"You are loved"

“You are loved.

You are dear to your heavenly parents.

The infinite and eternal Creator of light and life knows you! He is mindful of you.

Yes, God loves you this very day and always.

He is not waiting to love you until you have overcome your weaknesses and bad habits. He loves you today with a full understanding of your struggles. He is aware that you reach up to Him in heartfelt and hopeful prayer. He knows of the times you have held onto the fading light and believed—even in the midst of growing darkness. He knows of your sufferings. He knows of your remorse for the times you have fallen short or failed. And still He loves you.

And God knows of your successes; though they may seem small to you, He acknowledges and cherishes each one of them. He loves you for extending yourself to others. He loves you for reaching out and helping others bear their heavy burdens—even when you are struggling with your own.

He knows everything about you. He sees you clearly—He knows you as you really are. And He loves you—today and always!”

-Dieter F. Uchtdorf

Appreciation for things I used to not appreciate

When I was 8 I got 6 journals for birthday presents (plus I already had one)- because apparently the age of 8 is just perfect for journal writing. I'm not one to get a gift and not use it. So you know what my 8-year-old self did? Made each one into a journal for each separate day. Sunday's journal had a butterfly on it, Monday's had smiley faces, Wednesday was a fuzzy Winnie the Pooh one. I remember this because one day I went back to try and see what my 8 year old self deemed worthy to write in a journal and found that I could not- for the life of me- follow the story line through the 7 different journals. Since then I'd like to think I've gotten a bit better- I still have my life story separated in between letters to missionaries, my blog, my old paperback journal, and my journal on my computer. Four's better than seven? I think it's improvement. The point of the matter is that forever ago when mom used to have to remind me to write in my journal daily I definitely did not see the point in it all. The other day I got a bit bored and started reading over my computer journal from last winter semester and a bit of the summer and it was definitely inspiring. Just looking back and seeing that the questions that I had that I most wanted answers to- I got answers to them, the things I was struggling with changed me so much for the better, and the things I worried about didn't end up mattering in the long run. It really is incredible. In one of my entries I went off for like a whole page about how stressed I was with my major- should I really keep Horticulture or would I ever find something that I really loved.  I had always felt like I was a bit inspired when I chose it but on that particular day I seemed to be doubting everything. Let me tell you- this past week when I was in Hawaii and was constantly educating everyone who would listen about nerdy things like that tomatoes are infact classified as a berry, and making them memorize different plants (which also made me think oh! I'm turning into my mom!) I realized that I couldn't see myself doing anything else. Which just goes to show- God knows us pretty well- when he tells us to do something, he knows what he's talking about, even if we don't catch on for a while. Sometimes I feel like he reminds us of these moments when he has made everything turn out alright as if to say "I know what I'm doing- you should trust me by now."
One of my favorite quotes about this is Richard G. Scott in his talk "Finding Happiness"

"Although it may not be a welcome insight, you will grow more rapidly through challenge and trial than from a life of ease and serenity with no disturbing elements. The intent of your Father in Heaven is to lift you from where you are to where he knows you will have eternal purpose and unspeakable happiness. By using the talents, abilities, and latent capacities developed in the premortal existence, he will lead you through growth experiences here on earth. When faced squarely and lived fully without complaint, they will raise you to glorious heights of accomplishment and service. To do all of that during the brief period you are on earth is a tremendous challenge. To accelerate your growth and attainment in his plan for you, sometimes he employs a pattern described on the label of some medicines: "shake well before using."

And Neal A. Mawell in "But for a Small Moment"

"The future "you" is before him now. He knows what it is he wishes to bring to pass in your life. He knows the kind of remodeling in your life and in mine that he wishes to achieve. "

The other thing I never thought I would find myself saying that I appreciated was Geneology/Family History. You know...that thing that 'only old people do'. Well today after being encouraged to get involved with it in church, and after I had talked to my roommate about it- I was introduced to the Family Search. She had been saying that since our ancestors are the ones that help us out in this life, and she's preparing to go on a mission and she could use all the help she can get, she thought it would be a good idea to find them and do their temple work for them. And then she taught me how. And no joke- I was on there for 4 hours straight and only stopped because my eyes were hurting. It is SO COOL! Plus I was able to trace myself all the way back to Adam and Eve!

I also thought it was funny that there's a space to fill in Seth's wive's parent's...because you know...:)

 Anyways. That was my Sunday- reading old journal entries and doing family history. Oh the craziness of my college life...right?

Refocusing: minimize distractions

Occasionally in life frustration will set in for a reason that may not be apparent for quite sometime. For me I had this building frustration for a couple days in a row and I wasn't sure why. This morning I figured it out Thanks to a random conference talk that I found where Uchtdorf told me what's what.

If life and its rushed pace and many stresses have made it difficult for you to feel like rejoicing, then perhaps now is a good time to refocus on what matters most.

So I began to question what I was doing and what mattered most. We all have goals of what we hope our lives to be like. I guess what happened is the activities I was giving time to were not those that were contributing to the goal of what I want life to be like. Not that any activity in and of itself was bad, just that it was distracting me from doing something better with my time.
In one of my classes we were talking a lot about how certain things in the media are distractions from what is really important. I think that's what was making me so frustrated- spending lots of time doing things that were not important to me. So as part of refocusing myself I am setting weekly goals for myself. This week I am starting with controlling how much media I spend my time on.
I found this program called 'stay focused'- you type in all the sites that you constantly find yourself wasting time on (some blogs, facebook, pinterest) and once it knows those sites it times how long you are on them. You only get 10 minutes a day to spend on time wasting sites. Once your ten minutes are up it says ...

Other inspiration was gotten from an article I was shown once by a friend called 'Focus' by Leo Babauta.

It contains some serious good stuff if you ever want to read it...click here. It's free, it's somewhat long, it's inspirational. 

Some great quotes pulled out...

There are days when I wake up and refuse to turn on the Internet, and sit still with my cup of coffee in the hush that fills the hours just before dawn. I’ll listen to the quiet. I’ll reflect on life. I’ll lose myself in a novel. Some days I’ll sit down and write, just my thoughts and the quiet and the gentle tapping of the keyboard. And it’s beautiful.

It’s not technology we should be afraid of. It’s a life where we’re always connected, always interrupted, always distracted, always bombarded with information and requests. It’s a life where we have no time to create, or connect with real people.

I also realized that so many turn into movie nights and nothing else. Why the need for so many movies? So another of my week goals is to not watch any movies. Not even this weekend. Think of something more creative to do, or if you can't and everyone around your wont, go to something productive instead. Don't get me wrong, I'm not giving up movies entirely- just taking a break for a week.
 There is no need to be pulled into media constantly. Not that it's a bad thing, there are just better things I could be doing.

So as part of what I hope to be many weeks of goal setting- this week is dedicated to minimizing distractions in the media. We'll see how it goes.

There's something about the trees

My longing for mountains full of the turning leaves of fall was finally fulfilled. I swear I complained so many times about how the Rexburg trees just didn't quite come up to par with Utah's mountains full of them. So when one of my classes went on a field trip to Salt Lake overnight I was EVER so grateful to be picked up by my dad and driven into the mountains where I stayed the night with my FAMILY (!!!) instead of in the hotel with the rest of the students. I'll tell you, it was just what I needed in the midst of this crazy life. There's nothing like your own family mixed with nature to set you at peace with the future and the present.

And then my camera died. But you get the idea.

And then I came back to Rexburg and it was as if all the trees were trying their very hardest to be beautiful and autumn-y. 

The ones that do fall justice...The few and the proud. 

 There just is something so transcendental about going out in the middle of nature and just listening to it. Being alone and out of the way of worldly things. It certainly clears your head. For me it's a way to meditate and re-boost my connection with God. This is peace. This is what gets me through the times when life gets unreasonable- it's like a filter that shows me that things happen for a reason and that I am not alone.

"We need to find God, and he cannot be found in noise and restlessness. God is the friend of silence. See how nature- trees, flowers, grass- grows in silence; see the stars, the moon and the sun, how they move in silence...We need silence to be able to touch souls."

-Mother Teresa

Day by day

Lately I've been having daily breakdowns due to the crazy stress of college finally feeling like it's coming into full swing. Once a day I get real stressed and I start having these thoughts like 'why can't I do anything right?' and 'how will I ever catch up' and 'you stupid girl for thinking you could handle 18 credits and a job' and the like. So when I'm thinking 'how will I ever handle this?' I am inspired (literally every day since I saw the movie) by this quote. 

 Because really what else can you do but take it one day at a time? So each day I tell myself 'don’t worry, today’s not the stressful one. Just get what you need to done today and you’ll figure the rest out tomorrow.' And so days pass by like that. And pretty soon the stressful days passed while you were telling yourself to take it day by day, and to not freak out about all the days at once. Not that they pass in a 'where did the time go, what have I done with my life?' kind of way. It's more like 'hey, I got everything done that I needed and life turned out to be great and enjoyable and everything I wanted at the same that I was worrying about all that stuff!" way. But you never even remember the thousands of to-do lists and the constant receipts, and the times where the only thing you wanted was to be done reading the hecka long chapter in your Social Work book so you could go home and eat the same leftovers that you’ve had for the past 4 nights (not to get too specific, but that was Tuesday).  So seriously. Don’t stress about ALL the homework assignments at once. And don’t stress about all the finances and things to do, and people to please, and blah ba blah ba blah. Because all you really can do is take it day by day.

Happy Wednesday and keep on keepin' on.

first day of school ramble-rant

Here is my first day of college ramble-rant.

All the little freshmen boys look like they are 12 years old. The sociology professors are so chill and interesting I get all confused about what major I should be choosing- because I love what I have, but this is just so interesting to learn about. OOOOh the spelling mistakes I'm prone to notice in textbooks that have not been edited (self written by teachers, my oh my) and in the syllabus. Here's my favorite. And it's talking about plagiarism "Learning such behavior in school can lead to practices that would cause job termination, or even loss of life later in your career, so we will adhere to strict standards now." did you catch it? Because according to that word mix up, plagiarism is a DEADLY thing. After this very teacher scared all the good hopes of college out of my day this syllabus mistake made the day a little better. And then I went to my next class and the teacher was wearing a tie with skulls on it- foreshadowing probably- and all the expectations of that class were a bit intimidating. And I started to think why on earth did I think I could handle this many credits? Really.
And then I started doing homework that said complicated sciencey things which I wasn't understanding including "this is the scientific method you should remember from high school"

And I remember nothing of the sort. My high school science was a lot more simple.

But then I ended the day feeling fine because of a talk with my dad, my roommate saying she was equally scared of this science class and has the same textbook, and remembering this quotey thing....

and to avoid loss of life caused by plagiarism: credit given to here.

Two Homes/ tell the world that I'm coming HOME!

So I know it's still like, a little less than a month away...but considering that today I could say "in one week I won't be working here anymore"...it means that going back to college is soon. So rather than delay this post for a month...you get it now. Two sections- about what I love in each of my homes- Because I'm bittersweet about moving back to my second home. But really a lot of sweet. But still, for some reason I feel like this quite possibly could be the last time I really live at home- we'll see what the future holds though. Also...the whole I have two homes thing....because home is where the heart is, right?

Going back to:
Stalking the gorgeous hipsters as they rock their bands and skinny jeans at Sammies- and then pretending I am hipster
Staying up til 2 in the morning talking and not really saying anything at the same time with roommates
Walking around the abandoned campus in the crunchy fall leaves and the soft falling snow under lamplight in the brisk air (I say soft because when it's not the soft kind, it's awful)
Walking in circles around porter park for hours- just to relieve stress and talk
Standing in a cooler full of flowers indecisive about arrangements, and also- studying my scriptures in the humid greenhouse or the hot windy gardens (depending on the weather)
Jack Johnson inspired artsy homework nights
Taking a walk in the endless potato fields to clear my mind
Sliding around with grocery carts like a child at the store
Hot chocolate and walking to class when no one should be awake
Dance parties at the Hart
Late night talks about dreams on the railroad tracks in leggins and ginormous shirts (is that how you spell it?)
Studying while I "watch" soccor/basketball/sport games or when that's too distracting- living in the library
Volunteer days at the Family Crisis Center
Holy cow the people- so many people to be friends with. So much to do.

Going to miss/ highlights of my summer:
Actually having time to do ridiculous pinterestesque stuff

why am I obsessed with feet pictures?
Also. Those shoes are no longer
white.

Hiking in the mountains- yes Idaho, sorry but I think your "mountains" are lame.
Gardening- though I did not do much this summer
Staying up late watching runs of TV shows (basically just wasting time) and then sleeping in every day
Working with the bunch of people that I never expected to just LOVE...in a sandwhich shop of all places. They make me laugh, and that's what friendships about really...laughing.-I even love late night talks while washing dishes and mopping during closing.
My parents waiting up for me. Always.
The fact that I turned into quite the shopper- since I didn't have the added guilt of paying rent and tuition. Speaking of which, I'm going to miss having money in my bank account.
Day trips to liberty park and the farmers market
And how easy it is to take a week or weekend and travel. (ps...Boston, Las Vegas, Rexburg, Couer d'Alene, Grand Canyon, North Carolina, and Chicago- I'd say I'll have a satisfying amount of travel this summer)
Just constantly dreamin up stuff for the future
Family time- and pretty much forcing them to become my best friends.
Lots of weekend nights (and days...and everything??) alone means lots of soul searching
Simplicity of life
Icecream  or yummy things (not oatmeal) for breakfast...and not having to go grocery shopping or pay for food.


Three things I've definitely learned this summer:

No I did not get those off Pinterest. I made them myself thank you very much.

Remember China?

So I've been in a video mood. This is a compilation of memories from my trip to China last summer. I realized I did not take nearly as many videos as I should have while I was there. I kindof like videos maybe more than pictures sometimes?
The clips go like this: The hair salon employees dancing outside to get people's attention to come in: tandem bicycling around the city wall in Xian...not the great wall- just a wall...we never went to THE GREAT WALL- but it's fine: Tong dynasty show, watch the yellow guy! : on the 20 hour train ride some of the girls got bored- and drunk, and it was midnight and they just kept singing. It's all fine though, because that friend of ours you see there, he taught them how to sing happy birthday (really more like 'hippy birsday') to me when I turned 18. Long train ride though (some of the video is sideways- so sue me) : Just as at a street restaurant, the cook is making the noodles as they are ordered, out of flour and water and a little oil. nbd. : fried rice : Me and zoie got sick near the end of the trip...so jet lag + sick voice + slap happy....that's what happened. And the song about squatters....yeah, instead of toilets they have holes in the ground to squat over- not my favorite, especially not the public ones which do not, in fact, have walls. But this makes me laugh every time I watch it.

So anyways- just some memories from last year. This trip is what turned travel fever into international travel fever. But you know what? Here are two quotes for you!