She gave the most compelling and unique talk I had ever heard on prayer.
It was not a traditional, "pray, and your prayers will be answered." It was insightful, thought-provoking, and powerful. It still resonates in my mind, and I have all the scripture references she used in the front of my scriptures labeled, "from Beverly's talk."
From that talk, shortly after she moved into the ward, we saw each other, spoke, and I certainly admired her from afar.
Then, one of the greastest blessings of my life occurred when she was hired to work in the media center where I also worked. Going to work every day was sheer joy because we worked, yes, but she made it so incredibly fun.
It was not a traditional, "pray, and your prayers will be answered." It was insightful, thought-provoking, and powerful. It still resonates in my mind, and I have all the scripture references she used in the front of my scriptures labeled, "from Beverly's talk."
From that talk, shortly after she moved into the ward, we saw each other, spoke, and I certainly admired her from afar.
Then, one of the greastest blessings of my life occurred when she was hired to work in the media center where I also worked. Going to work every day was sheer joy because we worked, yes, but she made it so incredibly fun.
I'm thinking of the day we had to check the status of every student in the school and sync them with two computers. So, she - from the back office - read 300 plus names to me in the front office - all in French. Oh, we had some laughs that day and many, many days.
There was a humongous wall space in the library and she made the most amazing bulletin boards...they are legendary. She didn't just buy pre-made posters from the teacher's store and pin them up. No, she spent hours designing and creating masterpieces to put up on the large wall. (I don't even want to remember the day she fell from the ladder and lay sprawled across the kiva steps...that is a very dark day in my memory.)
(This is just a sample of her famous work...those little dots you see are Christmas lights...can you imagine the time to poke those little suckers through the paper...the kids LOVED this bulletin board. The yellow papers surrounding the picture are lists of kids who had read the first book when in came out.)However, not only is she incredibly fun, but deeply spiritual. She helped me to understand the Atonement and its value in every day life. When she had a very significant trial in her life, she was humble, vigilant, even more prayerful, and grateful for the beauties of life.
Oh, she is a great one! And, I feel so blessed to have worked with her.
I no longer work in the library. I no longer live in her ward, but I will be forever grateful for those brief years we worked side-by-side; sharing laughter, heartache, jokes, and most of all chocolate.
Happy, Happy Birthday, dear friend Beverly!
2 comments:
Thank you, Loni. This post made me smile from the inside out! What fun times we had. I couldn't even say I was going to "work" in the mornings--I had to say I was going to "play"! I remember a few times when the students had to tell US to be quiet in the library, we'd be laughing so hard. There's not a day I don't think of you. Every time I type in our chocolate password I remember my dear friend, Loni!
There is nothing better than having a friend who "gets you!" And even likes you in spite of it. Count yourself among the lucky!
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