Granny recently shared with us George Albert Smith's creed. I include it below for your edification:
“I would be a friend to the friendless and find joy in ministering to the needs of the poor. I would visit the sick and afflicted and inspire in them a desire for faith to be healed. I would teach the truth to the understanding and blessing of all mankind. I would seek out the erring one and try to win him back to a righteous and a happy life. I would not seek to force people to live up to my ideals but rather love them into doing the thing that is right. I would live with the masses and help to solve their problems that their earth life may be happy. I would avoid the publicity of high positions and discourage the flattery of thoughtless friends. I would not knowingly wound the feeling of any, not even one who may have wronged me, but would seek to do him good and make him my friend. I would overcome the tendency to selfishness and jealousy and rejoice in the successes of all the children of my Heavenly Father. I would not be an enemy to any living soul. Knowing that the Redeemer of mankind has offered to the world the only plan that will fully develop us and make us really happy here and hereafter I feel it not only a duty but a blessed privilege to disseminate this truth.”
President Smith's counselor was David O. Mckay. He, too, was dearly loved by the members of the Church. His creed could have been the following:
"No one can preside over this Church without first being in tune with the head of the Church, our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. He is our head. This is his Church. Without his divine guidance and constant inspiration, we cannot succeed. With his guidance, with his inspiration, we cannot fail."
Grandpa's creed:
"As sweet to me and powerful in my life as the numerous blessings I have received, nothing brought more peace, and hope, and joy than has come from discovering the marvelous qualities of the Savior and all the gracious, loving and merciful things He has done for me and my loved ones. I cannot in any way repay Him, or properly thank Him. But this I can do, and seek with all my heart to do, and that is stand as a witness of the goodness of the Father in giving us such a leader and friend as the Savior.” 2 Nephi 25:26
What is your creed? Write it. Live it. Love it. Share it.
Today is Father's Day. I have been thinking a lot about fatherhood lately, and I have shared with each of you some anecdotes and sentiments regarding blessings that come from good, upright fathers.
Relatively speaking, I am a new father. Though I am no longer young in years, I don't have the wisdom or experience to handle all the situations that come to me as a dad. Nevertheless, you stick by me, honor me with your goodness, and love me just the same. I am grateful for your patience.
During this brief time as a father, I have seen the hand of the Lord blessing me and my family many times, so today I want to express my appreciation to a loving Heavenly Father for the privilege it has been to be your dad. I am glad to be numbered among you and grateful for your confidence.
Nobody's perfect. I realize that. We all make mistakes even though we want to be better. But the great plan of happiness provides for our shortcomings and ultimately enables us to achieve our potential as children of the God of Heaven. This is power I see in each of you. I am grateful for the good desires of your hearts.
In many ways I fall short as your father. Admittedly, I don't exhibit the patience I should. I grapple with flaws that many of you don't. Nevertheless, you build me up and revere me for the person that you know that I can become. I am grateful for your love and acceptance.
So today, you will shower me with praise and presents and honor. You know I appreciate these attitudes and feelings—expressed and unexpressed. But the desire of my heart today is to say "thank you" for giving me the chance to be your dad.
Find at least one thing to love this week. What a great ambition to have. Seems small and insignificant you say? Well, all by itself, perhaps. But think of it.
It's not all by itself. Repeat this each week and that's 52 more things to love in just one year alone, and hundreds more things to enjoy in a lifetime on top of all the things you already cherish. Laugh with a friend. See the beauty in the world all around you. Forgive someone, not because the person deserves it, but because you are in charge of your own happiness and have the power to influence that of others. Comfort your neighbor or friend or family member that needs a lift. Help someone else feel good about himself. Selfless, thoughtful service brings self-satisfaction and often the admiration of others. Grandpa talks in his personal history about people he admires:
I’d like to say a couple things about Margie’s mother and dad. When her mother took sick, her father faithfully cared for her, and loved her the rest of her life. I know of some similar situations, where the husband left his wife when she contracted a serious disease. One of the most admirable things I’ve seen in my life, is how Arnold, Christ-like, gave himself for his wife. He made many sacrifices to give her what joy, comfort and help he could. I admire him so much for that. I also admire Myrtle, because even though she must have had blue and discouraging moments, she was always a lovely, happy and pleasant person. I never heard complaints from her. She stayed faithful to her principles, faithful to the Lord, and pleasant in her attitude, in spite of the devastating illness she faced. I love them both, as I love my own parents.
I feel so lucky to have had an opportunity to rub shoulders with such fine parents and grandparents. I need only read a few words from those who knew them to remember how their love and ambitions changed the world for me and many others. So what I want for you is that you realize the great family you have and the love extended to you. You're not alone. None of us are all by ourselves. We are all pulling for you. So you can accomplish anything you want. We will help make sure of it.
Next week is Fathers Day. For the last several weeks, I have written about some memories of my dad. I have tried to share the wonderful attributes I see in my father and cause you to think about and appreciate the blessing of having good ancestral fathers to guide and help you through your lives. I thank God daily for a good upbringing and righteous parents.
We all have great memories of fantastic fathers that love us, nurture us, and give of themselves in our behalf whether from this side of the veil or the other. As a son, I have had a unique relationship with my father. I am grateful everyday for my bond with him, which directs my life and decisions.
But today I would like to focus on another Father. He is most kind, most compassionate, and the most high God. Of all the possible titles, He chose Father. Because we are His children, we can have confidence, reassurance, peace, and hope.
And we know Him because of the revealed truth of the Son...the Father and the Son are one in purpose, unity, and character.
All the attributes of Jesus Christ that you see and know and have come to love and revere, those are also the qualities of our Heavenly Father. John 5:19
The great traits we see in our own fathers are simply manifestations of His love and character.
That's the special occasion and memory we have this Father's Day.
When I was a boy, I appreciated my father. Always there. Always willing. Always happy to take part. Never impatient. Never demeaning, condescending, or arrogant.
As a family, dad took us to Snelgroves for ice cream--one of my choicest memories when I was a child. I went to Fernwoods across the street from Sherman elementary as a boy, during one of our Dad's night out.
Perhaps this sounds trite and possibly silly, but for me as a boy, it was just the beginning of my great memories with my dad.
Grandpa understood when I needed a listening ear. Driving in the car between Castle Valley and Moab, we definately had some of the best most memorable talks when I needed it most.
As a boy, I admired my brothers. Gregg played football. Randy was in scouting. Secretly I wanted to be just like them. I was just a kid, and back then for a time Grandpa was scoutmaster. In those days, scouts went on overnighters nearly every month. I would constantly ask my dad if I could go, and he would kindly tell me my turn would come (since I was only eleven years old at the time). But he listened to my pleadings, and I think he longed to give me what I wanted. So he made me a deal. "You want to go, I know. I'll tell you what. You help us earn the money for the super summer activity and you can join us for our two-week trip to the Grand Canyon. We'll see Bryce Canyon, Zions, the Narrows, Hoover Dam, and spend two-weeks on the road, including three days in the Grand Canyon itself before flying back to the North Rim and returning home." Wow. Could this really be? Well, it happened just as promised. We edged the grass around headstones at a local cemetery in SLC and saved our own money until we had accumulated $38 per boy back then as I remember. The plan was to enter the canyon from the North Rim and hike to the South Rim, a 26-mile journey, right in the middle of the summer. We carried dehydrated food, built no fires in the canyon, and slept beneath space-age blankets, which were like thin, blanket-size sheets of tin foil that essentially kept the dew off us.
I'd never hiked that far in my life. Grandpa had to lead the troop, of course, but I always felt welcomed and valued, even when my boyhood emotions got the best of me. Grandpa was patient and loving, despite the fact I was not always lovable. It probably became the most memorable activity of my life to that point, and I got to do it with my dad. How great is that?
Father's Day is coming up, which always causes me to think how lucky I have been to enjoy times like these with my dad.
Best times of my life as a boy. Hope for a future day which will surely come as a man. I love you Dad.
He introduced me to Christ by word and deed. He taught me we all need the Savior's help.
When I was a just little bitty boy, I saw my Grandfather as a busy man. He worked hard and had many responsibilities. But I never realized then how often he made time for me and his other numerous grandchildren. I could tell you about the fun we had playing miniature golf or shuffleboard with him at his home in Graystone. Perhaps I have told you about the time Grandpa took me out to dinner when I turned 12-years-old or the annual occurence of he and my grandma calling to sing me Happy Birthday over the phone to celebrate my birthday.
Recently, I read an anecdote from my dad's journal that really impressed me and flooded my mind with memories. This helps me remember again how fortunate we are to have the great parents and ancestors that we do. My father writes the following:
Mother and Dad wanted me to learn things about electrical wiring so I could do things like change a light switch, and carpentry, so I could build things. When my father was a boy he only learned about farming. He never had a chance to learn any of these types of things. He didn’t know how to change the car oil, but he could get on a horse and ride it up in the hills and herd cattle. He could irrigate, pick fruit, and prune the trees. He knew all about that.
Dad often did special things, showing he cared about me. In my teens, when I was working summers, I used some of the money to start a rabbit business. I got booklets on rabbit raising. I built pens, bought does and bucks, and feed. I raised young rabbits just the right size for marketing, dressed them, and sold them to a Sugar House grocery store for their meat market. In time, I had expanded to twelve pens put together in duplex fashion, with free choice hay and grain feeders. They were located under Dad’s fruit trees behind the garage. I needed two more large pens to house the rabbits being grown for market. There wasn’t a place for any more pens unless I took out two of Dad’s cherished fruit trees. Dad graciously consented. I think I appreciated this much more as a man raising my own fruit trees.
Another time I came home from work, with too little time to wash Dad’s car which was very dirty, and get ready for an important date. When I was ready and went for the car, Dad had washed it for me.
As the children were getting older and to college and mission age, there was need for more money than we had in the family. Dad decided he was going to have to take a second job. He spent the whole day working for South East Furniture. At first it was six days a week. Then he finally got a day off and got some vacation time. He went to a bakery in Sugar House and got a job after hours. He worked late into the night cleaning baking pans and getting everything ready for the bakers when they arrived early the next morning. Well, his intention was good, but it was too much for him. He couldn’t handle that many long hours of hard work, and working that many days of the week. Mother realized that she needed to find a job too, and that’s when she started working.
I learned a lesson during that time. I had worked and I saved quite a bit of money that I used for my rabbits and pens. When I finally got into high school and started dating, I’d buy corsages and spend whatever I needed for dating. One day Dad talked to me about that. He was not a critical person and he was always gentle and considerate. He said, “It seems to be a mistake you’re making to spend so much on these girls when you should be saving more of your money for the girl that someday is going to really count. You’re going to have to go to college, and you’re going to have to buy her a ring. You’re going to have to be able to make a down payment someday on a house. You ought to think a little more carefully at how freely you spend your money.” Then he told me, “I won’t even buy myself a package of gum because it’s so hard to try and pay the bills.” I remember that, and it was during the time when he was working at two jobs. I began to think more about the consequences of some of the things I was doing. I learned to appreciate more what Dad was sacrificing to help the family.
When I was about to end my mission and return home, I got a letter from Dad. He wrote, “You’re coming home now. Your dear mother has worked her heart out” (at the time she was working) “to send you money for your mission. She loves you very much and I don’t want her to feel overlooked. So when you get off the train, I want you to run to her first, and give her a hug because she deserves it.” Dad was constantly thinking about the welfare of mother and he showed it.
Perhaps it wasn't obvious before, but we get many of our characteristics from ancestors. Now I know where my father got so many of the great qualities that I admire in him.
