I just love the story that Elder Christofferson tells from his youth. His mother suffered injury to her arm from cancer treatments and it was difficult for her to do any ironing without extreme pain. Her husband surprised her by buying an ironing machine with pedals and a roller. She didn’t understand how they could afford such a luxury.
Elder Christofferson said: “Finally Dad told her that he had gone without lunches for nearly a year to save enough money. ‘Now when you iron,’ he said, ‘you won’t have to stop and go into the bedroom and cry until the pain in your arm stops.’ She didn’t know he knew about that.” He goes on to say “I was not aware of my father’s sacrifice and act of love for my mother at the time, but now that I know, I say to myself, ‘There is a man.’” [1]
He also said: “In large measure, true manhood is defined in our relationship to women.” (ibid)
What a blessing it is to have men like these to emulate and look up to, instead of what passes for role models and authority figures in society today.
This is one of my favorite stories. That is an incredible example of love and honor. He quietly went about saving and sacrificing for his wife-without complaint.
ReplyDeleteI think we often are so quick to see our own needs not being met, that we fail to see what we can do to meet the needs of another. And especially in today's age of disposability, it is rare that we see someone sacrifice for such a long time for another. It really is a show of true and deep love.