Trusted Advisors

Isn't she lovely?

I wanted to start this post off with a clever little text phrase to show how clued-in I am, specifically this: IMHO. But then I realized I'm not sure if it means "In my HUMBLE opinion" or "In my HONEST opinion". I guess either one works, right? (Although, I tend to be more honest than humble.) Anyway...

IMHO, the most sound and relevant advice comes from our living prophets. But, occasionally, I also take advice from John Bytheway, my friend Stephanie, and even, drum roll please, my mother. Here's what I've taken to heart:

• Living prophets: Most recently, I'm taking advice from Elder Christofferson. In April, he counseled us "willingly to accept and even seek correction." Wow. Just accepting it is hard enough for me. Seeking it has been pretty much unheard of in my life. But I am taking his advice. Here's the link to his excellent talk.
• John Bytheway: Yep, I take advice from him too. And he says it's important to persevere. (I know lots of other great people have said this as well, but when he says it, it's also funny.) So we've been trying to help our children learn to persevere and do hard things. We rode our bikes to Daniel's baseball game yesterday, which was hard work for Daniel. He complained some and got tired, but we kept encouraging him and he felt so good when he did it. Great advice.
• My friend Stephanie: One of her best qualities is honesty. And when I told her one reason I don't like asking other people for favors is because then I will need to do a favor in return (see, I was honest too), she said, "Okay. You need to work on that." Not a bossy rebuke or judgment, just a simple statement of fact. (This ties in nicely with Elder Christofferson's talk about chastening and correction.) And she's right. I should work on that. Serving others and being served is a pretty essential thing.
• My mom (see photo): Yes, mom, I do sometimes take your advice. Much more often now than as a teenager. One of my mother's axioms is "Talk till it's better." I think we've all come to love and appreciate this (or at least tolerate it) in my mom. She will talk about something till the cows come home, the fat lady is singing, she's blue in the face, and all avenues have been explored. But she will NEVER go to bed or go away until whatever it is has been resolved. I had that experience recently also. When someone dear to me was upset with me, I took my mom's advice and stayed until things were worked out. It wasn't easy. But mom was right--that was the best way to do it.

Thank goodness for trusted advisors. Since I now know I'm supposed to seek correction, anyone else have something to tell me?