I just finished reading Segullah’s marriage issue – the fifth anniversary edition. Did you receive your copy yet? I could rave about the essays, draw out lines from each poem that made me go tingly, or open a discussion about the juicy, provocative, heart-rending nature of a subject like marriage.

But instead, I want to share something from Kathryn Soper’s editoral piece. Kathy kicked off the journal by rewinding five years to the day Segullah was born. Picture three ambitious women with a half dozen toddlers at a McDonald’s Playplace. Despite the “cacophony” Kathy says, they “managed to get a few things straight.”

We decided Segullah… would feature high-quality creative writing that celebrates and explores what it means to be a Mormon woman. It would maintain a stance of loyalty toward the LDS Church and its leadership. And at the same time, its scope would transcend the boundaries which keep sisters in the gospel hiding safely behind our Sunday faces.

Last weekend while watching General Conference (albeit in between potty breaks, diaper changes, crayon-chewing, and marshmallow-throwing), I felt something wonderful. It happened as Elder Holland took the pulpit. It trickled over my body then intensified into knowledge. Knowledge that the heavens are open. As I sat on the floor, little ones crawling across my lap, I cocked one ear to the screen and breathed easy. Here is where I can find truth, I thought. Here is where I want to belong.

That doesn’t mean I don’t want to question or explore. Because therein lies the learning, right? Delving, discovering, asking, finding, and occasionally shelving the unanswered – these processes build our testimonies, fuel our progression, channel our becoming. But on that bright Autumn Saturday, while listening to apostles and prophets, I felt a yearning to simply be good. I wanted to bend my soul toward what really matters and align myself wholly with Christ and His Church.

A few days later, Kathy’s definition of Segullah lodged in my heart. It was that small but significant conference moment that made me realize why I come here – why I love this place. We explore, delve, share, and ask – transcending typical bounds while honoring others.

After graduating from High School, I sat in an intimate setting with a general authority for the church. It was a warm, humid evening and I could hear the ocean outside. We sat at the kitchen table and he asked me what I knew about the scriptures. We talked and then he gave me this counsel. “Question everything. But stay on the path.”

Staying on the path has made all the difference.

That is the safety and joy of Segullah. We write about the faces (yours and mine) we may not see in Relief Society. But we do so with respect for truth and a reverence for its source.

As a recent recruit to Segullah’s staff, I can say, Segullah fills the desire I’ve had to write and surround myself with literate women who love to ask questions but are loyal. It’s a choice place. A place where we can discuss the peculiar and treasured, with compassion for each other, and a fiery love for God.

What about you? Why are you here? What attracted you to the blog or journal? What kind of posts or articles do you like to read? What have you appreciated about Segullah?

Related posts:

1. Kathryn Lynard Soper’s Fantastic New Memoir
2. Weekday sisterhood and Relief Society meetings
3. Write and Remember