The year: 1993
The time: September
The place: Ricks College (now BYU-Idaho)
The person: a 15 year old freshman
Yes, crazy as it sounds, my mom dropped me off in a town 2,000 miles from home to an apartment where four of my roommates were Ricks College cheerleaders.
In a bit of panic when she realized this bit of news my mother turned to me and said, “There’s going to be boys over all the time. Remember, you can’t date until you are 16!”
Fast forward two months.
This guy, who had been asked by my parents to keep an eye on me, had been coming by almost daily to pick me up for classes. While we were both studying agronomy we were doing it for entirely different reasons. He was a farmer and determined to farm the rest of his life. He was also hoping to meet a farm girl that would spend that life with him.
Me? My goal was to go into biotechnology. I dreamed of traipsing through the Amazon searching for plants that held the cure for diseases. I was bound to make a difference in the world. I was a doctor’s daughter with high expectations. I was young and smart and I knew it.
I was rude to him. I didn’t need a babysitter! My roommates would say, “Why are you so mean to him? If we had a cute guy coming to see us all the time we’d sure like it!”
“I’m 15. I’m not interested in boys right now, especially this one.”
Ah, love, the cruel game you play.
The year: 1995
The time: September
The place: a chapel of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Fallon, Nevada
The person: a 17 year old, married for nine months, eight months pregnant young woman
Yes, crazy as it sounds, that farmer and I got married a month after I turned 17. Living now 2,000 miles from my home in Georgia I was sitting with my sisters-in-law and our mother-in-law getting ready to watch the General Relief Society Meeting.
It was historic.
Fast forward two months.
This sweet girl is a month old. I hold her as I read the November issue of the Ensign. I review the momentous talk given by President Gordon B. Hinckley, Stand Strong Against the Wiles of the World. As I pour over the words certain phrases seem to stand out while a feeling of warmth and peace washes over me.
“Marriage between a man and a woman is ordained of God and that the family is central to the Creator’s plan for the eternal destiny of His children.”
“All human beings—male and female—are created in the image of God.”
“We declare that God’s commandment for His children to multiply and replenish the earth remains in force.”
“Husband and wife have a solemn responsibility to love and care for each other and for their children.”
“Mothers are primarily responsible for the nurture of their children.”
My goals have changed. Instead of traipsing through the Amazon, I’m traipsing through the jungles of motherhood, searching for the right way to raise my children. I am a mother with high expectations. I am young and smart. I can do it!
The year: 2015
The time: September
The place: My home
The person: a 37 year old mother of eleven
Yes, crazy as it sounds, I have eleven children. Eleven! It causes a sort of panicky feeling if I think about it too much. And yet, I feel peace knowing I have done and will continue to do what the Lord wants me to do. His plans for my life are infinitely better than what I had planned.
Where will I be in two months?
Right here, at home, with my children, following the guidance and counsel in The Family: A Proclamation to the World. It has been my guide for my whole mothering career. I am a daughter of Heavenly Parents with high expectations. I’m not so young and smart but I can do it!
Thank you all for helping us celebrate the 20th Anniversary of The Family Proclamation! It has been a wonderful two weeks. Be sure to visit We Talk of Christ and A Simple Thing Called Love to read their posts.
Connie saenz says
My goodness, bUT I love your posts! I’m so glad I stumbled upon your blog. You have reaffirmed my faith and reinforced my testimony in the family, in womanhood, in motherhood. Bless you for that
Jocelyn says
And you ARE doing an amazing job!! Congrats Montse, and here’s to another great Celebration in the books!
deirdre says
I’d say you really have 12. That oldest boy, the one who married your daughter? He’s yours, too, now.
Montserrat {Cranial Hiccups} says
Quite true!
Celeste says
Wow! I had no idea you had 11 kids!! Thanks SO much for including my blog in this series! It’s been so fun and inspiring!
Marilyn says
Oh, “the jungles of motherhood!” I love it! And I love you! Love your testimony of the family. Thank you.