cards, Cards, CARDS!
Cards and their valuation. I found it an overbearing expense in my early adulthood to send out Christmas cards. Also it was tedious and time consuming to write in each one. So, what if I just don't. Well, that's so 'isolationist' and I like people. I like my friends, a lot. I like my family (the commandment is to love friends, family, and foe-you don't have to 'like' them) a whole lot. How was I ever going to reconcile this?
While my children would deliver Provo's Daily Herald newspaper, we would get a free copy and while they were out delivering, I would read 'Dear Ann Landers'. One article was about the 'annoyance' one family member felt because another family member sent out a 'Christmas letter' each year. Ann went on and on about how this was so valuable and keeping in touch and how much time it takes and so caring and... and... I still have the article-I found it of great value and worth.
So I started sending out Christmas letters-a brief synopsis of the year and the events of the whole family and some small detail each family member had experienced.
In the last few years I started slipping those letters into a card. Still time consuming to sign each one however there are some rather inexpensive decent looking Christmas cards out there so I felt fine about it.
Now I work for a paper crafting company and enjoy making handmade cards creating a new level of expense and time consumption in sending cards. Are these cards valuable? To me they are and I believe to the 40 people I send out cards to, they are. Why do I think it matters to the receivers? Because I get cards and letters back from them. I LOVE it.
There's another card of value I'm thinking about right now. When we attend our safety meetings at work we receive a 'safety buck'. If we attend all safety meetings in a quarter we receive 2 extra safety bucks. At the end of a year you can earn a total of 20! You can turn 10 in at a time and receive a $10 gift card (or a company T-shirt, etc.). Friday I turned in 20 and received a $20 gift card. Friday I also received a $100 gift card as the owner of the company wanted give us a good gift, a gift of hope. In today's economy having a job, working for a stable company is a good gift. The extra gift card gift was much appreciated and to me of great value. Now I can buy a company product I would really like to get (between the two gift cards). Yes, these cards are valued as great.
Which of these two are of the greatest value? Hmmm... friends you cannot buy... jobs you cannot easily find right now and jobs keep the bills paid and a roof over your head. Hmm... these are both of great value.
Friday, after work and taking my cards from work of great value with me I went to the Provo Temple. I showed my 'card' at the front desk so I could go to the Family File office.
At the Family File office, I handed my two pages of information on a Family Ordinance Request form to the Sister at the desk. She scanned the bar code at the top and then the printer started printing the Family File Ordinance Work CARDS.
Now the work can be done for these 18 souls. More cards. She suggested that before we do the vicarious baptisms for these people we contact the baptistery first and set a date as they are usually quite swamped. I said, that was a very good pun! She thought about what she said and has said so very many times, and then chuckled. 'I hadn't ever thought of that before.' Perhaps I made her moment. A baptistery being swamped!
On my return home, with the value of cards running through my mind I realized that I feel the one of greatest value is the one that has eternal value. My family file cards. For eternity I won't have to look them in the eye and feel shame that I didn't do something so easy for me to do during my mortal experience. I can feel good about this. And so I shall!
While my children would deliver Provo's Daily Herald newspaper, we would get a free copy and while they were out delivering, I would read 'Dear Ann Landers'. One article was about the 'annoyance' one family member felt because another family member sent out a 'Christmas letter' each year. Ann went on and on about how this was so valuable and keeping in touch and how much time it takes and so caring and... and... I still have the article-I found it of great value and worth.
So I started sending out Christmas letters-a brief synopsis of the year and the events of the whole family and some small detail each family member had experienced.
In the last few years I started slipping those letters into a card. Still time consuming to sign each one however there are some rather inexpensive decent looking Christmas cards out there so I felt fine about it.
Now I work for a paper crafting company and enjoy making handmade cards creating a new level of expense and time consumption in sending cards. Are these cards valuable? To me they are and I believe to the 40 people I send out cards to, they are. Why do I think it matters to the receivers? Because I get cards and letters back from them. I LOVE it.
There's another card of value I'm thinking about right now. When we attend our safety meetings at work we receive a 'safety buck'. If we attend all safety meetings in a quarter we receive 2 extra safety bucks. At the end of a year you can earn a total of 20! You can turn 10 in at a time and receive a $10 gift card (or a company T-shirt, etc.). Friday I turned in 20 and received a $20 gift card. Friday I also received a $100 gift card as the owner of the company wanted give us a good gift, a gift of hope. In today's economy having a job, working for a stable company is a good gift. The extra gift card gift was much appreciated and to me of great value. Now I can buy a company product I would really like to get (between the two gift cards). Yes, these cards are valued as great.
Which of these two are of the greatest value? Hmmm... friends you cannot buy... jobs you cannot easily find right now and jobs keep the bills paid and a roof over your head. Hmm... these are both of great value.
Friday, after work and taking my cards from work of great value with me I went to the Provo Temple. I showed my 'card' at the front desk so I could go to the Family File office.
At the Family File office, I handed my two pages of information on a Family Ordinance Request form to the Sister at the desk. She scanned the bar code at the top and then the printer started printing the Family File Ordinance Work CARDS.
Now the work can be done for these 18 souls. More cards. She suggested that before we do the vicarious baptisms for these people we contact the baptistery first and set a date as they are usually quite swamped. I said, that was a very good pun! She thought about what she said and has said so very many times, and then chuckled. 'I hadn't ever thought of that before.' Perhaps I made her moment. A baptistery being swamped!
On my return home, with the value of cards running through my mind I realized that I feel the one of greatest value is the one that has eternal value. My family file cards. For eternity I won't have to look them in the eye and feel shame that I didn't do something so easy for me to do during my mortal experience. I can feel good about this. And so I shall!
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