tree of life

I try to read scriptures with my kids every day.
At times it works....most of the time it doesn't.
We are working on it.

Sometimes I get angry and frustrated.
Sometimes when things are not working out, I quietly read to myself.
And sometimes I get smart and allow the kids to draw pictures of the stories while I read.

Enter 1st Nephi chapter 8 in the Book of Mormon.
Lehi's vision of the tree of life.
I love this chapter.

I thought Conner did an awesome job depicting the tree of life (in yellow) and Lehi standing next to it.  The rod of iron and spacious building are awesome and the arrows are helpful illustrations of the individuals who chose to leave the pursuit of God's happiness for sinful comforts.

Notice the crazy hair dude.
According to Conner this dude definitely belongs in the great and spacious building.

Colton.
Well, at least he didn't eat the crayons.
And the shaded imprints of money can be a helpful illustration??

Which leaves me with Caleb's version.
Caleb was very dedicated to this picture... but I think he might have stopped listening after a couple of minutes.

The tree is pink in the center of the page with a purple Lehi standing next to it.  If you look closely, Lehi is swinging an axe at the tree of life while standing in a boat in the middle of the river.  The black dude standing on the other side of the tree is Satan carrying his own axe.  The rod of iron extends over both of their heads and connects to the green great and spacious building... a building that looks very similar to Caleb's depiction of a rocket ship. 

I asked Caleb why Lehi would want to cut down the tree of life.  The tree - after all - bears fruit that has the power to make one's soul and heart exceedingly happy.  Caleb proceeded to tell/teach me that Lehi was chopping the tree of life down so that he could carry it to all of his family and friends.  Why would Lehi stand there, watching, and waiting for everyone to arrive?  No.  In Caleb's opinion, Lehi wouldn't stand still.  He would cut the tree and carry it with him to share with all of his family and friends... because no one deserves to be without the joy God's love has to offer.

And isn't that what Lehi essentially did when he took the time to share his words with the world??  He might not have cut down the tree per se, but he shared the power of God's love.  His words always leave me hungry for more.

On second thought, I think Caleb was listening to the words of the story more than I was.

I think we may draw scripture pictures more often.
I am excited to witness Caleb's depictions of future scenes.