"The Law of the Harvest"

Yesterday was an upsetting day for me. I was gone all day running errands. First I went with Candi to a couple of places and then to the doctor to get her foot looked at. She had an infected toe that was killing her and after going to Urgent Care on Sunday and still no better, she decided to see her foot surgeon. They worked her in and had to do surgery to get the toenail out that was causing the problem. I hope she is doing better today because as a hairdresser she stands on her feet all day long. After being home about 45 minutes I left with Mindi to drop Tristyn off at volleyball practice at ASU and then we went to visit my Dad in Scottsdale while my Mom works in the temple. Mindi and I love to visit with him and are thankful as his 83rd birthday approaches on Sunday he is still with us. During the day I had learned of an unpleasant incident that happened earlier in the day. I was trying really hard to not let it get to me, but as I got more and more information I realized what a poor job of parenting I did. I think when we get married we have good intentions of being the best wife and mother but in reality that is impossible at least it was for me. As I woke up at 4:30 a.m. this morning still feeling like I was going down to the depths of hell I remembered a story from a book I read when I first got sick 26 years ago. I was struggling with some scary health problems when I realized that most of my sickness was caused by my inability to forgive. The Greer's are notorious "grudge holders" maybe not all the Greer's, but this one for sure. In this book it talks about how the principle of forgiveness works. "When any serious grievance takes place, the Lord requires us to forgive the guilty party the moment the infraction occurs, if possible." Then he goes on to talk about an experiment they did at a rattlesnake farm near Salem, Oregon. One of the caretakers took one of his large rattlesnakes and put a forked stick behind its head so it could not coil to strike. Then he began to tantalize it with small chicks and other food. The snake kept trying to coil unsuccessfully, and venom dripped quite freely from its fangs. Within minutes the snake stiffened and died. "The caretaker then commented that a rattlesnake can stand just about anything except its own venom. When it cannot discharge the venom as fast as it is produced, it dies of its own accumulated poison. When you have any resentment, hurt, bitterness, or hatred in your heart, regardless of the cause, if you do not get rid of it at once through the spirit of forgiveness, the hatred will continue to fester and grow and increase, since that is the basic Law of the Harvest." As I talked to my Dad about my failure as a wife and mother all he said was, "I wouldn't take all the blame." Thanks Dad, maybe I'll just blame you and Mom.