Tuesday, September 22, 2015

The Family Proclamation and its Importance to Me by Hannah Gardzalla





Hi!  My name is Hannah, age 17. I absolutely LOVE music, especially singing, and I plan on going to college for music education.  I love volunteering in the community, and hanging out with my Young Women girls at church!

Coming from a broken home, the first time that I deeply focused on the words of the Family Proclamation, it left me with a bitter taste.  My family situation fit nowhere in the model provided in the Proclamation, and I felt ashamed--not of myself specifically, but of what was wrong with my family in relation to what is outlined in the Proclamation.

In my biological family, my father never took charge, and my mother would often leave me and my younger brother in the care of our grandmother.  My parents rarely spent quality time with us kids due to the fact that they were divorced, and they did not teach us many of the values I have learned since becoming involved with the church.

My mother would often go from work to a series of local pubs, and my father did not really want much to do with us children at the time.

For a few years, we would move in with my mother's boyfriend.  They would break up, and we would move back in with my grandmother.  The last time my mother did this, her boyfriend sexually abused me. 

When I tried to tell my mother, she turned away from me, and I finally ended up moving in to a house with my "new" mom, a friend and mentor who takes good care of me.  She is an LDS lady who never married, but takes care of me as if I were her own.

As much as this twinge of bitterness marks my past, the Proclamation also bring me hope.  It gives me a guide to follow so I can avoid putting my children through the same horrors and heartbreaks that I went through.

Because of the Family Proclamation, I know to look for a man that shares my beliefs, and desires to be married and sealed in temple some day.  In the future, I will have a chance to do indexing and to do temple ordinances for the eternal well-being of my family.  My future children will be brought up in a home built on the faith of the Lord, Jesus Christ, and they can have an eternal family as well.

I know that this is the true church of Jesus Christ, and that Heavenly Father loves us very much, because we are His children, for now and forever.  He created the Family Proclamation to help His children create households that love each other and love Christ together.

I say this in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.


If you enjoyed this post, please feel free to share it on Facebook! Be sure to check out the other host blogs today for more wonderful posts and testimonies about family.

You can also share your love of family by sharing photos online this month under the hashtag #ILovetheFamilyProclamation.

Here are links to the other blogs:
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7 comments:

  1. I really loved this post and was so touched by your story Hannah. You are a very strong young woman and your values and goals are awesome. I feel sad about what you have gone through but so happy that you are in a good place now. Keep that testimony shinning and I know many will be blessed through you and most of all your future family. Blessings and hugs for you!

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  2. Wow, Hannah! Your children and grandchildren will be very blessed because of your faith and faithfulness. It is hard to break the chains of bad habits passed on through generations but I'm am cheering you on as are countless others.

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  3. Love you, Hannah! You are THE woman!! You are doing great things and God has big plans for you! Remember the whirlwind of your youth!!

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  4. Love you, Hannah! You are THE woman!! You are doing great things and God has big plans for you! Remember the whirlwind of your youth!!

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  5. BEAUTIFUL testimony Hannah! Thank you so much for showing us that the Proclamation is for all of us- to bring us all hope in the family no matter what family circumstances we come from. Here's to your future! xoxoxo Celeste

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  6. Beautiful post, Hannah. I'm so grateful that you are able to apply the Proclamation to your life and find ways for it to bless your future family. I have a feeling that your Mom #2 feels as lucky to have you in her life as you do to have her. Great things are in store for you!

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  7. What a great article Hannah. It's sad to read about the tragedies in your past, but it sounds like you have risen above those challenges with the help of the Gospel and our Savior. What a strong and wise young woman you have become! I trust that you will find a righteous priesthood holder someday, with whom you'll attend the temple and have all the blessings of a righteous marriage. As you follow the wisdom in the Family Proclamation, you'll find joy and love in your life, and you'll bless your future spouse and children. Good luck sweetheart!

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