Because then they could have conversations that go like this:
"What's wrong with me?!" -Krystal
"Want me to start a list?" -Ashley
*Giggling interspersed with fake glaring*
"Um, could you? Then I'd know what to start fixing and then boys might actually ask me out." -Krystal
"Uh.... I don't think I can do that..." -Ashley
*Quizzically disbelieving look given by Krystal to Ashley*
"I could totally write one for them though. Number 1: They're blind." -Ashley
Showing posts with label Quotes. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Quotes. Show all posts
Thursday, May 24, 2012
Friday, August 19, 2011
Fat Face
It hurts.
And when I told Alyssa that I was finding out what it's like to be ugly, her 'consolation' came in the sentence: "Oh Krystal, you're not ugly.... you're just deformed."
Oh how I love honest friends. They make bad situations so much funnier :)
And when I told Alyssa that I was finding out what it's like to be ugly, her 'consolation' came in the sentence: "Oh Krystal, you're not ugly.... you're just deformed."
Oh how I love honest friends. They make bad situations so much funnier :)
Sunday, July 24, 2011
Trust
I was thinking tonight. You know --- I've come to the conclusion that people in general aren't very trusting creatures. I know I'm not. And I know that a lot of people I know well aren't either. I believe that learning to trust in good things and good people is a necessary part of life. But it's such an incredibly difficult thing to do. So I was musing on the subject, and sometimes when I muse typing my thoughts helps me to begin making sense of my own head. I started to type, I reworded and rewrote and rethought --- and realized that it wasn't going well. So instead of forming my own cohesive statement, I googled the word 'trust' and found some things I liked. Here are a few quotes that go along with my thought processes this evening:
"We're never so vulnerable than when we trust someone - but paradoxically, if we cannot trust, neither can we find love or joy." -Walter Anderson
"The best proof of love is trust." - Unknown
"Without trust, words become the hollow sound of a wooden gong. With trust, words become life itself." -Unknown
"Our distrust is very expensive." -Ralph Waldo Emerson
A little girl and her father were crossing a bridge.
The father was kind of scared so he asked his little daughter:
"Sweetheart, please hold my hand so that you don't fall into the river." The little girl said:
"No, Dad. You hold my hand."
"What's the difference?" Asked the puzzled father.
"There's a big difference," replied the little girl.
"If I hold your hand and something happens to me, chances are that I may let your hand go. But if you hold my hand, I know for sure that no matter what happens, you will never let my hand go." -Unknown
"We're never so vulnerable than when we trust someone - but paradoxically, if we cannot trust, neither can we find love or joy." -Walter Anderson
"The best proof of love is trust." - Unknown
"Without trust, words become the hollow sound of a wooden gong. With trust, words become life itself." -Unknown
"Our distrust is very expensive." -Ralph Waldo Emerson
A little girl and her father were crossing a bridge.
The father was kind of scared so he asked his little daughter:
"Sweetheart, please hold my hand so that you don't fall into the river." The little girl said:
"No, Dad. You hold my hand."
"What's the difference?" Asked the puzzled father.
"There's a big difference," replied the little girl.
"If I hold your hand and something happens to me, chances are that I may let your hand go. But if you hold my hand, I know for sure that no matter what happens, you will never let my hand go." -Unknown
Monday, December 13, 2010
You should know that
this December we get to celebrate the birth of the most glorious being to ever walk upon this earth. He happens to be my best friend, and I want to tell you some of the reasons I think he is so wonderful.
I was eleven, and I'd never been more alone... I cried to him, and he came to me -- wrapped me in his arms, and told me that he loved me. He does that a lot. In fact, he was there for me during those months when I lied to myself and everyone else... saying that I was happy when I wasn't. He held me. He got me through. Sometimes he comes himself, and sometimes when I cry to him he sends an angel to watch over me. No matter what, he never lets me down.
Another thing I love about him is that he is really good at listening. In fact, he's the best at listening. That summer evening a year and a half ago when I prayed over something that may have been silly... but was so valuable to me... he answered. More than answering, he cared. And those times when I prayed because I needed help, he showed me the best way to go. And sometimes when he has answered, but I wasn't listening very well, he's been patient and repeated himself.
I'm not a very good friend to him yet, but I'm working on it. Because he's so great, he's very patient with me. He's shared his love for other people with me. Did you know that he loves YOU a lot? More than a lot actually... he loves you perfectly. He knows everything about you. ALL the good, ALL the bad, and everything in-between, and he loves you still. There isn't anything you can do that will make him stop caring. I promise you that.
His name is Jesus Christ. And I want you to know that I believe him. I mean, I know he's the Savior of the world... but more than that, I believe what he said. I believe he wants me to be happy. I believe he can make me happy if I just let him into my life. I believe that he can make you happy too. But you have to let him. You have to trust him enough to do the things he says. He won't force you to be happy, but he will show you how, because he's great like that.
Did you know that a lot of people forget his birthday? Sometimes I'm not very good at remembering it myself... but this year I'm going to be better. I'm going to help someone that he wants me to help. That's going to be one of my gifts to him. I'm going to bear my testimony this season... that will be another gift. I can't give him a lot, but I can give him my heart, which is the most valuable thing I have to give. I know it will make him happy. I know he'll be even more happy if you give him your heart too. Not just part of it, but all of it. It'll be scary to do, but I want you to know that he'll take care of it. And he'll make you happier than you ever dreamed if you give it to him.
There are lots of other people who are good friends with Christ. They believe him. In fact, a lot of them are better friends to him than I am, I admire them and want to be more like them. Elder McConkie was a very good friend of Jesus. I love his testimony, he said: "I am one of his witnesses, and in a coming day I shall feel the nail marks in his hands and in his feet and shall wet his feet with my tears. But I shall not know any better then than I know now that he is God’s Almighty Son, that he is our Savior and Redeemer, and that salvation comes in and through his atoning blood and in no other way."
Can you picture it? That day when you will kneel before the Savior of the world and bathe his feet with your tears? That day when He'll pull you into his arms, and you'll know you are home. That day when you can whisper thank-you, mean it more sincerely than you ever have before, and know that despite it's inadequacy it will be accepted by Him.
I hope that you know this too. I hope that you have a Happy Christmas, and I hope that you will take a moment to stop and remember the real reason we are celebrating. I hope you'll whisper a thank-you to Him on Christmas Eve. And I hope you listen when He whispers back.
I was eleven, and I'd never been more alone... I cried to him, and he came to me -- wrapped me in his arms, and told me that he loved me. He does that a lot. In fact, he was there for me during those months when I lied to myself and everyone else... saying that I was happy when I wasn't. He held me. He got me through. Sometimes he comes himself, and sometimes when I cry to him he sends an angel to watch over me. No matter what, he never lets me down.
Another thing I love about him is that he is really good at listening. In fact, he's the best at listening. That summer evening a year and a half ago when I prayed over something that may have been silly... but was so valuable to me... he answered. More than answering, he cared. And those times when I prayed because I needed help, he showed me the best way to go. And sometimes when he has answered, but I wasn't listening very well, he's been patient and repeated himself.
I'm not a very good friend to him yet, but I'm working on it. Because he's so great, he's very patient with me. He's shared his love for other people with me. Did you know that he loves YOU a lot? More than a lot actually... he loves you perfectly. He knows everything about you. ALL the good, ALL the bad, and everything in-between, and he loves you still. There isn't anything you can do that will make him stop caring. I promise you that.
His name is Jesus Christ. And I want you to know that I believe him. I mean, I know he's the Savior of the world... but more than that, I believe what he said. I believe he wants me to be happy. I believe he can make me happy if I just let him into my life. I believe that he can make you happy too. But you have to let him. You have to trust him enough to do the things he says. He won't force you to be happy, but he will show you how, because he's great like that.
Did you know that a lot of people forget his birthday? Sometimes I'm not very good at remembering it myself... but this year I'm going to be better. I'm going to help someone that he wants me to help. That's going to be one of my gifts to him. I'm going to bear my testimony this season... that will be another gift. I can't give him a lot, but I can give him my heart, which is the most valuable thing I have to give. I know it will make him happy. I know he'll be even more happy if you give him your heart too. Not just part of it, but all of it. It'll be scary to do, but I want you to know that he'll take care of it. And he'll make you happier than you ever dreamed if you give it to him.
There are lots of other people who are good friends with Christ. They believe him. In fact, a lot of them are better friends to him than I am, I admire them and want to be more like them. Elder McConkie was a very good friend of Jesus. I love his testimony, he said: "I am one of his witnesses, and in a coming day I shall feel the nail marks in his hands and in his feet and shall wet his feet with my tears. But I shall not know any better then than I know now that he is God’s Almighty Son, that he is our Savior and Redeemer, and that salvation comes in and through his atoning blood and in no other way."
Can you picture it? That day when you will kneel before the Savior of the world and bathe his feet with your tears? That day when He'll pull you into his arms, and you'll know you are home. That day when you can whisper thank-you, mean it more sincerely than you ever have before, and know that despite it's inadequacy it will be accepted by Him.
I hope that you know this too. I hope that you have a Happy Christmas, and I hope that you will take a moment to stop and remember the real reason we are celebrating. I hope you'll whisper a thank-you to Him on Christmas Eve. And I hope you listen when He whispers back.
Wednesday, August 4, 2010
"I'm sorry Gaston, I just don't deserve you..."
Ever been told that someone else 'isn't good enough for you?'
How about "They just don't deserve you." Gotten that one too?
Those two phrases are starting to drive me crazy. I've been told both of them many times. Sometimes the person speaking is referring to a specific individual, and sometimes they are simply referring to boys in general. Most of the time people are trying to give me a form of unwanted consolation. (Either that or they are trying to give me adivce on the caliber of boy I should choose.) But anywho... they use these phrases frequently, and like I stated earlier... it really kind of annoys me when people say them; I've had a hard time figuring out why the use of these phrases bothers me, and I think I've finally got it. Most of the time people use them synonymously, but I've decided that they definitely don't mean the same thing.
In my personal opinion there are plenty of boys out there who are "good enough" for me. However, I have yet to find one that 'deserves' me.
That sounds super egotistical and cocky... so please allow me to explain.
Let's say two people are a applying for a scholarship. They both meet all the requirements to get the scholarship, however one of the individuals, (we'll call him Joe) wants it more than the other (we'll call him Bob). So they both set out to get it. Joe puts together a great application; he puts a lot of thought and time into the application and he does everything he knows how to do in order to prove to the award committee that he is the best person to recieve the scholarship. He submits the application two weeks early, and then religiously checks up on it to see if he will get the award. Bob on the other hand, throws together a last minute application, submits it's the day it's due, and waits to be contacted in order to find out if he has recieved it.
To me, it's obvious who deserves the scholarship more. Both Bob and Joe meet the requirements to get the scholarship... in essence, they are "good enough" to get it. However Joe wants it more than Bob does. Joe does everything he knows how to do in order to win it. Joe deserves it.
Ok... I know, I know. I'm not a scholarship, no girl is. However the principle (in my mind at least) is the same.
No boy deserves me yet, because no boy has cared enough yet to do everything he knows how to do in order to 'win' me. If you are a witness to my future dating life, feel free to tell me that a boy doesn't deserve me, because it may be true, and it'll probably be something I need to think about. I've decided I won't marry someone who doesn't deserve me, because I NEED to know that they are crazy enough about me to do whatever it takes to win me. I will gladly welcome your thoughts on this. But please be careful when you tell me that any boy isn't 'good enough' for me, because most of the time I think that will be a big silly lie.
How about "They just don't deserve you." Gotten that one too?
Those two phrases are starting to drive me crazy. I've been told both of them many times. Sometimes the person speaking is referring to a specific individual, and sometimes they are simply referring to boys in general. Most of the time people are trying to give me a form of unwanted consolation. (Either that or they are trying to give me adivce on the caliber of boy I should choose.) But anywho... they use these phrases frequently, and like I stated earlier... it really kind of annoys me when people say them; I've had a hard time figuring out why the use of these phrases bothers me, and I think I've finally got it. Most of the time people use them synonymously, but I've decided that they definitely don't mean the same thing.
In my personal opinion there are plenty of boys out there who are "good enough" for me. However, I have yet to find one that 'deserves' me.
That sounds super egotistical and cocky... so please allow me to explain.
Let's say two people are a applying for a scholarship. They both meet all the requirements to get the scholarship, however one of the individuals, (we'll call him Joe) wants it more than the other (we'll call him Bob). So they both set out to get it. Joe puts together a great application; he puts a lot of thought and time into the application and he does everything he knows how to do in order to prove to the award committee that he is the best person to recieve the scholarship. He submits the application two weeks early, and then religiously checks up on it to see if he will get the award. Bob on the other hand, throws together a last minute application, submits it's the day it's due, and waits to be contacted in order to find out if he has recieved it.
To me, it's obvious who deserves the scholarship more. Both Bob and Joe meet the requirements to get the scholarship... in essence, they are "good enough" to get it. However Joe wants it more than Bob does. Joe does everything he knows how to do in order to win it. Joe deserves it.
Ok... I know, I know. I'm not a scholarship, no girl is. However the principle (in my mind at least) is the same.
No boy deserves me yet, because no boy has cared enough yet to do everything he knows how to do in order to 'win' me. If you are a witness to my future dating life, feel free to tell me that a boy doesn't deserve me, because it may be true, and it'll probably be something I need to think about. I've decided I won't marry someone who doesn't deserve me, because I NEED to know that they are crazy enough about me to do whatever it takes to win me. I will gladly welcome your thoughts on this. But please be careful when you tell me that any boy isn't 'good enough' for me, because most of the time I think that will be a big silly lie.
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
Broken Hearts
I just read a quote that I can really relate to right now... it said "Broken hearts give us strenth and understanding and compassion." I had never thought of that before.
I've been really bad at blogging this past month. Mostly because I've been busy, and because I have been head over heels for my 'boyfriend.'
Well... technically he's not my boyfriend anymore, and my heart is broken. I think that he is still going to come with me for a week in August to visit my family, at least I really hope he will, (and I'm still excited about that,) and I believe that there is potential for us maybe dating again at a later time. Right now for us though it just isn't right. We decided we are still going to be wonderful friends, and we decided that instead of saying it's a 'break-up' that we are going to call it 'stepping back.'
Honestly no matter what you call it it still hurts. But I am at peace with it. I've gotten stronger the past few days. I've been crying some, but they've been cleansing tears. I've been praying a lot, and I've realized that Heavenly Father has something he needs me to do right now, and this 'stepping back' needed to happen in order for me to do it. I've remembered that I am a strong person who can stand on her own two feet and whose happiness is independent of other people's actions. It was a good thing for me to remember.
So yes I think it's safe to say that my heart is a bit broken right now... but I think it's given me strength and understanding and compassion that I would not have had if things hadn't happened the way they did.
For all you other's out there who know what it is to have a broken heart, I can now empathize with you. And for all you out there who like me, used to be terrified of ever having a broken heart... don't be quite so scared of it. It hurts yes, but the things you learn from it are priceless. I've come to realize that no matter what, faith and hope are choices, and it's possible to have a lot of both, even if you aren't sure in what. As long as you remember that God is in control and knows what will make you happy then a broken heart can be a blessing.
So Bennett... if you ever read this, please know I'm not upset. I don't regret one minute of time we spent together. I do regret anything I said or did that might have made you hurt at all, and I'm sorry if I did. I've been able to grow a lot, and I'll always be grateful for what you taught me. Thanks for being my friend.
I've been really bad at blogging this past month. Mostly because I've been busy, and because I have been head over heels for my 'boyfriend.'
Well... technically he's not my boyfriend anymore, and my heart is broken. I think that he is still going to come with me for a week in August to visit my family, at least I really hope he will, (and I'm still excited about that,) and I believe that there is potential for us maybe dating again at a later time. Right now for us though it just isn't right. We decided we are still going to be wonderful friends, and we decided that instead of saying it's a 'break-up' that we are going to call it 'stepping back.'
Honestly no matter what you call it it still hurts. But I am at peace with it. I've gotten stronger the past few days. I've been crying some, but they've been cleansing tears. I've been praying a lot, and I've realized that Heavenly Father has something he needs me to do right now, and this 'stepping back' needed to happen in order for me to do it. I've remembered that I am a strong person who can stand on her own two feet and whose happiness is independent of other people's actions. It was a good thing for me to remember.
So yes I think it's safe to say that my heart is a bit broken right now... but I think it's given me strength and understanding and compassion that I would not have had if things hadn't happened the way they did.
For all you other's out there who know what it is to have a broken heart, I can now empathize with you. And for all you out there who like me, used to be terrified of ever having a broken heart... don't be quite so scared of it. It hurts yes, but the things you learn from it are priceless. I've come to realize that no matter what, faith and hope are choices, and it's possible to have a lot of both, even if you aren't sure in what. As long as you remember that God is in control and knows what will make you happy then a broken heart can be a blessing.
So Bennett... if you ever read this, please know I'm not upset. I don't regret one minute of time we spent together. I do regret anything I said or did that might have made you hurt at all, and I'm sorry if I did. I've been able to grow a lot, and I'll always be grateful for what you taught me. Thanks for being my friend.
Sunday, May 16, 2010
A Dream is a Wish Your Heart Makes
"Have you ever had a dream? Something you wanted so bad you'd do anything?" -Hercules
"Yeah, I had a dream once. I dreamed that I was going to train the greatest hero there ever was. So great, that the gods would hang a picture of him in the stars, all across the sky! And people would say: 'That's Phil's boy. Yeah, that's right.' But dreams are for rookies. A guy can only take so much dissappointment." -Phil
I usually label my self an optimist. A silly dreamer, who believes in happy endings. Unfortunately I have a hard time seeing happy endings for myself, which makes me start to wonder if I am a Hercules or a Phil.
I think it's interesting that Phil and Hercules were both dreamers. I think everyone is at heart. The only big difference I see between the two (besdies muscles, good looks and a bit of height...) is of course the type of dreams they had. Hercules had a dream that depended entirely on his own hard to work to win it. Phil's dream required a second player though, someone to help his dream come true.
I think in life we all have a mix of the two dreams. Hercules type dreams are tough, but if we want it badly enough, bad enough that 'we'll do anything' for it, then we can get it eventually. The world will try to get us down and tell us we can't make it, which is what makes these dreams so hard.
I think the Phil type dreams are sometimes tougher though, because they depend on the agency of another person. Sometimes I think I tend to look down on Phil for his cynical attitude towards life, but then I remember that I react the same way when given his situation.
Have you ever had a Phil dream that wasn't coming true? You've tried to achieve it, and when you can't you decide it'll be easier to talk yourself out of it. Your Odysseus, Perseus, Thesuis and Achilles (sorry I butchered those spellings, but you know what I mean; your first few attempts...) all let you down - so you tell yourself that you are going to let go of your dream, as if that is an easy thing to do. Maybe it's a Hercules dream that is looking impossible, so you start to recite your own version of Phil's, "dreams are for rookies" mantra.
Do you think it's possible to let go of dreams? And I'm not talking about the little ones, the: "I hope that cute boy calls me this week..." or "I want to go to Africa someday" types. No, I'm talking about the ones you've been dreaming about for ages. The ones that keep you up at night just wishing and pondering. The ones that send a thrill through your spine when you dare to hope they'll come true. The big ones. Do you think we ever let go of them really?
Maybe we just change them. Tweak a bit here, and pull a string there so that it is more realistic.
Perhaps they break when unfulfilled, and we're left to pick up the pieces that are salvagable and put them together into a new dream.
Or maybe they live in our hearts forever, regardless of it they ever come true.
I don't really know. And I don't really need to know. I just needed a place to put my silly thoughts. Lately I've been contemplating a few of my dreams. Some are distant, some are fragile, and some are precious. A few I don't quite know if they are broken or not. Some I wish I could wash away with a bucket of soapy water and some elbow grease.
But let's face it. I'm a dreamer. I always have been. And I think that's ok.
It hurts when dreams are broken, but I need to keep reminding myself not to give up on them. Regardless of if they are Phil dreams or Hercules dreams, I think we should let our imaginations run wild with as many special dreams as we can. Because "You've got to have a dream. If you don't have a dream... how you gonna have a dream come true?"
"Yeah, I had a dream once. I dreamed that I was going to train the greatest hero there ever was. So great, that the gods would hang a picture of him in the stars, all across the sky! And people would say: 'That's Phil's boy. Yeah, that's right.' But dreams are for rookies. A guy can only take so much dissappointment." -Phil
I usually label my self an optimist. A silly dreamer, who believes in happy endings. Unfortunately I have a hard time seeing happy endings for myself, which makes me start to wonder if I am a Hercules or a Phil.
I think it's interesting that Phil and Hercules were both dreamers. I think everyone is at heart. The only big difference I see between the two (besdies muscles, good looks and a bit of height...) is of course the type of dreams they had. Hercules had a dream that depended entirely on his own hard to work to win it. Phil's dream required a second player though, someone to help his dream come true.
I think in life we all have a mix of the two dreams. Hercules type dreams are tough, but if we want it badly enough, bad enough that 'we'll do anything' for it, then we can get it eventually. The world will try to get us down and tell us we can't make it, which is what makes these dreams so hard.
I think the Phil type dreams are sometimes tougher though, because they depend on the agency of another person. Sometimes I think I tend to look down on Phil for his cynical attitude towards life, but then I remember that I react the same way when given his situation.
Have you ever had a Phil dream that wasn't coming true? You've tried to achieve it, and when you can't you decide it'll be easier to talk yourself out of it. Your Odysseus, Perseus, Thesuis and Achilles (sorry I butchered those spellings, but you know what I mean; your first few attempts...) all let you down - so you tell yourself that you are going to let go of your dream, as if that is an easy thing to do. Maybe it's a Hercules dream that is looking impossible, so you start to recite your own version of Phil's, "dreams are for rookies" mantra.
Do you think it's possible to let go of dreams? And I'm not talking about the little ones, the: "I hope that cute boy calls me this week..." or "I want to go to Africa someday" types. No, I'm talking about the ones you've been dreaming about for ages. The ones that keep you up at night just wishing and pondering. The ones that send a thrill through your spine when you dare to hope they'll come true. The big ones. Do you think we ever let go of them really?
Maybe we just change them. Tweak a bit here, and pull a string there so that it is more realistic.
Perhaps they break when unfulfilled, and we're left to pick up the pieces that are salvagable and put them together into a new dream.
Or maybe they live in our hearts forever, regardless of it they ever come true.
I don't really know. And I don't really need to know. I just needed a place to put my silly thoughts. Lately I've been contemplating a few of my dreams. Some are distant, some are fragile, and some are precious. A few I don't quite know if they are broken or not. Some I wish I could wash away with a bucket of soapy water and some elbow grease.
But let's face it. I'm a dreamer. I always have been. And I think that's ok.
It hurts when dreams are broken, but I need to keep reminding myself not to give up on them. Regardless of if they are Phil dreams or Hercules dreams, I think we should let our imaginations run wild with as many special dreams as we can. Because "You've got to have a dream. If you don't have a dream... how you gonna have a dream come true?"
Friday, April 23, 2010
Quirky Quotes!
These are my favorite quotes from the quote wall in my apartment... bear in mind most of them have a bizarre context, and were said very late at night :D
and I think one of my very most favorites:
Which is your favorite?
"Does this shirt match my spatula?" -Alan
'Carston! You are comparing us to something that kills people...' -Krystal
"Well they don't try to kill people... it just happens!" -Carston
"You could fit a baby in there!" -Dora
"You steal babies now?" -Krystal
"Do you want us to... umm... help make you cry?" -Riley
"Offering the dice to the sun gods...?" -Dalon
"My wings are sore!" -Krystal
"Well I wouldn't mind mating... I MEAN DATING!" -Dora
"It's wrong to lick your roommate. Especially when it's me." -Riley
"I was operating under the asumption that I wouldn't lose my VL's to a man... or a dog." -Kevin
"That wasn't a date, that was a frontal assault!" -Cami
"I don't think you are talking to me... so I'm just going to hang up now." -Krystal
"If this pumpkin were a man, he'd be perfect." -Dora
"They come over, and drop dead on our floor... We have to do SOMETHING with them!" -Krystal
"So you incorporate them into your art." -Nephi
"Oh no Krystal! Your knight in shining armour is in competition with the perfect man!" -Lyndsay
"I just thought you were having momentary problems, that's all." -Dora
"NO! I was DANCING!" -Krystal
"Satan! Stop talking to him!!!" -Dora
"No wonder we can't attract boys!" -Krystal
"We're too problematic!" -Dora
"I wonder what it would feel like to kiss Paul..." -Riley
"What's wrong with me?" -Krystal
"Everything" -Dora
and I think one of my very most favorites:
"Sorry, you have defective eyebags." -Cami
Which is your favorite?
Monday, February 22, 2010
I didn't come for the weeds.
Ok... so my post earlier this morning made me sound like a horrible moaning griper. But the thing is, I really do have a lot to be grateful for.
One of those things to be grateful for is wonderful visiting teachers who shared this story with me. It's changed how I'm looking at life, and it's given me a much better attitude the last few weeks. I'm taking it directly from Elder Eyring's words. It goes like this:
"How in the world, you might ask, do you expect us to excel in using our intellects and yet wait so patiently upon the Lord?
Let me encourage you by telling you a story. It was told to me by my father. He told it with the intent to chuckle at himself. It was a story about his trying to do his duty, just the way you try to do your duty.
Now you have to know a little bit about my father. His name was Henry Eyring, like mine. He had done some of the things students of this university are preparing to be able to do. His work in chemistry was substantial enough to bring the honors some of you will someday have, but he was sill a member of a ward of the Church with his duty to do. To appreciate this story, you have to realize that it occurred when he was nearly eighty and had bone cancer. He had bone cancer so badly in his hips that he could hardly move. The pain was great.
Dad was the senior high councilor in his stake with the responsibility for the welfare farm. An assignment was given to weed a field of onions, so Dad assigned himself to go work on the farm.
Dad never told me how hard it was, but I have met several perople who were with him that day. I talked to one of them on the phone the other night to check the story. The one I talked to said that he was weeding in the row next to Dad through much of the day. he told me the same thing that others who were there that day have told me. He said that the pain was so great that Dad was pulling himself along on his stomach with his elbows. He couldn't kneel. The pain was too great for him to kneel. Everyone who has talked to me has remarked how Dad smiled, and laughed, and talked happily with them as they worked in that field of onions.
Now, this is the joke Dad told me on himself, afterward. He said he was there at the end of the day. After all the work was finished and the onions were all weeded, someone asked him, "Henry! good heavens! You didn't pull those weeds, did you? Those weeds were sprayed two days ago, and they were going to die anyway."
Dad just roared. He thought that was the funniest thing. He thought it was a great joke on himself. He had worked through the day in the wrong weeds. They had been sprayed and would have died anyway.
When Dad told me this story, I knew how tough it was. So I said to him, "Dad, how could you make a joke of that? How could you take it so pleasantly?"
He said something to me that I will never forget, and I hope you won't. He said, "Hal, I wasn't there for the weeds."
Now, you'll be in an onion patch much of your life. So will I. It will be hard to see the powers of heaven magnifying us or our efforts. It may even be hard to see our work being of any value at all. And sometimes our work won't go well.
But you didn't come for the weeds. You came for the Savior. And if you pray, and if you choose to be clean, and if you choose to follow God's servants, you will be able to work and wait long enough to bring down the powers of heaven.
Don't worry too much about the apparent conflict between your scholarly ambitions and doing your duty to God as a humble Latter-day Saint. Both take diligence and enough humility to endure not having things go your way. But the rewards are far different, far greater.
I was with Dad in the White House in Washington, D.C., the morning he got the National Medal of Science from the president of the United States. I missed the days when he got all the other medals and prizes. But, oh, how I'd like to be with him on the morning he gets the prize he won for his days in the onion patches. He was there to wait on the Lord. And you and I can do that, too. We could wait on the Lord tonight.
I pray that we will, tonight, tomorrow, and on and on. Then maybe we can hear this said of us: And now, my son, I trust that I shall have great joy in you, because of your steadiness and your faithfulness unto God; for as you have commenced in your youth to look to the Lord your God, even so I hope that you will continue in keeping his commandments; for blessed is he that endureth to the end. [Alma 38:2]"
Isn't that the coolest story? It just kind of puts it all into perspective for me. And makes me properly ashamed of my bellyaching.
I should quit moaning about the weeds, because I am lucky enough to know that they are not what I am here for.
I am here for the Savior.
One of those things to be grateful for is wonderful visiting teachers who shared this story with me. It's changed how I'm looking at life, and it's given me a much better attitude the last few weeks. I'm taking it directly from Elder Eyring's words. It goes like this:
"How in the world, you might ask, do you expect us to excel in using our intellects and yet wait so patiently upon the Lord?
Let me encourage you by telling you a story. It was told to me by my father. He told it with the intent to chuckle at himself. It was a story about his trying to do his duty, just the way you try to do your duty.
Now you have to know a little bit about my father. His name was Henry Eyring, like mine. He had done some of the things students of this university are preparing to be able to do. His work in chemistry was substantial enough to bring the honors some of you will someday have, but he was sill a member of a ward of the Church with his duty to do. To appreciate this story, you have to realize that it occurred when he was nearly eighty and had bone cancer. He had bone cancer so badly in his hips that he could hardly move. The pain was great.
Dad was the senior high councilor in his stake with the responsibility for the welfare farm. An assignment was given to weed a field of onions, so Dad assigned himself to go work on the farm.
Dad never told me how hard it was, but I have met several perople who were with him that day. I talked to one of them on the phone the other night to check the story. The one I talked to said that he was weeding in the row next to Dad through much of the day. he told me the same thing that others who were there that day have told me. He said that the pain was so great that Dad was pulling himself along on his stomach with his elbows. He couldn't kneel. The pain was too great for him to kneel. Everyone who has talked to me has remarked how Dad smiled, and laughed, and talked happily with them as they worked in that field of onions.
Now, this is the joke Dad told me on himself, afterward. He said he was there at the end of the day. After all the work was finished and the onions were all weeded, someone asked him, "Henry! good heavens! You didn't pull those weeds, did you? Those weeds were sprayed two days ago, and they were going to die anyway."
Dad just roared. He thought that was the funniest thing. He thought it was a great joke on himself. He had worked through the day in the wrong weeds. They had been sprayed and would have died anyway.
When Dad told me this story, I knew how tough it was. So I said to him, "Dad, how could you make a joke of that? How could you take it so pleasantly?"
He said something to me that I will never forget, and I hope you won't. He said, "Hal, I wasn't there for the weeds."
Now, you'll be in an onion patch much of your life. So will I. It will be hard to see the powers of heaven magnifying us or our efforts. It may even be hard to see our work being of any value at all. And sometimes our work won't go well.
But you didn't come for the weeds. You came for the Savior. And if you pray, and if you choose to be clean, and if you choose to follow God's servants, you will be able to work and wait long enough to bring down the powers of heaven.
Don't worry too much about the apparent conflict between your scholarly ambitions and doing your duty to God as a humble Latter-day Saint. Both take diligence and enough humility to endure not having things go your way. But the rewards are far different, far greater.
I was with Dad in the White House in Washington, D.C., the morning he got the National Medal of Science from the president of the United States. I missed the days when he got all the other medals and prizes. But, oh, how I'd like to be with him on the morning he gets the prize he won for his days in the onion patches. He was there to wait on the Lord. And you and I can do that, too. We could wait on the Lord tonight.
I pray that we will, tonight, tomorrow, and on and on. Then maybe we can hear this said of us: And now, my son, I trust that I shall have great joy in you, because of your steadiness and your faithfulness unto God; for as you have commenced in your youth to look to the Lord your God, even so I hope that you will continue in keeping his commandments; for blessed is he that endureth to the end. [Alma 38:2]"
Isn't that the coolest story? It just kind of puts it all into perspective for me. And makes me properly ashamed of my bellyaching.
I should quit moaning about the weeds, because I am lucky enough to know that they are not what I am here for.
I am here for the Savior.
Wednesday, January 6, 2010
I firmly believe
that it's not about what you do, it's about who you do it with. You can have the simplest activity in the world-- or not activity at all for that matter, and if you are with the right person, or group of people, it can still turn out wonderfully.
Tonight I went swing dancing, which was fun, but it made me miss the people that I usually go with. It put me in mind of this quote:
I love this quote. Because it's so very true.
Tonight I went swing dancing, which was fun, but it made me miss the people that I usually go with. It put me in mind of this quote:
'Missing someone isn't about how long it's been since you've last seem them, or the amount of time since you last talked. It's about that very moment when you're doing something and you wish that they were right there with you.'
I love this quote. Because it's so very true.
How often do we completely forget about someone until their name happens to pop up in a conversation, and then we tell them: "Oh, I've missed you so much!" But really we haven't, because to be honest, we haven't thought about them at all. And then there is the flip side- when we can say that and really mean it. Because we find ourselves thinking about them and wishing that they were with us.
I hope I'm the kind of person that people really miss. They don't just say they miss me to make me feel good - but I hope there are at least a few that every once in a while will feel a twinge of regret that I'm not standing next to them at some point.
Because while it's no fun to miss people, there is something so satisfying about knowing you are truly missed.
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