"TO THE RESCUE..."

I was asked to give a talk at our Windsor Stake Relief Society Spring Event a few weeks ago.  The assigned subject was Visiting Teaching as it relates to rescuing.   I was asked to reference Elder Mervyn B. Arnold's talk in April 2016 General Conference AND since the Event theme was Alice in Wonderland's famous statement, "Which way should I choose?" I was also supposed to work Tweedle Dum and Tweedle Dee into the whole mix.  WHEW! 

I was very  pleased to receive the assignment.  After having been in the Arvada Stake for 35 years and having had a fairly good reputation for being a remarkable teacher and speaker there, it has taken a long time here in the Johnstown area for my circle of influence to widen.  This invitation made me feel like I was finally a part of the stake.  And, I think it also helped that our newly created Windsor Stake was cut off from the part of the Greeley Stake that had all the established "go-to" people who were the speakers and leaders over and over and over since I moved here 13 years ago.

Anyway, it was a fun task.  It wasn't overwhelming or daunting.   Elder Arnold's remarks were divided into four sections as to how we could help in the Lord's efforts to rescue any and all who need rescuing, though some may not even know they need that helping hand. After rereading his talk, I immediately thought of personal experiences I have had as a  Visiting Teacher or a Visiting Teachee--especially in regard to my calling to write to the no-contact sisters which I have done for the past 16 years now.  I used some of those experiences to illustrate each of those four directives.  And I managed to work in the  Tweedle Dum and Tweedle Dee slant, too.  (The other speakers had to reference the Mad Hatter and some other parts of Alice in Wonderland's famous characters and situations.)

It wasn't even scary to deliver the talk!  These experiences were so much a part of me that I just stood up and began sharing the stories that were so remarkable in my more than 50 years as a visiting teacher and a visiting teachee. 

Most gratifying was that my comments resonated with so many sisters.  Not only at the luncheon afterward, but also since, as I have seen sisters in the stake at church and social functions several have expressed to me that my words and experiences helped them see Visiting Teaching in a different light.  One woman even asked me at  a local store in Johnstown if I were Georgia Nichols.  When I replied in the affirmative, she told me it was the BEST talk of the program and it made visiting teaching sound like a wonderful thing to be involved in rather than just a monthly item to do.  I even got notes in the mail.  (Something I loved!)

Spirit speaks to spirit.  And it did that rainy day "down the rabbit hole" where we all shared Alice's adventures in Wonderland.  It was clear we learned which way we should choose to go:  to the temple, to our family history, and TO THE RESCUE!