Born and raised in the hills of West Virginia, my grandma moved to Richmond, Virginia to pursue her dream of being a nurse at the Medical College of Virginia. After graduation she continued to live and work in Richmond through the beginning of WWII when she met a soldier from Utah at a dance. At the end of his training, he was stationed at Fort Leonard Wood in Missouri, she followed and they were married in St. Louis December 5, 1942.
Two and a half years later, with the end of the war in sight and expecting their second child, Grandma traveled by train with their toddler to Salt Lake City, Utah to live with Grandpa’s family until his release from the army. Travel weary she stepped off the train to “the most God-forsaken place” she had ever seen. As a child, I argued with her that our mountains were green and beautiful to which she replied, “Honey you haven’t ever seen green.”
Those words brought a smile to my face this week as I flew into Richmond and drove through the lush green of Virginia. All those years ago when I disagreed with my grandma, I really never had seen the kind of green her eyes had grown accustomed to seeing. More than two and a half centuries ago, when survival depended on what could be grown, my ancestors pushed their way through that green terrain and in a never ending effort, cleared the land to create a place for their families to grow and thrive. In their struggle they turned to God, gained strength and passed that strength to my grandma. That strength allowed her to live cheerfully in the difficulties of her own personal rugged landscapes and bless her posterity.
In the same way, others of my ancestors, in faith, traversed the rugged mountains of Wyoming and Utah and planted and nurtured crops and trees where nothing had ever grown before. When I drive through the canopy of sycamores that line the main street of my town, I see the love and care of generations who planted and nurtured every tree that now grows in the valley. They testified that in so doing they had strength beyond their own and their faith and persistence continue to bless the generations who follow.
“I believe the Savior Jesus Christ would want you to see, feel, and know that He is your strength. That with His help, there are no limits to what you can accomplish. That your potential is limitless. He would want you to see yourself the way He sees you…. You are a daughter or son of the Almighty God. Your Heavenly Father is the most glorious being in the universe, full of love, joy, purity, holiness, light, grace and truth….He gives power to the weary; and to those who feel powerless, He increases strength. They who wait upon the Lord will be renewed by His strength.” (Elder Dieter F. Uchtdorf, October 2022)
Whether the landscape we find ourselves facing is green and lush or barren and forsaken, we can be “renewed by His strength” to endure, cultivate, enjoy and pass to generations to come a legacy of faith and strength.
Beautiful story and message!!❤️
Thank you!
Beautiful story and message!!❤️