For Lesson 41 Ability To Succeed, I've got an idea for an object lesson and handout. This is still pretty rough, but I don't teach for a couple of weeks, so I've got some time to smooth it out. If you've got any ideas of what to put on the handout, please -- let me know.  marmy@deseretonline.com

The focus of the lesson is to "not underrate ourselves", but to develop an attitude about ourselves to help us succeed."  I found round geode rocks that haven't been cracked open. They are in Oriental Trading Magazine, sold by the dozen. Holding one up, I will ask the girls if they can see anything about the rock that would make it attractive or worthwhile. I want to lead them to say the rock is pretty boring, rough, and not very special looking.

Then I'll take a hammer and crack the geode rock open to expose the beautiful crystals inside. Somehow I want to interject "Can you believe that?", etc.

The point is to believe in themselves and recognize that even the most unlikely of Heavenly Fathers creations has undiscovered inner beauty that makes it of great worth yada, yada, yada.

The lesson ends with this thought: "One of the greatest challenges is to overcome the feeling that we are not important. Our life has a purpose. We were born to succeed and to become like God."

Each girl will receive a handout quote with a geode rock to crack open.

After exhausting my own resources, I finally asked my Laurel daughter to help write a poem, and (yippee) this is what she created. Each girl will receive a geode along with the poem:

Inside my precious stone of strength
Inherent success and beauty begin.
Once radiantly opened to the world,
My light of Christ shines from within.

Contributed by: Vicki dragonshelver@hotmail.com

As the eagle soars and spreads its wings
Sometimes it dips
Sometimes it rises

And often seems to fall from great heights
Until filled with breath-taking surprises
It climbs to even greater heights anew.
And so do you!

Your dips and falls do not confound me
Half as much as your heights astound me!

-Marsha Newman

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