This is the famed "clean up your home" message. 
From time to time the First Presidency sends out letters to be read to the congregation. These are two such letters from 1974. (Stake YW days) As you remember we were short on oil then and had lines at the gas stations. How to address the situation is good, solid counsel. Maybe it would also work in 2008.
7 comments:
I think it is so ironic how life goes in circles. Perhaps there are no new problems, just the same old problems in different disguises. I do remember when these letters were read, and how so many people tried to focus on doing what the prophet asked instead of focusing on problems they couldn't do much about. I'm glad you posted these letters.
Well some how the clean up your place message never penetrated the little towns in Utah. In many of these towns the chapel and its grounds are meticulously maintained but decades old abandoned barns, corrals, junky buildings and lots, old cars and trucks, still abound in the surrounding blocks. People seem to be emotionally attached to these junky old yards, many of them still with ancient hay and uncleaned barnyards. I wonder every time I go through one of these towns and we drive up and down the streets how deaf these people were or if they ever heard the letter. It certainly did not penetrate.
And yet there were other places where people did listen. I guess that is the real world stuff - some people listen and others don't.
I was tired when I made that comment last night. What I wish I had said is that it just takes some longer than others to get the message.
We really appreciate the ones who do clean up, particularly when it's in the immediate vicinity. As we drive around the area here in Idaho, we note those who really seem to abide by these principles and those who don't. There is nothing esthetic about piling junk up. That's why we have junk yards. Remember Mother and Daddy washing out the tin cans, stripping off the paper, mashing them flat, and then when there was a pile, burying them way underground. Hopefully they will deteriorate over time.
But what about the second letter which includes using food frugally?
Simplify, simplify, simplify!
Post a Comment