Dating

As individuals, we find ourselves looking for that special someone, our soul mate, our companion, the one that we will be with forever.  During this journey, we may experience love, as well as heartache.  I believe that we must take risks in order to find happiness.  Someone once said that it is better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all.  While some may disagree with this statement, I think that it contains some truth to it.  While all of us at some point may experience loss, disappointment, rejection, betrayal, or even a broken heart, we do not need to feel like that forever.  We never know who will come in to our lives next.  Life goes on with or without us, so we might as well keep up.  The quote below from the movie The Holiday provides some interesting insights that I thought you might benefit from.
  
"I understand feeling as small and as insignificant as humanly possible. And how it can actually ache in places you didn't know you had inside you. And it doesn't matter how many new haircuts you get, or gyms you join, or how many glasses of chardonnay you drink with your girlfriends... you still go to bed every night going over every detail and wonder what you did wrong or how you could have misunderstood. And how in the hell for that brief moment you could think that you were that happy. And sometimes you can even convince yourself that he'll see the light and show up at your door. And after all that, however long all that may be, you'll go somewhere new. And you'll meet people who make you feel worthwhile again. And little pieces of your soul will finally come back. And all that fuzzy stuff, those years of your life that you wasted, that will eventually begin to fade." -Iris Simpkins, The Holiday

Service

I had an interesting experience while I was at work last week.  As some of you may know, I work at a grocery story part time while attending Brigham Young University Idaho.  As I was helping a customer with their groceries, we engaged in small talk, and the topic of the holidays came up.  He told me that he was only home for a short time, that he was in the army, and that he would be returning to Iraq in the near future.  I have a great amount of respect for those that serve our country, which caused me to try and think of something meaningful to say to him.  I proceeded to thank him for his service, and he simply replied, "no problem."  I was caught off guard at his response.  What he was doing for me, you, and everyone else in this country was something significant.  It struck me that his response was so simple.  It caused me to think about the great sacrifices that are made in our behalf.  Do we realize what others are doing for us?  Are we grateful for their efforts?  

Hero

Many things came to my mind when I think about what a hero is.  To me a hero is someone that has had a strong influence in our lives, and someone that we would like to become.  Soon after returning home from serving a mission, my Grandpa passed away.  It was something that I knew was coming, but that I don’t think I was fully prepared for.  As I sat listening to his life story at his funeral service, memories flooded my mind.  I remembered all the things we used to do together, and learned things I had never known about him.  Tears soon came as I thought about what an amazing man my Grandpa was, and how much I missed him.  Ralph Watts wasn’t just a man, or a father, or a grandpa, but he was a hero.  In the twenty one years that I had known him, he was always someone that I knew was wise and very smart.  His life was lived in a way that showed he wanted to return to live with his Father in Heaven again.  I believe that one of his greatest accomplishments in his life is his posterity.  As he lived the Gospel, he provided an example for his wife, his children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren.  I’m not sure what my life would be like if my Grandpa had chosen to take a different path in his journey.  Ralph Watts is one of my hero’s because he has helped me get to where I am today.  I am so grateful for a knowledge of the Gospel, and for the example that he showed to me.  I look forward to the day that I will be able to see him again.  I love you Grandpa.    

Lesson Learned

During my first semester at Brigham Young University Idaho, a bomb fire party was held at the sand dunes just outside of Rexburg Idaho.  As a new college student I enjoyed hanging out with friends and having fun on the weekends.  You could say that I valued my free time, and wanted to do something that was going to create lasting memories.  I had planned in advance who I would be going to the party with, and as we traveled to the event, I anticipated the experience we would have together.  When we arrived at the sand dunes, I parked my car on the side of the road, which seemed to be somewhat firm.  Soon after, we found out that we were in the wrong location, and would need to continue traveling.  As I pressed the gas pedal, I could feel the tires of my car sink into the sand until we were completely stuck.  My friends and I looked at the situation and felt like there was no way we were going to get my car out of the sand by ourselves.  Keep in mind that we were in the middle of nowhere.  There were no lights, and phone reception was unavailable.  I could feel myself starting to worry thinking, how are we going to get out of here?  In addition to the few friends I had in my car, a man named Drew was with us.  He had recently returned home from serving a full time mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.  As we discussed what we would do, he suggested that we say a group prayer.  At first everyone kind of laughed at him, but as I thought about it, it not only sounded like a great idea, but it was the only thing we could do at this point.  We gathered in a circle and offered a short simple prayer to our Father in Heaven asking for help to get my car out of the sand.  The moment we said amen, a truck full of college students drove up and helped us dig my car out.  In a minutes time my car was out of the sand and we were on our way to the party we had been anticipating.  This experience is a simple one, but the lesson learned is very powerful.  My testimony of prayer was strengthened as a result of the experience I had with my friends.  I believe that Drew was inspired to suggest that we pray and ask for help when clearly there was no other line of communication available.  When we are faced with a difficult situation, and have no idea what to do next, what do we do?  Do we turn to our friends like I did at first?  Do we do nothing?  Or do we think of our Heavenly Father and the help that he can provide us?  In my situation, prayer was not the first thing that came to my mind.  In the end it was the thing that got us out of trouble.  My point today is that whether our challenge is big or small, we can, we should, and in some situations, we must turn to God to receive help and to solve our challenges and concerns.          

Remember

Anyone that knows me well knows that I love to take pictures.  For me it is a way to remember the past.  As I was looking through pictures on my computer this past week, I ran across the photo below of a time during my mission.  It was one of my favorite areas, and where I really enjoyed working with the missionaries I served with.  As I looked back at that time in my life, for a moment I wished I was there again.  I was having the time of my life.  I don't think we realize what we had until we've lost it, or until the time has passed and it is no longer the present.  I think the reason I like to take pictures is because it captures parts of our lives, enabling us to hold on to it forever.

It Goes Both Ways

My post today is short, and the message is direct.  All of us have people in our lives that we consider friends.  Some of them are the people we go to school with, ones that we work with, and some are even our family members.  Some of us might not just care about those we call our friends, but we may even love them.  The question is, do they know?  President Thomas S. Monson once said, "often we assume that they must know how much we love them, but we should never assume, we should let them know."  Relationships should not be one sided.  Both sides must put in the effort.  When I say effort, I mean that it shouldn't always be one person initiating everything that occurs in the relationship.  How can we expect it to last if only one person is trying?  If you want to hold on to that friend, family member, or loved one, you better start doing your part.

"Put your troubles aside and start living."

I listened to a song the other day called Yeah 3x by Chris Brown and the phrase "Put your troubles aside and start living" stood out to me.  Who in this world doesn't have troubles?  Aren't we here on this earth to learn and to grow?  In order for us to progress, we must experience trials.  If we are to become better as a result of a trial, it is important to handle them correctly, to endure...according to the teachings of the Gospel.  Although trials are a huge part of this life, as Chris Brown states, we must start living.  President Gordon B. Hinckley said that "Life is to be enjoyed, not just endured."  Even though a portion of our lives may not be pleasant at times, we must live.  All of us have been richly blessed to live in this day and age.  Count your blessings and start living!    

Staying Strong

There is a point in each one of our lives where we realize that we have a testimony of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.  What we do with that testimony is another thing.  Once we have that precious gift of knowledge, do we cherish it, or do we let it fade?  After serving a mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, I have observed those individuals that I taught, both strong, and those that struggle.  What must we do to secure our Spiritual safety?  I'd like to pose a few questions for you to think about.  Do I pray daily?  Do I read my scriptures on a daily basis?  Do I attend church every week?  Think about that for a moment.  If we don't do these three things weekly, how can we expect to continue in a successful journey toward the Celestial Kingdom?

What Matters Most

Whether it is a family member, or a friend, we all have someone in our lives that we love.  The question is, do they know that you love them?  In the movie, My Best Friends Wedding, George tells Julianne, "If you love someone, you say it, you say it right there, out loud.  Otherwise the moment just passes you by."  William Shakespeare said, "They do not love, that do not show their love."  Why don't we tell people how we feel?  Are we afraid?  What do we have to lose?  At the end of the day, what do we have?  What do we want?  Think for a moment about your life.  Are you where you want to be?  What matters most to you?

Retail

The employee rang up the seemed to be irritated customer which only took a minute or two.  This was the second time the employee had helped the woman that day.  You could tell that the woman wasn't very happy.  It was as if each question that was asked, got the woman more and more upset.  Is there something wrong with someone doing their job?  Or asking a few simple questions?  For this woman, that seemed to be the case.  The transaction was finished, and even though the employee was very nice during the duration of the transaction, all he received in return was the evil eye as the woman walked away.  When we walk into a store, what kind of experience do we expect?  I would say that most of us have something that we are looking for, a want or a need.  Material things aside, we want good customer service.  We want to feel like we are a valued customer.  But what about the employee that is there during our visit?  What kind of experience do you think they expect, or would like to have?  I'm sure that all of us have had positive and negative experiences in the retail industry.  Keeping that in mind, I think it would do all of us some good to take a step back and not only observe how we are treated as a customer, but how we treat the employee of the establishment that we are visiting.  Even though "the customer is always right," it's not all about us.  How would you want to be treated if you were in their shoes?.

The Birth We Call Death

As some of you may know, my Grandpa passed away this summer.  It is something that I knew was coming, but I don't think anything can ever fully prepare you to lose a loved one.  When I found out that he had passed, all I wanted to do was be with my family.  I wanted to be close to those that I loved.  I find it interesting that when someone that we love dies, we naturally want to be with people that we care about.  But what about that person that isn't with us anymore?  Will we get to see them again?  This event in my life caused me to reflect on my beliefs, my desires, and my actions.  As a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, we believe that this life isn't the only one that we will live.  There is life after death.  I will get to see my Grandpa again.  When we die, we fulfill a part of The Plan of Salvation, we start a new life, and we progress.  Death is not the end.  I read a book once called "The Birth We Call Death."  It helped me understand that death is a transition, something that we must accomplish.  In order for us to be with those that we love forever, we must live our lives in a way that will grant us that desire.  Dallin H. Oaks said, "Desires dictate our priorities, priorities shape our choices, and choices determine our actions.  The desires we act on determine our changing, our achieving, and our becoming."  Now the question is, what do you desire?  And are your actions going to help you make that desire become a reality?  I hope so.