A Gathering Of Societal Members Who Provide Relief in A Religious Sort of Way

(pasted from http://www.ldschurchnews.com/media/photos/2012/60493-m.jpg)

Yesterday was the LDS General Relief Society Meeting!  It. Was. Phenomenal.  My lovely presidency and I got tickets to actually go to the conference center!  (Squee!!) So, at 3:30 we piled in my counselor's car and started our journey up to Salt Lake, which is only about an hour drive.  But it was quite the adventure ...

So we're cruising along down the interstate, and we're about 15 minutes away from Salt Lake, when our driver all of a sudden gets a nose bleed.  We then cross four lanes of traffic to stop at a McDonald's in South Jordan and try to get it to stop.  It took us 45 minutes ... 

Then we were off again still thinking we would be just fine on time, as it was 5 pm when we left the McDonald's which is, again, only 15 minutes away from Salt Lake and the broadcast didn't start until 6.  Only ... there were TWO accidents on the interstate.  TWO!  (We checked on the way back; it took us half an hour to go what should have taken us two minutes)  

By the time we had pulled in to Salt Lake and found our parking spot, it was 5:56 pm.  We started booking it for the conference center.  We got there and had to stand in line for probably about 5 minutes and then we were finally in!  By the time we found seats and got to actually sit down, it was 6:20 pm.  And it was an amazing meeting.  Just phenomenal.

Those ladies who were called and sustained at the last general conference to be our general relief society presidency?  They're inspiring, outstanding, and just grand.  

If you didn't get the opportunity to watch the broadcast, I strongly encourage you to do so.
Click here to watch the broadcast.

Oh yeah, another funny story.  There were these ladies standing on the corners of the crosswalk right across from the conference center handing out tissues.  They looked super nice and had name tags on, so we each grabbed a package of tissues.  I thought it was so nice and super sweet, and wondered if they did this for every conference.  I was so impressed, I took a picture of it:

Once we were in the doors, about to have our bags checked, we learn that they were not full of tissues as one would have supposed.  They were full of Anti-LDS literature.  These ladies had taken time to unwrap thousands of tissue packages and alternate the tissues with hateful and inappropriate words, re-wrap the packages, and then seal them with a ribbon and hand them to the thousands of women journeying to hear the words of our beloved presidency and prophet.  

I was so amazed that someone, anyone, would take so much time and effort to attempt to destroy a woman's faith in her religion!  I am still shocked that people go through such great efforts to try and tear down what you know to be true.  While members of the LDS faith do proselyte and send missionaries out, we do not attack any one's religion or beliefs.  If you believe something different than I do, then I respect your views; I don't try to prove them wrong.  I might try to teach you what my religion is all about, but I will not disrespect your religion nor will I tell you that you are wrong and I'm right.  You have the freedom to believe whatever you want; I think all men should be allowed that same privilege.  America was founded on the concept of freedom, particularly that of religion.  Why should LDS members be denied that privilege?

I know that the gospel is true and I will not be moved from it.  I will stand true to the faith that my parents, grandparents, and ancestors have cherished and suffered for.  I know it's true and whether you think it is or isn't doesn't change what I know.

Update

So ... I haven't updated for quite a while ... I apologize.

Just to let you know, I am alive.

School has started again and this is the hardest and busiest semester ever.

The end.

Mall Rats

Mall Rat: A person who spends more time in the mall than they can afford; may be subject to multiple nights in which the mall closes whilst they are still shopping; in most cases, mall trips occur on subsequent days

(Mall dates: Saturday (7th), Thursday (12th), Friday (13th), Saturday (14th))

(Mall companion: Lyz (and Camille and Lizy, but mostly Lyz))

(Mall spoils: 3 new dresses, 2 new skirts, 4 new tank tops, 3 new blouses, 2 new cardigans, 3 new pairs of pants, 1 new pair of heels, 1 See's Butterscotch Lollipop)

Complete with tiaras

Claire's has these hilarious glasses with mustaches and noses attached to them ... so we HAD to try them on!! 

After getting all dressed up, we went to Spark in downtown Provo.  SUPER chic!

Independence Day- Free Style

(Sorry they're a little late ... better late than never!)

Ironic that we should have a Smokey the Bear balloon ... 

Balloon Fest

Old Glory

Coke Balloon- definitely American ;]

Not sure what Belle has to do with independence day ... but I love her!

Yay Marching Band!

Drum Line! (True brethren)

BYU Float!

Llama Fest is this Saturday!

My favorite float of the entire parade- barbershop quartet singing "Meet Me in St. Louis"

The Jetsons! (You know, little kids can make you feel really old sometimes ...)

The winning float

How cool is Utah1?!  We have an old time fiddlers association :]

Rise and Shout the Cougars Are Out!

Dunk Team

My Asian roommate kind of laughed hysterically at this ... kind of ...

Tom and Jerry!  True American Classic right there

And yay for more band and gaurd

Oh, the Wells Fargo wagon is a-comin' down the street ... 

Not only do we have an Old Time Fiddler's Association- we also have pipe bands that wear kilts :D

A Wee Sort Of Post

You ever been so busy that you forgot to do things?  Or so busy that you wish you didn't have to take time to eat?  Or so busy that you can't wait for the vacation that's not coming?

Yeah, me neither ...

but if I was that busy, I would definitely forget important things like my blog ... laundry ... getting shifts covered ... having a social life ...

So, I should probably get back to not being busy ...

But what would a blog post be without a picture and a quote?!  So here they are:

"Everything in this room is eatable.  Even I'm eatable.  But that, my children is called cannibalism and is indeed frowned upon in most societies." (Willy Wonka; Charlie and the Chocolate Factory)

Except the society of crocs ...

(taken from George Takei's pinterest)

Impossible Feats

Something we discussed with our students during NSO was the definition of "impossible."  What does it mean if something is impossible?  Here are my thoughts:

1) I like to quote Audrey Hepburn on this one and say that first off, nothing is impossible.  Even the word says "I'M POSSIBLE."
2) 100 years ago, there were several things that were impossible that we know are entirely possible today.  Traveling to the moon, communicating with anyone no matter you are, internet, even the technological advances made on automobiles.  My favorite example of this: Jules Verne.  When he wrote 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, none of what he recorded was possible.  Today, we have lost the luster and magic of Verne's publication because it is entirely possible and no one gives it a second thought (well, maybe a second or third thought for the giant squid ...).
3) To me, impossible means that no one has done it yet.  No one has tried hard enough yet.  No one has been committed enough to accomplish their goals yet.  If you really want to do something, the fact that no one has done it before isn't going to stop you.  The fact that there will be naysayers and people who tell you it's impossible should never stop you from achieving your wildest dreams.

Some "Impossible" Feats Throughout History:
- September 3, 1783: The Americans defeated the British in the Revolutionary War
- 1870: Siegfried Marcus propels the first "car" by means of gasoline
- March 10, 1876: Alexander Graham Bell completes the first clear telephone call
- December 17, 1903: The Wright Brothers powered and sustained human flight
- December 21, 1906: Reginald Fessenden completes the first audio radio broadcast
- July 21, 1969: Neil Armstrong was the first man on the moon
- April 3, 1973: Martin Cooper makes the first call on a handheld mobile phone
- 1982: The concept of "the internet" was introduced

Who's to say what's impossible and who's to say you can't do it?  As far as I'm concerned, when there's a true, determined, persevering, and undeterred will, there is always a way.  Find that way.  Find the way to do what's never been done.

The Teacher Learns More and Other Service Stories

This weekend was probably the best weekend since coming back to Provo.  (I challenge someone to try to top it.)  I volunteered a few months ago to be a Y-Group leader for Summer New Student Orientation (NSO).  This past weekend, I put on my blinding yellow T-shirt and walked over to campus to meet the 20 freshmen which I would be introducing to campus, along with my two other leaders, Bryan and Lizy, and the freshmen peer mentor, Lyz.

Red 1; aka Group Red Thunder

It was honestly the most amazing experience.  I learned more about myself, my goals, and what I needed to do than our students did, I'm sure.  We attended Education in Zion, which is awesome.  If you haven't ever gone, go.  Now.  My favorite character was Lorenzo Snow; There are two paintings in the gallery facing each other which Lorenzo talks about.  The first is a picture of the Kirtland, Ohio temple entitled "The Temple, A Holy School" and the second is a picture of Brigham Young Academy (now the Provo Library) entitled "The School, A Temple of Learning".  Just the connection between those two paintings was enough to make me stop and think. Truth is truth, no matter what the source, and we value and uphold truth.  So many people sacrificed to bring forth both the temple and BYA (now BYU) and each is sacred and holds a special place in my heart.

Something which we discussed with our students was the definition of success.  How do we measure success?  What is your definition of success?  Someone said "Getting all A's."  Okay.  So if we apply that standard to the rest of the world, 90% of the population is the opposite of success: failure.  That's pretty dismal and depressing.  If we define success as becoming president/ruler of a country, 99% of the world is a failure.  So what is success and how do we find it?  Here are my thoughts:

1. You can't measure yourself against anyone else except yourself.  Each person has different strengths, weaknesses, and talents.  We're not all meant to succeed in the same way, otherwise we'd all have nice cars, nice houses, and plenty of money to last.  Besides, you can only succeed at being you.  You can't succeed at being your neighbor because they're better at being them than you are, just like you are better at being you than anyone else is.
2. You decide what is means for you to succeed.  If succeeding to you is owning a mobile home and flipping burgers at the local Mickey D's, than I hope you achieve that dream and live it to it's fullest.
3. If you give anything less than your all, if you are not committed to your success, if you don't give it your best shot 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year, then you will fail.  Success does not require your attention or your best; it demands it.  

To me, at this point in my life, success would be three things:  finish college, open my own business, and get married (not necessarily in that order).  If I am not committed to finishing college, then I won't.  If I am not committed to opening my own bakery and shutting down all my competitors, then I will have wasted my time and I won't accomplish anything.  If I don't really want to get married, then I won't try and I won't find the right fish.

I'll save some other points from our discussion for other posts ;] They were good points and we had some good discussions (at least I thought we did).

The best part of the BYU Incoming Freshman Class of 2012 and their amazing Peer Mentor and Y-Group Leaders

I know I had an awesome NSO experience and I can't wait until next summer to do it again!! I hope my students also enjoyed it and got more than free lunch and a campus tour out of our service towards them. :]