You can do this

Last weekend I went to camp! It was a Relief Society Retreat; we went to the Heber Valley Camp, 50 women, 2 Babies (and 2 Priesthood Holders just in case we got ourselves into trouble and needed some help.) There was wonderful food, Great Entertainment (we had a musical presentation about the 10 Virgins, I was unwise, I cried), and a Challenge course that included a 30-foot high ropes course. There was also lots of fun in the Cabin on Friday night, we played games, talked and laughed until around 2 in the morning. I didn’t bring the camera, but there was someone taking pictures of us while we did the Ropes Course and as soon as I find them I will post a picture as proof that I was 30 feet in the air, walking on a very small rope.

Now that I told you about that I have to tell you about a feeling I had while at the retreat. I spent a lot of time with our Relief Society President, I had been her Enrichment Counselor when we started planning this retreat and I also got to ride up with her to Heber. She is an amazing woman, she has been our president for almost 3 years and in that time she has had her 4th child and is now pregnant with her 5th (she made that announcement to me at Albertson’s and to the sisters in the ward as we talked way too loudly in the cabin at 1 AM). I was surprised by an impression I had while I spent time with her, the feeling was basically, “You can do this”, at first I said “What, I can be Relief Society President? I think not” But then the impression kept coming at different times. As I was at the challenge course the feeling of “You can do this” helped me volunteer to be the next to climb the 30 foot pole an then walk across the small rope (I was harnessed in so there was no chance of me falling to my death- it was still scary enough to make my legs shake quite violently). I returned home and had the same quiet peace several more times. A few weeks ago I went to the Distribution Center and purchased the new nursery manual “Behold Your Little Ones” and the Missionary Manual “Preach My Gospel”, and on Monday I added these two books to my morning Scriptures study, I switch off every day. I was reading the Introduction to the Nursery Manual on Monday and the thought popped into my head, “You can do this.” And I said, “Yes, I could teach Nursery” (I don’t know why I always think about callings) and then on Tuesday I had a similar experience while reading the intro to Preach My Gospel.

So why am I telling you this? I think that it is because I like the feeling so much. It makes me happy to think that out there somewhere Heavenly Father is watching me, and he loves me enough to let me know, that He knows I can do it. Whatever it is, whatever challenge I am facing today, I can do it. I can do it!

It makes me wonder about the baby- does he have that little voice telling him the same thing, when he sees a toy just out of reach does the spirit whisper to him “You can do this” and with that reassurance he can reach just a little farther. Is it because of that little thought that he keeps getting up on his hands and knees? The look on his face when he does this is quite precious, he knows that something is supposed to happen but he doesn’t quite know what to do (he usually goes backwards), but does the he hear “You can do this” and so he tries his best. When he wakes up alone in his room and cries out for Mommy, but Mommy is asleep, or trying her best to give him a chance to learn how to go back to sleep on his own, is that little voice there to say “It’s OK baby, you can do this”. I hope so.

I am going to try my best to remember that I can do it, whatever it is, I am sure I won’t hear “You can do this” forever, but I hope that I can ingrain it so deeply into my mind that that at least the feeling is always with me.