So I was all snuggled in my bed, but couldn't fall asleep, so I did this instead. The Mormon Tabernacle Choir has sung this song many times, but for some reason this holiday season it is singing to my soul. I am so grateful for the birth and life of the Savior. He lives. The Atonement is real. I had the opportunity to not only attend but sing at a baptism on Saturday. It was a small gathering, but that didn't matter, what mattered was the commitment that was taking place in Erica Marquez's life. Her friend (both share some mental incompacities) gave the opening prayer and what she said was beautiful, "I am grateful to be blessed to see the Atonement today." The gospel truly is so beautiful and wonderfully simple. Do I take the time each day to see the Atonement blessing my life. I am so grateful for the Christmas Season, to remind me about that fact. What a glorious Father in Heaven we have. God's plan of happiness is real. If you would like to know more about his plan or Erica's commitment check out my profile on mormon.org by clicking here .
I finally finished recovering my kitchen chairs tonight. I think they turned out great. They definitely aren't professional, but they look SO different. I love them!
Grandpa moved in with my uncle and aunt a few weeks ago. I hadn't been over there to visit until tonight, as I brought back a few boxes for him after Thanksgiving. We sat and chatted for about an hour and a half. He has been working on her history and he showed me a few bits and pieces. He is writing as if she were telling it, "because I have all her stories, her whole life memorized"
He showed me the story of her meeting the Prophet Heber J. Grant and gave me a copy of the story with her signature on it. I read about a time she was at a dance and she refused to drink alcohol, and all the other girls at the party followed her example. My favorite was a short snippet I read about her and grandpa being in disagreement before they got married. They were advised to take a 2 week break. On that break, Grandpa took a another girl on a date and used the opera tickets that he and Naomi got together, to take this other girl. She got so mad at him about that, that she went to his boarding house and knocked on his window. They made up and the rest is history. Another story he shared with me was having a bushels of peaches to bottle-and Naomi declining to go for a ride on the horses with some friends. The friend said "To Hell with the peaches!" her response was - "okay, I'll go"
Later he asked if I had a copy of their "couple" photos. I told him I had them on the computer but not originals or anything. He asked if I wanted some. Of course I agreed. (Assuming he meant other originals than those framed) after some searching, he then proceeds to find his copies from the color copier "in town" (delta) found his itty bitty old as dirt little desk scissors and cut them out and handed them to me. Ha - It was so cute. I will look back on that memory often.
He said both Naomi's are hard at work making sure our families reach exaltation. Naomi was such a well rounded person. Such an example of a lady. I don't recall knowing any great-grandparents and I doubt any of my children will either. I hope I learned enough from them to teach my children about them. Sometimes I wish I was one of the older grandchildren, so that I could remember them younger. They have changed over the years and I have many different memories than the older kids, but mine are special in a much different way.
Memories are such an interesting thing. I don't remember much about my childhood before the age of 9; and the things I do remember as a child are random insignificant activities. I think about that with my nieces and nephews, and wonder when I spend time with them what will they remember? I'm sure it won't be the book I got them for Christmas, or even a special night out; but much rather a plain ordinary moment on the couch having a tickle fight or listening to their stories.
Every person has a story in their life. Only some of us take time to record it. Only some of us recognize we are making our own story everyday. What story am I writing?
I saw an idea similar to this using a tomato cage. Instead I found an A frame wire at Michaels - I wrapped it in lights, hung a few ornaments, and tada! Super cute.
Spent the weekend attempting to be crafty. Loved how my pumpkins turned out. Really simple you take 4 strips of paper put a brad tack in the middle of all four and then gather the ends (so 8 in total) and creating the ball I inserted the green curls with the tack as well, and then glued the stems of roller paper on top. I think this would be a cute homemade ornament idea as well with some fun holiday paper.
My other project turned out okay. I think it would be better if I had been more patient and let the puffy paint dry more. I took 3 canvas, and drew the designs and then traced with puffy paint, I then Spray painted green - (the pictures don't show the green the same as real life), and found the lettering at the dollar store. The cost for the whole project was only about 10 dollars! Fun little touch!
One day, I was sitting in my office thinking what to do next to keep myself busy; when suddenly the phone started ringing and e-mails began rolling in. Just like that.... it is nice having "busy" come to me instead of me finding it.
One day, I will begin to make friends "just like that." My ward was combined two weeks ago with the other singles ward in the area. I am praying that this bunch is a little more friendly and the Bishopric gets a better clue on welcoming in the new. Was that murmuring? oops.....
One day - just like that, I will find another roommate. My current roomie moves out at the end of the month. Her internship was supposed to end, but got extended, however, her boyfriend and English Mastiff are moving down so he can intern too (The boy not the dog). Since we can't have pets, and my landlord doesn't want both of them there, she is leaving. I told her we could put a fish costume on the dog and a skirt on the boy - but we figured it would fail.
One Day, just like that, I got a washing machine! Thanks to my sis and her fam. using their UEA weekend to come play with the Dinos and deliver my lovely machine. Friday night we went to Red Fleet State Park. It was beautiful! Here are a few prize shots at sunset. I am so impressed with my Iphone camera sometimes.
One day - prob. not just like that, I will be financially stable. I have to work at that one every darn day. Having the roommate - just like that - would help this one.
One Day - Just Like That!
P.S. Finally one day - just like that - I might meet a winner like these gents....
Being out here on my own, has given me a lot of time for contemplation. I have the chance to really get to know myself, and see what I like, and what I need to to change. Something that I would tell the girls in the rehab, was that at the end of the day; all they had was themselves and then I would ask, if they were happy with who they were? I now am asking myself that same question. There are some big ol' flaws, but I know God is helping me to mold into a servant of Him.
The other day I was people watching, and even though there were "friends" and people everywhere, that person you could tell felt alone. I do believe that we can often choose our own feelings. We create our atmosphere. There are times that I hardly talk to anyone at all. So who is more "alone". Of course there are plenty of times that I have felt lonely out here. The other night I had this feeling, and then I was reminded of that old church song "You're not Alone" - and it is true. We are never alone. We may become lonely, but we are never alone. And the amount of people surrounding you isn't what makes the difference. Having more time be myself, has actually taught me that principle.
I was talking to a friend of mine that I was blessed to teach on my mission. He has struggled making the transition in the full lifestyle of the LDS faith. I received a text from him saying he wanted to start coming back to church. I immediately called him, and we chatted for awhile. He said even though everything was going well in his life, He said he wasn't happy, because something was missing, and he thought this was probably it.
Putting these two thoughts together, it just made me grateful that I have a loving Heavenly Father that knows each of our needs. The spirit is real, and it can remind us that we are never alone - or- it can remind us what will bring true happiness.
I was reminded of this in an awesome and simple way with conference. Just a few weeks before General Conference, I was reading a talk by President Packer from last April. He spoke of how we should not refer to ourselves or the church as Mormon. It did bother me a little about the whole Mormon.org missionary effort. The two didn't seem to correlate. Low and behold, Elder Ballard spoke on just that, and made it quit clear how the two ideas could exist. I couldn't help but smile and laugh. God knows all of our questions.
Two weeks ago, I spoke in sacrament meeting, and the topic was following the promptings of the spirit. I immediately thought of a mantra I adopted on my mission that I learned from a family in my first area. GO SAY BE DO. It comes from the hymn, "I'll go where you want me to go." Simply put, when the Lord calls, We Go, We Say, We Be, and We Do what the Lord would have us. It's not always easy, but we are never alone. D&C 84: 88 And whoso areceiveth you, there I will be also, for I will go bbefore your face. I will be on your right hand and on your left, and my cSpirit shall be in your hearts, and mine dangels round about you, to bear you up.
I don't mean to be so preachy and sentimental in all of my posts, but sometimes, I can't seem to help wanting to shout from the rooftops; the good news of the gospel. Despite our trials, life is always good, because we have the restored gospel on the earth, a living prophet, and knowledge of who we are!
A few months ago I read a book at work. I think it might be called The Hidden Girl, but I'm not sure. Its a short story about a girl that was Jewish during WWII. She spent most of the war in a room and in a hole, with a short time in a camp; wearing only one dress the entire time. It created a lot of introspection on my life. There are so many prejudices in the world today. I thought to myself what I would do. Could I be as strong as the women who hid that girl. Would I have helped free slaves with the underground railroad. Is my faith strong enough to risk my life for another human life? How much charity do I have? Will I really live up to my covenant to stand as a witness and comfort those around me. I just watched the movie The Help tonight, and it brought up all these thoughts again. Do I take the time to make ALL other people feel important no matter the color of their skin, how much money they have, what religion, and the list goes on.
As I sit here pondering, I think it doesn't have to take a giant push for a civil rights movement, and luckily I don't have to risk my life hiding a child; but every day I can make other people feel important. I have been blessed to know that God has given me special and unique talents to help others feel His love. I often wonder if I am doing enough to use those talents. It reminded me of Dr. Seuess's book Horton Hears a Hoo; "A person is a person no matter how small." I'm not really sure if that concept is being taught in schools today. There is so much bullying. Everyone judging their neighbors instead of loving them. I just pray we don't revert back to thinking that you can get a disease from one "group" by using the same toilet. But even as I write this, there is a person judged for their skin color, a child going hungry, someone losing a battle to addiction, a person in a crowd that is deemed an outcast, another finding shelter to sleep, and a woman running from an abusive husband.
I have had an opportunity in my short life to help more people than I can count (at least I hoped I've helped) in brief small ways. I know that I alone cannot save the world, nor do I want to try, but I do want to help more people find hope. It is a dark and scary world out there. I want to bring light and peace. One of the maids in the movie told the little girl she cared for every day, "You are smart, you is kind, you is important". I just want to be one of those people for God. I just want to "be the change in the world you want to see" as Ghandi is attributed saying. I am so grateful that the priesthood has been restored and that there is a prophet in the world reminding people of that every day.
John Lennon said it best in his song Imagine. "Imagine no possessions, I wonder if you can, No need for greed or hunger, a brotherhood of man, Imagine all the people, Sharing all the world, You may say that I'm a dreamer, But I'm not the only one, I hope someday you'll join us, And the world will live as one."
All people matter. I wish I could to do more and God and I talk about that. It is His timetable though. I can trust that He will put me where I am needed. Above all, I hope that everyone that reads this remembers on one of those 'hard days' - YOU ARE SMART, YOU IS KIND, YOU IS IMPORTANT!
I just wanted to quickly update. That is my goal once a week; we shall see how true I am to my word.
I FINALLY moved into my new place this weekend. It is nice and spacious and not too shabby. I love being able to have a backyard and an up and downstairs. My parents came up with all the furniture collected from around the state. My cousins and their kids came to help unload and it went really quick. I was super grateful!
I already have pictures up on the wall, and almost have a place for everything. And I did all this while watching Aaron and Rachel's baby as well...
I am waiting to “decorate” until I go to Salt Lake next week for training so I have more options than Wal-Mart or K-mart. My roommate, Amanda, who is form Denver and will be here for 2 months interning at the Hospital asked where the nearest health food store, I said well, you got Smith’s, Wal-Mart, and Jubilee…. And a farmer’s market on Sat. mornings until it gets too cold. I don’t think she liked that answer very well, but when she isn’t studying, she watches the cows and chickens behind the house and is just fascinated.
I am getting settled into work. Someone from the state came and did some training for me last week. I am working on Apartments and Condos to go smoke-free. As we went visiting, it almost made me feel like a missionary again, but this time instead of the gospel I am peddling no smoking, and Cassandra didn’t have to stand outside the car while I backed up J I will do more training next week, and then I think my confidence will grow even more in all that I have to do. Lots of reading still, and trying to keep all of the facts right in my head, but I am getting there.
So I will finally end with this video I watched this week – I think there is supposed to be a moral to this story, but I haven’t decided what point they are truly getting across. Don’t let your kids watch it, even if it is Disney….
I am having a hard time focusing today. My thoughts are all over the place for some reason. (I think that is how this will get updated every time.) Biggest news is that I get to move into my place this weekend!! I'm so grateful for everyone helping me out. Anyway these are just some bits and pieces from awhile ago. I thought I would catch up everyone on (the whole 3 of you who read this.)
Its been a month since my Grandma passed away. The funeral was beautiful on Saturday. She looked lovely and finally at peace. I am grateful for the time that I was able to spend with my parents and grandpa on the way up to Lewiston to the burial. We stayed until "it was finished" as my grandpa put it. I did perfectly fine that day until we were at the gravestone "store" afterwards. As we were sitting there, my grandpa said "so many decisions, one after the other this week, but tomorrow it will all be over and then I will be all alone." I have been keeping him in my prayers and hope that he is being comforted by the Spirit.
Grandpa with his brother next to their parents headstone.
Grandpa with the two Naomi's
I finally posted the few pics I had of the family reunion on facebook as well, but I thought this video belonged on the blog. We have started doing "Minute to Win It" games at the family reunion. The goal of this game was to get the cookie from the forehead to the mouth.
I've been here for a whole week, can't believe it. Vernal, my new home. Right now my days consist of reading, reading, and more reading. Things will pick up in a few weeks. Because we are so far out here, we attend a lot of phone meetings (at least once a week). I have yet to keep track of how many coalitions or councils I'm a part of... but I'm excited to hopefully start making a difference in peoples lives. My Uncle and Aunt are so sweet to put me up, but hopefully I can move into my place soon. I attended my new ward. It was a little disappointing, but hopefully things will get better. I did attend the temple on Sat. which I'm glad about because it is closed for a few weeks for cleaning. It was beautiful and simple and a nice way to spend my Saturday afternoon.
Last week before I left I had breakfast with a friend and we had a great talk about our life path, and relating it to a landscape of mountains. While we are climbing one mountain, we can usually only see that mountain and imagine the view. Once we get to the top, we see a whole new perspective. With that knowledge, it means that it is okay to change paths, or directions. We are all climbing, we are all on a different mountain. Sometimes God allows the path to be easy, sometimes He allows it to be difficult. Other times, we walk away from His path and pave our own, eventually we give up and go back to the path that will bring us happiness. His path. So, I took a few minutes to "paint" my interpretation of this..
I guess you could say this is the intro to my story. I hope it picks up off the ground a bit.
Well, I decided this morning to enter the blog world. Mostly, I hope to better record my life (because it is very non-existent right now - the record not the life...) In a few days, I will be leaving my family and friends and move to Vernal. Who knew.... I sure didn't. This whole experience has taught me that the Lord has a master plan for each of us in our lives.
I should back up a little. I recently graduated from UVU with my Bachelor's degree. When I first graduated high school, if some one were to tell me that I would do such a thing, I would have laughed, but God had another plan for me. If some one were tell me that I would have been home from a mission for a year at that same time, I would have also laughed. If some one were to tell me that I would be working with teenage girls at a residential treatment center, I would have thought they were nuts. I especially would have thought they were crazy if they then told me that I would then move to Vernal to start my career in Public and Community Health. Well, 18 year old self, it's true, and it's amazing, and it goes to show that the Lord knows what will bring true happiness. I have come a very long way from that timid and fearful of success girl.
The Lord works in my life in a bold way. I have been searching for jobs in my career for awhile, and nothing has happened. He has blessed me with the opportunity to work with the girls at the Journey, and they have taught me so much. And then, three weeks ago I went to Vernal for an interview and my life has changed so fast. I was offered a job later that night, I then put in my two weeks, and headed to Otter Creek State Park for a great family reunion. Upon returning, I learned that an Elder from my mission had passed away from saving his sister in a river, and drowned. At this point, I was so grateful for this gospel and the knowledge of eternal families. Elder Grey was a wonderful missionary, always had a smile on his face, and was a wonderful example of doing what the Lord asked of you. I began packing all my things to move home, since I will be staying at my Uncle's for a few weeks, before my place is ready. On Friday, July 29th, I received the news my grandmother passed away. 98 years young. She was a lovely lady, that always helped me want to be better (especially at being lady-like). I again was reminded of the comfort of the gospel of Jesus Christ, and the power of temple blessings. My grandfather gave me permission to make a video of her photos. It has been special to watch/look at her photos many times over the past week. I also had to tell the girls I work with good-bye, which has been hard. They mean so much to me and I hope each of them succeed in their sobriety. They have so much potential.
I have lept into this new opportunity, full of faith knowing that this is what the Lord wanted, and have been swirled in this crazy mayhem of change. Then last night, I got a phone call from another department out of Richfield. It left me all very confused. A friend of mine came to visit, and I had him give me a blessing this morning. It was very clear what the Lord wanted me to. I will go to Vernal, as the Lord has planned for me. With the brief overview of all the other things the Lord has directed in my life, I would be very foolish to not follow this path now. So, I will attend to family needs this weekend for my grandmother's funeral, and then I will move to Vernal on Tuesday, and start my career on Wednesday. My new chapter of my book of life will then begin. Chapter Provo III is now over and next in the list of Table of Contents is Vernal: The land of discovery. (That was something I was counseled about in my blessing, was to use this time to create who I really want to be)
And so, I will start from the beginning......
