BECOMING A PIONEER

In Utah, every 24th of July, Pioneer Day is celebrated, honoring those who walked the plains and carried the torch of faith so their posterity could be blessed.

Living in NM, we don’t get to formally celebrate Pioneer Day, but our youth did revere their ancestors this summer by participating in Trek. Donning pioneer outfits, being divided up into families with other youth and a “Ma and Pa” they didn’t know well beforehand, pulling handcarts up a mountain, and letting go of worldly things like showers and social media, our youth did their best to connect to the people that came before them.

I was blessed to be able to attend this Trek, and afterwards, was asked to give a talk recapping my endeavors. To celebrate Pioneer Day in my own way, I present the talk to you, today.

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Good morning, brothers and sisters. I was asked to speak on my Trek experience, and as a leader rather than a youth, my Trek experience was a little different from everyone else’s. Mine involved a dead mouse in a toilet, going to Walmart in my pioneer clothing, getting lost almost everyday, and lots of potato chopping.

However, I went into Trek with the same challenge that the youth did: find a modern day pioneer, and a pioneer ancestor, to walk for along the way. Our Trek historian explained that this was done to connect us to the past, the present, and our future, showing us how we can be pioneers in our own right.

While reflecting on this task, I thought it best to analyze some traits that pioneers, both old and new, posses. In doing so, I hoped I would have a better shot at becoming a pioneer. However, it became quickly and abundantly clear that one of the best examples for me to follow was that of our youth, who have already adopted these qualities even at their young age.

Firstly, pioneers go back to help one another. Before my character on Trek was killed off in order to help with kitchen duties, I was lucky enough to be part of the McCartney family. On our first day, our Ma read a story about two young women who, after trekking up a snowy mountain, went back to fetch a fellow comrade, put him in his cart, and then pull him up the mountain themselves.

I have a similar story in my own pioneer history. A pair of brothers from my ancestors marched for the Mormon Battalion. The younger brother became ill along the way, making him to weak to continue on with the rest of the group. His elder brother, unwilling to leave the younger behind, would walk the rest of the battalion everyday, and then every night, run back to collect his sick brother.

I saw our youth doing the same thing, countless times, in just the afternoon I spent walking. After pulling the handcart up rough and rocky hills, without ever having to be asked, our youth immediately sprinted back to help those who had not yet made it up the incline.

Just as in the parable of the lost sheep (Luke 15:3-7), pioneers exhibit the true love of Christ by going after the one. Rather than choose to succeed on their own, they know that true joy comes in helping others along the way.

D&C 18:15

15 And if it so be that you should labor all your days in crying repentance unto this people, and bring, save it be one soul unto me, how great shall be your joy with him in the kingdom of my Father!

Second, pioneers share the load. Each family in the Boswell Handcart Company was given a cloth baby doll to care for. Ours was named Charlotte McCartney, and she had the most beautiful smile you ever did see.

Rather than just have one person care for baby Charlotte, each family member took a turn looking after the baby. This meant that she was sometimes shoved in a back pocket, or a front pocket, and almost got ran over by the cart at one point, but when I met back up with my family on Friday night, Charlotte still had that beaming smile on her face. She had enjoyed each minute she spent with each of her elder siblings.

Even after the kids got back from their long days on the mountain, people were still working to share the load. It rained so much during our time nestled in the woods, leaving the floor of the building we called home base dusty and dirty after the mud dried. Having just swept it out the day before, I was not looking forward to having to do it again.

And, I didn’t have to. So many people picked up a broom, without being asked, and got to work.

Is that not what Christ does? Actually, it is only a decimal point of what He does. In my life, He is always pulling the majority of the weight in our relationship, helping me limp along to where I need to be. But, He told us that is what He is here for, and how He wants it to be.

Matthew 11: 29-30

29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart⁠: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.

30 For my yoke is easy⁠, and my burden is light.

Thirdly, pioneers always seem to have a positive attitude. We watched the movie 17 Miracles to prepare for Trek, and every time I watch this film, I connect most with the lady who sits on the rock, cries, and declares herself done. I am not known for my sunny disposition or hopeful outlook. (Hence the name, Negative (N)Ellie

But whenever I hear stories of my pioneer ancestors, I am astonished by how well they held it all together. (Clearly, a trait that was not passed down to their posterity.) They kept going, they looked for the sunshine, they played games, and sang songs, developed lasting relationships, all while hiking through the cold and the snow and the dirt. I think they actively chose to have a better perspective, and it blessed them so much.

Our kids chose to see the good in their situation, too. While driving kids to the drop off spot, I assured them the cab of the car. was a safe space to express how they really felt about Trek. (Again, this was because I wasn’t looking forward to it either.) Despite the unknown that lay ahead, not one of them had a bad thing to say about it. Nerves were apparent, but one could tell they were trying to make the best of the situation.

The youth were grateful for the rain, they rarely complained, and they chose to have fun. At one point, near the very end, each family was tasked with carrying their “sick and weary” parents across a stream. An assignment that could have been very difficult, and one that came at a time when they were already exhausted, turned out to be one of the most memorable, lighthearted moments of the whole trip. Laughter and cheering could be found, and even though some Mas and Pas did end up in the water, they seemed pretty okay with their impromptu bath.

One of my favorite quotes from President Hinkley states, “Stop seeking out the storms and enjoy more fully the sunlight.” (“The Lord Is at the Helm”, BYU Speeches, March 6, 1994)

There is a reason we can have such a positive perspective in life, and it is because of Jesus Christ. He calms the storms, supports us in the storm, works the storms for our good, and promises we will be rewarded at the end of the storm. The pioneers knew what their reward would be, and that they could trust the giver of it, allowing them to fully see the sunshine.

Finally, and with a point that kind of extends from the last one, pioneers had a firm testimony of Jesus Christ. They knew who He was. Their faith was sure, and this allowed them to carry on.

The ancestral pioneer I chose to walk for was a woman named Eliza Scovil. Growing up in a different time, she was given in marriage at a young age by her father to someone who was far older than her. When her first husband died, she was then wed to one of his sons from a previous marriage. Finally, at the end of her life, she was reunited with her childhood sweetheart, and they shared many happy years together.

Personally, had I received this lot in life, it would have been my villain origin story. I would have been miserable the rest of my days, and would have found it very hard to believe in a Savior and Heavenly Father who loved me. But she did. Eliza believed, always, and taught all of her children to love the Gospel, love their Savior, and love their Heavenly Father. She did not grow bitter, but instead allowed her faith to flourish and inspire others, even to this day.

Our youth acted with this same sort of faith. So many on the Trek spoke of how they thought their legs were going to give out, but rather than give up, offered a humble prayer for help. Their pleas were heard, just as they always are, and they were given the strength to keep going.

Christ had to have faith, as well. While suffering in the Garden of Gethsemane, He asked if the cup could be passed from Him, but ultimately had faith in His Father’s plan and stated, “Not my will, but thine be done.” (Luke 22:42)

Christ descended to earth to suffer what we would suffer, to feel what we would feel. I wonder if this is why He is so accepting and adoring of our acts of faith, whether big or small. Because He knows. Because He knows how hard it can be sometimes, just to put one more foot in front of the other. We can always count on the faith and trust we put in Him, that He will always work it for our good, just like the pioneers did.

I’d like to finish by bearing my testimony on our Savior, Jesus Christ. The people in these stories are admirable, especially our youth, but what makes them so is their continual striving a to be like Him.

Our Savior truly gives us power to conquer all, to face hard trials, to become the people He sees us as. He never leaves us alone, He never sees us as anything but the Child of God that we are, and He always has a plan for us. With Him by our sides, we truly can become pioneers.