Here are a few reasons why I appreciate the gift of the Holy Ghost:

1. The Holy Ghost confirms truth. As I am reading and studying, or listening to someone give a talk or share their testimony, the Holy Ghost confirms to me when I hear truth. I feel the confirmation in my heart and soul and my spirit is touched.

2. The Holy Ghost comforts me. When I am anxious or fearful, the Holy Ghost can assure me, wrapping me in comfort.  Sometimes the Holy Ghost prompts me to remember a past experience or message from the Lord that gives me reassurance. The Holy Ghost helps me to feel safe and hopeful. The Holy Ghost brings the warmth and light of the Atonement into my life.

3. I feel protected with the Holy Ghost as a companion, because I am warned, sometimes as if by flashing lights, and other times by a quiet whisper, when something is not appropriate or is dangerous. 

4. The Holy Ghost not only warns me of things not to do, but I am encouraged and cheered on to do good things. The Holy Ghost nudges me along, helping me to feel confident and courageous. The names of people in my life sometimes come to my mind, and I feel like the Holy Ghost helps me to remember who to reach out to, and when.

5. I drive a car with sensitive lane warnings. If I veer out of my lane, I am reminded to steer back to my lane. The Holy Ghost helps me stay on course. I am reminded of commandments, of feelings and promptings, of ways to improve, and a need to repent.

6. I mentioned that I am driving along, trying to stay in my lane, but where does the road lead? The road/path leads back to the Father. Ultimately, the Holy Ghost is directing me to press forward in faith, relying on the merits of Jesus Christ and headed for exaltation.

I cherish this gift!

This book was worth the read for these written gems and art:

What do women hold? 

The home and the family.

And the children and the food.

The friendships.

The work.

the work of the world.

And the work of being human.

The memories.

And the troubles

and the sorrows

and the triumphs.

And the love.

Men do as well, but not quite in the same way.

Sometimes, when I am feeling

particularly happy or content,

I think I can provide sustenance

for legions of human beings.

I can hold the entire world in my arms.

Other times, I can barely cross the 

room. And I drop my arms. Frozen.

then

I am brought back to my grandmother,

my mother, my aunts,

my sister, my daughter,

my granddaughters,

my cousins,

The women who are my friends.

We have spoken to each other

for thousands of hours.

It is hard work 

to hold everything

and it never ends.

You may be exhausted from holding things

and be disheartened.  And even weep if

you are very emotional. Which would be

anyone on any day. With good reason.

But then there is the next moment

and the next day and

 

hold on.

(Maira Kalman, Women Holding Things)

 

 

 

 

 Three book I learned from:

As you give simple choices throughout the day, you make your child’s world predictable.  Giving choices is an unassuming way to partner with your child, give them a voice, and build trust (pg. 149).

There are no terminal mistakes in parenting.  Making mistakes is quite healthy.  If we make a mistake but we are attuned to our child and repair that mistake, there is a release of dopamine, and a new synaptic connection forms in the brain.  Giving yourself a redo can create new pathways in the brain! (pg. 172) Errors are not terminal, but failure to repair a mistake could damage your relationship with your child.  So be intentional about repair (pg. 173).

Of all the helpful tools on this journey, the one that has contributed the most to my emotional health is community.  People who understand my life, my kids, and my feelings (even my tears) are the greatest gifts (pg. 152). Connections are essential to overall well-being (pg. 165).

 

You can’t rush experience.  And experience is what builds consistency.  And consistency yields confidence (pg. 22).

As a ballet dancer, you are never done working.  That is what we do.  No matter how well a performance went one night, the next day, we are back in the studio working on it.  There is always improvement to be made before the next show.  But it’s hard for a dancer to feel confident while performing yet be open to deconstructing their performance the next day in the studio, breaking it down in order to keep improving.  Those are two conflicting mentalities: confidence in front of a large audience, and, in order to grow, humility the next day in the studio.  But having the ability to express both is necessary to be a great dancer (pg. 100).

Allowing myself the freedom to have these life experiences away from the daily grind of ballet barres and intense scrutiny helped me become the artist I was meant to be.  Finding my best dancing didn’t happen in the studio.  It happened when I stepped away and allowed myself to have deeper experiences outside of that world that I could then bring back and add to my dancing (pg. 143).

 

Women near the bottom of the American class ladder hope their children will give them a vicarious second chance at the social mobility that has slipped out of their grasp. Even though a woman’s own prospects might be limited, a new baby’s life is a clean slate. As she “struggles and strives,” to give them a better life, she heals the regret of having “messed up” her own (pg. 179).

Poorly educated women were much more likely than the more highly educated to agree that motherhood is one of life’s most fulfilling roles (pg. 204). 

Poor women realize that is fragile, and so they make their primary emotional investments in their relationships with their children, which are not subject to the threats that so often destroy relationships between men and women (pg. 211).