Strong and Immovable

This month, I keep hearing about Julie Beck's conference talk.  Everyone is reading it, studying it, and teaching it.  It is an exceptional talk.  I think that part of what makes it so great is that she sets up a standard for what women should be.   I think about Marie when I read it, which is also a part of why I like it so well. My favorite part of it is this quote:

The second general Relief Society president, Eliza R. Snow, said this to the sisters: “We want to be ladies in very deed, not according to the term of the word as the world judges, but fit companions of the Gods and Holy Ones. In an organized capacity we can assist each other in not only doing good but in refining ourselves, and whether few or many come forward and help to prosecute this great work, they will be those that will fill honorable positions in the Kingdom of God. . . . Women should be women and not babies that need petting and correction all the time. I know we like to be appreciated but if we do not get all the appreciation which we think is our due, what matters? We know the Lord has laid high responsibility upon us, and there is not a wish or desire that the Lord has implanted in our hearts in righteousness but will be realized, and the greatest good we can do to ourselves and each other is to refine and cultivate ourselves in everything that is good and ennobling to qualify us for those responsibilities."

It is a relief to have some strong and immovable ideas of womanhood that are broad enough to encompass our varied lives, but specific enough to give each of us direction.