Come Again? (again)

There are only two or three human stories, and they go on repeating themselves as fiercely as if they had never happened before.

~Willa Cather

Last night's conversations reaffirmed that for me. 
(Generic tone intentional now and througout.)


 First of all, I went to my Old Testament Institute (scripture study) class, and the instructor has done a pretty good job of showing us that it's pretty much the same story every time.  Israel gets rebellious, rebuked, then conquered and/or enslaved.  They turn back, and that lasts for a little while, but pretty soon they get rebellious again. 

After Institute, I went to a Relief Society presidency meeting. As we talked about some of the help that some of our sisters needed, I thought back to last year. Some of the struggles were the same, and some were merely similar, but each struggle had shifted from one sister to another.

But I think the spark that really lit this fire happened because I gave someone a ride.  I had given this person a ride because a mutual friend had requested I have an interview (of sorts; that word doesn't get used as casually as it once was).  Before our conversation began, I noticed some parallels between where she was and where I had once been, in relation to the matter at hand.  As the conversation progressed, though, I found myself fiercely identifying with the person who had asked me to set this all up.  After I dropped my passenger off, I sat in my car and thought about all that had just been said. 

Based on my initial reaction, I immediately identified with how most of my friends must have felt a few years ago.  I'm sure I was quite the jagged little pill, but from the perspective I gained last night, I was able to see who truly wanted what was best for me, and who had the compassion to help me obtain that.  (And also who didn't.)