It’s conference weekend which holds a special place in my heart since I became active within the Church of Jesus Christ of LatterDay Saints again. Growing up, I remember my mom attempting to watch it and me wanting to turn on cartoons or I simply thought of it as a break from church on Sunday. It wasn’t until I was 20 years old that I realized what General Conference was. Often times I listen to conference talks because they are easier to understand than reading the scriptures. Usually I’d post about this on one of my ‘Talks Tuesdays’-where I share conference talks and my thoughts on them, but I figured I could make an exception this weekend.

The talk I want to touch on tonight is from the October 2003 session, given by Gordon B. Hinkley, called To the Women of the Church. Although it is geared towards women, a lot of it also applies to men. It goes both ways.

I was familiar with one quote from this conference talk but I hadn’t ever read it the entire way through up until a few months ago. And it quickly became one of my very favorite talks.

The first quote that stood out to me was the following: “I feel like saying to them: “Wake up. Carry your share of the load. Do you really appreciate your wife? Do you know how much she does? Do you ever compliment her? Do you ever say thanks to her?”

This goes BOTH ways, and I believe it applies not only in a marriage but also in a relationship. Obviously I’m not married yet, but it’s something that is so important for both parties. Ask yourself, Do you appreciate your significant other, do they appreciate you?Do you know how much your significant other does, do they know how much you do? So on and so fourth.

President Gordon B Hinckley goes on to say, “We all worry about our performance. We all wish we could do better. But unfortunately we do not realize, we do not often see the results that come of what we do. Do not nag yourself with a sense of failure. Get on your knees and ask for the blessings of the Lord; then stand on your feet and do what you are asked to do. Then leave the matter in the hands of the Lord. You will discover that you have accomplished something beyond price.”

We are all in this life learning and growing, we are all at different stages. There will be times that we feel inadequate, during these times we need to do our best to have faith in Heavenly Father and his plan for us.

Now for my favorite quote: “Aim high, but do not aim so high that you totally miss the target. What really matters is that he will love you, that he will respect you, that he will honor you, that he will be absolutely true to you, that he will give you freedom of expression and let you fly in the development of your own talents. He is not going to be perfect, but if he is kind and thoughtful, if he knows how to work and earn a living, if he is honest and full of faith, the chances are that you will not go wrong, that you will be immensely happy.”

The above quote also goes both ways. Is your idea of a significant other realistic? Do you see the opportunities that may be right in front of you? Each of us has flaws. What really matters is that you are cared about, respected, believed in and treated well. Each of us deserve that, don’t settle for anything less.

This next one works for both if you switch out the verbiage, “May you be given strength to carry your heavy load, to meet every obligation, to walk side by side with a good and faithful and caring man….” Women aren’t the only ones with heavy loads and obligations, Men have them to. We both need someone good by our side to help us get through tough times. The remainder of this quote touches on children, which is something I look forward to someday, but even moreso I look forward to seeing my future husband with our children. For now, I’ll focus on what’s relatable currently-aka I do not have children quite yet.

“You don’t need a great big mansion of a house with an all-consuming mortgage that goes on forever. You do need a comfortable and pleasant home where love abides.”

When I read this, I thought about how I can be creating a home where love abides NOW. Instead of waiting until a day in the future, I was inspired to work on it now. The talk then goes into speaking about how mothers can individually impact their children, single mothers and more. These principles can also apply to men. Fathers have to teach their children to, fathers can be raising children on their own, etc. Like I said it can go both ways in a lot of different examples given throughout this talk. There is a LOT more that I highlighted, but I won’t spoil all the good parts. If you haven’t read it I suggest you do. Read it Here.

You may not all agree with me and my opinions when I share a conference talk, but again they are all my personal interpretation, I’m only sharing in hopes that it might inspire someone else.

Happy LDS Conference Weekend!