The Man from Snowy River

 I was again given the opportunity to illustrate paintings for the BYU Devotional. This was to be on February 11, 2020, and given by Elder Terrence Vinson, who is from Australia.

He told the story of the Man from Snowy River, who would stay in his saddle despite the steep cliff and rocks. He trusted his horse. We were also encouraged to stay in the saddle, and to trust and be led by God through the trials of this life.

Here is a link to Elder Vinson's talk: https://speeches.byu.edu/talks/terence-m-vinson/meekly-placing-our-total-trust-in-god/

I was delighted that he asked for copies of the paintings! I was able to have them printed and delivered to him on his birthday.

Can You Sleep When the Wind Blows?

I had a special opportunity to illustrate a story told by Elder Shayne M. Bowen of the Seventy, at a BYU Devotional on November 13, 2018. 

He told a story about a farmer who was looking for help. I painted my husband, who doesn't normally have white hair or a beard, and my son.

The boy told the farmer he could work for him, and when the farmer asked for his qualifications, the boy said confidently, "I can sleep when the wind blows."

The farmer did not understand this response, but was curious and took the boy on as a stable hand. 

One night, a giant storm came sweeping towards the farm house. The farmer, in panic, tried to wake his farm hand, but he was fast asleep. So he ran out to secure the barn and the animals himself.

What he found was that all the chinks were filled in the walls, all the doors were locked and barred, and all the animals were safe in their barn. Now he understood the statement, "I can sleep when the wind blows."

"And now, returning to our unassuming farm boy, I pray that whatever storms come into your life—and I promise they will come—that you can be a person of character, honor, and integrity. And most of all, I pray that you can sleep when the wind blows." --Elder Bowen

Christmas Devotional 2019

I feel so blessed that I was given the opportunity to create these illustrations. It was amazing to be asked to illustrate a story that would be told by an apostle of the Lord, President Dallin H. Oaks! My first thought for a model was my dear friend Tricia French, with her sweet daughter and her awesome husband. Tricia came through with costumes and an amazing hairstyle, and her mother-in-law provided beautiful period furniture!

The story is about a girl who was sad that she didn't receive the doll she wanted for Christmas. After her mom tried consoling her, her father called her in to sit on his lap and read from the scriptures about the greatest gift we have ever been given--Christ's atonement and resurrection. The child slept contentedly that night, grateful that she had been given that gift.

Six months after these illustrations aired on the LDS First Presidency Christmas Devotional, my dear friend Tricia died in a tragic bike crash. We have all felt our world turn upside down. I am so grateful that I took the opportunity to draw and paint her and her husband and daughter when I had the chance. We miss her so much. These pictures are so much more meaningful now, and the story means so much more to us now. 

"Even though our Father in Heaven knew {terrible things} were in store for His beloved Son, He, in His infinite love and wisdom, gave Him to the world. And the second part of this wondrous gift is that Christ, the Son, knowing, too, all this, gave Himself willingly that we might have eternal life."--Janice Jensen Barton, "The Christmas I Remember Best," Deseret News, December 24, 1988.

 

George Among the Trees

According to popular legend, an officer in the Revolutionary War once directed his men to fell some trees and construct a much-needed bridge. As the soldiers struggled mightily with the task, an imposing-looking man rode up and, observing their work, said to the officer, “You don’t have enough men for the job, do you?”

“No,” the officer replied. “We need some help.”

The man, looking down from his saddle, asked, “Why don’t you help your men?”

“Me?” the officer responded in a huff. “Why, I am a corporal!”

The man got down from his horse and worked with the soldiers until the bridge was completed. Then, mounting his horse, he said to the officer, “Corporal, the next time you have a job to put through and too few men to do it you had better send for the Commander-in-Chief, and I will come again.”

The man, so the legend goes, was General George Washington." --Heidi Swinton

 

Set Free

 

A bird flew into a house one day, and as much as the family tried coaxing it out, it just kept retreating into the house further and further. Finally, their son had an idea. He turned off all the lights in the house, opened the front door, and turned on the porch light. The bird found its way out! 

"Have you ever felt like that bird? Have you ever felt trapped in your circumstances—as though you had exhausted all your options and there was no way out? Then the message of Easter is for you. Easter is a celebration of the Light of the World, who shines in the darkness to show the way to freedom. He sets the captives free. He gives hope to the disheartened and peace to the weary. He provides a way for us to live more abundantly now and everlastingly hereafter. 

The message of Easter is a message of freedom: victory over death, freedom from doubt and despair, and the bright light of hope—hope that good will ultimately conquer evil, that all wrongs will be righted, and that we will be set free to live again."--Lloyd Newell

 

I was very grateful to my friends the Minson for posing for this photo shoot, and that I was able to use my own son in the picture! They had plenty of children to use, but I needed a boy to fit the story, and the Minson family was made up of seven daughters!

Grow Together

 

This is a story of a logger and his nephew, chopping wood for lumber. The nephew noticed a tall tree standing by itself and said they should chop it down for good lumber. His uncle explained that, when a tree grows all by itself, it has too many branches that cause too many knots, and it is not useful for lumber. Similarly, we need to "grow together" to become our best selves.

I asked a father and his son to pose for me for this painting. Since then, I have come to know and love them--I have taught the son in cub scouts, and the father has become part of our bishopric. I am grateful to them for letting me use them as models.