Doing Something

As I look for a job in Social Work I've been thinking a lot about the things I learned and what really impacted me when I was receiving my education. The thing about Social Work classes especially at an LDS School is that you are essentially learning how to lift those that others would typically ignore. I had so many lessons especially from my favorite professor Brother Shenton, that taught me how to really love. I have been able to meet through my jobs/internships so many people that have been ignored and rejected of men. And through them I was able to see the real glory of God. I have been able to see and hear of miracles happening in peoples lives when someone just one person comes and tries to lift up the weak and feeble knees. And in reality those doing the lifting up are being lifted up themselves and realizing how much love you can feel for a person you previously would have been afraid to talk to . I hope this year I can have many opportunities to lift up the feeble knees and be able to see a change of heart in myself as a result.

New Year New Life

This last year has been a whirlwind in my life. From the beginning and ending of relationships, school, new places and new faces it has all been an adventure. The new year is always a great time to reexamine and to set new goals. This year I feel I am in particular need of some extreme and drastic goals.This last year was rough for me in a lot of ways so I feel like I'm still reeling from that. So in order to get my life back to where I want it to be I've already started and I'm feeling so much better about where things are going! Seriously it feels so good to get your life on track and make it even better then before it started slipping. So some things I'm going to work on....
1. Don't look back. There was a Mormon message type video about Lots wife . And it got me thinking that in everything we do and the disappointments and struggles in our lives- we often look back on things and dwell on them which makes the negative impact from them even greater. If we are so focused on how a relationship ended or how we could have done better on an class we took 3 years ago we are stunting our growth by focusing on things we cant change, when we could be focusing on things we actually have in our control now.http://www.youtube.com/user/MormonMessages
2. Be redicuoulsy happy!!! I love being happy and I love doing what makes me happy. But like anyone else sometimes I let my happiness be affected by how others treat me or by situations. A newspaper article my mom gave me when I went to college about dating the right people and becoming the right person to date said essentially that dont ever let your life get to the point where only another person can make you happy. And dont let anyone tell you that you are the only one that can make you happy. Happiness  doesnt come with situations, people, money or anything else. It is a state of being- So I'm going to make it my mission this year to keep being my redicously happy self and to not let even for a moment the outside forces try and make there way in and ruin my happiness.
3. Further commit myself to strengtheneing my testimony and others. Ok so I am so greatful to be a member of the true church and for the knowledge I have of my Savior. But I am totally slacking on sharing it with others!! Man seriously. The thing that helped me realize that the most was a friend I was able to spend a few weeks with this summer in California and Vegas. His name is Travis and never in my life have I met someeone who incorporated missionary work so much into his everyday life. Every morning he prayed to have a missionary experience and everyday I was with him we did! It was amazing. He had been off his mission for a few years and still was so set on sharing the gospel with everyone he met. I have never had the chance to share my testimony with so many nonmembers and while I was slightly uncomfortable I realized that I shouldnt be. The gospel is the greatest thing in my life and I should never be hesitant to share it with everyone I meet.
4.Help my  health. This last year I realized how much my mental state of mind affects my physical health. And when I date people I dont want to be with, or am doing things against my beleiefs or what I really want to be doing with my life my physical health suffers. And thats what most people dont realize. If you are menatlly healthy your physical helath will imporve and vice versa. I have never felt quite as healthy as I did Summer of 09 when i was bike riding 20 miles every other day and 50ish every weekend and doing yoga. I felt so good and this all contributed to my happiness. I want to get back to that point of pushing myself physically and mentally. Because I have way to much energy to waste it sitting in front of the tv or doing other things of that sort.

Well those are the main ones, and I'm hoping that this year brings about a lot of advancement in my career as well. I'm so grateful that the new year has come and for all the opportunities and blessings I feel that I get every year. People ask how I've been able to have some of the experiences I've had- I joke that its luck but I know its really just my Heavenly Father looking out for me and deciding to bless me even when I don'treally deserve it :) May this year bring all of you everything you need, and may it be an incredible life changing experience.

Why I love BYU-Idaho

So I have been missing being a student and being at BYU-Idaho these last few days pretty badly. People who haven't been there don't really understand. So here's some things that I learned and things that I just love about BYUI.
- My testimony grew a million times what it was when I was in High School. The place has the spirit everywhere. Plus you feel a great sense of responsibility to be the best you can when your gaining an amazing education that is at the Lords University.
-I love how the Rexburg temple is visible everywhere! It is so beautiful, and the fact that it was a 20 minute walk tops from any place I lived in Rexburg is just amazing.
-The quiet places on campus. Where it felt like just you and the Spirit. Like on the middle part of the Hinkeley where there's the huge window and couches that look out over all of Rexburg. I love those spots I would spend time at when I had to stay on campus late into the night.
-The people! Wow I made so many lifelong friends at school. People who really changed my life. The girls that were my roommates throughout the semesters uplifted and encouraged me to be something I didn't even think I could be. Not one semester I was at school was I not inspired or learn something powerful from the girls I lived with. We had amazing times, from camping, staying up late, or giving each other facials and pedicures living with strong Lds women can be such a great opportunity to really learn what "Sisters in Zion" means.
-The snow. Really I'm not kidding. Walking home late at night in the complete silence with the snow falling around me were times when I received some of the greatest revelations about my life. And getting kisses in the snow is wonderful :)
-Stadium Singing! For those of you who dont know what that is, basically tons of people meet under the stadium every single Sunday night, rain, snow, or shine and sing hymns a Capella and it is the most beautiful thing.
-Dating. Considering myself someone who experienced BYUI dating more than most anyone- haha totally serious- I love how good so many of the guys are. I feel blessed for most of the relationships with guys who had strong testimonies. Even though anyone who knows me knows that I'm slightly fed up with dating as this point- I am grateful that my time at BYUI taught me that dating can be wholesome and incredibly beautiful. Falling in love there more than once was a great thing-even though those relationships ended , I will never forget how magical some of the moments I had there were.
-Pretty much everything -except the expectation to get married before graduation.I'm still waiting for my refund :)

Merrily we fall out of line

Tell me what I'm looking for

So since I'm officially done with college now I'm told I'm supposed to get a real job and settle down and do those things that grown up supposedly do. I currently don't know what I'm doing with my life and have always lived extremely spontaneously and haphazardly especially these last few years. I seriously have spent these last few years not knowing where in the world my life would be the next day. I had so many huge changes and times in my life these last few years where it seriously was a complete turn around in my life path in one days time (if any of you know me really well remember back in April? Yep that almost move to Northern California all night drive and the complete change of my life at 5 in the morning? thank goodness Heavenly Father helps me at all hours of the day because I cant believe I made it through that transition). I've felt like its all been a whirlwind and to be honest this last year which has had the most intense, dramatic and emotionally draining experiences of all has worn me out and left me feeling like its hard to make plans and that i still have no idea what I need. My good friend Kyle Wismer ( who has been there with me through some of the craziest times of my life, and seen the ups and downs of my relationships with a certain two boys) told me he knew what I'm looking for. He quite simply said "You need stability. Just not in the form most think. You're an awesome girl, who is all over the place. Likes to be spontaneous. But you still want and need something stable and reliable in your life". Ok seriously I said Kyle you are always there to give deep insight and most people don't know that about him. I've gone so long living crazily going from insane relationship to another, having life plans be completely unstable, and living everyday like its just a complete party. Of course I'm spontaneous and I always will be but I need just one thing in my life thats stable-besides the gospel of course. Because without any sort of stability it leaves me feeling confused, at a loss and unable to make a decision because I have no idea what my future holds. Now I just need to find that something stable and reliable, because I love doing whatever I feel like, having adventures and living life a little on the edge but I need something that grounds me. Guess that's what I really am looking for- thanks Kyle