I went to a Relief Society activity that really opened my eyes. The sister in charge gave us each a stack of sticky notes. She had us write our deepest paints, trials, and heartaches on each note. She asked us to respect the privacy of others and not read the notes until after all of them had been posted around the Relief Society room. Reading all the notes was heart-wrenching. Imagine reading hundreds of notes in a matter of minutes, expressing dead dreams, deepest heartaches, trials, and dark places. There were notes about suicide, anxiety, depression, and addiction. Some women had marital problems, others were afraid that they would never be married and have a family. Some were drowning in debt or struggling with feelings of guilt and inadequacy. Some had wayward children, some struggled with infertility, others were tired of motherhood entirely. Others felt lonely, friendless, and helpless. I cried for these women as I discovered their heartache and sorrow. I also discovered some buried heartaches of my own.
The sister in charge had us pick one note from the wall that resonated with us. I found it interesting that one sister had picked one of mine, which talked about feelings of guilt from falling short. Every sister had a note with which they resonated, and notes came quickly down off the wall.
We then were asked if we had advice for some of the heartaches we read on the notes. All of us raised our hands.
This opened my eyes to three things. One: everyone has trials and heartache. This is something that we all understand, but it became much more real to me after seeing it all in writing. Two: We share many of our trials with others; we are never truly alone. Three: We all have wisdom to counsel those who have faced some of the heartaches that we have. We need to be aware of their needs and seize the opportunity to lift them up. The activity was wrapped up with a beautiful message about the importance of ministering to those who need our help.
The crowning moment was what was going on outside. As we read about all the trials and heartaches that surrounded us, the wind was howling outisde the walls of the church. I haven't seen a windstorm like that in a long time. I was apprehensive to walk outside, but I had to get home. I ran outside and completely forgot about the wind as I looked to the east. The most beautiful, bright, clear, double-rainbow stood majestically over Provo canyon. It was perfectly breath-taking.
Through trials and tribulations, we may feel overwhelmed by the billowing storms. Not just the storms around us, but around the ones we love. At times, the heartache and sadness becomes too much, and we wonder why there is so much suffering. But when we feel the weight of the world on our shoulders, we can look toward our Savior Jesus Christ, who is the only one who truly carried the weight of the world on His shoulders. As we turn to Him, not only will He grant us feelings of peace, but He will show us that He is there and has not forgotten us. That is what I saw in that rainbow.
With Christ as our anchor, not only can we find light in the darkness, but we can be the light that shines in others' darkness.
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