Ginny

Ginny is turning 8 years old in less than six months. She's been on my mind a lot lately, in terms of how well we are preparing her for her baptism. She is really excited about it, of course, but I wonder sometimes how much I am preparing her to make and keep the first of her sacred covenants.

She and I have been in a rough patch since about when she hit the toddler stage. We have good days, and bad, but I've always felt like it's harder to show love to Ginny than it is with the boys. Some days I don't feel as though we connect well, and it troubles me. The boys are both "touchers", and theylove to hug and cuddle and squeeze and show and feel love in that way. Not so with Ginny, so it's been more of a challenge for me to find ways that express love to her. More often than not, we clash over cleaning and homework and all of the mundane parts of life. Plus, we are both control freaks! I really want to change that so that our experiences together are more positive.

Tonight, Erik had late meetings at the church. As we often do when Erik is out of town or getting home late on a Friday, we decided to have movie night. I took the kids to Redbox, and they picked out Kubo and the Two Strings. (In retrospect, I think it was perhaps a bit too scary for Isaac, but luckily he fell asleep before the scarier bits at the end.) At the end of the movie, there is a scene where Kubo is talking to his deceased parents, and the scene made Ginny cry. Ezra said it also made him feel sad, even if he didn't cry.

There is a point to this story, I promise.

Because after we got teeth brushed, we started reading our scriptures. We read some of the prophecies of Samuel the Lamanite. Samuel testifies of Christ, and promises that through Him, we can all return to our Father in Heaven. I told the kids that if they were still feeling sad about Kubo and his parents, they could think about these scriptures. Even though Kubo is just a fictional story, it's very much true that Christ made it possible for all of God's children to live together again with their families. When someone dies, we don't have to feel quite so sad because we know we will see them again. We talked about some of our loved ones who have passed away, and I told the kids how happy it makes me to know that I will see them and be with them again if I keep my covenants and have faith in Christ.

Ginny then asked me, "Mommy, how do you know that it's true? How do you know it's not just a story?" I replied "Because the Holy Ghost has testified to me that it is true, and I feel it in my heart." I continued to tell her that when she gets baptized, she will receive the Gift of the Holy Ghost, and he will be there to comfort her, guide her, warn her, and testify to her when she hears or sees or reads something that is true. I said "Ginny, even though you haven't received the gift of the Holy Ghost yet, he can still come to you and testify to you if something is true. You will be able to feel it in your heart."

Ginny looked at me and said "Mommy, I think it's happening right now."

I can't tell you how grateful I am for this moment. Scripture time, prayer time, and family night in our home are usually very loud, noisy, and often contentious affairs. But tonight all was quiet. The boys were quiet. Ginny was quiet. And instead of being frustrated, angry, or in a big hurry, I was also quiet. I am so grateful for the opportunity that came up for me to share my testimony with Ginny, and I am incredibly grateful that the spirit was there to testify to her of the truth that she was hearing.

I hope we can have more quiet moments like this in our home. I am so glad Ginny is growing and learning, and gaining a testimony so that when she is baptized, she will be ready. I love her, and I am glad she is my daughter.

(Ginny, after completing her very first row of crochet!)