Spiritual Sunday: A Brother Like That

One of my favorite Christmas stories is "A Brother Like That." I love the message and how it inspires me to be a better person, to be a brother like that. 

Paul received an automobile from his brother as a Christmas present. On Christmas Eve when Paul came out of his office, a street urchin was walking around the shiny new car, admiring it.

"Is this your car, Mister?" he asked.

Paul nodded. "My brother gave it to me for Christmas." The boy was astounded. "You mean your brother gave it to you and it didn't cost you nothing? Boy, I wish..." He hesitated. Of course Paul knew what he was going to wish for. He was going to wish he had a brother like that. But what the lad said jarred Paul all the way down to his heels.

"I wish," the boy went on, "that I could be a brother like that."

Paul looked at the boy in astonishment, then impulsively he added, "Would you like to take a ride in my automobile?"

"Oh yes, I'd love that."

After a short ride, the boy turned and with his eyes aglow, said, "Mister, would you mind driving in front of my house?" Paul smiled a little. He thought he knew what the lad wanted. He wanted to show his neighbors that he could ride home in a big automobile. But Paul was wrong again.

"Will you stop where those two steps are?" the boy asked. He ran up the steps. Then in a little while Paul heard him coming back, but he was not coming fast. He was carrying his little crippled brother. He sat him down on the bottom step, then sort of squeezed up against him and pointed to the car. "There she is, Buddy, just like I told you upstairs. His brother gave it to him for Christmas and it didn't cost him a cent. And some day I'm gonna give you one just like it...then you can see for yourself all the pretty things in the Christmas windows that I've been trying to tell you about."

Paul got out and lifted the lad to the front seat of his car. The shining-eyed older brother climbed in beside him and the three of them began a memorable holiday ride.

That Christmas Eve, Paul learned what Jesus meant when he had said: "It is more blessed to give..." 

I know sometimes it's hard to be a brother like that. It's easy to say, "I don't have a brother like that, so why should I be like that?" But the fact is, we do have a brother like that, Jesus Christ. I hope we can all  keep him in our hearts these next few days as Christmas is upon us. Merry Christmas!  

Snow Flower and the Secret Fan

A few weeks ago, Cass and I were redboxing and I saw that Snow Flower and the Secret Fan was made into a movie, so I absolutely had to get it.  It's one of my favorite books and I thought Cass would like it, since it has to do with China (he did!). 

Well, so the movie inspired me to re-read the book, so that I could remember everything as well as compare it to the movie. Snow Flower and the Secret Fan  is about two little girls, Snow Flower and Lily, preparing for their footbinding.  Instead of being sworn into a sisterhood with girls from their village, they form a laotong relationship, or an eternal bonding of two as kindred sisters. They are soul mates. Snow Flower tells the story of Snow Flower and Lily as they grow up and lead their separate lives. 

As I said, this is one of my favorite books. It is so relate-able. It is timeless. All women form intimate friendships. We all have heartaches. All of our friendships wax and wane. We all have misunderstandings. But when it comes down to it, your true friends are always there when you need them, as with Lily and Snow Flower.

Take Offs & Landings

Probably my last Margaret Peterson Haddix book (until she publishes a new one), Takeoffs and Landings is not one of my favorites, and is definitely geared towards the pre-teen audience. It tells the story of a small-town, 4H, farming brother and sister, Chuck and Lori, who are finally spending quality time with their mother, for the first time since their father died eight years ago. After he died, their mom started speaking, publicly, about his death and life insurance, which turned her into a motivational speaker. Lori is bitter and feels abandoned, but Chuck is just grateful for the attention. It starts out as an awkward trip; the kids hardly know their mom, and Chuck and Lori, once inseparable, now find each other unbearable. But by the end of their journey, the relationship seems to mend. 

I didn't love this book, but I did enjoy it. I recommend it for a younger set, especially those kids, and maybe even parents, who may relate to Chuck and Lori, those feeling a loss or a disconnect of a parent. It might just give them the boost they need to fix their relationship. 

Daisy Fay & the Miracle Man

Once upon a time, a baby girl was born. Her parents couldn't agree on a name, and so grandma looked around the room. There was a vase of flowers in the room, daisies to be exact. And that is how Daisy Fay Harper got her name. She begins her journaling at age eleven and gives us all the details of her life, her parents' fighting, and the town gossip. A southern coming-of-age story, Daisy Fay makes a name for herself while making the best of her difficult situation. Her dad is a drunk who can't hold onto a job, or his wife, and Daisy Fay's life is rather unsteady. Yet she shares with us her zany adventures, crazy pranks, friendships, and coming back from the dead, as she makes her way to the top, paving her own road, making her own break, and giving the gossip. 
  
First off, apparently I'm way more into coming-of-age stories than I thought! 

But really. I did enjoy this book. It was long, and their were a few spots I found to be a little boring or unnecessary, and most of the story was not related to the title, which I found odd. I would rate this book probably a 7 or 8 out of 10. It was enjoyable; I do not regret reading it. It was well written and a good story, yet not amazing. Then ending was definitely worth it though! It was expected, but still nice. Daisy Fay is a great role model, determined, driven, and (eventually) successful. So read on!

Facebook & Famous Relations

{{So there is this app on facebook that shows you your famous [and famous Mormon] relations. And if your facebook friends have enabled this app & are related to you as well, that will also show up! Here are some of my famous relations, but for your convenience///reading pleasure, I have limited the Mormon relations to 6th cousins, because I have a ton of 8-10th Mormon Relations since all of Utah is related!}}

• David Haight, 3rd Cousin
• Gordon B Hinkley, 6th Cousin
• Spencer W Kimball, 5th Cousin
• George Albert Smith, 6th Cousin

  

Other Famous Relations

• Susan B Anthony, 5th Cousin
• Emily Dickenson, 7th Cousin
• Walt Disney, 7th Cousin
• Thomas Edison, 7th Cousin
• Eli Whitney, 4th Cousin
• Orville & Wilber Wright, 6th Cousin
• Mark Twain, 7th Cousin

 

Who are you related to? And If you do the app, 

see if you're related to me!

What is the expectation of privacy in a committed relationship?

So, you know me. I'm watching Secret Life last week. And the topic de jour was privacy. Turns out teenagers love snooping through each others' phones. And it got me thinking. What is the expectation of privacy in a committed relationship? Do you need to snoop? Are you allowed to? Do they tell you everything anyway? Should they? 

I think it all comes down to trust. If you trust your partner to not do anything horrible, then you don't need to check their phone/emails/etc for proof of it. And if you don't trust this person, what are you doing in a relationship with them? 

Trust is a mutual quality in a relationship, and if your partner trusts you, wouldn't they tell you about a compromising text and the situations surrounding it? 

People really just need to talk to each other! But I'm not sure I'm making any sense, so anyway. What do you think? What is the expectation of privacy in a committed relationship? What is your expectation of privacy?