Spray on! 

by Shauna Brown 

I love spray paint!   

I continue to be amazed at how quickly a good coat of enamel can take something rusted and worn, and bring it back and make it look new again!  Today the terminolgy used by many in this procedure is called “repurposed, recycling or upcycled.”  Amazingly it can be a realitively quick fix that brings about an incredible and sometimes even dramatic change. You’ve seen it I’m sure, a simple coat of paint can cover, conceal : scratches, remove discoloration, change colors, even give it a new texture and appearance.  Whala!  I usually stand back, admire the work, and give myself a pat on the back for even thinking about “saving it.” 

    ‘Renewing’, upcycling, an old rusty light fixture yesterday has led my imagination to contimplate how wonderful it would be if something so simple as applying, spraying, rubbing, a spray of “renewing” to my soul would be.  The thoughts of an upcycling procedure to my spirit on a daily basis makes me smile.   I mean, personally I am hard on myself. I frequently give myself dings and dents, rusty spots and scratches:  “Why couldn’t you,”  “You should have”  “Come on! “ “You can do better.” “What were you thinking.”, etc.  My  expectations of self can sometimes be difficult and daunting.  

Imagine the Ozone levels, if such a blessed can of spray even existed. Opening a cupboard, and reaching for the can on a shelf would be fantastic! ...or possibly too simple of a process or quick fix for God’s perfection? 

A couple of months ago I came across a thought by Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin that is like a can of renewing spray to my soul.  

           “Perseverance means to continue in a given course until we have reached a goal or objective, regardless of obstacles, opposition, and other counterinfluences...Perseverance is a positive, active characteristic...It gives us hope by helping us realize that the righteous suffer no failure except in giving up and no longer trying.” 

Our Father in Heaven is aware that our lives will be full of bumps, bruising, dings and dents.  We will encounter countless smudges, scars and stains. Yet, gratefully I have learned that my Savior is the master of renewall. He is the ultimate in refreshing, upcycling and mending seemingly useless things.  He clearly knows our value, our worth, for He is our redeemer.  He renews us personally and declares it so, as He clearly focuses on the possibilities within each of us. His touch is perfect. He can mend all things, making them even better. 

“Though we are incomplete, God loves us completely. Though we are imperfect, He loves us perfectly. Though we may feel lost and without compass, God’s love encompasses us completely. ... He loves every one of us, even those who are flawed, rejected, awkward, sorrowful, or broken.”  Pres. Dieter F. Uchtdorf

So, this Sabbath day let’s think about the incredible healing art of the master. Time and time again He is there with grace and peace. Instilling within our matter the reason to matter. 

SPray on! 

Love Always

Shauna 

“You can always,always give something, even if 

it is only kindness!” 

by Shauna Brown 

     Last night,  while my sweetheart and I tended five of our grandchildren, my grandson Reed, informed me: “We need a story now.” Evidently a closing story for the day is one ritual his family holds tightly to.  We had read scriptures, said family prayer, and I thought I had shared a good story, but evidently not good enough.  So,  sitting on Jamison’s bed I told them about Anne Frank.  How she and her family and a few others lived in a secret room above an attic for two years. Anne and her family were Jewish, and Hitler was a evil ruler who wanted  to cleanse the world from Jewish, people.  Her family was forced to go into hiding. 

     Anne had been given a small book for her thirteenth birthday.  She wrote within it’s pages her feelings, fears and moments of hope. It later became known as, The Diary of Anne Frank.  Because of her writings, many people have a better idea of how it must of been for those who were hunted down by Hitler and his Nazis Party.  I  asked the boys to imagine living in their bedroom and never leaving it for years.  The Franks and a few others survived for two years before someone reported them to the Nazis. Despite her limited opportunities and restraints, it seems that Anne appreciated the simple things of life, and counted her blessings. I told my grandsons  how Anne found joy around her. Looking through a window she could see the sky and use her imagination. I’m sure Anne was filled with hopes and dreams for a better future. Anne had shared with her written word her appreciation of life and her outlook of it.  It would have been wonderful if I could have remembered a few of her thoughts.

“As long as this exists, this sunshine and this cloudless sky, and

as long as I can enjoy it, how can I be sad?” Anne Frank

Then I asked my little boys what they were grateful for.  We talked about our blessings and how grateful we are for that which we sometimes take for granted.  We talked about our eyes and Helen Keller, or fingers and legs that let us walk. I told of Nick Vujicic ,who lives without arms or legs and yet appreciates his life.

Oh, I am grateful that a young girl of thirteen wrote within her little journal.  She always dreamed of being a writer someday. Without knowing she was, and lives on.  

“How noble and good everyone could be if, every evening before falling asleep, they were to recall to their minds the events of the whole day and consider exactly what has been good and bad. Then without realizing it, you try to improve yourself at the start of each new day.” 

“How lovely to think that no one need wait a moment, we can start now, start slowly changing the world! How lovely that everyone, great and small, can make their contribution toward introducing justice straightaway... And you can always, always give something, even if it is only kindness!” 

     So this Sabbath day might we all look around us and imagine how we can improve ourselves and become all that we are meant to become.  

I hope some day I can meet the girl call Anne Frank, for she has made such a marked difference within my soul.  I believe that God planted within her heart the will to live, and share eternal purpose. I am thankful that I know Anne lives on. 

Love always,

Shauna 

                                          Take Note

by Shauna Brown 

          I can’t remember when I started, but I have  carried a notebook or journal with me  for years.  

I probably have a hundred of them. Whenever I attend church, firesides, seminars, etc. Taking notes helps me concentrate on the meeting. Allowing me to listen and hope for a great idea or motivating thought.  I know some people have order in their journals, dates and times, but in looking within mine, one will find notes, sketchings, doodling, random thoughts, key words or phrases that might not make sense to anyone. To be honest even after a few months they might seem strange to me.  Anyway, I continue to take notes.  One never knows what stories, or some incredible book might be triggered from something scribbled on a page. I write in hopes of remembering a moment valued.     Let me give you an example of one of my jottings:   

        Today the bread used for the sacrament was forgotten. 

        Miscommunication. 

        Waiting for it to arrive. 

        Music plays on.  

        Red faced young man enters  

        Music plays on, as bread is quickly broken in to pieces. 

        Extra time for thoughts to focus upon Christ. 

        Remembrance. 

        Imagine. 

        The young man will never forget the bread again. 

        But do we?  

        Do we think about Christ enough?  

        The loaf of bread left on the kitchen counter- 

        Forgotten. 

        Do we willingly partake of His love? 

        He never forgets us. 

        Perhaps the note speaks to my heart alone. Yet, even in the recalling of the moment I can feel and relive the moment.  Gratefully it is renewing to my soul.  

        How about this one: 

                                My little Granddaughter Paige,is an artist. To the dismay of her parents she is leaving her two year old signature on many surfaces throughout the house.  Many walls have had to be scrubbed. Even, Mr. Clean Super Eraser has been employed in their house. Anything that is stationary for more than thirty seconds has received of her artistic touch. Couches, chairs, tables, and doors.  Listening to Brittany (my daughter ) describe her frustration in this matter, brings an instant remembrance for why I wrote a song.   “Crayon marks will disappear.”   

         

        Life is filled with random jottings and colored markers moments.  

        Each of us has an empty page to fill each day. Let’s write down that thought provoking idea, look for those ‘aha’ moments. Doodle a bit, perhaps even take a bright orange marker and draw a sunflower. Maybe today I will use crayons and draw a rainbow as I remember it--  just because I can.   I love remembering, but I love living!  

        Albert Einstein shared:  

        “There are only two ways to live your life.  One is as though nothing is a 

miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle.”  

        So this Sabbath - let’s look for the miracles. 

        Love Always, 

        Shauna