Guilt-Free R & R, Granny Sue-Style

Every year, right around this time, I get excited about something that does my body and soul even more good than taking a vacation. In fact, it IS a vacation, in its way––a spiritual one––and it does me more good than a week at the beach, a few days in the mountains, or a much-needed trip with good friends (which is saying a LOT, by the way, because all of these are a great boost to my spirit).

Of course, readers who happen to be members of my church already know what I've been looking forward to with such enthusiasm on this first weekend in October. Since the majority of my readers are not Mormon, however, I will spill the beans. Tomorrow begins the 181st Semiannual General Conference of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, which is held in Salt Lake City, Utah, but can be seen via satellite at selected LDS chapels throughout the world. Personally, I choose to sit in my favorite chair and watch it on cable TV (also available on satellite or dish), because I love the warm, uplifting feeling it brings into my home. The four separate but equally inspired sessions can be viewed Saturday and Sunday at 10 am and 2 pm MDT, which means I'll be watching an hour earlier in California. Eight golden hours of guilt-free rest and rejuvenation! Ahhhhhh. The speakers are current church leaders, all of whom have fasted and prayed about the topics and subject matter presented.

What I love best about conference is its direct relevance to my life. Years of experience as a listener have taught me to expect the very truths and insights I've been seeking most earnestly to come my way at this time. Invariably, one or more of the talks speaks directly to my heart, often as an answer to prayer, but occasionally as an aha! moment that turns on a light bulb I didn't even know existed. It seems that the Lord always gives me what I need, and general conference is one vehicle He uses to deliver it. All I have to do is be there to receive the goods, and you can bet that I have pen and paper in hand to jot down a few notes. Especially now that my special "menopause memory" has made its unwelcome appearance.

General conference also inspires me creatively, and I frequently write a poem or poems afterward. One of these pieces, a favorite of mine, is "He Walked Alone," based on "None Were With Him," a reverent and riveting conference address by Jeffrey R. Holland (April 2009). Elder Holland, who was President of Brigham Young University before becoming an apostle, has a Master's Degree in Religious Education from BYU and a Master's Degree and PhD from Yale in American Studies. Don't you love when intelligence and inspiration come together? I do!

So, if anyone is looking for me this weekend, I'll be snuggled into my most comfy chair with a soft blanket, a college-ruled notebook, and a smooth-gliding pen...charging up my batteries on a vacation that doesn't cost a thing but pays off big.

Care to join me?

=)

"Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal: For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also" (Matthew 6: 19-21).