Quote - Volunteering is the ultimate exercise in democracy

 My brother sent me this quote and I loved it.  Of course I had to make it a little cuter though.  This sums up why I volunteer so heavily in my community.

Arizona Art

My husband often says, "I need a wood project."  I think it is his outlet or hobby.  But I won't complain!

He made this out of "repurposed" wood (and the star came from Hobby Lobby).  The wood was mainly from a crate that our movers had packed our large mirror and artwork in when we moved from CA to AZ.  We let it sit on the side of our house for a few years and it was all weathered looking.

It is quite large (probably 4 feet by 3 feet).  It is a twist on the Arizona state flag, but he used more neutral colors.  I helped him paint the wood, but other than that, he just came up with this on his own.  I absolutely love the finished product and I love that my husband likes to make fun things.

Constitution Week Art

Here is the awesome project that my son entered into our local Constitution Fair Art Contest.  He won first prize in the junior high division and won $200.  He was thrilled!  This was not a school assignment.  It was just something he chose to do on his own.

It may be hard to see the details, but in the center the people are holding the Constitution.  Around the outside of the people it says,
"We the people need to protect the Constitution, so the Constitution will protect our freedom." 

The quote by Abraham Lincoln underneath the picture reads,
"Don't interfere with anything in the Constitution.  That must be maintained, for it is the only safeguard of our liberties."

Washington and Zarahemla: The Beltway-Nephite Disease

Click here for a great article written by Gary Lawrence in Meridian Magazine on-line. I have listed a few highlights below from the article.

Six years.

In the thousand-year span of the Nephite people, that’s the time on stage for a prideful group known as the king-men.

The last fourth of the book of Alma, in which the king-men story is imbedded, is a sharp break from the doctrine-laden chapters of the first three-fourths of the book, as Mormon turns to stories about war strategy and political happenings.

Why did Mormon include this story of arrogance? Is it a parallel for our time, a warning, something we should learn?

I think so. Because Mormon saw our time, what he decided to include in his abridgement was not happenstance.

Doing a bit of reverse engineering on the actions of king-men based in the government town of Zarahemla, and drawing on other scriptures describing Nephite behavior, here are nine characteristics to watch for, if and when king-men pop up in Washington.

1. They Will Be Subtle
2. They Will Exploit the Desire for Power
3. They Will Consider Themselves the New Nobility
4. They Will Look Down on Others
5. They Will Flatter
6. They Will Deceive
7. They Will Strike When Crises Provide Opportunities
8. They Will Not Trust People’s Freedoms
9. They Will Oppose Efforts to Defend the Country

If the events of 2009 and the attitudes of those currently in power are not those Mormon saw in our day, such that he included the king-men story in the Book of Mormon, what further parallels must occur before we learn the intended lesson?

Are we so complacent to think that the king-men parallel lies yet in the future, a problem for some other generation? Are we willing to take a chance that 2009 could not possibly be the king-men day that Mormon saw?

Look around, America. The answer is clear — very clear.

14 Fundamentals in Following the Prophet (article by Ezra Taft Benson)

Here is a great article that my friend Debbie sent me a link to.

It begins: "To help you pass the crucial tests which lie ahead, I am going to give you today several aspects of a grand key which, if you will honor, will crown you with God’s glory and bring you out victorious in spite of Satan’s fury..... Here then is the grand key—Follow the prophet—and here are fourteen fundamentals in following the prophet, the President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints."

(click on the link to read the whole article)

http://www.lds.org/ldsorg/v/index.jsp?vgnextoid=f318118dd536c010VgnVCM1000004d82620aRCRD&locale=0&sourceId=cc52b4f40c9db010VgnVCM1000004d82620a____&hideNav=1

This campaign has been a challenging experience for me. I have been accused of bigotry, linguistically assaulted, flipped off, yelled at, etc. but despite all the challenges, I am more determined than ever to follow the prophet in all that I do.

Thank you Debbie for these kind words of encouragement from your email to me because they mean a lot: Anyway, I just wanted to share and tell you that I've always admired the way you speak up for what you believe in and the way you are always so unafraid to share the gospel. Your example gives people like me more courage to speak up! In the face of all the discouraging things I've read and heard lately, it gives me some hope that there are others out there who are willing to follow the counsel of the prophet as well. So thank you for being such a great example!! You're amazing!


To all of you out there who are striving to speak up for your beliefs (in a positive and legal way), I sing your praises and send you my encouragement and gratitude. I am glad we live in a country which allows freedom of speech and freedom of religion. Hopefully our citizens will continue to keep these rights forever.

Ezra Taft Benson Quote

"I have personally witnessed the heart rending results of the loss of freedom. I have talked face to face with the Godless Communist leaders. It may surprise you to learn that I was host to Mr. Khrushchev for a half day when he visited the United States, not that I am proud of it. I opposed his coming then and I still feel it was a mistake to welcome this atheistic murderer as a state visitor. But according to President Eisenhower, Khrushchev had expressed a desire to learn something of American agriculture and after seeing Russian agriculture I can understand why. As we talked face to face he indicated that my grandchildren would live under communism. After assuring him that I expected to do all in my power to assure that his and all other grandchildren would live under freedom he arrogantly declared in substance - You Americans are so gullible. No, you won't accept communism outright but we'll keep feeding you small doses of socialism until you finally wake up and find you already have communism. We won't have to fight you. We'll so weaken your economy until you fall like overripe fruit into our hands."

Thoughts to Ponder

As the election approaches, here is some food for thought.....

You cannot help the poor, by destroying the rich.

You cannot strengthen the weak, by weakening the strong.

You cannot bring about prosperity, by discouraging thrift.

You cannot lift the wage earner up, by pulling the wage payer down.

You cannot further the brotherhood of man, by inciting class hatred.

You cannot build character and courage, by taking away men's initiative and independence.

You cannot help men permanently, by doing for them what they could and should, do for themselves.