.  So I feel a rush of relief at the idea of no longer being obligated to be in the temple all day every Friday.  So...my presentation is over and our temple obligation is just about over.  Just our calling to work with addiction recovery remains.  I feel so good!

Yesterday my sister's son Russell and his family had dinner with us and spent the night, on their way home to Seattle, returning from a visit to Utah.  It seems that Boise is a convenient stop on the way to other places and I love it.  We had a great visit with them and enjoyed our time together.  Perhaps this is the beginning of another guest-filled summer.  I'd love that.

My sister's son Russell Berrett and his wife, Kristy, their children Olivia, Berkeley, and Eliana with their new pup, Charlie.  They are standing on our front yard, looking a little brown with no snow.