What being an ally this week has taught me:

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Last week, after I spoke on a panel at Sunstone, I greeted a woman who had been in the audience of my session. As soon as I looked at her I knew we had met before and I knew I knew her well. I couldn’t remember how but I knew I had fond feelings for this woman as she hugged me tightly.

“I know you,” I said to her. [Read more…]

Excerpts from a talk I gave yesterday in my ward in the Tree Streets of Provo, Utah. To be honest, I wrote it an hour before I gave it, so the roughness of it is on me and my profound ability to procrastinate.

I am grateful for the opportunity to speak today on a subject that I can stand before you with a witness and a testimony of truth that rings in the deepest parts of my soul: earth stewardship. I am also grateful for the opportunity to stand and ask for forgiveness in my confession that I am not a perfect steward of the earth that we all occupy. I am not even great steward. Most of the time I am, at best, aware. I am aware I can do better to resist convenience for consecration and resolve to be a part of the solution instead of the complication. For this I ask for your forgiveness. [Read more…]

Dear President Oscarson,

I like you President Oscarson. I like your wit and your humility. I know I’m not a young woman anymore but I feel like you’re my leader. I feel comfortable with you. I want to support all the women leaders in our church. In fact, I look at you like a Helaman and here we are your daughters ready to fight for what you deem worthy. Maybe that’s going a bit far. But you know, we’re Mormon and we like to draw dramatic parallels. Anyway, I bring that up because the other night you asked us to do three things: defend marriage between a man and woman, elevate divine roles of mothers and fathers and stand and defend the sanctity of the home. You also asked us to boldly defend the proclamation. [Read more…]

Some say women can have it all. Some say they cannot. I never really understood the debate until today. [Read more…]

On a cold and sunny morning last month I met with my fellow sisters in the cultural hall to start preparing for Sister Rodgers funeral. The night before a storm of service volunteers had rolled out and set up more than a dozen round tables and stuffed them with chairs. Our job was to dress the tables, set them and top them with fresh flowers. [Read more…]

The very first thing we talked about in our newly formed Relief Society Presidency meeting one year ago was this: how should we celebrate birthdays? A card? A candy bar? What should we do? What should we do? A card in the mail? Sing happy birthday just before the lesson on Sunday? A cookie? No, a candy bar. Oh, no, how about a card in the mail with a lovely stamp on it? What should we do?

Now, this was my first foray in being a part of a Relief Society Presidency, so what did I know right? But I was pretty sure accepting the call to be the second counselor didn’t require me to make sure everyone got a candy bar on their birthday. That’s not what the bishop explained to me. So I sat in my chair silently huffing about how long the discussion was carrying on. [Read more…]