Friday the 21st was the Stake Youth Mutual, “Pioneer Night”. Almost every youth turned up from each ward in the stake, forming a good-sized crowd of at least sixty to seventy young men and young women in total. The mutual started off with Sister Meagan, then Second Counselor in the Young Women’s Presidency, speaking to us about the pioneers traveling along the Mormon trail. Using slides, she depicted the trail for us to see, and spoke at length about the hardships encountered along the way to the Salt Lake Valley, thus allowing the youth an overview on what went on during that difficult time.

When her overview was done, the youth were free to select whichever activity interested them first: Square Dancing, Quilting, or Pulling a wheelbarrow around a mini-trail; I myself started off with square dancing, taught by Brother Ogden. The dance steps weren’t all that complicated but we still took the longest time to learn them as everyone was laughing at one another’s movements. When we finally understood the dance steps, it felt like such an achievement.

The wheelbarrow “handcarts” were relatively heavy to push around on the plank ramps set up, especially when the “handcarts” were filled with bricks! I can only imagine how tough it must have been for the pioneers to push a rough handcart with more than twice the weight of the bricks we used! Lastly, it was back upstairs to quilting, where Sister Allen and Sister Rita Woo guided us in the activity. I’d have to say I was all thumbs. If I had been back in the pioneer days, I’d have ruined every quilt made.

What a blessing it has been to understand what life was like back then! To experience the same fun in square dancing, the same hardship in pulling a handcart, the same difficulty in everyday chores, I can now understand the sacrifices the pioneers made. Their testimony of the gospel strengthened them in their journey as it has definitely strengthened mine.