“Brave Like Joseph Smith,” Friend, December 2019
Brave Like Joseph Smith
Illustration by Shawna J. C. Tenney
When I was in first grade, I got bumps on my arm and leg. The bumps were itchy and lasted for months and months. My mom took me to the doctor, and he put medicine on them to heal. The medicine created huge blisters—bigger than quarters! They hurt and burned. I couldn’t move my arm or leg. I cried a lot. I spent days on the couch, scared to get up. My mom had to carry me to the bathroom. I had to miss two weeks of swimming lessons and other activities with my friends. It was hard not to go swimming.
One day, my mom needed to take me to urgent care because the blisters had an infection. I was so scared. I didn’t want to get in the car. My mom knew I was scared. She told me about when Joseph Smith was my age. When Joseph Smith was seven years old, he had an illness that required the doctor to do surgery on his leg. He was scared too, but he knew that Heavenly Father was with him and would help him. The doctor took nine pieces of bone out of his leg! I was so surprised. He was brave. If he could do that, I knew that I could get in the car and go to the doctor. I would be brave, and Heavenly Father would help me with the pain I was feeling.
Little by little, the blisters went away. I was finally healed completely. I learned that whenever I’m scared, Jesus will always be with me. I can be brave with hard things.