I read through a short biography of my great-great-great grandfather the other day. I read of his faith. His deep conviction of the gospel of Jesus Christ. His strength in the hardest of trials. I wished so deeply that I could have met him. I wondered if I could be a little bit like him. I wondered what he would have taught me if I had had the opportunity to sit on his knee as a child.
I thought of my grandfather, his great-grandson, who passed away a years ago. I used to sit on his knee. He taught me so much about the gospel on that soft, inviting little seat. He had such an amazing knowledge of, well, everything. But especially he loved to talk about the Savior and His teachings. He had an entire library full of books written by amazing men and women of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He taught me to delve deep into my understanding of the gospel.
I think now about my dad. He would often let me stay up late to discuss some doctrinal aspect of the gospel. I never got sick of hearing him talk about this passion of his. That same love of our Savior had been passed down to him.
I have to admit that even with all the names I have found, temple work competed, talks on family history and so forth, I have hardly read a story from any of my ancestors. I have been so focused on getting the work done. Not to mention, this line of my family has had SO much work done already I never even bothered to look through it. It was already “done”. How wrong I have been.
Two things became clear from reading these stories of my great-great-great grandfather. One, these men and women who came before us are of a powerful importance in my life. This deep love for the Savior and His teachings was passed down from those before me and has become a part of me now. Our ancestors’ faith, their experiences, their perspectives, their love is very much a part of each of us. Even some of their faults and shortcomings are passed down. The second thing that became VERY clear to me was that it is my RESPONSIBILITY to continue to pass down this legacy of faith to my children. My children need to hear these stories. They need to learn from these men and women who have already helped shape them a little into who they are. These ancestors aren’t just names. They are my family.
With this said, I am excited to introduce a series starting up next week called, #seasonforfamilyactivities It will be a way for us to share ideas to fill some of those long summer days coming up with activities to do together as a family. These activities will be fun and help you discover and pass down your own family legacy so that our ancestors won’t be forgotten but that they can be celebrated with us and in us.
What are some ways you have been inspired by the stories of your ancestors?
KAYLA BERRETT
IG: @kaylaberrett
