Eric and Jill

Most who know me, know that I keep a journal. My mother forced us to keep one since the age of eight and somehow that became a great outlet for all my thoughts. I've gone through many journals since and this last month I finished up, yet another, but haven't found the time to head to Deseret Book to get another. This morning I thought of something that I really want to write down to memory, so this will have to replace my journal for a moment.

I just wanted to remember how grateful I am for individuals who are willing to do more than is asked. A few different memories have come to mind that have caused this sudden appreciation and I'll just briefly mention them.

The first was a neighbor we had while living in St George, Utah. She was always kind to everyone, incredibly patient with my younger brother and just a very good person. These are attributes that could make her praiseworthy but this was who she was. What I loved most though, was that every Christmas, she invited all the neighbors to her home for breakfast. She would spend the whole morning cooking for everyone else and never complained or asked for help. The more I take on the role of mother and housewife, the more I realize how amazing that is. That was such a wonderful way to bring Christmas alive within her home as well as bring that feeling of love and family to a neighborhood.

The next is totally different but still just as important. After we were married, Eric and I spent several months up in Alaska. We arrived earlier than the majority of cruise workers. The small LDS chapel there only had maybe fifty members total during the winter months but that number would easily triple as all the young workers came up. That last meeting before they were expected to arrive, the bishop spoke to his ward members and reminded them that they needed to make sure they had their food storage up to date, BUT not only food for their family but that they were required to have enough for those who would be here for the summer and would be unable to bring a supply with them. As I still don't have an effective food storage, I was shocked that he would ask so much of his members. But there was a group who truly understood what it meant to be a ward family. They foresaw a need that could arise and provided for those that would be in their care.

Lastly, living in a college town has a lot of pros and cons. Its always good and bad that people are consistently moving in and out of our ward. Most don't live near family and are poor college students unable to travel to family during the holidays. Last week, a sister in my ward approached each member who she knew lived far from family and invited them to her home for Thanksgiving Dinner. Even though there were three families on our row, she asked each of us in turn, letting us know that she welcomed each family into her home.

I know most of us don't live in college towns where majority of wards are made up of students far from home or in far off locations where food only arrives once a week if the weather is good. But I LOVE how each of those involved took in their surroundings and saw something above what they were asked and chose to fix it. Someday, I hope I gain the courage to do as these others have done. With Thanksgiving not even a week away, I'm just feeling incredibly thankful for knowing such great examples of pure charity.