Tag Archives: acceptance

Relief Society: Judge Not

It is often difficult to go throughout life without judging those around you, but it is important to stop this behavior. In Matthew 7:1-2 it reads: “Judge not that ye be not judged. For with what judgement ye judge, ye shall be judged and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again.” I think that as women it is especially important that we stop from judging others. Often we judge others, and find ourselves inadequate. It is important to be accepting of who you are as an individual. This does not mean that you should not … Continue reading →

Watch Out for Shame

Shame is all about controlling—controlling emotions and behavior. We can fall into feeling shameful ourselves, or as parents we may resort to using shame or guilt to try to control our children. Shame is a vicious cycle and we can get stuck and trapped using shame and feeling shameful in our family life. The opposite of shame is acceptance (either of self or of others) and love and nurturing behaviors. Shame can be so sneaky and compulsive that we use it, feel it and access shameful feelings without even realizing it. The next thing we know, we feel badly, our … Continue reading →

Children’s Literature – Stories of Acceptance for Toddlers and Preschoolers

Posted on by

Odd Velvet By Mary E Whitcomb Illustrated by Tara Calahan King Chronicle Books, 1998 I feel a deep sense of connection to Velvet, the title character of this story of acceptance and uniqueness by Mary E. Whitcomb. I was (and still am) a bit of an odd ball. Like Velvet, I never felt a strong connection to the masses, although, also like Velvet, I never seemed to be too bothered by this fact. Odd Velvet is a modernly illustrated and charming tale representing a childhood utopia, of sorts. Certainly we who are oddballs ourselves, or are parents of oddballs, would … Continue reading →

Are You My Neighbor? (1995)

The next installment in the VeggieTales series is called “Are You My Neighbor?” and teaches children (and their parents) that even if someone is different from you, you still have the duty and privilege of watching out for them and being their friend. The first story is called “Tale of Two Cities.” Once upon a time, there were two cities that faced each other, and they spent all their time flinging stuff over their city walls. You see, in one city, they wore shoes on their heads, and in the other city, they wore pots on their heads. Neither city … Continue reading →

Aunt Fern

Posted on by

I recently wrote about the acceptance of our adopted children by our extended family. One family member has been so exceptional that she deserves an article dedicated solely to her. Both of my wife’s parents are deceased. All of us have a special need in our heart that only a parent can satisfy. My wife has an aunt that has filled the roles of mother to her and grandmother to our boys. Six months ago, Nancy and I were badly in need of a time of refreshing. Her aunt hosted us in her beautiful home in far south Texas. Everything … Continue reading →

Acceptance of Adopted Children by Extended Family

Posted on by

Statistics show that the least likely children to be adopted in this country are African American. Most people looking to adopt are white. One of the reasons given by people who reject these children is that they are concerned about whether their extended family members would accept them. Four of our five adopted children are African American. My wife and I are in the racial minority in our household. We would not have it any other way. Our grown children were not at all surprised. As a family, we had been doing church work that targeted disadvantaged people of color … Continue reading →

Relief Society: Do You Feel Inadequate?

One of the hardest things about Relief Society is that you may compare yourself to other women. When this happens most people come up feeling short. It is too easy to become caught up in what you are not doing that you become overwhelmed in your day-to-day life. As members of the church we each know that there is always something more that we can do. There is always something we can improve on. While it is important to continue to work towards improvement, it is important to realize that this shouldn’t be our entire focus. In 2 Nephi 28:30 … Continue reading →

Miss Spider’s Tea Party – David Kirk

Long before Miss Spider became a popular children’s television show, she was a character in a book. This adorable children’s book by David Kirk was the first to introduce Miss Spider, a bright yellow, lovable and friendly arachnid who just wants to make friends. As we open the book, we find Miss Spider sipping a cup of tea while looking outside. She wishes she had some friends, and if she did, she would invite them to stay for a while and she would share her tea with them. Many different insects come near her home that day, but when she … Continue reading →

Lilies of the Field – William E. Barrett

Making waves in Hollywood in 1963 as a major motion picture starring Sidney Poitier and Lilia Skala, “Lilies of the Field” first appeared as a gentle novella, a triumph for author William E. Barrett. Homer Smith, a black man from South Carolina, was just honorably released from the Army and has decided to travel around the West for a while before returning home. He carefully saved his pay packets and had plenty of money for his travels, but every so often the urge to work strikes him and he stops for a while to do odd jobs. He’s never seen … Continue reading →

Not the Acceptance that Was Expected

After the welcoming reception of Lisa and Ryan’s first daughter Cassie, these again proud parents expected the arrival of their new daughter Maxine to be met with the same excitement and welcome as their first. Many years prior to Cassie’s arrival Ryan’s father and step-mother (who herself was adopted), lost closeness with him due to circumstances around his parent’s divorce. There had been hard feelings as a result since. But their acceptance of Ryan and Lisa’s one year old daughter gave new hope for the uniting of the extended family. A couple years passed and things seemed to go well. … Continue reading →