My Vineyard


This past Sunday, we were talking with my in-laws about the allegory of the olive tree in the Book of Jacob. We discussed how each of us has a unique part of the vineyard that we are working in, and that it changes with our season of life. We can’t compare our vineyards or our work with others, we have to follow the Spirit and do what it is we are called to do. This got me thinking; what is my vineyard? Am I doing enough? What can I do better?
I love to write poetic verse. It really ends up being a jumble of thoughts on paper, but it helps me to understand my testimony and myself. As I contemplated my own vineyard, this is what I felt about my season of life. I shared these thoughts with my husband and he agrees that though our Vineyard may seem boring to some, it is a work we LOVE doing and a place we were made to be. 

MY VINEYARD

My vineyard is small and quaint.
It sees few visitors, though all are welcome.
The work looks less like plucking branches and more like dishes,
laundry,
singing,
reading,
praying over bowls of Cheerios,
and talking over casseroles.
The Master always keeps a close eye and offers a helping hand on both sunny and rainy days.
My vineyard may look different than the vineyard of a full time missionary,
a bishop,
or a loving grandmother.
My vineyard is that of a working mother.
The day’s work always looks different and the hours never seem to cease.
I share the gospel with cranky coworkers in downtime conversation,
and I share the gospel with crying babies as I lull them to sleep.
My home is a vineyard that I work in day and night.
It is a place of partnership and dedication.
We love,
and we gather,
and we prune away the things that draw us away from our Master.
Here, the spirit does not sleep.
Here, the growing continues.
Here, we gather together as we gather His sheep.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Week 3: The Sanctity of Marriage

A couple of weeks ago our prophet, President Russell M. Nelson shared a special message with us as church members in a broadcast. My husband and I listened to his address together later that evening when we returned home from work. Being so close to General Conference, we knew his words had to be important if he was making such an effort to share them now. President Nelson shared a message of God’s love and the unchanging truth of His gospel. The words shared were riveting and soul calming, they were truly inspired by our Heavenly Father. As we can see from our reading this week, the world focuses on the now more than on an eternal perspective. Many of God’s children are unaware of His love for them and what that can mean for their personal salvation. As the world gets further away from God’s plan, we can rely on the truths of this gospel to keep us on the right path. The truths of the gospel are unchanging, including those in relation to same sex relations. I would like to share th...
Read more

Week 10: Seeking to Understand

At the conclusion of Gottman’s book, he shares with us his “marital poop detector”. Gottman uses the marital poop detector to find early warning signs of something not smelling quite right in a marriage. When I was reading, I thought of a favorite saying from high school, (back when things like poop were funny). Anytime someone would say, “Does that make sense?” or something of the sort, we would respond with, “yeah I’m smelling what you’re stepping in.” As funny as this may have been, it’s applicable to marriage in that we need to be on the same page with our spouse, especially when things are turning sour. If I’ve learned anything from Gottman and Goddard this semester, it is the importance of communication in any relationship, but especially marriage; the marital poop detector is no different. Being able to sense when things are off in our relationships before they escalate to a point of no return is a powerful tool. But how can we achieve this? How can we smell the poop? (Are yo...
Read more

Week 5: Do You Believe in Magic?

Eight positive interactions were defined and introduced in the blog post, “The Magical Relationship Ratio, According to Science”, from The Gottman Institute. These interactions include: Be interested, express affection, demonstrate they matter, intentional appreciation, find opportunities for agreement, empathize and apologize, accept your partners perspective, and make jokes (but not at their expense). I consciously put these actions to the test in my own marriage this week and recorded the outcomes; here are a few of my findings and experiences. Be interested: My husband loves the world of fitness and spends a lot of his free time working out, studying for nutrition and training certifications, or researching new techniques. He follows the lives of several famous athletes through social media and often tells me about their latest P.R. or torn ligaments. I usually just nod and “mhm” through the conversation until he notices my disinterest and changes the conversation. This week I ...
Read more