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Forgiveness saves the expense of anger, the cost of hatred, the waste of spirits.

—Hannah More

Your Own Time Capsule

Have you ever wished you could make time stand still for just one day? Even though you can’t affect the flow of time, you can freeze the memories of one day or a week in your own time capsule.

Start by recording the little, ordinary things you do every day. Take some pictures of your room and home just as they are right now. The time capsule will make a nice addition to your journal and will save some interesting details about your life.

Here are some suggestions about what to include:

1. What chores do you have to do at home?

2. Record a typical day’s diet including snacks.

3. How do you get to school? What are your favorite subjects and why.

4. Save the front page of the newspaper.

5. Describe your room.

6. What’s your favorite current book, movie, or musical record?

7. What are some products being sold in stores that you use? How much do they cost?

8. List the last three books you read.

9. Write down your favorite quotation.

10. Write some advice to your future self.

Put all the things you’ve gathered in a large envelope or mount them in a notebook. Save it in a safe place where you can open it in a few years. Your own time capsule will become more valuable with time.

Modern Tom Sawyer

Jason Cruse was selected as Tom in the Hannibal, Missouri, annual Tom Sawyer and Becky Thatcher contest. He will dress as Mark Twain’s famous character in parades and special events all year long.

Selected because of his knowledge of the history of the area his knowledge of the town’s famous author, Jason will serve as Hannibal’s honorary host for parades and festivals held both in town and in surrounding areas.

Jason is the deacons quorum president in the Hannibal Branch of the Nauvoo Illinois Stake. He is a Life Scout completing his service project prior to receiving his Eagle.

Korean Youth Conference

The Korea Servicemen District held a youth conference, choosing Mt. Sorak and Sogcho, Korea as the site. The youth spent three days getting to know one another and having fun together in such activities as swimming at the East Sea beach, riding the tram to the top of the mountains, hiking to a Buddhist temple before dawn, and eating native dishes.

The group heard speakers with a message for youth and held a special testimony meeting.

Scouts in Somalia

Scout Troop 930 may be a long way from home, but they are enjoying the same activities and earning the same awards as other Scout troops. These Scouts are with their parents serving with agricultural development missions in Somalia on the east coast of Africa.

The troop is sponsored by the Mogadishu Branch of the International Mission. Dr. Joe Austin, a Silver Beaver Scouter; Roger McEvoy; and Guy Denton of the Utah State University Agricultural Extension Farm Management Training Project staff have served as the Scoutmasters.

The boys are experiencing all aspects of Scouting and continuing their advancements in rank. A recent highlight was a court of honor where the U.S. Ambassador to Somalia, the Honorable Donald K. Peterson, personally presented the troop with a flag of the United States. He encouraged the boys to carry on representing their country with the Scout oath and law as their standard of behavior.

Students Abroad

by Jennifer Haldeman

Our first full day together was finally over, and we turned out the light. Within two minutes, each of our pillows was wet with tears of homesickness. And yet, there was a closeness among us. Debbie Dall, Jennifer Waite, and I had all felt at ease with one another since our first meeting (although it had taken place just a few days before we were to live together). Our mothers love to tell the story of how we had talked nonstop for nearly two hours when we first met.

Our parents were all living and working in Saudi Arabia at the beginning of our junior year in high school. There being no American high school in the kingdom, our parents arranged for us all to attend an American boarding school in Lugano, Switzerland. We would room together, the only three LDS girls in the school. Never having met one another, we were perhaps at first a bit apprehensive about the arrangement, but our parents continually assured us that we had much in common and would get along fine.

Our parents’ words of encouragement did prove to be true, and Debbie, Jennifer, and I became close remarkably fast. Within the first week of school, word spread that we were Mormons. We easily squelched most of the strange rumors circulating about the Church, but some prejudices still existed. One girl even admitted to me that her brother said he felt uncomfortable around us because our strength to uphold our morals frightened him and made him realize his own mistakes.

Many positive things also happened due to the “advertisement” of our religion. Several of our good friends became interested in the gospel. Although it was difficult to interest them in attending sacrament meeting because it was in Italian, we found an alternative. Through the kindness of an English-speaking member in our branch, we were able to use her home to hold weekly Family Home Evenings with the missionaries and hopefully plant the seeds of the gospel.

On one such occasion we asked a teacher at school to drive us to the meeting, as it was difficult to reach with public transportation. She agreed, and upon dropping us off, asked if she could join us. At the end of the evening this teacher revealed her motives in attending. She said that she had noticed us on campus as a happy group, and one which did not obtain this happiness artificially through the use of alcohol, etc. She said that as the school’s college counselor she saw we had direction and a set of goals in our lives which was absent in so many of the students she counseled. She confessed that she had come that night simply to see what made us tick but that events of the evening had impressed her more than she ever expected. She subsequently began taking the missionary discussions.

As the year came to a close, Jennifer and Debbie decided they would not be returning to the school the following year. There would not be another “Mormon room” in the dorm or questions about all the pictures of big white buildings on our walls. But hopefully, the seeds we had planted and the friendships we had made would never be lost. We had lived together like sisters, and on our last day together, as on our first, the tears flowed freely—but this time for a different reason.

Book Reviews

N. Eldon Tanner: His Life and Service
by G. Homer Durham
(Deseret Book $8.95)

During the course of a famous libel trial in New York, a question was posed: Could anyone cite the name of an individual of perfect honesty? The name of Nathan E. Tanner of western Canada was entered on the court records as such a person.

A financial genius, an astute and perceptive businessman, an eminent government official, a dedicated spiritual leader, a warm and loving husband and father—N. Eldon Tanner was all of these. His life from boyhood in Canada to the highest councils in the Church makes fascinating reading.

Purity of Heart
by Vaughn J. Featherstone
(Deseret Book $5.95)

“Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God.” This beatitude set the stage for this book by Elder Featherstone on the importance of purity in all aspects of our lives. He includes numerous stories from his own experience, from the lives of the prophets, and from the lives of others who exemplify purity of heart.

His Brother’s Keeper

For their efforts in saving the life of Levi Tapp, Sand Tapp and David Bos received Boy Scout National Council certificates of Heroism.

In a televised presentation, the two 11-year-olds received gold medals for risking their lives to save another’s. The three boys were walking along the bank of a lake close to their home. Levi slipped in the mud and fell through the ice at the edge of the lake. Sand and David crawled out to Levi, and with one holding the legs of the other, grabbed Levi and inched him up onto solid ice. Sand wrapped Levi in his coat and carried him the half mile to his home.

The boys are from the Second Ward, Springfield Missouri Stake.

Canadian Canoeists

After working at improving their canoeing skills, including training in water safety and physical conditioning, the Scouts of the Ottawa Ontario Stake headed for the lakes for a week of camping and exploring. Because of the training, they felt ready to have a good time.

A few cloudy skies didn’t dampen the spirits of those who stayed at the base camp. Another group made a 30-mile overnight hike starting at O’Brian Lake. When the hearty souls who made the overnight trip returned, it was time for swimming and water contests.

It was a time for getting to know each other and their leaders a little better, for joking about mosquitoes and campfire cooking, and for testing skills and abilities learned in the Scouting program. Each person returned home a little more self-assured and confident. They all agreed that they would be looking forward to next year’s trip.

Front row, left to right: Kevin McEvoy, Adrian Hatch, Jim Martin, Ben Bench. Back row, left to right: Terry Bench, Jim McEvoy, Matthew Martin and Dorian Hatch.

Inset: Jennifer Haldeman. Left: Jennifer Waite; Right: Debbie Dall

Left to right: Sand Tapp, Levi Tapp and David Bos