“Eddy and the Book of Mormon,” Friend, March 2020
Eddy and the Book of Mormon
“I love to read the holy scriptures” (Children’s Songbook, 109).
Illustration by Monika Roe
“How was school today?” Dad asked as he poured Eddy a glass of milk.
Eddy swallowed a bite of green beans and looked down at his plate. “It was OK.”
“Just OK?” Mom asked.
Eddy nodded. “Some kids laughed at me during reading time,” he said. “I don’t like reading in front of people.”
Some words were hard for Eddy to pronounce, so reading out loud always made him nervous, especially when other kids made fun of him.
“I’m sorry,” Dad said.
“Thanks, Dad. Can you pass the rice, please?”
Eddy knew Mom and Dad probably wanted to hear more about reading time, but he didn’t feel like talking about it. He was glad his big brother, Eric, had lots to say about his first day of soccer practice.
After dinner, Eddy stood up to go to his room.
“Wait,” Eric said. “We almost forgot to read scriptures!”
Eddy’s family had been trying hard to read the Book of Mormon. Reading right after dinner seemed to be the best time because everyone was together. But it was still hard remembering to read every day.
“We almost forgot again!” Mom said. “What can we do to help us remember?”
“Maybe we should pray about it,” Eddy said. “Heavenly Father can help us.”
“That’s a great idea!” Dad said. “Will you say the prayer?”
Eddy nodded and bowed his head. “Heavenly Father, please help us know how we can remember to read the scriptures.”
After the prayer, Eddy and his family talked about some ideas.
“What if we kept the Book of Mormon on the table where we could see it?” Eric asked.
“I like that idea,” Mom said.
“We could tape a reminder on it too,” Eddy said.
Dad smiled. “I’ll go get some tape.”
Eddy cut a strip of white tape and put it on the front of the Book of Mormon. Then he took a marker and wrote “Read!” across the tape.
“There,” he said. “Now we won’t forget.”
Every night, Eddy and his family saw the Book of Mormon on the table. And every night, they remembered to read. It was working!
Eddy liked reading the Book of Mormon. He especially liked the story of Nephi building a ship. Nephi’s brothers made fun of him, but that didn’t stop him. Nephi trusted God, and God helped him do hard things.
“Nephi’s my hero,” Eddy said after reading one night.
A few days later, it was reading time again at school. When it was Eddy’s turn, he heard some kids already starting to laugh. Instead of worrying about what they would say, Eddy took a deep breath and thought about Nephi. A peaceful feeling came into his heart as he said the first word.
When Eddy finished reading, he felt good. He still messed up a few times, but Eddy didn’t care. He knew he had done his best.
“How was reading time?” Mom asked at dinner.
“It was good,” Eddy said. “A few kids still laughed, but it didn’t bug me. I just thought about what we’re reading in the Book of Mormon, and it helped me a lot.”
Dad and Mom smiled.
“We’re so proud of you!” Dad said.
“Thanks!” Eddy said. After dinner, he reached across the table for the Book of Mormon. He couldn’t wait to read what happened next.