YW Lesson Book 19 Personal Records

OBJECTIVE

34823, YW 1, Learning about Family History and Temple Work, 19: Personal Records, Objective, 81

Each young woman will realize the importance of keeping a personal record.


PREPARATION

1. Prepare one copy of each of the two sets of questions at the beginning of the lesson. Include the scriptural references but not the answers.

2. Be prepared to tell the young women about one of your ancestors and how this person has influenced your life; or have a visitor, who has been approved by priesthood advisers, tell the class about an ancestor.

4. Assign two or three young women to tell briefly about one of their grandparents or great-grandparents and how this person has affected their lives.

4. Prepare a handout of the quotations at the conclusion of the lesson to give to each class member.

5. Assign young women to present any scriptures, stories, or quotations you wish.

6. See the end of the lesson for an optional family history activity.


SUGGESTED LESSON DEVELOPMENT


Heavenly Father Commands His Children to Keep Personal Records

Quiz

Divide the class into two groups. Be sure each group has a set of scriptures and a pencil. Give one group the questions and scriptural references for set A below and the other group the same for set B. Allow about five minutes for the young women to answer the questions.

Questions—Set A

1. Who recorded the first information in a book of remembrance? (Moses 6:5–8.)

2. Name two other Old Testament prophets who kept books of remembrance. (Moses 6:45–46; Malachi 3:16.)

3. When priesthood ordinances such as baptism and temple marriage are performed, where are records kept? (D&C 128:7.)

4. What is one reason for keeping a journal or personal history? (2 Nephi 25:23.)

5. When Christ appeared to the Nephites, he learned that some important events had not been written in their records. What did he command the people to do? (3 Nephi 23:6–13.)

Answers for Set A

1. Adam

2. Enoch and Malachi

3. On earth and in heaven

4. To persuade our children to believe in Christ

5. To write the events they had neglected to record

Questions—Set B

1. How do we know that Jesus is a descendant of David and Abraham? (Matthew 1:1.)

2. Why did Nephi and his brothers go back to the home of Laban? (1 Nephi 3:1–4.)

3. Why did Nephi keep a record of his life as he and his father’s family left Jerusalem and traveled to America? (1 Nephi 1:1–3.)

4. Who taught Adam and his children how to keep a book of remembrance? (Moses 6:46.)

5. How did Abraham gain a knowledge of the rights of the priesthood and of the Creation? (Abraham 1:31.)

Answers for Set B

1. This information is recorded in the Bible.

2. To get the records of the Jews and the genealogy of their forefathers.

3. Because he had a knowledge of the goodness and mysteries of God.

4. They were taught by the hand of the Lord.

5. It was written in the records of his fathers.

Discussion

Have each group report the answers to their set of questions to the class. After the young women have given the answers to the quiz, ask the entire class to respond to the following:

• What kind of information did Moses, Nephi, and Abraham keep in their books of remembrance? (The names of family members, important events, personal testimonies, prophecies of things to come, blessings they received from their Father in Heaven, and commandments they received.)

• Why is it important to keep a personal record? (Through a personal record, a person can share with her descendants events in her life, her testimony, her thoughts and feelings, and a record of Heavenly Father’s blessings to her.)

• How do you know that Heavenly Father wants you to keep a record of your life? (Since the beginning of time, he has commanded his children to keep personal records of their lives. And modern prophets have encouraged us to keep journals throughout our lives.)


Records of Progenitors Can Bring Joy and Strength

Story

Read or tell the following fictional story:

“Great-Uncle Benjamin had died over 30 years ago and some of his belongings were packed away in the old trunks in the farmhouse attic.

“ ‘I wonder why Grandpa saved [Great-Uncle’s things] for all these years,’ John grumbled as he helped sort through it with his mother and sister. Grandpa had died a few weeks before and Jennie Lynn, his only surviving daughter, and her two children had come to clean out the old family home.

“John threw a shapeless felt hat into a large barrel in the center of the room. ‘Man, do you ever wonder if your family tree has blight attacking its roots? I mean, what in the world would they want to save all this junk for? Look at this old dilapidated book for instance: Pamela, or Virtue Rewarded. Brother!’

“ ‘That,’ replied his sister Alice calmly, ‘is a copy of the first English novel ever written. Kindly place it carefully in the “save” box.’

“ ‘Well, what about this? A partially used notebook? Who in their right mind would save that? …’

“Jennie walked over and looked at the book John was holding. …

“ ‘Can you make out what it says?’ Alice asked, joining her mother and brother.

“ ‘Easy,’ John replied as he sat down and started to read, skipping pages here and there.

“May 4, 1888 …

“ ‘Hey, it looks like a diary or a journal or something!’

“May 4, 1888: Mother locked my violin in the cedar chest again this morning. She says it’s too big a temptation for me before the cows are milked. She’s right, I suppose. It’s a good thing the other boys are more diligent than I or we’d never be able to feed all eight of us from these few acres. If Father were still alive we’d manage better.

“September 3, 1888: Mr. Carter told Mother today that he has taught me all he knows and I need a more advanced teacher. There is a Sister Kendall over in Coalville who is supposed to have played at one time with the Philadelphia orchestra before joining the Church and moving west. Mother promised I could ask her if she would take me as a pupil. The only trouble is going to be how much she will charge for lessons. I am to be allowed to take charge of the chickens and keep the egg money to pay for my music. …

“April 8, 1892: I realized today that there are three things I love better than all else: the Lord, my family, and my music. And I know now that the love of one thing does not necessarily preclude the love of another. When they’re all good things, they all go together.

“December 1, 1892: It’s terribly late, but I can’t sleep. I’ve been copying music all evening with Mother’s help. I’ve been asked to travel down to Salt Lake to audition for a place with the territorial orchestra. …

“March 5, 1893: After several weeks of practicing interspersed with hours of prayers, I went down to Salt Lake and auditioned. Mr. Dean, the conductor, told me I was the most accomplished violinist he had heard west of Denver. There probably aren’t too many west of Denver that he has heard, but Mother was pleased when I told her. I am to be in Denver for rehearsals early in the fall, and I’ll be earning enough to keep myself plus a little to spare for Mother and the others. Sunday in sacrament meeting I’m to play the Mozart selection I learned for the tryouts.

“March 11, 1893: Why has this happened now? Why just at this point in my life? After sacrament meeting on Sunday, Bishop Reynolds called me into his office and asked me how the tryouts had gone. I told him that I had been hired, and he asked me if I couldn’t put off playing with the orchestra for a couple of years. He explained to me that before I start earning money, there is something else I owe the Lord. With ‘no doubt’ in his mind that it is the will of the Lord, he asked me to accept a mission call. I know I owe everything I have to my God, and a couple of years away from my violin shouldn’t be too much to ask, but I think it’s giving up almost more than I can bear. Still I knew the uncertainty in my own heart was more dread than doubt so I promised the bishop that if there was any way for us to raise the money, I would accept the call. …

“March 13, 1893: Last night I told Mother about the mission call. She was overjoyed. Father had always wanted to serve a mission, she said, but he had been killed before being able to. Now I could fill a mission in his place. When I asked her how we were going to raise the money, her face clouded. Explaining to her that I would not allow her to sell any more of the land, I told her of the conditional promise I had given the bishop. She looked at me quietly for a moment and then she said, ‘Ben, there is a way we can raise the money. This family owns one thing that is of great enough value to send you on your mission. You will have to sell your violin.’

“March 17, 1893: The promise must be kept, and there is a way. Next Monday, I will go to Salt Lake and sell my violin. If I am able to raise the needed sum for my passage, I will leave immediately on my mission. I have made my decision and I am at peace.

“March 23, 1893: I awoke this morning and took my violin from its case. All day long I played the music I love. In the evening when the light grew dim and I could see to play no longer, I placed the instrument in its case. It will be enough. Tomorrow I leave.

“ ‘That’s it,’ John said unbelievingly. ‘It ends right there. There’s no more. What happened? Did he come back and get another violin? Did he? Was he ever able to play in a symphony orchestra? Mom, do you know what happened?’

“ ‘I don’t know, John,’ his mother responded quietly. ‘I suppose there’s somebody around who does, but I don’t really mind having the story end there. You already know the most important thing about him.’

“ ‘Wait!’ yelped John. ‘Look, there’s a little more writing at the back of the notebook.’ He glanced at the short entry, coughed a little to cover the other sound that almost escaped from his throat, and handed the book to Jennie. ‘You, Mom,’ he said, afraid to trust himself with any more words.

“Jennie took the book, moved closer to the small gabled window to catch the fading light, and looked at the page. The hand that wrote these words was not quite as steady or as firm as the one that started the journal, but the letters were still carefully and evenly formed. She read:

“June 23, 1938: The greatest decision I ever made in my life was to give up something I dearly loved to the God I loved even more. He has never forgotten me for it. Benjamin Landart” (Karen Nolen, “Benjamin: Son of the Right Hand,” New Era, May 1974, pp. 35–37).

Discussion

• From the experience of Alice and John, what can we learn about keeping a journal?

• What did Alice and John learn about their great-uncle from his journal?

• How do you think Alice and John felt about their great-uncle after reading his journal?

• How could Benjamin Landart’s journal have brought happiness to his own life?

• How can a personal journal bless the lives of an individual’s children and grandchildren?

• Do you know some interesting things about your parents’ lives when they were about your age?

• Do you like to hear them talk about their childhood, how they met and married, and about you when you were young?

• How can knowledge about the lives of your parents or any of your ancestors help you to live more valiantly today?

Teacher presentation

Explain that through reading their great-uncle’s journal, Alice and John learned about Benjamin Landart’s family and personal interests. They also learned of his love for his Heavenly Father. As they learned about his life, their love for him grew. A journal can help us remember events in our own lives. Keeping a personal record can bring joy to our children and grandchildren.

One young woman commented, “It’s a tradition in our family to keep a personal journal. … During some of our family home evenings my dad reads us accounts from my great-grandpa’s journal, and that really inspires me to keep one. If my descendants get half the enjoyment I’ve received from reading my grandparents’ journals, it will be well worth my time to keep it up” (Laura Call, quoted in Kathleen Lubeck, “A Journal Called Lucy,” New Era, Nov. 1981, p. 40).

Personal stories

Share with the young women a story about one of your ancestors and tell how this experience from someone else’s life has influenced you, or have the visitor share an experience. Then ask the young women who have prepared a story about their grandparents or great-grandparents to relate these stories to the class members.


Conclusion

Quotations and handout

Distribute the handout of the following statements by President Spencer W. Kimball and have them read aloud:

“We urge our young people to begin today to write and keep records of all the important things in their own lives” (“The Angels May Quote from It,” New Era, Oct. 1975, p. 4).

“I promise you that if you will keep your journals and records, they will indeed be a source of great inspiration to your families, to your children, your grandchildren, and others, on through the generations. Each of us is important to those who are near and dear to us and as our posterity read of our life’s experiences, they, too, will come to know and love us. And in that glorious day when our families are together in the eternities, we will already be acquainted” (“President Kimball Speaks Out on Personal Journals,” New Era, Dec. 1980, p. 26).

Keeping a Journal: Tips For Success

From Rachel Woods,

These tips and tricks will help you with keeping a journal!

1. Be Consistent
Make journal writing a habit by planning a specific time or day when you will write in your journal, such as every evening before you go to bed, before you have breakfast, or during lunch. If you don't have enough time to write every day, pick a specific day of the week when you will write. Sundays are perfect for me since journal writing makes a great Sabbath day activity, one the whole family can enjoy. Writing consistent journal entries will make future reading more enjoyable.

2. Be Complete (Date Everything!)
The Ensign article, "My Journal, A Vital Record" teaches: "In addition to sharing thoughts and feelings, your journal is a record of your life’s events. For future reference, be sure to include complete information: names (first and last), dates (including the year), and places (city, state, or other information applicable to your country). Don’t assume that people and events you know intimately will be familiar to your future readers. It may seem tedious at first to add these details, but future readers will be grateful for your efforts." (Preston Draper, Sept. 2004, 72)

3. Vary Your Entries
Make sure you write your feelings and thoughts about the things going on in your life. "Don’t become obsessed with fact to the exclusion of emotion." (My Journal, A Vital Record)

4. Be Organized
Do you have more than one journal? Do you save letters, calendars, poetry, or other journal entries? If so then you're like me and you need to get organized!

Get everything together
Make an index of all your items (example of my personal journal index)
Write down each item, the dates (beginning and end), and a description of the actual item
Keep all your journal items together in a box, notebook, or other organizational kit
Place your index at the beginning with your first journal
5. Asking Yourself Questions:

What would you like to remember about yourself?
What has the Lord done for you?
What would you like to tell your children or grandchildren about yourself?
6. Use Journaling Pages
The Friend magazine made 12 journaling pages, that are perfect to help children learn how to journal. I compiled and updated these Journal Pages for your convenience!

Don't Give Up!
No matter how much time has passed since your last entry don't be discouraged, what's important is that you write in your journal today!

Importance of Keeping a Journal

From Rachel Woods,
Your Guide to Christianity - Latter-day Saints.
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This article lists several points for keeping a journal:

A Commandment
Keeping a journal is important because it's a commandment from the Lord through his prophets. President Spencer W. Kimball said, "Every person should keep a journal and every person can keep a journal." (Family Home Evening Resource Book, Lesson Ideas, Journals, 199)

Not only did President Kimball admonish us to keep a journal, but he was also a perfect example. His personal history already contained 33 journals when he was called to be President of the Church in 1973 and seven years later he had a total of 78 large volumes of personal history.

Try, Try, Again!
One of my favorite journal entries was when I was 11 years old.

I hadn't written in my journal for over a year and wrote, "I have been very upset about not writing in my..." the rest of the page is blank and the next entry wasn't until two years later. Although it took me several years to get into the habit of writing consistently in a journal I have come to learn the value of recording my personal history. So if you haven't written for a long time, don't worry about it, just pick up a pen and start journaling today!

Why Write Now?
You may ask, "Why not wait until I'm older to compile a summary of my life?" Here's President Kimball's answer:
"Your story should be written now while it is fresh and while the true details are available. Your private journal should record the way you face up to challenges that beset you. Do not suppose life changes so much that your experiences will not be interesting to your posterity. Experiences of work, relations with people, and an awareness of the rightness and wrongness of actions will always be relevant. Your journal, like most others, will tell of problems as old as the world and how you dealt with them." ("President Kimball Speaks Out on Personal Journals," New Era, Dec. 1980, 26)

What to Write
"Begin today," President Kimball said, "and write... your goings and your comings, your deeper thoughts, your achievements, and your failures, your associations and your triumphs, your impressions and your testimonies. We hope you will do this... for this is what the Lord has commanded, and those who keep a personal journal are more likely to keep the Lord in remembrance in their daily lives." (Speaks Out)

Not Just a Record
A journal is not just a book to keep a record of our lives; it's also a tool that can help us! The article, "Discover Yourself: Keep a Journal" says:
"A journal can also be a tool for self-evaluation and self-improvement. 'We examine our lives as we come to know ourselves through our journals,' says Sister Bell [assistant professor of English at BYU]. 'Even if you take your journal and go back a year, you learn things about yourself you didn't know at the time. You understand things about yourself.'" (Janet Brigham, Ensign, Dec. 1980, 57)

Be True To Yourself
President Spencer W. Kimball also taught, "Your journal should contain your true self rather than a picture of you when you are "made up" for a public performance. There is a temptation to paint one’s virtues in rich color and whitewash the vices, but there is also the opposite pitfall of accentuating the negative.... The truth should be told, but we should not emphasize the negative." (Speaks Out)

The Value of Keeping a Journal
President Kimball said, "People often use the excuse that their lives are uneventful and nobody would be interested in what they have done. But I promise you that if you will keep your journals and records, they will indeed be a source of great inspiration to your families, to your children, your grandchildren, and others, on through the generations. Each of us is important to those who are near and dear to us—and as our posterity read of our life's experiences, they, too, will come to know and love us. And in that glorious day when our families are together in the eternities, we will already be acquainted." (Speaks Out)

As I read back through my journals I have found true treasures and if you follow the Lord's commandment to keep a journal you and your posterity will be blessed for your efforts!

Keeping a Journal: 10 Techniques

From Rachel Woods,

There is more than one way to keep a journal. These 10 techniques can help supplement your personal history, many of which you're probably already doing!

1. Notebook and Bound Books
The most common way of recording journal entries is by hand in a notebook. You can buy a nice notebook or just use a simple one such as a spiral bound or three ringed binder. I've used all types and prefer ones where I can fold the left flap around to the back, making the folder smaller and easier to write on. Bound books are really great too because they sturdier and usually last longer.

2. Computers
Typing your journal entries can be a quick and easy way to record your life history. Any word processing program works great, even the basic "notepad" in Windows would make a great journal. Be aware that you will have to back up your work often and eventually print it to keep it safe. Printed entries can be easily put into three ring binders, or if you like to write lots of entries you could place them in a labeled box.

3. Letters and Emails
Do you write a lot of emails or letters? If so then make sure you keep a copy for your journals! Print your emails or copy letters before you send them and place them into a folder or binder. Sometimes I write long, detailed letters/emails that I paste a copy of right into my journal which saves me from having to rewrite everything. If you're sending lots of letters home (as missionaries do) make sure your family keeps them so you can add them to your journal.

4. Scrapbooking
Do you love taking lots of photographs? Scrapbooking is a wonderful (and popular) way to record your life. Working with your pictures is fun and creative, but if you don't journal you'll miss out on all the important details. While scrapbooking just ask yourself these questions, "If someone saw this page 50 years from now would they know who these people/places are? Would they know how I felt?" If the answer is no then you need to add journaling to your scrapbook page.

5. Media Sources
Journal recording can be lots of fun when you use other media sources such as tape recorders, video tapes, and digital video clips on the computer. The biggest concern is to make sure you protect your data. If you do lots of this type of journaling make sure you keep everything labeled and organized. Keeping an index of descriptions for each recording would help keep the journaling alive.

6. Spiritual or Gratitude Journal
Record those spiritual events of your life (or that of your family and friends) along with your personal thoughts and ponderings. Write down your experiences, answers to prayers, your testimony, conversion, and other spiritual experiences from church/temple attendance and scripture study. Journal daily your blessings and what you're thankful for and you'll be amazed at your spiritual growth.

7. Study Journal
Elder Richard G. Scott said, "Knowledge carefully recorded is knowledge available in time of need. Spiritually sensitive information should be kept in a sacred place that communicates to the Lord how you treasure it. This practice enhances the likelihood of your receiving further light." ("Acquiring Spiritual Knowledge," Ensign, Nov. 1993, 86.)

8. Meeting Journal
I like to carry around a small notebook for keeping notes during church meetings. This helps me focus on the talks and lessons at church, and gives me a place to record my thoughts and reflections as they happen.

9. Calendars
Calendars can be great additions to your journal. You can use the kind that come with planners, ones that hang on the wall, or even the kind that fit in a purse or backpack. Calendar entries have to be short to fit in the space, but work great for keeping track of important events in life. Just make sure you keep your calendars when the year's over and place them with your journals.

10. Additional Embellishments
Journal writing can be fun when you decorate your journal/pages, attach important documents, and even make your own maps when describing a detailed location. If you like statistics make your own charts and graphs to keep in your journal.