Tuesday, April 15, 2014

True Heroes A to Z: Few Men will Ever Measure up...

to this one.

Quickly, Michael Di Gesu is kindly featuring MOONLESS today on his blog. Check it out!

True heroes are all around us, in our every day lives, but some people stand out. During this A-Z Challenge I hope to share several of my real life heroes, and invite you to share yours in the comments.

onson, Thomas. Okay, so if you don't know who this is, you really need to get to know him. Here's a man whose life has been consumed by service to others since the age of 22 when he was called as a bishop (lay service--non paid) in the Mormon church (officially called the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints). Among the many tasks he was to carry out, 85 widows fell he under his care. He visited every single one regularly, and ended up speaking at each one's funeral over the ensuing 40 years.

He is a people person, one filled with stories who recites classics and thrives on beautiful poetry. He gives constant attention to "the one," spending many an hour at the sickbed or with downhearted families while leading a world-wide church of 15 million.

He's one of my personal heroes.




MOONLESS is only on sale at $1.99 for a short while longer. Have a taste of the awesomeness, eh?

Kiren unlatched the balcony door with a thin metal hook and slipped inside. He refastened the catch, gut twisting at the moonless sky beyond the glass. How long would his luck hold?

Alexia lay on her back, one arm lost in her dark hair, the other tucked across her chest. A foot dangled off the edge of the mattress, tempting him to slip it back beneath her blanket.

He grinned, envying her carefree abandon. Her latest read lay on the bed beside an extinguished candle. He lifted it. Fanciful words danced back at him. They too made him smile. She wanted adventure. He could supply that.

His eyes landed on the card he’d given her father and his smirk died. It had been shredded and reconstructed. His chest tightened. “Oh Alexia . . .”


Have you known anyone who inspired you to want to be better? Who is the most selfless person you know? Have you done any good in the world today?

84 comments:

  1. Wow, 85 widows? That's a lot of women to take care of. He sounds like an amazing man.

    ReplyDelete
  2. I like the question he asks in the video.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Me too. If we could only keep it in our minds, eh?

      Delete
  3. He understood God's commandment to take care of the widows.
    Already caught your book's feature on Michael's blog!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I saw that! You're amazing at getting to all these blogs. Way to go, Alex.

      Delete
  4. I didn't know about him. I think he shows we are capable of so much more than we may believe. I have a friend, 30 years younger than I who set out at an early age to make this world a better place. She is focusing on animals, but of course her kindness and determination spills over to us humans.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I love it! A caring heart is a wonderful thing, eh?

      Delete
  5. I have heard of him, but I didn't know anything about him. Not many people would be willing to do that.

    Yay! Another awesome excerpt! The imagery in this is perfect. ^_^

    ReplyDelete
  6. I agree with Krystal. And on my way over to Michael's blog!! (PS--love the tone with which you write, it's quite unique and refreshing!)

    ReplyDelete
  7. A bishop who speaks at every funeral !! now that is something. That speech is good too
    Thanks for visiting my blog

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks for the return visit! He's definitely a dedicated man.

      Delete
  8. I'm loving these excerpts! I'll head over to Michael now... :)

    ReplyDelete
  9. He is an inspiration indeed

    http://throodalookingglass.com/2014/04/lamp-light/

    ReplyDelete
  10. He is quite a role model. I've always been fascinated with missionaries. Believing in an idea so fervently that you will devote your life to that cause. Of course there are good ones and not so good ones, as in everything, but done correctly it is a dramatic selfless concept.

    ReplyDelete
  11. My best friend's mom was the most selfless person I've ever known. Her husband was a pastor and she was devoted to her church, her family, and anyone she ever met! Going to check out your book:)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I love selfless women. They're seriously what makes the world go round.

      Delete
  12. Michael did a fabulous "spotlight" for Moonless! LOVE this snippet!

    WriterlySam
    Echoes of Olympus
    A to Z #TeamDamyanti

    ReplyDelete
  13. Now there's a man who is going to Heaven. I'm learning so much about the wonderful people of our world, thanks to you Crystal!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It's amazing how many inspirations there are out there, eh?

      Delete
  14. Wow. He does sound like an amazing person.
    Deb@ http://debioneille.blogspot.com

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I only showed the tip of the iceberg. Only the tip.

      Delete
  15. I never heard of Thomas Monson before this, but I'm happy to say I have now because of your post. He is a true inspiration.

    P.S. I got your newsletter and I have to say the cover for Soulless is STUNNING! You definitely chose right. :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. He is indeed.

      Yay! I'm so glad you like the cover. I'm pretty stoked about it too. =)

      Delete
  16. This was my first time hearing of Thomas Monson. He does sound like an amazing person with a kind heart.
    ~Jess

    ReplyDelete
  17. I saw Michael was featuring Moonless on his blog today. That's great!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I was pretty stoked too. He did a great job, didn't he?

      Delete
  18. How nice that Michael featured your book!

    I've never heard of Thomas Monson, but he does sound like a really nice guy.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I think it was pretty nice of Michael too. He's just a nice guy like that.

      Delete
  19. Monson has a beautiful story despite the tragic side. Now there's a life of service in today's world.

    ReplyDelete
  20. Wow, that was one intense intro over at Michael's! He did a great job with Moonless :D

    I did not know of Thomas Monson before, how amazing to know there area people like him out there!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. He did do a pretty great job. =)

      I think there are more people like him than we realize, they just live quiet lives.

      Delete
  21. My husband is the most selfless person I know....until Parkinson's disease arrived. He is still my hero though!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Aw. That's so sweet. I love reading your posts, by the way.

      Delete
  22. I'm glad to see an ode to President Monson. He is a great, kind man, and example to anyone seeking to be kinder.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Agreed! I wish I could have done service to how amazing he is.

      Delete
  23. I've meant some selfless people but I'm not sure of any to compare with Monson.

    ReplyDelete
  24. People who are compassionate, no matter their faith, are worthy of being called heroes!

    ReplyDelete
  25. I love how you ended your post with the question - "Have you done any good today?" That is something I am going to take away from this blog. Good luck with the rest of the challenge!
    http://themagicquill.blogspot.in/

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks! It's definitely something we should try to keep in mind, eh?

      Delete
  26. Great post as usual on a worthy man. Thanks for sharing about him.

    ReplyDelete
  27. Dropped in to see Michael this morning and spotted Moonless!

    ReplyDelete
  28. Replies
    1. And I could only pick 26. You should have seen the ones I had to scratch off my list.

      Delete
  29. Yikes. That's a lot of visiting. Inspiring story.

    ReplyDelete
  30. I expected Mother Theresa for this post. But he's a good one too. Selfless.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. LOL. I could have chosen her. She was great too, but I thrive on the lesser knowns. (Although I do have to include a couple well known names.)

      Delete
  31. woot woot to the Prophet! I'm off to check out Michael...

    ReplyDelete
  32. There is so much to learn from visiting folks in the a-z! I did a little volunteer work today, but certainly feel like I could have done more!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Way to go, you. We can't burn ourselves completely out, but a little here and a little there adds up. You never know how much a little means to the one.

      Delete
  33. I was most inspired by LeAnn Thieman's story when I heard it a few years ago: "As a volunteer for Friends of Children of Vietnam in 1975, LeAnn helped raise money and supplies for the war orphans. In April she agreed to escort 6 babies from Saigon to their adoptive homes in the USA. By the time she arrived in Vietnam, bombs were dropping outside the city! She was greeted with, “Have you heard the news? President Ford has okayed ‘Operation Babylift’. You’ll help take out not 6, but 300 babies!” The caring and the bravery of those volunteers and others who saved babies and children from war zones over the years touches my heart.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Wow! That's quite a story. I can't even imagine that kind of crazy, but I suppose we are stronger and more capable than we typically think. Thank you for sharing her!

      Delete
  34. Awesome spotlight! He's one of my heroes too.

    ReplyDelete
  35. I've heard of him a few times, but if he's your hero, I'm definitely going to have to research him some more! At first I read 85 windows, and I was like. . . wow. That's quite a job. But 85 widows, that's amazing.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. LOL. Windows... You must be tired. ;) I wish I could have said more, but space is limited. I could go on about him for a long, long time.

      Delete
  36. That is so amazing that he kept up with all those widows and spoke at their funerals. Amazing person indeed.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. And all the people he's served in the meantime... He really is amazing.

      Delete
  37. Spending time with my mother today before she leaves to go home. This was something we both did for each other and it was wonderful. I took her to my garden club meeting and introduced her to the ladies, then we did errands and went home to sit and talk together and reminisce... It was an easy day, full of being together and at peace. Days like this are precious and rare. I felt blessed to have it with her.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I love it! We really have to seize those moments, don't we? It can be so easy to get locked into our digital world and neglect the important parts.

      Delete
  38. I am learning so much from your posts!

    ReplyDelete
  39. Love, love, love, President Monson. He is one of my heroes too!

    ReplyDelete
  40. That's the name of one of my college professors and almost thought I was reading about him.

    He sounds like a great man and I like the question posed in the video.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. He's definitely a good man, though I am fairly certain he never taught college. He was in printing instead.

      Delete
  41. My father inspires me to want to be better. He's a Church of England vicar and he always seems to have time for everyone who needs him and he really cares about people. He had always inspired me. He also has a wicked sense of humour :).
    Tasha
    Tasha's Thinkings - AtoZ (Vampires)
    FB3X - AtoZ (Erotic Drabbles)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. That's awesome. I had to marry a man with a sense of humor, because seriously, who doesn't love a man that can make them laugh?

      Delete
  42. that is very insightful and the speech is really good, nice post :)

    ReplyDelete

Hit me with your cheese!