In a year that has erupted with racial strife, Pixar’s Soul is a welcome delight.

Joe Gardner is our protagonist, a musician who dreams of jazzing with the greats, while living the life of a public school music instructor. Joe gets his big break, but on his way home it’s clear the universe is gunning for our hero. Just when it seems he’s made it home (oblivious to the many dangers), Joe disappears into a manhole.

Joe’s spirit shows up on the conveyor belt to the Great Beyond. But Joe is desperate to return to his interrupted life, so cruelly ended right before the moment he has dreamed of for decades.

In escaping heaven, Joe finds himself in a luminous, pastel realm, which we learn is the Great Before – the land where souls prepare to enter Earth life.

This is delightful, to see a movie depiction of life before this life. Not that it matches the pre-mortal doctrine of the Restored Gospel, any more than Disney’s Coco matches the Church’s doctrine regarding the afterlife. But in a world that too often dispenses with any discussion of life beyond this mortality, it is delightful to see stories that discuss our existence beyond the bounds of this fleshy mortality.

As always, Pixar treats us to a satisfying story. This is particularly fun with Soul as there really aren’t many tropes for pre-mortal life. So there are times when the couch potatoes in my household, at least, had no idea what was going to happen next.

If you haven’t yet taken the time to watch Soul, I recommend that you tee this flick up for some future evening.

My blog post for Come Follow Me: D&C 14-17

Excerpt:Mary and Peter Whitmer Senior had five sons: David, Peter junior, John, Christian and Jacob. Through Oliver Cowdery’s close relationship with David, the Whitmers would become closely engaged in the early work of the Church.

Because of opposition in Pennsylvania, Oliver asked David if he and Joseph could move in with the family. Though the Whitmers never had met Joseph, they agreed. Before being able to fetch Joseph and Oliver, David had to finish plowing and preparing the spring fields. Miracles were employed, For as David found much of the work already done overnight, prior to beginning the work early in the morning.

This would be the first of many miracles for the Whitmers. Mary would be a witness of Moroni and the gold plates. Several of the Whitmer sons would physically handle the gold plates. David would be one of the Three Witnesses.

https://joelsmonastery.blogspot.com/2021/02/come-follow-me-d-14-17.html

As we study Church history this year, I wanted to make sure readers had seen this post from Book of Mormon Central that describes the history of five women who were witnesses of the golden plates that were translated to bring us the Book of Mormon. Did you know that Lucy Harris, usually seen as a villain in the story of the translation of the Book of Mormon, was also a witness of the physical plates? I did not know that. Worth reading.

My blog post for Come Follow Me: D&C 12-13

Excerpt:D&C 12

This is a revelation given to Joseph Knight, one of the early converts to the Church. Imagine what it must have been like back in 1829, when most churches no longer believed in continuing revelation, angels, etc. Here was 24 year old Joseph Smith claiming to be a prophet, and revelation was again on the earth. Consider how the early followers would have understood concepts such as “establish the cause of Zion,” “knock and it shall be opened to you,” or as in last week’s lesson on Hyrum Smith’s revelation in section 11, “become the sons of God.”
Their understanding was very limited. Even Joseph Smith, at this time, would not have comprehended the enormity of the work ahead: publishing the Book of Mormon, receiving priesthood and keys, building temples and cities.

https://joelsmonastery.blogspot.com/2021/02/come-follow-me-d-12-13.html

We’re in a new world where the country’s leadership is emphasizing masks and social distancing.

But tomorrow is that holiday so universal that even we celebrate: the Super Bowl.

In light of that, I thought it useful to share a recent case study that is close to home.

Two friends of mine got together to meet a long-time friend they hadn’t seen in a while. Everyone felt fine. I don’t know if they validated “health” using thermometers and pulse oximeters, but they had every reason to know they were OK. They shared some time in the our mutual friends’ home. And since this wasn’t in public or on Federal property, everyone felt free to unmask.

A couple of days later, the long-time friend started feeling unwell. A couple of days after that, the long-time friend was truly feeling terrible. The day after that, day five, they got tested. On day six they got their result: they were infected with COVID.

Since the evening with friends fell just inside the danger window, the long-time friend called their buddies. Just to be on the safe side, they should get tested.

Our mutual friends both tested positive for COVID infection.

Now, it’s several days after learning they were infected before my friends let me know about their diagnosis. They are lucky that they “just” feel sick. They’ve been self-isolating since they learned the long-time friend had tested positive. They can still smell and taste.

They’re embarrassed.

Now, I happen to know at the time these friends met with the long-time friend that risk in their community was high. Kinsa Health Weather can show you the current risk in your community. For example, right now in Richmond, Virginia, the risk is 99 (very high). A couple of weeks ago, I had just learned about the Health Weather website, and was having “fun” putting in zip codes for folks I know. At the time, my local risk was a concerning 54, but it was lower than the risk in other counties for any of my family and close friends.

As we all prepare to celebrate that favorite holiday, with munchies (no masks) and lots of yelling and screaming (or at least laughing at the funny commercials), may we think about whether our respective counties are “safe” or not.

We’re late enough in this whole thing that I expect many are already set in their patterns of life and opinions regarding COVID. But I felt it was worth sounding a note of caution. So I’ll now go up on my mountain and sit under my leafy vine and wait for what will come.[ref]Jonah 4:6[/ref]

[Actually, I’m going to double-mask and go help another pair of long-time friends move.]