This Little Piggy Had Roast Beef

The great Relief Society leaders in our ward started out the year with a really cute idea. Each month for five months, they would have an activity related to the children's rhyme, This Little Piggy. For example, in January, they talked about This Little Piggy Went to Market. They met at a grocery store and had a nutritionist talk about good choices, ways to eat healthy on a budget, etc. In February, for This Little Piggy Stayed Home, they had a professional organizer come in and talk about home organization.

This month we had our R.S. Birthday party dinner. What did we have? Roast Beef, of course! They asked me to give a little talk. I never in a million years thought I'd ever be given a topic called, "This Little Piggy had Roast Beef!" But what fun it turned out to be! Here's my talk. It ends with a video that I've shared here on my blog before, but I thought I'd put it on here again, cause I love it so much.

This little piggy had roast beef.

Did you notice that it wasn’t This little piggy had hot dogs? Or This little piggy had fruit loops?

Why roast beef?

I think this piggy is a go-getter. He didn’t just stay at home like the previous piggy, and he didn’t accept nothing like the piggy that followed him. He wasn’t overly silly like the one that went around yelling wee, wee, wee!

Perhaps he knows what he wants and gets it. Not necessarily in a snobby, prideful way, but rather his self-confidence is secure, he knows who he is, and he takes care of himself. He’s feasting on roast beef and all that’s symbolic of. He doesn’t just go for crumbs.

There once was a woman who had always wanted to go on a cruise. She saved her money for a long time and the day finally came that she was able to buy passage on a her dream cruise. She took a tour of the ship, impressed by all the amenities. When the time came for her dinner reservation, however, she went back to her cabin and ate some cheese and crackers that she had brought with her. She knew that she had spent all of her money just being able to go on the cruise–she didn’t have any left for extravagant feasts. She did this for every meal. As the cruise ended and she was disembarking, the crew was there to say goodbye. She passed one crew member who seemed genuinely confused.

“I am the Food Service Director,” she said, “and I’m so surprised because I never saw you in the dining room. I made an effort to talk to every guest, and yet I’ve never seen you. Did you not eat while you were on board?”

Embarrassed, the woman nodded, and explained, “Well, I spent all I had just to be on the ship, so I knew I couldn’t afford the fancy food you serve. I ate in my cabin at every meal.” At this the Food Service Director looked shocked. “Did you not know?” she asked. “The price of the food was included with your passage. All the meals on the ship were free!”

Can you imagine her dismay when she realized that she could have been feasting on gourmet food, when instead she had been getting by on cheese and crackers?

What about us? Are we feasting on the Spiritual Gifts that Heavenly Father so wants to give to us, or are we settling for cheese and crackers?

As I’ve lived my life, I’ve come to realize that we have a choice. While Heavenly Father soooo desires to lavish us with the spirit, with protection, with Angels watching over us, He will not force it on us. We must ask, and search, and live in such a way as to recognize those blessings when they come.

As an example, I love a scripture, found in D&C 109: 22. This is part of the dedicatory prayer for the Kirtland Temple. It explains what we should expect from our temple service.

"And we ask thee, Holy Father, that thy servants may go forth from this house armed with thy power, and that thy name may be upon them, and thy glory be round about them, and thine angels have charge over them;"

Armed with Power.
Our Father’s name upon us.
Father’s glory round about us.
Angels having charge over us.

Anybody want that?

That, my friends, is the Roast Beef of life. That is the good stuff. Do we ask for and expect that when we go to the Temple? Or are we just quickly trying to make it into the session that starts in two minutes so we don’t have to wait for the next one? Do we spend some time afterwards reflecting, or are we leaving quickly to get down to the cafeteria before it closes? Do we even go enough to experience that?

If we really want to feast on Roast beef and all the accoutrements, instead of just cheese and crackers, we must remember our covenants! They are key to living a Roast Beef life.

There is a protecting power in our covenants. Speaking of those who had made the same covenants we have made, Ammon says in Alma 26:6 &7,

"Yea, they shall not be beaten down by the storm at the last day; yea, neither shall they be harrowed up by the whirlwinds; but when the storm cometh they shall be gathered together in their place, that the storm cannot penetrate to them; yea, neither shall they be driven with fierce winds whithersoever the enemy listeth to carry them.

But behold, they are in the hands of the Lord of the harvest, and they are his; and he will raise them up at the last day."

Now I’m not sure if all this talk about being safe in the storms is literal or figurative, and in light of all the calamities in the world, I sure hope it’s both, but I know that either way that I want this protection. And I KNOW, that this protection is directly correlated to how we keep our covenants.

If we’re living cheese and cracker lives, we’ll get cheese and cracker blessings. If we do our very best and give a Roast Beef effort, He will reciprocate with blessings beyond our imagination.

In closing, I want to share a video that has helped me to think about what constitutes a roast beef effort. It has really helped me as I’ve contemplated what I need to work on to live a better life.



I know that our Savior lives. He wants to bless us with all that He has. He wants us to be a powerful influence for good. As we learn to "live under the complete influence of the Holy Ghost," and strive for the Roast Beef of life, He will not fail us.

A Call for Civility

Me ten feet away from Barack Obama

I’ve given up trying to convince people I am not a Democrat.

The moment a conversation turns political these days, whether it be with acquaintances, friends or family, the pit in my stomach grows. Not because I hate politics. Not even because I feel strongly about a current issue. In fact, most of the time, I agree wholeheartedly with the person about the issue.

I’m just sick of the Hate.

When did it become okay to spew hateful words and comments, questioning the entire moral character of someone with whom you disagree? Why is it acceptable to assume that just because I live in a red state and in a religious culture that values its conservatism, that it’s okay to bash Democrats–especially President Obama– in almost any setting?

For the record, I am a registered Republican. I am pro-life, pro tax-cut, and pro immigration reform. I believe in protecting our First and Second Amendment rights, as well as improving Education. I’m sick of the Welfare/Entitlement mentality of so many Americans, and am not sure what the right action is to solve the unemployment problem. I’m discouraged that Social Security will most likely be gone when I reach retirement age. I think the Bush Administration did the best they could have with what they knew, and am proud of them for keeping another terrorist attack from reaching American soil.

In the liberal land of my native Oregon, most people reading the previous paragraph about my beliefs would agree that I am pretty conservative. But in my social circles, I’m known as the Liberal One. Not really because my stand on any of the issues differs, but because I don’t hate President Obama. I don’t think he is the Spawn of Satan. I don’t believe he has some hidden agenda to socialize the Union. I don’t think he forged his birth certificate, and I believe him when he says he’s a Christian. In fact, although I don’t agree with many of his policies, I admire his attempts at reaching across the aisle to get things done.

It’s usually at this point in a conversation that the person I’m talking with comes to a realization about me. They give me a knowing look that says they’ve figured me out. Often with condescension, they address me as if I’m a naive person who’s been duped by the left-wing media. Either I’m lacking in morals or just not that bright. When I tell them I attended presidential rallies for Obama and Clinton, they are stunned and appalled. (I would have attended McCain, Romney, and heck–even Huckabee!–but they didn’t make it to my neck of the woods)

Here’s the thing: I was raised by an attorney father who taught me to think critically. I was expected to examine all sides of an issue before I made a decision. Even in small things like whether I could go with certain friends to see a certain movie, I was instructed to “present my case” to my parents, and back it up with reason and logic. Perhaps it’s because of this background that I cringe when I hear people blaming Obama for everything from the Swine Flu to bad cell phone reception to long lines in airports (Not kidding. I've heard all these blamed on him). Just because it gets forwarded in an email, or because it was on the news (FOX or CNN), doesn’t mean it’s true.

I honestly thought Republicans would be better. After 8 years of nonsensical Bush-bashing I thought we might be more compassionate toward the new President. But just the opposite has occurred.

We need to remember that it is okay to disagree with someone. Diversity and differences are what make America such an interesting place to live. I wish we could see that there is more than one way of looking at a problem, and that most of the time, there is no black or white answer. Political problems are complicated at best, laced with dangerous consequences at worst. There is no instruction manual, and oftentimes no roadmap from History to follow. Sure there are dishonest people, but why can’t we also concede that most people are just trying to do the best they can with the knowledge and the background they have? In any case, it seems like we should be able to show respect to people who have differing opinions than our own.

Stand up for what you believe? Of course! Just don't weaken your own argument by resorting to name-calling and personal attacks. It lacks class and shows how uneducated you seem to be.

This polarization of America is not making us stronger. It is unity and respect that make us strong. We are becoming weak. I fear that unless we are able to converse civilly, our democracy and way of life are in grave danger.

Go With the Flow

I gave a lesson to my Young Women the other day on Optimism. The lesson pointed out how a go-with-the-flow attitude can help you be happier in the long run. I couldn't help but think of my mom, who is the epitome of go-with-the-flow. She doesn't get rattled when things don't work out the way she wants, she just finds a way to play with the hand she's been dealt.

I found one of my favorite examples of that come-what-may attitude as I was looking through my old journals. Please indulge me as I quote from an entry in my journal, dated February 17, 1990. I was thirteen years old.

Background: Growing up, my dad was the head of our Stake, which is a group of about 6 or 7 church congregations. Every six months we had Stake Conference, and often a General Authority came out from Salt Lake. We had several General Authorities stay with us over the years. It was kind of a big deal to make sure everything was clean and perfect for the visit.

"Today was a fun and busy day. It started at around 7:50. I got up and cleaned, cleaned, and cleaned some more. You see, it is Stake Conference weekend and Elder Pinnock is here. So, finally he got here. We ate lunch. They left for meetings and I had a b-ball game. We lost 71-25.

Then we came home to get the food and stuff for the dinner at the Stake Center. We were on our way out and Mom spilled the stroganoff on the asphalt. She was about to cry. We couldn't think of what to do. Finally, she goes, 'I don't care! We're gonna eat it anyway!' So we went into the kitchen and got a couple measuring cups, and I got another can of mushrooms and she got some more cream of mushroom soup.

'It'll have sour cream anyway, and you know, it was awfully runny.'

Yah! A great way to get rid of the sogginess!!! She took those measuring cups and started scooping that stroganoff off of the ground! We kept it a secret and were hoping no one would bite on a pebble.

Well, at the table, people were complimenting the meal and Dad was all bragging, 'Yah, that's my beef!' Mom and I started cracking up! It was so funny.

After the meeting, we hurried home to park in the same place where mom spilled so it would kind of cover it up. Mom spent many minutes trying to wash it down with the hose, but it didn't work. It was a fun evening.

p.s. Elder Pinnock calls me: Sal Pal Gal"

How could I not have learned to go-with-the-flow from that and the many other experiences I had growing up? What a valuable life lesson! Thanks Mom.