Easter

Resurrection, from the new Bible Videos 

I am coming to really LOVE Easter.  For the first time we managed to do none of the traditional Easter stuff and it was lovely.  We talked about the Savior's last week throughout our week and watched the new Bible videos.  We had no chocolate or candy (except what they got from primary) and no fancy shmancy big dinner.  I did want to do something special so I made a Baked Alaska.  That was fun and the kids were impressed.
But I was able to focus on Easter and death and resurrection.

I taught the Relief Society lesson yesterday that just happened to be on the topic of the immortality of the sole.  One of the questions poised in the suggested discussions was, "How do you teach children about the Resurrection?"

Just this past week I received an insight into how I have been teaching my children about death and the Resurrection when Rebecca one day at dinner made this statement.  "Mom when you die, I will miss you but you will be happy because your spirit will be with Jesus and family.  I will see you when you have a perfect resurrected body."

You see, my children have two living grandfathers and two great-grandfathers, but no grandmothers.  The only one they remember is Mom.  Those months before and after her death provided many opportunities for us to talk about death and why their grandmothers have passed on.

Why did grandma die?

Because her body got sick.  Her body became too weak to hold onto her spirit anymore so her spirit left her body.  We buried her body in the ground and it will turn back into dirt.  Her spirit is now in the spirit world with her mom and family and Jesus.

But I miss her.

Yes we miss her when we don't get to see her, but we will see her again.  Someday her spirit will be joined with her body again, but this time it will be a perfectly resurrected body.  When she is resurrected she will have a perfect body.  She won't get sick or get old or get hurt.  It will be perfect and she will never die again.

Am I going to die?

Yes, but not for a long time; probably not until you are a grandma/grandpa.  But then you will be resurrected too and have a perfect body.  You won't get sick or get old or get hurt.  It will be perfect and you will never die again.

or

Mom are you going to die?

Yes, I will.  Not for a long time though, I still have a lot of things to do.  But I will die.  I will miss you, but I will get to be with Jesus and my mom and dad and family.  And I will be resurrected and get my perfectly resurrected body.  I won't get sick or get old or get hurt.  It will be perfect and I will never die again.

Apparently we have gone through this enough that they are starting to understand.  Usually when we have these types of conversations, we have the sweetest feeling in the home.  It was rather amusing to have her say it so simply, "mom, I'll miss you when you die, but..."

I only broke down one time (my lesson doesn't count) yesterday and that was when a mother and daughter sang a duet in Sacrament meeting.  That seems to be my trigger.  I miss singing with mom.  Whenever these two women sing, I lose it.  Oh well, at least that seems to be the only thing that does it.

Have a wonderful week.