Author Archives: Candace Salima

My Day on the World Stage

In 1993 the opportunity arrived for me to shut up or put up. There was a woman by the name, or rather using the name, of Deborah Laake. She’d written a book called “Secret Ceremonies: Diary of a Mormon Wife” – a work of pure and sad delusion. This poor woman, if she told the complete truth, was at the mercy of a father who took unrighteous dominion to new levels. Whatever the perceived truth, she became extremely disenchanted with the church and proceeded to betray every covenant she’d half-heartedly made with the Lord. Where do I come in? Well, … Continue reading →

Interview with Fresh New Author, Stephanie Fowers

A fresh new voice in the world of LDS chick-lit, Stephanie Fowers, the author of Rules of Engagement (Covenant Communications), is our Monday interview. I’m thrilled to bring her to your attention because she is truly an amazing individual. First off, which makes her near and dear to my heart, she graduated from BYU-Idaho. Here’s a little more about her from her website: “I graduated from BYU Idaho in English and (besides the below freezing temperatures), I loved the small town atmosphere complete with garage bands and pizza joints (Go pizza bombs! That was me, not Stephanie.). Then I served … Continue reading →

Noble Birthright

Yesterday it was such a privilege for me teach our Sunday School class (the 16-17 year-olds) regarding covenants, eternal marriage and the noble birthright each of us inherited through the Abrahamic covenant. First, a refresher on the Abrahamic Covenant: Quoting from the Bible Dictionary located within the scriptures issued by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints: “Included in the divine promises to Abraham were the assurances that: 1) Christ would come through his lineage, and that 2) Abraham’s posterity would receive certain lands as an eternal inheritance . . . The portions of the covenant that pertain to … Continue reading →

O Blessed Woman

As the brethren have stated, “Women, in partnership with God bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man” (Moses 1:39), ushering children into the world in a rush of excruciating pain, happiness and overwhelming love. In partnership with their husbands, they do their part in the plan of salvation by giving birth to, raising, nurturing and teaching these children, to simply raise them up unto God. Without faithful women of God, children will be tossed to and fro by the winds of change as the world inundates families with a barrage of attractively wrapped danger. “To you women, … Continue reading →

Please Understand

Another topic that popped up in a different conversation I was having a few days ago was the melding of two lives in the bonds of holy matrimony. Sometimes that isn’t so easy when one person has been raised with one understanding of the patriarchal role and the other raised in another way. Let me begin with the quote of a prophet to set the tone of this blog: President Spencer W. Kimball said this: “When we speak of marriage as a partnership, let us speak of marriage as a full partnership. We do not want our LDS women to … Continue reading →

Loving Thy Neighbor

Yesterday I attended a couple of LDS Storymaker sponsored events which took place at the local libraries in Fillmore and Delta, Utah. There are three of us that almost always drive down together (when all three of are attending the event). Willard Boyd Gardner (Billy G), Tristi Pinkston and me. We have a blast talking about everything under the sun on the way to the event. And generally speaking, on the way back we will talk about anything that crosses our minds in order to keep the driver awake. This allows for some very strange conversations on occasions, the various … Continue reading →

Quality Time vs. The World

It is a tough thing these days to get in some quality family time as mothers race to and fro (school, to (insert your sport here) practice, dance class, assorted clubs, and excessive amounts of homework. Throw in a working mom, working father, six kids and you have complete and utter chaos with little to no time for quality family time. Quality family time is critical to the growth and steadfastness of your family. With the constant onslaught the world throws at us these days: T.V., radio, movies, concerts and friends – it’s a wonder the family is able to … Continue reading →

Group Dating vs. Group Outings

My walking partner and I had a long talk about this. I had always assumed that group dating was several couples going out together, basically keeping each other out of trouble. Group outings were just a bunch kids going out and having fun. So as we talked, we came to realize that we understood different things. So I went out and looked on the church’s website to see what the brethren had to say (So did she, by the way. We’re two peas in a pod sometimes!). President Spencer W. Kimball (Prophet, Seer & Revelator: 1973 to 1985) “My beloved … Continue reading →

Helping Others to See the Divine Nature Inside

I’ve had so many people ask me how they can show the young people they work with how much they are loved and how precious they are. That’s hard to do if the feedback they are getting elsewhere is completely opposite to that. But I have thought about it, and in fact, do a fireside that touches on that very topic. The brethren have been more than prolific in discussing the value of each one of us, regardless of what cultures, race or country we are born in. “To be a [son or] daughter of God means that you are … Continue reading →

The Healing Balm of Laughter

Wow – I need a breath of fresh air. Those last two were some pretty heavy topics. I am a member of a writers group called LDS Storymakers and every year we organize and put on a writer’s conference. This year, for the first time, we went to a two day format and hired someone to come entertain us during dinner. Robert Kirby, the foremost lampoonist in LDS culture, shoot, in all culture, currently published in the Salt Lake Tribune. He has a keen understanding of LDS culture, if a little bit warped. As I’ve mentioned before, my husband and … Continue reading →