As of late....

So, as you all know...I've had a rough start to college. It's probaly been the hardest thing I've ever had to face in my life so far--with moving away, starting HARD classes (school is NOTHING til you get to a University), finding friends, and finding myself. Anyway, I've found myself upset a lot. At everything. And I finally decided Saturday night, "I HAVE HAD ENOUGH." So I said a long, sincere prayer. I needed all the help I could get, and talking to Heavenly Father just helps me feel so much better. So, I woke up Sunday morning for early church, and I didn't complain. I went to church, sat by myself, and the cute girls in my hall came and sat down next to me. The executive secretary, the relief society advisor and the stake high council representative for our ward spoke that day. I'm not sure what everyone else got out of the talks, but I sure know exactly what I got! "FORGET YOURSELF AND GO TO WORK!" Then I went to Sunday school, where my adorable and hilarious roommate Tiffany taught. She taught about the Pride Cycle...and what came up? The only way to stay out of the "cycle" is to serve. Forget yourself and help other people. Then I went to Relief Society---that one is still hard to swallow. :) And what did they talk about? Divine worth. Finding yourself in the sea of people. Being happy. And then, Forget yourself and get to work. By that point it was like...okay. slap in the face. I've been such a self-centered brat. Anyway. Now to this picture. I went to a fireside Sunday night that this amazing man spoke at. I don't know about you, but this guy is one of my favorite people in the world! And what did I get from his talk? 1st, he related experiences that applied almost 100% parallel to my life, and 2nd he said, reach out to other people, live your religion, and serve. Hello. Answer to prayer? Yeah...I think so.

So. I woke up this mornring with a new attitude. Life is short, and it's not about me. It is about making other people happy. I made it a point, even though it was 7:45 in the morning, and 50 degrees, to smile at everyone on my way to class. Some smiled back, some looked away. But who cares? It made me feel good. I went through the day trying to maintain my positive attitude, and if I felt myslef slip, I'd quickly check it, and get back to the position that it IS NOT about me! Let me tell you. I had an AWESOME day.
On my way to American Heritage with Hanna, we saw a deer...and so we had to take pictures.

We walked in "late" but they hadn't started yet, so all was well.

Our friend Bambi on the campus...so random!

And the story draws near to the end. I had my first REAL Monday today...8 am- 6:30 pm classes. (with one break from 10-1) I went to my last class of the day--a stinking long class, and I was super super intimidated. It's a public speaking class, and everyone had already gone once; except for me. But I sat down, and two super cute girls came and sat next to me. We got to work in groups in class, and they were so welcoming, and so kind to me! Our teacher brought us snacks too. :) What a nice lady! And then, as I left, it started raining. Not too bad, just sprinkles, but the wind was blowing pretty hard also. Then it started picking up. (just so you can paint this in your mind, I was wearing a dress..and my backpack weighed about as much as I did) I thought, heck, who cares, I love rain. And then I thought again..."YOU HAVE YOUR LAPTOP IN YOUR BACKPACK IDIOT!" So, I started running. For those of you who know BYU campus, I was in the East side of the SWKT, and I had to go to the West side of campus to my dorm, and that includes a fairly steep decline from campus. So, as you can imagine, I looked like a fool. And I was getting DRENCHED. I finally made it to the Canon to eat dinner, dripping wet, with 20 minutes to spare before FHE started. So we ate FAST. Then, I just had a feeling to go check the mail..so I did, and what did I find?!

THIS GEM!!!! My first piece of mail! :) :) :) I LOVE LETTERS!!! And I love missionaries! And I especially love the two together! So, I ripped it open, trying not to get it wet, and read it as FAST as I could, so that I could run to FHE.

My calling for FHE is to be the "mom" of my group. So, tonight, I got to meet my family, and they are a little bit wild, but I already love them, and I can tell my calling will be fun! The "pa" of our group is awesome, and he seems like a super hard worker, and very down to Earth, and I'm excited to get to work with him!

Anyway, today was a great day! :) Happy Monday everyone!

Oh, and happy birthday to my mother! :)

Labs

So, I have this class called Physical Science....AKA Science for stupid people, and it is every Monday, Wednesday and Friday at EIGHT AM. Yes. Eight. It's a little bit of a struggle to stay awake. But my professor, well, he kinda looks like this little man...but he's taller, and he does LOTS of experiments, so it makes class interesting. Anyway. Wednesday's I have to go to the lab for this class. And it is taught by a TA. My TA's name is Alex. Alex is great. Every week Alex starts us off with some yoga. No, I am not joking. We literally clear everything out of our way, stand up, and do some yoga. Then we pump our fists in the air, and as loud as we can, with as much energy as we can muster, we yell "SCIENCE!". Then we sit down, and Alex proceeds to show us two things. 1--the shark of the week, and 2--the dinosaur of the day. Then we get our homework done. Needless to say, this may be my favorite hour spent on campus.

Happy hump day!

Today, I'm missin...

My family. And high school. Didn't realize how simple it was til now!
My Grant buddy, and the tire swing, and the cabin, and the smell of the forest!

My very handsome best friends! And the Mesa temple, and Sunday nights at the temple!

These crazy kiddos, and having Sunday dinners with them! (but I don't miss cleaning up after them! :))

My girls!

These lovely ladies! Their testimonies have bult me up so much, and it's so weird not having them around all the time!

These boys. Parker man especially! And going out to eat, and not worrying about school! HEAVEN. So excited for Thanksgiving!

Cross Country! I miss that training, that "I think I'm gunna cry, barf, and pass out, and that my lungs are going to explode, and all my limbs are going to pop off. All at the same time." haha I miss feeling in shape, and having that stress relief. Running without a team, and without competitions just isn't as fun!

All of these girls, especially that one on the end. Today in a testimony, someone shared something interesting. She said something that touched me, and got me thinking. I am homesick right now. I want to go home to my friends, my family, my home, the comfort that I know so well. But this girl said, "I am homesick to go home to my Heavenly Father. To have his arms wrapped around me." I had never thought of it in that way before. But I can only imagine how amazing it will be to run to him. To be in his arms. To cry. To laugh. To have him tell me I've done well. And, I have found myself imagining just that for Jakelle. As I sat and stared at the Christus at the temple on that Tuesday morning, I looked at the outstretched arms, and I imagined He and Jakelle running to eachother. I imagined Christ lifting her in his arms, and Kelle smiling, and crying, and loving every minute she has with Him. I imagined her dancing beautifully for Him, and bathing His feet with her tears. I imagined her thanking Him for everything, and for the time she was alotted on the Earth, and for the opportunity she had to touch so many. And I find myself, to this day, everyday, thinking the same things. Thanking the Lord for her, and her example, and that she was able to be in my life, even the small bit that she was. I find myself thinking of her EVERY single day. And thinking, if Kelle were here, what would she do? How would she get over the feelings of insecurity, and loneliness? How would she handle this or that situation? And I try and pattern my life more after hers, because hers was patterned so much after our Savior's. I am so thankful for her. I am so thankful for the Plan of Happiness, that literally is a plan for our eternal happiness, as long as we live worthy of it. I am so thankful for the opportunities that I am blessed with daily, and the ability that I have to start each day, each hour, each MINUTE new. Because of the Savior, and the atonement. I count myself blessed. Very very very blessed. And although I am missing so many, I know that they are always with me. No matter what.

Happy Sunday!