By Small and Simple Means

    When I was a young girl, I loved to go to my Aunt Ellie's house, for there I had discovered a treasure trove. Inherited from her family, standing in a dusty and forgotten corner in an L-shaped hallway was a floor to ceiling bookcase filled with books. The covers of these books were worn, the pages yellowed, the smell musty, but they were my chief delight. One of those old, tattered volumes changed my life. It's unassuming title was "Little Women", a simple story with old-fashioned morals about four young girls and their quest to become loving, honorable women. That story made a huge impact on me. I longed to be as thoughtful and generous, with no thought of reward, as they were striving to be, even high-spirited Jo; like me, the "scribbler" of the group.
    Fast forward many, many years. My previous desire had been reinforced and reignited when I first heard, and then accepted, the story of a boy who knelt and prayed in a grove of trees. Over the years, quiet acts of kindness had become second-nature to me, and had sustained me through many dark days in a challenging and unrelenting trial; truly they had become my "balm of Gilead". When I found that a missionary from Tonga serving in our area had prayed for assistance in behalf of his mother who was battling cancer, I, in turn, prayed for guidance to help this family, whose need was far beyond my capacity to give.
    The answer was Elder Ballard's Conference talk on honeybees, and how they all contribute to the sustaining of the hive. Over the next three weeks before Christmas, and prior to this missionary returning home, a group of Idaho Saints worked tirelessly together as honeybees to collect enough money to aid this valiant missionary's family. Many hearts were opened, as well as wallets and checkbooks, and many testimonies were strengthened as the Spirit directed the work. When he returned to Tonga, safely tucked away in his suit coat pocket and held close to his heart was a cashier's check for almost double the amount needed. It will always remain a precious, cherished and tender memory.
    I did not travel to a foreign land; I didn't even travel outside my sphere of influence, yet my life was forever changed by an adventure I could never have imagined for myself. It began in the pages of a well-worn, beloved narrative, and it continues to be written in the pages of my life. Tender mercies know no boundaries; love can reach around the world.