Georgia On My Mind

This past week, I had the amazing opportunity of spending Thanksgiving with my sister Stephanie and my brother-in-law John.  While I was there, they kindly showed me around Georgia.  I though I might depart from my usual fair, and just give a short synopsis of my trip and share a few pictures that Steph was kind enough to take.

On Wednesday I got into Atlanta where Steph came to pick me up.  It was so good to see her and John.  It was the first time that I had seen Steph since my brother Rob's wedding in June, and it was the first time I had seen John since he came to Dallas on a short business trip about a month ago.  There is always something unique that happens when you see a family member that you haven't seen for a long time.  It's a really special feeling.  Not to be morbid, but my guess is that it is similar to the feeling that our departed loved ones have when they step through the veil at the end of mortality and find family and friends there to greet them and welcome them back.  It is always a pain to be away from family and friends, but that time of separation makes those reunions so much more wonderful!  

On Thursday Steph and John showed me around some of the beautiful neighborhoods of Peachtree City, Georgia before we enjoyed a wonderful Thanksgiving dinner together.  The homes out there are incredibly beautiful and have a classic look to them that we don't always get elsewhere.  After dinner, we Skyped with the family in Utah, which was a lot of fun.  There was a little bit of a delay, but it was great to be able to see our family in Utah and to be connected for Thanksgiving.  I've often thought that miracles like Skype are part of what Moroni had in mind when he chastized us for believing that the day of miracles was past.  We are the beneficiaries of so many of God's miracles, but we often times foolishly think that we are solely responsible for them.  

On Friday Steph and I went drove up to the Chicamauga Battlefield, near Chattanooga, Tennessee, while John had to work.  It's a beautiful battlefield up in the hills and mountains of northern Georgia.  The area is so peaceful and quiet, that it is difficult to imagine such a horrific event having taken place there.  Sometimes it is easy for me to forget that the peace and comfort that I now enjoy came at a great personal cost to those who came before me.  Places like this serve as a good reminder.

Steph at Chicamauga Battlefield

Me at Chicamauga Battlefield

A view of part of the Chicamauga Battlefield

Another one of me at Chicamauga

A monument (probably for some division from Indiana) at Chicamauga

On Saturday, Steph and John and I went down to Fort Benning, Georgia, to visit the National Infantry Museum.  Much like the visit to Chicamauga, this was a sobering experience.  The museum is an impressive display of artifacts and other items detailing the role of the infantry in American history.  Having had a hand in a public history exhibit, I know a little about how much work goes into creating an exhibition.  So I was surprised when I saw just how large and extensive the exhibition at the museum was.  I would not be surprised if it had taken more than a decade to plan, research, and create this amazing exhibit.  It was a fitting and sobering tribute to those who have given their lives for the country.  I was particularly moved by a small exhibit in the middle of the museum with the names and pictures of the Medal of Honor recipients throughout American history.  With the exception of the Civil War, my history interests have generally led me to study other areas of American history, but I was moved with gratitude as I contemplated the sacrifices and efforts of our military in my behalf.  I was particularly grateful to be there with John, who as a major in the Army knew a lot more of the history about the country's wars than I could ever hope to know.  It was wonderful to have him there to explain things to me, as well as to be a living reminder of the hundreds of thousands of men and women who daily serve this country in the armed forces.

Me at the National Infantry Museum in Fort Benning, Georgia

"Follow Me" Statue outside the National Infantry Museum

And, as Friday marked the beginning of the Christmas season, I had a wonderful little chat with one of Santa's reindeer:

All in all, it was a wonderful trip, and reminded me of the many things I have to be grateful for.  First and foremost, I am thankful for the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ.  I cannot even contemplate life without it.  I am grateful for my family.  They are a constant source of strength and motivation in my life.  I am grateful for my friends.  Life in Texas has been made easier because of your many kindnesses and notes and texts of encouragement.  And I am grateful for this country.  It isn't perfect, and we have many areas where we can learn from others and improve, but I thank my Heavenly Father that I am from a land that has provided me with more freedoms and opportunities than I could possibly imagine.  Happy Thanksgiving to you all!

Brett

"No Less Serviceable"

President Smith on a train with his daughters, son-in-law,
my grandfather (the younger man) and I'm not sure who the young woman is

This past week I had a new experience.  As the Ward Clerk it was my job to put in the curriculum order for the upcoming year.  Much to my delight, I was reminded of the fact that this coming year we will be studying the teachings of President George Albert Smith.  I grew up listening to my Grandfather and my Mother tell stories about President Smith's kindness and Christian goodness.  So  have a great love for this great Prophet.

President Smith at the Primary Children's Hospital Construction Site with
my Aunts Marilyn and Judy, and with my Mother (the youngest one)

Admittedly there are likely a large number of Church members whose first reaction to my excitement about the new manual would be to ask the question "Who?" or to admit that the extent of their knowledge of President Smith is limited to the Latter-day Prophets song from Primary (the one that seems to get more and more mumbled as we try to squeeze each new Prophet's name in at the end of the song).  Most members of the Church couldn't name a single contribution that he made, or discuss any events that happened during his six years as President of the Church.  But it is exactly this reaction and lack of understanding that makes me excited about the fact that we will be studying a little bit about President Smith.

At times as members of the Church, I think that we all pick our favorites among the Brethren.  It's only natural.  We are drawn to specific speaking styles.  We are bonded to leaders because of certain key events in our lives.  "This President of the Church called me on a mission," or "That man was President of the Church when I first gained a testimony," and so on down the list.  What's more, the events of certain presidencies are sometimes just more memorable than the events of other presidencies.  President McKay began to make this a worldwide Church.  President Kimball changed the missionary program forever.  President Hinckley left his indelible mark upon Temple building (and everything else in this Church).  And so these men deservingly vault their way to the top of our lists of great leaders whom we admire.

But then there are some Presidents who, because of a quiet demeanor or a short administration, do not always come to mind when we discuss the great Prophets.  Yet they nevertheless deserve to be studied and included in these discussions.

Mormon understood this principle.  The famous war chapters of Alma (Alma 43-63) justly place a great deal of emphasis upon Captain Moroni.  It is clear that Mormon had a tremendous love for Captain Moroni; so much so that he appears to have named his son after him.  As a military leader, Mormon was impressed with Moroni's courage and strategic decisions.  And as a disciple, Mormon was awed by Moroni's testimony and devotion.  Reading those chapters, you get the sense that Mormon, the Prophet-Historian could have written volumes about the great Captain Moroni.  But Captain Moroni wasn't the only leader who served faithfully during that time.  Writing of Helaman and his brothers, Mormon gave this short tribute, "Now behold, Helaman and his brethren were no less serviceable unto the people than was Moroni; for they did preach the word of God, and they did baptize unto repentance all men whosoever would hearken unto their words" (Alma 48:19).

Throughout the history of this Church, we have been blessed with wonderful leaders.  Some will provide materials and inspiration for countless volumes of history and for thousands of fond memories.  Others may receive only the smallest mention in the annals of the Church.  But each held and preserved the keys in worthiness, leading and guiding the Church by the spirit of Revelation, contributions which "were no less serviceable" than some of their more well-known companions.

I am grateful for this concept, because it reminds me that each of us, no matter what our calling or duty within God's Kingdom are serviceable and worthy contributors to His cause.  What President Hinckley said in during his first conference as President of the Church remains profoundly true today:  "Your obligation is as serious in your sphere of responsibility as is my obligation in my sphere. No calling in this church is small or of little consequence."

In the end, I believe that quiet devotion to the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ will stand out as the greatest and most lasting contribution that any of us will have been privileged to make.  May we be worthy and willing to make that contribution!

Brett

A Marvelous Work and a Wonder

Manuscript page of the Book of Mormon

Ever since I began graduate school in 2007, I have thought a lot about the Book of Mormon.  Most importantly, the Book of Mormon has been my lifeline in graduate school.  I have learned just how wise President Marion G. Romney was when he said that daily study out of the Book of Mormon had kept him close to the Church.  Whenever the theories and ideas of graduate school have started to become too influential in my life, the words of the Lord in the Book of Mormon have been there to bring me back down to earth and back to the pure and simple truths of the Gospel.

But there has been another reason I have thought a lot about the Book of Mormon.  Perhaps it is just the writer in me, but during these past several years I have lived in constant awe of the accomplishment that the Book of Mormon represents.  It is a book of rich stories that appeal to the smallest children and captivate the most educated adults.  It is a book that never grows old, never gets worn out, and is constantly relevant.  Most of those who truly read it are not satisfied with a single reading of the book.  Millions of people finish the Book of Mormon one day, only to start reading from the very beginning again the very next day.  All this from a book that was (for the most part) translated in a little under three months, with Joseph translating on average nine to eleven pages per day.

As someone who aspires to become an author and who spends a good amount of his time writing papers, I can't help but be amazed when I consider the Book of Mormon.  I consider myself to be a fairly competent writer.  I have been blessed to have the guidance of several wonderful professors and mentors who have forced me to hone my writing skills.  But after all of this training and years of trying to craft sentences to be just right, I am certain that I have never written anything of any length that any person has ever wanted to more than one or two times, let alone time after time.

Further, I stand in awe of the whole process by which it came forth.  As someone who, on the best of writing days, can produce little more than seven readable pages of material, I am amazed by the fact that during the translation process, Joseph averaged between nine and eleven pages per day!  It took me two years to complete my thesis which turned out to be close to 240 double-spaced pages.  The Prophet translated the majority of the Book of Mormon's more than 500 pages in less than three months.  What's more, D&C 9 makes it clear that this translation was more involved than simply reading words off of the Urim and Thummim.   We don't know exactly how the translation process worked, but as Oliver learned, it was anything but a simple reading exercise.  This was a process that required great mental and spiritual exertion, and Joseph still averaged nine to eleven pages per day.

1830 Edition of the Book of Mormon

Intellectual arguments for gospel truths will always fall short of convincing those who do not wish to be convinced.  And they certainly have neither the power nor the ability to provide souls with a witness and a testimony of the Book of Mormon.  No doubt some who are better writers than myself may not be as impressed by the things that I have mentioned here.  But I nevertheless stand in awe of the "marvelous work and a wonder" that is the Book of Mormon.  After a daily study of its pages for close to fifteen consecutive years, I find myself more impressed and more enlightened by this divine record every single day.  Further, I find myself more impressed with and inspired by its prophetic translator.  Above all else, I have found within its pages, a sure witness of the divinity of Jesus Christ, the Savior of the World.  Surely this book came forth "by the gift and power of God," just as Moroni declared on the Title Page of the Book of Mormon.

Brett D. Dowdle

Your Goodly Land

I am constantly amazed by the rich meaning contained within the story of Lehi's family in First Nephi.  While there is much to glean from these chapters (much more than I have yet to see within them), one of my favorite lessons from First Nephi is a lesson about promised lands.

When the Lord first told Lehi to take his family and leave Jerusalem, it was a revelation in the name of self-preservation.  From what we know about this revelation, the Lord said nothing to Lehi about a promised land.  Indeed, for some of the members of this scripturally literate family (beyond just Laman and Lemuel) it must have seemed like they were being driven from the promised land, this land flowing with milk and honey that had been promised to the children of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.  The message was a clear and distinct warning that Lehi and his family were in danger and needed to flee for their lives.  What's more, the message seems to have come only to Lehi.  But Lehi and his family were obedient to this revelation and left their home and their considerable wealth to go out into the unforgiving deserts and wildernesses of the Arabian Peninsula.

Only when Nephi began praying for a private witness of his father's life-changing revelation, did the Lord begin to reassure the family that there was yet another promised land in their future.  The Lord told Nephi, "And inasmuch as ye shall keep my commandments, ye shall prosper, and shall be led to a land of promise; yea, even a land which I have prepared for you; yea, a land which is choice above all other lands" (1 Nephi 2:20)

For a time, the family called a small valley next to a river feeding into the Red Sea their home.  Though this location did not resemble any of the comforts of the family's Jerusalem homestead, this was a place of revelation and growth.  But as soon as they done everything that was required of them there, the Lord provided them with the Liahona and with the message that it was time to move forward.  So forward they went, through places of lush fruit and through locations of barren wasteland.  Indeed, at least one portion of their journey seems to have taken the family through a region now known as the Empty Quarter: a location that is wonderful if you are an oil person, but more or less worthless to the rest of humanity.  In this journey the family endured starvation, death, and more than a little bit of familial strife.  But soon enough, they had arrived at a location that Lehi and his family could only describe as "Bountiful."

After a short rest period in Bountiful, the Lord once again told the family that it was time to move forward, this time across two oceans rather than an unforgiving desert.  At the end of that dangerous journey, they arrived in the promised land, finding it to be everything that the Lord had promised.

I believe that this is exactly how the Lord deals with us and leads us to our own promised lands.  Often times, we do not know exactly what promised land we are being led to.  Lehi's family had never been to the Americas.  They had only caught brief glimpses of it in visions.  Other than that, they had to trust in the Lord's promise that it was indeed a land filled with hopes and promises for them.  And so they trusted in the Lord.

On their journey to that promised land, there were many points where those who had not caught the same vision became upset and wanted to turn back, to return to a place that they had known and been comfortable with.  In some ways I don't blame them for these feelings.  Indeed, I am almost certain that I would have spent a lot of days wanting to go back to Jerusalem with them.  And that is why I admire Lehi and Nephi so much.  In spite of all of the challenges, they went forward.  And when they came to a land Bountiful, they didn't stay there.  As tempting as it must have been, they didn't decide that their little oasis in the desert was the promised land that God had spoken of.  They knew that it was just a resting place provided by a loving Father, where they could prepare for the next leg of their journey.  And so, after resting for awhile, they built a boat and kept moving and pushing forward until the Lord told them they had arrived in the promised location and could stop.  And when they got there, they recognized it as their promised land, in spite of the fact that it was so very different from the Jerusalem that they loved.

I love this quotation by Elder Jeffrey R. Holland, given at BYU in 1998.  "God's grace is sufficient!  The Lord would tell Joseph again and again through those early difficult days that, just as in the days of old, these modern children of Israel would 'be led out of bondage by power and with a stretched-out arm....Therefore let not your hearts faint...:Mine angels shall go up before you...and also my presence, and in time ye shall possess the goodly land' (D&C 103:17-20).  What goodly land?  Your goodly land.  Your promised land.  Your own little acre flowing with milk and honey.  Your future.  Your dreams.  Your destiny.  I believe that in our own individual ways, God takes us to the grove or the mountain or the temple and there shows us the wonder of what his plan is for us.  We may not see it as fully as Moses or Nephi or the brother of Jared did, but we see as much as we need to see in order to know the Lord's will for us and to know that he loves us beyond mortal comprehension."

I thank the Lord for just such occasional glimpses and visions of the promised land that He has prepared for me.  I pray that I might be able to journey towards it with the same faith that moved Lehi and Nephi toward their promised land.  In the end, we all hope for, have faith in, and move towards the same "better world, yea, even a place at the right hand of God" (Ether 12:4) where we will "sit down with Abraham, and Isaac, and with Jacob, and with all our holy fathers, to go no more out" (Helaman 3:30).

Brett

"How Sweet the Voice of a Friend Is"

(Greg Olsen, "Peace Be Unto Thy Soul," 1990)

These past two weeks have been quite eventful for me.  A week and a half ago, my brother-in-law John came into town on military business and generously took me to dinner the night before returning to Georgia.  Then this past Wednesday, my parents came into town to see me.  My dad and I went to the BYU football game, which despite the unfavorable results of the game, was a wonderful experience.  At the game, I was able to briefly visit with my friend Marianne Swenson, who had come into town for the game.  Needless to say, after two months of being away from my family and many of my friends, it was wonderful to have an opportunity to see some friendly faces and enjoy a few precious moments with family and friends.

Thinking about how wonderful these experiences have been reminded me of something that the Prophet Joseph wrote while in Liberty Jail.  It was a part of a long letter  to the Saints in Quincy, Illinois.  Portions of this famous letter later became D&C 121, 122, and 123.  It was in this letter that Joseph penned that heartfelt cry, "O God, where art thou?" (D&C 121:1)  In one of the uncanonized portions of this letter, the Prophet described receiving letters from several members of the Church.  He then wrote these beautiful lines:

"We had been a long time without information; and when we read those letters they were to our souls as the gentle air is refreshing....And we need not say to you that the floodgates of our hearts were lifted and our eyes were a fountain of tears, but those who have not been enclosed in the walls of prison without cause or provocation, can have but little idea how sweet the voice of a friend is."  (Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, 134).

While I would not want to suggest that I even remotely understand, much less have experienced, the circumstances that prompted those lines from the Prophet, I believe we can apply their meaning to our own, less profound, trials.  Life has its own individualized "prisons" for each one of us.  These "prisons" seldom if ever equate to the despicable circumstances of the poorly named Liberty Jail, but they can be just as dark and limiting in their effects upon our lives.  Whatever the nature of our trials, I believe that all of us have, at one point or another, felt discouraged and we have wondered whether we can go on.

Often times, these "prisons" may not even be visible to those around us.  I remember being surprised when my saintly Mission President once told us missionaries that after a long day of helping and uplifting us in our various problems, he had wondered who was there to help and uplift him.  Of course the answer immediately came to him.  But I remember being surprised because he was the kind of man who I just believed could and did handle everything that could be thrown at him with relative ease.  His demeanor was always so positive, that I had never considered the fact that the life of a mission president was chalk full of its own share of problems (mostly in the form of 19-22 year olds like myself).

In such moments, when we feel that we have the weight of the world resting down upon our shoulders, we too declare, "How sweet the voice of a friend is!"  The comforting and reassuring voices of family and friends truly is like "the gentle air refreshing," allowing us to take a deep breath and then realize that we can continue to endure trials and difficulties for the small moment that we are asked to bear with them.  More than that, it can cause us to remember that we too have an obligation to be "the voice of a friend" to those around us, even those whose struggles may not appear on the surface.

I thank our Father for the numerous voices of friends that he has sent to comfort me throughout various times in my life.  It would be impossible for me to enumerate the times that friends and family have been prompted to say the right words, do the right things, and, in general, just to be there when I found myself in need.  My hope is that I have likewise been attentive enough to the Spirit to be the voice of a friend to others when they have needed me.  Thank you to all of you who have done this so many times for me.

Brett

New Biography of Parley P. Pratt

If you are looking for an interesting book to read, check out this preview of Parley P. Pratt:  The Apostle Paul of Mormonism by Terryl Givens and Matt Grow.  By the way, check out the Acknowledgments page.  It was nice of Terryl and Matt to include me.  I only did a small amount of research and source checking, but I'll accept their kind acknowledgment of my limited contribution anyway.  :)

Life's Training Grounds

(D. Arthur and Maurine Haycock, at a White House Reception, 1954)

Since coming to Fort Worth, I've been thinking a lot about the meaning of life experiences, and the value of having experiences that stretch us.  I've really enjoyed my time here so far, but it has certainly been a challenge.  By its very nature a PhD program makes you feel inadequate.  Somewhere in the midst of reading 2-3 books per week, writing book reviews of those books, and using your "spare" time to do research to write papers and get published, and then trying to fulfill callings and have a social life (as a single), you start to wonder about your general level of sanity.  (And you start writing horrible run-on sentences).  No matter what the nature of our challenges in life, there is a temptation to begin wondering if you are in the right place.  Perhaps most dangerously, there is what Elder Holland once called, "the temptation to retreat from a good thing."

All of this brings me to Washington D.C. and the U.S. Department of Agriculture during 1953 and 1954.  Hopefully those who aren't members of my family will indulge me a little bit of family history.  I promise it will have a point.

To get to 1953, I need to write a short background.  As a young missionary in Hawaii in 1935, my grandfather, D. Arthur Haycock, was privileged to be present for the visit of President Heber J. Grant to the islands.  President Grant had come to organize the Hawaii Stake, the first stake to be organized outside of North America.  During President Grant's visit, my grandfather had occasion to see the work of President Grant's able secretary, Brother Joseph Anderson.  Upon seeing Brother Anderson's contributions, my grandfather determined that when he returned from Hawaii, he wanted to work for the Church like Brother Anderson.  To make a long story short, after returning from his mission, my grandfather eventually managed to secure one of the coveted secretarial positions at the Church offices. In 1947, after nearly ten years of working for the Church (minus some time at the Denver and Rio Grande during the war), President George Albert Smith hired my grandfather as his private secretary. And so from 1947 until President Smith's death in 1951, my grandfather's dream came true.  He had the position that he had always hoped for and loved every minute of it.

With President Smith's death, however, that dream job came to an end.  President McKay already had a very able secretary in Sister Claire Middlemiss, who stayed on with him and served faithfully throughout President McKay's presidency.  In 1952 when Dwight D. Eisenhower asked Elder Benson to accept the position of Secretary of Agriculture, Elder Benson asked my grandfather to move to Washington D.C. and accept a position as his secretary.  After counseling with President McKay and with my grandmother, my grandpa accepted the position and moved to Washington D.C.

While an executive position in the government would be a dream job for many people, my grandfather found Washington very challenging.  He found the environment in Washington D.C. to be a night and day difference from his his work at the Church.  Although he found his work for the government to be interesting and challenging, he and the family struggled to fit into the Potomac region's "unique trappings."  He later confided in a friend and mentor that, "Even before I left for Washington I was quite sure that the glamour would quickly wear off--and I have not be disappointed in that regard."  While he was grateful for the employment and the opportunities it offered, my grandfather's heart had always been at 47 East South Temple, working for the Church.

Most challenging of all, Washington was far from home and during the first several months there, my grandfather was virtually alone.  My grandmother had stayed in Utah with their four girls (including my beautiful mother) to try to sell the house in Salt Lake City while he looked for an affordable house in Washington.  Noting this challenge, my grandfather wrote in his diary for March 2, 1953, "tired & very homesick--miss Maurine something terrible."  The next day he wrote, "Still lonesome for my wife & girls--miss them terribly."  After the family arrived, my grandmother also struggled with the challenge of being so far from home and family.

Everything changed one day in February 1954, when President Stephen L. Richards called to extend a calling to my grandparents to preside over the Hawaii Mission.  By the end of June their Washington experience was over and the family was situated in the Islands.  By 1963, my grandfather was once again working for the Church, and from 1970 until his retirement in 1986 served as secretary to Presidents Joseph Fielding Smith, Harold B. Lee, Spencer W. Kimball, and Ezra Taft Benson.

Washington D.C. had been a hard experience for my grandparents.  But it had also been a necessary experience for them.  While there, my grandparents made several lifelong friends, gained important skills, had once in a lifetime experiences, and learned more about enduring life's challenges.  In spite of the challenges, my grandparents were wise enough to realize that there were friends to be made and there was happiness to be had, even in Washington D.C.  In 1985, he wrote a letter to the family, detailing some of these experiences and came to this important conclusion:  "I have come to know that not every unhappy experience in life needs to remain unhappy, but rather in all likelihood, is a training ground for a better and happier day."

These past couple of months in Fort Worth have helped me to understand this principle better.  There are plenty of days when I feel almost exactly like my grandfather felt during those first challenging months in Washington.  But I am beginning to learn that wherever I am, there are friends to be made, lessons to be learned, and joyful experiences to be had, even far away from friends and family in Fort Worth, Texas.  May we all take advantage of and enjoy the various training grounds that God sends us to.  As we do so, the time will come when we will look back with fondness and see their value in our lives, rejoicing that God was so good as to send us there.

Brett