June 2

I am reluctant to share specific experiences that involve specific people. But I thought I might share a letter I wrote to one of our recent contacts. She seemed concerned because someone who treated her badly seemed to be amply rewarded while she was struggling.

Dear ___,

Ever since we met and had a brief discussion on "serious" things and a lot of "fun" things on the side, I have been thinking about what you said. May I share a few thoughts which have come to me as a result?

Heavenly Father is very precise in His teaching plans for His children. He is our Father, so He knows us very well. He knows what lessons we need to learn here, and He tailors our circumstances (as much as He can without infringing on eternal principles) to help us learn those lessons.

In other words, the things you have experienced have been designed to help you learn and grow. Of course, there is that other pesky element of moral agency which plays a large part in our schooling here in mortality. Often, when we look back, the situations in which we find ourselves can be traced back to choices we have made.

However, one of the startling things I learned from a Book of Mormon class my first year at BYU (taught, incidentally, by one Jeffrey Holland long before his current assignment!) was that _Heavenly Father knew we would make mistakes_. And that was why the great plan of happiness includes a Savior. His atonement gives each of Heavenly Father's children the opportunity to overcome those mistakes. That is a given aspect of the atonement.

However, another aspect is that the same atonement also allows everything (eventually) to be fair. It provides a way for all those who have been injured by the sins of others to be made whole as well.

The reason your grandmother and we and all the members of the Church want you to be at church with us is that that is the spiritual hospital where we can all be healed, as well as being given our "vitamins" so we can be healthier going forward.

Heavenly Father knows and loves _you_. He's not teaching anyone else the lessons He's teaching you, because you are unique in all the world. That reminds me of a card a friend gave me before we left Virginia. It says, "Be yourself. Everyone else is taken." (originally said by Oscar Wilde)

So we are looking forward to seeing you this morning as we all come to take the Sacrament and be healed of our aches and pains as we come repentant and wanting to do better, to _be_ better. We're all undergoing the same treatment, but it's all specifically designed for who are are eternally.

Thanks so much for letting us interrupt your yard sale. We will always remember you because we will always cherish our wooden souvenirs.

Remember, Heavenly Father wants us to have joy in the journey.

With love,

Sister Quillon