The Welcome Table

When my family moved to Utah from Illinois, I spent the last month of fourth grade at Wasatch Elementary. Two days after I arrived, nobody would talk to me. Finally, a classmate who was also in my primary class gave me a two-page list of my faults, explaining my unworthiness to associate with the others. First on the list was this: “You have red hair.” True. I could not deny it. Second: “You show off.” Also true. I did cartwheels during recess. I became a loner instantly and … [Read more...]

The photo on the right was taken this morning. My brother, Dell, took it. That's my dad and me in the swimming pool. Yes, I still do aqua zumba, for those of you who love picturing that, and so does my husband. But lately, my brother has been taking Dad to swim before dialysis, and I often join them. In one week, Dad will turn eighty-three. In February, we will finish seven years of dialysis. This morning, I walked alongside Dad as he swam. He broke his femur awhile ago, so he can't really … [Read more...]

Yes, it is foolish to rush in yet again after the reception my initial blog post received. Nonetheless, here I go. Let me first address the two main talking points which have been repeated by many supporters of "Ordain Women." First, the gathering on October 5th, followed by a press conference, is not a protest. In fact, said H. Beal, "This is not a protest. Anyone who characterizes it as such is seeking to dismiss or malign us." In two sentences, she has assumed motivation and made … [Read more...]

I am re-posting something I wrote several years ago, because of the wonderful news we got yesterday, included in the title. Previously posted in By Common Consent. My son, by the way, did graduate from high school. He is doing well and continues to surprise us by his wisdom. So my son will not pass Sports Medicine this term. Alas. We worked so hard. And I do mean WE. I taught myself the material so I could tutor him. But the class is made for a different sort of student than my son … [Read more...]

June 8, 1971—an important day. Three black men, Ruffin Bridgeforth, Darius Gray, and Eugene Orr met with three junior apostles: Gordon B. Hinckley, Thomas S. Monson, and Boyd K. Packer. This was all under the direction of Joseph Fielding Smith, the president of the LDS church. The issue for Gene Orr was priesthood. “These were negotiating meetings,” Gene says in the documentary Nobody Knows: The Untold Story of Black Mormons. “We wanted the priesthood.” Darius Gray did not believe … [Read more...]

"Not Knowing Beforehand the things which I should Do" It’s because I’m a Blair. My father has set me in Middle-of-Nowhere, Mexico and instructed me to figure out how to say fifty different words in some dialect spoken there. He once told my siblings and me in the middle of Guatemala City, “I’ve got a conference, but I hear there’s a museum around here. Go find it. I’ll meet you back here in five hours.” I have a long tradition of leaping before anyone can stop me. Clearly, … [Read more...]

There is no faith without imagination. One reason I choose Mormonism as my religious framework is that--at its best--it urges me to the most noble imaginings. So much of my life involves imagination. I have taught poets who had far greater gifts than I, essayists who invited me into new paradigms or experiences, and fiction writers who took me on unanticipated journeys. Recently, I taught a young man who I also knew as a missionary. He was in the MTC branch my husband and I served in several … [Read more...]