Jane_Doe

Today is my 34th anniversary. My wife is over 200 miles away, while I lay in a hospital bed with a C. diff infection. Feeling a bit blue. But as a chance to reflect on the unparalleled blessings God has showered on an unworthy soul like myself, I feel humble and deeply grateful.
Sorry for the FB-like post, but I'm not much into FBing stuff like this.

I am ambivalent as well. 
If you wake up every day saying “A recession is coming” you’ll be right eventually, and you’ll be able to brag that you saw it coming. However that doesn't make you a prophet. 
 
That said, I think a recession is likely, especially if the real estate bubble bursts. 

Happy weekend everyone!

Wow... thanks for all the comments.
I was mildly interested in watching this show, but not at all interested now... sounds like this Krakauer, is a total Krack pot. And by the way, I'm thinking of a lot of different words to describe him, but this site doesn't allow them.

I was teaching my daughter the story of Jesus’ betrayal this last week. We were acting it out with a bunch of toys and her playing the part of Jesus. 
The Pharases toys came up to Judas and said “we want to hurt and kill Jesus!  If you show us who he is, we’ll give you 20 cents.”
Daughter’s hand shot in enthusiasticly in the air. “I want 20 cents, I’m Jesus!  Mommy can I have 20 cents?”

Oh - and if anyone is gonna brave the explicit temple content and watch this thing - make sure you pay attention to the musical score.  All those deep basses, ominous, foreboding.  The same sort of music a good (or bad) horror movie uses.  I'm noticing the show even plays it when all the happy things are happening, like the cop's family breakfast getting ready for the daughter's baptism. 
Once you pay attention to the music, the show loses quite a bit of it's emotional power and sway.
Music, like font, makes a difference. 

In related news, a boy in my ward has been coming to sacrament meeting in a dress and makeup for a few months.  This individual sang with the Young Women in our Easter Sacrament meeting program.  I don't know the family enough to know what's going on.  Seems like the two possibilities is this is either a transgender individual, or this is some boy who has been pulled in to the social media exacerbation.  I don't have enough information to form an opinion on the matter, other than I know the 2nd great commandment is "love thy neighbor as thyself".  

It sounds like your daughter has a wonderful childlike faith. It reminds me of Adam when the angel asked him why he offered sacrifice and he said, “I know not, save the Lord commanded me.”
She is at the age of leaning on the testimony of others, her parents and leaders. That’s okay. Don’t discount that too readily. “More blessed are they who shall believe in your words because that ye shall testify that ye have seen me, and that ye know that I am” (3 Nephi 12:2). She has years in which to come to know for herself.
Your role (and it already sounds like you are doing a great job at it) is to teach her the doctrine of Christ. Help her to understand what commitment she will be making at baptism. Help her understand how to gain a testimony. It’s a process that she will love because it involves checking off boxes every day. Teach her the steps along the covenant path. Baptism is just the first one. It is a lifelong process of checking off little and big boxes. Help her understand that all those boxes are to get her to the ultimate objective of becoming like her Heavenly Parents and living with them in the Celestial Kingdom. Utilize the children & youth program. Help her learn to set and achieve goals that will help her along the process.
You’re doing better than you think, Jane. Keep doing what you are doing.

We actually read Moroni 10:3-5 together tonight. After explaining to her what it meant, she said “but I already know the scripture are true.”
“But you need to know because you asked God yourself, not just because Mommy and Daddy told you.” 
“Ok, Heavenly Father are the scriptures true?  He said yes.  What do we do next?”
…. Not sure here…
 
Alma 32 and highliighting the word “faith” was her assignment to do over night and we’re talk about it tomorrow afternoon. 

For context: I am trying to improve teaching my elementary aged daughter about the Gospel & strengthening her testimony. She's also extremely "to do list" oriented: she thrives/required having clear stated expectations, a stated goal, outlined schedule of the day, and stated check marks to get there. Which is VERY different than how I'm wired! And I don't want her getting baptized just because it's an expected box to check -- granted, she'll be ecstatic to check the box. The Gospel isn't just going through outward doings (obviously), though also don't want to discount my daughter's testimony because she wired differently than I and does enjoy the outward.   So, my question for to-do-list oriented people: what's your experience with learning the Gospel? Do you have any insight here?   Pinging @Backroads because her teaching experience could be really useful here?

This doesn't really seem to be specifically about Catholicism, more just about general Creedal theological philosophy (that is am much bigger umbrella than Catholicism specifically).   I'm going to start with this broad picture, and then move into more specifics.  
The idea of the "immovable mover" pre-dates Catholicism, the Creed's and even Christ's mortal ministry.  The founding philosophers on this question were the Ancient Greeks (Plato, Socrates, etc).  These philosophers rebelled against the very Pagan materialist pantheons around them (let's face it: Zeus is essentially a super-powered bratty teenager), and instead looked for larger meaning in non-material things.  Eventually they came to largely see anything with physical components as being lesser, and more interested in the essential essence of something.
History moved forward: after the pagan Greeks came the Pagan Romans and then the Christian romans and then the Early Church Fathers*, most notably Saint Augustine*.  (*I'm using caps / their traditional titles out of respect to those faiths, even they are not ours).   The earlier philosophical traditions influenced the later ones, some for good and lots for ill (this is part of the Great Apostasy). This idea that "physicality = lesser" heavily permeated Creedal understanding of God.  The humanity of Christ was greatly downplayed.  The humanity of the Father nigh erased.  Focus become of the "essence" of God, reflecting back on that Ancient Greek mentality.  
In this tradition, God could not be God unless this primordial God-essence predated everything else.  He had to be the one to be alone in the beginning.  To have good and evil be simply what He declared them to be.  Honestly I find, the deeper you look into it, the more nebulous it is and "because God said so and He's the prime mover".  God must be alone in the beginning else's He's not God. 
 
 
<<In contrast>>
The restored Gospel of Jesus Christ does not teach this.  We acknowledge a eternity that is MUCH more massive.  For example, in addition to the Father & Christ always existing, we acknowledge that each of us always existed.  That doesn't remotely make the Father any "lesser" -- He's still our Father after all!  We acknowledge that we each can become joint-heirs with Christ, becoming one with Him & the Father.  That likewise doesn't threaten the Father's or Christ's divinity, rather I think it is more marvelous over the "prime mover" view. We can become like God and perpetrate things forward, though we know very little details of what this actually looks like (use humans fail to grasp the tiniest iota of eternity).
As to what is right versus wrong: for LDS Christians, what is right is inherently right, and what is wrong is inherently wrong.  There's no reality where going around murdering random folks is not wrong-- it's just  inherently wrong and inherently bring misery.  God says "thou shalt not kill" because He doesn't want us to go down that miserable road.  He tells us to do other things (like being honest) because those inherently bring joy in the big picture.   These things just are.  Our Father in Heaven so deeply embodies the road to happiness / joy / glory / mercy / justice  that they are at the core of who He is as a person.  
Everything He/Christ/HS tells you to do is for your Good.  It embodies that Goodness.  God's mission is to bring about the glory & eternal life of man.  Not to be the "prime mover" the Ancient Greeks saught.  

Prayers for you, the family, and all folks struggling under the many burdens of this world. 

This doesn't really seem to be specifically about Catholicism, more just about general Creedal theological philosophy (that is am much bigger umbrella than Catholicism specifically).   I'm going to start with this broad picture, and then move into more specifics.  
The idea of the "immovable mover" pre-dates Catholicism, the Creed's and even Christ's mortal ministry.  The founding philosophers on this question were the Ancient Greeks (Plato, Socrates, etc).  These philosophers rebelled against the very Pagan materialist pantheons around them (let's face it: Zeus is essentially a super-powered bratty teenager), and instead looked for larger meaning in non-material things.  Eventually they came to largely see anything with physical components as being lesser, and more interested in the essential essence of something.
History moved forward: after the pagan Greeks came the Pagan Romans and then the Christian romans and then the Early Church Fathers*, most notably Saint Augustine*.  (*I'm using caps / their traditional titles out of respect to those faiths, even they are not ours).   The earlier philosophical traditions influenced the later ones, some for good and lots for ill (this is part of the Great Apostasy). This idea that "physicality = lesser" heavily permeated Creedal understanding of God.  The humanity of Christ was greatly downplayed.  The humanity of the Father nigh erased.  Focus become of the "essence" of God, reflecting back on that Ancient Greek mentality.  
In this tradition, God could not be God unless this primordial God-essence predated everything else.  He had to be the one to be alone in the beginning.  To have good and evil be simply what He declared them to be.  Honestly I find, the deeper you look into it, the more nebulous it is and "because God said so and He's the prime mover".  God must be alone in the beginning else's He's not God. 
 
 
<<In contrast>>
The restored Gospel of Jesus Christ does not teach this.  We acknowledge a eternity that is MUCH more massive.  For example, in addition to the Father & Christ always existing, we acknowledge that each of us always existed.  That doesn't remotely make the Father any "lesser" -- He's still our Father after all!  We acknowledge that we each can become joint-heirs with Christ, becoming one with Him & the Father.  That likewise doesn't threaten the Father's or Christ's divinity, rather I think it is more marvelous over the "prime mover" view. We can become like God and perpetrate things forward, though we know very little details of what this actually looks like (use humans fail to grasp the tiniest iota of eternity).
As to what is right versus wrong: for LDS Christians, what is right is inherently right, and what is wrong is inherently wrong.  There's no reality where going around murdering random folks is not wrong-- it's just  inherently wrong and inherently bring misery.  God says "thou shalt not kill" because He doesn't want us to go down that miserable road.  He tells us to do other things (like being honest) because those inherently bring joy in the big picture.   These things just are.  Our Father in Heaven so deeply embodies the road to happiness / joy / glory / mercy / justice  that they are at the core of who He is as a person.  
Everything He/Christ/HS tells you to do is for your Good.  It embodies that Goodness.  God's mission is to bring about the glory & eternal life of man.  Not to be the "prime mover" the Ancient Greeks saught.  

The impacts to me & my family have been relatively minor.  The most annoying are supply chain issues and the recreation center has very limited hours due to staffing shortages.

This is one of those stories that I'm not 100% sure is real, but I picked it up on my mission. Sharing horror stories of things that happened (particularly in testimony meetings) when we had investigators visiting, and most of us were sharing stories of weird and/or "deep" doctrine being shared that caused us some explaining to do with our investigators, one of my fellow missionaries shared the following story:
While sitting there listening to a sister's remarks, this is essentially the dialogue that follows -
Sister (at pulpit sobbing): ... this always happens to me, I start to get emotional and can't speak clearly. I'm such a big boob!
Bishop (trying to console her, a little too close to the mic): That's alright, sister, the Bishop likes big boobs.

I was teaching my daughter the story of Jesus’ betrayal this last week. We were acting it out with a bunch of toys and her playing the part of Jesus. 
The Pharases toys came up to Judas and said “we want to hurt and kill Jesus!  If you show us who he is, we’ll give you 20 cents.”
Daughter’s hand shot in enthusiasticly in the air. “I want 20 cents, I’m Jesus!  Mommy can I have 20 cents?”

Even if you passionately disagree with some big-picture school thing, making the classroom teacher's life hard is just childish.  Express your opinions in the correct venue, in a mature fashion, with people whom are actually responsible for the decision & can make a difference.  

You’re a better man than me.  I’d be livid.

There are many fingers to point, and there are multiple sides of the argument, some of which I can see as religious.
However, when it comes right down to it, they are the ones who signed their names on the dotted line, and agreed to pay those loans back. So they should.

Prayers for you, the family, and all folks struggling under the many burdens of this world. 

Yesterday was a day of mourning for our family.  One of our children's friends just took his own life.
He was 16 years old.  He has always been one of those goofy kids that didn't really fit in.  He also had a bunch of health problems, including Crohn's disease. What we didn't know was that he had struggled with suicidal thoughts before.  His mother thought he was over them.  Apparently not.
My children were particularly close with him and his sister when we lived in the same ward.  Since the ward split, we haven't seen as much of them.  They'd only get together on special occasions.
Some time ago he soon began feeling like he was trans.  He began transitioning.  He actually found acceptance because students at the school were pretty woke -- even in a conservative district in Texas.
After a while he realized it was all a lie he'd been telling himself.  He wasn't finding acceptance as a cisgendered boy.  So it must be because he's trans.  After all he couldn't do the manly physical things many boys did.  So it must be because he wasn't a boy.  After identifying as a girl, he found acceptance.  But it was acceptance for something he wasn't.  And with the hormone therapy messing with his mind as it was, he was a freaking mess.
I don't want this to be about transgenders.  But it definitely played a role.  Society is replete with examples of people not fitting in, finding something unhealthy as a means of fitting in.  Apart from criminal gangs, I don't know of a choice that is so filled with heartache as this story that is so often repeated.
The family has not released the details (like the manner in which it was carried out).  We're expecting information on the funeral soon 
Today my wife's coworker is spending time with the mother today.  So my wife, who is normally off today, wil be filling in for her at work.  
This coworker expressed how important it was for her personally because her sons were experiencing COVID induced depression.  They're currently having suicidal thoughts quite frequently.  She's at a loss as to what to do about it. 
Even in Texas, where we're mask free and shutdown free, we still have businesses that are partially shut down, some businesses that are going under.  We have people still wearing masks by their own choice.  And that is still a visual reminder to her sons that this disease is still looming.  They were particularly struck because their father had a severe stroke (from COVID) that put him in the hospital for a while.  So every mask they see is a reminder of the time they almost lost their father.
We're going to be gearing up for a funeral soon.  And I hope the family weathers this well.

STORY TIME!

A couple months ago, my wife signed my 4 year old so. Up for soccer. While at the signup place, she saw that there was a signup for parents to be coaches. When she got home, she said “Fether! We should coach our child’s soccer team!” I explained to her that we have too much going on and adding another thing to our plate would not Be good. We debated this over the next week or so, sometimes turning into an argument. One day, she got a little frustrated and said something to the affect of “Our child needs to see us doing things like, and you spend so much time at work, you need to spend more time with our son!”
 
(Side note, I have complete control over my schedule and choose to work 40 hours a week. I’ve calculated it many times. The fact that I have the ability to take time off whenever I want and still choose to work 40 hours a week gives the illusion I spend too much time at work. A conversation we have had multiple times).
Anyway… I gave in and agreed to do it with her. Fast forward to last week when we had our first practice. I decided to give it my all and choose to have a good time with the kids. On our way there, my wife told me that she was feeling really really nervous and wanted me to head everything off. Fair enough, I could do that. The practice went great.
The next day, my wife was feeling overwhelmed with being a mom, homeschooling, ministering, and other stuff. She said to me in a very emotional tone “I can’t help you with soccer, I just have too much going on and it stresses me out”. So the very reason I told her I didn’t want to do it is the reason she is now wanting to pass it all off on me.
Wives… can’t live with them… also can’t live with them.

Options: 1) ignore and forget it. 
2) in a separate text/call say “hey just so you know, this happened”. And then ignore and forget. 
And never  open unfamiliar attachments. 

I didn't get the chance to watch conference yesterday, and upon seeing this thread the first talk I watched this morning was Elder Holland's.
Depression & suicide is a topic that in unfortunately very personal to me.  I had some major childhood trauma that drove me to deep depression and suicidal thoughts at an extremely young age.  It was my secret war-- growing up in the 90's we didn't talk about abuse or depression or suicide.  Not a church, not at home, not anywhere.  This was my secret war and to my young knowledge I was the only one in the world going through something like this.  
Christ & a testimony of Him was literally the only thing that kept me going at points-- the knowledge that at least He knew & understood.
I remember vividly when Elder Holland spoke directly of his own struggles with depression from the General Conference pulpit in "Like a Broken Vessel".  It was... huge for me.  By then I had actually began to address my struggles in a personal & clinical setting, but hearing of it from the pulpit-- an Apostle's own struggles-- was HUGE for me.  That talk is still a major favorite of mine, surpassed only by his later talk "Songs Sung & Unsung".  They were instrumental in finally fully healing my wounds.  
Watching Elder Holland's latest talk this morning with this thread in mind, I am of two thoughts.  The dominate one is how I feel right now, as somebody who's come through that tunnel and now stands on the other side: I loved it in tears.  I found it extremely touching, Christ-centered, emphatic, humble and generally very on point.  I am so glad to have this spoken from the General Conference pulpit, directly, without euphemism, from an Apostle I know has seen the darkness.  
However, thinking of your daughter, I thought of how I would have reacted back then... and that's more of a mixed bag.  When I was deep in that pain, many times I didn't want medicine or to be better-- I just wanted to be left alone.  In my illness,  I thought I "deserved" this and any wanna-be heroes were arrogant & naive fools whom didn't understand the monster I was.  It was a point of deep illness, that foundationally warped my perspectives.  And frankly made life super hard for me & anyone whom cares (I did/do have many loved ones).  
Prayers for you, your daughter, and all of your loved ones.  

Even if you passionately disagree with some big-picture school thing, making the classroom teacher's life hard is just childish.  Express your opinions in the correct venue, in a mature fashion, with people whom are actually responsible for the decision & can make a difference.