This week has been a very particular week. I am feeling GREAT! I have to say, I really haven’t felt this great since July last year! That’s because it’s been that long since I started expecting! I was married late July and pregnant in the first half of August. 🙂 Anyhow, I have felt SO GOOD this week, for whatever reason, and it feels GREAT! I just wish it would keep up for the whole semester!

Along with feeling great, I have also enjoyed the topics of the readings I had this week. I read (or listened to):

• The Doctrine of Inclusion by Elder M. Russell Ballard
• The Moving of the Water by Elder Boyd K. Packer
• Concern for the One by Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin
• Drenched in Gratitude: Protection Against the Spirit of Entitlement by President Kim B. Clark
  

Have you ever felt that you were excluded from something for a reason beyond your control? There are people who feel like this every single day! There are those around us who would love to be included, even though we don’t recognize them. They are the ones who have been labeled “handicapped.” These are the ones faced with a challenge that others would probably find unbearable.

These are all great talks, and I encourage you to read them! They have definitely brightened my week, and I remember hearing each of these talks at least once before. It is a bright memory. 🙂

Sometimes, in my pregnancy, I wonder, “What will happen if my baby is handicapped? What if the baby has a mental disability or down syndrome? What will I choose to do then?” As I pondered the readings this week, I felt those questions burning inside me, along with the questions, “What will my husband think if our child is disabled? What will happen to our relationship if we have a child with special needs and we are stressed about making sure our child’s needs are met?” It is nerve-wracking to think about. Until I think about having a healthy baby, no matter what their condition. If my baby is born healthy and happy, that is all I really desire. I would love that baby, no matter what. 

This reminds me of a video called A Father Indeed. It is a Mormon Message, brought out by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and it is a beautiful representation of how to treat those within one’s own family with disabilities.

With all of that, I am excited for this semester to continue! Happy semester, everyone! Let’s do our best!

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