March 29, 2008
Freebirth: A Message to Obstetricians from Jenny Hatch, "Physician Heal THYSELF!!"
This video is hosted on My Share Page at One True Media
In the past few months four obstetrics societies have made public statements about Unassisted Childbirth.
The Canadian Doctors (SOGC):
The Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of Canada (SOGC)
The Australian and New Zealand Doctors:
The Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists
The Royal College (RCOG) in the UK:
The Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RCOG)
And in a recent article in the Denver Westword Newspaper (I was interviewed for this story)
A Spokesperson for ACOG (American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists) claimed freebirth was "dangerous".
Childbirth goes solo.
By Jared Jacang Maher
Published: May 10, 2007
"According to the guidelines of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, the organization "strongly opposes" any birth not performed inside a hospital. A spokesman for the ACOG has a one-word assessment of freebirth: "dangerous."
I have just one message for these doctors, and it is this:
"The moral of the proverb is counsel to prove your trustworthiness with your own affairs before attempting to tell others what they should do."
Break out of the Matrix!
When the various obstetrics societies PROVE that they have the will to reform themselves internally by setting up standards of care that are more about the mother and the baby than they are about the doctor and staff at the hospital, then I will feel more open about listening to any edicts they have about my lifestyle.
Hey Doctors: why don't you set some goals....
1. No inductions before 41 weeks
2. 10% C-section rate
3. No elective C-sections
4. Full acceptance of Lay and Nurse Midwifery both in the home and at the hospital
5. A Complete and total acceptance of VBAC (Vaginal Birth after Cesarean)
6. A willingness to embrace proper prenatal nutrition as the foundation for a healthy pregnancy as outlined by the Brewer Pregnancy Diet
When society stops locking up our midwives for bogus reasons, embrace and promote natural mothering as the IDEAL for a new baby (Natural Childbirth, Attachment Parenting, and Long Term Ecological Breastfeeding), then I will believe you have found your soul as doctors.
Until then? Well, I am going to continue promoting freebirth and encouraging families to break away from your way of giving birth, because frankly, the way you do it stinks.
Lamaze International has a white paper on Elective cesarean Vs. Vaginal Birth (PDF)
American College of Nurse Midwives:
RISKS OF CESAREAN DELIVERY ARE UNDERREPORTED,
BENEFITS OVERSTATED
Media Briefing Highlights Concerns In Advance of NIH Conference
QUOTE:
"Only women themselves can tell us if they are actually demanding cesarean section surgery. With what we are learning from Childbirth Connection today, we now know that women VERY rarely schedule first cesareans by choice without a medical reason," says Susan Hodges, president of Citizens for Midwifery. "Only women can tell us what kind of informed consent process was provided to them. Citizens for Midwifery believes that women are not being given adequate and unbiased information about all the risks and benefits of cesarean sections. Research is needed to understand who and what are now influencing decisions to perform major abdominal surgery 'for no medical reason' despite substantial evidence that all cesareans increase harmful risks for mothers and babies."
Free yourself from the Matrix~!
Posted by Jenny Hatch at 2:35 PM
July 27, 2007
Life
Tonight is stake temple night and Paul and I plan to attend. This past week has been a very spiritual one for us as a family. Last sunday Michelle received her Patriarchal Blessing from our stake patriarch. Paul and I have been on a spiritual high since that event.
Last sunday we also had four members of our family speak in church. I was the final speaker in Sacrament meeting - topic was Creating a legacy for future generations. And Michelle was the youth speaker. She was asked to speak about her pioneer heritage and shared a wonderful story from one of our ancestors from Norway who immigrated to Utah as a young mother. Andy was the main speaker in primary, his talk was also on his pioneer ancestry, and Ben was asked to participate in Sharing time telling stories about how his family helps him grow closer to Jesus Christ. We had spent saturday preparing for all of these talks. It was a good experience and I loved sharing my views with the members of the ward.
On wednesday night Paul and I were invited to attend our Stake Preparedness Meeting. Paul was recently called to be the Elders Quorum president and I am still serving as the Welfare Specialist. We had a good turnout from the stake and a woman from the State of Colorado had been invited to speak to our group about Pandemic Flu. She gave about an hour presentation and then opened it up for Q & A. The state of Colorado is working hard to prepare for pandemic scenarios, however I felt that typical government style they are gearing up to hand out fish to the people, rather than teaching them how to fish in terms of what is being done to mitigate,
She talked alot about flu vaccines and tamiflu. She also said the main thrust of their efforts was going to be in food boxes being passed out to those people who cannot prepare for a time of living in their homes for a couple weeks of isolation from the community. The state is encouraging citizens to have on hand a two week supply of food and water, and as many months of medicine as money and insurance will allow them to purchase.
I raised my hand and asked her if anyone had brought up the issue of healthy pregnant women giving birth in a hospital overun with sick people. She said they had spent alot of time talking about it but had not come to any sort of a conclusion as to what to do.
Later in the evening I pressed the issue again by stating that during the 1918 pandemic most babies in Colorado were being born at home and an infrastructure was in place to help those women with birth. Also, most mothers were breastfeeding. I told her that the thing people start screaming for after every disaster is baby formula and plastic diapers, and that if the state really wanted people to prepare for a pandemic they should be pushing breastfeeding and a supply of cloth diapers. She sort of balked when I said that.
She said that they were pushing for families to have baby formula, a two week supply, because during a time of stress, mothers may not be able to produce breastmilk, especially if they were eating junk foods in the form of foods that are easy to prepare without electricity. I backed away at that point and did not press the issue further, especially after a neonatal nurse spoke up and claimed that during certain illnesses breastmilk could be worse for babies than formula.
What I predict if we have a pandemic in Colorado is a whole bunch of dead babies.
Now maybe with even being born to educated parents at home and breastfed by a mother who has stored the absolute best foods for survival, (wheat and beans), and cloth diapered during weeks of isolation in the home during a pandemic, some of those babes will die from flu. But looking at the odds, I would guess that a mother who births in a hospital overwhelmed with flu patients and dead bodies, bottle feeds with limited supplys of baby formula, and is diapered with whatever bits of disposable diapers can be purchased, the babe who is welcomed into the world under such conditions will not do as well as the baby born at home.
But I guess we will have to wait and see. While I thought the power point presentation from this woman was well put together and she had her facts straight about infectious disease, I was extremely dismayed, but not surprised, that most mitigation efforts are going to be put towards chemical interventions and stockpiling of food for the poor.
What this lady does not realize is that EVERY family can store food and water. If poor families were to be educated about the financial savings from eating whole foods, taught how to prepare these simple foods, and how to store them properly, every family could easily put together a three month supple of grains, beans, and salt that could help them to weather any storm.
Costs for a family of four is about two hundred bucks. And her assumption that it would only be the poor who did not have any supplies is extremely short sighted. Many families do not have more than a week supply of food on hand because of dependence on restaurants and take out food. Some of the wealthiest people in our society have the most beautiful pantrys on the planet, that are completely void of nourishing foods.
If I was king of the world, or head of the Colorado State preparedness task force, I would immediately begin an education campaign focusing on proper food and water storage, rotation of whole foods into the daily diet, and the very simple principles of caring for the sick without chemicals. I would offer home birth classes and push breastfeeding and use of cloth diapers and menstrual pads. I would not even think about food boxes or vaccine or chemical "cures" as these measures would basically be akin to rearanging deck chairs on the titanic while the ship went down.
If we truly want to save lives and mitigate for future pandemics, the people of Colorado should be educated with what will truly help rather than wait for a time of raw survival, when survival of the fittest and the law of the jungle will ensure that those who are not prepared will drop like flies.
Here, once again, are my primers on Flu and Emergency Childbirth.
Emergency Childbirth during a pandemic
And a complete roundup of my provident living information is found in that catagory. Go here
Emergency Preparedness Catagory
I believe that those families and individuals who believe government is going to "save them" during a pandemic by handing them a box of food and a shot of chemicals in the arm are very naive. Yet this is what the state of colorado is preparing to do at this point in case of a pandemic. Being at the meeting just furthered my resolve and focus that individual preparations for a pandemic are the best forms of mitigation and relying on the government will be a fruitless endeavor.
It was a good meeting overall and the final hour we spent talking about communications and how we as saints can watch over each other better, especially if communications and electricity were cut off. I was chuckling as we talked remembering the winter storms of last year. The stake president had asked that we account for every person in the stake and give him a report. We were called by a total of seven people during the worst blizzard. The checks and balances of the mormon people is a wonder to behold.
Many of our members are ready with short wave radios and generators - to be a communication tool in case the phones are out. We have a whole crew of guys in our ward who are ready to go with that endeavor.
I'm looking forward to being in the house of the Lord tonight. It will recharge my spiritual batteries.
Posted by Jenny Hatch at 6:46 AM
May 22, 2007
Unassisted Childbirth and Thieves Essential Oils Blend are the answer for plagues of any kind!
I have been taking a blogging break for the month of May, just too busy, but a headline announcing plague at the denver zoo caught my eye yesterday and I thought I would repost an entry I did in September about the Thieves Blend of Essential Oils. It is below:
Here are a couple of highlights from the past few weeks.
Paul and I were part of the Denver WestWord Article on Unassisted Childbirth last week. Here is the link.
Laura Shanley has a round up of the various Unassisted Childbirth Media Stories from the past few weeks on her blog. Go Here.
And Here are the Links to all of the Freebirth articles: (This outpouring of Media Interest in UC Birth has been extremely gratifying to those of us who have been promoting it for many years!)
The Independent 3-20-07 (UK) - Oh, baby!
Guardian 5-9-07 (UK) - Going it alone
Marie Claire 5-10-07 (UK) - The women having 'extreme births'
Globe and Mail (Canada) - 5-15-07 - DIY delivery
Channel 2 News (Alaska) - 5-15-07 - Great Expectations This video clip contains the UC Birth of Twins at home alone, one was a footling breech.
Reuters - 5-22-07 (UK - London)- Freebirthers dismiss fear and bring babies home
The Age - 5-27-07(Australia) - No doctor, no midwife — women go it alone
Same family, different story from Australia - A 'relaxed, beautiful' entry for Carter
And here are the links to the various online versions of the many UC Birth articles that have been written in the past month: Bornfree web site.
And here is a quick overview of some headlines for parents, so many different voices and opinions. Mothers and Fathers really need to just follow their hearts and not listen to all of the fear mongering about babies.
Having large families is an "eco crime"
Vegans sentenced for starving their baby
Stay-at-home mother's work worth $138,095 a year
Navelgazing Midwife - Oh, The Homebirth Debate Blog - Insights into the psyche of the fraud named Amy Tuteur MD (Pseudonym for a couple PR guys from Eli Lilly out to destroy and shut down the debate around home birth with statistics!!!). Go Here
Marsden Wagner's new book Born in the USA: How a Broken Maternity System Must Be Fixed to Put Women and Children First - Go Here
Unassisted Childbirth forum at Mothering - Go Here
Here are a couple of links used in the various debates that I engaged in at Salon and the NHS Blog Doctors comment sections.
The website of the Pre and Peri Natal Psychologists - Go Here
A Declaration of the Rights of Childbearing Women
Monty Python Birth Sketch: And people wonder why we don't want to have a hospital birth?
I have also participated in two online chats at blogs where Unassisted Childbirth was being discussed. Go Here and Here.
Here is a link to a synopsis of my comments at Salon: Go Here
And my Comments at the NHS Doctors Blog starts with this one: Go Here
I posted quite a few entries on that blog, so keep scrolling down for the rest of my comments.
I tend to let myself go when debating with medical people, they are just so full of themselves.
The chats are filled with lots of rage against those of us who birth alone, but I want to take the chance to testify right here on this entry, that I believe bubonic plague is very much tied to unassisted childbirth.
If the hospitals are overun with patients hacking and dying from plague and/or any other disease (certain forms of staph infection only exist in hospitals!), it is the last place in the world a healthy woman should be giving birth to a healthy child. Preparing for a quiet home birth is the best investment a healthy mom can make to insure the safe arrival of her child, despite what those individuals with MDs after their names have say about it. And they have plenty to say, I've been talking to some of them all week!
Speaking of prepration, I was asked to do the Food Basics booth at our Church Preparedness Fair last saturday! It was really fun and I was thrilled to be a part of it.
A little video:
My dear friend Esther baked twenty loaves of bread for the booth. All but one and a half loaves were chowed down by the people who attended. We teach a bread class for young moms to learn how to make this amazing bread which only costs 25 cents a loaf to make from scratch.
I also recorded this version of Be Still My Soul a few sundays ago:
Here is a link to the plague article at Reuters:
I'll start blogging again when Allison and I get back from New York. Too busy right now with rehearsals for our Faure Requiem performance next week with Colorado Repertory Singers. Michelle is graduating and we have a boatload of activities to attend around her commencement from high school. She has decided to accept the scholarship from her Dads alma mater, so each moment we get to share with her until she leaves home is very precious. I'll start blogging again when and if things slow down.
Thieves blog entry:
With Cold and Flu season just around the corner, I am really excited about this new line of products from Young Living. I have been a Young Living Essential Oils Enthusiast for ten years, and have actively worked a business on and off (mostly off) for some years now. I absolutely love these new products. My favorites are the toothpaste, lozenges, and the oil blend.
Recently I started cleaning everything with the Thieves household soap - it does it all - toilets, hardwood floors, etc... Here is a run down of all of the products. A great place to start would be to order the Thieves Kit, which contains a variety of products from the Thieves line.
All are available on my Young Living Web Site
Thieves Kit - Code # 3173
How to use:
Thieves® Essential Oil Blend: For dietary, aromatic, or topical use. When using as a supplement, dilute one drop in 4 fl. oz. of liquid such as goat's or rice milk. Diffuse for short periods of time (1/2 hour or less) in the work or home environment. Possible skin sensitivity. If pregnant or under a doctor's care, consult your physician. Always dilute before applying to the skin or taking internally. Keep out of reach of children.
Thieves® Hard Lozenges: Dissolve one lozenge in mouth, as needed. Swallowing lozenges whole may cause choking. Keep out of reach of children and do not expose to excessive heat or direct sunlight.
Thieves® Spray: Spray on any surfaces that you feel need to be cleansed, such as kitchen and bathroom counters. Not for use on infants or on sensitive areas of the body.
Thieves® Bar Soap: Use as any regular bar soap. For external use only. Store in a cool, dry place. Keep out of direct sunlight and away from ultraviolet radiation sources.
Thieves® Dentarome Ultra Toothpaste: Brush teeth and gums thoroughly morning and night.
Thieves® Fresh Essence Plus Mouthwash: Rinse mouth with one tablespoon or capful of Fresh Essence Plus Mouthwash for 30 - 60 seconds or as needed.
The Thieves Products are also available individually for purchase:
Thieves Hard Lozenges - Code # 3282
Thieves® Hard Lozenges are a soothing, therapeutic blend of 7 natural essential oils and will refresh you mouth and breath. Lightly sweetened with stevioside and the low-gylcemic sugar maltitol, these lozenges deliver the power of Thieves®, the university-tested essential oil blend, along with the flavor of natural peppermint and lemon essential oils. For fresher breath and relief, try these lozenges.
Thieves Fresh Essence Mouthwash - Code # 3683
Thieves® Fresh Essence Plus Mouthwash contains a special formulation of essential oils that gives you incredibly fresh breath. The unique liposome technology (using soy-derived lecithin) binds the essential oils to the mucous membrane inside the mouth for longer-lasting effects on teeth and gums.
Thieves Essential Oil - Code # 3423
Thieves® was created based on research about four thieves in France who protected themselves with cloves, rosemary, and other aromatics while robbing plague victims. The proprietary Thieves® oil blend was university tested and found to be highly effective in supporting the immune system and good health.
Thieves® oil blend is an integral ingredient in Thieves® Household Cleaner, Thieves® Spray, Thieves® Wipes, Thieves® Lozenges, Thieves® Dentarome Plus and Thieves® Dentarome Ultra toothpastes, and Thieves® Fresh Essence Plus Mouthwash.
Thieves Cleansing Soap - Code # 3679
Thieves® Cleansing Soap is fragrant with the rich aroma of naturally antiseptic Thieves® essential oil blend. Moisturizing plant oils and botanical extracts help promote healthy, smooth skin. A natural soap for sensitive skin. How to use: Use as any regular bar soap. For external use only. Store in a cool, dry place. Keep out of direct sunlight and away from ultraviolet radiation sources.
Ingredients: Saponified Elaeis Guineensis (Palm) Oil, Cocos Nucifera (Coconut) Oil, and Olea Europaea (Olive) Fruit Oil; Vegetable Glycerin; Syzygium Aromaticum Flower Bud Oil; Lycium Barbarum Seed Oil, Avena Sativa (Oat) Kernel Meal, Simmondsia shinensis (jojoba) Seed Oil, Citrus Limon (Lemon) Peel Oil, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice, Cinnamomum Verum Bark Oil, Eucalyptus Radiata Leaf Oil, Rosemarinus Officinalis (Rosemary) Leaf Extract. 100% pure therapeutic-grade essential oil Organically grown in accordance with the California Organic Foods Act of 1990.
Thieves Spray - Code # 3265
The Thieves® Spray is ideal for use on door handles, toilet seats, and any surface that needs cleaning. The small one ounce bottle is also the perfect size for any kind of traveling. How to use: Spray on any surfaces that you feel need to be cleansed, such as kitchen and bathroom counters. Not for use on infants or on sensitive areas of the body.
Ingredients: Pure grain alcohol, deionized water, Thieves® essential oil blend, fractionated coconut oil and soy lecithin. 100% pure therapeutic-grade essential oil.
Thieves Wipes - Code # 3756
Tired of using dirty sponges you have used a hundred times, only to spread the dirt around on the surfaces in your home? Try our Thieves® Wipes! They are ideal for use on door handles, toilet seats, and any surface that needs cleaning. Simply use and throw away. How to use: Wipe on any surfaces that you feel need to be cleansed, such as kitchen and bathroom counters. Not for use on infants or on sensitive areas of the body.
Ingredients: Pure grain alcohol, deionized water, Thieves® essential oil blend, fractionated coconut oil and soy lecithin. 100% pure therapeutic-grade essential oil.
Dentarome Plus Toothpaste! Code # 3738
Thieves® Dentarome Plus Toothpaste contains well-proven ingredients-thymol and eucalyptol-found in clove and thyme essential oils, along with gentle, odor-absorbing baking soda. Also contains the powerful oil blend of Thieves®, which was the subject of research published in the Jornal of Essential Oil Research. Dentarom Plus is usually preferred by adults. How to use: Brush teeth and gums thoroughly morning and night.
Ingredients: Baking soda, deionized water, vegetable glycerine, xanthan gum, ionic trace minerals, thymol, eugenol, steviocide (Stevia rebaudiana), the essential oils of wintergreen (Gaultheria procumbens), peppermint (Mentha piperita), and the blend of Thieves [clove (Syzygium aromaticum), lemon (Citrus limon), cinnamon (Cinnamomum verum), eucalyptus (Eucalyptus radiata), and rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis)]. 100% pure therapeutic-grade essential oil.
Dentarome Ultra Toothpaste - Code # 3744
New Thieves® Dentarome Ultra Toothpaste is an advanced formula of all-natural ingredients that gently clean your teeth and freshen your breath while harnessing the powerful action of pure, therapeutic-grade Thieves® essential oil for fresh breath. How to use: Brush teeth and gums thoroughly morning and night.
Ingredients: Calcium carbonate, essential oil concentrate containing peppermint essential oil, Thieves® essential oil blend (a powerful blend of clove, cinammon bark, lemon, Eucalyptus radiata, and rosemary, zinc oxide, deionized water with papain, xylitol, vegetable glycerine, essential oil base (thymol from Thymus vulgaris), Eucalyptus globulus, and methyl salycilate from wintergreen, xanthum gum, zinc citrate, and stevioside. 100% pure therapeutic-grade essential oil.
All You Ever Wanted To Know About THIEVES HOUSEHOLD CLEANER
Ordering Information: All are available on my Young Living Web Site
Thieves Household Cleaner - Code 3743, 14.4 oz.
Wholesale/Distributor: $21.50
Preferred Customer/Autoship: $24.89
Retail Customer: $28.29
Dilution Proportions for Thieves Cleaner - NOTE: one capful cleaner = ½ tablespoon
Light degreasing (1:60)
1 capful cleaner : 3.75 cups water
1 bottle makes 30 quarts of light degreaser (.32/quart)
Med. degreasing (1:30)
1 capful cleaner : a little less than 2 cups water
1 bottle makes 15 quarts of medium degreaser (.64/quart)
Heavy degreasing (1:15)
1 capful cleaner : a little less than 1 cup water
1 bottle makes 71/2 quarts of heaver degreaser (1.27/quart)
Pots & Pans (1:100) ½ capful cleaner : 3+ cups water
1 bottles makes 50 quarts of dishwashing liquid (.19/quart)
Hand Cleaner (1:1) ½ cup cleaner : ½ cup water
1 bottle makes 1 quart of hand cleaner ($19/quart)
Floors ( 1:100) 1 capful cleaner : 6.25 cups water
1 bottle makes 50 quarts of floor cleaner (.19/quart)
Walls ( 1:30) 1 capful cleaner: a little less than 2 cups water
Fabrics, Carpet spotting, etc. (1:40)
1 capful cleaner : 2 cups water
Carpet (1:100) 1 capful cleaner : 6.25 cups water
Glass ( 1:320) -1 capful cleaner: 5 quarts water
All are available on my Young Living Web Site
Posted by Jenny Hatch at 6:32 AM
April 15, 2007
A Prophet Seer and Revelator Speaks on Politics
During the fifty five years that have passed since this talk was given, the level of propaganda and lies told about America has exponentially grown to the point where our citizens, if they are not rabid anti-americans, they are definitely on the fence about whether or not to feel good about our nation and our Godly heritage.
I know for me, the final bit of ambivalence I had about our history, especially our history around the Viet Nam war, was completely wiped away when I read this interview found at Front Page Magazine. I remember that as I read it for the first time a couple years ago, I was hitting the monitor of my computer, and when I finished it, I rammed my hand down on the computer desk, because I was so floored by what Mr. Pacepa had said.
Here is the interview, followed by Ezra Taft Bensons talk given at General Conference 55 years ago.
Member Of the Council of the Twelve Apostles (Please note, this talk was given in April of 1952 at General Conference)
"Beloved brethren and sisters, in humility I invoke the inspiration of the Lord and seek an interest in your faith and prayers as I stand for a few moments in this pulpit. I should like, if the Lord will bless me, to give vent to some thoughts that have been deeply impressed upon my mind for several weeks now. I hope I shall not be misunderstood. It seems to me that the day in which we live demands a frank and forthright consideration of some of the problems which face us not only as a Church but also as a great Christian nation.
With you I thrilled at the opening address of our great leader, President McKay. As I have thought of his remarks regarding this land of America, its achievements, and its needs, I have felt that I could characterize best what he said in two words: Spiritual Statesmanship. With you I love this land in which we live. I am proud of our heritage; I am grateful for the American tradition; I am thankful that the Lord has given through his prophets information regarding this great nation.
However, it seems to me that there are certain tendencies, trends, and practices which endanger very greatly our way of life and strike at the very foundation of much that we hold dear as a great Christian nation. Of course, the conditions of the world generally give us cause for concern. We seem to live in a world of conflict, insecurity, uncertainty, and almost bewilderment. We appear to be groping blindly, aimlessly, unable to find the way. Were it not for our faith in the prophecies of God I fear sometimes we would almost be tempted to give up.
We are in the midst of continuing international crises. The outlook for world peace and security is dark indeed. The gravity of the world situation, it appears, is increasing almost daily. The United Nations seems unable to settle the troubles of the world. In truth we are faced with the hard fact that the United Nations, it seems, has largely failed in its purpose. Yes, the days ahead are sobering and challenging ones. We might well ask,
America-what of the future?
I never travel across this great land and note its broad, fruitful farms, its humming factories and gleaming cities but what I am impressed with the marvels of this great nation. Yes, we have made unequaled material progress. We have become the greatest and the richest nation in all the world.
This has been done on about 6% of the land area of the world by a relatively small group of people, only 7% of the world's population. Yet it is reported that this small group of people produce today approximately half of the world's total wealth in usable form to satisfy human needs.
It is reported that in the year 1950 almost half of the food and fiber of the world was produced here in the United States. Our productivity has increased one-fifth every ten years since 1850. Through the use of machines much of the drudgery and toil so common in many other nations has disappeared.
Our engineers have estimated that the average worker today has the equivalent of 99 mechanical slaves working for him. The Twentieth Century Fud recently predicted that by 1960, 96% of all the energy going into physical work in America would be performed by machines, 1% by horses, and 3% by men. The average American worker has an output per hour six times his output in 1850. Yes, we have made unprecedented achievements in material things.
The prophets of God foreshadowed these achievements when they predicted that this would be a land choice above all other lands and that it would be preserved for a righteous people. Those who were to dwell here, if they served the God of the land, should be free from bondage and captivity.
Lehi, who led the second colony which came to this great land, was told that he was leading that colony to a land of promise and that none should come here save those who would come here under the influence of heaven.
This land would be consecrated unto those whom the Lord would guide here. It would be a land of liberty. Lehi's son, Jacob, said there should be no kings upon this land, that the God of heaven would be their king that this land would be fortified against all other nations, and that he who would fight against Zion should perish.
Reference has been made by President Young to the coming of Columbus. The scriptures tell us that the Spirit wrought upon Columbus, and upon those who followed him, and that they came here under the inspiration of heaven. Nephi predicted that when they arrived, they would humble themselves before God, that the power of the Lord would be with them, and that they would prosper.
Our history clearly records that the early peoples who did come were humble, God- fearing men and women. Bradford records that their first act upon arriving here upon American soil was to go upon their knees in humble prayer and bless the God of heaven.
The impelling force in their hearts it seems to me, was a love for basic ideals and principles, which were dearer to them than life itself. Among these were their love of God, faith in his divine purposes, their love of freedom industry, thrift, decency, and honor. Yes, this nation had its beginning in a high-minded manner.
The rules of conduct established by the early colonists and our founding fathers were taken from the scriptures. They were embodied in the Decalogue and in the gospel. The Sabbath was set aside as a sacred day. Profanity and other vices were condemned, and gambling was forbidden. People were encouraged to keep good company and to repeat no grievances. They emphasized the spiritual virtues.
Washington but echoed the general feeling of the early colonists when he acknowledged God's direction and emphasized the importance of spirituality honor, and moral courage. He said:
No people can be found to acknowledge and adore the Invisible Hand which conducts the affairs of men more than the people of the United States. Every step by which they have advanced to the character of an independent nation seems to have been distinguished by some token of providential agency.
Then as to the place of religion and morality, the Father of our country stated:
Of all the dispositions and habits which lead to political prosperity, religion and morality are indispensable supports . . . Reason and experience both forbid us to expect that national morality can prevail in exclusion of religious principle.
His successors spoke in similar vein. Lincoln emphasized the same thought when he acknowledged that "God rules this world," and that "It is the duty of nations as well as men to own their dependence upon the overruling power of God, to confess their sins and transgressions in humble sorrow...., " and then quoting from the scriptures, "and to recognize the sublime truth that those nations only are blessed whose God is the Lord." Yes, my brethren and sisters, they spoke of self-evident truths-inalienable rights.
When the Prophet Joseph came upon the scene to open a new gospel dispensation, he shed even further light upon the establishment of this great nation and the coming forth of the Constitution, which he stated was a glorious standard, founded in the wisdom of God.
Through revelation the Lord said to him, as was quoted by Brother Moyle yesterday,
Therefore, it is not right that any man should be in bondage one to another.
And for this purpose have I established the Constitution of this land, by the hands of wise men whom I raised up unto this very purpose, and redeemed the land by the shedding of blood. (D. & C. 101:79-80.)
We have enjoyed divine favor through much of our history, but what of the future? It seems to me, my brethren and sisters, that the lessons of history, many of them very sobering, ought to be turned to during this hour of our great achievement because I feel in my own heart that during the hour of our success is our greatest danger.
I feel firmly that even during the hour of great prosperity, a nation may sow the seeds of its own destruction. This may happen even during a period of great income, relatively full employment, and high business activity. History reveals that rarely is a great civilization conquered from without until it has weakened or destroyed itself within.
I read recently volume three of that monumental work by Will Durant, The Story of Civilization. This volume entitled Caesar and Christ, covers the rise and fall of the Roman Empire and the coming forth of Christianity. It covers a period of 1125 years, from 800 B.C. to 325 A.D. At the end of this six-hundred-page volume, the author writes an epilogue under the caption "Why Rome Fell."
It is generally agreed that not infrequently history repeats itself. The author lists the major causes why this great civilization fell apart. I wonder if there is anything in what he says for us to take note of today. As a read this volume I was caused to reflect on the similarity of conditions and practices then and now. May I give you briefly his summary:
The first group of causes he termed biological, and no doubt most fundamental. They had to do with the limitation of families, the deferment and avoidance of marriage, the refusal of men and women to shoulder the great responsibilities, God-ordained, of honorable parenthood.
He mentioned that sexual excesses were indulged in commonly, both in and outside the marriage covenant.
The operation of contraception and abortion was common. This, together with other things, resulted in reduced fertility. Sex ran riot, and moral decay resulted.
He mentioned as another cause of Rome's decay, the waste of natural resources in mining, deforestation, erosion, the neglect of irrigation canals but most important of all, the negligence of harassed and discouraged men the failure to teach high moral principles so necessary for the building of real character.
Then he lists with great emphasis the rising costs of government because of armies, doles, public works, expanding bureaucracy, a parasitic court, depreciation of currency, absorption of investment capital by confiscatory taxation.
Is there anything suggestive in this summary?
May I give you the following figures on this last grouping particularly, taken from what seem to be reliable sources? According to projected estimates, our federal government will spend during the coming fiscal years, 1952-53, more than the total income of all the people west of the Mississippi River-22 states. The federal payroll in 1952 will top 22 billion-4 billion above last year and 16 times the 1929 total.
Nearly one out of every four adult Americans is receiving regularly federal checks. At the present rate, by 1953 the government will be spending approximately 38% of the national income. During only three of the last twenty years has our federal budget been balanced. It requires today approximately 2 1/2 million civilians to staff the federal bureaucracy.
In the matter of the depreciation of the currency, it is reported that the present dollar is worth only 38 cents compared to the 1913 dollar, and that the dollar today will purchase only about half as much as it did in 1935-39.
As to taxation, the federal government took in taxes during all past administrations up to six years ago-156 years-248 billion dollars.
In the last six years we have taken in taxes 260 billion, and still we seem not to have enough to pay our current bills. With a debt of over one- quarter of a trillion dollars the annual interest payment is 6 billion dollars plus, more than all government expenditures in 1933.
Now, my brethren and sisters this author lists other causes. Political causes, he says, were rooted in one fact that through centralized control and the increasing despotism of the state, the citizens' civic sense was destroyed and dried up, thus destroying statesmanship at its source.
Men felt powerless to express themselves and lost interest in government. Yet, I presume, Rome has had no equal in the art of government. She achieved a democracy of free men and then destroyed it with corruption and violence.
With you, I love this great land in which we live.
I pray for the chief executive and his cabinet and the legislative and judicial branches, the officials of our states and our cities. But I wonder sometimes, my brethren and sisters, what our founding fathers, our pioneer fathers, would do and say if they were here today.
I'm sure they would give serious reflection to present conditions. I wonder if they would not recognize that our liberties have already been abridged, that there has been too much of a tendency for us to call upon our federal government every time we felt the need for the accomplishment of any particular objective.
I wonder if we haven't had a tendency to call for help for those things which our forefathers would have done willingly for themselves.
Yes, I presume as a people we are to blame, but I feel that if they were here today, they would apply some very definite tests before any new service or new program were approved. May I just mention three:
First, I think they would ask the question: Can this service, assuming it is needed, be done more efficiently, more effectively by our federal government or should we do it ourselves on the local level? They believed that government is best which governs least.
Government seems to be inherently wasteful and inefficient. Possibly it is because the profit motive and competition-the very life of private enterprise-are largely absent.
Second, How will it affect the morale and the character of the people? This seems to me to be of great importance. They were interested in the building of character. They recognized that character, not wealth or power or position, is of prime consideration.
Third, they would possibly ask: How will it affect our free institutions-the church, the school, the home, and our local form of government?
I believe if they were here, they would look for the answers to the decline of public morals.
As they looked searchingly for the answers, they would probably observe evidence of weak and vacillating leadership in many places, not confined to one group or one party.
They would find a tendency for men in high places to place political expediency ahead of principle. They would be concerned with the alarming growth of a something-for-nothing philosophy, a failure of people to stand on their own feet.
They would probably find bad examples by unscrupulous politicians and by delinquent parents, and possibly a weakening of religious training, and the substitution therefore of a faith-destroying materialism.
I think, my brethren and sisters, as Latter-day Saints, and as American citizens, we need to rouse ourselves to the problems that confront us as a great Christian nation. We need to recognize that these fundamental, basic principles, moral and spiritual, lay at the very foundation of our achievements in the past.
If we are to continue to enjoy our present blessings, we must have a return to these basic and fundamental principles.
Economics and morals are both parts of one inseparable body of truth, and they must be in harmony.
We need to square our actions and our policies with these eternal principles.
I wonder if we have forgotten the counsel of the prophets, the founding fathers, and our great statesmen. Surely we need a nationwide return to these fundamentals. We need a nationwide repentance to rid this land of corruption. We must return to the fundamental virtues that have made this nation great.
There is a force in the universe which no mortal can alter. This nation does have a spiritual foundation. It has been established in keeping with great spiritual and moral principles, but there seems to be a tendency for us to lose our sense of uprightness and to do wilfully those things which we must know to be wrong. This cannot be done with impunity.
God help us to raise our sights beyond the dollar sign, beyond material things. May we have the courage to stand up and be counted, to stand for principle, for those principles and ideals which guided the founding fathers in the establishment of this great land. Thank God for the promises that have been made regarding the future of America.
I hope and pray we shall realize the fulfillment of these promises because we merit their fulfillment.
I am grateful that the Lord has said through his prophets that this nation unto the righteous shall be blessed forever, and that he will be a light unto them forever that hear his words."
PACEPA INTERVIEW AT FRONT PAGE MAGAZINE
Posted by Jenny Hatch at 7:01 PM
April 3, 2007
HuffPo: Leslie Benetts: The Feminine Mistake
Bleech!
"I wrote The Feminine Mistake: Are We Giving Up Too Much? because the typical reporting on the job-versus-family issue was so biased and incomplete. The media gave lots of coverage to women who quit the labor force to become full-time mothers, but they treated this decision as if it were simply a lifestyle choice. They never seemed to mention the risks of economic dependency -- or the myriad benefits of work. As a result, women were being lulled into a dangerous sense of complacency about relinquishing their financial autonomy. Why wasn't anyone telling the truth about how much they were sacrificing -- or what the consequences could be?
When I researched the subject myself, my findings made it all too clear how false that sense of security really is. Over time, most stay-at-home wives are likely to face major hardships as a result of divorce, widowhood, a spouse's unemployment or illness, or any number of other challenges. Women who abandon their careers and become financially dependent on their husbands often look back on that decision as the biggest mistake of their lives -- even women in stable, enduring marriages. I interviewed women all over the country, of every age, socio-economic level and background, but many used the exact same words to ask an angry question: "Why didn't anybody tell me what a mistake this was?""
And man, isn't our society lucky to have such a sage in Leslie Benetts, that she is here to let us know how big of a mistake we are making when we marry and become financially dependent on our men.
A few thoughts....I have not read this womans book, just her piece at Huff Po, so maybe it is wrong to even comment on her piece without her full argument being reviewed.
That being said, the very title of her essay, calling this choice to become dependent on our husbands a MISTAKE, sets the tone of the debate.
I suppose in Ms.Benetts ideal world all women attend college until they are 32, then accept a job from some "empowered" she-male, and then gets artificially inseminated to give birth to one child, you know, just for the experience, and because that time clock is ticking, and the second the baby turns four weeks old, shoves it into the care of someone else while momma stays "independent and financially stable", and thus saves herself the trouble of having to ask that ANGRY and hopeless question...."Why didn't anybody tell me what a mistake this was???"
In Ms. Benetts ideal world womyn have no need to mess with the rather untidy life of the stay at home mother, and no worries about the future. Momma as breadwinner means womyn will never have to bow down to any patriarchal system, and can stay nice and healthy, financially and otherwise, and never ever have any problems, whatsoever. Because everyone knows that the only women who have problems are those who get married young and rely on a man to provide their food, clothing, and shelter.
Sorry Ms. Benett, your whole premise stinks.
I am completely aware of how dependent I am on my husband. I like to think of us an an interdependent team. However, I choose not to wallow in "what iffing" about the future. Should some unforseen situation present itself where I am the sole breadwinner for my family, I trust that as a smart, intelligent woman, I have the capacity to take care of the children who would then be dependent on me for the basics to survive.
I don't have a degree. Outside of stints working as an actor, waitress, medical assistant, maid at a hotel, house cleaner, health club dance instructor, and various network marketing businesses, as well as childbirth teacher, I have never had what others would term an ideal "career".
I have spent the past ten years writing books that few people are interested in reading, promoting natural childbirth in an epidural world, and blogging about natural family living. Endeavors that are not exactly tied to financial freedom.
I suppose if I wanted to make some money at blogging, I could promote sickness on my Blog and then the various sick culture big money machines would come calling, but for now promotion of healthy family life is not a cash cow for our family budget.
Truth be known, without my husbands support I could never have written my E-books, set up my web sites, or even considered blogging. As a computer genius specializing in web connections and fire walls, Paul has been most supportive of my Blogging adventures. Perhaps it would have been better for me to hire a web expert, just so I could say that I was an independent womyn not guilty of making any goofball feminine mistakes like depending on my husbands generousity of spirit while helping me blog.
He installed Movable Type on my site and has helped me in a thousand different ways to be a better online writer. As my in house "free" tech support, he has been the reason I've been able to share my words, pictures, and videos on the web. Perhaps your next book should be titled - "The Male Mistake; hard realities for the husband whose wife spend every spare second blogging."
I am fully aware of the difficulties that COULD happen if my husband were unable to work for some reason. Yet I continue to take my children to the park, spend my time cooking, cleaning, and raising our five children, and call myself most blessed among women for the luxury of this amazing lifestyle where I have the freedom to be queen of my own little castle.
And, I get to choose how I will schedule my free time without worrying about providing food, clothing, and shelter for our brood.
Every time we go out into the sunshine to play, I feel this overwhelming gratefullness in my heart for a man who is willing to work hard every day to provide for me and our children. And I trust and have complete faith that should my husband be called home to heaven, that a kind FATHER In Heaven, the ultimate Patriarch, will be as aware of me as the Lilies of the field, and will help me to know how to feed, shelter, and clothe my family as a single woman.
Don't call my life choice a mistake.
And don't assume that I am some idiot who has no ability to prepare for the future, or understand that my husband being gone will mean major adjustments to our lifestyle. I am well aware of how quickly things could change, but that does not mean I am going to put my children into the care of someone else and go start working on a career.
I am engaged in the most fulfilling career any woman could desire.....writing living epistles as we partner with God in the creation of something eternal and holy....A Family.
As I read this essay I was reminded of the play Pippen, which I performed over forty times during summer stock theatre in 1987. The main character in the play is a young man who wants to find meaning in his life, and so he experiments with a variety of lifestyle choices, running from war to politics to womanizing to family life in search of the ultimate happiness and fulfillment. At the end of this musical, he learns that being committed to a family is what will bring him the most fulfillment, and admits that he is "trapped, but happy".
Here is a clip from the final performance of the cast of 87 in West Yellowstone Montana at the Playmill Theatre. I included our curtain call, as well as the tradition of "street greeting" that we did after the final show of the evening. This particular audience was made up of many friends, family members as well as members of our church congregation in town and former players from previous casts. So alot of hugging was going on as we said our goodbyes.
I am dressed in light blue, and show up here and there in the clip.
Sometime in the future I will share a bunch of clips from this play, it is a profound and wonderful commentary about what brings true happiness and fulfillment in life.
Posted by Jenny Hatch at 9:03 AM
March 4, 2007
Organic Grain Sale at The Family Baker
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The Family Baker is a business run by Nadine Kerley in Arvada Colorado.
I participated in this annual grain sale for many years when it was organized by Mountain Magic and Nadine recently assumed owernership of the Mountain Magic customer mailing list and offers many of the same products and services.
Nadine is organizing a grain sale right now and if you are local here in Colorado, contact her here for more information about how to order her wonderfully priced organic grains and beans. Orders are due March 6th, 2007
Here is a link to her Home Page - Go Here.
Organic grains should represent the "staff of life" in our daily eating.
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Posted by Jenny Hatch at 7:03 PM
September 24, 2006
DREAM: Dream, dream, dream
Last night I had a dream. It was yet another dream of terrorism in America.
I never know when I have these sorts of dreams if they are true dreams or not. I wonder if they could just be the power of suggestion from reading about potential terror, or if they are just residual things I am working through after watching a couple of 9-11 movies. I watched The Path to 9-11 and over the weekend I watched Flight 93 for the first time. Both movies were very emotional for me to watch. I started to cry whenever I saw mothers with babies and realized those Fathers weren't coming home.
Paul travels every once in a while, and while I have never been afraid of him traveling before, watching the movie this weekend really did force me to consider the idea that it could have been me telling my kids that Dad was not coming home after 9-11.
The sorts of dreams I have had in the past were always of my children crying because they were hungry and in the dream I was frantically searching for food to feed them. My most vivid dreams came during my pregnancies. Dreams of birth, death, fear, working through whatever issues we were having in our marriage, etc.etc...
I always knew I had dreamed a true dream if it came true. But this has only happened a handful of times, and most of those dreams I had in a near waking state. I would usually have them right before I fell asleep, and they generally were either warning dreams or dreams that let me know certain things about my children ie...what gender they would be, or flashes about the type of life they would live or the sort of books they wanted me to read while I was pregnant or the type of food I should eat that would serve them best while in the womb.
Last night I had another vivid dream. I'm thinking that it was the power of suggestion because I read a WND article that talked about New York and Washington DC being hit by bombs. In the dream I was living in an apartment that was several stories high. My children were all at home, but Paul was not in the dream. We were laughing and having a good day. We went outside to play and at one point I turned around and looked and saw these two huge plumes of smoke. They were not mushroom clouds, but the smoke was black and very dense. I knew that I was looking at New York and Washington DC going up in smoke and I yelled to the children to run inside.
The rest of the dream was me looking for water. Trying to find clean water. Everyone was looking for water, and every time we thought we had found it, we were frustrated and overwhelmed because it was not to be found.
That was pretty much the end of the dream.
Today at church a lady in our ward brought some information about these water bottles that you could purchase which would cleanse over 200 gallons of water and were very portable.
Connection? Probably not. I don't spend alot of time analyzing my dreams, and even when they do come true, it's not like I freak out and am all amazed or anything. My response generally is more of the "well, isn't that cool?" reaction than anything else.
Do I think I dreamed a true dream? I don't know. That is always one of those things where I just say to myself....whatever.
Why share this in the preparedness catagory? I guess the message I would like to convey to anyone reading this is that over the years I have had many dreams around the preparedness and terrorism topics. My dreams have motivated me almost as much as my scripture reading to put in a supply of water, food, and emergency kits and keep plugging away at these efforts.
I think it would be a mistake to ignore dreams, but I also believe some caution should be in play when considering the realities of the dreams.
Is it wise and prudent to prepare for terrorism and any natural disaster in our modern american society? Sure. It doesn't mean you are a dupe or ignorant or a fear monger.
Can you take preparedness efforts too far? Yes, I believe you can become so consumed with what is going to happen in the "future" that you forget to live in the moment.
For us, adopting this lifestyle has meant carving out a few days a year where we focus on food storage and provident living. We re-do the kits once a year, we change the water in the water barrels, we update the info in our important documents container, and we purchase, can or bottle some food.
The message may be conveyed that because I am often cooking and blogging about natural foods and preparedness that I am always focused on these topics and have no time for anyone or anything else in my life.
Nothing could be further from the truth.
I spend the vast majority of my free time reading, practicing music, and writing in my journal. Not this online journal, but a private journal that I also use for scrapbooking photos of my kids.
Sometimes I will do a rough draft in my journal of a blog entry I have been mulling over for a time, but mostly I write to share my thoughts and feelings with anyone who may chance upon my journal in the future. Perhaps a great grandchild who is curious to know how grandma Jenny lived her life, or a student interested in researching about life in the beginning of the new millennium.
I enjoy cooking and sharing what I know about preparedness but I love lots of things, people and topics. Even though I dont' write about everything I am interested in on this blog, please don't think that all I care about is survival.
Ultimately, the issue of wether we "survive" or not is not all that important.
I have a friend who told me about a dream another women had when she was trying to heal from an assault. In the dream the woman saw herself behind bars. She was standing and it looked as if she was in prison. Then slowly she started to change the view of what she was seeing, it was as if a video camera was gradually backing away from her in prison and as she watched, she realized that the bars were simply something she was holding in her hand. Being in prison was all an illusion.
The fact is: Some bigoted people exist on this planet who hate America and Americans so much that they spend most of their waking hours thinking about ways to kill us.
My response to that is.....So What? Who cares if some pathetic people in our world have joined the ranks of those crusaders and criminals who over the ages have attempted to wipe out whole nations simply because of ethnicity, religion, skin color, or location.
Sure, it is something to be concerned about, and it is a little scary. But does it mean we have to change even one thing about our lives? Or put ourselves in prison? Emotional prison? Spiritual Prison? Bottled up and paralyzed, depressed and overwhelmed by these realities?
Nope.
What we need to do and what I have chosen to do is to live a joyful purposeful life. To cut all people out of my life who cause emotional drainage. To surround myself with those who also have accepted the realities of our world, and choose to live happy despite the fear.
I was talking to a woman at the park who was going on and on about Global Warming. She was really questioning her choice to bring two children into the world knowing that they would have to deal with it. I sensed some real fear pulsing from her. I shared with her my view that things have never been so great in our world, especially for women, and that we are blessed and lucky to have the opportunities for growth, knowledge, increase of talents, and education. Opportunities that our ancestors could only dream about. She was really surprised to hear what I said.
I felt grateful to have the chance to testify to her my belief that God is real (she told me she was an atheist), and I have spent the past few days thinking about our conversation. I think the reason we Mormons LOVE and reverence our Prophet is simply because he is such an optimistic, hilarious person. I love to hear him speak and I feel so grateful that he is the Man on the earth who is God's spokesperson. I believe Heavenly Father has a great sense of humor, and I believe President Hinckley is the perfect choice for this hour of fear in our world.
I can't wait to listen to General Conference this weekend and bask in the love, the optimism, the glow of the faith of the LDS people. It is in the music, the words, the feelings, and the peace conveyed by those who lead Heavenly Fathers Kingdom on the earth. I would challenge anyone reading this to give Conference a try. If you would like to have your battery recharged, if you would like to hear the messages that God is inspiring good honest men and women to share with the world, tune in on saturday and sunday and be surprised at the level of goodness and spirit that is available to anyone who honestly has a desire to open up their heart to the love of the Savior.
Satan and satanic people have no sense of humor. No charity, no love, no hope, no faith. It is just one hopeless frantic existence for those who carefully ignore the message of the gospel of Jesus Christ.
I don't judge these people. I understand that we all have experiences in life that cause us to lose the faith we were born with. I realize that many have experienced trauma and have had beliefs and ideas shoved into their unsuspecting brains that robbed them of faith and hope.
However, just because some in our world have lost the faith and choose to live hopeless and devoid of life force does not mean that I or anyone like me must march lockstep with those who are in bondage to fear. Choosing life does not make me naive, or a simpleton, or mean that I am living in a dream world unaccepting of the harsh realities all around.
I went to the Womens Conference last night at the stake center. I laughed so hard when the prophet dissed wheat and beans. If you have the time, go ahead and listen to the whole conference, it is so good!
I must confess when President Hinckley told the story of the young single mother of seven who in a moment of weakness and overwhelm asked if she could come home, (just for a night, and then she promised to come back the next day) I started to cry. I have prayed that prayer several times in my life. Begging Heavenly Father if I could come home to be with him. Please, please, please....let me come home!~ In the story Pres. H. said that the spirit whispered to this mother, "no, you cannot come to me at this time, if you were to come home, you would not want to go back, but I can come to you and help you and lift your burdens".
The thing is, while I have had many dreams about preparedness and have felt some fear. I have also had many dreams and promptings about music, happy living, playing at the park with my children, watching my kids participate in sports, and worshipping God unmolested by anyone in our society.
Do these dreams fit together?
I believe they do. I believe that we can all find the balance between feeling motivated enough to prepare and live providently that we actually do something proactive to help ourselves and others. And I also believe strongly that we were sent to this planet to live joyful, purposeful lives, filled with happiness and contentment.
So, where is the balance?
I guess each person needs to find the balance that feels right to them. For me, after a month or so of very hard work teaching classes, bottling food, going to the cannery, and organizing our 72 hour kit for the umpteenth time, I am ready to relax a little on these efforts, quietly do my calling, and just focus on the things that bring joy, peace, happiness, and love into my heart.
Is that bad? Doesn't Heavenly Father WANT us to be focused 24/7 on preparedness and reading our scriptures and praying and being in tune to protect ourselves??? No, I don't think he does. In the end it doesn't really matter if we are here on the earth or up in Heaven with him. How we happen to die is also NOT important. What is crucial is to learn to live after the manner of Happiness. To breathe, to enjoy the sunshine, to revel in the fall colors, a baby laughing, a toddler mastering yet another skill, a 10 year old memorizing a scripture, or a 12 year old passing the sacrament for the first time.
He wants us to live the abundant life. However that manifests in our hearts and our day to day lives is pretty much up to us. Jesus atoned for us to give us Freedom. How we choose to use that Freedom is the test of life.
I choose life! I choose babies! I choose gardens, flowers, herbs, and oils! I choose music! I choose rainbows and sunsets and mountains and a little puppy who makes me laugh because he is so excited to go outside he can hardly contain the pleasure of me giving him a few minutes of my life.
I choose a little three year old boy who has a hundred questions a day. Every day, "Mom, can I ask you a question?" Yes, it is true, sometimes it is annoying as all get out. Some days my patience is not what it should be, and I tell him to go watch something on Noggin, but when he snuggles in at the end of the day for nursey, prayers, and a lullaby, he and I both know all is right with the world.
I need to go to bed, but I wanted to share these thoughts while I was still thinking them, and while I had a chance to type.
Love,
Jenny
Posted by Jenny Hatch at 9:46 PM