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Pandemic

What does the word Pandemic mean to you? When I look at the word Pandemic I see first the word “Panic” which is what we saw in the streets, the media, and pretty much in the world. Pandemic means much death, suffering and sickness.

To others it means other things; job loss, isolation, starvation, loss… I could go on. This has been a very difficult year. But it also has been a year of miracles. They don’t report on the news those who have recovered from CoVid-19, those who have found God, or become closer to God by helping those who suffering.

I invite others to please tell what positive things that have happened to them due to this Pandemic. Please search your heart and share ….

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My Christina’s Birthday!!

June 7th 2020

Today my Chrissie turns 35.

35 years ago I was sitting on a hospital bed with my Mom sitting by me doing her embroidery. While I got a strong contraction and was being very quiet in prayer while I breathed sitting in a yoga position.  She was freaking, wondering why I am not screaming and crying. 

When I was first pregnant with my third child-Chrissie, we moved into a 4 plex on the upper floor. I remember lying in our big water bed in the dark bedroom as Dan was sitting in the living room watching tv. I was listening to the radio trying to fall asleep. When all of a sudden the room grew very dark right over me, the radio seemed a million miles away. I felt a growing pressure on my chest and a pulling feeling from my abdomen. I couldn’t breath. I knew whatever, or whoever it was, was trying to take my baby. It seems all at the same time, I sprung to my feet somehow all the way to the door and at the same time yelling “get away from me in the name of Jesus Christ!!”. In an instance the room cleared up and I was standing in the door way as Dan came running. We both said a prayer and thanked Heavenly Father for the knowledge of the power of His name and went to bed.

 The doctor told me to stop pushing because the  umbilical cord was wrapped around her neck and evidently had been for some time. It took a while, somehow I was able to keep from pushing. They finally removed it and let me push. In no time little Christina Marie(Maria) Fieseler let out the sweetest little cry you had ever heard, and they placed her in my arms.

The doctor said he felt the Lord guiding his hands in that very difficult task of removing the umbilical cord safely. 

She was perfect! She was cross-eyed. They found that that was an inherited genetic condition called Strabismus. It skips several generations. Her cousin Tori had the same thing. It was corrected with a couple of surgeries. This was scarier for me than her. I prayed and cried with worry and even wrote a lullaby that won a song contest.”My Little Angel”

When Chrissie turned 4 years old she contracted Bacterial Meningitis. We had no idea at first.

She came in from outside play with a fever and a rash. I thought maybe she had been bitten by something. I had her rushed to the hospital by ambulance. They thought since her fever started going down that the reaction to the bit was getting better and she would be alright. So they sent us home. Unfortunately her fever went as high as 106 and she couldn’t walk. But she stayed coherent so we just didn’t know what to do as we had no insurance and another trip to the hospital would be very expensive. Dan didn’t really hold the priesthood so we called the Elders from our church to come over and give her a blessing. As we all bowed our heads and prayed together with the Elders laying their hands on her tiny head, the growing feeling that she will be alright came into my heart. At the end of the prayer. At the end of the prayer, the senior Elder raised his head, we looked at each other and both said at the same time. We need to get her to the hospital right now.

When we got to the hospital they rushed her in and said they needed to give her a spinal tap and that I should stay out as it is hard to watch.  I had a strong feeling to stay with my little one at all times. She fought hard against the procedure

. It took several nurses to hold her down.

I watched in horror as she fought and screamed for me.  Then all of a sudden she wasn’t moving but she was shaking in a very weird way. As I watched, I realized she was seizing. The big nurse that was almost sitting on her didn’t even realize it. She seemed relieved that she wasn’t fighting anymore. I yelled “she is seizing! Get off of her!” I pulled the nurse off her. Then they all realized what was going on and took care of her.  I am certain that  if I hadn ‘t been there my baby would have died.

I am so very thankful for the Gospel of Jesus Christ in my life. The Lord has protected Christina throughout her life, as well protected all my family. I now realize why the advisory wanted to stop her…

Now she, (Amelia Rose) is blessing so many in this world with her angelic voice and her beautiful loving personality. I know she will continue to bless many more. I am thankful for my Christina. She has been such a blessing to my life. She is my Special Angel.

I Love You Christina …. Happy Birthday!

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Have I Done Any Good????

I learned Christlike living at home, where charity—the pure love of Christ—compassion, and a desire to lift and bless the lives of others were the standard and where, though my parents did not read me the scriptures, they lived them. No my parents were not perfect. In fact when I was a kid I was so jealous of other kids who seemed to have so much more than me, I didn’t see what a blessing I had at home where we were taught Christlike values by my parents example.

I love the song “Have I Done Any Good In The World Today” It is such an excellent question we all should ask ourselves often.

I feel good after helping someone. I think this is a cure for feeling down. It’s a remedy for the blues and focusing on your own problems.

1. Have I done any good in the world today?

Have I helped anyone in need?
Have I cheered up the sad and made someone feel glad?
If not, I have failed indeed.
Has anyone’s burden been lighter today
Because I was willing to share?
Have the sick and the weary been helped on their way?
When they needed my help was I there?
[Chorus]
Then wake up and do something more
Than dream of your mansion above.
Doing good is a pleasure, a joy beyond measure,
A blessing of duty and love.
2. There are chances for work all around just now,
Opportunities right in our way.
Do not let them pass by, saying, “Sometime I’ll try,”
But go and do something today.
’Tis noble of man to work and to give;
Love’s labor has merit alone.
Only he who does something helps others to live.
To God each good work will be known.
Text and music: Will L. Thompson, 1847–1909, alt.

I used to sing this to my kids in the morning to wake them up. I was hoping they would listen to the words and one day try them out.

It really works. When you start doing work to help someone out that is in need,

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Memories

I remember lying in bed with a fever and feeling very sick. I was probably only around 6 or 7.

My mother was sitting by my bed and my picture of Jesus was on the wall in my room. But I didn’t want her to leave. I remember being so scared to be alone.

That night my Mother told me a story about a little girl just like me who was very sick and she was all alone in a hospital. She was so scared that she cried so hard but there was no one around to hear her it seemed. Then finally she cried out in almost in a whisper: “Is there anyone out there to protect me and give me comfort?”. She closed her eyes and felt a warm hand take her hand and dry her tears with His other hand. She instantly felt safe. She opened her little eyes and there was Jesus smiling down at her. “Your never alone, all you need to do is reach out, I will be there always”. She went to sleep peacefully. And when the nurses checked her in the morning her fever was gone and she was on the road to recovery.. 

Mommy said “that is Jesus” and she pointed to my picture on the wall. Jesus loves all his children.  We prayed together. Then she kissed me goodnight. Jesus was there. I have never stopped talking to him since. 

Many years later I learned that the little girl in this story was my Mother when she was sick with Scarlet Fever. Mother is passed now and I truly miss her. I am so thankful for the lessons she gave me. She gave me the greatest gift of all. A relationship with my Savior Jesus Christ.

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Please Look At The Bigger Picture

It’s easy to get overwhelmed with all of the tasks we have on our plates. Taking the time to ask ourselves why we are doing them can help us remember the bigger picture our daily tasks are leading us to.

How do I stay motivated?

Try to understand your role in the universe. You didn’t arrive on this earth or get to where you are now without connections or history. You have ancestors who worked hard and had values. You have parents who did their best. And you have a spiritual connection to God, the Creator of the universe. Meditate on that for just a moment: the guidance and assurances from an all-powerful God who loves and cares for you; the sacrifices made by the people who came before you. Think of the hard work it took them to get you to this point. Let this be a motivator for you.

How do I stay on task?

Make a game of tedious tasks, or contemplate meaningful things in your day-to-day life while you work. Listen to inspirational podcasts. Make a list of your tasks and give them each a time frame for completion. Be smart about the order in which you accomplish tasks. Organize your tasks so your time is efficient. Some tasks require more brainpower—do those first. Some require low distractions—turn off phones and close your door so you can focus in peace and quiet. Write down the things that give meaning to your life. When you know you have a family to get home to or a person to help, it gives purpose to your goals.

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Graphical Location does not necessarily define the Church.

No, Utah is not my church, The politics suck ….I don’t believe in “what many call Mormonism”, and please never describe me as “Churchy”.

I am a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. Jesus Christ is my Savior and Friend. He hears all of my prayers. He comforts me. I believe that He is at the helm of this Church but that He is also is watching over all of His children. I believe that music has a great power and that it played a very large part of the creation of this world and everything in it.

I believe that nothing happens by accident and that everything we are and everything we own first belongs to God. It is by his grace that we are able to take part in this amazing creation.

Most of all I know that I am a Child of God and that He Loves me.

In The Name of Jesus Christ …. Amen

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Halloween is Coming!

I used to enjoy dressing up for Halloween. I made costumes for my children as well as myself. It was fun to do trick or treating. However, the bloody gory movies, and the evil ugly costumes that have overtaken the commercial end of it all has sickened me to no end.

Halloween does come from Christian origins.  Halloween is the evening before the Christian holy days of All Hallows’ Day.  (also known as All Saints’ or Hallowmas) on 1 November and All souls’ Day. on 2 November, thus giving the holiday on 31 October the full name of All Hallows’ Eve (meaning the evening before All Hallows’ Day).

In Europe groups of poor people, often children, would go door-to-door during Allhallowtide, collecting soul cakes, in exchange for praying for the dead, especially the souls of the givers’ friends and relatives. Soul cakes would also be offered for the souls themselves to eat, or the ‘soulers’ would act as their representatives. As with the  tradition of , Allhallowtide soul cakes were often marked with a cross, indicating that they were baked as alms. On the custom of wearing costumes, Christian minister Prince Sorie Conteh wrote: “It was traditionally believed that the souls of the departed wandered the earth until All Saints’ Day, and All Hallows’ Eve provided one last chance for the dead to gain vengeance on their enemies before moving to the next world. In order to avoid being recognized by any soul that might be seeking such vengeance, people would don masks or costumes to disguise their identities”.

I do genealogy and Temple work to honor the dead. So I chose to reflect on those that have gone on to the next life and pray for them. Especially on Halloween. I try to avoid the evil celebrations.

I do still like the dressing up part though….

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The Healing Power of Music

I found this story that was submitted to Facebook a while back:

I turned onto the street where my father lives. The closer I got to the house, the more I dreaded seeing him.

Since Mom died and he lived alone, Dad was often angry, and lately he was getting more and more confused. Today promised to be worse than usual. He had a new aid named Liuda, from our home country of Lithuania. The presence of a stranger was bound to make Dad even more irritable.

Sure enough, Dad started complaining as soon as I got in the door. “This new girl doesn’t know anything,” he grumbled.

“It’ll take some time for her to learn how to help you,” I reassured him.

The three of us sat awkwardly in the living room. I wished I could think of something to say. Lord, please help us feel more comfortable with this arrangement. 

Liuda sprang to her feet. Walking over to Dad’s record player, she dropped a Lithuanian folk record onto the turntable. The familiar accordion music played. Dad started singing. Liuda smiled.

The music seemed to drive all the tension from the room. We chatted about Lithuania. It was one of the nicest visits Dad and I had ever had.

When I left he hugged me good-bye and asked me to look at old photos with him and Liuda next time. For a moment I glimpsed the old Dad. The man I’d always loved spending time with.

I’d come to Dad’s expecting the worst. But with Liuda’s help and a little music from the old country, I’d found what I would always love.