One true friend

Today in church one of the teachers asked why we sometimes treat our family worse than we treat complete strangers. I have often wondered about this idea. Various answers come to mind: our families know our weaknesses and they still have to love us, we spend the most time with them, they don't expect us to change, we forget our manners, etc. Although I have only been married for a little over a year, I think I have a few ideas of how to have a healthy and enjoyable marriage. My ideas come from various people I have observed and from my own experiences.

Here are some of my ideas: (They may not work for every marriage but they've worked for us)
1. Be kind (Bring flowers, write a note, give a hug)
2. Mind your manners (Say please and thank you)
3. Say "I love you" throughout the day
4. Get interested (Learn about the each others likes and dislikes)
5. Communicate (Talk about everything)
6. Listen (Don't just listen with your ears but with your heart)
7. Take time for one another (Go on a walk or do your favorite things together)
8. Say "I am sorry" (Humility is key to every marriage)
9. Laugh
10. Touch (A simple touch is worth a million dollars when it is from the right person)

From my mission companionships and my marriage, I have learned to not only love but respect the person you are with. You may not always understand each other but you should always try. One time when I was angry with a companion on my mission, I yelled at her and said mean things that to this day I regret. After yelling at her, she didn't say anything, she just got up and went to the bathroom. I heard her cry and something inside me broke. It was in that moment that I felt a strong impression that I had hurt one of God's daughters. I decided then that I never wanted to hurt another person. This lesson has stuck with me throughout the years. It helps me in my marriage. Whenever I have been frustrated, instead of yelling and getting angry, I breathe and remember that simple lesson. Tim is one of God's children and I would never want to hurt him. I believe this lesson will also help me with my children.

As we continued to talk in church, I thought of a lettere Joseph Smith wrote to his wife while he was being held prisoner in Missouri. He wrote, " My dear and beloved companion of my bosom in tribulation and affliction. I would inform you that I am well and that we are all of us in good spirits as regards our own fate...I have great anxiety about you and my lovely children...Those little children are subjects of my meditation continually. Tell them that Father is yet alive. God grant that he may see them again. O Emma, ...do not forsake me nor the truth, but remember me; if I do not meet you again in this life, may God grant that we may meet in heaven. I cannot express my feelings; my heart is full. Farewell, O my kind and affecionate Emma. I am yours forever, your husband and true friend."

This was not Joseph's last letter to Emma, but it seems like it. Joseph treated Emma with the sincerest kind of love a man can show his wife. I love how he ends the letter..."I am yours forever, your husband and true friend." Shouldn't our spouse be our truest friend? I think so. Luckily for me, Tim is my best friend and always shows me love and kindness.

These pictures are some of my favorites of me and Tim over the past year. The first one is our Valentine's date. The second one was taken at a wedding. The third is from our trip out east. And the last two are our most recent. We went on a walk in the canyon to enjoy the colorful leaves. Mya was also with us, but I already posted those pictures.