Crazy Days and Crazy Nights

Valerie J. Steimle

This past week has been unusually busy. The bookstore I worked in had me scheduled for four days of the week which was more than I was used to. My son’s soccer games were starting this week and every one else had places to go—all in different directions. I think I need a chill pill.

My older daughter turned 21 yesterday and moved out to her new apartment. She needed us to help her move all of her furniture and clothes and I needed to get my younger boys to a fall festival on the same day.

My night working schedule kept me from helping my younger daughter with her homework and I had to depend on her siblings to help her. Some days she never got to it because play time was too tempting and she skipped doing homework altogether. I also had to schedule cooking dinner earlier or leave the ingredients behind so they can make it themselves.

There was a new lady in the music department at work, who took one look at me and said she knew I was a Russian-Jew from New York. How did she know that? Apparently she had lived there and was familiar with the people. This past week has been unusually busy. The bookstore I worked in had me scheduled for four days of the week which was more than I was used to. My son’s soccer games were starting this week and every one else had places to go—all in different directions. I think I need a chill pill.

Tuesday, while I was at work, my soccer son took a fall in the street right before his ride was to leave and really messed up his knee. His older siblings washed off the wound and put a bandage on it and he went on to play soccer anyway.

It’s difficult to get through such crazy days with children’s schedules and crazy nights at work but one thing that helps me is reading scriptures in the morning. This week we came upon Alma 58. Heleman had been telling of their troubles against the Lamanites and how he had to hang on until provisions were sent to relieve them:

Verse 4: “And it came to pass that I thus did send an embassy to the governor of our land to acquaint him concerning the affairs of our people. And it came to pass that we did wait to receive provisions and strength from the land of Zarahemla.

Verse 5:But behold this did profit us but little for the Lamanites were also receiving great strength from day to day, and also many provisions; and thus were our circumstances at this period of time.

Verse7: And it came to pass that we did wait in these difficult circumstances for the space of many months even until we were about to perish for the want of food.

Verse 8: But it came to pass that we did receive food, which was guarded to us by an army of two thousand men to our assistance; and this is all the assistance which we did receive to defend ourselves and our country from falling into the hands of our enemies, yea, to contend with an enemy which was innumerable.”

That passage gave me great strength not to give up. If Heleman could wait “many months until they were about to perish for the want of food” certainly I could hang on a little longer and try a little harder to better my situation at home and not stress out over work schedules and trying to fit everything in. I didn’t have an army of two thousand men to assist me but help did come and the burdens were lighter. The schedule conflicts didn’t seem that burdensome.

Sometimes it seems hopeless that I have so much placed on me to do every day that I just cannot do it anymore. But by taking a few minutes to read the scriptures with my family at some time during the day, I am strengthened by the stories of what our forbearers did before we even got here. If they could hang on and get through those conflicting schedules and stressful situations, certainly I could too.