Hey Naomi! I must say your insights and reminders here are powerful!

To address your question, I really do believe that the gospel of Jesus Christ is a message of good news. While we learn from the scriptures that the gospel is the gospel of repentance ("teach nothing but repentance" - Doctrine and Covenants 6:9, 11:9) , it essentially just means that we focus on preaching the gospel "which is the gospel of repentance and salvation through the mercy, grace and merits of the Lord Jesus Christ." That is good news: that there is salvation, mercy and grace for all mankind!

• Lately, I feel that I've been surrounded by numerous deaths and illnesses in past two years. Grief has really taught me the impermanence of everything in our fallen world. But the more prominent feeling I've been getting is how lovely it is that I possess the knowledge of the plan of salvation. It brings me great comfort our parting in this life is not the end. This mortality is only a fleeting moment in our eternal lives.

This is Elder Hugo Montoya in his talk, The Eternal Principle of Love:

On the third day He was resurrected. The tomb is empty; He stands at the right hand of His Father. They hope we will choose to keep our covenants and return to Their presence. This second estate is not our final estate; we do not belong to this earthly home, but rather we are eternal beings living temporary experiences.

• Another thing the gospel of Jesus Christ has taught me is that our time here on Earth is to become the person who we will become for eternity. When we meet Jesus Christ in His second coming and face the final judgment, the essence of who we are in that moment will shape our eternal existence. This understanding holds immense power in that each day the Lord gives me another chance to live and be with my family, I choose to improve upon myself, to surpass the person I was yesterday, so that one day, I may reach a state of self-acceptance, forgiveness for my flaws, love for all my cherished ones in the manner that Jesus loves them, and a deep sense of peace and comfort in the presence of my Heavenly Father.

• a powerful reminder that the second coming of jesus christ is a joyous occasion, which is why it's symbolized by a marriage feast:

"there's a marriage coming! It's gonna be great!" - dr. camille f. olson (https://open.spotify.com/episode/0vGHSOKivLW2MkDLwecsH2?si=73ef0cee0a3c47c8)

• the prominence of the message of repentance stems from the fact that the gospel of jesus christ is a gospel of salvation brought upon by repentance, which is closely tied to humility. our recognition of our own nothingness leads us to rely on the boundless everythingness of our god to be perfected one day. (Doctrine and Covenants 6:9, 11:9, Doctrine and Covenants Student Manual 11)

[[say nothing but repentance]]

Repentance is important theme--> 2:16, 21, and 22. Keep an eye out for it in later letters and chapters as well.