General Conference* is one of the highlights of the year for me. I love nesting down for two days in the basement and being with the family for 8 hours of church (over two days).
As a kid I so looked forward to Conference because it meant laying out sleeping bags in front of the TV, doing quiet activities, listening to the prophet, wearing PJ's to church, and eating special conference snacks.
I've worked to reenact this fun for my kids. My family, when I was growing up, was comprised of three little, (mostly) reverent girls. My current family is comprised of five children including three boys--enough said. The long and the short of it is my kids are often loud and occasionally rowdy and sometimes someone spends a few minutes of Conference in a time-out.
But all in all, I think it is good for them. And I think it's good for them to learn to stop and sit and listen to messages of guidance and instruction.
There were dozens of talks on different subjects over the eight hours of learning and lessons, but each year it seems that I get a succinct personal message. This year the message was: Don't follow the crowd. You are Christians, you are Mormons, you are different--so act that way. Stop watching the smutty TV shows, stop listening to music with suggestive lyrics, in fact, just stop. Stop and listen to your children, don't over-schedule them and be present with them.
I have plenty to work on. And I can't wait to get next month's Ensign!!
*Mormon 101: General Conference is a biannual meeting of the entire Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. (Nearly 14 million members world wide.) This meeting gives members the opportunity to hear teachings and get instructions from Prophets and Apostles on the earth today.
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