Maud's Story
With entire sections in her own words
by
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Surrounded by love and the joy of her family, it seemed that some of Maud’s lovely characteristics became more pronounced. It is well known that a musician is also an artist; art and beauty being two of a kind, or one and the same. Along with her love and appreciation for music, Maud had a keen esthetic sense. The beautiful, the lovely, and the special little things charmed her. Seemingly small items or acts—things that others regarded as almost insignificant—caught her eye and elicited expressions of joy or gratitude. After Joel’s death that appreciation for beauty deepened in her soul. This was especially noticeable in her dress and personal care. Her daily bath brought comfort into her life. Wrapped in a soft white towel with delicate pastel flowers, she exuded a simple joy that had not been smothered, despite the fact that she, like Mother Eve, had given birth to a Cain and an Abel. Fresh white under garments, covered with a neatly ironed, handmade cotton dress, seemed to strengthen her frail frame. A warm blue wool blanket from Joel’s son Maca (Miguel), that she kept folded at the foot of her bed; her cheery yellow and white long “party dress” with lace and ruffles and many more comforts brightened her countenance. Maud became polished and refined through suffering. She had developed a rare quality of simple submission to whatever God permitted to come upon her, and became an example to all who knew her. Even among those who were the nearest to her, no one could say that he had seen Maud weep, or that he had heard her complain.
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About the Book
Maud’s Story— A Modern Cain and Abel Story A life she termed “half joy and half sorrow.” • Born to parents who had childhood memories of the Civil War, Maud’s life began in 1892, just two years after the Mormon Church Manifesto had forbidden plural marriage. • Educated in the LDS High School in Salt Lake City, she, paradoxically, gained a love for that controversial principle. • In Salt Lake Maud read newspaper reports telling that President Joseph F. Smith had paid a $500 fine for a son who was born years after the Manifesto; yet the church continued to deny its practice. • She married Dayer LeBaron, helped him get a plural wife, fled to Mexico to avoid his arrest, and continued giving birth to children. • Dayer’s family lived nearly twenty years in Colonia Juarez, ostracized for living plural marriage, in a town that early Mormons had made as a place of refuge for polygamists. • With grown sons Maud and Dayer left the Mormon colony to pioneer a remote area on homestead land. There her son Joel began a church and became the beloved leader of a new community. • Ervil, a younger brother, enraged at Joel’ success, no longer supported him and …. • A modern Cain and Abel story ensued, breaking Maud’s heart.
About the Author
Charlotte K. LeBaron, is an American, who has lived most of her adult life in Mexico. At the age of eighty-one she is now publishing her sixth book—two of which are her late husband’s. Married into a family known for its Cain and Abel story, her fervent desire has been to show that there have been some mighty fine common people behind the scenes. This she has done after first compiling a book of timely quotations and advice for the feminine half of society—now in its second printing. She believes in holding to the beautiful side of life, despite the difficulties one might encounter. Mother of nine children, she also has many grandchildren, as well as great-grandchildren, and considers her posterity the greatest blessing of her life. With the help and support of her community, Charlotte incorporated a bilingual private school which has been in operation for thirty years. She served for six years as its director, along with teaching a second grade class. For forty years she taught classes in both Spanish and English, in public as well as private schools, the greater part of time being in her own private school. There she taught kindergarten in the morning and a one-room English class for students of all ages in the afternoon. In 2011 she retired from teaching and began dedicating more time to writing. Though she has limited participation in community affairs, she still accepts an occasional invitation to speak or teach a class. She lives alone, but her home is always open to family members who come to visit.