Brightening My Light

lds.org This was the part I wrote for my role in the pageant for our stake women's conference on women from the scriptures and Church history.  I am Hannah, mother of the prophet Samuel, from the Old Testament. I was in a polygamous marriage, and as if that wasn’t hard enough, my husband’s other wife, Peninnah, could have children, but I could not. Peninnah would tease me for being infertile because she was jealous that our husband loved me more than he loved her. Every year we went to the temple. One year, Peninnah was so cruel, I wept bitterly and couldn't eat. My husband tried consoling me by asking, “Am I not better to thee than ten sons?” Of course he was a good husband to me, but the love a woman has for her husband and the love she has for her children are not quite the same, and I wanted to experience that motherly love more than anything. I finally couldn’t take it anymore. I went to the temple alone and poured out my soul in prayer and tears. I vowed ...

At the end of April, our stake had a women's conference. A couple months before the event, I was asked to portray one of the women from the scriptures: Hannah. I was told to prepare a 3-5 minute talk about her from her point of view. It needed to include the lines, "I offer you the gift of [gospel principle]..." and "My prayer for you from the past is..." I put a lot of thought into my talk ( read it here ) and came away learning a lot not only about Hannah, but also about how her story applies to me. I was again reminded how really studying scripture stories in depth can lead to a deeper understanding of the people and lessons involved. The day of the event, all the women participating in the pageant arrived early to get into costume and run through our entrance. The place was decorated beautifully! Each table was assigned a tribe of Israel The stake Relief Society president wanted us to really get into character and have fun. She was hoping we wou...