Gifts and Talents (Indiv. Worth VE6)

I asked 3 people who know me well (Bryan, Kathy, and Keturah) to list some positive qualities and talents that I have. According to them, the positive qualities that I have are: patience, self-control, modesty, virtue, the ability to be a good friend and a friend to everyone, willingness to serve others, perseverance, the ability to learn and to teach, dependability, organized, the ability to prepare for the future, and a desire to do what is right. In addition, my talents include music, crafts, and baking.

Gifts of the Spirit that I feel I have been blessed with include: word of knowledge, discernment of spirits and operation (discern whether a teaching or influence comes from God or from some other source), gifts of leadership and organization, and the gift of charity.

I hope I can continue to develop the gifts I have by using them. I think many of these gifts are useful in sharing and teaching the gospel, which seem to be themes in my callings thus far. I think I also have an unofficial “calling” of helping others in more prominent positions. I have a history of stepping aside to more charismatic leaders, while the guts of the job at hand are under my control.

I am not certain what Heavenly Father’s plan is for me, but I know that I have been humbled more than a few times trying to be someone I’m not meant to be. Nevertheless, I know that everything I see in myself will have its turn to shine. It is merely a question of when.

Looking for the Positive (Indiv. Worth VE5)

For two weeks, I was supposed to notice and acknowledge positive qualities of others. Trying to remain uplifting and find positive qualities of people turned out to be harder than I thought considering I seemed to be surrounded by people that do a good job at finding everyone else’s faults. Here I was trying to be nice to people and my co-workers were bashing each other, family members were complaining about the stupid drivers, and the 14 year olds in my Sunday school class were…well, being 14 year olds. Honestly, I just wanted to say, “If you don’t have anything nice to say, don’t say anything at all.”

Seriously, though, I think when I get a chance, I am going to do an activity in my Sunday school class that involves writing down something nice about each person. I’m hoping that might help inspire them. We will have to see. I remember we did something like that each week in the Institute Women’s Association (formerly Lambda Delta Sigma). Each week we wrote something to one person. It was always a pleasant surprise and very cool to just know that you were thought about when it turned out to be you, especially if you were having a rough week.

One thing I have found myself doing lately is seeing the people around me as children, especially my co-workers. It definitely makes things interesting. Seeing both their positive and negative qualities, I have been trying to be more charitable and wonder how our Heavenly Father sees them. Coincidentally, I also wonder how he sees me. What is it that I need to work on and what child-like qualities do I have that I should keep?

My Family History (Indiv. Worth VE4)

Genealogy has been something my mom and I have worked on for years. For my Personal Progress Value Experience, I've decided to post two of my main lines on my blog in the hopes that I might help someone else doing there genealogy as well as find someone that might help me find the information I am missing.

The first line is the Shippee line which my mother and I have gotten back 7+ generations on. I have been watching NBC's show "Who Do You Think You Are" and have had a resurgence of working on my Hodge line thanks to the episode with Sarah Jessica Parker. I don't know if I connect to the same line; however, it is highly possible.

I unfortunately am stuck on Phebe Hodge. She was born c. 1819 in Winsted, CT; married Seldon Holmes Brown 10 apr 1835; and died 24 feb 1872 in Canton, CT. The Perrett-Haynes line has also been a dead end. Recently my mother acquired a copy of the marriage certificate for Thomas Perrett and Ann Eliza Haynes from England. They were married 14 apr 1850. That's as far as we have been able to get.

The second line is the Lachance (dit Pepin) - Roy line. Last summer, I visited the LDS Family History Center in Salt Lake City, UT. I was able to finally find a copy of my great grandfather's
birth certificate (b. 1890 in Maine). A few months later, I was able to find a copy of a document on google books. This document is a Canadian Archive for 1905 and includes a Genealogy of Beauce, Quebec.

Because of this awesome find, I've been able to get back several generations on the Roy line. I am still stuck on the Lachance line, though. I haven't quite figured out who Napoleon's parents are.

I do have to say that I've really been enjoying "Who Do You Think You Are." It's been really cool to see celebrities doing there family history and getting to know who there ancestors are. I can only hope that I will be able to find stories that are as touching as some that they have found. I do know, though, that there is a very special feeling to know that families can be sealed together through the power of the preisthood and the atonement of Jesus Christ. As we celebrate Easter (a celebration of the resurrection), let us remember all those that have come before us, who we hope to know and love when life on this earth is through.