Tuesday, January 31, 2012

The Winter Blues, Nevada Style


It's not really the winter blues that are keeping me from posting.  I want to update our blog, but we just haven’t been up to that much lately.  Dave is studying a lot for the Bar exam.  I am working on my master’s project a lot.  We are both doing quite a bit to serve in our callings.  And that’s about it.  The weather is sometimes cold, sometimes warmish.  On Sunday the weather was beautiful!  It really felt like spring.  I don’t think that spring has quite arrived, but by the end of February when Dave has more time I think we’ll have good weather for getting out, hiking again, and maybe biking!
 
Okay, so the only interesting thing in that paragraph to talk about is my calling.  At the end of December I was called to serve in the Relief Society program and released from my calling in the Young Women program.  I had mixed emotions about it all.  I really loved serving with the young women.  They are such sweet girls, and I felt like I was a good influence for many of them.  But I haven’t been able to attend Relief Society meetings for 2 years.  I know that being in Relief Society will be a good thing for me.  On the other hand, I didn’t feel that nervous serving the young women since they looked up to me.  I do feel nervous serving the women in the ward, since I don’t feel like I know that much about being in a Relief Society presidency, I haven’t been in Relief Society for a while, and I am so not that crafty.  That last thing is something that I need to work on since I am in charge of Enrichment activities for our Relief Society.  So this is a good thing because this will be a learning experience for me!

Do any of you who have served in Relief Society presidencies have any ideas or advice for someone who is new to this?

10 comments:

  1. I'm on the committee in our ward. If you need any ideas, I'm happy to share!

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  2. Being the RS counselor over activities was my first calling in this ward. I was so scared too! I totally know what you're talking about. I was nervous about planning activities for such a wide variety of women, all of whom were older and more experienced than me. In retrospect, there was nothing to be nervous about because women are glad to get together and talk no matter what the activity is. You'll be so awesome!

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  3. I had that same calling but in a singles ward and I have a feeling it's very different in a family ward. I think you will be great, use your committee, listen to the wants and needs of the ladies you serve. You will be great!! (And yay, it let me comment...maybe it's my computer that's spazzy)

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  4. The fun thing is, we don't have a committee! Our ward is so small, it's hard to fill just the basic callings. We still don't have a secretary for the Relief Society. So, it's pretty much all up to me, and I can ask certain women to help me with specific activities. But our February activity was already planned, and our March activity is almost all planned with the idea already chosen. So I have a little bit of time to get the ideas rolling.

    Amy, good point that women just like to get together and talk! I just feel the pressure to make sure that I am addressing the needs of the ward.

    Natalie, I would love an exchange of ideas! I will send you an email with the ideas of things that we're doing if you'll do the same thing for me! :D

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  5. Well, boo, I just wrote a long comment and when I tried to publish, the page went to an error. Here's a summation:

    Back when I was Enrichment Leader, we were asked to base activities on general areas like physical well-being, spiritual well-being, creative arts, etc. Some activities we did were visit a museum, learn basic dance steps, have a holiday meal with guest speakers, make cards, etc. Some things we've done in my most recent ward were make calendars for scripture study, have a basketball game, learn about organizing homes, making 72 hours kits. Also, Pinterest is a good way to learn about simple crafts. :)

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  6. Hey Merry, I've been the RS president in our humongous ward since May. VERY daunting. We have a huge variety of women from newly married to 90-year-olds. The only suggestion I have is to work in counsel. Don't go it alone. Talk to your presidency and have your president talk to the Bishop to get the most of your ideas. I have found that working in council makes everything--every idea I had--better. Good luck!

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  7. Thanks for the ideas! And I think that I am going to start looking at Pinterest for ideas. Can one of you invite me? :D

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  8. Merry, I am excited for you! Here's what I have to say about it:

    First of all,it isn't "Enrichment" any more. It is Additional Relief Society Meetings. The nature and purpose of the program are entirely different. It isn't "crafty" based. It focuses on spiritual and temporal welfare. The Handbook and lds.org have great counsel and guidelines.

    Second, study and follow the directions in the church Handbook. It can be found online. Then even when people complain (and they will because women sure like to criticize) you don't have to feel badly because you know you were following the directions from the Handbook, which are the directions from the Prophet, which are the directions from God.

    Third, use the planner on the church Relief Society website, which can be found on lds.org/serving in the church/relief society/leader resources/additional meetings. Again, when people complain, you can stand firm and happy because you followed the counsel from the General Authorities.

    Good luck!

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  9. Becky, somehow I didn't see or publish your comment before. Thank you for your advice. I think that's a great idea.

    Alison, you are so right! I read about this in the Handbook, but my RS president calls me the Enrichment counselor, so I still get caught up in the old terminology. And I will check out the website you suggested. Thanks!

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