A New Constellation - A Memoir - by Ashley Mae Hoiland

I ordered this memoir because I enjoyed her first book, One Hundred Birds Taught Me to Fly, so much. This is the unfolding story of a young mother's experience of being diagnosed and learning to live with MS. It's a wonderful, vulnerable and deep account of her thoughts and reactions to this shifting of her world. There's her lovely poetic view and appreciation for human kindness. There isn't much about her faith or calling on it at all, which surprised me. I think anyone who is suddenly faced with a life-altering crisis, especially a health one, would relate to this book. It's a quick 86-page read, but probably not one I would read a second time.

The Undaunted by Gerald Lund

Sierra's great friend Megan recommended I read this book as we were preparing for a trip to Lake Powell. We didn't end up going, but I still read the book. Megan told me that some of her family's ancestors appear in the story. It's historical fiction, and has many of the real pioneers featured in the account of this amazing blaze through hard rock.

It's a wonderful account of a complex history as these Mormon pioneers built a route through impassable country. Their faith and courage are remarkable. They knew it was impossible, and they knew it had to be done. They did it!

I really enjoyed Lund's footnotes and detailed explanations of the geography and the hardships these hardy people encountered. He referenced several comprehensive histories that probably would have served me better than this story, but I like to get history in light story-form! What is consistent with Lund's fictional characters though, is that they don't have a lot of depth or reality to them. They are pretty predictable and have sweet senses of humor and only understandable, superficial flaws. It gets a little frustrating to have such flat characters. However, they are "good" and have real struggles and even though they feel contrived and shallow, they do move the story ahead.

Lund does a good job describing the struggles of the faithful and the struggles of the unbelieving. But again, they are not in depth or very authentic-feeling. Still, the stories are always uplifting and optimistic. The part that moved me the most was the part when they were near the end of their journey. The pioneers had to whip and force their animals up a steep incline that ended up maiming and killing some of their loyal animals who had brought them so far. This was heart-breaking, as Lund helped us witness the pain of the owners who felt they had no choice but to move onward this way. This part was, like many parts of the book, historically accurate. This part moved me to tears.

Yearning for the Living God by F. Enzio Busche

My friend Sally lent this book to Len because she thought he would enjoy it. This was after he had told her how he'd been watching lots of Nazi/World War II documentaries. He began reading it, said it was good, so I picked it up to read on our Arizona vacation.

It's a good read, with lots of anecdotes about what life was like growing up in Nazi Germany. Elder Busche tells his history with examples as well as analysis of what was going on at that time. He really gives unusual context for the thinking and prevailing culture of the decades during and after the second World War. Then he recounts his conversion to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and tells the stories of his experiences with the church over the course of his lifetime.

These stories are unusually frank and intimate. He recounts his struggles and challenges candidly and in a way that his readers can learn from. I was most impressed with the period he was a branch president in Dortmund and led his congregation in building their own chapel. The way he balanced work, family life, and church service was amazing. It's faith-promoting to read about someone so committed to doing the right thing. His readers have to respect his commitment to living the high character standards set by his father. I also enjoyed the many photographs that show his growth and his family's changes over the decades.

Elder Busche also shares many faith-promoting stories of people he's known over the years, from business associates to destitute and humble members of his congregation. Their stories and impact on him are fascinating. It's also uplifting to read about the many miracles in his life and how he attributes them to the Lord. The title is apt; he seeks the Lord and continually finds Him.

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Here's a sample from the chapter "Saints of the World." Pages 230-233 - I want to remember this example because it's a beautiful reminder of where our hearts should be! And how differently the world views these issues...

In the early yeas of my membership I had the opportunity to counsel with one young sister who was going to get married. She was about twenty-nine years old and was a refugee. She was very educated, articulate, and talented. She had also been on a mission. She had met a young member who was just twenty-one. He had hardly any education and was a blue-collar worker. Not only was he much younger than she was, but he was also much shorter.

I saw nothing wrong with them getting together because I feel that when two people are committed to the gospel of Jesus Christ, all other aspects do not mater. I believe that under the influence of the Spirit, any marriage can become a success. They were married in the temple. However, about a year later, the sister came to me again and said, "I've made a terrible mistake." She was crying and said, "I cannot go through with this." I was shocked. I felt, in my innocence, that there was no way anyone could get out of a temple marriage, remembering the text that I had read in the scriptures and also the words we receive in the temple endowment. I wanted to help, and so I listened carefully and sought communication with the Spirit.

I was finally prompted to ask her a couple of questions. I asked her, "Sister, do you have a testimony of the Lord Jesus Christ?" She said, "Yes." I asked her then, "Do you keep all of the sacred covenants that you have received in the holy house of the Lord?" She answered, "I think so." I asked her to tell me about her husband. "Does he believe in the Lord Jesus Christ?" Again she said, "I think so." I asked her if he lived in harmony with the covenants of the temple. Once more she answered in the affirmative.

Then I heard myself say, "I remember that we talked earlier, before you were married. You came to me with questions about the purpose of your life as a church member living away from the center of the Church and with no prospects of marriage. I remember that we had this conversation once. I hear you complaining now about your husband, how clumsy he is and how you suffer from his lack of education, how you cannot have a stimulating conversation with him, and how he does not like the same kind of music you like, and other things. Could it be that you have a wonderful opportunity here? Could it be that we are not meant to find ourselves but to lose ourselves?

"Instead of looking at all of the things that separate you from your husband, you have the great opportunity to see inside of him and see the hidden beauty because he is, like yourself, a child of God. Therefore, he has the potential of a god in him, but the only way it can grow inside of him is if he finds someone who loves him and who looks through his behavior, his lack of education, who sees the beauty of his character and the beauty of his spirit. He needs someone who treats him as if he were already at that level where he would be acceptable to you. Could that be the purpose of your life, to help bring this man to the celestial kingdom?"

I could see that my words did not sit well with her. She took it like swallowing a bitter pill. She was obviously not happy about my counsel. Yet thirty-five years later, when Sister Busche and I were in a stake conference, we saw a couple sitting in the congregation who caught my attention. On both sides sat children and grandchildren. I was touched by the tender love I observed between the husband and wife, and then I noticed that she was considerably taller than her husband. Suddenly, it struck me, can this be the same couple from all those years before? I saw them cuddling together, she holding his hand and looking at him with a tender awareness of her partner's strength and dignity. As I continued to be fascinated by them, I recognized that she was indeed the one with whom I had talked to many years earlier, who had left my office so distraught. With the greatest feelings of joy, I was permitted to witness that, yes, she had done it. I could now see that she would not give up her husband for anything in the world.

I learned that he had become successful in his building and construction career. Their children and grandchildren were all together, smiling and happy. We must understand the reality of the Living God and what He, through His Spirit, can do in our lives, when we focus on him and do the things that He will whisper to our souls. The things that look too difficult for us to master are in reality opportunities for growth. For me, this sister will always stand as an example of how we can turn a challenge into a great success when we focus totally and completely on the Living God. I wish that we would all learn from that wonderful sister who has glorified her life by not wondering, "What's in it for me?" but by asking, "What does the Lord want me to do?"

Letters of a Woman Homesteader by Elinore Pruitt Stewart

At a Laramie boomers' reunion in October of 2010, Lona brought each of us a copy of this slim little book. She loved it and wanted to share it with us. As I read it, I understood why Lona loved it so. This homesteader is a lot like Lona! She's resourceful, brave, and a very hard worker.

I love the fact that these are a real woman's words describing her real experiences. It gave me a greater appreciation for all of my creature comforts! This woman was also incredibly brave and generous as she interacted with her neighbors and her harsh climate. In one chapter, "Among the Mormons," she encounters a polygamist group and the description is lamentable... It does give a glimpse, though into their lives and shows perhaps some of the reasons the practice was discontinued.

Here's an excerpt showing how this pioneer spent her days: "I have done most of my cooking at night, have milked seven cows every day, and have done all the hay-cutting, so you see I have been working. But I have found time to put up thirty pints of jelly and the same amount of jam for myself. I used wild fruits, gooseberries, currants, raspberries, and cherries. I have almost two gallons of cherry butter, and I think it delicious... There was a tang of sage and of pine in the air, and our horse was midside deep in rabbitbrush, a shrub covered with flowers that look and smell like goldenrod. The blue distance promised many alluring adventures, so we went along singing and simply gulping in summer."

That description is SO Wyoming! It probably stood out for me, because after living ten years in Laramie, I knew what she meant about "gulping" in summer! It's entirely too short there, so you savor every moment. A truly joyous book, rich desciptions, and wonderful real people as characters. This is a treasure. I only wish she had written more letters so we'd have a deeper look at her life and thoughts.