A Story About a Girl...

There was a little girl who was about twelve years old.  She called her grandma one of her best friends... her buddy.  This little girl and her grandma were indeed quite close, and there were many lessons that the grandma had taught her little granddaughter.  One day, Grandma told Granddaughter a story that inspired her.  It starts out with Grandma washing the dishes.  Above the sink was a windowsill where Grandma would always stack her rings while she washed.  On this day, after the dishes were clean, Grandma forgot to put her rings back on (they were her engagement ring and wedding band).  She went about her day, then suddenly realized her finger was missing her precious rings!  She rushed to the windowsill.... nothing... no rings to be found.  She worried, then retraced her steps for the whole day.  She found nothing.  She went back to the windowsill, again and again... nothing.  At this point, she decided to pray.  She knelt down, prayed with full faith in her heart, and asked to receive help in finding her rings.  She felt prompted to look on the windowsill again, and there they were.  Her rings were stacked perfectly on the windowsill.  Her prayer had been answered.

Granddaughter loved hearing about the experience, and others which her grandmother gladly shared.  Granddaughter had little experiences in her life that were similar, but not to the degree of finding something as precious Grandma's rings.  Granddaughter found: homework assignments, etc.  These were things which were important at the time of an adolescent, but probably not in the grand scheme of things.

Granddaughter grew up and moved away.  She had one experience which she never forgotten, and didn't realize the importance of it until even more time had passed.  Granddaughter was having a difficult time in her personal life and felt like there was no one... no one... to turn to.  She felt sad, lonely, and was sure that no one would want to hear her story.  She couldn't even muster the courage to call a friend or family member.  It was an evening when she was working, and she had an hour for her lunch break.  She drove around, found a place to stop, put her head on the steering wheel, and cried.  She cried, and cried, and cried, and whispered... "I feel so alone, I feel so alone, I feel so alone..."  Without even realizing it, she was praying.  She started to get even more upset because she knew she had to go back to work soon, and she couldn't calm down.  The tears just kept coming harder and harder, and the prayer stayed the same... almost like a whisper.  Then, she felt a wave of comfort inside of her.  Her tears stopped, and she felt complete peace.  For a moment, the sudden shift in emotion almost scared her, but she knew it was going to be alright.  She knew that this shift which took place was not her... it was an answer to her prayer.  She felt such peace that even if she heard the saddest news, she couldn't cry anymore.  She dried her eyes, and drove back to work.  The wave of emotion that came over her was the most comforting feeling she had ever felt.  She felt very thankful.

If you have not gathered already, the girl in this story is me.  I felt like sharing this because it goes well with something I heard today.  I heard a talk which was given recently by a leader in my church (his name is President Dieter F. Uchtdorf), and he mentioned that in the eyes of God, we are all important.  Even if there are times when we may feel: small, insignificant, not special, not important..... that those feelings are not shared with God.  God know us and loves us.  I felt that this idea was true because of the above story I told, and other similar experiences which have happened to me.  I feel grateful for these thoughts and this understanding.  It has brought even more peace and comfort to my life.

I wish I could share these stories with my grandmother.  The thing is that I could, but her memory is not what it used to be.  What I am realizing right now is that I should share these things with her.  She always loved to talk about these things.  Just because she may forget about it a few seconds after the conversation is done, doesn't mean we can't have one of our fun talks again. 

I must be honest.  I was hesitant to write about this topic in my blog because of the subject matter.  I am a firm believer in God and Jesus Christ, but I am also worried of how I make others feel.  It is very important to me to be respectful of others.  I hope that what I wrote today is something that people who read it can understand that I am just writing from my heart, and I mean nothing but good intentions and feelings. 

Thanks for reading and letting me get this off of my chest.  I feel so good right now.

Happy Tuesday to you and yours...