Childviews

The Rice Pudding Baby

I was born in Romania. That is a country far, far away from my home in Salt Lake City, Utah. My mother went to Romania and adopted me. She loved Romania, but she said that there was not much food there. My mom found me in a hospital. I was three months old and weighed only five pounds.

When we got to Salt Lake City, I was very sick. I couldn’t keep food in my stomach, so I was very skinny. And I had sores all over my body.

My mom kept praying that I would get better. One night, she had a vivid dream about what she was supposed to feed me. The next morning, she got up and made rice pudding and put it in the blender so she could feed it to me using a baby bottle. Not only did I eat it, but I liked it a lot.

Rice was all I would eat for six months. The sores all over my body went away, and I started gaining weight. Mom says that she knows Heavenly Father inspired her to feed me rice pudding, because she doesn’t like it and had never made it before. I’m glad Heavenly Father knew that rice pudding would help me get better. My mom calls me the Rice Pudding Baby.

Kateri Daniela Combs, age 8
Salt Lake City, Utah

Comfort Zone

One night I watched a scary movie and then went to bed. After I was asleep, I started having bad dreams. I got scared and woke up. It was the middle of the night. My bedroom was very dark. I got out of bed and knelt and prayed. It made me feel better, and I was able to go to sleep with no bad dreams. I know that Heavenly Father answers prayers and that He loves me.

Matthew Voelkel, age 8
Lakeview, Oregon

Creating Kindness

One day when I was riding home from school on the bus, my friend started talking about the person sitting next to me. She said that because he wasn’t a member of our church, she did not like him. I told her that it’s OK that he’s not a member of our church and that he’s still a good person.

When I got home, I talked with my mother about what had happened. She suggested that I call him and apologize for the way my friend had acted. He wasn’t home, so I talked with his mother, instead. Later, I saw him with some friends playing basketball with our basketball hoop. When I walked outside, his friends thought I was coming to tell them that they had to leave. He said, “She won’t say that. She’s nice. She apologized for the way her friend acted.” I felt very good inside for choosing the right.

Chelsea Michele Bryant, age 8
Midway, Utah

At the End of the Iron Rod

I wanted to tell you that I liked the story “At the End of the Iron Rod.” The story was in the July 1998 issue of the Friend. I thought the story was sad, but it had a happy ending.

Heather Hastings, age 9
Matthews, Missouri