My Ancestor, William had Children
All named, with birth dates and places,
But his WIFE was not even mentioned;
Of her, there are not even traces.

Surely she must have existed,
Was born, was a child, and had dreams,
Grew up and learned how to keep house,
Was a PERSON — but nameless, it seems.

She had parents, and someplace, a home,
Her brothers are listed, no doubt,
But she was only a girl,
So not really worth telling about.

She was half of my Ancestor’s heritage;
Without her, he wouldn’t have life.
His genes are half of hers, but I find
She was only his father’s wife.

Once a Girl, was first a “dau.”, then was a “Wife,”
She belonged to her Father till married,
And then she belonged to her husband,
And beside him “unnamed,” she was buried.

How awful to think MY Descendants
Might search for a name for me.
But be unable to find identity,
And wonder just who I might be.

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I went searching for an ancestor. I cannot find him still.
He moved around from place to place and did not live a will.
He married where a courthouse burned.
He mended all his fences.
He avoided any man who came to take the U.S. Census.

He always kept his luggage packed, this man who had no fame.
And every 20 years or so, this rascal changed his name.
His parents came from Europe. They should be upon some list
of passengers to U.S.A., but somehow they got missed.

And no one else in this world is searching for this man.
So, I play geneasolitaire to find him if I can.
I’m told he’s buried in a plot, with tombtone he was blessed;
but the weather took engraving, and some vandals took the rest.

He died before the county clerks decided to keep records.
No Family Bible has emerged, in spite of all my efforts.
To top it off this ancestor, who caused me many groans,
Just to give me one more pain, betrothed a girl named JONES.

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In November 2004 my stepdaughter lay dying of cancer in the hospital.
Being retired, I was the “late shift,” staying through the night with
her while working family members got badly needed sleep.

I took a short break outside to walk and stretch. Coming back, I
re-entered the hospital through the emergency room, and noticed a young
man at a payphone, hanging up the receiver.

He asked where the coffee machine was. Since it was on my way, I offered
to show him. As we walked, he told me he’d gotten a call from his
brother, telling him their mother had been in an auto accident and was
in intensive care.

But he had come to the wrong hospital and needed to get to a city about
50 miles away. Unfortunately, he was out of money and gas. He told me
he’d been at his building maintenance job when he’d gotten the call and
had left immediately.

My first thought was the same as most people’s might be: he’s just a
panhandler. But I looked closer — his clothes were paint-splattered and
drywall dust still clung to his shoulders.

I remembered a conversation with my sponsor Ken B. about unselfish acts.
He said Mother Teresa had done so much good because she wanted to live
in a world where those acts of kindness and love could occur. It was up
to her to do her part to create that world.

Reaching into my wallet, I pulled out my last five-dollar bill and gave
it to him. That would give him enough gas to visit his mother and drive
home afterward. When he offered to repay it I told him, “You may or may
not be what you say. That’s none of my business. If you want, keep a
five tucked in your billfold to give to someone else in need.”

When I told someone else about the incident, I was asked, “Why?” The
unspoken message was that I’d been taken advantage of.

Recalling the conversation with Ken B., I pointed out that it was a
win-win thing for me. If the story were true I’d been able to help this
man see his mother, possibly for the last time. If not, then a woman was
not in a hospital bed faced with a long and painful recovery. What a
relief to know that!

I choose to live in a world in which a person can reach out in a time of
need and a stranger will be there to do what they need the most. In
recovery, I have been given back that choice, thanks to Ken B.

by Dale W.
Washington, USA

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The naturalist expected that after a while they would catch on to the joke-get tired of their useless march and start off in some new direction. But, not so. Through sheer force of habit, the living, creeping circle kept moving around the rim of the flowerpot-around and around, keeping the same relentless pace for seven days and seven nights-and would doubtless have continued longer had it not been for sheer exhaustion and ultimate starvation.

Incidentally, an ample supply of food was close at hand and plainly visible, but it was outside the range of the circle; so they continued along the beaten path. They were following instinct-habit-custom-tradition- precedent-past experience-”standard practice”-or what ever you may choose to call it; but they were following it blindly.

They mistook activity for accomplishment. They meant well-but they got no place.

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On film in Hollywood I have played many American Indian roles…. the warrior, the medicine man, the chief wearing his double-tailed eagle headdress and smoking the peace pipe. And in a TV spot for the “Keep America Beautiful” Campaign, I was an Indian drifting alone in a canoe. As I saw how our waters were being polluted, a single tear ran down my cheek, telling the whole story. All three versions of my public service “tear” commercial are still playing after 17 years.

But now I have another story to tell, an old legend, with a warning as potent as that tear.

Many years ago, Indian youths would go away in solitude to prepare for manhood. One such youth hiked into a beautiful valley, green with trees, bright with flowers. There he fasted. But on the third day as he looked up at the surrounding mountains, he noticed one tall rugged peak, capped with dazzling snow.

I will test myself against that mountain, he thought. He put on his buffalo shirt, threw his blanket over his shoulders, and set off to climb the peak. When he reached the top he stood on the rim of the world. He could see forever, and his heart swelled with pride. Then he heard a rustle at his feet, and looking down, he saw a snake. Before he could move, the snake spoke. “I am about to die,” said the snake. “It is too cold for me up here and I am freezing. There is no food and I am starving. Put me under your shirt and take me down to the valley.”

“No,” said the youth. “I am forewarned. I know your kind. You are a rattlesnake. If I pick you up you will bite, and your bite will kill me.” “Not so,” said the snake. “I will treat you differently. If you do this for me you will be special. I will not harm you.”

The youth resisted for a while, but this was a very persuasive snake with beautiful markings. At last the youth tucked it into his shirt and carried it down to the valley. There he laid it gently on the grass, where suddenly the snake coiled, rattled and leapt, biting him on the leg.

“But you promised……” cried the youth.

“You knew what I was when you picked me up,” said the snake as it slithered away.

And now, wherever I go, I tell this story. I tell it especially to the young people of this nation who might be tempted by drugs. I want them to remember the words of the snake: You knew what I was when you picked me up.

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[While the Word of Wisdom requires strict obedience, in return it promises health, great treasures of knowledge, and that redemption bought for us by the Lamb of God.] These marvelous young people in this choir are typical of the young people that we meet all over the Church. How we love them. How grateful we are for you, our youth. Nothing is more precious than our children, our youth. And it is to you, our youth, that I speak. Several years ago in Africa I learned how dangerously invisible crocodiles can be. I then warned our youth about unseen spiritual crocodiles lying in wait to destroy them.

Those invisible dangers have greatly increased in number, and now there are many kinds of them.

Some of them are like land mines hidden about in a field you must cross on your way to maturity. Neighborhoods and schools, which once were safe, are no longer secure. Fortunately you have within you a spiritual power much like a mine detector. If you learn how it works, it will warn you of the presence of unseen crocodiles and mines, and you can avoid trouble.

Three years after the organization of the Church, a revelation came which described our day in these prophetic words: “Behold, verily, thus saith the Lord unto you: In consequence of evils and designs which do and will exist in the hearts of conspiring men in the last days, I have warned you, and forewarn you, by giving unto you this word of wisdom by revelation” (D&C 89:4).

The Word of Wisdom put restrictions on members of the Church. To this day those regulations apply to every member and to everyone who seeks to join the Church. They ate so compelling that no one is to be baptized into the Church without first agreeing to live by them. No one will be called to teach or to lead unless they accept them. When you want to go to the temple, you will be asked if you keep the Word of Wisdom. If you do not, you cannot go to the house of the Lord until you are fully worthy.

We know that young people generally don’t like restrictions. Believe it or not, we were young once and we remember. A resistance to anything that limits one’s conduct has almost taken over society. Our whole social order could self-destruct over the obsession with freedom disconnected from responsibility, where choice is imagined to be somehow independent of consequences. Young people, you must understand that there is something of colossal importance to justify the restrictions imposed by the Word of Wisdom!

While the revelation came first as a “greeting; not by commandment or constraint” (D&C 89:2), when members of the Church had had time to be taught the import of the revelation, succeeding Presidents of the Church declared it to be a commandment. And it was accepted by the Church as such.

The Word of Wisdom was “given for a principle with promise” (D&C 89:3). That word principle in the revelation is a very important one. A principle is an enduring truth, a law, a rule you can adopt to guide you in making decisions. Generally principles are not spelled out in detail. That leaves you free to find your way with an enduring truth, a principle, as your anchor.

Members write in asking if this thing or that is against the Word of Wisdom. It’s well known that tea, coffee, liquor, and tobacco are against it. It has not been spelled out in more detail. Rather, we teach the principle together with the promised blessings. There are many habit forming, addictive things that one can drink or chew or inhale or inject which injure both body and spirit which are not mentioned in the revelation.

Everything harmful is not specifically listed; arsenic, for instance-certainly bad, but not habit-forming! He who must be commanded in all things, the Lord said, “is a slothful and not a wise servant” (D&C 58:26).

In some cultures, native drinks are claimed to be harmless because they are not specifically mentioned in the revelation. Yet they draw members, particularly men, away from their families to parties which certainly offend the principle. Promises made in the revelation will be denied to the careless or the reckless.

Obedience to counsel will keep you on the safe side of life. The story is told of a king who was choosing between two drivers for his coach. He ordered each of them to drive his coach down a steep, winding road cut into a high cliff.

The first driver came down slowly, hugging the wall of the cliff. The second driver demonstrated great talent and ability. He raced down the mountain, with the coach so close at times that half the wheel was off the edge of the cliff.

The king was very thoughtful, then wisely chose the first man to drive his coach. It is best to stay on the safe side of things. The Word of Wisdom is “adapted to the capacity of the weak and the weakest of all saints” (D&C 89:3). It is buttressed by other scriptures. They teach that the good things of the earth “are made for the benefit and the use of man,… Yea,” the Lord said, “for food and for raiment, for taste and for smell, to strengthen the body and to enliven the soul …. to be used, with judgment, not to excess, neither by extortion” (D&C 59:18-20).

Young people, learn to use moderation and common sense in matters of health and nutrition, and particularly in medication. Avoid being extreme or fanatical or becoming a faddist.

For example, the Word of Wisdom counsels us to eat meat sparingly (see D&C 89:12). Lest SomeOne become extreme, we are told in another revelation that “whoso forbiddeth to [eat meat] is not ordained of God” (D&C 49:18).

Another scripture counsels, “Cease to be idle; cease to be unclean;… cease to sleep longer than is needful; retire to thy bed early, that ye may not be weary; arise early, that your bodies and your minds may be invigorated” (D&C 88:124).

Honor the principle of the Word of Wisdom and you will receive the promised blessings. “All saints,” the revelation promises, “who remember to keep and do these sayings, walking in obedience to the commandments,” are promised that they “shall receive health in their navel and marrow to their bones” and “shall run and not be weary, and shall walk and not faint” (D&C 89:18, 20).

The Word of Wisdom does not promise you perfect health, but it teaches how to keep the body you were born with in the best condition and your mind alert to delicate spiritual promptings. I remember a blessing I received when I was serving in the military. It included counsel that’s good for every young person: “You have been given a body of such physical proportions and fitness as to enable your spirit to function through it …. You should cherish this as a great heritage. Guard [it] and protect it. Take nothing into it that shall harm the organs thereof because it is sacred. It is the instrument of your mind and ]the] foundation of your character.” That counsel had great influence on me. The promise of health for living the standard of the revelation is not limited to members of the Church. Tell your nonmember friends about the Word of Wisdom and urge them to live it.

And then there is a greater blessing promised in the Word of Wisdom. Those who obey it are promised that they “shall find wisdom and great treasures of knowledge, even hidden treasures” (D&C 89:19). This is the personal revelation through which you can detect invisible crocodiles or hidden mines or other dangers.

When you were confirmed a member of the Church, you had conferred upon you the gift of the Holy Ghost. “Know ye not,” Paul wrote, “that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you … ?” (1 Cor. 6:19).

And the Lord said, “The Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you” (John 14:26).

There’s a final promise in the revelation. Speaking again of those who keep and do and obey these commandments, the Lord said, “I … give unto them a promise, that the destroying angel shall pass by them, as the children of Israel, and not slay them” (D&C 89:21). That is a remarkable promise.

To understand it, we must turn to the time of Moses. The Israelites had been enslaved for 400 years. Moses came as their deliverer. He called forth plagues upon Egypt. The Pharaoh agreed each time to free the Israelites, but each time he reneged on his promise. Finally, “the Lord said unto Moses, Yet will I bring one plague more upon Pharaoh, and upon Egypt; afterwards he will let you go …. All the firstborn in the land of Egypt shall die” (Ex. 11:1, 5).

Moses told the Israelites to “take ú.. a lamb… without blemish, a male of the first year …. Neither shall ye break a bone thereof” (Ex. 12:3, 5, 46; see also John 19:33). They were to prepare the lamb as a feast and “take of the blood, and strike it on the… door post of the houses …. For I will pass through the land of Egypt this night, and will smite all the firstborn in the land…: and when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and the plague shall not be upon you to destroy you …. And this day… ye shall keep … by an ordinance for ever” (Ex. 12:7, 12-14). “When your children shall say unto you, What mean ye by this… ?… ye shall say, It is the sacrifice of the Lord’s passover” (Ex. 12:26-27).

Surely, young people, you see the prophetic symbolism in the Passover. Christ was “the Lamb of God” (John 1:29, 36), the firstborn, male, without blemish. He was slain without breaking his bones, even though the soldiers were sent to do it.

But it is not from mortal death that we shall be spared in such a passover if we walk in obedience to these commandments, for each of us in time shall die. But there is spiritual death which you need not suffer. If you are obedient, that spiritual death will pass over you, for “Christ our passover is sacrificed for us,” the revelation teaches (1 Cor. 5:7).

While the Word of Wisdom requires strict obedience, in return it promises health, great treasures of knowledge, and that redemption bought for us by the Lamb of God, who was slain that we might be redeemed.

The law of sacrifice was fulfilled with the Crucifixion. The Lord instituted the sacrament in its place. That is the ordinance we shall keep forever! Young people, attend your meetings and partake of the sacrament.

Surely the Word of Wisdom was given so that you may keep the delicate, sensitive, spiritual part of your nature on proper alert. Learn to “listen” to your feelings. You will be guided and warned and taught and blessed.

Even though young life is always filled with uncertainties, young people, do not fear the future!

Your young dreams can be realized. All of your worthy, natural. physical and emotional desires can be satisfied. You can find a companion to whom you can offer a body free from addiction, from depressants, from stimulants, and a mind sensitive to spiritual guidance and impressions.

You can be sealed together for time and for all eternity in a marriage covenant and express that love freely, which has as its consummate purpose the begetting of life, of children, of family, of happiness.

If you are one who’s been wandering off course, now is the time to return. You can, you know. Young people, go forward with faith. You’ll be led by the Spirit as was Nephi, “not knowing beforehand the things which [he] should do” (1 Ne. 4:6).

Keep the Word of Wisdom. Seek worthy companions. Attend church faithfully. Never fail daily to seek for help through prayer. And I promise you that the way will be easier and you shall have a composure of mind and a confident attitude toward life and the future. You shall be warned of dangers and shall be guided through the whisperings of the Holy Spirit.

I bear witness that this revelation is a powerful protection to all members of the Church, particularly to you, the youth of the Church, as you face a life full of so many troubles and danger and uncertainties. But young members of the Church, have faith. The Lord will be with you; you will be guided. I bear witness of him and of his sacrifice and of his Atonement and of his love for you, in the name of Jesus Christ, amen. NOTE

1. The context for verse 18 is verse I9: “For, behold, the beasts of the field and the fowls of the air… [are] ordained for the use of man for food.” Section 49 was specifically directed to members of the United Society of Believers in Christ’s Second Appearing (the Shakers) to correct some of their erroneous doctrines. One of their beliefs was not to eat flesh-meat or fish.

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“There is a close relationship between physical health and spiritual development . . . When one’s health is impaired by disobedience to God’s eternal laws, spiritual development will also suffer.” Delbert L. Stapley

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I am grateful that it is never too late to change, to make things right, to leave old activities and habits behind. James E. Faust

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“Your physical body is a magnificent creation of God. It is his Temple as well as yours, and much be treated with reverence.” Russell M. Nelson

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When we obey the Word of Wisdom, windows of personal revelation are opened to us and our souls are filled with divine light and truth. If we keep our bodies undefiled, the Holy Ghost “shall come upon [us] and… dwell in [our] heart[s]” and teach us “the peaceable things of immortal glory.” Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin

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I think our people know a lot about the Word of Wisdom, they know a lot about paying their tithing, they know a lot about MIA, and they know a lot about seminary and they know a lot about the mechanics of our meetings. But I worry and am deeply concerned about whether they are being fed spiritually. That’s my deepest concern. - Gordon B. Hinckley

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“Just this once” has a siren-like lure. It is the forerunner of the phrase “Just once more.” It is the beckoning voice of a false friend that leads us from safety to a false position, first “Just this once,” and then “Just once more.” “Just once more won’t matter.” “Just once more, and then I’ll quit.”

And so we sometimes move from one false step to another, often deluding ourselves into thinking that this is the last time. In some social and personal matters, many of us live somewhat this way. We may know, for example, that we are living our lives at a pace we cannot keep up, but we hate to refuse a friend.

Thus we are led from obligation to obligation, and each time we say “yes,” we tell ourselves that we are saying it “Just this once” and that tomorrow will be better. But tomorrow is seldom better except as we have the backbone to make it better. In matters of eating and appetite, people often go from one indulgence to another, always saying to themselves, “Just this once……Tomorrow I begin to diet.” “Tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow.”

“Just this once” becomes especially serious when people persuade other people that a principle is a matter of frequency rather than a clear- cut matter of right or wrong. It is true that a one time offender is locked upon with more leniency than a frequent offender. But stealing “Just this once,” lying “Just this once,” deceiving “Just this once,” or any other act of immorality urged upon anyone “Just this once” is a dangerous doctrine. “Just this once” is a long step, but “Just once more” is an easier step, and so men often forget their own fetters from link to link.

If it isn’t right, let it alone. Don’t do “Just this once” what shouldn’t be done at all.

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“Young people, stay in condition to respond to inspiration. I have come to know also that a fundamental purpose of the Word of Wisdom has to do with revelation. From the time you are very little we teach you to avoid tea, coffee, liquor, tobacco, narcotics, and anything else that disturbs your health. And you know that we get very worried when we find one of you tampering with those things.

If those “under the influence” can hardly listen to plain talk, how can they respond to spiritual promptings that touch their most delicate feelings? As valuable as the Word of Wisdom is as a law of health, it may be much more valuable to you spiritually than it is physically. Even if you keep the Word of Wisdom, there are some things that can happen to you physically, but those things don’t generally damage you spiritually. When you become a father or a mother, don’t live so that your Children go unled because of habits that leave you uninspired.

The Lord has a way of pouring pure intelligence into our minds to prompt us, to guide us, to teach us, to warn us. You can know the things you need to know instantly. Learn to receive inspiration. Even in our youth activities there is something to do with inspiration, for they include service to others. Inspiration comes more quickly when we need it to help others than when we are concerned about ourselves.

Now, I know that some young people resent it a little when we comment upon such things as the wild music that is served up nowadays. Can you not see that you are not going to get much inspiration while your mind is filled with that? The right kind of music, on the other hand, can prepare you to receive inspiration. You should know also that, in addition to static and interference which jam the circuits, there are counterfeit signals.

Some have received revelations and heard voices that are put there deliberately by wicked sources to lead astray. You can learn to recognize those and tune them out if you will. If ever you are confused and feel that you are being misled, go for counsel to your parents and to your leaders.”

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“Will you walk into my parlor?” said the spider to the fly;
“‘Tis the prettiest little parlor that ever you did spy.
The way into my parlor is up a winding stair,
And I have many pretty things to show when you are there.”
“O no, no,” said the little fly, “to ask me is in vain,
For who goes up your winding stair can ne’er come down again.”
“I’m sure you must be weary, dear, with soaring up so high;
Will you rest upon my little bed?” said the spider to the fly.
“There are pretty curtains drown around, the sheets are fine and thin,
And if you like to rest awhile, I’ll snugly tuck you in.”
“O no, no,” said the little fly, “for I’ve often heart it said,
They never, never wake again, who sleep upon your bed.”
Said the cunning spider to the fly, “Dear friend, what shall I do,
To prove the warm affection I’ve always felt for you?
I have within my pantry good store of all that’s nice;
I’m sure you’re very welcome; will you please to take a slice?’
O no, no,” said the little fly, “kind sire, that cannot be;
I’ve heard what’s in your pantry, and I do not wish to see.”
“Sweet creature!” said the spider, “you’re witty and you’re wise,
How handsome are your gauzy wings, how brilliant are your eye!
I have a little looking-glass upon my parlor shelf,
If you’ll step in one moment, dear, you shall behold yourself.”
I thank you, gentle sir,” she said, “for what you’re pleased to say,
And bidding you good-morning now, I’ll call another day.”
The spider turned him round about, and went in to his den,
For well he knew the silly fly would soon be back again:
So he wove a subtle web, in a little corner sly,
And set his table ready to dine upon the fly.
Then he came out to his door again, and merrily did sing,
“Come hither, hither, pretty fly, with the pearl and silver wing:
Your robes are green and purple; there’s a crest upon your head;
Your eyes are like the diamond bright, but mine are dull as lead.”
Alas, alas? how very soon this silly little fly,
Hearing his wily flattering words, came slowly flitting by.
With buzzing wings she hung aloft, then near and nearer drew,
Thinking only of her brilliant eyes, and green and purple hue;
Thinking only of her crested head — poor foolish thing?
At last,
Up jumped the cunning spider, and fiercely held her fast.
He dragged her up his winding stair, into his dismal den,
Within his little parlor; but she ne’er came out again!
And now, dear little children, who may this so try read,
To idle, silly, flattering words, I pray you ne’er give heed:
Unto an evil counselor close heart, and ear, and eye,
And take a lesson from this tale of the Spider and the Fly.

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