A previously "lost" entry from Parley P. Pratt's autobiography, not to be mistaken with his description of certain incidents in the Liberty jail.
As I arrived the song leader stood before the Primary with one child at her knee, a second on her hip, the signs of an expected third child giving her face a glow and her body a telling graceful curvature, her free hand held up to claim the attention of her boisterous young congregation for singing time. The nursery leader reclaimed the child on her hip and the Sunbeam teacher gently guided the child at her knee back to his seat as the song leader asked the children to suggest movements to accompany the words of the activity song, “If you’re happy and you know it ….” She gamely clapped, stomped, turned around and patted her head with the children to show that everyone was happy and they knew it. A very active rendering of “Book of Mormon Stories” followed complete with appropriate movements (waves for “far across the sea” and clasped hands for “we must brothers be”). Finally, the song leader moved on to a song for the impending Primary sacrament meeting program. The children had clearly been working on this one. They sang confidently and purposefully. As they began the nursery child toddled in from the hall and went right to her mommy who patiently picked her up. This prompted the return of the sunbeam to his mother’s knee. Mom missed nary a beat with her free hand, but an errant tear on her cheek revealed that the sweetness of the little ones around and before her revealed in their singing of “I feel my Savior’s Love” had caught her unaware.
As I arrived the song leader stood before the Primary with one child at her knee, a second on her hip, the signs of an expected third child giving her face a glow and her body a telling graceful curvature, her free hand held up to claim the attention of her boisterous young congregation for singing time. The nursery leader reclaimed the child on her hip and the Sunbeam teacher gently guided the child at her knee back to his seat as the song leader asked the children to suggest movements to accompany the words of the activity song, “If you’re happy and you know it ….” She gamely clapped, stomped, turned around and patted her head with the children to show that everyone was happy and they knew it. A very active rendering of “Book of Mormon Stories” followed complete with appropriate movements (waves for “far across the sea” and clasped hands for “we must brothers be”). Finally, the song leader moved on to a song for the impending Primary sacrament meeting program. The children had clearly been working on this one. They sang confidently and purposefully. As they began the nursery child toddled in from the hall and went right to her mommy who patiently picked her up. This prompted the return of the sunbeam to his mother’s knee. Mom missed nary a beat with her free hand, but an errant tear on her cheek revealed that the sweetness of the little ones around and before her revealed in their singing of “I feel my Savior’s Love” had caught her unaware.
I have seen ministers of justice clothed in magisterial
robes with the life of the accused at stake; I have witnessed a Congress in
solemn session with the law of the land at stake; I have tried to conceive of
kings, of royal courts, of thrones, and crowns, and emperors assembled with the
fate of nations at stake, but dignity and majesty have I seen but once as she
stood surrounded by her children leading the Primary in sweet, simple,
heartfelt song with the souls of Jesus’ little ones at stake.
No comments:
Post a Comment