As we pay tribute this month to the Mormon pioneers, the story of the seagulls and the crickets, undoubtly, will be told and retold many times throughout the church.

It is an epic story, filled with drama, the kind that movies are made of. But it is also a simple story, the kind that strengthens faith and testimony. It is a story of courage, of perseverance, of hope and prayer., and of gratitude. Certainly, there are many principles to be learned from what occurred in 1848 as the pioneers' crops were saved from the devastating hordes of black crickets that came swarming by the millions out of the foothills.It is a story that should long be remembered as it clearly illustrates the mercy of a loving Heavenly Father to the Mormon pioneers as they strugled to carve out of the often-hostile desert a refuge they could call home.

But hordes of crickets and the devastation they can cause is by no means exclusive to the pioneer period.

Even today, many areas of the western desert are infested with what has become known as Mormon crickets--crickets that Elder B.H. Roberts said were "insignificant...separately, but in millions, terrible." (A Comprehensive History of the Church 3:332.)

Not a true cricket, but rather related to the grasshopper, the insects can crawl or hope at a rapid pace of up to three miles a day.Frequently they cross highways and roads, which may not be a wise thing to do with today's large volume of traffic. Often, highways in heavily infested areas are black with dead crickets.

Interestingly, the crickets may not have had to cross the roadway for food. Grasses and sagebrush are often plentiful on the side of the road from where the insects came. But for some reason--perhaps one starts across and the others follow--the crickets leave an area of safety and move into harm's way.

Many people, however, are often like the unwise crickets.

They may leave zones of safety and move into areas that could lead to destruction, often justifying their actions by such phrases as "Everybody's doing it" or "This is the '90s, it's the thing to do." They may leave safety zone becuase they get in with the wrong crowd, or perhaps follow the destructive actions of another, or perhaps are influenced by harmful books, magazines or movies.

But if we get onto that highway of harm, there is no happiness, only sorrow; no joy, only tears; no safety, only destruction. Isn't that what the prodigal son found after he wasted his substance with riotous living? (See Luke 15:11-32.)

Fortunately, there are many zones in life where we can find safety and security--such as our homes, our meetinghouses, our temples.

As we worthily enter a temple,, we find safety from the world and peace from the cares of the outside.

"It is my prayer," President Joseph Fielding Smith said at the 1972 dedication of the Provo Temple, "that we shall use this holy temple for the performance of the ordinances of salvation and exaltation...that the saints...will come here to find peace and the spirit of inspiration..."

In our meetinghouses, ther is rest and relief from the storms of life of our daily living.

"Latter-day Saint chapels are more than just jouseds of worship," said President Ezra Taft Benson. "The stakes and districts of Zion are symbolic of the holy places spoken of by the Lord where His saints are to gather in the last days as a refuge from the storm." (The Teachings of Ezra Taft Benson, p. 151.)

In our homes, as they are built on righteous foundations, there is stability, an anchor of love.

"The home," said President Joseph F. Smith in 1903,f "is more than a habitation, it is an institution which stands for stability and love in individuals as well as in nations." (Juvenile Instructor 38:144.)

A sure way to avoid getting onto that highway of destruction is by following the prophet. The 20th Section of the Doctrine and Covenants teaches us that those who believe in the words of the holy prophets, who speak as they are inspired by the gift of the Holy Ghost, shall have eternal life. (See D&C 20:26.)

Therefore, it is essential as we work out our probation in this life that we be not like the unwise crickets who leave zones of safety we, instead, follow the words of the prophets which "shall not fail" (See D&C 58:8), thus enabling that we, too, will not fail.

A THOUGHT FROM THE SCRIPTURES

Wherefore, men are free according to the flesh; and all things are given them which are expedient unto man. And they are free to choose liberty and eternal life, through the great Mediator of all men, or to choose captivity and death, according to the captivity and power of the devil; for he seeketh that all men might be miserable like unto himself. (2 Ne. 2:27.)

"Life's journey is not traveled on a freeway devoid of obstacles, pitfalls and snares," President Thomas S. Monson, second counselor in the first Presidency, observed in the October 1986 general conference.

"Rather, it is a pathway marked by forks and turnings. Decisions are constantly before us. To make them wisely, courage is needed--the courage to say no, the courage to say yes. Decisions do determine destiny."

:wq!