Always there have been struggles-for individuals and for groups. But for each struggle, there are always men and women who rise above the ugly and the combative and make the world a better place-people whose greatness seems a perfect match for the challenge of the day.

An outstanding example of this truth is Jackie Robinson, the first African American to play Major League Baseball in the modern era.

Perhaps no one other than Jackie himself will ever know how much courage this stand for civil rights required. Though he had many supporters, he was also heckled and even threatened by fans. Some opposing pitchers aimed for his head. Baserunners aimed their spikes at his legs. Even some teammates shunned him. One sportswriter called Jackie Robinson “the loneliest man I’ve ever seen in sports.”¹

But Jackie knew that if he retaliated it could spell disaster for the dream of ending racial segregation. So he suffered in dignified silence. His athleticism caught the attention of baseball fans, but it was his moral strength that caught the attention of another man who believed in nonviolence: Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

King said of Robinson: “He underwent the trauma and the humiliation and the loneliness which comes of being a pilgrim walking the lonesome byways toward the high road of Freedom. He was a sit-inner before sit ins, a freedom rider before freedom rides. And that is why we honor him.”² Truly, he was the right man for the time.

Today, Jackie Robinson’s uniform number, 42, has been retired by all major league teams. And every year on Jackie Robinson Day, all players, coaches, managers, and umpires wear 42 in honor of his contributions-not just to baseball but to the freedom of the nation.

The epitaph on Jackie Robinson’s tombstone reads, “A life is not important except in the impact it has on other lives.” This, after all, is how the world is changed: one life at a time. And this is a contribution we can all make.

1. Jimmy Cannon, in Arnold Ampersand, Jackie Robinson: A Biography(1997), 172.
2. In Ampersand, Jackie Robinson, 7.

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In many ways, life gets better with age - sometimes surprisingly so. The common belief is that a person’s overall sense of well-being goes downhill as he or she gets older, but researchers are finding - and many older people themselves are discovering - that this is not necessarily the case.

For example, as we age, wisdom and understanding can flourish. Intelligence can develop and expertise can deepen, which can enhance creativity and productivity. Friendships can become more meaningful as the passing years teach us to prioritize what matters most. One Stanford University professor said, “Contrary to the popular view that youth is the best time of life, the peak of emotional life may not occur until well into the seventh decade.”¹ While youth may have advantages, good things can come with age.

Of course, growing older has its share of challenges and difficulties. And, if we continue to live, we’ll each get there. So how can we turn this remarkable season of life into truly “golden” years?

Perhaps one suggestion is to focus more on what we can do than on what we cannot do. Age does come with limitations, but we all can do something. It doesn’t have to be grand or monumental to be worthwhile. We can look for small and simple ways to reach out to others - make a phone call, send a note, extend a helping hand, or show interest in another’s life. We can learn something new - go to a museum, listen to an audiobook that stretches our mind a bit, or take up a new interest or hobby. We can look for opportunities to share our lived experience and acquired knowledge.

In other words, we can resolve to live life in crescendo, ever growing and always serving. Time will pass, no matter how we spend it - so let’s make the most of the time we’ve been given and live our days well.

1. Laura Carstensen, in Anne Tergesen, “Why Everything You Think about Aging May Be Wrong,” Wall Street Journal, Nov. 30, 2014, http://www.wsj.com/articles/why-everything-you-think-about-aging-may-be-wrong-1417408057.

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We live in a society that often seems to value outgoing, adventurous personalities over others. In a variety of ways, our culture suggests that we need to be bold to be successful, talkative to be happy, even loud to be worth hearing. This message is so pervasive that those who are more introspective, private, and quiet can begin to feel ashamed of their personality traits. They may long to be the life of the party-not the one who sits in the corner, lost in thought. They might think they need to be the one with many friends-not the one who enjoys fewer but deeper relationships. The culture may lead them to think that it’s better to be the center of attention-not the one who is content to observe.

The truth is that much of this world’s most inspiring art, most important discoveries, most influential ideas, and most revolutionary inventions were the work of people who tended to be more quiet, who did not seek the spotlight.¹In fact, it may be that the inclination to be quiet and deliberate and contemplative is more likely to foster such achievements than a bold, aggressive approach.
By some estimates, approximately half of us are more introverted than extroverted.² And that feels about right. The world was not meant to consist of only one kind of person. Our lives are enriched by varieties of personalities and dispositions, likes and dislikes, strengths and weaknesses. We need thoughtful, cautious people just as much as we need daring risk-takers. We need introverts and extroverts and everything in between.

Most of us have a little of both in our natures anyway-traditional labels are too simplistic to truly define anyone. And our personality develops over time; nothing is forever fixed in place. When anyone neglects his or her talents, we all suffer. On the other hand, when everyone is encouraged to be authentic enough to develop their gifts and then selfless enough to share them, they unleash their potential, make meaningful contributions, and find contentment-and we’re all the better for it.

1. See Susan Cain, Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking (2013), 5.
2. See Quiet, 3-4.

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There was a little boy visiting his grandparents on their farm.

 He was given a slingshot

 to play with out in the woods.

 He practiced in the woods; but he could never hit the target.

 Getting a little discouraged, he headed back for dinner.

 As he was walking back he saw Grandma's pet duck.

 Just out of impulse, he let the slingshot fly, hit the duck square in

 the head and killed it. He was shocked and grieved!

 In a panic, he hid the dead duck in the wood pile; only to see his

 Sister watching! Sally had seen it all, but she said nothing.

 After lunch the next day Grandma said, 'Sally, let's wash the dishes'

 But Sally said, 'Grandma, Johnny told me he wanted to help in the

 kitchen.'

 Then she whispered to him, "Remember the duck?'

 So Johnny did the dishes.

 Later that day, Grandpa asked if the children

wanted to go fishing

 and Grandma said, 'I'm sorry but I need Sally to help make supper.'

 Sally just smiled and said, 'well that's all right because Johnny told

 me he wanted to help?

 She whispered again, 'Remember the duck?' So Sally went fishing and

 Johnny stayed to help.

 After several days of Johnny doing both his chores and Sally's; he

 Finally couldn't stand it any longer.

  He came to Grandma and confessed that he had killed the duck

 Grandma knelt down, gave him a hug and said, 'Sweetheart, I know. You

 see, I was standing at the window and I saw the whole thing, but

 because I love you, I forgave you. I was just wondering how long you

 would let Sally make a slave of you.'

Thought for the day

 and every day thereafter:

  Whatever is in your past, whatever you have done...? And the devil

 keeps throwing it up in your face (lying, cheating, debt, fear, bad

 habits, hatred, anger, bitterness, etc.)...whatever it is...You need to

 know that:

 God was standing at the window and He saw the whole thing.

  He has seen your whole life... He wants you to know that He loves you

 and that you are forgiven. He's just

 wondering how long you will let the devil make a slave of you.

 The great thing about God is that when you ask for forgiveness;

 He not only forgives you, but He forgets.

sent to me by friend my Emmanuel Inengite

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Here are some true stories that happened to real people and were told from the first person...

Enjoy)

-Today, my mom has been blind for 15 years. She lost her vision in the same car accident that took my dad’s life. I am 18 years old now. She has raised me as a single mom since I was 3, without her vision. And yes, she did a heck of a job!

-Today, I met the prettiest woman on a plane. Assuming I wouldn’t see her again after we made our connections, I told her how pretty I thought she was. She gave me the most sincere smile and said, “Nobody has said that to me in 10 years.” It turns out we’re both in our mid-30’s, never married, no kids, and we live about 5 miles away from each other. We have a date set for next Saturday after we return home.

-Today, my mom received the surgery she needed to remove a malignant tumor. My family has been struggling without medical insurance since my dad lost his job last year. My sister and I have been openly discussing my mom’s medical dilemma on Facebook. Last week, a friend of a friend, who’s a veteran cancer treatment surgeon who owns his own practice, saw our comments on Facebook and volunteered to help my mother for free.

-Today, I’m a mother of 2 and a grandmother of 4. At 17 I got pregnant with twins. When my boyfriend and friends found out I wasn’t going to abort them, they turned a cold shoulder to me. But I pressed forward, worked full-time while attending school, graduated high school and college, and met a guy in one of my classes who has loved my children like his own for the last 50 years.

-Today, as I was sleeping, I woke up to my daughter calling my name. I was sleeping in a sofa chair in her hospital room. I opened my eyes to her beautiful smile. My daughter has been in a coma for 98 days.

-Today, on our 10th wedding anniversary, she handed me a suicide note she wrote when she was 22. It was dated the exact day we met each other. And she said, “For all these years I didn’t want you to know how foolish and unstable I was back when we met. But even though you didn’t know, you saved me. Thank you.”

-Today, at 8AM this morning, after four months of lifelessness in her hospital bed, we took my mom off life support. And her heart continued beating on its own. And she continued breathing on her own. Then this evening, when I squeezed her hand three times, she squeezed back three times.

-Today, the homeless man who used to sleep near my condo showed up at my door wearing the business suit I gave him nearly 10 years ago. He said, “I have a home, a job, and a family now. 10 years ago I wore this business suit to all my job interviews. Thank you.”

-Today, when I opened my store at 5AM there was an envelope sitting on the floor by the door. In the envelope was $600 and a note that said, “Five years ago, I broke into your store at night and stole $300 worth of food. I’m sorry. I was desperate. Here’s the money with 100% interest.” Interestingly, I never reported the incident to the cops because I assumed that whoever stole the food really needed it.

You wanna miracle?Be the miracle!)

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Sometimes relationships flounder because we don't convey enough genuine love-or perhaps we don't convey it in quite the right ways. In our zeal to help loved ones improve, maybe we focus too much on how we think they should change instead of communicating sincere acceptance and appreciation for who they are. Just as plants thrive in a warm and nurturing environment, people thrive when they feel accepted and appreciated. And very often they need that more than they need advice.

One son felt that whatever he did, it was never enough to please his father. When he moved away from home and took a job in another town, he finally explained to his dad, "Our relationship isn't about productivity. You're my dad. Sometimes I need praise more than a push and approval more than advice. Constantly trying to make me better just makes me feel worse. It's not enough that you love me. I need you to appreciate me."1
His dad meant well-he wanted his son to reach his full potential, to be the best he could possibly be, with minimal risk of failure. But our loved ones are so much more than productivity projects. They don't need better efficiency models-they need our love and care, our acceptance and appreciation, our best efforts to cherish their unique individuality.
Sometimes it's not easy, but it becomes easier as we truly open our hearts. As we do, we open doors to more trusting relationships. People will often stop resisting change and improvement when they feel valued, when the relationship is built on acceptance and appreciation. For example, a patient, accepting grandma often gets farther with a struggling child than a frustrated parent who condemns and finds fault. The grandmother is not blind to the child's problems, but her wise counsel and occasional correction are more likely to be accepted because the child knows heis accepted.
Warmth and nurturing kindness will bring out the best not only in ourselves but also in those we love.
1. In Michael Josephson, "Needing Approval More Than Advice," What Will Matter, October 31, 2011,http://whatwillmatter.com/2011/10/needing-approval-more-than-advice.

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Loved ones are like violin, the music may stop playing but the strings remain. Losing a well beloved person is indeed a sorrow that may not be easily softened in the heart and often brings unforgettable memories thereby adding more pains to the sorrow but our Savior gave us the assurance that “death is swallowed up in victory”.

I felt terribly sad when the news of my brother’s death came to me, in fact it was like thunders bolt that is lightening with all the forces it can ever carry and it almost destroyed the fabrics of my heart. I felt so devastated feeling as if I’m in an endless pit of pain looking for help but could not find any. I felt like asking God “WHY”I said no because I promised myself never to ask such question no matter any situation I found myself.

Within this moment of inexpressible pain of losing a loved one, as I lay on my bed pondering on the mysteries of this life and its inevitable gift-death, at that lonely yet unseeingly serene moment of meditation, I heard the still small voice whispers to my troubled heart “all is well, weep not, your brother will be saved and you can still see, embrace and kiss him but that will be after this life.
We live in a world where “pain and death comes unsolicited making the man absolutely astounded…” death is a universal heritage that comes at any age. It is an inevitable gift to man. Therefore we only have to accept the inevitable of this life.

You should know that though full of strife, but wonderful is this life its safe-haven is untenable, its arms are unsociable. But on the other side of this life lies the grandeur of happiness to rise offered by the Great King Emmanuel with the gospel as an enamel.

I give to you those same words given to me by the Still Small Voice “all is well, weep not, your (father) will be save and you can still see, embrace and kiss him but that will be after this life”.I know it’s sad and painful but don’t let that sadness mar your sweet experience and joyful life as a missionary.

I bear you my witness that death is not the end of man’s existence it’s like opening a new a page after you are done with one. I have often took solace on the exclamation of Paul “O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory?” for I know that because our Savior rose from death on the third day of His burial, “death is swallowed up in victory”...

I know it’s hard to subjugate such sad feelings, mostly for the fact that you will not be there to at least give a mortality last respect or farewell greetings. Take heart; continue to do your best. God alone knows why such thing happened at such a time.

If you will remember, I have told you before that the Atonement is my favorite gospel topic because in it I gained the needed strength to survive this life greatest peril-death. “If Christ be not risen said Paul, our preaching (missionary work) is vain and our faith is also vain. President Joseph F. Smith said “that those from whom we have to part here. We will meet again and see as they are. We will meet the same identical being that we associated with here in the flesh”.

I’m very grateful for the sublime act of the Savior with which He conquered death, dispelling the devastating sorrow that gnaws at those who has lost loved ones and brought to man the hope of a glorious resurrection. As I “mourn” with you in this time of great loss, I pray that the Still-Small Voice whispers to your heart as it has done to many others, even to mine, the most joy that comes from the Atonement.

In my prayers I wish I could send you some warming rays to make your day a little brighter. I wish I could send some magic to make your heart a little lighter. But I can only send this cheerful message that God lives. He is our Father. He sent us to this probationary state to be tested and tried and to face death as an inevitable thing. He loves you as He loves every one of His children and will continue to love you. He sent His “Only Beloved Son” to come to earth to be humiliated, bruised, reviled, ridiculed, and ultimately to conquer death, that though we will die- it is only momentary – we will rise again never to die again.

At that time I will never text you that I lost my brother some weeks ago and you will never say “I lost my father” anymore. I know that the Atonement is not a fiction. It is real. I add my testimony to those given by ancient and modern day Prophets and Apostles that He lives! Sited on the right hand of God. For how long or short I don’t know but I know that a day will come when all shall rise from the grave and when that day comes death will no more be a problem to man.

Even at this time am enshrouded by my brother’s loss. Nevertheless, I have to carry on what I have covenanted to do which is to “mourn with those that mourn” study the Atonement again and again, ponder it deeply in your heart and also the purpose of life and I promise you will gain understanding and strength to bear this irreparable loss.

Mortality would be such a great calamity should we not pertain our lives according to the Lords way. The Lord knows that is why He said “thou shall live together in love, insomuch that thou shall weep for the loss of them that die, and more especially for those that have not hope of a glorious resurrection and on the other hand, “blessed are the dead that die in the Lord” for they “shall not taste of death, for it shall be sweet unto them”.

Despite all this promises, we do not seek for death to come but we know it must inevitably come. I don’t have a full understanding of what the Savior went through to  offer us this most expensive gift of resurrection, neither can I fathom an atom of it but I know it is true and is for you, for me and for everybody that has lived, living, and would ever live on this earth.

Finally, and once more again I say all is well, weep not, your father will be saved and you can still see, embrace, and kiss him but that will be after this life.

 Yours friend,

  Elisha

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