Lessons

By Shelley A. Christensen

Life is a journey…a gift from the Lord to be treasured. The lessons we learn along the way make us the person we are when we reach our destination. Life is fragile…. Each moment is important in the circle of time…for it is in those moments that we are taught by divine power the meaning of our existence. Lessons are also taught to us through the experiences of those in our life’s circle. Some are learned through our own experiences and mistakes. As parents, we try to teach our children all that we have learned along the journey. As we strive to do so, we find that some of the greatest lessons we have learned are taught to us by our children.

This memoir, written by a mother of seven, includes her own life experiences, poetry, and sayings, lessons taught by her children, and quotes that have influenced her as she has traveled the path of life. She shares it for the benefit of her posterity and all who desire to learn from the experiences of others

• Language: English
• Publisher: Page Publishing, Inc.
• Release date: Jun 29, 2021
• ISBN: 9781662426476

Book preview

Dreams Are What We Make Them

When I was a child,

I dreamed I would one day become a great writer.

I wrote down my thoughts in my diary.

When I was a teenager,

I dreamed I would one day become a mother.

I wrote down my thoughts in my journal.

When I was a young woman,

I dreamed of the man I hoped to marry.

My thoughts were written upon my heart.

When I was a wife,

I dreamed of our future together.

In the early morning hours,

I wrote of my visions in poems and reflections.

When I became a mother,

I dreamed of what my children would become.

I jotted down their successes and their heartaches,

Reflecting on the many treasured memories we had shared.

Now, as I approach the later years of life,

I dream of my Heavenly Home.

I write of those things I have learned,

For the purpose that my children and those who follow them,

might know of my dreams.

Line upon line and precept upon precept,

I have made my dreams come true.

My Father in Heaven has guided my way.

He has blessed me with the wisdom of age, the humor of youth,

love for my Savior, and the ability to write.

When I was small, I dreamed that one day

I would become a great writer.

My life is my story… I share it with you.

I Am a Child of God

As a child,

The one, most single lesson I learned was that my Heavenly Father loved me.

There were many times when I felt alone and in need of comfort.

I remember going out into an old shed behind our house

To bear my soul to Him who would hear.

Many times, I would hide in my closet and talk to my Father in Heaven.

It was in those darkest hours,

When I was filled with an understanding that I was not alone, that I was loved,

And that I was important.

Daily Discoveries

In the little moments of living, I have discovered many jewels of wisdom. Here are just a few:

I have learned that forgiveness is something we all need to receive and something we all need to give. It is through forgiveness that we truly come to know Christ, for he paid the price that we might all repent and become new. We are his. He bought us with his blood. It is in the forgiving of others that we can be washed clean of our own imperfections. As we do so, we begin in a small way to repay the debt we owe to our Savior.

Obedience is the first law of heaven. It is through obedience to God’s law that we learn how to become like him. It is through obedience that we are able to prove ourselves worthy of all our Father in heaven has promised us. It is through obedience that we show our love and devotion to the Savior. When we choose to be rebellious, we open the wounds of him who suffered so much for each one of us.

When we obey the commandments that have been given us and submit ourselves to the will of the Father, we can feel true joy and peace.

We need to be tolerant of each other and give each other room to grow and progress. Each of us is on a different level as we work out our salvation. We need to encourage and lift through our words and actions that others might not get discouraged because of our imperfections.

Thinking before we speak is always a good idea. If you don’t have something nice to say, don’t say anything at all is a saying that truly pertains to every level of our conversation. Once something is said, it can never be taken back. That is definitely a sobering thought! Jokes are never funny if they are made at the expense of someone else. What might seem funny to one person may not be funny to another. If a joke is truly a good joke, then everyone should be laughing…not just a few.

One of the greatest gifts we can give to others is the gift of a smile. It is such a simple thing to do but can literally change the course of another