By Katherine Cowley
Shen lay very still, except when he coughed. His whole body quivered in pain, and blood came out of his mouth. He was small, even for a six-year-old, and it was hard to watch him in so much pain. But his father, Yongrui, would not have money for a doctor until next week. So Yongrui …
By Martha Petersen
I am the cleaner-upper of messes, the smoother of suffering. When Deb calls and cries, “My husband’s job is gone. What will we do?” I’m there in an hour, with a dozen rolls and soul-nourishing soup. When Jennifer’s husband tells me the baby is here, I’ve got three night of dinners ready to go and …
By Jean Pierce
“So, are you coming to the blessing or not? All of the rest of the family will be there, and I’m sure Max and Deb would love to see you.” “I don’t know, Dad. I’m really busy right now. I’m heading into the end of the semester and need to start getting ready for finals. …
By Sarah Dunster
IT COULD BE SAID OF Magdalena Chabert (and many in Provo did say it) that she was an old woman in a young girl’s body. She looked at you as sharply and unapologetically as a woman who had lived through three or four generations. She didn’t say much, and when she did, you got the …
By Sandra Tayler
Martha’s front room was chilly on the October morning when Ann and I arrived for our visiting teaching appointment. After a year of unemployment, Martha was pinching pennies wherever she could. I wrapped my coat and scarf about me as I sat on the couch opposite Martha’s chair. In the early days of our appointments …
By Lorraine Jeffery
MADELINE WALKED OUT in the middle of sacrament meeting with her eyes blazing, her mouth set in a firm line, and her hands gripping her large black purse. Her friends and fellow Church members glanced at her quickly and then glanced back. She could see the questions in their eyes, but without a nod or …
By Angela Hallstrom
NATHAN IS RUNNING LATE. Heart thumping, face flushed, rushing, worried, ears attuned to the sound of the garage door rising. He has the bed he’s built fitted together tight and the mattress on, so the room isn’t a complete mess, but he has shoved the old metal frame out into the hall, and the sheets …
By Nicole Trone
WHEN I MET SISTER RORDEN I felt dwarfed by her height, but I saw kindness in her toothy smirk. She seemed patient enough with me when I snapped a picture of her sleeping on the night train, so I felt sure we would get along just fine. When we arrived in Odessa, Ukraine, I couldn’t help …
By Lori Nawyn
HAD I KNOWN MY WORDS would start a riot, exhaust my supply of Snack Pack pudding, and cause my mother’s voice to quiver with emotion every time she spoke of the incident for the next thirty-plus years, I would’ve simply kept my mouth shut that fateful Friday morning when my turn for sixth-grade sharing time rolled …