Blessing of Music

Music is a huge part of my life. I love listening to music because it makes me happy and it brings people together to enjoy other's talents. I really missed not listening to music since I got a concussion and I was sensitive to loud noises. I am doing a lot better now and I love getting back into listening to music again.

One of my favorite classes this semester is Music 101. We learn the different techniques, genres, and forms composers used in classical music through out the ages. For class we are required to go to 6 classical concerts. I never realized how many free fun concerts or student recitals BYU puts on. I am defiantly going to try to continue to go to some even after my class. This week I had to catch up from missing school and went to two concerts in a row on Tuesday and Wednesday. The one on Tuesday was a string ensemble where about ten groups of  BYU students in groups of 3 or 4 played their instruments. The one on Wednesday was a Junior recital where a girl sang several short soprano opera songs. It was very beautiful and she had a lovely voice.

I am super grateful for good up-lifting  music. President Packer (then Elder Packer) stated in October 1973 conference that, "There is so much wonderful, uplifting , music available that we can experience to our advantage. Our people ought to be surrounded by good music of all kinds". I greatly believe in that and want to make sure that my future family is greatly enriched with music and  that I continue to sing the hymns in church like I am really praising God.

Thankful For So Many Things

This week I had a nice Thanksgiving break with my family who came up from Texas. Monday and Tuesday was a time to visit BYU campus, time to go to the temple, and visit with my mom's side of the family. We spent Thanksgiving and Friday with my dad's side of the family and ended up braving the freezing weather to see the lights on Temple Square.

I love my family and I am super grateful for them. I love the Thanksgiving holiday mostly for the attitude of gratitude that everyone gets around this season. President Uchtdorf said in his April 2014 talk that God commanded us to be thankful because He wants us to have joy. I know that to be true.

On Monday night for FHE we all sat down for a timed five minutes and wrote everything that we are grateful for. Then we went around and shared at least two things we wrote down. All the adults were saying all their unique ones like hot water for showers, or fruit smoothies, or a certain plateau. All were great, but when it came time for my little 6-year old brother to share his he shared that he was thankful for "Heavenly Father, Jesus Christ, and mom". It really hit me that although I had those also on my list, I needed to ask myself what really matters in life. I reflected how grateful I was for those things make the top of my list. I am grateful for the atonement, temple blessings, Heavenly Father, Jesus Christ, my family and friends, the simple gospel and many more important things.

Also I love how right after Thanksgiving it is the Christmas Season. Bring on the Christmas music, yummy food, reflection on Christ, and more family get togethers!

It is Great to be Alive

"I have heard there are troubles of more than one kind. Some come from ahead and some come from behind. But I've bought a big bat. I'm all ready you see. Now my troubles are going to have troubles with me!"

This is a quote that my sister sent me this week by Dr. Seuss that I love. I always need to remember to have an eternal perspective when I am going through trials. I don't need to be sorry for myself. I need to take that big bat and face them. I can be strong and overcome these trials.

This week I have been able to see many tiny tender mercies from Heavenly Father such as a person giving me a call out of the blue, or people coming to visit me while I am staying home with a concussion, or even a mislabeled package in our mailbox which allowed me to get out of the house and deliver it to the correct person.

Here is also a beautiful sunset from last week that made me really happy:

We Thought Playing Kickball in the Dark was a Good Idea

On Monday night for FHE we combined with another FHE group and decided to play kickball in the dark because we couldn't turn on the lights to the field. While I was guarding second base the person kicked the ball and I unfortunately misjudged where the ball was. All I remember is a big red ball coming towards my face. My vision became blurry for a few seconds and I decided to sit out the rest of the game, but I was not concerned considering I have been hit in the face with a ball before. I continued to have a constant migraine the rest of the night and all of Tuesday.

Wednesday morning my favorite roommate Kassi (who is the same favorite roommate typing this blog post for me as I speak) kindly took me to the BYU Health Center. The doctor established that I did indeed have a concussion and cannot do any school work, work, or focus on anything for a week (hence why Kassi is typing this for me).

I have never been so thankful for a busy schedule, work or school work. I can't do what I would normally do if I was sick. It hurts to watch a movie, listen to music, or read. I explained to my sister that my head basically feels like I have a constant brain freeze.

The good thing that has come I also have to take a break from technology. This has been good because it is a goal I have tried to keep and now I have a concussion to help me achieve this. ;) I am also so grateful for the wonderful friends and family that have been taking great care of me.

Food Making Skills...Nunchuck Skills...Bow Hunting Skills

I love my Food Preparation class I am taking this semester. It isn't part of my major, but I signed up for it just to fill in some credits. We have a short lecture on Wednesday and then lab on Friday. For lab each week we get to work in groups of three or four and make some assigned dishes. Then we all share our food with the rest of the class. 

With this class I have been able to taste and make new things. Each week we have a different theme like meat, grains, eggs and dairy, and sugar. I have helped make chicken cordon bleu, crepes, creamy zucchini soup, pretzels, quinoa salad, and much more.

With this class I have become more confident with my cooking skills. I also have realized that it really isn't that hard to find time or ingredients to cook a good meal in college. I hope to use these recipes and skills I have learned in this class to be more motivated to make yummy meals throughout my life.

Online Mock Interview

Tonight I participated in a digital mock interview with Kimberly. We just used FaceTime since both of us had an Iphone. Sometimes the picture was a bit glitchy, but the sound was just fine. Before the interview, I felt a little flustered and rushed because I had just gotten home from my Econ 110 midterm. Besides that I felt like it went really smoothly.  We both read over each other's resumes beforehand and then we asked each other questions.

It was interesting to do an online interview compared to our in class interview. It was different to interview with just one person rather than the whole panel like we had in class. I was able to focus on and connect with one person better. It felt more relaxed and casual since we didn't have to shake hands and we were only able to see the top half of each other. It was also different interviewing with a friend. If it was the actual potential employer I would have dressed up professionally and prepared a little more.

Virtual Meeting

Last week our group did our group meeting on Google Hangout. We started out with some technological difficulty. We were kind of worried it wouldn't work out smoothly, but it turned out just fine. It began with a few jumpy parts with the sound and picture, but towards the end it worked out. We talked about our plan for recording our complaints and working on our project. It was a pretty easy way to have a group meeting because we could all be in the comfort of our home and didn't have to set up a place to meet.

Halloween

 

I love Halloween! I love seeing people dressed up. There was some amazing costumes on campus on Friday. Tonight my roommates and I planned out a Halloween party for friends.We all dressed up. I along with my roommates dressed up as cats. We played murder in the dark and mafia. It was so much fun. Before the party we were all supper busy all day. I had two midterms to take today and other big projects to do. We found that you don't have to have too much planning to have fun.

4 Dollar Potatoes

My roommate owed one of my FHE brothers $4 for a dare to eat a whole raw potato on Sunday. Monday night we decided to pay them back with two potatoes filled with $4 worth in pennies. We dressed all in black and then silently  ran up their 3 flights of stairs and left them on their doorstep.

We were successful which was surprising because usually they hear you and open the door before you get all the way down the stairs. We ran back to our apartment and into our room. Through this we learned that after you do a prank that you then should lock your apartment. I guess we had forgotten so the guys came back and pranked us right back. We then had to a small one right back. It was fun to hide in out in my roommates car and watch their reactions.

We also learned that it is really hard to stick pennies in potatoes, but sometimes it is better to go through tough things in able to reap the rewards.

Salt Lake Temple

This afternoon my roommates and I decided to go to the Salt Lake Temple for baptisms. It was my first time inside this temple and even though I only saw a tiny part of it, it was still amazing.

It is always so peaceful inside any temple. As I was sitting there I realized how blessed we are as a church to have these lovely places that not only do we doing ordinances for both us and for those who have passed on, but a place completely separate from the world. I felt like I didn't have a worry about anything, and felt a great calm come over me. I always think of the example that one of my stake leaders back home shared: the New York temple is in the middle of a large loud city. It has to have an extra padded wall to make it soundproof from the traffic sounds outside. It is kind of like how we need to make sure to have our own padded walls and even though we are in the world, be not of the world.

I am so grateful for temples. Not only do  I want to visit different temples I haven't seen or been inside yet, but I need to make sure to make it to the temple here in Provo more often.

Texas Pride

This afternoon I went with some of my friends to a Texas Roundup in the Wilk. It wasn't hugely exciting; I just had some ice cream, participated in a raffle drawing, and got a Texas/ BYU shirt. It did however make me extremely happy to see others that call Texas their home. I was a BYU baby so I was born here in Provo, but then moved to Texas when I was really little. Texas is so special and people who live there love their state. When I am in class and they ask if anyone is from Texas they are always answered with a loud yes.

I don't have any extended family in Texas, so sometimes we feel a little alone down in Texas by ourselves, but I have learned to love it there. Sometimes it is just best to learn to love where you are now and move forward with your life. Anywhere can become your home like BYU has become me for these few years. 

General Conference

The first day of General Conference has come and gone. It was amazing! I just stayed at home and watched it on a projector with my roommate. It was super fun to sustain the new apostles this afternoon. I am excited to hear from them tomorrow and get to know them better.

I always come out of conference with confidence that the church really is true. I gained inspiration of how I could progress, and answers to my prayers.

In preparation for conference in my Living Prophets class, Brother Newel shared that the value of conference is that it can change people's lives and what we are able to get out of conference depends more on the your personal preparation for the talks more than the speaker's preparation for their talks. I know this to be true and although I didn't feel as prepared as I wanted to I know I need to continue to listen to conference with an open mind and heart.

Also after conference, we seem to feel rejuvenated and want to live a better life but sometimes later we let what we have learned to pass or forget to act. President Eldon Tanner said that we need to have conference become one's walk and talk. I am going to try to take what I have been inspired to do and the messages I have heard to heart, my goal is to now act rather than just remember the happy feeling I have felt.

Stay Positive

This week was a hard one for me. I had a paper due, two midterms, a cleaning check, and a long heavy work schedule due to a large dinner at the Hinkley Center for the Marriott school. To make it even worse I woke up Monday with a terrible cold. All week I felt like my nose was the size of an elephant seal's.

Despite all this, my week turned out to be a profitable one. I learned several things throughout this week:

1) Heavenly Father must have a sense of humor. On Saturday night I asked if should I go on the FHE hike Monday night or stay home and work on my essay. As soon as I woke up Monday with my cold, I kind of laughed and found the answer to my prayer even though it wasn't the one I wanted :) .

2) I found that sometimes it is better to find time to sleep rather than stay up all night studying. Sleep is important and although you feel like you will not be able to get all you want done, at least you will feel better the next day.

3) Little, simple things become more important. Whether it is a funny conversation with roommates, a wonderful mother who is just a call away that allows me to rant on, a bright yellow carnation, a lovely class lecture in Living Prophets, or a chocolate chip cookie brought over by a friend.

4) A hard week causes the weekend to become even more enjoyable. I am super excited to go down to the Conference Center in Salt Lake tonight for the General Women Broadcast and for a calm Sunday.

Football, Regional Confrence, and a Random Jam Session

On Saturday BYU played Boise State at home and beat them with another Hail Mary thrown by freshman Tanner Magnum and then we preceded to get another touchdown all in the last minute of the game. We were all screaming, hugging each other and I even had happy tears coming down my face. It was crazy!

Sunday was regional conference. My roommate and I were ten minutes early to the conference, but that turned out not to be early enough. We were given one folding chair so we took turns on the chair and the ground. The same thing happened the day before at the football game where although we were a hour early there wasn't anymore seats in the student section. I guess next time we just need to get to these events earlier. There was some really great talks. Everyone mentioned or talked about the Sabbath. It has been such a big topic lately. Sister Burton talked about how it is a gift from God and we need to be appreciative of it by having not only reverent actions but reverent thoughts as well.

After dinner and the Worldwide Single Adult Devotional, My roommates and I went to a random jam session with people in the ward. We didn't really know anyone there, but I learned that people can connect through music. There were about seven ukuleles, a bass, and a guitar, and the rest were voices. It was so much fun and I am so happy I went. We decided that this will continue to be a Sunday tradition. 

Stewart Falls

For Labor Day I went with some friends to Stewart Falls down by Aspen Grove. My roommate and I felt super prepared for this hike because we assembled sack lunches for everyone to eat by the water fall, enough water, a swim towel if we got wet and water shoes.

We were worried we wouldn't be able to find a parking spot, but a few opened up at the last second so we were able to go there. The weather was beautiful and the hike was fairly easy with only a few rocky steep skinny paths. All the online reviews of the hike said that the only problem people found was that sometimes the hike was too crowded and it seemed more like waiting in a line then a hike. For us however, there was quite a few people because of the holiday, but it wasn't that bad.  There were a few times when we all stepped off the path and let people going the other way through, but overall it was very pleasant. The waterfall at the end was very rewarding and super neat. We had fun running behind the waterfall to try out the legend that if you ran behind it without getting wet then you would get married soon. It turned out that it was impossible not to get wet. Boy was it cold! Some of pictures by the fall show us all having funny faces of us getting hit by the freezing water. We had to stand out in the sun for a bit to get dried off.  At the end of the hike we were tired and all shouted what we heard a little boy exclaim right before we started the hike, "Finally!". I am so glad I was able to go out and do something instead of being cooped up all day in my apartment doing homework or watching Netflix. I want to continue finding fun hikes to go on and continue to get in better shape.

Start Of a New Blog

I have been wanting to start a blog for a while now. My mother keeps a blog and I love reading other friends' and family blogs. So with the help of a required assignment from my MCom 320 class, I am about to start out on the blog writing journey.