When Jonathan and I were dating and we decided that "this was the real thing"...the next logical step was to get married. The question of should we get married was easy, but then the question arose of when we should get married? I had overcome quite a few stumbling blocks in my own life and getting married in the temple was extremely important to me. Therefore, my initial thought was that we should get married the following summer after Jonathan had been a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints for a year and I was on summer break from school. Jonathan on the other hand, kept requesting that we get married Thanksgiving weekend. This didn't seem logical or practical to me (especially since all of this transpired in August...only giving us 3 months to plan a wedding and we had only been dating since Memorial Day). I suggested that we pray and fast together about when we should get married...certain that Heavenly Father would definitely want us to be married in "the right place by the right authority". Little did I know that there was a much different plan.
Jonathan and I both began our fast and went to our knees. It wasn't long before I received the answer to my questions, we were to get married Thanksgiving weekend and then to get sealed as soon as we could after that. I was so confused by this answer. It certainly wasn't the answer that I was expecting. So, I went to my knees again and again, asking the Lord why it should be this way? My answer came very directly "I needed to get married now, because there was a very special spirit who had a certain mission they needed to fulfill. A spirit that we needed to be the parents of. They had to be born at this time, in order to be in the right place at the right time to fulfill this mission. This baby would be conceived before we would have the opportunity to go to the temple to have our marriage sealed." That answer was all I needed...without any further questioning, Jonathan and I set the date for Thanksgiving weekend and started our wedding preparations speedily in motion.
(I was indeed 3 months pregnant for Dylan when we were able to go to the Chicago Temple in May of 1995 to receive our endowments and be sealed together as a family. )
My pregnancy for Dylan was far from easy. There was only a couple week span during my pregnancy when I was symptom free. My gallbladder went bad during my pregnancy...so even when Dylan was born, I still struggled with horrible pain and illness. Dylan screamed throught the night every night until he was three months old. We moved into our new house, and suddenly the crying at night stopped. Dylan was the most sweet, lovable little guy from that time on. He and I have always had a "connection"...understanding each other's needs and what makes the other "tick".
Through the years as I have watched Dylan grow, that experience I had so many years ago has remained in the back of my mind. I understand the great trust and responsibility that my Heavenly Father was placing in us by sending us the children that He has. I've endeavored to teach them correct principles, so that one day they might be able to govern themselves and be prepared for all that they are meant to do.
Dylan is such a great kid with a good head on his shoulders. He is so creative and puts his whole heart in to whatever he is interested in. He has a great heart and can be very giving. When he found out about the misfortune of a classmate having their house burned down...he asked me if I would be willing to take him to the bank to withdraw money from his savings so that he could donate toward a fund to help her family. Unfortunately, he is also a little too much like his mother in his stubbornness and need to test out rules and theories before blindly following them. He has his challenging moments and he doesn't do anything unless he deems it is the thing he wants to be doing, but I am learning that these moments are just temporary set backs...they certainly don't define who he is, but rather (depending on what he learns from them) can become important tools in growth and maturity that develops him into the person he can become. I know Dylan has so much greatness in him and he has so much to offer this world. I am so grateful for the opportunity to have him in my life and to be touched by all of the things that he teaches me through being his mother.
Jonathan and I both began our fast and went to our knees. It wasn't long before I received the answer to my questions, we were to get married Thanksgiving weekend and then to get sealed as soon as we could after that. I was so confused by this answer. It certainly wasn't the answer that I was expecting. So, I went to my knees again and again, asking the Lord why it should be this way? My answer came very directly "I needed to get married now, because there was a very special spirit who had a certain mission they needed to fulfill. A spirit that we needed to be the parents of. They had to be born at this time, in order to be in the right place at the right time to fulfill this mission. This baby would be conceived before we would have the opportunity to go to the temple to have our marriage sealed." That answer was all I needed...without any further questioning, Jonathan and I set the date for Thanksgiving weekend and started our wedding preparations speedily in motion.
(I was indeed 3 months pregnant for Dylan when we were able to go to the Chicago Temple in May of 1995 to receive our endowments and be sealed together as a family. )
My pregnancy for Dylan was far from easy. There was only a couple week span during my pregnancy when I was symptom free. My gallbladder went bad during my pregnancy...so even when Dylan was born, I still struggled with horrible pain and illness. Dylan screamed throught the night every night until he was three months old. We moved into our new house, and suddenly the crying at night stopped. Dylan was the most sweet, lovable little guy from that time on. He and I have always had a "connection"...understanding each other's needs and what makes the other "tick".
Through the years as I have watched Dylan grow, that experience I had so many years ago has remained in the back of my mind. I understand the great trust and responsibility that my Heavenly Father was placing in us by sending us the children that He has. I've endeavored to teach them correct principles, so that one day they might be able to govern themselves and be prepared for all that they are meant to do.
Dylan is such a great kid with a good head on his shoulders. He is so creative and puts his whole heart in to whatever he is interested in. He has a great heart and can be very giving. When he found out about the misfortune of a classmate having their house burned down...he asked me if I would be willing to take him to the bank to withdraw money from his savings so that he could donate toward a fund to help her family. Unfortunately, he is also a little too much like his mother in his stubbornness and need to test out rules and theories before blindly following them. He has his challenging moments and he doesn't do anything unless he deems it is the thing he wants to be doing, but I am learning that these moments are just temporary set backs...they certainly don't define who he is, but rather (depending on what he learns from them) can become important tools in growth and maturity that develops him into the person he can become. I know Dylan has so much greatness in him and he has so much to offer this world. I am so grateful for the opportunity to have him in my life and to be touched by all of the things that he teaches me through being his mother.
2 comments:
Happy Birthday Dylan!
Maria, this is such a great story:D
Thanks for sharing it.
What a beautiful post and tribute to your son, Maria. I really loved reading it. I didn't know that story. Isn't it crazy when the answer we expect to get isn't the answer we get. That takes a lot of faith. Thank you for your example to me.
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