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Love gives itself, it is not bought.

—Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Helping Sick Children

The Young Women of the Rosepine Second Ward, Alexandria Louisiana Stake, know that children need to be entertained even when they are sick. As a service project, the girls raised funds to buy toys, books, and games for the pediatrics ward at the Fort Polk Army Hospital. The hospital playroom is now a more enjoyable place for the young patients due to the efforts of the Rosepine Young Women.

Family Photo Facts

Grab a pencil, dig out the family album, and do future members of your family tree a big favor. Record the facts about each photo on the back of your family’s precious photographs. It’s a simple project that will help enormously in the years to come.

—Get out the photo album or the box of photographs and sit down with a member of the family who is likely to remember the photos. You’ll have a great time hearing the stories and remembering the good times captured on film.

—Use a pencil. Ballpoint pen can ruin the surface of the picture and show through on the front. The best method is to write on a gum-backed label, then attach it to the back of the photo. If you write on the picture itself, write on the back along the edge with pencil. You can write on the paper frames of slides.

—Record the date and place the picture was taken and who is in the picture. Use complete names. Don’t just write “mother” or “grandfather.” It may seem odd to write the complete names on pictures when you know perfectly well who they are, but this type of identification makes the photographs infinitely more valuable to future generations. For others in the photographs, indicate relationships such as friend, cousin, employer, etc.

—If the negative is with the picture, attach it to the back after putting the negative in a glassine envelope. Or put all the negatives of the pictures in the album in an envelope attached to the inside back cover of the album. Negatives are great to have when someone wants a copy of a photo.

In the future remember to record the information on pictures as events occur. Photographs are a valuable part of your family’s history. Make them more valuable by recording the facts while it’s easy to remember the who’s, the where’s, and the when’s.

An Example of Love

by Nancy K. Favero

The Robinsons, a Mormon family, had just moved into a small non-Mormon community. Rumors were flying as the eyebrows went up and the tongues wagged. Even the young people were speculating, and one stated, “They don’t smoke or drink; in fact, they don’t do anything normal people do!”

By the time the curtains closed at the end of the original musical production “An Example of Love,” written and produced by the Bountiful Utah Stake Young Men and Young Women, most of the attitudes in the fictional community were changed and two people were baptized. The audience thundered its approval.

The show was developed around President McKay’s statement “Every member a missionary” and was based on the scripture “But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light” (1 Pet. 2:9). The story depicted a Mormon family who moved into an area where little was known of the life-style of Church members. The reaction of the neighbors was amusing as they learned about food storage containers that doubled as furniture, about a son away on a mission (they suspected he was a spy), and about eight children in the family.

Tryouts were held and over 100 people were auditioned. Ages of cast members varied from four-year-old children to middle-aged adults. There were approximately 150 people involved, including chorus members and assistants behind the scenes. Many young people had their first taste of performing on stage, and some have gone on to develop the talents stimulated by this experience.

The cast and audience were repeatedly surprised and thrilled at the wisdom and maturity written into the dialogue and the teaching moments for members and nonmembers. The insights into human feelings seemed to be far above the youthful writers’ abilities.

When the show closed, tears of joy and gratitude were shed over what the Lord had helped the youth accomplish. One nonmember expressed the desire to be baptized and a young man decided to work toward a mission as a result of their involvement in the show.

The production played four nights to near-capacity audiences in spite of the strong, bone-chilling east winds blowing outside. A small donation was asked for admission, and the youth of the Bountiful Stake donated the proceeds to the building of the Jordan River Temple.

Each of the committee members was able to bear testimony of the value and influence the production had in his or her life. Two statements seemed to echo most of the feelings: “It was one of the greatest learning experiences of my life. I know this Church is true and that we were inspired in all of our writing and directing.” “I’m so glad I was part of ‘An Example of Love’ and that I was able to be proud of it. I will remember it the rest of my life.”

Scripture Goal Attained

Need a scripture reference on the spur of the moment? Janice Adams, 18, can probably give it to you from memory. She reached a goal set by her seminary class of memorizing all 160 scriptures in the four-year curriculum. Others passed off the required scriptures, but only Janice of the Monticello Second Ward, Monticello Utah Stake, is still able to recite them all, including the Joseph Smith story, from memory. She reviews every day to keep her skill sharp. Janice was also the student-body president and Homecoming Queen of her high school.

It’s His Day

The mayor of Milpitas, California, officially declared “Clark Allen Izu Day” recently. Clark, of the San Jose 19th Ward, San Jose California East Stake, was one of the youngest Scouts ever to attain the rank of Eagle. He was awarded his Eagle at age 12 1/2. In honor of his achievement, the mayor declared the day of Clark’s Court of Honor as his special day. For Clark’s Eagle Service project, he solicited materials and coordinated the construction of furniture for his ward’s nursery.

Danish Friendshipper

Mark Jensen, 16, got a taste of missionary life while spending three years in Copenhagen, Denmark. His parents, President and Sister Richard C. Jensen of Bountiful, Utah, were heading up the mission there.

When he was ordained a priest, Mark was able to baptize two Danish friends into the Church. Through a mission basketball program, youth activities, and Mark’s friendship, Kirstine Sorensen and Robin Hansen became interested in the Church.

Alaska Star

Next to serving as seminary president and music leader, Jill Cubbedge of the Kodiak Branch, Alaska Anchorage Mission, loves to play basketball. And she’s good at it. She has been a member of the girls’ varsity basketball team at her high school for four years. Her team won the Alaska State girls’ basketball tournament, and she was named the tournament’s most valuable player. She was also named Alaska State Basketball Player of the Year.

Create a Candy House

Do something sweet this holiday season for younger brothers and sisters or for a special family in the ward or neighborhood. Create an appealing candy house!

A candy house is great fun to make, whether as a family project or with a Young Men or Young Women class. And giving it away can be the best fun of all. Pick out a special group of children—a children’s shelter, a special family, or a child that needs some special attention for Christmas—and make a candy house just for them.

With this method, the creation of a candy house takes only an hour. Plus the house is durable, can withstand being moved, and is relatively inexpensive. You’ll need a cardboard pop bottle carrier, some extra cardboard, tape, icing, and candy.

—Any size cardboard pop bottle carrier will do. Cut a rectangle of cardboard long enough so that it can be bent in the center and placed on top of the handle of the carrier to form a roof. Leave about an inch or two all around for eaves. Before taping the roof to the carrier, take scraps of cardboard and cut triangular pieces to fill in the holes left in the ends of the carrier. Tape those triangles in place first, then tape the roof to the carrier. Your house is ready to frost.

—Mix powdered sugar with water and a little shortening to a thick, spreadable consistency. There is no need to add flavoring since the icing will most likely not be eaten. Add a little red food coloring to make a light pink frosting. Ice and work on only one section of the house at a time. If you frost the whole thing at the same time, it will harden and the candy will not stick.

—Frost under the eaves first. It is easiest to do when you can pick the house up and turn it over. You may also pick up the house to frost the sides.

—Start decorating the walls. Ice with enough frosting to completely cover the cardboard. Add graham crackers for doors and split graham crackers for shutters. Add brightly colored candies under the gables in a brick-like pattern. (You’ll fill in with “mortar” icing later). Place small candy canes on each side of the doors and with a dab of icing add red cinnamon candies to the graham cracker shutters and as door handles.

—Place some of the icing in a waxed paper tube and clip the point or use a cake-decorator’s bag with plain tip. You can fill in between the candies to create mortar and draw the window panes in between the shutters.

—Frost the roof. Cover the roof with any type of hard, flat candy or cookie. Use your icing tube to outline the edges of the roofline. Line the top with round candies, and outline the roof with cinnamon candies.

—You may want to attempt a chimney with pieces of graham crackers and lots of frosting to hold it together. Bits of candy cane complete the look.

Your house is done. You may want to surround it with rolled cotton. Frost ice cream cones with green icing; then place them upside down. Make a path of gumdrops, and stick candy canes in marshmallows to line the path.

Deliver with a large smile and be prepared to get plenty in return.