Opening Closed Doors

As a child, I hated non-fiction. I thought it was boring and that there was nothing I could relate to when I read non-fiction. Now, as an adult, I am the same exact way! Its one of the many reasons of why I hate text books so much. I can relate to fiction books though, which is why I love them so much. In the book, "Will Wonders Never Cease", Douglas Thayer tells a fiction story about a boy who feels like he isn't perfect like his brother or the rest of his family. The boy, Kyle, feels as if he doesn't have a testimony and doesn't understand the reason why his mother values faith so much. Kyle is trapped in an avalanche and often thinks about his family and the mistake he has made during his lifetime.

Most Mormons are afraid to talk about their past because it might upset someone and others would be able to judge them because of their imperfections. In young women's, we always read these talks about friends that were so kind to one another, temple marriages, blessing that occur when abstaining from alcohol, living a chaste life, having a strong testimony throughout life, etc. Personally, I know those stories are good and they make us all feel warm and fuzzy inside, but that isn't how life is. People do have trials and I think that we need to share our trials more as a church. Sharing trials and thoughts through a fiction novel is the best way to share because no body has the opportunity to judge you and others will still be able to relate to the book and the characters!

Some of the trials that Kyle has endured are: his brother dies from a sickness, he gets drunk, has an extremely protective mother, isn't sure if he believes in the church, etc. I believe that every Mormon child needs to read fiction like this so that they know that it isn't the end of the world when they make a mistake or something bad happens in their family. Being honest with one another about the trials will help others strengthen their testimonies and let people know that they aren't the only ones.