"Come What May, and Love It"

I was so sad to hear that cute, wonderful Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin passed away today. I love all of the General Authorities, but I must admit that Elder Wirthlin was my favorite. He has always given my favorite talks, and he was always so cute and funny. It makes me very sad to think that we won't get to hear him speak again, but at least he lived a good, long life, and now he can be with his sweet wife.

Elder Wirthlin's last conference talk, entitled, "Come What May, and Love It," offers a wonderful message of hope and encouragement in the midst of troubling times. Here are some of my favorite quotes from this talk:

"In spite of discouragement and adversity, those who are happiest seem to have a way of learning from difficult times, becoming stronger, wiser, and happier as a result."

"The way we react to adversity can be a major factor in how happy and successful we can be in life."

"If we approach adversities wisely, our hardest times can be times of greatest growth, which in turn can lead toward times of greatest happiness."

I especially like that last quote. Of course times of adversity are not happy, but if we handle the adversity with the right attitude, our adversity can lead to great happiness. What a wonderful truth to keep in mind when things get hard! Elder Wirthlin quoted his mother's advice to him after he lost a football game: "Come what may, and love it." Don't be discouraged; don't be disheartened; just keep plugging along and enjoy the journey. I have realized the truth that if you look for things to be happy about, even when times are difficult, you will be happy. I think that is how Elder Wirthlin lived his life. He always seemed happy.

My favorite talk of all time was given by Elder Wirthlin in the October 2001 General Conference. Some of the things he said in his message called, "One Step After Another," seem especially appropriate to remember today. He said: "Our time here is so precious and so short. . . . All too soon our time is finished. While we can--while we have the time to complete our work--let us walk in the right direction, taking one step after another. That is easy enough. We don't have to be perfect today. We don't have to be better than someone else. All we have to do is the very best we can." Elder Wirthlin completed his work--a great work--here on the earth. He will be greatly missed and forever appreciated.

Another bit of sad news is that Sunday was the black day when the state historic sites officially shut down and the employee layoffs were made absolutely official. Springfield is mourning the closure of the Dana-Thomas House, a Frank Lloyd Wright masterpiece built in 1902. Volunteer workers gave the last tour on Sunday afternoon, and from what I hear, it was a sad occasion and many tears were shed as people walked through the house for the last time. Even USA Today reported about the Illinois travesty. You can see the article by clicking here. Christmas at the Dana-Thomas House has always been a big event around here every December, but the house will be dark this year.

Other than sadness at the passing of Elder Wirthlin and the IHPA troubles, things have been going well here. I am now officially a resident of Athens, Illinois--because today I got a library card! Athens actually has a wonderful public library, which is kind of surprising because it is such a small town. But it gets even better--I am going to be on the Athens Public Library Board! :-) I have never done anything like that anywhere I have lived, so it should be kind of fun.

Little Tiger Lily gets cuter and cuter every day! She is so cuddly and adorable. Her new favorite thing to do is to jump into our clothes hamper in our room, curl up, and go to sleep. She really wants to be friends with the Spikes, but they seem to be quite offended at her cuteness. She's not going to get any less cute though, so the dogs are just going to have to learn to deal with it :-)