#20 And In Conclusion...

Looking back on my blog, I've found that I had a lot more to write about than I thought when I first started! The blog has given me a chance to keep writing and continue to flex and exercise my writing muscles. It was something I had to work to keep up with, but I think it was worth it.

I think the hardest part about the blog was trying to decide what to write about. I'm not one to really post or make a big deal about my opinion, so as opposed to rants or loud arguments that seem to be very common among most blogs, I decided to post about things I care about or things I've noticed/observed over the course of the semester. I found that it was easiest for me to write about spiritual things and the things I learn in church or at Institute. I found that I really loved sharing what I learn about the Gospel on my mission, so the blog became a good outlet for that. 

If I decided to keep up the blog, I would want to continue to post about spiritual things, but I would also want to tell more stories about the things I experience or events that change my life. Although it can be a pain sometimes to write down all the details to my stories, it's nice to have it all written down in one place, like the narrative I wrote recently. I like this record and hope that it becomes useful or something fun to look at again when I'm older.

Thanks for reading!

#19 Health for Happiness

Today when I got home from work, the weather out side was so good, I couldn't help taking some time to go out for a run and get another couple of miles logged into my Nike app. I'm soooo glad I did, I don't know how many more days of good weather we have left to enjoy before the snow comes and decides not to leave. 

I really love running; sure, I don't do it as often as I'd like, but I know how good it is for me. Not only does it feel good physically to be fit, it helps me out emotionally and spiritually as well!

On my mission, I didn't have very consistent exercise habits like I probably should have until the last area I transferred into. My companion ran cross country in high school, so that's what he wanted to do every day. Thanks to him, I set very firm habits of getting up and running almost every day for the rest of my mission. It continued to carry on, even after he transferred and I got a new companion. I'm really glad I kept up with it, even through the winter months. 

While I was in the field, I studied the Missionary Handbook every day and would often ponder over the wisdom and reasoning behind each of the different rules, why they were important enough to make mandatory for each servant of the Lord. I knew there were benefits to exercise, but wondered why I had to get up early to work out, even though my primary mode of transportation was a bike (and rode my fair share of hills, too). I came to understand the reasoning behind this rule after I read this article in the "Liahona," a magazine produced by the LDS church. In the article, Elder Adrian Ochoa explains that our spiritual, emotional, and physical sides are all connected, and that strength (or weakness) in each area has an effect on the others. As I continued to run, I noticed a different in how awake, happy, and full of the Spirit I felt during the day. I knew that the reason the Lord wanted His missionaries up at 6:30 am exercising was to make sure that they'd stay happy and healthy on a regular basis. This understanding helped strengthen my belief in the commandments as a method to living a happy life, not just rules to "keep us from having fun." 

I'm glad I have a healthy body and want to keep it that way. If you feel sad or need a pick-me-up, I would recommend a run, some weight training, or a good amount of time spent doing yoga. It's all good stuff, and it'll make you happy, that I can promise you.

Enjoy the good weather while you can! 

#18 This Year's Special Christmas Video Message

Recently, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints has made a greater effort to spread the important message of the restoration of Christ's Church through social media and other more easily accessible means. This year, the Church has put out a video about Christmas and what we should focus on this year during the holiday season, as we should every year. You can watch the video here.

What really stuck out to me in this video was the simplicity in which it carried the message of Christmas Spirit and to help remind us of what gifts are truly important. The reminder that the first Christmas gift was given by God to us was significant in helping me remember that we give gifts to remember that great sacrifice God made for us.

I also like how it was similar to the style of the Easter video, "Because of Him," produced by the Church earlier this year. The various shots depicting Christ's life and the ordinary people affected by the life of Christ helps tie the two ideas together and show how passages of New Testament scripture still have solid application to our lives today. I like the modern, fresh feel to timeless ideas and teachings that make my life better every day. 

I hope that everyone gets a chance to see this video and considers how they'll celebrate Christmas differently this year. I'll still give gifts, but I'll better remember who gave the best gift to us all.

P.S. Oh, and this is another one of my favorite Christmas videos. The message is similar, but I love the way it's done. Give them all a view, and don't forget to #ShareTheGift

#17 My Most Excellent Thanksgiving Break

I had a great Thanksgiving break this past week! I had a lot of fun and got the chance to spend some time with some great people! This has been my first Thanksgiving since being on a mission, so I was excited to relax and eat some real turkey this year. 

Last week on Tuesday, my girlfriend and I rode down to Las Vegas together with some of her siblings and friends and made it down that night to spend a few days together at her parent's house. After a few hours in the car, playing games like "Twenty Questions" and "Smurf," we finally made it into the valley and could see the lights from the city and the downtown areas marking our destination. We haven't been down there since the end of June, so it was nice to be back and to spend time with her family again. 

On Wednesday, her brothers wanted to go riding out in a nearby dried-out lake bed, so we loaded up a trailer with ATVs, a dirtbike, and a Polaris, and made our way out before noon. I quickly learned how to drive the Polaris, but did get the chance to learn how to ride a dirtbike. It turns out that there's more to it than the pros let on when it comes to something as simple as making the bike go. After a brief explanation of the controls and functions of the bike, I went right ahead and made the rookie mistake of giving the bike too much gas and went flying off from where I started. Realizing the danger I was thrown into, I tried finding the brake by stomping with one leg, while trying to keep my balance by sticking my other leg out. Luckily, no one could see or hear my expressions of surprise and fear because of the helmet I was wearing. 

Thursday was the big day! I got to help with some of the preparation, play some volleyball, and was seated to as much food as I could handle, surrounded by my girlfriend's family by 2 pm. After eating more than I said I would allow myself to, her family held a ceremony to celebrate her mother for recently getting her PhD. We got the chance to hear poems, speeches, and musical numbers from her children and family members. That evening, a group of us headed out to walk downtown and to see some of the huge, well-known hotels on the Strip. We saw large numbers of people all around, some shopping, others walking around like we were, but still saw tons of people sitting in front of slot machines like it was any other day. 

The next day, a group of us went on a small hike around Red Rock, then later met up with some family members for lunch. After that we walked around some stores to see all of the different Black Friday deals at a brand-new outdoor mall. That evening, I had the chance to take some fencing lessons with my girlfriend and her entire family. We had a great time wearing the equipment, learning the forms, and then getting paired up to start fighting each other! I had a lot of fun and thought I was getting pretty good at it until we started up a relay match. They had me fence last, so I had too many points to make up before the other team finished us. I still had a great time and learned something COOL.

Okay, even though this is footage of me (on the right) getting my butt kicked, I promise I'm fierce with that épée.

On Saturday morning, we all went to a culinary school to do a gingerbread house decorating activity! I can't remember the last time I've done something like that, so mine came out looking more like a dragon than anything, but that didn't bother me. We had to make the return trip home later that day, but not before making her family and some extended family a huge Japanese lunch. My girlfriend and I made curry with rice and a TON of pot-stickers. We enlisted the help of her siblings to assemble the pot-stickers, which is actually a fun activity and makes the cooking go faster. With that, some salad, and leftovers from the days prior, we all sat down to one last feast together. After the meal, we packed up and headed home, another car ride full of jokes, games, and Mad Libs. 

I had a really great time in Vegas! I learned a lot and got to know my girlfriend's family a whole lot more. We're pretty tight now! 

#16 Thoughts on Mitt Romney's BYU Forum

At a recent forum on November 18th, 2014, we had the opportunity to hear from Mitt Romney at the Marriott Center here in Provo, Utah as he talked about his experience running for President, the things he learned, and general advice he gave to his audience. He talked about a variety of topics, but I wanted to touch on the things about his address that struck me the most.

First of all, I was impressed by his great attitude! Romney has a great personality, upbeat attitude, and showed a very kind and generous attitude. He did a great job on his delivery of jokes and execution of his message. I liked how he made his religion a natural part of his address and how well it tied into the point he tried to make. He was very entertaining to listen to and left a good message with his audience.

I also liked how, even though he lost the election, he was able to share important things he learned from his run for Presidency. He explained that he learned more about how God works and how he won't always interfere with secular matters, but will make it so everything works for your good if you do what He asks. It's easy to confuse the idea, but Romney did an excellent job of separating the two expectations. 

He also mentioned throughout his address about people he has come into contact with and the impact they've had on each other's lives. He frequently quoted the LDS hymn "Do What is Right" as he talked about angels who are "silent note-taking." From that, I understand that we're heavily watched and that our actions will be taken note of, so we need to live in a way that is acceptable and worthy of record. He said that "we're writing our autobiographies every day." 

I'm glad Mitt Romney took time to come speak to us! It left a very good impression on me of what he's tried to do and how great of a guy he is.

#15 Social Media Missionary Work

Today in church for the third hour we had a special lesson put on about what was titled "Modern Missionary Work" and how to use the internet and social media to share the gospel and spread truth to everyone who participates. I honestly haven't done much since Elder Bednar's Education Week address, so I thought the content of the lesson was something I needed to hear. 

We discussed first what was difficult about sharing the gospel with others, how it can be difficult, scary, and a huge time-commitment on our part. Then we discussed things we saw in social media from our friends and what we liked/didn't like about their methods. Some people in the group actually began the discussion by arguing that people should stop posting as often, that they didn't appreciate their news feeds being bogged down with multiple links to videos or status updates consisting of long passages of scriptures or general conference addresses. They argued that this becomes white noise and quickly ignored the more frequent it becomes. Others argued against it, saying that the more posts we get out there, the more voices bearing testimony, the better.

I (quite characteristically) seem to find an opinion near the middle: I think that we need to get as many people on board posting and sharing, but I think that it can be done in a more thoughtful, heartfelt way. There are tons of posts and shares out there that are done quite passively, posted with no comment or expressed reason. If each link or message shared were accompanied by one's testimony or reasons for posting, I think that, yeah, the number of posts would be reduced, but would be replaced by higher quality messages for others to pick up. 

An even greater approach would be to find specific people to share a message with and send them something more personalized. Our teachers discussed how a good strategy to becoming a better social media missionary would be to find someone you're connected with online, get to know them better (the term they used was "Facebook Stalking" but I don't want missionary work to get creepy), and then simply follow the Spirit in deciding what to do next. I feel like there isn't much work for me to do out here in Utah with members surrounding me on all sides, but there are still those who need to hear the Gospel online and within an email's reach.

I've decided to give this a shot and make effort to get my testimony online for everyone to see. The Lord gave us the great gift of technology, it's time to use it for a greater purpose.

#14 Thoughts on Writing the Narrative

Writing the narrative was a blast, actually! To be honest, I don't feel like I'm much of a writer, but I kinda enjoyed painting a picture to illustrate my childhood experience. It took effort, but not in the way the research paper did. With the research paper, It was frustrating to constantly have to interrupt my train of thought to reread my source material and have to cite it. I was glad I did my citations as I went along, but it interrupted my thought flow pretty often. With the narrative, however, I was able to free-flow write out my ideas, recount my memories, then go back later to fix and improve what I wrote. What's weird is that I enjoyed going back to make revisions. The paper became less of a homework assignment and more of an art project for me. It helped motivate me to carve out an idea and polish it.
Oh, and confession: I actually took this paper to the writing lab. I cared enough about it to get some feedback, and I'm glad I did. The guy I worked with helped me to be more descriptive and show with my words rather than just tell. I think it helped my descriptive language and helped me find a nice way to craft my introduction/conclusion.
When I started writing, I knew which story to write about, but had no thoughts on the central message, change, or thesis to my story. As I wrote and tried coming up with a thesis, I thought the idea of realizing the clairvoyance would be funnier and a bit more of a twist on the whole "Intuition" idea rather than just describing a new-found fear of birds. It was a bit of a discovery writing the paper I guess. 

Yeah, it's weird! Never thought I'd enjoy writing a paper like that. I hope everyone else who read it liked it too! 

#13 Intuition: A Personal Narrative

“No. No way. There’s no way that actually just happened,” I groaned inwardly. The feelings I felt and warnings I received were real, some innate ability I never knew I possessed. The almost supernatural siren inside followed by abhorrent disgust were feelings I would not soon forget that night—or ever, for that matter.

The winter of 2004 was chilly, so a few days of February spent in Hawaii were the perfect chance for my family to take a trip and warm up a bit. Through some of his friends, my dad managed to get some tickets for us to go see the Pro Bowl that year, so the entire family flew over the Pacific Ocean to visit Hawaii for the first time. I had the chance to visit some incredible places in nature, the LDS temple, and many other sights and experiences Hawaii had to offer. During our stay, however, I could never have anticipated what we would really experience and what sort of souvenirs and stories would come home with us.

            One evening, my family and I were walking the busy streets of a shopping district near our hotel. The night was starting to get dark, as it was still winter, but the warm, muggy air made walking outside and perusing the shops comfortable and enjoyable. On one particular street, my mother decided to step into a shop to look at clothing, something my eleven-year-old self was not about to sacrifice his dignity over. My dad and grandparents continued on to another store, so my siblings and I sat down to wait for Mom to have her fill and move on. I plopped down on the sidewalk near the store entrance, whipped my GameBoy out of its trusty pouch on my belt, and fired up the game I was currently working on. As soon as the screen lit up, I became completely oblivious to the world around me. As I sat there for a few minutes with the light of the screen reflecting off my glasses and illuminating my face, a voice called out in our general direction.

“Hey, man,” the voice barked, “get off the GameBoy. You’re on vacation!” The sudden command shattered the fantasy world I was in and startled me. My eyes quickly scanned the surrounding street, trying to identify the source of the call, when I spotted him. A man who looked like a boulder on the beach rumbled out of the darkness and began filling my view. He had a massive frame with tough, dark skin that had been beaten for many years by the waves of the sea and light from the Hawaiian sun. His stony face was marked with age and moss-like patches of hair. He looked unkempt dressed in a faded, flowery, button-up shirt and worn, well-used board shorts. The smell of sea-salt and sweat began to cloud my senses. He casually lumbered up to me in his flip-flops as I noticed that he was in the company of two exotic-looking birds. He carried a smaller, bright green parrot in his hand and a massive red parrot on his shoulder, as if the birds found a place to rest on a boulder as it picked itself up out of the sand and trudged toward the mainland. As I met eyes with the larger parrot, we immediately struck up a mutual dislike for each other. The man loomed over my comfortable spot on the sidewalk, and I felt shame for being called out by such a large, unexpected, and unusual stranger.

“What are you doing playin’ games, man?” he reiterated, “You’re in Hawaii! You should enjoy it!” As he moved closer, his birds shot judging glares at me, and fear started to boil inside me. I wished my mom would leave the store and rescue her helpless child from his plight. I looked to each of my siblings for help, but they avoided the gaze of the man and allowed him to harass my innocent moment of play. I felt alone and began to feel the itch of my natural instincts to flee well up inside, yet I remained frozen in place by a fledgling fear of birds that seemed to flutter down and perch on my shoulders. As I began to flush with embarrassment, my mother left the store only to find herself on the verge of the scene at hand.

Her look was initially puzzled as she moved towards us but changed to curiosity when she noticed the birds the man held. “What’s going on? Wow! Are those your birds?” she asked.

The mischievous grin the man wore instantly changed to a harmless, jolly smile as he turned to my mother and said, “Yeah! Would you like to take some pictures of your kids with my birds?”

My mom began pulling out her camera, and a sudden realization electrocuted my senses: if I were to be forced to take pictures with these birds, I would have to get close to them or, even worse, hold them. Alarms silently screamed in my head as I began pleading with my mother to take us away and thereby halt the nagging warning siren in my head. I approached my mother and told her I didn’t want to take any pictures with this man or the parrots. Something inside me was crying out, a quick jolt warning me of some unknown danger the nature of which I couldn’t make out. Still, I knew something wasn’t right; something was going to happen. Upon asking me why I didn’t want to take pictures, I expressed to my mom my gut feeling and deepest fears concerning the birds.

“Mom, I don’t want those things on me,” I protested in low tones, pausing as I worked up the courage to confide in her, “They’re going to…poop on me!”

My mother’s face cracked open in smile as my siblings and the abhorrent man overheard my fears and laughed. “You ain’t got nothin’ to worry about, man. This bird ain’t gonna poop on nobody,” the man chuckled as he placed one parrot on my older sister’s shoulder and one in her hand. With her picture taken in a flash and with no incident, I was trapped. Nowhere to run. No one to save me. The man retrieved the bird from my sister’s shoulder and placed it on mine. Even though it was the first time a bird had ever perched on me, I felt like it dug its claws into my shoulder for balance with more force than necessary, purely out of spite. With the pictures snapped, I immediately called out, “Okay, I’m done! Get this thing off me now!”

The man, realizing the uncomfortable position I was placed in, said, “Nah man, why don’t we take a picture now with this guy on top of your head!” He grinned as he moved the beast off my shoulder and set it on top of my head. I wanted to run but was frozen in place by my predicament and his insistence. As the behemoth was placed on my head, I felt the dreadful claws grasping for support, tugging at my hair and digging into my scalp, causing my eyes to water. I tried to balance the large weight on my head but struggled as I felt it shift around. The bird turned around to the left, almost 180 degrees, and tilted its head and body forward as I tried posing for this picture. In an instant, my uneasiness turned to fear as I noticed the expressions on the faces of my family. Everyone’s faces dropped from smiles to horror as they looked at me; even the large man’s grin shrunk to a look of surprise. I looked down to see a large white streak, speckled black, running down the front of my shirt and splattering my GameBoy pouch. My fears, realized in full, rushed out of me as my eleven-year-old self roared in horror and disgust. The man sheepishly grabbed his birds, muttered some apology to no one in particular, and was gone before tears of anger spilled out of my eyes. The evening was getting late, so we made our way back to the hotel for me to clean up.

Thoughts of revenge upon the man filled my thoughts as I inwardly raged at the injustice wrought upon me. While I wiped away the tears from my face and the residue from my shirt and pouch, anger bubbled up inside. “I was right the whole time! I knew it, I knew it, I KNEW IT,” I grumbled to myself. The laughter from my dad and grandparents as they later heard the retelling of my misfortune from my siblings only added to my shame. This shock would cause me to be miserable for the next day or so, but recovery was bound to happen in such a fun place like Hawaii.

I decided that night to never again let a gut feeling go unheeded. There was something distinct about what I felt, something beyond my everyday human faculties. A simple trip to Hawaii gave me insight into my own abilities. I cannot recall all the events of our trip, but this event and what I gained from it has stood out to me and remains fresh in my memory. The powers of intuition I discovered would prove themselves from time to time in the future as I would frequently have the same feeling just as an animal was about to relieve its bowels. Sometimes I think of it as a special ability, other times a gift, but I have come to understand that it is a responsibility, a very special and specific form of clairvoyance that would serve to help catch a mess before it ever happens.

Here's the proof.

#12 My BYU Experience (So Far)

So far I've been having a great semester. Starting up was a bit rough though; I had just finished some rigorous weeks of Spring and Summer semester, so two weeks of summer break wasn't much time to relax. Within the first few weeks, I was already beat, especially waking up for 8:00 am class. Yet, as the semester progresses and the end draws near, I feel a sense of accomplishment at keeping up with it all.

I think I've learned from this semester that I have the capacity to change and get better, even when from the start, the challenge ahead seems quite daunting and unattainable. Looking at the course load for an Art History class or an 8-10 page research paper was fairly intimidating at first, but I found that the remedy for the fear was to just get started and not to shy away from such challenges. As I've come to overcome these large challenges, it gives me confidence that future challenges will be the same way, and that I can enter 300 level classes or higher levels of education without doubt in my ability.

I've had many experiences, standing on the verge of a challenge or big life-change, worried about plunging into something I'm worried about or can't see the end of, I tend to hesitate and procrastinate diving in, but as I've been pushed many times into the deep end this semester, I've gained confidence in moving forward and growing up, I guess. 

I'm also getting a lot better at managing different aspects of my life. I've learned that I'm not much of a juggler: I don't do well focusing on all aspects of my education/life at once, but I'm a lot better at spinning plates. I can do pretty well moving from one plate to another, making sure they stay up and spin fast enough. It becomes a scramble from time to time, but I haven't dropped a plate yet! Success and the occasional exceptional grade on a paper or test gives me a boost in taking on further challenges, so the effort I've been putting in feels worth it.

#11 Today's Church Block

Today I had a great experience at church! Listening to the talks in Sacrament meeting made a difference in my view on faith and how to move forward, even with uncertainty and then how to be happy through gospel principles.

The first speaker in Sacrament meeting gave a great talk about Repentance and how it's designed to make us happy, not just correct mistakes. She shared an experience she had as she worked on her family's farm. She talked about pigs they were raising and how they liked to use fences to scratch their backs. One day she was doing routine work when she heard a scream come from the dog's pen. She rushed over to find a pig who, while trying to scratch its back along the fence, was bit by a dog on the other side of the fence and wouldn't let go of its ear. The pig screamed as she tried to push the dog away and eventually was able to release the pig from its bite. The pig, now free, walked off like nothing had happened. Moments after she left the scene, she heard the same scream again and found the pig trapped just as it was before, trying to scratch its back again. She related it to our own situations as we consistently make the same mistakes, even though we know the pain and suffering it causes. It caused me to reflect on the mistakes I routinely make, even with some knowledge of the negative consequences they entail. I decided to remember this story whenever these mistakes arise again.

The next speaker also did a great job, but focused for his talk on faith and moving forward to a hazy but promising future. He related the story of the Children of Israel and their exodus from Egypt to the Promised Land. He talked about how in these passages, the people wanted to turn back and be slaves in Egypt again. They figured that the life they had before was better than the one they currently lead; back home in Egypt, at least they had enough to eat and a sturdy roof to live under. Because they had never been to the Promised Land, they didn't know what to expect or how great it would be. If they would have known what they were migrating towards, they would have no thought to put themselves into bondage again. I thought of this first as a parallel to repentance, how moving out of patterned sin can be difficult and a comfort zone of sorts, but then the message became one of moving forward with faith: not knowing what will happen, but knowing that the guidance we receive from the Lord will bring us to the best place we could hope to be in. This really resounded with me as I have wrestled with life changes and the demands of a college education. 

Church, and especially Sacrament Meeting, can be a great learning experience and a chance to fill up on inspired teachings if we make the effort to listen and pay attention to the speakers. I'm glad I did this week, I've been taught a lot today!

#10 Reflection on my Research Paper

This paper has been one of the longest papers I can remember writing so far in my education. It's been a long process, but I'm glad it's over and that I pulled through with a successful paper. 

I think my favorite part of the writing process was interviewing my mother and aunt about their past experiences learning English. I will remember the conversation I had with my mother as a great and memorable experience. I got the chance to learn much about my mother's past and her life growing up. Details about her life that I knew in general or vaguely became more specific and concrete. I got to learn all about her school days, how good she was at English when she was a child, and how her skills came in handy when visitors from America came to visit and stay in her home while researching their family histories. I also learned that she went to junior college and studied English and French, something I never knew about my mother. She told me about a year she spent as a fifteen-year-old in an American High School in Utah, just to see what it was like. She and I had a great time talking about her past and learning from it. 

I was also glad to get the chance to call my Aunt who lives in Denmark, something I haven't made the time to do in quite a while. We had a great time catching up and learning about her history as well. It was nice to hear how she was doing and all about how her and her son are still learning English. I'm glad she still has excellent English and that we can still have great conversation. 

I think the idea behind this paper was interesting, to take a story from our family history and use it as a launch pad for research. At first I was confused and somewhat frustrated when my ideas weren't very concrete and I was struggling to find resources. I'm glad we had the chance to learn how to use the library's search engine to find academic sources, but the day in the library when we were supposed to find family history material was a bit frustrating and confusing, since my paper did not require those materials and only dealt with my mother's generation. Other than that, the pacing of due dates for sources, rough drafts, etc. was very helpful in keeping me on track and prevented me from trying to do it all the week before. Even though more due dates consistently stressed me out, it was worth it in the end.

The paper was great! I'm proud of it.

#9 Coordination between Classes

Being a college student means having to juggle many different responsibilities. Classes is one the many things we deal with alongside jobs, relationships, church activities/callings, family, etc. Sometimes, even classes within themselves can be difficult to manage, especially when topics and subjects within them differ greatly. 

Coordination between these classes seems to be something beyond the capacity of the huge, complex machinery that drives the curriculum of the different departments here. It can be frustrating when you find out on Monday that you have two tests this weekend from two separate professors. There can be periods of calm where your homework and study load is light one weekend, only to find out you have four papers due for four separate classes over the next couple of weeks. It gets pretty frustrating, but it seems that it would be too difficult with time limitations and the amount of material to cover for each course for each professor to coordinate when assignments/exams are due so that they prevent overlapping. Sometimes it ironically seems that the opposite happens, where all of one's classes make demands simultaneously and at the most inconvenient of times. 

I bring this up, not necessarily to complain, but to make mention of how much greater of a learning experience I have when classes do sync up and work in unison; not necessarily with the workload, but with the material being taught. Sometimes it can be difficult to switch gears and maintain five separate trains of thought, so when class lectures cover similar material from different perspectives, my ability to learn enhances. For example, I'm currently enrolled in Art History 202 and Intro to Music 101. In both classes, we're covering material from separate art forms, but in similar time periods. It seems very well synced up, as each class moves forward in time covering the same eras and places. It's nice to learn about different painters and sculptors in the Baroque era, then in 15 minutes, jump over to a different class to learn about Baroque era musicians from the same times and places. My understanding of the ideas and driving themes is more solidified when this phenomena occurs. It feels nice to know a bit of something about a person (i.e. Louis XIV) and answer a question about them because you just heard about it from class an hour before. 

 Picking up on this, rather than stuffing away everything I learned from the last hour of class and instead carrying it with me has helped a lot. I recommend trying it out with other subjects, because the more connections you make trying to learn something, the better you'll learn it. 

#8 Sunday's Regional Conference

Today's church meetings were great! This past Sunday, I had the chance to attend a Regional Conference held at the Marriott Center for my stake and a few others around here. We had the chance to hear from a few speakers who came out to teach us, such as Elder and Sister Suarez and M. Russell Ballard. I wanted to share a few of the highlights from their talks:

-"The Gospel isn't a big umbrella that will keep us dry from the storms and rain we experience in life. The Gospel is the rock that we stand on and are founded on when we're soaked from the rain and pelted by the hail." I thought this was a great image to keep in mind, especially in relation to Helaman 5:12, because living the Gospel won't protect us and keep us from having trials, but instead will keep us grounded and firm in resisting the current and being swept away. 

-Elder and Sister Suarez talked about charting our own course to eternal life and different things we should be doing to achieve that, such as regular scripture study, putting our relationship with God first, attending the temple, and keeping the Sabbath holy. Sister Suarez shared an example of how her and her husband would attend the temple every Saturday morning while they were dating. 

-M. Russell Ballard did a great job of addressing different issues and helping each member of the congregation find areas to fix in their life. He encouraged everyone to find time to disconnect from the world, to separate oneself from all the clutter, and to conduct a self interview. He exhorted us to ask ourselves questions about various areas of worthiness and growth, and then to make goals to overcome challenges in our lives. He told us to set a reasonable amount of goals (not too many, not too few) and with reasonable expectations (not too high, not too low). We were also encouraged to be true disciples of Christ by reaching out to the lonely. Finally, he elaborated more on his topic this past General Conference, the "Old Ship Zion," and to make sure we, "stay in the boat, keep your life jacket on, and hold on with both hands." 

I felt the message of hope and to not give up, even when we feel like our best isn't enough. God knows us so well that he knows exactly how much is our best and will accept our efforts. Great messages of hope and encouragement, I'll be carrying them with me throughout the week!

#7 Future Careers

So, I'm taking Psych 101 this semester, it's an introductory course to the Psychology major. In this class we're learning about what sort of expectations we can have for the major, what the classes are like, activities to participate in, and what to do post-graduation. It's funny, but the professor told us on Day 1 that his goal was to dissuade as many of us as he could from taking further classes if it was, in fact, not the major for any of us and help us find a better fit. So, sometimes it can be discouraging to hear about the massive course load or how much it'll take to get into a solid, well-paying career, but it's nice to have this information now.

It can be frustrating to hear about how hard it is to complete a degree, knowing that any high-level job I would want to have requires further education and getting a Master's or PhD, but the idea of being a Clinical Psychologist is still something I feel good about pursuing. 

There are actually many routes, I found out, that I can take with Psychology. The study of human behavior is fairly broad and has many different applications. Many different fields of study and work can be assisted by a student of Psychology, such as business HR, so I don't feel as trapped or claustrophobic in my major. I'm also learning more about what actually goes on in the career of a Psychologist; there's a lot of research to conduct and publish. As a student, I need to find internships and chances to work alongside professors on their research so I can try things out and attempt to get published. 

We watched a video in class that illustrated how going into a program such as this with naivety will be your downfall and how much of a strenuous and expensive commitment it is. After the main character of this video tried persistently to justify her desire to her college counselor, just so she could be called "Doctor" by her family and friends, the class laughed and people around me joked, "Man, why would anyone want to go into clinical psychology? So dumb..." Not gonna lie, but it shook my resolve a bit. Later on, as I read more on the requirements and where I could go with this degree, I felt better and set in my course a little more. 

Grad school and college in general seems like it'd be a lot and cost even more, but my teacher, Prof. Chapman, told us that the only thing more expensive than a college education is actually NOT going to college. The idea is that your net gain, from paying for college but making more later on, is greater than what you would get working a 9-5 dead-end job for the rest of your life and never paying for a higher-level education. So, just that fact alone will help me in the future when I have to start applications for Grad school. 

#6 The Book of Remembrance

This past Wednesday I attended Institute at the Multi-Stake Building near my apartment. It'd been a few weeks since I had the chance to go, so it was nice to be back in the Book of Mormon class I regularly attend. We had a really nice, well thought-out lesson from the teacher, a girl in my stake I've never met. The lesson was on chapters 20-24 of 3 Nephi and we talked about the idea of a "Book of Remembrance" and what exactly that means. 

Our teacher related the part of history we were discussing, when Jesus Christ visited the people of the Americas at the temple following His death and resurrection. As he visits with them, blesses and heals their sick, and ministers to them, he asks Nephi, the prophet in that area, if they had record of an account of a visit by Samuel the Lamanite 30+ years prior. Christ then has the people record the event and proceeds to expound the scriptures and the words of Malachi. 

We then discussed what a Book of Remembrance is and what role God intends for it to play in our lives. We talked about how Adam kept a record of the doings of the people: not just for themselves, but for their future progeny as well. We talked about journals and what they're supposed to be and why we are commanded to keep them. I thought it was important to understand that we keep these records, not just for ourselves, but for others to read in the future, to strengthen and help them. Accounts of our daily lives are important, but the records of our testimony, trials, and acknowledgements of the hand of the Lord seen in our lives are all excellent material to be treasured up and saved for future generations to draw upon. Sometimes we are even given experiences that are not necessarily just for our benefit and growth, but for the additional growth and testimony of others who will read it. 

Going back to read our own experiences can help us to remember our own lives and where we've been, where we've come from. I have a pretty poor short-term memory when it comes to events in my life, sometimes it can be frustrating to not be able to remember what I've done the past few days without having to stop and think about it. On my mission, I had a very up-to-date daily planner and a well-kept journal that never failed me there. Nowadays, my journal keeping is poor and needs work. In the business of life, journal-keeping has become a lower priority. 

From what we discussed in Institute, I realize I REALLY need to have a solid journal so that I won't forget all the experiences I have now and be able to share them to future generations.

#5 Learning Languages

Language is such an amazing tool. With it we can take complex thoughts and feelings and package them into communicable messages with words of many different sizes and forms. It's an amazing thing to watch people speak to each other in languages, understood or not, and to see how different people take their own ideas and express them in their own tongue. Language is such a complex tool, so how is it that we as humans learn languages? English is a second language to my mother's side of my family, so how did she pick it up, and how did she become so fluent, almost as if she's a native?

Comments:

-Great questions!

-How does this affect you? How has your mother's use of language changed your life? 

-Is it easier to learn English or other languages?  What are the language barriers that prevent some people from learning quickly?  Do you learn more effectively with natives or in a classroom setting?

-Ammon Boone:

What is a specific area you can research? 


On further consideration of my topic, research, and the above comments, I sought to understand better the process and growth that come from immigrants learning English as a second language and then becoming proficient in Engish. After going over my sources in further depth, my thesis is as follows:

Despite the idea that learning English as a second language is nothing more than rote memorization of vocabulary and grammar principles, immigrating to an English-speaking country and learning English is a deep and probing experience that involves an emotional connection to the language and culture, yet still maintaining a solid grasp on one's own language and culture. Immersion in both is the most efficient and metamorphosing experience.



What do you guys think?

#4 A Quick Look at, "Approaching the Throne of God with Confidence" by Elder Jörg Klebingat

In a recent talk given at General Conference for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints this October, Elder Jörg Klebingat admonished his audience to make changes in their life so that they may gain confidence in returning to God's presence when the time comes. He uses deep personal questions and structures his advice well to help the listeners to know what they need to do and how to act.I liked his opening statements and how he asked the audience to ask themselves questions to gauge how confident and guiltless they felt at the time they were listening and if they felt prepared to meet God at His throne, just as Alma did in the Book of Mormon. Then, with the audience willing to know what to do, he gives six points on what each individual can do for themselves (and in turn, others) to help them feel free of guilt and well-prepared for the future. He advises the audience to take responsibility for their physical and spiritual well-being, to accept obedience wholeheartedly, to get really good at repenting and forgiving quickly, and then to accept trials and setbacks as a normal part of life here on Earth. His advice structured in a list format made the points simple to follow and to understand clearly where each thought began and ended, giving way to the next point. Although simple, each point makes a strong impact on the conduct and quality of life for the person following the advice. If I could be really good at even just one of these things, I feel like I would be a completely different person. Each point, if followed, would remove guilt we all carry in various aspects of our lives, even ones we don't take into much consideration. If someone always felt guilty about not exercising or praying very often, simple steps could be taken to remove the burden of guilt and feel more free, and thereby gain confidence in life.I plan to study out these steps and to follow them to gain confidence, not just in everyday life, but in the future to come as well.

#3 Reflections on JFK's Civil Rights Address

I really enjoyed reading President John F. Kennedy's speech on the Civil Rights Movement. It was a very trying time for America and brought about a lot of change, so it was interesting to hear about it from President Kennedy. 

Normally when I thought about the Civil Rights Movement, I only thought about Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and all the speeches and rallies he held to bring about equal rights for citizens of all color, but never heard much about what President Kennedy did to help. To hear the same desire and drive for equality out of more than one group changed my perspective on it how it wasn't so much as the Civil Rights Movement versus the Government, but more of the Civil Rights Movement and the Government versus the problem. 

President Kennedy's rhetoric also impressed me; the way he went about drawing his audience into the issue and holding them responsible, then urging reform with his own actions and calling upon the American people themselves was quite powerful. President Kennedy was very smart about how he handled things and how he gave his stance on the matter. 

I hope to read more of his speeches in the future; I begin to see why people hold him in such high regard.

#2 The Family Narrative and How It's Gonna Keep Your Family Together

I never imagined what sort of supreme, untapped power that a family narrative held until after I read "The Stories that Bind Us" from the New York Times. Who could have thought that my Dad telling me about how raising chickens with my Grandpa or my Mom telling me about how she worked at a candy store only for two weeks (because she ate too much free candy and it made her sick, go figure) would help me to be successful and more resilient in the future? 

According to the article, families that shared these stories with their children in pretty much any situation (the dinner table, car rides, vacations, etc) helped these children to find a sense of identity to cling to and to give them a sense of, "intergenerational self," or the understanding of how a child can see themselves in the bigger picture of their family. When I hear stories about how my dad worked as a painter all through high school and college or how my Mom's family of seven lived in an apartment built for maybe two or three (I've been there plenty of times and still can't believe how they all used to fit in there) I can see that there's been a lot of work, effort, and living life that's led up to me being here. When my Dad told me about the time he disappointed his own father and how he felt bad, not for what he did but because he disappointed him, or listening to my Mom reminisce about her own father (who died before I was born) I better understand the role of Dads, and what it really means to be one. I've learned what kind of father I want to be like, and how important it is for me to assume the same role in my future family. Feeling like I'm a part of a team with its own unique history gives me a sense of special belonging that I believe everyone craves and desires to some degree. 

Carrying with us the history and traditions of our families will do much to shape our identities and how we see ourselves. Everyone wants to have talents, hobbies, activities and life experiences that makes them feel special. These are the building blocks and links in our chains that give us the ability to connect with others and build relationships, common ground, and perhaps future links in those chains and blocks to build with. Our families are our first source of these things, and we would do well to make these things accessible in our own families and preserve them for future generations who will have a greater need for them as this world gets increasingly difficult to thrive in.

#1: Thoughts on, "Things As They Really Are," a Talk by David A. Bednar

After recently reading a talk given by Elder Bednar, I was given the opportunity to think long and hard about technology and how not only does it influence my lifestyle, but how I allow it to do so. I thought it was fairly interesting, even more so now that I thought about it and started to write about it. Technology plays a huge role in my life and I allowed it to do so.

Near the end of his address, Elder Bednar asks the audience two questions: "Does the use of various technologies and media invite or impede the constant companionship of the Holy Ghost in your life?" and, "Does the time you spend using various technologies and media enlarge or restrict your capacity to live, to love, and to serve in meaningful ways?" Those two simple questions struck chords within me I didn't know I had. Just from the questions he asked, I learned that not only can technology and media become a distraction and a hindrance to the Spirit, but it can just as powerfully invite that same Spirit into my life. Along with that, it can become a restriction in my ability to live, love and serve. I wondered if it could be true; do the minutes I throw here and there at Facebook or games from the App Store really make that big of a deal? Then I thought about how many times I've seen people on dates or with their families and catch some or all of them buried in their iPhones (or remembering the times being guilty of the same thing myself). Are these people really living? It's hard to see love in someone when all you can see is the reflection of a bright screen and flashy game in the eyes of the person sitting across from you at dinner.

I realized that as such a powerful tool as technology can be, it could be the very means to take my life as it is and turn it in some wild direction, but the decision as to whether that direction was good or evil was still up to me. I realized that, yes, these things have become a large distraction from me and one of the easiest methods Satan has to derail any and all productivity I make attempts at. Because of this talk, I decided to be more conscious and aware of the time I spend with technology and not allow it to become a mindless distraction, almost patterned response to any dull moment I find myself in. I want to become empowered by technology to live, love and serve, not to become enslaved to it.

So for now, I'm making the decision to say no to five more minutes of scrolling through Facebook or another round of puzzle games because hey, I've got too much living to do.