New Beginnings

I was reminded the other day how differently girls and boys internalize knowledge and how they both can learn the same principle but from completely different perspectives.  My son who is serving in a bishopric called home excited to share with me his experience of attending a New Beginnings program for the young women in his ward.

“Mom,” he said, “what an uplifting meeting that was! Does the whole church do this or is it just something my ward does?” I teasingly reminded him that I had served in the Young Women’s program through all his teen years and we had discussed “New Beginnings” as he drove me to several of these programs so he could use my car to go play church basketball with his Young Men’s quorum. We had a good laugh as he questioned where he had been in life to not catch on to events around him.  That is a whole other topic!

I jokingly said to him, tongue in cheek that girls focus on spiritual experiences in the Young Women’s program.  It centers on teaching them to feel the spirit because their greatest responsibility will be to raise up the next righteous generation and set a gospel tone in their future homes. “They”, I said, “have more to do than play basketball and go on campouts to prepare them for their duties which lie ahead.”

“What,” he interjected, “you don’t think we had spiritual experiences in scouting? Did I ever tell you about the time we were camping and Jason threw a can of hairspray he took from his mom’s bathroom into the fire while the adult leaders were listening to the Lakers game on the car radio.  We boys prayed all the way as we ran back into the woods that we wouldn’t get killed by the explosion.  Look, it worked we are all adults now. That was a spiritual experience!”

“Or, what about another campout when Brent blew up a huge brown paper bag with air, tied a string around the top then threw it into the fire.  Weren’t we surprised when the bag lifted into the air about twenty feet and started floating over all those dry pine trees while it was burning?  You can bet as we ran beneath that fiery, floating bag for the next eternal minutes, we prayed like we’ve never prayed before that our scoutmaster wouldn’t make us clean the latrines and the whole camp by ourselves.  Assuming, or course, there was a camp that didn’t burn down. That was not only a spiritual experience but a learning one as well.”

There were many more “spiritual experience moments” my son related that we laughed about.  I found myself in the next few days thinking of those experiences and where my sons are today.  I truly have an appreciation for those programs and the experiences provided that taught them to be adventurous, to climb that next tall mountain, to be challenged, to accomplish their goals and yes to pray for guidance when they were confronted by serious problems or lost in the mountains with their adult leaders.

Even all the basketball they played taught them the positions (and responsibilities) of guard, forward, center, to be a team player, to understand offense and defense, and most importantly to be a good sport whether losing and winning.   They learned discipline, endurance, patience and teamwork.  All these principles were gained in the Young Men’s program and prepared them for life. Like the young women, their main responsibility also will be to train the next generation and set not only a spiritual but a leadership tone in their future homes.

Although there is a division between how young men and young women internalize principles, this difference actually compliments each other.  Both genders learn concepts and ideals in their own way that they will need in life. These differences with each other makes them a balanced and well rounded team to work together in their homes.

With a New Year rolling in set a goal in your families for your teens to be active in the program that is designed with their spiritual and social development in mind... the Young Men’s and Young Women’s programs.  It is there to assist you in raising the bar in your homes.