Salt Lake Temple at sunset. Shot at 50mm to catch the sun breaking through—lighting the place where covenants begin and where light reminds me to endure.
Excerpt
Don’t dream it’s over. The fight is not done.
Intro
Easter came quietly this year. No crowd, no noise—just stillness and reflection. As I listened to General Conference, one message stayed with me: love—not just when it’s easy, but especially when it’s hard.
Notes from President Dallin H. Oaks
“Today we might say that we are commanded to love our adversaries. All mortals are beloved children of God.”
“As followers of Christ, let us follow Him by forgoing contention and by using the language and methods of peacemakers.”
Perspective
“The worth of souls is great in the sight of God.” —Doctrine and Covenants 18:10
“Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God.” —Matthew 5:9
Practice (today, not someday)
Today I choose to love without contention. To stand firm without becoming harsh. To help without expecting anything in return. To be a peacemaker… even when it’s not easy.
Final Reflection
Loving others is not weakness. It is discipline.
It does not mean surrendering truth— but choosing peace over pride, and patience over reaction.
Easter reminds me that because of Him, death is not the end… and neither are our struggles.
There is more ahead. So I keep going.
Pocket I’m Keeping
Choose to be a peacemaker. Always.
What I Hear Now
“We can follow the example of Jesus Christ… by choosing to love others—even if they show little or no love toward us.”
“Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” —Matthew 11:28
Oquirrh Temple under the snow moon. A quiet reminder that the light stays, even on nights that hurt.
Excerpt
“From the bed of pain, from the pillow wet with tears, we are lifted heavenward by that divine assurance and precious promise: ‘I will not fail thee, nor forsake thee.’”
“Oh, sweet the joy this sentence gives: ‘I know that my Redeemer lives!’”
Intro
Some losses come quietly. Others come with shock.
When I lost my father on my birthday, I learned what it means to cry and still stand. This week, as death again entered my family circle, President Thomas S. Monson’s words returned to me like an anchor dropped in deep water.
Death has visited my life more than once. Each time feels different. Each time cuts differently. And yet, the promise remains unchanged.
He will not fail us. He will not forsake us. And because He lives, those we love live also.
Notes from President Thomas S. Monson
President Monson spoke from personal grief. When his beloved wife Frances passed away, he did not speak as a distant theologian. He spoke as a husband who said, “To say that I miss her does not begin to convey the depth of my feelings.”
Yet he declared:
“I know that our separation is temporary… This is the knowledge that sustains me.”
He reminded us that suffering is universal. No life is free from sorrow. The question is not whether we will suffer. The question is whether we will falter or finish.
He pointed to Job, stripped of everything, who still declared:
“I know that my Redeemer liveth.”
President Monson taught that trials refine us. They do not destroy us unless we allow them to. “Good timber does not grow with ease.” Strength is forged in storm.
And in another sacred testimony, he declared:
“Because our Savior died at Calvary, death has no hold upon any one of us.”
Death is not extinction. It is transition. “He is not here, but is risen.”
And because He rose, so shall we.
Perspective
When I saw death up close again, I felt shaken. Grief does that. It is real. It is heavy.
But President Monson’s voice steadied me.
“Whether it is the best of times or the worst of times, He is with us.”
That is not poetic language. That is covenant language.
I have lost my father. I have lost my younger brother. I have lost my grandson. Now my sister-in-law.
Each loss has a different intensity. Each one leaves a different imprint.
Yet the doctrine remains constant.
“If a man die, shall he live again?”
“If a man die, he shall live again.”
That is not wishful thinking. That is Resurrection truth.
Practice (today, not someday)
Today I will not demand that grief disappear.
Today I will:
Pray even when my voice trembles. Listen to hymns that remind my heart of heaven. Speak hope to my children when they feel unsettled. Choose to believe that separation is temporary.
I will remember that enduring does not mean suppressing pain. It means walking through it with faith intact.
Today I finish. I do not falter.
Final Reflection
President Monson said, “This is the knowledge that sustains.”
Not eliminates sorrow. Not removes tears. Sustains.
There is a difference.
From the pillow wet with tears, we are lifted heavenward.
That lifting is real.
Because He lives, death is not a wall. It is a door.
Pocket I’m Keeping
“He will not fail thee, nor forsake thee.”
“I know that my Redeemer liveth.”
Those two promises together are enough.
What I Hear Now
“I will not fail thee, nor forsake thee.”
“Because our Savior died at Calvary, death has no hold upon any one of us.”
“Oh, sweet the joy this sentence gives: I know that my Redeemer lives.”
a monarch resting on a sunflower — a living parable of light, patience, and lift.
Excerpt
When trials feel like too much, remember: the Lord proves us to strengthen us. Like a butterfly on a sunflower, we are held up by light we didn’t make and warmth we didn’t earn.
Intro
Elder Henry B. Eyring taught that through the glorious Atonement, Jesus Christ knows exactly how to succor us. Strength doesn’t grow in comfort; it grows when we feel stretched beyond what we thought we could bear. If we continue in faith — especially when it feels impossible — we become spiritually stronger.
Notes from Conference (Oct 5, 2025 General Conference)
Christ can succor perfectly because He has felt every mortal challenge.
Proving times are strengthening times, not signs of abandonment.
Discipleship is continuing — never giving up, always trying again in Him.
Faith while it’s hard invites His power to change us.
Perspective
God is mindful — of sunflowers and butterflies, and even more of souls. Elder Neal A. Maxwell reminded us that there are more stars than grains of sand, yet “souls matter more than stars.” If heaven attends to sparrows and petals, it will not forget your name, your tears, or your next step.
Practice (today, not someday)
Whisper a prayer of trust: “Lord, I choose to keep trying.”
Do one small act of goodness for someone who can’t repay you.
Write a line of gratitude for help you didn’t expect.
Sit in a patch of light — outside or by a window — and breathe until your shoulders lower.
Final Reflection
The Atonement is not just rescue; it is renewable strength. Trials may bend us, but in Christ they do not break us. Keep turning your face to the light. He will meet you where courage runs thin and hope begins again.
Pocket I’m Keeping
“Proving is strengthening.” When the wind rises, roots go deeper.
What I Hear Now
Be steadfast. Keep moving toward Me. I know how to carry you.
Night setup: Nikon 14–24mm f/2.8G on tripod • Manual/Bulb • 30-second exposure • f/2.8 • ISO 2400
Excerpt It struck on a day I never expected—like the day I lost my father, on my birthday. The same jolt ⚡️ twice. Bitter and sweet at once.
Intro Some experiences arrive unannounced and unforgettable. The day held joy—time with loved ones, a wonderful dinner, thoughtful gifts 🎁 (I treasure shirts and cologne and keep them for years). Yet the soul-stretching overshadowed the sweetness, and the ache still lingers.
Notes from Elder Neal A. Maxwell • “It takes time to prepare for eternity.” • God customizes our curriculum—He gives what we need, not always what we like. • Discipleship is daily; steady choosing matters more than dramatic moments. • Meekness is strength under control. • Cheerfully submit: trust His timing and tutoring. • Be grounded and settled in Christ to endure well, not just long.
Perspective The lingering pain doesn’t mean I failed; it means the lesson matters. Like completed IT projects etched in memory, some days don’t fade—they shape.
Practice (today, not someday) • Pause to breathe and pray before I speak. • Trade rumination for one small act of service. • Write three lines of gratitude (including a gift I’ll lovingly keep). • Use meek words with firm boundaries.
Final Reflection Bitter because it hurt. Sweet because love showed up. Both can be true while God stretches my capacity for trust and kindness.
Pocket I’m keeping “Customized by a loving Father.” Not random storms—tailored tutoring.
What I hear now Be still. Do the next right thing. Let Me do the shaping.
Super Blood Moon over the Los Angeles California Temple — not visible in America last night, so I pulled this in-camera Nikon double exposure from my archives (Oct 2014). Thinking celestial means taking the long view: steps, stars, and a witness in the heavens.
Excerpt President Nelson invites us to “think celestial”—to take the long, eternal view where today’s choices shape forever.
Intro President Russell M. Nelson taught that God’s plan is “fabulous,” that our choices matter eternally, and that the Savior’s Atonement makes that plan possible. His invitation: adopt the practice of “thinking celestial.”
Straight line (what he’s saying) • “The baseless notion that we should ‘eat, drink, and be merry …’ is one of the most absurd lies in the universe.” • “I invite you to adopt the practice of ‘thinking celestial’! … ‘to be spiritually-minded is life eternal.’” • “Mortality is a master class” in choosing what matters most. “Your choices today will determine … where you will live throughout all eternity, the kind of body … [and] those with whom you will live forever.” • “Only men and women who are sealed … in the temple, and who keep their covenants, will be together throughout the eternities.” • If we choose telestial laws now, we choose a telestial glory then. • “How and where and with whom do you want to live forever? You get to choose.” • “Take the long view—an eternal view. Put Jesus Christ first … your eternal life is dependent upon your faith in Him and in His Atonement.” • “When you are confronted with a dilemma, think celestial! … When the pressures of life crowd in upon you, think celestial!”
Final reflection Thinking celestial reframes today: my calendar becomes covenant practice, my setbacks become schooling, and my worship becomes preparation for where—and with whom—I want to live forever.
Pocket I’m keeping • Begin with the end in mind (celestial family). • Choose temple time and covenant keeping first. • Guard agency—avoid anything that becomes a “god.” • Pray beyond a shopping list; seek revelation. • Take the long view when hurt, hurried, or tempted.
What I hear now Tonight I’m posting an archival blood-moon shot and taking the eternal view. The moon changes phase; covenants point to permanence. Think celestial.
