There have been many times in my life when I have heard stories about my pioneer ancestors and the hard things they did when crossing the plains and settling in Utah and Idaho. In the past, I have always reacted with comments such as, "There is no way I could have done that!" or "I would have never made it to Utah because I for sure would have died along the way!" My reaction to the stories of my ancestors and the hard things they did, has now changed. As I have researched their lives and studied their faces in photos, they have become more real to me. 

unique birth and entry into this world. Frances was very proud of the fact that she had been born in a covered wagon on the way to Utah and shared this frequently with her children and grandchildren. These are her words,**

 "I was born August 18, 1851 within a half days ride of Fort Laramie, Wyoming. I hadn't been expected until journey's end at Salt Lake. My early arrival was brought on by the heroic acts of my mother, Mary Jane Whitlock. She was very pregnant with me when jumped out of her wagon and threw her apron up waving it in the direction of stampeding oxen, which had been frightened by some Indians. Her actions redirected the herd and, saved an elderly lady by the name of Grandma Albridge from a certain fall. This act of bravery caused her to begin her labor and deliver me early.

My father, John Franklin Oviatt made the decision to pull off the trail and fall back behind the rest of the company.*** I'm sure that this was not an easy decision to make since this required him to possibly part from other family members and friends who were traveling with them. They were both so young at just 21 years of age and I was their first baby. John and Mary Jane had just married the previous year on November 28th in Winter Quarters Pottawattam, Iowa.

 So, my young father made camp, then brewed his wife some tea, and awaited my arrival. While he was cooking over the campfire, some hostile-looking Indians approached and watched him hand the tea into the wagon to my mother. One of the Indians asked, ["Squaw sick?" My father, then answered, "Yes, Squaw heap sick! Maybe so die. Got smallpox!" ] This was quick thinking on my father's part since the Indians had been dying of smallpox. Without any other further exchange, the Indians turned about and then left quickly, leaving us all unmolested. 

When I read this story now and tell it to my children, I feel different about the inspiring lives of my ancestors! They aren't super heroes to me. They are human and real. I feel a connection to them now. 

I am sure Mary Jane was scared in the covered wagon with the potential threat of violence just outside, while she labored to give birth for the first time. I know that she prayed out to God. I can imagine John prayed also, for strength and comfort as he worried for the safety of his small family. Because of his prayers, he was inspired by God to say and act in such a way that protected his wife and new baby.  They were probably both very emotional and joyous when Frances was born healthy despite being early! Afterwards, I am sure they were extremely grateful when they carried their baby to Zion and didn't have to bury her like so many pioneers before and after them. This gratitude has been the motive behind this story being told again and again for many generations, since that day in the late summer of 1851.

When I ponder this story now, I don't think like I use to and tell myself that I could have never done what they did or that they were so much stronger than me! Instead, I think about all the hard things I have done in my life. Just like John and Mary Jane Oviatt, I have prayed out to God for peace and comfort because of adversity and pain. I have also felt extreme joy and gratitude for the miracles in my life.

Now these family stories help me to remember that there is a little bit of Frances and Mary Jane inside of me and I am a strong.