Service and Sacrifice (and a bit of Easter at the end)

When Jena was younger, maybe in 6th or 7th grade, she decided that she wanted to donate her hair to "Locks of Love."  Some of her cousins had done it and she thought it sounded like a good thing to do.  Her hair had been long for a long time and I thought it was a great idea.  Before we went to the hairdresser, I showed Jena where I thought her hair would be after it was cut, and she was all on board.  However, once we got there, our hairdresser indicated that the measurements we had done were incorrect and her hair was actually going to be about 4 inches shorter than we had thought.  (I thought the length had to be 12 " but it was actually a 12" braid which takes more hair.)  Jena hesitated.  It meant that her hair was going to be shorter than she expected.  You could watch the dilemma going on in her head--should she?  shouldn't she?  We waited for a minute or two and then Jena said that she wanted to do it still.

On the way home, I told Jena how proud I was that she followed through with her donation--especially proud of the last 4" inches which she hadn't intended to give.  That was the true sacrifice--giving past the easy or planned for service.

I had one of my own sacrifice moments this week.  It went like this:

I (along with the other sisters in our stake) got an email on Wednesday night asking if we would be willing to make masks for the airman at Hill Air Force Base by Friday.  They included a pattern and directions to use a twin size sheet to make the masks with vague directions about using a variety of things "around your house" to do the ties since elastic was no longer available in the stores since so many people were making face masks due to the pandemic.  I hesitated at first as I was working, had other plans for the next few days, and most of my sewing stuff except for my sewing machine was all boxed up since we are repainting the rooms downstairs.  But after work, I looked at the pattern and realized that I did have sewing skills for that (thanks to the required Home Economics class we all had to take in high school in Richland and to my mom.) so I volunteered.  The email had said that "after you get things organized, it should take you just two hours to do 40 masks from a sheet.)  I realized that just cutting them out would take 2 hours, but I thought I could do them in a day and set aside Thursday for that project.  I found a sheet, dug up some thread, and my rotor cutter and went to work on Thursday afternoon.

The storage bedroom with all of the boxes of stuff
from the other bedrooms and closet.

 Luckily the box was on the second row in and was labeled- sewing!

I set it up in the TV room and went to work---- photos by Jena

The ties became the difficulty of this whole project and the subject of repeated phone calls, texts, and even a marco polo from an friend as we tried to figure out how to make the masks useable. Women were out looking for appropriate  materials at a variety of stores to use for the ties as the directions were not helpful in that regard.  It was SO frustrating and the person who organized our part of this drive, hadn't made one so she couldn't answer our questions.

I have to admit--I was grumbling to myself on Thursday night when it was apparent that this project was going to go over into all of Friday as well.  After all, I had only planned on Thursday.

The Friday came--Good Friday actually--and the day of the Worldwide Fast that the prophet had asked us to participate in to help moderate the effects of the pandemic.  I had read about fasting in the scriptures the night before in preparation and had read many scriptures on the subject.  Fasting is suppose to be about rejoicing, praying, thanksgiving--- (But I was 'stuck' making masks!)

I started early and sewed and sewed and sewed.........

I  used left over chenille yarn that one of the other sisters in the ward had used for the ties.  Unfortunately, it was one short so then I got one more set made with a small rope from another neighbor for my final one. 

.....And 12 hours (not 2) later, I delivered 40 masks to add to the 5000 masks that our area sewed.  The sister collecting the masks (in a social distance sort of way) had the biggest smile and thank you that I couldn't help leave without a sense of gratitude for being a part of this project.

And in that attitude of gratitude (not grumbling), I heard the lesson once again--service and sacrifice are often traveling companions.  I realized that I was hoping to do a service without sacrifice--just some hours on a Thursdays afternoon.  But sacrifice is often required--as it was this time for me and many of my friends.  I was glad that I did it.

But on that Good Friday ride home, I was also reminded that our sacrifice was minor--as we pondered that Ultimate Sacrifice that we remember on Good Friday and all of the Easter Weekend.  How grateful I am that He went the "whole distance" further than He might have even understood He had to go.  Until those words "It is finished."

It was just a little lesson--a reminder of past lessons--that service and sacrifice are often required as we try to serve as Heavenly Father has asked us to serve.  It was worth 12 hours and so much more!