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