An unfortunate soul on the trek who had to experience losing his shoes
When our family went on the pioneer trek a couple of weeks ago we learned a lot about physical hardships. We gained sympathy for our pioneer ancestors and what a pounding their bodies must have taken.
A few comments were made after the trip that acknowledged the kinds of hardships we face today--not so much physical, but mental, emotional and spiritual. I agree.
When I am at the gym I watch more TV than I ever do in a 90 minute period. It's the only way I can endure the mind-numbingly boring cardio machines. Last night two things caught my attention and then made me feel something that was a combination of nausea and sadness. First, and not surprisingly, was a bit of trash on this woman's show. She had a famous actress describe how she went from being a grocery store clerk to being a playboy model in one day. The actress was so happy to describe in detail her experience--from having to learn to be comfortable while naked in a room full of strangers, to how awesome and easy the money and fame were. The audience was thrilled to be privy to this *funny* and *wacky* and *silly* experience! What could be better than giggling with your girlfriends about the depravity of humanity on the set of OPRAH?? I was so surprised at how accepting and normal the attitude was.
On another channel the talk was about a celebrity couple who are engaged, and whether or not the upcoming marriage will last. After some back and forth, the common consensus was that people should get married, produce a couple of cute kids and then, if it doesn't work out, or you stop being happy, move on to somebody else. Maybe, somebody declared, we just aren't meant to be with one person our whole lives.
What does this have to do with 19th century American immigration waves? I think that someday, when we are all gathered at that great family reunion in the sky, it will be agreed upon that a little heat stroke was easier to deal with in an eternal sense than the moral confusion that we and our children have to navigate. It is much more work, I think, to remember and teach our children today the concepts of divine nature, individual worth, knowledge, choice and accountablity, good works, integrity and virtue than it was 150 years ago.
I still haven't decided which I would rather have--frostbitten toes and a more moral world, or a sweet washer and dryer and air conditioning but endless amounts of trash being portrayed to my family as conventional...
Which would you rather have?
1 comment:
I really am not sure Heather. I have contemplated this one lately, especially as I had to teach a pioneer song in Primary (I think it was titled "If I had been a pioneer")... the interesting thing was that I was supposed to teach a line about how "I would liked to have done all the things that they did" (or something to that effect) :) As I taught the song I wanted to talk about the pioneers hardships so the kids could have a better understanding of what they went through, but then I realized I had to teach them a song that said they wanted to be a pioneer and go through all that they went through! yikes! (yeah, change of teaching plans there...) :) but that could have been an awesome teaching point there, asking them your question...
how do you make that choice? I wonder if we got a choice of the hardships we were going to have to go thru here on earth? Maybe it was a buffet line... I want a little of this, and a bit of that...or maybe we were able to see the blessings that came with each hardship before we chose it... :) ok, really going on and on, you just got me thinking, haha Jenn
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