Love letter to my celebrity crush: James Maitland Stewart

Dear Jimmy,

You’re dead now, but why should that stop me from writing to you on this lovely Valentine’s Day 2013? Perhaps somehow you’ll be able to find out that this letter of mine exists, and you’ll know how I feel about you.

Indeed you are my celebrity crush. But I’m not going to tell you that I’m desperately in love with you, because, like I said before, you’re dead, I’m not, you’ve got Gloria, I’ve got mortal male eligible prospects, and if I were to be in love with you, I’d be a silly ninny living in a fantasy land and missing out on opportunities here in my own generation.

So, I’m not going to tell you I’m in love with you, though I do think you’re very handsome and charming. But I am going to tell you, right here and right now, that I admire you, and I sincerely thank you for the quality example of living you set here on Earth. Why do I think you’re awesome? Let me count the ways:

1) You honored your parents, and stayed constantly true to the values they taught you when you were young

2) You fostered a lifelong love for learning and discovering new talents to develop, which led you to become not just a remarkable actor, but also a great poet and accordionist

3) You loved your country, the wonderful United States of America, and served it as a faithful soldier for several years

4) You loved your wife and were wedded to her for 45 years, till the day she passed away in 1994

5) You loved your children and undoubtedly taught them the same goodness your own parents taught you

6) You sought and were grateful for the simple joys in life, such as the delight that a family dog can provide 

7) You were always a kind, gentle, fun, and good friend to all who knew you

8) You decided to not let your “high-profile” job make you big-headed; rather, you used your job as a tool to bless the lives of others. I recently watched a 1980s documentary rerun on TV, and it was all about you, and most prominently I remember Gloria telling the interviewer the story of the fan who wrote you a certain letter. In the letter this person explained that they were about to commit suicide, but then they felt some urge to turn on It’s a Wonderful Life for a leisure watch. They got to the end of the flick’s tail (and “tale”! haha, yay for homophones!), to the part where George Bailey reads the book inscription, “Dear George, Remember no man is a failure who has friends. Thanks for the wings! Love Clarence.” And then their depressed life flipped upside-down, and they felt impressed to try telling you about it. I’m glad you and Gloria chose to open that envelope and read its insertion, as I’m sure you often didn’t have time nor strong desire to read all your fan mail. What a marvelous service you performed for that person! Did you have any idea you’d do such a great good by just doing your job? I’m sure the positive fruits of your labors numbered many more than this one instance

Last—and maybe not least—I think you’re awesome because you always thought the Mormon Tabernacle Choir was awesome. Did you know that I actually made it into the Mormon Tabernacle Choir this year? Did they call it “MoTab” when you were still around on the planet? I’m happy to know you’re such a big fan of the Choir. I’m a fan, too!

Again, thank you, Jimmy, for your quality example of living. You are my favorite movie star not only because you’re incredibly talented (and don’t you dare deny it; I don’t want your modesty J), but also because of your love of life, friends, family, country, and God. I hope I can continue forth being the best person I can be, as you always strived to be.

Hope you’re having a jolly Valentine’s Day in paradise! Be sure to give everyone my love!

Love Always, Alison

I am a Brewster babe, and I am a genealogizer

Confession: I knew not one singular fact, quote, or plotline about Frank Capra's "Arsenic and Old Lace" until last Friday, when a handsome date and I attended a local theatre's production of it. We both really liked the show. Periodically during the show, my date turned to me and serenely said, "I'm so glad this isn't a musical." :) And at one particular point I turned to him and said, "Oh wow hey! I'm related to the Brewsters!" because the characters on the stage had just dialogued about their being descendants of the great William Brewster, who was a Mayflower passenger in the 1600s. (Brewster is approximately my 12th great-grandfather.)

It's moments like these Arsenic-and-Old-Lace-in-the-theatre moments that I feel the Spirit of Elijah churning cheerfully in my soul (see final chapter of the final book in the Old Testament).

For half a decade I've been keenly interested in genealogy. I love touring my family lines on ancestry websites, and I LOVE snooping around friends' pedigrees to see what their heritages are.

Not only does genealogizing (hehe, new word) always feel like an exciting figurative time machine ride, but it also always feels uplifting. I sense the Holy Ghost with me every time I genealogize. I would even go as far as to say that figurative time machine rides are uplifting, reason being because of all my amazing ancestors whom I was pleasantly astounded to discover. People like:

1) Jesse Davis, military captain in the American Revolutionary War, commended for bravery by his dear friend George Washington

2) Princess Unami Ann Sachem, daughter of Chief Suncloud of the Algonquian tribe in the colonial era

3) Henry Howard, Earl of Surrey, whose original sonnet format served as great inspiration to William Shakespeare (Grandpa Henry, first cousin to Ann Boleyn, was actually killed by none other than King Henry VIII)

No way would I have known about Jesse, Unami, or Henry if distant relatives did not share [on new.familysearch.org] the family history facts they knew. I am endlessly thankful for these relatives and their efforts. I'm especially thankful for my own sweet grandparents whom I've been tremendously blessed to know in life, who have kept splendid journals to which I have access. Oh how I treasure all these writings! Even the writings that explain that my 17th century grandmothers and great-aunts were indicted witches in Salem, Massachusetts!

Also among my heritage's priceless records are the stories that I've found about my Mormon pioneer ancestors. They emigrated from Wales and Denmark---thousands of miles across the wide, shining, turbulent Atlantic---then handcarted thousands more in unimaginably trying times. Despite hardship, they beautifully exercised faith in God, because they believed that staying faithful was what God wanted them to do, and they wanted to please Him.

My lovely eldest sister and her three younglings pulling the handcart at our family reunion.

When I ponder my ancestors and their lives, what do I think about?

---I think about how I, too, can exercise faith in God in all things, times, and places
---I think about how I can continually seek learning in this exciting world, and develop and share my talents for good
---I think about how I can be brave, stand up for what's right, and serve my country, community, fellowmen, family, and Savior

Many of you may not ever be able to find much information on your ancestors, perhaps due to minimal or inadequate past recordkeeping that's completely out of your control. I've coached some of you in the work of genealogy, and I know your struggles and frustrations when you come to stone walls in your family lines. When you encounter such walls, try indexing; it's also a wonderful way to genealogize, and it's immensely helpful to others around the world who, too, have encountered walls.

I imagine that coming face-to-face with the stone walls, or simply not knowing who your ancestors are, could lead you to uncertainty of what benefits you can reap from generations who've come before you, or potentially lead you to believe that you have no special heritage at all.

Please don't choose to be led astray this way. If you're not sure what your familial legacy is, choose to follow the righteous examples of as many honorable men or women---dead or alive---as you can remember. Do that. Do righteously.

And, so you can end the unawesome tradition of minimal or inadequate recordkeeping: keep a journal, hardcopies of letters and emails you write, notes you jot, and anything of the like. Keep your writings in a safe and tangible place. For example, I plan to print off all my emails to and from my missionary brothers (who represented The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints), and insert them into chronologically-organized clear sheet protectors, which I will put in a special binder.

Break the unawesome tradition because......why? Well, if you don't break it and don't record some of your life, how in the blazes will the generations yet to come know who you are? They deserve, just as you and I do in present-day, to learn wonderful things about their predecessors. Why don't we give them that opportunity by writing at least a little bit of ourselves?

Let this be your joymaking pointer (relative to peacemaking pointer): do what you can now to bless the lives of your posterity later. I am fearless to guarantee that much of your posterity will appreciate you from the bottoms of their hearts. And may we all also be sure to turn our hearts to our loved ones from the past, for it wouldn't be surprising in the slightest sense that they smile upon us whenever we deliver them our honor.

Scriptural reference: Malachi 4:5-6