ForeverMissed
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Her Life

Margaret's Converstion Story, in Her Own Words

September 8, 2013

What a beautiful day here in Santa Cruz, California, 1955. Ralph, Marjorie and I had come to visit my mother and dad. Due to the length of our stay, Ralph and Marjorie were going to school. My dad, Frank Wheeler, was a very talented man, always working to improve his surroundings. So while I was there, he decided to do some remodeling. He put me to work in the kitchen to make it better. It was fun working with him. Mother in the meantime was in the living room. The door between the kitchen and living room was closed to protect her from having to breathe any dust. All of a sudden we became aware that Mother was talking to somebody. I asked Dad if she was expecting anyone. His answer was “No”, but some of the old people from the Congregational Church would often drop by for a visit, so we kept on working.


Some time later we heard the front door close, and mother came out where we were working. She seemed upset. She said, “There were two young men here. They said they were Elders. They told me God has a body and other stories about God”


I told her to forget it and stop worrying about it.


One afternoon a week later, Mother said, “Here they come to the door.”


I said, “Don’t go to the door. They will go away.” And they did.


Dad, Mother and I went for a ride down town, and Mother said, “There’s the two young men that came to the house.” There they were, riding bikes all dressed up with hats on. That was a funny sight for a New Englander to see.


I looked at Mother, laughed and said, “Don’t worry. What do they know about God?”


One afternoon about a week later, Mother called me and said, “They are at the door again. You go to the door and talk to them.”


I didn’t want to be bothered. Dad and I were working very hard to get the kitchen finished for Christmas. Ralph and Marjorie were in a Christmas play at the Congregational Church, so I was pressured for time. With that attitude I opened the door. There were the two young men, standing there with hat in hand, and a big smile, which didn’t last long. They asked if they could come in. I said, “No. You have upset my mother, and she is not well.” They asked who I was. I said, “I’m her daughter, visiting from Connecticut”


They said, “Well, maybe you would like to hear our message. Have you read the pamphlets we left?” 

I said, “No, and I don’t intend to. I’m very busy, and I have my own church.”

They said, “Maybe we could come back when you are not so busy.”


I said, “No, and take your books and leave.” I picked up the pamphlets and handed them to them.


One of the young men reached for the pamphlets. Then he stepped back and said, “You keep them.”


I said, “Suit yourself,” and closed the door. Mother was such a sweet person and she had been very nice to them on their first visit. As I walked back to work, I said to Mother “That’s the end of that!”


Not even a week later, Mom, Dad, Ralph, Marjorie and I were watching a new T.V. I had bought for a Christmas present for my Mom and Dad. (I had been reading the Bible and feeling worse about myself, so TV was more interesting.) A knock came at the door. There stood the same two elders, hat in hand, asking if they could come in. I never answered. I just opened the door a little wider. Mother being the kind person she was, said “Hello.” My Dad didn’t even look up at them. I sat down and continued to watch the show, “64 Thousand Dollar Question”. They got their own chairs, and sat down.  When the show was over, Dad went to bed, never saying a word. I sent Ralph and Marjorie to bed. It was a school night. Mother and I kept right on looking at the T.V.


After a while, one of the elders said, “Can I shut that thing off?” His voice was loud and clear.


I said, “Suit your self.” He turned if off and asked Mom and me if we would have a word of prayer. Well this wasn’t a new thing in our home. When we lived in Maine, the Baptist minister was always coming to our house (mostly at meal time with his wife--Mom was a great cook). We always had prayers. So they went over to the other side of the room and were whispering to each other. Meanwhile, Mother and I were poking fun and laughing. Mother had been a Sunday school teacher for many years. She knew her Bible. I also had been taught well. We felt like these young men could teach us nothing.


Elder Hougaard gave a very short prayer. All I remember was that he asked the Spirit of the Lord to be with us. At that moment I had the most wonderful feeling I had ever experienced in my life.


Before they started teaching me, I decided to ask them a few questions. My first question was, “Where did Cain get his wife?” I had asked this question of priests and ministers of other churches, but all I got from them was that it was “a mystery”. I had read the Bible and thought there were only two children in Adam and Eve’s family-—Cain and Able. But the Bible said Cain went into other lands and got a wife. So who was she? The Elders said that Eve had a lot of children, and Cain married his niece. It made sense, and I knew it was true.


Another thing that was bothering me was when I said my prayers; it never was clear who I was praying to. I believed in God, and I knew the stories of Jesus. As he started telling me about God—that we were created in His image, I believed every word that came out of his mouth.


When it came time for them to leave, I didn’t want them to go. I wanted to hear more. They said they would come back in a week. Mother was very quiet. I think, because I had said so many unkind things about the elders, it kind of spoiled it for her. Next morning I started telling my Dad all about what they said. He wasn’t agreeing with any of it. He, knowing the scriptures backwards and forwards and being very smart, was never able to put even a shadow of doubt into my mind. I could hardly wait for them to come back and tell me more. Even though Ralph was nine, almost 10, he liked talking and listening to discussions about the Gospel. Marjorie wanted to be baptized, but she was too young. I had had only about two lessons, and my Dad was getting more upset all the time.


One night the neighbor lady friend of my parents asked me to go to the movies with her. So we went. Afterwards, we stopped at a restaurant where they have a bar. I had never sat at a bar before, so I thought it would be fun. We ordered drinks. I ordered a rum and coke. I went to take a sip, and I couldn’t do it. I told her, “I’m sorry, I can’t drink this.”


She said what’s wrong?”


I said, “I don’t know. I just can’t.” At this point I did not know of the Word of Wisdom. I said “Two Elder’s were at the house the other day…”


She didn’t let me finish. She said they were Mormons and don’t let them in again. She was so upset. I didn’t talk about it any more, so we went home. She was a very strong Catholic, and a very nice lady. We didn’t talk about the Elders any more, so we stayed friends. When the elders came again, I told them what happened. They gave me the Word of Wisdom. Then I knew why I couldn’t take the drink. The Spirit told me first about the Word of Wisdom.


I called James, back at home, and told him what was happening. Unknown to me, the elders had got in touch with the elders at home, and sent them to teach James. The elders came once a week to teach me and Mother. Dad was getting more upset with them. He would not talk to them. He even suggested they meet me down town, but he changed his mind when he realized that I would meet them any place so they could keep teaching me. I told the elders not to talk to Dad about the Gospel, but “Just learn to love him; then you can teach him.” That was a tall order, because my Dad was a stubborn man. Dad had a beautiful, well-kept garden, with strawberries and vegetables. The elders talked about how nice his garden was. Dad liked that kind of talk, so little by little, he was giving them vegetables and fruit from the garden. Every day I would talk to Dad, and tell him what I was learning. He got so he’d listen more than he talked. Ralph, Marjorie and I were invited to go to church one Sunday. We liked it very much. Everyone was so nice to us--pre-planned, I’m sure.


Ralph was supposed to be in a Christmas play at the Congregational Church where Mom and Dad attended. After going to the Mormon Church, Ralph wouldn’t go back and be in the play. It was time to be baptized, and I had to ask James if it was OK. He was glad to say yes. So Ralph and I were baptized in Watsonville, California.


Mother and Dad wouldn’t come. I felt bad, but I accepted it. I was so happy and excited all the time. I wanted all my family to know how happy I was. I kept talking to Dad and Mother. The elders could talk to Dad at last. The elders told them to get down on their knees and ask God if Joseph Smith was a prophet, and if the Book of Mormon was true. Weeks went by. One morning Mother came out of the bedroom and told me Dad was on his knees asking for truth. It was the first time he had been on his knees in 40 years. He got his answer and he was ready to be baptized. What joy this brought to our hearts! Mother, on the other hand, was having a problem. She couldn’t understand why God didn’t tell her about Joseph Smith before. She had taught Sunday school in the Baptist Church for many many years. I said, “Mother, you are not asking if it’s true. You are complaining why you didn’t know before. Please, just ask if it’s true and don’t complain anymore.” She got her answer, and we went to Watsonville for their baptism. It was a joyous time in our lives. We went to church every Sunday and enjoyed very very much that everyone was so nice to us.


Some time later I asked the missionaries why they came back after the way I had talked to them. They said they had been praying to find someone to teach. The answer came for them to go to Columbia Street. They thought that was strange, because that street had been tracted and no one had let them in. So they prayed again and got the same answer. That day of tracting, as before, nobody let them in. Hardly anyone was home until they found my mother. When they went up to the house, they felt the Spirit so strong. My mother was so sweet and gentle a woman to talk to. Then the next time they came, no one opened the door. So they came again and this time I came to the door very unfriendly and sent them away. They said to themselves, “Could we have been mistaken?” When they were with my mother, the Spirit was so strong. They prayed again and the answer they got was to go back and “use authority”. I’m so thankful that they did. In fact, I’m thankful every day that they prayed, listened, and obeyed.


James came out to California to visit me. It was wonderful to have our family together. James by then had had all the missionary lessons, but was not baptized at this point. The elders that baptized us came to visit him. They asked him if he believed the Gospel and he said yes. So the elder said to him, “Mr. Carini, either get on the wagon or get off.” Jim just smiled and said nothing.


He went home after his two weeks stay. In the meantime, I went to my first stake conference. There was a general authority speaking. He said you shouldn’t be baptized for any reason-—only if you believed it was true. Knowing how much James loved his family, I was afraid he might join the church just for us. I wrote him a ten-page letter, telling him not to get baptized--only if he believed it was true.


The children got out of school so we could go home. I warned the children not to press their Dad. He must do it on his own.


James met us at the airport with a brand new car. We were so happy to be home, we got lost coming out of the airport. The new car didn’t mean a thing to me. I just kept thinking, “Will he be baptized?” Finally, I couldn’t stand it any longer. I said, “Do you think you can be baptized in June?”


His reply was, “I was already baptized.” The joy that filled my heart was beyond description. The Gospel has brought us untold joy and happiness. The Lord has blessed our lives with love and hope for life eternal together with our family. To this day, I have never wavered from the truth of the Book of Mormon and Joseph Smith. My prayer for my children, grandchildren and great grand children is that they will love the Savior Jesus Christ and our Heavenly Father as much as I do, and more. I encourage you all to read the Scriptures and learn your purpose in life. Grandfather James had a great love for his children and grandchildren. He wants them to be with him for eternity.


Love Beyond Measure,

Your mother, grandmother, great grandmother

Margaret Mary Wheeler Carini

Life Growing up on the Farm, in Her Own Words

September 8, 2013

While in my youth, my time was spent in pastures green, crystal brooks flowing between the island forest.  Seasons brought joy and delight--spring with its melting snows making roaring rivers beneath my feet; hunting and exploring over the fields and gravel pits; listening for the roar of the streams under the melting snow; with the snow gone,baby rabbits at play, mothers thumping their warnings; filled nests of every size; calves and lambs trying their legs, cows out to pasture fording the river to greener grazing; buds and planting; hope springing forth like an arrow from a bow.  

Summer time, school out, time to think and learn; time to wander and ponder; sun warm and bright, shade trees a delight, blanket spread low, kittens soft and cuddly, purring and playing, laying and looking at the sky and wondering why, kittens and rabbits, lambs, calves and rivers, snow, seeds and planting.

In my youth it was fun to sit beside the brook and watch the fish swim, sometimes throw a pebble in to see them scatter.  Frogs with their voices all in tune, blowing a big bubble from their mouths and their eyes popping out of their narrow heads. My singing must sound like theirs to me, because they answer me back.  Wish I knew what I said to them, or did I?  Sweet hay, potato fields in blossom, wheat swaying in the breeze, ripe tomatoes in the garden, cucumber sandwiches, cattle coming into the barn, cats waiting to be fed fresh milk which my big brother squirted into their upturned faces.  Horses switching their tails and eating their oats.  Evening with crickets and lightning bugs, star filled skies.