Henry David Thoreau wrote, “To be awake is to be alive. I have never yet met a man who was quite awake. How could I have looked him in the face?” (Walden, Houghton, Mifflin, 1854, page 142).
I’ve thought about that quote today as I’ve pondered Lehi’s admonitions to his sons at the end of his life. He uses each of the following phrases multiple times:
- “Awake!” (2 Nephi 1:13, 14, 23).
- “Arise from the dust” (2 Nephi 1:14, 21, 23).
- “Shake off the chains with which ye are bound” (2 Nephi 1:13, 23).
Since Lehi had studied the brass plates, I wouldn’t be surprised if he had been influenced by the following passage from Isaiah, which his son Jacob would later quote:
Awake, awake; put on thy strength, O Zion; put on thy beautiful garments, O Jerusalem, the holy city: for henceforth there shall no more come into thee the uncircumcised and the unclean.
Shake thyself from the dust; arise, and sit down, O Jerusalem: loose thyself from the bands of thy neck, O captive daughter of Zion.
Isaiah 52:1-2, 2 Nephi 8:24-25; see also Moroni 10:31
I think Lehi is challenging me to be more aware, to get more engaged, to participate more fully in life, and to let go of the habits and distractions that drag me down. He wants me to live in the moment and take advantage of opportunities as they appear. He wants me to live the abundant life. (See John 10:10.)
Today, I will wake up. I will rise from the dust of unproductive activities and shake off the inhibitions which prevent me from living life fully.