Yellow Legal Pads



In one of my recent Eleven Random Questions Tag posts I shared how I don’t enjoy writing by hand. The typewriter, and then the computer have been and continue to be huge blessings in my life. Although I love receiving handwritten notes and letters, I rarely write them myself any more, something I’m sure that I should do more often. As for trying to write a manuscript by hand, I just would not even try. I’ll jot down a note or two if I’m not near my computer when the muse strikes, but then it goes to the computer the very first chance I get.

Yellow legal pads are somewhat of a Howes family tradition. My DH has a large supply that he uses for the family business, and my father-in-law always used them faithfully. There are several occasions each year when I now faithfully use and love my own yellow legal pads. One of these occasions is coming up this next weekend: The 182nd Annual General Conference of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.


(click on this picture to learn more about Prophets and General Conference)

The traditional semi-annual conference of the church is a time when I can literally sit at the feet of prophets of God and take notes about what God wants me to be doing during the next six months. Who else in the history of the world has had this opportunity? Not many. We are so blessed in this day to have a living prophet, called of God. Thomas S. Monson, President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, has been called of God as a prophet, seer, and revelator. He has counselors and twelve apostles who have also been called to testify of God the Father and Jesus Christ. We are so blessed in this day to have the technology where we can literally sit at their feet wherever we are in the world, and listen to their counsel through the means of radio, television, and internet broadcasts. Within days, transcripts of their messages will be available to the entire world on the church’s website and lds.org, and within a month, these messages will be sent around the world in the church’s Ensign and Liahona magazines.

In the past I have been known to engage in various activities such as baking, cleaning, sorting laundry, embroidery etc. while listening to one or more of the four main general conference sessions. Several years ago I started using yellow legal pads to take notes for myself, and now I find it difficult to do anything else during general conference. If something mentioned particularly resonates with me, I can mark it so that I can go back and review that bit of information, and hopefully put it to use in my life. We are so blessed to have such close access to the word of God directed to us in our day. If you have never listened to a prophet of God speak, I challenge you to take the time to listen this weekend. And you may just want to have a fresh yellow legal pad handy . . .

(Check local program listings for availability in your area, or visit bonneville.info, byubroadcasting.org, ksl.com, mormonchannel.org, or mobile.lds.org for more information.)