Dear Sisters,

Today is May 1st.  It is also May Day for those of you old enough to remember this traditional day.  The tradition was to deliver a small basket of flowers to those you love.  We would place the basket on the door knob or on the porch and then ring the bell and run so the recipient wouldn't know who delivered the basket.  I remember doing this as a girl.  As I moved into the Relief Society and was a new visiting teacher, I would enjoy doing this for the sisters on my route (I didn't run, I just gave the flowers to them).  I am sorry to say that I have not done this for several years.  I think about it each May, but then like so many thoughts and plans, it gets lost in the recesses of my brain.

One of the nicest parts of the May Day Tradition was the I was able to visit my sisters early in the month.  It allowed me to let my sisters know that they were important to me and that I wasn't hurrying to get my visiting done by the last day of the month.  When we contact or visit early, it leaves the rest of the month to contemplate on the needs of our sisters and to think of them in an entirely different light, one of compassion and love, and not one of duty.

My prayer for each of us is that we will learn to feel a great love for our sisters.  We will want to share in their lives and to be a part all that happens to them:  To feel sad with them at sad times and to feel joy when they experience joy.  If we are not visiting early and often, we will probably miss these wonderful opportunities. 

I send my love to each of you and hope that you will forward this blog on to those with whom you serve. 

Pat Romney
Stake Relief Society President