sometimes in september . . .

you realize 

there is almost nothing left of the chocolate you bought 

in Germany in May

and it's sad

like the end of summer

but worse

because instead of the consolation of fall--

crisp and lovely, full of soup and tea and sweaters--

you have only
empty wrappers

a furious wind

In my scripture study today, I read in Ether 6 and the following verses stood out in a way they haven't before:

5 And it came to pass that the Lord God caused that there should be a furious wind blow upon the face of the waters, towards the promised land; and thus they were tossed upon the waves of the sea before the wind.
 6 And it came to pass that they were many times buried in the depths of the sea, because of the mountain waves which broke upon them, and also the great and terrible tempests which were caused by the fierceness of the wind.
 7 And it came to pass that when they were buried in the deep there was no water that could hurt them, their vessels being tight like unto a dish, and also they were tight like unto the ark of Noah; therefore when they were encompassed about by many waters they did cry unto the Lord, and he did bring them forth again upon the top of the waters.
 8 And it came to pass that the wind did never cease to blow towards the promised land while they were upon the waters; and thus they were driven forth before the wind.
 9 And they did sing praises unto the Lord; yea, the brother of Jared did sing praises unto the Lord, and he did thank and praise the Lord all the day long; and when the night came, they did not cease to praise the Lord.
 10 And thus they were driven forth; and no monster of the sea could break them, neither whale that could mar them; and they did have light continually, whether it was above the water or under the water. (emphasis added)

 As I read this, it struck me that the wind is described as "furious" and "fierce"--how uncomfortable it must have been in those barges, being pushed by the wind and tossed and turned in the waves. And yet, it is the very furiousness of the wind that takes them towards the promised land and takes them there more quickly. We can think of our trials as being like this--they don't need to be obstacles that block us from arriving at our destination (although I think they can be obstacles depending on how we react to them). Instead of obstacles, trials and difficulties can be the very means of arriving at our destination. If our goal in mortality is to become like God--to follow Christ's example and emulate his attributes--then what better way to arrive than experience tempests and difficulties that test our patience, brotherly kindness, humility, and other Christlike attributes?

I'm also impressed by the fact that, despite the furious wind, these people were protected--no water could hurt them, no monster of the sea could break them, neither whale could mar them. Instead, they had light continually. As a result of preparing for their journey, these people were ready to meet the storms. God gave them a secure ship and light to live by.

He gives me the same.

Decisions, decisions

As some of you may know, when it comes to big decisions, I like to agonize and analyze and over-analyze for days and weeks on end--a process that becomes occasionally irritating to my more decisive family members and friends.

Recently, I came up with a great solution to my indecisive nature: GoogleBATTLE. Rather than spending hours talking through decisions with anyone and everyone who'd listen, I'd just type my choices into GoogleBATTLE and go with the most popular option. Simple and efficient.

Tonight, in an attempt to make a major life decision, I typed two options into GoogleBATTLE, blithely confident that this test would solve my problems.

The result?

A tie.

Back to the drawing board.

I don't wanna go to school . . .

when it feels like -9 outside. I hope I live to see this summer.

Southern California is sounding better and better all the time.

P.S. If you decide to make a comment, I'm accepting sympathy only. Please no "well-it-is-way-colder-here" or "it-was-much-colder-in-Canada-when-I-was-on-my-mission,-so-you're-a-wimp" type things. ;) Thank you!

Patience and marshmallows

The enabling power of the Atonement

I was reading a great talk today by Elder David A. Bednar (which you can find here). The whole talk is good, but I especially loved this passage:

"Nephi is an example of one who knew and understood and relied upon the enabling power of the Savior. In 1 Nephi chapter 7 we recall that the sons of Lehi had returned to Jerusalem to enlist Ishmael and his household in their cause. Laman and others in the party traveling with Nephi from Jerusalem back to the wilderness rebelled, and Nephi exhorted his brethren to have faith in the Lord. It was at this point in their trip that Nephi's brothers bound him with cords and planned his destruction. Now please note Nephi's prayer in verse 17:

"'O Lord, according to my faith which is in thee, wilt thou deliver me from the hands of my brethren; yea, even give me strength that I may burst these bands with which I am bound' (emphasis added).

"Now brothers and sisters, do you know what I likely would have prayed for if I had been tied up by my brothers? My prayer would have included a request for something bad to happen to my brothers and ended with the phrase "wilt thou deliver me from the hands of my brethren" or, in other words, "Please get me out of this mess, NOW!" It is especially interesting to me that Nephi did not pray, as I probably would have prayed, to have his circumstances changed. Rather, he prayed for the strength to change his circumstances. And may I suggest that he prayed in this manner precisely because he knew and understood and had experienced the enabling power of the atonement of the Savior.

"I personally do not believe the bands with which Nephi was bound just magically fell from his hands and wrists. Rather, I suspect he was blessed with both persistence and personal strength beyond his natural capacity, that he then "in the strength of the Lord" (Mosiah 9:17) worked and twisted and tugged on the cords and ultimately and literally was enabled to break the bands.

"Brothers and sisters, the implication of this episode for each of us is quite straightforward. As you and I come to understand and employ the enabling power of the atonement in our personal lives, we will pray and seek for strength to change our circumstances rather than praying for our circumstances to be changed. We will become agents who act rather than objects that are acted upon (2 Nephi 2:14)."

I love the concept that God, instead of changing our circumstances (which He easily could do), more often gives us the strength to internally change and meet the challenges in our lives. Facing challenges allows us to develop the attributes we need to become like God and act for ourselves. If God simply removed our trials, we would not be able to become the people He wants us to become. We wouldn't become those people because, if everything were always easy and burdens were always lifted, we would have no need to display Christlike attributes like patience, temperance, and endurance. This is why prayers pleading for relief from trials sometimes go unanswered.

God wants us to develop the strength and character to overcome trials, not just the faith to pray for deliverance. This doesn't mean, however, that He leaves us to fight our way through mortality alone. Rather, He blesses us with the enabling power of Jesus Christ to give us the capacity to overcome our trials.

Fairy tales

President Dieter F. Uchtdorf gave a really great talk in the Young Women's session of General Conference about once-upon-a-times and happily-ever-afters. I recommend watching it.

A particularly good insight from President Uchtdorf (or, as my niece would say, Presnent Uchdort)--

"It is your reaction to adversity, not the adversity itself, that determines how your life story will develop."