It did take a lot of time, but as the girls left to go to their various workshops, they actually boarded the ark. How cool, huh? Now, in my mind the ark was a memory jog for those young women who were there. Years later they might think back and remember that ark, and when they did, it would bring to their minds the things they learned that day. 
This was just one of many projects Dave has been roped in to in the course of my service in the church and and several times he has asked me, "Why are we doing this again?" I would say, "Because this is going the extra mile. THIS is what is going to get us into the Celestial kingdom." "OH!" he replied, "THIS is? Well, we'd better keep working then." And work on it we would without another word until Elder Holland's talk Good, Better, Best in General Conference. Since then Dave has subtily brought up the ark on several occasions.
Last Sunday I took these to Relief Society and handed them out as part of my lesson on the parable of the Leaven. When I walked in with 32 loaves of bread, my friend Rhodelle said, "That's it. You are an overachiever and are grounded from teaching." I'm older and wiser than I was back in the ark days, and I know now what drives me. It's my insecurities. If the lesson is terrible and boring, at least everyone gets to go home with a loaf of bread. What I don't know is how to stop. Or the answer to this question, do I need to stop? Is my overdoing it really hurting anybody? Is it helping anyone? Or is this the kind of thing that is "good" and there are "better" and "best" things I could be doing? It's a thought that has been eating at me lately, and I would really like to know.
5 comments:
There may not necessarily be best things for you to do, but I'm pretty sure there are better things you could do than bake 32 loaves of bread! You really are insane! I'm insecure, but oh my goodness!
By the way-Rhodelle? Do you mean Rhondelle?
They were mini loaves - and yes, I did mean Rhondelle. By the way, you were supposed to say "Yes, I do think back on that ark and remember every good thing I learned and it helped me a lot.
Hurting anybody? I doubt it. Good, better, best? Sounds like a personal question as to whether there are better things out there with your time, but in my opinion, along with all the other good that these things accomplish- spending your time doing something for others will show them that you love them, and that, I think, is pretty important. (sorry for the major run on sentence there :)
Yeah, it's true. I do think back on that girl's day (along with all the others) with very fond memories. That was a very fun day. It wouldn't have been the same without that gigantic cardboard ark.
I think you're amazing and perfectly wonderful. I think most of us Cozzens girls have the same gene -- which I think is perfectly fine -- unless you want to argue that the resulting lack of sleep causes alzheimers -- or at the very least forgetfulness! But I do feel sorry for our innocent husbands who are invariably pulled into these projects. Someone should have warned them before they married us! I say keep doing what you're doing -- especially when it is used to help others remember the message of the lesson or activity. Reminds me of when we created a secret garden in the church gym for New Beginnings (theme: sowing our seeds) complete with a bird bath/fish pond with live gold fish. It was great -- until the gold fish starting flinging themselves onto the floor during the program! I also enlisted poor Jeff's help in creating a "harvest" complete with wooden vegetable stands we borrowed from an outdoor market, bales of hay, corn stalks, etc. (theme: gathering the harvest) and the stake president (after peeking in and shaking his head) told us (after allowing it to go on) that we had broken every rule possible except for having open flame. Ooops! But I don't think those YW will soon forget the message -- and they knew that if we went to that much work for them, that we must love them. Don't you think?
Post a Comment