Eleven (1816)
taken before he had to witness the brutal deaths of his dear sons.^12 Don Carlos, because of his
nature being similar to his father, and being the baby boy of the family, had become bonded
with Joseph Sr. even beyond the typical father-son bonds. Don Carlos was devastated when
he lost his father in 1840. After this, along with the subsequent abuse his brother Joseph
received, both inside and outside the Church, Don Carlos had no fight left in him and died a
year after his father, at the young age of 25. Both Joseph Sr. (in 1840) and Don Carlos (in
1841) died before the murders of Joseph and Hyrum, as had Alvin (1823). The gentle Samuel
did not last but a little over a month after he found out about his brothers’ deaths, having
chosen, instead, to leave this world rather than bearing the pain of being without them.
On the other hand, the emotional strength and tenacity of Lucy, Sophronia, William,
and Lucy Jr. kept them alive and fighting to the end to protect the honor and integrity of their
son and brother Joseph. Until the end of their lives, these four used their Type A attributes to
condemn what Brigham Young and others had done to Joseph’s work and legacy.^13
Preparations for the First Visitation
The advanced humans watching over Joseph’s work knew his pre-pubescent
years would be essential in preparing him for what he would experience in late
puberty—a visitation from an advanced human being. The experiences and impressions
derived from these formative years are crucial to the way that free-willed mortals view
themselves and the world around them. Thus, during these important preparatory years,
the advanced humans overseeing Joseph’s life ensured that he received the proper
groundwork for what was coming.^14
As the result of close observation, from the interaction of his family with each other
and with those outside of the close-knit family, Joseph began to understand: 1) human
personality, attributes and character; 2) the effects of poverty and wealth on the individual
and family and how these factors influence ego and status; 3) philosophy of religion,
government, economics, social factors, and environment in relation to human activity and
worth; and 4) (from the reasons for and experience he derived in moving from place to
place) how people spread themselves on the land according to their economic situation and
social class. The Smith family in which he was placed couldn’t have been better prepared
and established for the purpose of helping Joseph prepare for his future role. During his
puberty, Joseph was well aware of the differences between the religious views of his mother
and father and their personality types. He witnessed some of the ways that his father
attempted to appease his mother while struggling to maintain a sense of self-esteem for
which all men long.
One of the most prominent aspects in the recorded history of Joseph Sr.’s life is the
dreams for which he was known. In the solace of his dreams and in the painless world of
subconsciousness, Joseph Sr. was able to reconcile who he really was with who Lucy wanted
him to be. Joseph Sr.’s heart was inconsistent with that of worldly man, yet he also wanted
to please the woman whom he loved with all of his heart. Thus, from this inner turmoil
came the dreams that somewhat appeased Lucy and her accompanying expectations, giving
Joseph Sr. the renown of being a visionary man (of which the world had few).^15 When Joseph
Sr. related his dreams to his wife, she gave him value and praised him for receiving “visions
from God,” as she imagined them to be.
As mentioned in chapter one, Joseph Sr.’s dreams caused many critics and
enemies of the Book of Mormon to call attention to the fact that some of the dreams