Thank You, Gracias, Merci, Salamat

As this Thanksgiving Day comes to a closer can't. Help but feel the need to sit down and take a moment to count my blessings. I try to always be aware of the numerous blessings and tender mercies that surround me, but sitting here with my family and a full tummy, they are impossible to ignore. My heart is full and I am sincerely overwhelmed by all the blessings I have received. Even saying that, I know there are blessings I don't even recognize.

1.First and foremost, I am grateful for the knowledge I have of the gospel of Jesus Christ. The blessings I've received from the gospel and from living its teachings are incomprehensibly numerous. His light and love penetrate every aspect of my life.

2.I am eternally grateful for my family. They have taught me so much about who I am and who I want to become. I have learned so much about life, love, laughter, and happiness, from each of them. Not to mention how happy I get when I look at their faces.           

3. How about all the the beauties and wonders of nature that I have the blessing to witness and enjoy. I've said it a thousand times and I'll say it about a million more, the beauty of the earth is seriously evidence of Gods love. I love being outside, breathing the fresh air, and devouring the beauty of nature. How can you not be in awe of the world around us?

4. I'm so grateful for the school I attend and the education I am able to gain. I love the blend of temporal and spiritual education in my schooling. I get so much edification and enlightenment that is unlike what I would receive at other institutions. I love the program that I'm in, and I know I'm exactly where I'm supposed to be. 

5.I am grateful for my pioneer heritage. This summer I participated in trek for a second time. It was amazing and probably among the hardest things I've done. I learned so much about strength, service, leadership, and perseverance. I am so grateful that I could experience a shred of the sacrifice that my ancestors endured for the gospel that I love.

6.I'm grateful for the leaders and educators who have blessed my life. They've taught me how to learn and grow, succeed and fail, serve and sacrifice, and observe then act. They've given me examples of charity, love, and selflessness.

7.I'm grateful that I got to live so close to my extended family for most of my life. I'm also grateful that now I live near my family that I used to see so infrequently. I'm especially grateful for the closeness I have to my grandparents. Their lives teach me so much, and the more time goes on, the more I cherish the time we have together. If you've seen me in my pug sweater and feel confused, just ask. It's seriously my favorite..

8.I'm grateful for my friends, both here and in Virginia. They are diverse, but they are all wonderful. I love that no matter how different we are, we have no need for judgement or contention. I'm so blessed by the people who surround me, and so blessed to having a loving God who put them there.

9. I'm so grateful for my parents. I'm grateful for a mom, who taught me how to be a mother. A mom who loves and listens, a mom who works and sacrifices for our family. I'm grateful for a father who taught me how men act, who works to provide for his family, and who magnifies his priesthood and callings.

10.I'm grateful for music. I'm grateful that it can bring the spirit and glorify God. I love how it can convey emotions that words can't describe. I love that it  can make us move and dance. I love that it can bring peace, joy, and laughter into our lives.

It's my turn--

Over the past several months I've read any number of blog posts and counter blog posts on the issues of modesty, the priesthood, and other Mormon culture "hot topics." To be honest, there are very few that I agree with on either side of the issues. So here's the deal, I'm going to put in my two cents, not to say why someone else is wrong, not to wonder how people have the views they do (because I honestly don't know), but to be clear for myself and anyone who read this what I believe and why.

I generally hesitate to do this because I believe that everyone is entitled to their opinion, but in a recent conference address Dallin H Oaks discussed things we often put before God and one of those things was political correctness, so I am making a point not to be silent. My goal is not to offend, but to clearly and blatantly speak the feelings of my mind and my heard about these topics.

I believe in being modest…

Modesty is a concept I've been taught from a young age. My personal standards for modesty are laid out in For the Strength of Youth and in the BYU Honor Code. Personally, I have no feelings of need to debate the idea of modesty, the FSOY is abundantly clear about why we should be modest:

"Your body is sacred. Respect it and do not defile it in any way. Through your dress and appearance, you can show that you know how precious your body is. You can show that you are a disciple of Jesus Christ and that you love Him. Prophets of God have continually counseled His children to dress modestly. When you are well groomed and modestly dressed, you invite the companionship of the Spirit and you can be a good influence on others. Your dress and grooming influence the way you and others act."

I've read so many people say they are against  the culture modesty or modest dressing because it shows a lack of understanding of the beauty of the body. They say naked bodies are beautiful and Mormons just don't have an appreciation for them. I've heard phrases like, "My hemline doesn't define my self worth." Or the all too famous, "It's not my responsibility to dress modestly so that [men] can control their thoughts. They need to be accountable for those, not me." These are generally followed by some sort of declaration along the lines of "So don't judge me for dressing immodestly just be you don't have the understanding that I do."

Personally, I find all of these to be inadequate and flawed arguments and probably resulted from well meaning teachers who went about teaching modesty in the wrong way or from comments of well meaning members who don't always think about the implications of your comments, because if there's one thing we know it's that the members of the church are not perfect. The human body is beautiful. It's one of Heavenly Father's creation. You are never going to hear me argue against that. The fact that the body is beautiful doesn't change the fact that it is sacred. We don't post images of the ordinances that take place in the temple because they are sacred, why then it is okay for individuals to post nude images of their sacred vessel? I don't view nude images because  I don't want to view something God gave them sacred to them, similar to the idea that I likely wouldn't view their patriarchal blessing because it is sacred. 

The declaration of self worth is also not a reason for immodest dress. Saying my modesty is not defined by my hemline is still supporting the idea that there is in fact a correlation between individual worth and modesty, which is the flawed the idea that your worth is in fact controlled by you hemline is trying to expose. You wouldn't say that wearing a shorter hemline is evidence that you DO know your worth would you? We know that our individual worth is infinite in the eyes of God modest or not, so it is not support or justification for immodest dress.

Lastly, the issue of a man's ability to control his thoughts has nothing to do with the purpose of modest dress. I am greatly opposed to that idea because I support the idea that men and women are accountable for their thoughts. However, this fact is not a counter reason for modesty.  The sin in immodest dress is not from the tempting of men, but in the fact that we are commanded to dress modestly. I'll talk about that more in a second… We are asked to support and sustain our priesthood holders. Modesty is already a commandment separate from this. The reality is, our priesthood holders are continually working at controlling their thoughts because of the way the world at large is, but if we can lessen that temptation in any way, why wouldn't we want to make it that much easier for them? This is not why I dress modestly, but it is an extra blessing that comes from living the standards of modest dress.

But most importantly, none of them can negate the fact that we have been counseled and instructed by prophets and apostles of our Heavenly Father to dress modestly. They don't address the fact that modesty is not about hiding my curves from other individuals, modesty is not about how others will perceive me or guarding myself from their judgements, and modesty is not for the purpose of helping the men in my life maintain clean and virtuous thoughts (that's just an added benefit that I'm more than happy to support).

the reality...

My modesty is a personal choice, I was not brainwashed or guilted into it. My modesty is a physical sign of my willingness to follow my Heavenly Father's instructions in every capacity that I can, because to be honest, while it may not always be the most convenient thing in the world wearing a skirt that goes to my knees is also not the hardest thing in the word and if Heavenly Father wants me to, I'll put in that extra effort every single time.  My modesty is one more way for me to allow the spirit more fully into my life because the spirit comes to me in greater abundance when I am making every effort to live the standards of the gospel. 

If you have views different than those I've expressed, I am not going to tell you that you're wrong, I'm not going to tell you or even think that you're a sinner or judge you for the clothes that you choose to wear or not wear, but I will boldly declare that my modesty has nothing to do with you or your perception of modesty, and everything to do with me, my choices, and how I choose to live my faith.

My modestly is for me. My modesty is for my Heavenly Father. That's all there is to it.

The other issue I see brought up a lot is the Ordain Women Movement. I am not really going to address this, except to say two things. One, for multiple reasons I am in strong opposition to this movement, and if you want to know why, I will be more than happy to tell you in private discussion because my goal is not to change anyone's mind. For now I am satisfied to say that I know the priesthood is the power of God and that Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ are in control of our church. Two, if you are in anyway unsure about your opinion of this movement, do not leave your study to reading over the arguments for or agaist the movement posted by others, be educated yes, but base your study on the doctrines of the gospel. Make it a matter or personal study and prayer (and if you don't know where to start, I recommend that you listen this past general conference for some of that personal study, it was amazing, and I know it addressed the issues and concerns of my heart concerning these issues).

What I really want to address in relation to this movement is how we treat other members of the church with views different than ours. We are continually taught that we should love others and this DOES extent to members of our own church. We don't need to understand the views of others outside the church to love them as a child of God, and we don't need to understand the views of others inside the church to love them as a child of God. This goes both ways. 

During general conference I saw tweets that would say things like, "Did you hear that comment by [insert apostles name]? Take that Ordain Women." Or "I hope the Ordain Women Movement heard that. Time for them to repent." That is seriously uncalled for and inappropriate. 

What's the best way for Satan to destroy the efforts of the church to spread the gospel, bless the lives of others, and change the world? How about creating discord and anger within the ranks of the members? This is something both sides need to consider. The commandment to love one another applies to all of us. Just like forgiveness is independent to the repentance of the offender, our love is not to be conditioned upon the actions of others. We must have charity. 

It's okay that we don't always understand everything about one another.

We simply must understand the fundamental truth that we are children of God.

No misunderstanding, blogpost, or movement can change that.

Bucket of Success: Get a BoyCut and Rock It.

Hey all! Well, if you haven't been on here recently, you may have missed a very recent post about my bucket list goal, so check that out. Today, however, I am here to share a successful endeavor from one of the goals on that list, which in case you can't tell from this post title, was the "Get a Boy Cut and Rock It" goal.

To premise this, let me tell you a little bit about my hair. First, I am a blonde, with a lot of natural high and low lights. Second, my hair is fine, but I have a lot of it. Honestly, I have multiple heads worth of hair... And third, it grows super duper fast and super duper healthy. Seriously, I can go a year and a half without getting any split ends whatsoever if I'm not doing things that damage it frequently.

I do not say this to brag, (let's be honest, all I have nothing to do with the process), but simply to recognize, that I am extremely blessed with the hair that I have. I know it, and I recognize it. Because I know my hair is a blessing, I make a point to donate it to locks-of-love, when it gets long enough. I did this once in 5th grade, once my sophomore year, and most recently this last Wednesday. In the fifth grade, I barely had 10 inches, so I was left with a short bob. At this time I learned, that I really don't like short hair, at least not on myself. So the next time I donated, I had 16 inches to give, and my hair was shoulder length…

So I went from this..

 To this….

Which was (I thought) pretty drastic.

This time, I knew my hair was getting long, but I wanted it to grow out a little more, so I could have basically the same end length, but with just a little less of a donation. Then I heard about the BYU locks of love drive… and I thought, "That's a good cause, I guess I could deal with having shorter hair for a bit." Then I thought, forget that, "I'm getting a check off my bucket list!"

And thus, this is what we have.

The shortest my hair has been since I was about four years old. It actually looks a bit longer in this picture because of my bangs and the tilt 

If you told me even a week ago that this was going to happen, it's have said you were crazy...

but evidently, I am a little crazy...

So I got a boy cut, and there is has been and will continue to be, plenty of rocking it.

For I Know Heavenly Father Loves Me.

Please enjoy these songs as you read:

Heavenly Father loves you and is with you always.

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Today is the final day of the BYU 10-Day Challenge, and it has been quite a ride. I've really enjoyed the time I've taken to care about myself in so many different ways. By nature, I'm pretty hard on myself, so conciously making an effort to give myself a break, is a wonderful challenge to take part in.

Over the past several weeks I've done a lot of study in my patriarchal blessing and a lot of soul searching about my relationship with Heavenly Father, and because of this my relationship with myself. I think it's safe to say, that if you took the way I treat myself and applied it to another person, I would consider it an abusive relationship, which is wrong on so many levels, but yet it true for many of us. I've been working on this for awhile now, and this concentrated effort has really aided me in gaining and noticing my progress. I know that I have more to do, but I'm grateful for the progress that I've managed to make, and I know my Father is surely helping me along the way.

So today I'm going to do two things. One is share a message from James E Faust in his talk entitled, "What It Means to be a Daughter of God" from the Oct 1999 General Conference it is the story of a young piano player:

"His mother, wishing to encourage him, “bought tickets for a performance of the great Polish pianist, Paderewski. The night of the concert arrived and the mother and son found their seats near the front of the concert hall. While the mother visited with friends, the boy slipped quietly away.

“Suddenly, it was time for the performance to begin and a single spotlight cut through the darkness of the concert hall to illuminate the grand piano on stage. Only then did the audience notice the little boy on the bench, innocently picking out ‘Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star.’

“His mother gasped, but before she could move, Paderewski appeared on stage and quickly moved to the keyboard. He whispered to the boy, ‘Don’t quit. Keep playing.’ And then, leaning over, the master reached down with his left hand and began filling in the bass part. Soon his right arm reached around the other side, encircling the child, to add a running obbligato. Together, the old master and the young novice held the crowd mesmerized.

“In our lives, unpolished though we may be, it is the Master who surrounds us and whispers in our ear, time and time again, ‘Don’t quit. Keep playing.’ And as we do, He augments and supplements until a work of amazing beauty is created. He is right there with all of us, telling us over and over, ‘Keep playing.’”^{7 [Excerpt taken from a talk given by Ann Woodland, Idaho Falls.]}

^{Heavenly Father and our Savior Jesus Christ are certainly like the master piano player, making the most of our meager offerings.} 

^{The other is tell you some of the reasons why my Heavenly Father loves me, which is not something I'm entirely comfortable doing, but I am going to do anyway. This is not written with the intent of being prideful of boastful.}

1. He loves that I'm trying. He knows how much I'm failing, but He loves how much I'm am trying.
2. He loves that I can't get home from school without having at least a pocketful of trash. He loves that I will literally turn around and go back for litter that I noticed, but didn't pick up.
3. He loves that I get so emotionally invested in movies that I cry during them all the time. 
4. He loves that I will go to incredible lengths to make someone smile.
5. He loves that I love my family so much. So much that it almost hurts me to see pictures of my siblings, and that I can't help but show them off to anyone who is willing to listen. It literally warms, melts, and hurts my heart to look at my siblings when I'm away from them.
   
    Like seriously, just look at their eyes! You can see how wonderful they are just looking on them.
   
   
    This is a picture that Bella drew. When I talked to her about it she said, "I drew Ben the smallest! hahahahahaha!" What an adorable and special kid. I miss her a lot. Every. Single. Day.
   
   
   Here is just a small indication of how great my family is...
6. He loves that I will eat limes plain, but that I am not a huge fan of chocolate.
7. He loves that I get proud of myself when I manage to eat something spicy. How terrified I am of spicy food, but how I still eat it. Like the mango habenero wings I ate last night...
8. He loves the way I look at the world. How I recognize that all the beauties of the earth are evidences of His love… even if it's Hackberry Nipple Gall. 
   
   That song really is true. I know Heavenly Father loves me because of the beauty He has created and allows me to encounter on a daily basis. He is really just too kind, isn't He?
9. He loves how much I love to be outside. The fact that I stare of of windows in class, or how I will sit on a freezing bench to study because I love it so much that it's worth it.
10. He loves how when I'm not sure how I really feel or how to say what I really truly need to express, I start to think in lyrics and feel in song.

There are no pre-requisites for my Heavenly Father's love.

Before the Kick.

I have this bad habit of setting goals for myself, and either holding myself over or under accountable for my goals. I also have a habit of totally forgetting the goals that I set. So here's my attempt to unapologeticly (yes I made that work up) post my goals to the world. Some may seem amazing, some may seem stupid, but it's my list, so no one has to understand them but me. I like making lists and I like having them somewhere I can always see them for recall, so that's just that.


In other words, PRESENTING: My Bucket List.
This is preliminary, and it will grow.


Get a Hole in One
Have a Paint Fight
Color a Whole Coloring Book on a Sickday
Learn to Juggle
Own and drive a Motorcycle
Read all the Standard Works
Be Bilingual
Visit Every Continent [except Antarctica …i hate the cold]
Learn to make Pastries
Weigh 160 lbs or Less
Be able to Jump Serve
Be able to Dunk (Regulation Height Hoop)
Own an amazing Sweater Collection
Serve a Mission
Get a Boycut and Rock It
Own Neon Jeans and Rock Them
Understand Isaiah
Be a Published Author
Write a Song that Gets Played on the Radio
Be a Fluent Signer
Take an Award Winning Photo
Be a Paid Photographer
Set Foot in Every State
Go to Four Corners
Visit an Indian Reservation
Go to Australia
Visit a Real World Castle
Hike to the Top of a Mountain
Get my Splits
Make a Tie-Dye Dress
Read 100 books in One Year
Learn Massage Therapy Techniques
Have My Own Garden
Have a Chick Flick Kiss
Be able to do the Butterfly Stroke (Better)
Be on an Ultimate Frisbee Team
Befriend a Celebrity
Get 1,000 Followers on Twitter (@alyssajoybro)
Eat Only Food Made from Scratch for a Summer
Be Able to Kick a Field Goal
Be in a Movie
Run a Half Marathon
Know How to Wear Makeup
Hold a Monkey
Be Asked to a Formal Dance
Take an Ice Bath
Do a Polar Plunge
Mud Wrestle
Learn to Make Ice-Cream
Go Camping in the Mountains
Go to the Temple, Once a Week, for a Year
Adopt a Puppy
Touch a Hippo
Give $100 to Someone in Need

To be continued...

Maybe someday it will even be organized...

Recapturing Beauty: Day 3

Kay guys, so if you haven't heard BYU's Women's Services and Resources is doing a 10 Day challenge. The goal is to help us love  and accept our bodies. Today was day three and today's goal was to love your face, so the challenge was to not wear any makeup. I decided to also not pick at my face, because that's something I always have a problem with. I honestly didn't really have issues with this challenge at all.  Partly, that's because I don't usually wear much makeup to begin with, but also because I was determined to make peace with my face. When I looked at my face, I saw my blemishes, my pimples, my blackheads, and of course the huge dark bags under my eyes, but when I saw them, I knew that they weren't me, they were a part of me, but they weren't me.  

The picture on the top of this set, is a picture of me and my roommate, Andrea, before our other roommate, Susan's wedding. I was all sorts of dolled up, and I looked dang good. The picture on the bottom is of me today for the challenge. No makeup. No nothing. All my natural glory. 

And you know? I still look pretty dang good.

#recapturingbeauty

recapturingbeauty.byu.edu

Tender Mercies.

I am continually amazed by our Heavenly Father's capacity to love. As Thanksgiving approaches and we reflect on the things we are most grateful for, I cannot help but be overwhelmed by how frequently and perfectly our Heavenly Father blesses us. His blessings are individual because He knows us so perfectly. Elder Bednar describes tender mercies much better than I am:

As I reflected on my tender mercies for my family home evening lesson tonight two experiences came to mind that illustrated to me how much my Heavenly Father loves me just the way Elder Bednar describes. These experiences are vastly different, but both remind me that I have a loving Father in Heaven who mindful of me in all times, and in all things, and in all places.

He is always looking for ways to bless me.

First.
Last summer, I was driving home to pick up my sister, Callie, from Lexy's after an Oakton dance. It was around 1:30 in the morning when I was driving down a dark quiet residential road. As I drove up the road, I had the distinct thought that at this time of night a car would likely run the stop sign. At the idea of this, I moved my foot off the gas and over the break. Because my foot was there, when a car did come around the corner without stopping, I had enough time to stop before the car hit me. There is no way I had that thought on my own, it was a prompting of my Heavenly Father, and it is a tender mercy I am certainly grateful for.

Next. A Simpler, but No Less Significant Experience.
I love walking on campus and observing things that I've learned about in my classes on campus. I love seeing the beauty of the world that Heavenly Father created, and continually learning more about how it works. Today I was looking at a tree on the hill that leads to the cannon. While I was looking at the tree I stopped to pick up some trash under a bush. When I picked this up something caught my eye. It was a leaf with interesting bumps on it. I noticed another leaf with more bumps. I am always grateful for opportunities to learn, and I love to see God's creations in the Earth. It always makes me feel close to him and reminds me that His creations are evidences of His love for us as His children.

Sometimes tender mercies are large and obvious, other times the tender mercies of our Heavenly Father are things only we can understand. They are special to us because of who we are, and because he knows that they are tender mercies for us. We can choose to look at these things as consequences, or we can look at them as evidence of our Heavenly Father's love. When we choose to open our eyes to it, the evidence of our Heavenly Father's love is overwhelming. You are a child of God who loves you, and He is continually looking for ways to bless you. 

I can do hard things.

Today I realized that sometimes I'm good at things without realizing it. I also realized that sometimes I am not so good at things, but I force myself to do them and that's okay too.

I was really excited today when I realized that I could double minor really really really easily. Like for my management minor I only need to take 3 or 4 extra classes and I tested out of math, so now it's 2 or 3. Or how I have 10 hours of credit towards my environmental science major, and then I'll have more after this semester is through. Did I mention it's a 17 credit hour minor? Oh, or did I mention that other than one credit hour, the classes I need are required for my major anyway? Booyah. Seriously guys, I've wanted to look into that for awhile, but I was so nervous that it would just overwhelm me. Then I had the courage to even try and I found out that I've already done half the work. I will take it. Seriously blessed.  I really need to email my calc teacher and thank her and ask her how her new baby is doing.

Today I also forced myself to do something terrifying. I asked a boy in my ward to the Sadie Hawkin's dance coming up. He's cute and really sweet, so I don't know why I was nervous but I totally was. Ehh, that statement will probably have people making this into a big deal, but to be honest (which is scary), I just hate feeling vulnerable. I made myself do it though and now I have a super fun date lined up in November, so holla at yah girl.

Also, I'm really liking things out here. I really am.
I like who I am out here.
I like being in charge of myself.
I like that I am not always perfect and that I'm not so busy all the time that I can just ignore all my feelings like I did all through High School.

At first I thought I hated that about being out here, but I know it's a really good thing.
...even if it's also a hard thing.


So yeah. got a little serious on you at the end didn't I? weird...

abrupt ending.

Goal Digger.

Today was a great day, as most of my days are. ...perhaps I should explain that comment because it sounds a little cocky. I never ever ever ever go to bed feeling like I had a truly bad day. It's a wonderful thing. Here's the thing... I am blessed in my life, yearly, monthly, weekly, daily, hourly, and down to each minute and second. Sometimes lame things happen, but I remind myself that one lame event should not define my day, just as I wouldn't want one mistake to define the person I am. When I feel sad about how one of my days has gone, I take the time to attempt to recognize all the good things that happened to me. I say attempt because I fully accept and recognize that no matter how hard I try, I will never be able to notice all the things that go right that could go wrong or all the silent acts of service in my life. I let the happy moments outweigh the unhappy moments in my mind, because we all know that good is more powerful than bad. In reality, the only power bad/evil things have is the power we give them as we dwell on them. The reality is that the love my Heavenly Father has for me is real, and if I'm willing to open my eyes to seek for it, the evidence is overwhelming. So when I say I don't have bad days, I mean it. I have bad moments and bad hours, but I never go to bed having a bad day. I have too much to be grateful for for that kind of nonsense to be true.

Today was a good day, as most of my days are. I woke up and got ready for the day. I checked Facebook and saw a picture that my four year old sister drew of my family. I took a picture of it and made it my phone home screen. I walked to the south side of campus to wait for the landscape management activity meet-up to happen. I was way earlier than I intended to be (a blessing in disguise), so I called my mom's phone. My intention was to talk to my little sister about the picture she drew, but my little brother answered the phone. I literally haven't gotten to talk to this kid since I left for school... mostly because he's a punk... we'll just say it's because he's really busy. That was pretty sweet.

I got to go to the Gaumer Residence with the Landscape Management Club, where we winterized the property. It was fun, hard, gratifying work, and I can honestly say, I put my effort in it. I am exhausted, but it was definitely worthwhile.

During the drive home I got to talk to a friend and look at all the beautiful trees as we drove through the mountains. It reminded me of home a bit, but with this whole other side to it because (to be honest) Virginia has no real mountains!
Sidenote: Today Jade was talking about the Appalachian mountains, but he called them something like "ab-la-shawn" or "abba-lay-chain" or something, I have no idea what he said, but my first thought was "I thought the only mountains in the East were the Appalachian Mountains...." Then I realized that was what he meant. Too funny.

Now I am home and clean, with tan lines on my feet from the shoes I was wearing. It was a great day and I feel motivated to have more great days.

This is my "19 Things to Do Before I Am 19" List. I started it October 1st, and am committed to finishing it.

-Write and record an original song

-Read the Book of Mormon

-Try a new recipe at least once every two weeks

-See the temple lights in Salt Lake and visit at least 4 temples in Utah

-Read through all of Preach My Gospel

-Plan and carry out a new workout program

-Reread and Study each of the talks from Oct 2013e

-Crochet a scarf for each HE member

-Do something to serve someone else everyday (begin 10/1)

-Begin Blogging on a regular basis.

-Increase my photography profile.

-Get a job

-Be able to run 3 miles without stopping

-Meet with school counselors

-learn to make tortillas.

-begin journaling

-patriarchal blessing personal study

-Complete the BYU Tree Tour

-Write all the the Elders/Sister I know on missions

And yes, I am writing this post because I realized I am supposed to start blogging more... (;

United We Stand.

As a Northern Virginian here in Utah, it's interesting to see the way that a government shutdown affects our country.  Here, I mostly hear about the shutdown in general conversation and when we talk about different parks being closed in my classes. Although the shutdown affects many lives and families here, I feel as though it is nothing compared to how pressing the issue is when I am at home. I remember when it happened in High School and a number of my friend's parents were out of work. That's not as evident here in a university setting, the way it is at home when surrounded by government employed families.

Since the shutdown, I have read any number of statuses, tweets, comments, and memes about the shutdown. All with a negative tone. Some blame the system, some blame the congressmen, and some blame the opposite party. None are productive, none are inspiring, and none are eliciting a change in what's going on.

Recently I've pondered on what I can do to make a difference. I'm just an 18 year old girl after all. A first year student at Brigham Young University thousands of miles from a home I love, a home that is hurting. I'm not a political activist. I don't claim to know what the best solution for our country is, and I would never desire to be the person who has to make that call. However, there are some things that I do know and that I've come to realize even more as I've reflected on our circumstance:

First is that I am proud to be an American. I commented that I felt my home in Virginia was hurting, but in reality, this country is my home and we as an American family are going through a hard time. I don't always love the things we as a country do or agree with the course we take, but I am proud to be here. I am grateful for this land and the freedoms it offers me. I am grateful for the precepts our great nation was founded on, and though I have long since accepted that we are not perfect, I will never stop believing that we can grow together.

Second, I have the knowledge that there is a God who knows and loves each of us individually. I also believe that He knows us as a country, and most significantly, I believe that He hears our prayers and answers my (and your) prayers.

Thus, I concluded that the best thing I can do for my country is pray to my Father and ask for His loving hand to guide and intervene. I am but one individual on this earth, but I have faith that even my most quiet prayers count for good when I am sincere. It's such a simple act, but I owe it to this country that has given me so much, to not complain, but to do my part, however small, so that's what I've been doing.

Today I felt a great call to action to do more for my country. I felt it as I read the status of a friend from Virginia, about her concerns as her father has been out of work for over a week. Her concerns about how her family will make ends meet when all he can find are minimum wage jobs. I felt the same call as I read through each of the comments posted by her friends and acquaintances in similar situations. These individuals who themselves or whose loved ones have served their country through government employment and are now left in a lurch, their lives are on hold, and they are fighting to stay afloat.

As I read their comments my heart hurt for them. We are all part of the American Family and this is only a fraction of the members of my family and your family that are hurting.

I've realized there is more that can be done, but I can't do it alone.

The reality is, the answer hasn't really changed in my eyes. The most helpful thing that I can find for myself to do is pray. Pray when I awake, pray at each meal, pray in quiet moments, and pray before I go to bed at night. Pray for this country. To pray not for a political party or for things to work out the way that I want them to, but to pray to our Father in Heaven that things will change, that we can work together and really say "United We Stand," the way claim to live. We can pray that our elected leaders will be able to work together, that their hearts will be softened to compromise, that they might be able to come to a solution that will benefit our country, and we can humbly trust that God will lead us to where we need to go.

So now I am doing my part by asking. First I pray and ask God for help, and now I ask each of you "Will you pray with me?" It doesn't matter to me what your belief system is. I endorse our right to freedom of religion and encourage each to worship God as they choose. Thus, I invite all of you, whether you be Muslim, Jewish, Baptist, Protestant, Agnostic, Mormon, Lutheran, Catholic, Presbyterian, Sikh,  Christian, or anything else, to knee down and pray to your God. Pray to him even if your don't know that He is listening (though I can promise you He is). Ask Him to help His children. Ask Him to help our American Family. Ask Him to guide us in the right way, and don't tell Him what way that is. Just ask Him and take a chance in believing that He will answer.

How powerful would it be if all of us, regardless of faith, were to join together in prayer?

We are all different. We have different skin colors. We have different hair colors. We have different incomes. We have different educations. We have different backgrounds. We have different trials. We have different hardships. We are all different, but we can choose to be as one. We can be one family. We live together. We work together. We play together. We learn together. We stand together. Now let us pray together. For together we are stronger than we could ever be on our own.

United We Stand. United We Pray.

How the Bug Bites!

Well this has been a pretty flipping fabulous weekend. 

Fun and fabulous friends, fun and fabulous!

Friday Night- Friday the 13th didn't ruin my night. I had a blind date that night, and it wasn't with Freddy Krueger, so I can't complain! haha I went with a boy named Jacob Aaron Michael. Yep, went full name on that business. He's a pretty cool guy, goes to BYU, RM from Tonga, you know, the works. We had a good time talking together, but honestly the date was just set up really well! Karissa in our ward got about 12 couples together for games and a bonfire. The games were ridiculous and fun, they all had code names, so we had no idea what we were getting ourselves into, but to give you all an idea, we made human pyramids, dropped Mentos in Coke bottles, and wrapped our dates in cling wrap to play human bowling. Then we had a whole array of foods to roast on the bonfire from Corndogs, to Starburst, to pineapple. It was super fun! On the way home we went up to Squaw Peak to see the Provo City Lights from up in the mountain. We didn't stay very long because on a Friday night it is a total make-out spot. The lights were gorgeous. 

Saturday- I woke up early in the morning, walked to campus, and then made my way to the Mt. Timpanogos temple for a service project with the Landscape Management Club. We had worked on the tree rings shaping and weeding. It was quite fun and I got to know a lot of people better. I rode up with Melvin, Ron, and Ben. Melvin and Ron are both in a few of my classes and Ben is my TA for Living with Plants. We had a great time and then got Subway after #Subtember. :D

That night we went to a stake activity. Ben and I went at 6 and gave our friend Eric, who is also from Virginia(!), a ride! We played Swedish Twister (which I apparently was really good at). Some major hand holding went down there... of course, it was to keep our balance so we wouldn't lose. Then, we had a sidewalk chalk drawing contest. We got 2nd place and a big bin of Redvines, but definitely deserved first. The other one only won because it had a temple... just saying.

After the contest was a soduku race. Then we all got to eat J-Dawgs for dinner. For all you East Coasters J-Dawgs is a pretty big deal here, and I have to say, I was skeptical, but it was pretty good. I don't know I'll ever make that much hype over it, but it was pretty yummy. THEN WAS THE DANCE PARTY. I for real still got it. We had way to much fun breaking it down with other members of our ward and stake. I totally rapped for some of the songs and we did all sorts of craziness (including but not limited to interpretive dancing). A few members of the ward came up to me and told me that Ben and I are pretty much the best, so that was fun. Then we came home and I watched Starsky and Hutch with his roomates.

Sunday (Whatta Funday)- Today was our stake conference, which was BEYOND incredible. Let's just say that some exciting things are happening here as far as missionary work, not to mention just the incredible spirit that was present in the meeting. I also got a calling from my bishop, can't tell you what that is until I get sustained, but I am definitely looking forward to it! After church we came home and watched football/had scripture study. Now I'm watching Toy Story with Ben and Jose (who by the way, made me two salads today and homemade pizza). Too great. :D

Hope you all also had a swell weekend! Tell me how it went! :D

Proud to be a Cougar!

So I've survived my first monday of my Freshman Year at BYU! :D

I enjoy all of my classes (so far), and I am beyond grateful to be here at this time. I know with such surety that this is the place where I belong. I am so grateful everyday to be where I am. So here's the updates of how life is kickin'.

Apartment 17:
I really like my apartment and all my roomates. They are all super sweet! My actual roomate is Andrea. She is adorable, and we get along pretty swell. She makes me laugh constantly, and we have to do homework away from each other or we'll end up just having fun instead. She gets along great with Ben (who she has dubbed Ben Franklin) too, so we are quite often the three musketeers over here! This weekend I went up to Farmington with her to meet her family (and eat a yummy home-cooked dinner). She told me that later when her mom called her, she commented that we could be sisters, and we could. This is after one week people. Thus, no matter what happens, this year will be great because we will be rocking it. Another of my roomates, Julia, is a really cool RM from the Philippines. She is down to earth, easy to talk to, and a fun person to be around. Lauren is a sweet girl, I don'r see her very often, but when I do get to talk to her she is friendly and fun. Last is Susan. Susan is a seriously adorable Argentinian girl. She got engaged last weekend, so we wont be roomates for long, but we are all already having fun planning her wedding. I am going to miss this chick, but I really think that she's pretty great. She makes me feel super loved and she and her boyfriend  fiance made us delicious cinnamon french toast. Fabulous. Fun facts: our apartment loves to watch movies, Andrea can't cook and thinks I'm a saint when I make her quesadillas, also, she tells me that I'm nice when I help her eat her food.

Apartment 25:
This is Ben's apartment. I also spend a lot of time here doing one of the following activities: watching football, eating, doing homework, watching boys play football on XBox while watching football, making food, heckling Ben's roomates, sitting around doing nothing, eating, sucking at video games,  and watching football. Needless to say, I really like watching football hanging out with Ben in his apartment. Also, all of my girl friends that I bring here say it is too much of a boys apartment here. I can see where they would say that considering the TV that's too large for the entertainment system that is now propped on cinderblocks, the HD monitor with a great sound system Ben has hooked up, and the fact that the central focal point of the room is the XBox. Their kitchen/cooking is such a joke; I love it.

258th Ward:

I really like our ward. Everyone is super friendly and inviting. It will be interesting to see how everything develops, but for now I am enjoying it quite a bit. Our first break the fast we went $40 over budget. I love my Relief Society President. She made me laugh when she made her "keep your ears shucked joke." Confession: I did skip FHE tonight because I was having too much fun watching football and doing homework (yes I'm a nerd). I also didn't want to go by myself. So yeah. But I do like out ward.

The Class Schedule:

Monday/Wednesdays/Fridays:
Residential Landscape Design- I love love love this class, especially now that we've started working on designs. I have Dr Allen, with Zak as my TA and I met both of them at Orientation, so I felt right at home as soon as I got to class. I can't explain to you why I enjoy drawing tree symbols and practicing lettering so much, but I really do. I seriously love it and it reconfirms to me all the time that I made the right choice in my major.
Living With Plants- This is my Plant Biology course. It is definitely not as fun, but we have a good teacher with excellent systems in place. It's plenty of work, but the structure makes it so that I really don't even mind. My teacher spent a lot of his life working with tomatoes, so they come up in class a lot, and he wears ties with tomatoes and other veggies on them frequently. I find it amusing. I really like the exercise we do each class where he gives us a picture of a crazy looking plant and we have to guess why it developed the way it did. Way fun.
Book Of Mormon (M/W Only)- Honestly, there is a HUGE part of me that wishes I had this class every single day. Today we basically spent a whole class talking about 1 Nephi 1:4. You go look up that verse and tell me things about it for an hour. My teacher is incredible and loving. You can tell that he really cares about our spiritual growth and isn't here to make our life hard. I feel like just today my testimony grew so much  and I was learning things I'd never heard before. I am seriously already looking forward to having class again on Wednesday. Today we had a 300 word mini essay due and mine was 759 words without even trying. I actually stopped myself before I made it ridiculously long.
Intro to Landscape Management (F Only)- This is a class to introduce our major to us. I've only been once, but it seems like a chill enough class. I really like our textbook, we haven't been assigned to read any of it, but I'm pretty far into it. haha Since I don't know much about it, I'll write about my major. I really love my program and I've gotten to meet so many people in it already. ...Of course I keep becoming friends with people and then realizing they're married. Not that that's a bad thing, I just forget all the time that that's how BYU is..  Seriously, there's a lot of people I've met who are married. It doesn't actually freak me out, but yeah, it actually does.
Tuesday/Thursdays-
Beginner Volleyball- Well, there isn't much to say about this one! I love volleyball and I'm hoping to get better at it. I'm really irritated with how inconsistent my serves are, but most of my passes and sets are alright. The only time they're bad is when someone gives me a bad pass and I'm just trying to keep it from going out. Our time does a pretty good job though and I'm sure that we are going to keep getting better as the semester goes on.
American Sign Language- I really enjoy this class, even though it's the only one that stresses me out a tad bit. I think the only reason it stresses me out is because it's an evening class and it always seems to interfere with Landscape Management activities I'm supposed to try to attend. I love the way that our class is run. Our teacher never talks, ever, and we aren't allowed to either. We figure out what signs mean, which is awesome because then I actually remember them. The only problem is that I am awful at names and we practice asking people "Is your name (Blank)?" to practice fingerspelling names every class so far. I think it's going to be great though. I'm glad I signed up to for it and I'm hoping to keep getting better.

The Football!
BYU's game against UVA is not something I'm going to want to talk about for a long long long time, but the game against Texas was so flipping fabulous! Did you watch it? Because we balled so flipping hard. Also, Ben and I rocked the system, found out about the storm and delay from inside Ben's apartment, didn't wait in line at all, and got fabulous seats (not to mention that we stayed pretty much dry throughout the game)! I had an awesome time, and the fact that I got to watch with Lauren (MY FAVORITE) made it even better! I screamed myself hoarse, and the win was so victorious that I didn't even mind staying until 2am for stadium clean-up.

Well Hey Stranger

It's been awhile since I updated my blog.
Sorry about that, I'm not even going to make an excuse..

Here's some fun things that have happened this summer:

 I Graduated from High School and Seminary! #BallSoHard 

 Celebrated the Fourth by walking in the parade! #MeAndDaddy

The finish line of my second Trek. It was beyond fab.

Someday I'll get the pictures off my camera and update on the rest of summer, which was, fabulous, to say the least. 
And in a few days I'll be on my way to BYU.
Hopefully, I can get more consistent about blogging.
....Not That Anyone Reads This. lol

I haven't been on a computer in weeks.

I really haven't and I hate posting from my iPod.

Day 17: your idol and why you look up to them

Jesus Christ. He is the perfect example of unconditional love. For a greater understanding of why I love him, find my post on him on TeamAllForAll.Blogspot.com

Day 18: why you made your blog, why you still have it

I made my blog because I like to write and express myself. Writing is theraputic and words are beautiful and I think seeing something all written out reagardless of what it actually says can be art.

Day 19: your thoughts on your family

My family is so flipping cool. We are all hilarious and awesome. I feel like if people hung out with us when we're just being ourselves they would either love us or think we are insane. My family makes me crazy, but that's to be expected. I was born into my family for a reason. We are going to be together forever. My family is glorious, and better than yours. haha (:

Day 20: what you think makes someone beautiful

I mean, I think people are beautiful for their looks like anyone would, but once I start to really get to know someone and see them on the inside they can either become a million times more attractive or be ruined. I have a friend who I thought was absolutely gorgeous, but then started to do really unattractive things and got focused on the wrong things and he became way unattractive to me because I didn't agree with the way he was acting or things he was doing.

Day 21: everything you wish for in a significant other

...this will take too long, but hows this:
I want someone who knows and understand the importance of the gospel.
I want someone who will cuddle with me.
I want someone who I can have fun with doing absolutely nothing.
I want someone who will let me be wrong with grace.
I want someone who helps me feel beautiful when I forget.
I want someone who will sing to me even if he thinks he sucks.
I want someone who I can be utterly vulnerable, but totally safe with.

Those are just a few key points.

Day 22: how you judge intelligence

I actually try not to do this. I used to, then I realized that it's not my place at all. Everyone has different strength and weaknesses. When others judge intelligence it really bothers me now.

"Everyone is genius, but if you judge a fish by it's ability to climb a tree it will live it's whole life thinking it's stupid." -Albert Einstien.

Day 23: a month/year of your life when you were happiest and why

Umm, how about we just say summer in general. I spend summer doing things I love with people that I love. The weather is always wonderful even if it's too hot. I just feel like I'm more of myself in the summertime, I really do.

Day 24: your favorite 10 people right now and why

this is not in order of favoriteness:
-Lauren-She is the best listener that I know.
-Ben-because he is my best friend.
-Clarky-because our shifts together are the best.
-Lexy-because she is my favorite.
-Bowen-because we are going to travel the world together.
-Leland-because he came late to class the other day so he could finish a poke'mon battle.
-Shawty-because he favorites all my tweets. (:
-Jesus-there's this thing called the New Testament, it has a fraction of the reasons.
-Whoever intvented blankets-because they made blankets.
-Sharon Baucom-because I love working out.

I gave everyone one radnom reason, and I am seriously not going to do this. It would take years.
I am far too lazy, and no one wants to know.

Day 25: a friend you have lost that you’re better off without/one you want back

I won't say his name, but there's this kid who was one of my best friends. He was always there for my and we had the most incredible fun together. Than he changed and I decided I couldn't keep being his friend, because it hurt too much to be with who he had become when I had all the memories of who he was. When he changed I lost a friend, and I am hoping that he'll come home soon.

Day 26: 5 things you’re looking forward to

SUMMER SUMMER SUMMER SUMMER SUMMER SUMMER SUMMER SUMMER
Graduation
Beach Week
Trek
Working at Waterworks
Being Tan
Brown Family Beach Week
Driving Cross Country with my brother
College

Day 27: a person you wished lived closer and why

This is too flipping easy. I wish Bowen lived closer, for about a million reasons.
Here's a couple:
-we both suck at talking on the phone.
-we could lie on my back deck and look at the stars together.
-I would go to his house and watch Duck Dynasty.
-He wouldn't have to be in Texas with a bunch of hosers.

Day 28: something that makes you really angry

It makes me angry when people stop caring.

Day 29: a date you’d love for someone to take you on

I want to go on an adventure. Like we just choose somewhere to go and go. We spend the day together doing nothing and everything.

I also want to go to the zoo.

I also want to go to an amusement park.

Day 30: 5 favorite girls names, 5 favorite boys names

Boys:
Andrew
James
Mason
Levi
Carter

Girls:
Raliegh
Chersti
Autumn
Peyton
Kennedy

I honestly don't have favorites though, I just like these.

Day 31: a bit about your social life

What social life?

Day 32: whether you’d rather marry someone who’s rich but ugly, or poor but attractive

Neither of these are deal breakers to me. Anyone is attractive when you love them, and money doesn't matter. If they're ugly to me because they have an ugly personality, then I'd rather have someone poor. If they're attractive to me it means I love them to some extent.

Us, Trust, a couple things I can't spell without you.

Day 16: someone you trust

I like to think that I'm a pretty trusting person, but I know that in reality, that's not true. I have a pretty hard time really trusting people, I'm not sure why. I do my best though. I read a quote about how it's it's important to give people the benefit of the doubt, and I believe that people deserve a chance, a second chance, and even a third chance. However, there is one person that I can rely on through and through, in every circumstance, I know that He stands with me, and that person is my Savior. He gives me peace and comfort in my life, and I just decided instead of writing about Him here, I will do so on our new sibling devotional blog: http://teamallforall.blogspot.com/. #CheckItOut

Oh Dear...

So evidentally, I didn't make it online to blog each week.
I'm just going to take accountability and admit that it wasn't a priority while I was working every day.

So here is my: Super-Awesome-Lengthy-Week-Catch-Up Post!

Day 7: a show or a movie that has changed you, and how

Never Say Never. The Justin Bieber movie. Watching this movie allowed me to respect Justin Beiber as a musician. Previously he was a suject of heavy joking in our house and then we began to see his music as something more. This is such a lame response, but it did make me realize that I am often too quick to judge and everything else aside, people deserve to be respected for the fact that they are people, celebrities included.

Day 8: things that make you sad

It makes me sad when people make wrong choices, when my sister won't give me a hug, when I see people crying, when I see people give up or stop caring, when my brother says he hates me, when I have to leave a place or person I love, and when the state of the world wears heavy on my heart.

Day 9: things that make you happy

This is a never ending list:
music, singing, ukulele playing, learning new things, saying hello to strangers, when people laugh at my jokes, when I laugh harder than anyone else at my jokes, when I make someone smile, random texts, getting a needed paycheck, doing well at in-service, reuniting with friends, taking photographs, making memories, riding roller coasters, eating frosted flakes, late nights at taco bell, working out, making a three pointer, working somewhere that I love my co-workers, saying "Hey Jon Geronimo!" really loud at work, making people think i'm ridiculous, learning to love someone I used to dislike, making patrons happy, helping others, being asked to coach practices, watching funny youtube videos, listening to One Direction, going new places, looking through old photographs, jamming while I drive, harmonizing, doing nice things for others, baking, cooking a yummy dinner, when Kendall tells me I'm a thug, seeing how beautiful the world is,  dancing, bending over backwards, and the fact that this list would never end I I decided to keep going. I am so blessed.

Day 10: what you think when you hear the words “be yourself”

"Be Your[BEST]self."

Day 11: the worst advice you’ve ever heard, or ever been given

"You never know until you try it."

Day 12: the best advice you’ve ever heard, or ever been given

Faith and fear cannot coexist in the same heart. Which are you letting rule your life?

Day 13: your favorite quote

"I am the master of my fate, I am the captain of my soul."

Day 14: write about something you believe in, anything at all
Day 15: a song that makes you cry and why
Lots of songs make me cry, but none make me cry every single time I hear or sing them.
One song that makes me cry sometimes is "I Stand All Amazed" another is "Lord of the Small." Both of these songs illustrate the incredible and overwhelming love that our Savior Jesus Christ has for us, his children. Knowing that someone loves me so perfectly without condition makes me cry because it is a such a wonderful truth to hold.

You can Change.

One thing I'd like to change about myself. Day: whatever day I'm on.

Here's the thing. I'm not going to sit here and type a post about how I accept the person that I am and that I love me and wouldn't change a thing about myself. That's a load of crap. I do love myself, and I love the person that I've grown to be, but I'll never say I don't want anything to change. Even if I like life how it's there's always more I could do to be a better version of myself. The struggle to the top is what makes a height reached the greatest.

So here are some things I want to work on:
-Judging Others Less.
-Being More Patient.
-Not Jumping To Conclusions.
-Stop procrastinating.


On a totally seperate note, today was All-District, my last honors choir! It was an awesome preformance. I love music so much you guys. It's the best ever. #JustKeepSinging

Be the Change.

Day 5: something you would change about the world

I just wish that for a day we couldn't ignore all the blessings that surround us. I guess that would be hard because we wouldn't be able to do anything, all we would see are the blessings we have. If we could all stop comparing ourselves to each other for 5 minutes and look at how incredible our lives are, things would be so different. The fact that this world exists is miraculous to me. The facts that we have lungs to breathe and a heart that beats is evidence to me of a Heavenly Father who loves His children very much. Look at the world around you. There is beauty everywhere and it's all for us. That is so incredible to me. Have you ever noticed that we even complain about our blessings? "Ugh, my phone battery is low." You are able to contact friends and family worldwide in an instant. If we could all take a day and recognize blessings instead of complaining about them, we would start to see how wonderful our lives are and want to share the joy of life with others. If we appreciate the people in our lives it's a little easier to overlook their faults and love them for their potential. Life is always good not matter how bad it gets. We just have to choose to see the good in it.