Gospel Message Day 322

Summer of Learning

I read an article today that resonated very well with me. It let me see that they have been lessons I've had to learn again, for they are lessons I need to learn every time I am rejected by a man. I suppose I really liked the way it was put in this article, because I love Les Mis so much. As a teen, I had such sympathies with Eponine, because even then I knew what it was like to be the passed over girl. But that didn't mean I felt that she should have "gotten" Marius. Marius loved somewhere else. (And by the way, neither in the book nor the musical are Marius and Eponine best friends, so I wish people would stop trying to make his not choosing her More "tragic.") I always understood his choosing Cosette, and never begrudged her. I suppose that was a lesson I learned early on. What was the point? But I'd never thought about how some of the things Eponine did were not the way to go about it. So the 6 points the article made were:

1. Don’t play the victim.

2. Your friendship truly isn’t worth it.

3. Forgive in order to forget.

4. Charity is the best medicine.

5. Hope is the key!

6. Let your sadness work for you.

I feel that these points are applicable to any disappointment, sorrow, or trial that we face. Because they make use of the Atonement, help us learn to forgive, teach us to be cheerful, encourage us to serve, and overall lead to us becoming more like our Savior. For if any one knew how to deal with difficulty, disappointment, and sorrow, it was our Redeemer.