Finding Joy in the Journey

I haven't had much time for the blog lately as school events and church activities have been keeping us pretty busy. However, as I try to keep up with the 'goings on' of life, I am often thinking about what important moments or things I want to post. Lately, I have been reading President Monson's latest conference talk "Finding Joy in the Journey." In that talk he makes many profound statements that I'd like to share in my blog. Ever since reading his talk I have been pondering his comments and stories. He is truely a wise man.


As a mum I often feel as if time is standing still and that I will be young forever and ever, especially if I am doing the same thing day after day after day; cooking, housework, laundry, the school and kindy run, nappy-changing, bottle-feeding, picking up toys, assisting with homework, driving to activities, etc., etc. It's almost like being stuck in a timewarp and nothing is going forward, but then I stop and realize, "Wow, one day the life I live now will be over, and I'll never have all those chores and day-to-day tasks to do. In fact, 25 years from now, I'll probably have more time to myself than I'll know what to do with. President Monson says:



"One of the most inevitable aspects of our lives here upon the earth is change. Time never stands still, it must steadily march on. Opportunities come and then they are gone. Day by day, minute by minute, second by second we go from one part of our lives to another; from getting married, to raising children, to having an 'empty nest', to loving grandchildren, to experiencing great-grandchildren."


"There is only one chance at mortal life - the here and now. The longer we live, the greater is our realization that it is brief. I believe that among the greatest lessons we are to learn in this short sojourn upon the earth are lessons that help us distinguish what is important and what is not."


"If you have children who are grown and gone, in all likelihood you have occasionally felt pangs of loss and the recognition that you didn't appreciate that time of life as much as you should have. Of course, there is no going back, but only forward. Rather than dwelling on the past, we should make the most of today, of the here and now, doing all we can to provide pleasant memories for the future."


"If you are still in the process of raising children, be aware that the tiny fingerprints that show up on almost every newly cleaned surface, the toys scattered about the house, the piles of laundry to be tackled will disappear all too soon and that you will - to your surprise - miss them profoundly."


He goes on to talk about valuing the people in our lives and showing gratitude for our blessings.


"Let us relish life as we live it, find joy in the journey, and share our love with friends and family. One day each of us will run out of tomorrows."


President Monson mentions a play with a girl named Emily in it who asks: "Do human beings ever realise life while they live it?", and I guess most of us don't until someone close to us unexpectedly dies...only then do we truly realize how short and valuable our lives are, and that it is beyond our control how quickly and easily our lives here on earth can be taken away.


He concludes his talk saying, "Brothers and sisters, my sincere prayer is that we may adapt to the changes in our lives, that we may realize what is most important, that we may express our gratitude always and thus find joy in the journey."


These are great thoughts for Christmas and the New Year. Nothing else can be more important than our FAMILIES for they are the only things that will leave this earthly life with us. And, if we don't find joy in the here and now, we will only die with regrets... having lived a wasted life.


I used to say that all I ever wanted to live for was to be a mother. If I was to leave this earthly life tomorrow, I would die content. For me, being a mother is my greatest purpose on earth and the greatest blessing God has given me. Of course, the journey is not just about being a mother or a father, it's about being a wife or husband, a friend, a daughter- or son-in-law, a teacher, a businessman or tradesman, a leader, an example, a learner, a forgiver, etc. And, sometimes the journey is not just joy, but also disappointment, heartbreak, sorrow, regret, and so on. But there is ever-lasting joy in the gospel and ever-lasting joy in our families and prosterity. There is also joy in learning to become a better person as we grow older and learning to forgive others. There is joy in learning to give of ourselves and accomplishing things we thought we'd never be able to do. This week, I've been reflecting that life is a "journey" of many things, but it is only an earthly journey that leads to a much greater existence and purpose. This earthly life is a short gift that will sooner or later be taken from us whether we're ready or not.


During the week I got out the glasscleaner from the kitchen cupboard and decided it was time I cleaned our living room glass doors that lead on to our deck. Sure enough, the very moment I started to clean, Noah stopped playing and came over to the windows to put his hands all over them and press his face against the glass. I smiled, because all I could think of was President Monson reminding me that all too soon those little fingerprints and face marks would be gone forever... and that all too soon Noah would be a grown man with a life of his own... cleaning away his own child's fingerprints.