TJ Hirst

Learning to listen is not just a lesson I teach my children, it is a lesson I continue to learn myself, especially that I may receive divine communication.

For behold, thus saith the Lord God: I will give unto the children of men line upon line, precept upon precept, here a little and there a little; and blessed are those who hearken unto my precepts, and lend an ear unto my counsel, for they shall learn wisdom; for unto him that receiveth I will give more; and from them that shall say, We have enough, from them shall be taken away even that which they have.

The Book of Mormon - 2 Nephi 28:30

When my friend recently talked to me about taking away all the distractions and barriers so that she can have the Holy Spirit guide her, I could relate to that feeling. Often I feel a tight ball of stress swelling right in my chest. I know it is keeping me from more. More faith. More knowledge. More love. I know when I feel it, but sometimes it is hard to let go. But when I am willing, my heart opens, and I receive.

In the middle of my perennial garden bed, I sat between the weeds and the flowers, not knowing the difference. Sometimes perennials or wildflowers that aren’t in bloom can look a lot like weeds. I was a young mom and a young gardener inheriting a garden from previous owners.

Meanwhile, my neighbor across the street cleared and prepared her beds for an herb and vegetable garden. I craved turning over my own soil to plant new seeds or plants. I ripped at the plants that looked like weeds to me. Yet, as I proceeded, I felt a quiet urge to wait patiently and watch the garden, to not even pull the weeds. My nurturing instinct was louder than my impulsiveness, and I backed off the garden bed.

In that everyday gardening experience I became not only a more patient gardener but a more patient mother, working slowly and carefully in both realms.

My everyday realms are ordinary, but they are a microcosm to larger realms. Considering and connecting, comparing and contrasting everyday experiences to each other and to the larger world reveals truth. The grass is always greener somewhere else until light illuminates our own.

This is the 100^th post at tjhirst.com. In celebration, I reveal a new look and a new tagline, Illuminate Everyday. My husband, Paul, created this original web design to reflect my writing goals.

To illuminate is to provide or brighten with light, to make understandable, clarify, to enlighten. I am still seeking and finding what inspires, but the process to seek and find creative, intellectual or spiritual inspiration is not an anxious perusal of all the available resources the world over.

Inspiration comes when I illuminate the everyday people, circumstances and situations in my own realm and consider the truths that exist right around me. My writing is a creative process that “elevates the everyday rather than denigrates it,” as my husband says. My goal on this website is to share that process and what I discover.

My teenage daughter and I watched this talk together, which I think was primarily meant for teenagers caught in the midst of a confusing time, but these words have stayed with me, “You make choices every day and almost every hour that keep you walking in the light or moving away toward darkness.”

Every day I experience a bit of confusion and begin to second guess my choices before and after I make them. It usually happens with silly things like which brand of facial cleanser to buy, but this confusion causes me greater angst when my choices are of greater importance—like health care decisions.

That confusion feels dark and disjointed. My mind feels like it is running all over the place and isn’t settled.

In contrast, I want to make choices based on good information and good inspiration, choices that will work for me and be successful. When that happens, my mind feels clear and connected.

This scripture in the The Book of Mormon answers that desire:

But behold, that which is of God inviteth and enticeth to do good continually; wherefore, every thing which inviteth and enticeth to do good, and to love God, and to serve him, is inspired of God.

Moroni 7:13

And when I reread that talk, I found these words:

I promise you that within the next few days you will feel the illumination of the Spirit of Christ and the Holy Ghost in your everyday life. When you walk in the light, you will feel at that moment some of the warmth and the happiness that will finally be yours when you are welcomed home again with the hundreds and perhaps thousands of others whom you will bring with you, who have walked in the light because you did.

President Henry B. Eyring
Walk in the Light

The majority of life’s time is spent in ordinary moments. How reassuring it is to know that even those moments—especially in those moments—we can and will receive light.

Have I seen the hand of God reaching out to touch us today?

Welcome Spring! Today is the Spring Equinox. A change in seasons is always a good time to refresh my basic knowledge about the relationship between the earth and the sun and its effect on our lives.

Seasonal change in the angle of sunlight, caused by the tilt of the earth’s axis, is the basic mechanism that results in warmer weather in summer than in winter. Change in day length is another factor.

Nature responds to the increase of light and begins to change. Even in Minnesota where the spring bulbs will not appear for more than a month, I see signs that nature senses a change.

This week my sister-in-law wrote this:

I need the rejuvenation of what (spring) symbolizes. I am hungering for the green to be more present in the outdoors, for the flowers to poke their heads out of the ground. I’m always amazed at how early some of the flowers come, even with the chill that hangs in the air. They can’t wait to feel that sun. As do I. I am so looking forward to the warmth.

Our family is also receiving and responding to an increase of light from heavenly sources this spring. We have sensed a need for slight changes that will carry us into new seasons of growth.

We have lived in our home for three years without rearranging furniture or redefining spaces. Ironically, in the last week, we were inspired to make small physical reorganizations in almost half the house.

After we made these changes and Paul began the planning process for others, the whole family responded to the new openness. More importantly, the physical changes initiated other purposeful emotional and spiritual changes.

For example, my daughters both rearranged the furniture in their rooms to accommodate their changing circumstances. We weeded out the outgrown clothes and books and made space for that which is now a priority. As a result, their moods and desires changed, enabling them to prepare for future needs.

These small shifts in life’s seasons bless our family and make me grateful for increased light that helps us sense when to change habits or relationships so growth will continue.

Have you noticed the change in daylight? I was driving yesterday morning, at the same time as usual, but the light outside was so much brighter. In fact, it was so different from the previous week, I thought I was LATE!

Our sunrise here in north central Minnesota last Friday, Feb. 29, was at 6:57 a.m. Today the sunrise was at 6:44 a.m. What time was your sunrise?

Minutes do matter.

For light lovers and those affected by seasonal affective disorders this is great news.

Personally, I think many of us suffer a little bit by less sunlight in the winter, we just don’t call it a disorder. In fact, while it is very, very cold here today and snow is still on the ground, the sunlight is mood lifting.

UPDATED NOTE: I have been reminded that daylight saving time begins at 2 a.m. Sunday, March 9. We will move our clocks forward one hour. Then, our sunrise will be at 7:41 a.m. on Sunday. Umm . . . .well, we still will have more daylight . . . just moving it from one end of the day to another.

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