The Value of a Mother

                I was in my first area while on my mission in El Salvador. We were lucky to have a family make us lunch most of the days. I grew to love the family over the 7 months that I was in the area. One of my main goals while in the area was to help this family grow closer together. They weren't accustomed to being active in the church and with their kids starting their teenage years the idea of establishing a gospel related habit was much harder.

                We held several family home evenings with the family in an effort to help them into full activity to the church. On one particular evening we were teaching a lesson to them and as my companion was speaking I couldn’t help but think what else we could do to help them. I felt as if we had taught them everything but kept yielding the same results. I started to day dream I felt as I kept thinking about this and I was took back to my home. Growing up my Dad always left for work before any of us were awake. My Mom made an honest effort to make sure we read the scriptures before going to school. I can still hear her yelling promptly at 7:20 AM each day “its 7:20, time to read!” Without fail she would make sure we were all there to read no matter the circumstances. It took a lot of faith by her to keep it up considering most of the time we came unwillingly. I know several days when she would call on one of us to read and someone would be asleep or completely unaware of our location in the reading. I’m sure it was disappointing most of the time to her, after all the effort she went to. I knew then that it was good to read each day, but didn't ever understand how much good it really did for us until now. I was thankful for her diligence.

                It wasn’t until I “came back” to that room in El Salvador that I realized the impact of reading the scriptures had on our family. I knew then that it was because of my Moms conviction to reading the scriptures that we all stayed closely knit. Once I realized this I couldn’t help but interrupt my companion and share the idea with this family. They started implementing daily scripture study as we visited each day for lunch and it wasn’t more than a few weeks before they started coming back to church as a family and participating as if they never stopped coming. It was gratifying to know that we were able to help them, but even more so to know that my Mom knew the importance of this before it was too late for us.

                Furthermore, to see my wife and mother of my child doing the same thing even though he can’t understand means the world to me. I am lucky to have a Mother that cherishes the gospel and knows the importance of it and even more so to have a wife that knows the same.

                There is strength in the family unit, and the women in our lives are pure blessings from our Heavenly Father. I love you Mom!