True Stories

Not long ago I was listening to a conversation on "the Mormon channel" with Susan Easton Black.  What an inspiring woman--I wish I had a copy of her lectures to listen to.  If anyone knows where I can get them--please let me know.  I admire her personal strength in hardship; I love her thirst for knowledge; and I adore her personality.  She has overcome great feats, and she gives a lot of credit to her bedtime stories: accounts of church history told by her grandmother.

I love fiction.  I want my children to dive head-first into their imaginations--completely owning the constructions of the world they create.  I also want my kids to learn the difference between fact and fiction.  I hope they can develop the ability to discern between what is true and what is not.  So, I started telling Aaron "true stories" at bedtime.

We still have the same "book, scriptures, prayer" routine, but if he behaves himself he gets to hear a true family story after we pray.  I don't have a script--a lot of the time I'm just winging it...doing my best to retell important moments in our family's lives.  But, watching his eyes engage with mine as I recount a family story is awesome.  He truly connects with the stories, and it makes a lot of sense.  The stories I tell him are about people he loves. Of course he would want to know more about them.

So far, I have recounted the tale of the young girl named Melinda who wanted to save her very first, very special kiss for a very special boy.  Aaron chimed right in at the appropriate moment to guess that the very special boy was, indeed, "Jonny!"  Tonight I retold my mother's conversion story--an miraculous story she retold to me time and time again as a growing girl.  It was very exciting to tell it to Aaron.  "And when Nana got lost in the middle of night in a deep, dark lake, what do you think she did?" I asked Aaron.  He didn't know the answer.  "She decided to pray, really pray, for the very first time."  As I told this story, my heart swelled with a familiar, warm excitement.   Aaron looked at me with bright, intense eyes, and I think that he felt something special too.

It is special.  I am privileged to have been born into the family I have, and to have married into such a good family.  I hope my life can reciprocate all of the good I have been given.  And, I want my kids to know they are an important part of a family full of good people who love them dearly.  I think this little tradition is a step in the right direction.  I can't wait for tomorrow night to share more true family stories.