Odd

I worked with an unusual patron in the library last week. His name was Joseph, he was in his 60's and was traveling cross country on a Greyhound to a Veteran's mental hospital in Portland, Oregon. As he told me many times during our 2 hours together, "I'm messed up." Joseph came from a seriously disfunctional home. His mother and father married against the wishes of their parents when they were just kids. Dad was a seriously abusive drunk. Even sober he had very little to do with his family. The kids were afraid of their father and ignored by their mother. Joseph hadn't heard from or seen anyone in his family for 30 years. BUT HE STILL WANTED TO FIND OUT ABOUT THEM!

So we set out to learn what we could. Turns out Dad was dead. We found him in a veteran's cemetery in New Jersey. We found Dad's parents and later found him living with his grandparents. We were able to uncover enough pieces of the puzzle to satisfy something inside Joseph. I gave him the address and phone numbers of some family history centers near his home and in Portland and gave him copies of all the documents we had found. He told me as he was leaving that he thought maybe his dad was dealing with some mental issues of his own, and it looked like he had had a bit of a rough life himself. All the while I worked with Joseph I felt a very sweet spirit. I knew that the Lord was mindful of him and was helping him through the rough spots in his life.

I got to thinking about the people who come into our library. They come from all walks of life. Many are poor and humble of circumstance. Some are wealthy, here on ski vacations, or business conventions. A good number of them might be considered odd (like Joseph) anywhere else. We have a regular patron who has growths all over his body. We have another regular who likes to tell us he is Jesus' cousin and a close relation of Moses. We have one patron who weighs 400 pounds and comes in everyday. All have a hunger for family, which I'm beginning to think of as universal. At some time in each of our lives we find ourselves looking to the past, to connect and learn about the family that came before us.

On Mother's day a great gathering of my mother's posterity filled her living room. They gave gifts, ate cake, and then started asking her questions about her life, her mother's life, etc. Little children sat spellbound as she told them stories of their ancestors.

Odd or ordinary, we are children of God. He loves us. He has a plan for us, and a big part of that plan can only be carried out in the Houses of God, by His children, for His children. What a blessing to take part in this great Plan.

(PS Weather is still miserable, but the hope for Spring continues. Just a few photos of the flowers around temple square)