Day #44: And they all lived happily ever after... One day.

Sometimes, life is hard.
Sometimes it's just medium hard... but other times, it's real hard.
Like REAL hard.

And I've definitely learned that no one is exempt from it.
At some point, we all have to pass through the allies of loneliness, despair, heartache, and the other millions of unpleasant emotions that are a part of human experience.

Why?
Wouldn't it just be easier to be happy all of the time?
Wouldn't it just be better if we all fell in love with someone, could completely trust one another, rely on each other, love Heavenly Father unfailingly, and live happily ever after?

Would it be nice? Probs.
Would it be better? I doubt it.  No it wouldn't.

The valleys of life are not fun.  They hurt. Lots.
But we learn from them.
Through them we have the opportunity to become even more.
We are given a gift: the gift of becoming more like our Savior.
I'm not going to feign a cheery attitude about these incredibly difficult moments of our lives by saying that growth is a sweet experience... but I will say that it is definitely worth it.

"The most beautiful people we have known are those who have known defeat, known suffering, known struggle, known loss, and have found their way out of the depths. these persons have an appreciation,a sensitivity, an understanding of life that fills them with compassion, gentleness, and a deep loving concern. Beautiful people do not just happen." ~Elisabeth Kubler Ross

Who am I to tell my Father in Heaven where He needs me or what will be best for me?
I have seen too many times in my life how the most painful experiences have brought the greatest of blessings.  I have learned time and time again that when we push forward in faith in the path that the Lord has laid before us, never ceasing to trust in Him, He can do so much more with our lives than we ever could on our own.

Each time, I become a little more refined, a little more purified, and a little closer to my Heavenly Father.
We're becoming pretty good friends by now.

I could put a million and a half applicable quotes to take up the rest of my blog post, but I think I'll just leave you with a few final thoughts.
First of all, everyone should read this talk RIGHT. NOW.
Your Happily Ever After by President Uchtdorf

Second of all, this scripture:
"O Lord, I have ^atrusted in thee, and I will ^btrust in thee forever. I will not put my ^ctrust in the arm of flesh; for I know that cursed is he that putteth his ^dtrust in the arm of flesh. Yea, cursed is he that putteth his trust in man or maketh flesh his arm.

 Yea, I know that God will give ^aliberally to him that asketh. Yea, my God will give me, if I ^bask ^cnot amiss; therefore I will lift up my voice unto thee; yea, I will cry unto thee, my God, the^drock of my ^erighteousness. Behold, my voice shall forever ascend up unto thee, my rock and mine everlasting God. Amen." (2 Nephi 4:34-35)

Last of all, I just want to bear my testimony:

I know that Heavenly Father has a plan for us.  If he cared enough to be involved in the fine details of making sure I was blessed enough to meet the wonderful people that have influenced my life, I know that he will continue to guide my path and footsteps as I continually push forward in faith.  I know that He hears and answers my prayers.  Everyone's prayers.  He loves so much for us to turn to Him, and by so doing, I know that we are blessed with peace and comfort.  I know that Jesus Christ is the Savior of the world.  He died so that we might return to Him, and He lives to succor my soul bring peace to my heart.  He is a real person. He is not a character from a story.  He has suffered our pains and is here for us every step of the way. I am grateful for every opportunity that has been presented for me to grow closer to Him, to become more like Him.  I am grateful for the love He has extended to me: for the opportunity to experience that love in a very real way for other people.  I know that the Holy Ghost acts as God's messenger and brings this love and peace into our hearts.  I know that they are real beings that help me every single day.  For that I am eternally grateful.  Of these things I testify in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.

Day #43: Religious, Southern, Trailer-born, Middle-Child Finds Joy, Confidence, and Love.

A TRAILER PARK -- 
My dad always says, "You can take the people out of the trailer, but you can't take the trailer out of the people."  I was born while my dad was finishing school at BYU in what was then the BYU married student trailer park at Wyview.  During this time, my dad was going to school and working while my mom stayed at home with my older sister and I.  My parents had to sacrifice so much to make this possible, but their example and the way that they raised us through this time has shaped who I am today.  First of all, this has impacted how I view the important things in life.  Because of my parents example, I find it so important to put the important things in life first: God, family, and people being at the top of the list.  Although we didn't have much during this time, my sister and I wanted for nothing.  We were children who knew laughter, dancing, music, and great joy!  Again, this trailer park instilled in us the knowledge that material goods are not the key to happiness, but rather righteousness, laughter, and family.




$10,000+ DOLLARS --

I worked very hard while I was growing up even though I did not have a steady job with a set income.  I babysat a lot and mowed my lawn on occasion, but mostly, I worked hard at school.  My mom told me that if I worked at it, I would be able to get scholarships and school would be my job.  While school and education in and of itself was always important to me, I always had another secret dream that motivated my desire to succeed: to travel and study abroad.  However, such a goal would cost a great price.  As I came to school, I continued to work towards my goal and was extremely blessed to be able to go to the BYU Jerusalem center over this past summer and had enough financial support to be able to accomplish this goal.  This experience and the Holy Land changed my life.  Through the people I met, the experiences that I had, and the places I visited, I learned more about myself and about life.  I gained a love for a people I had never met before and developed a desire to serve and connect to more peoples of the world who have different cultures than my own.  Most importantly, this experience strengthened my testimony, which is at the heart of who I am.  This wonderful place is where my Savior lived, taught, walked, died, and arose.  I came to know Him, and I am continually trying to put Him, His Father, and their gospel at the center of my life.  This experience definitely helped me continue on this path. The $10,000+, though a large chunk of money, got me on a life shaping adventure that I will forever be grateful for, and is representative of my belief in hard work, blessings, my Savior, and the confidence that I gained from this experience.




A PAIR OF JEANS --

In between my freshman and sophomore years of high school, my family moved from Georgia to Utah.  This move across the country rocked my world; it was culture shock.  The weekend after we moved was youth conference.  Because we had to wear long pants, and all of our pants were in boxes, we almost did not get to go.  However, our young women's leader stopped by our house and told us that she was going to take us to the D.I. to buy some jeans so that we would be able to attend this youth conference. While we were at this conference, we met a girl named Jillian who was moving to Indiana.  Jillian introduced me to a girl that would be going to my high school named Kirsten.  Kirsten ended up introducing me to people who would change my life forever.  The friends that she introduced me to taught me so much about what it means to love.  They taught me what it meant to have good fun and gave me the opportunity to practice being an example and to practice uplifting and loving.  These people shaped the way that I look at people and my desire for close friendships.  I will forever be grateful for the leader who saw fit to take me to buy a pair of jeans.  These jeans are symbolic of Heavenly Father's hand in my life and how I believe that He has blessed me with the experiences in life that I need when I need them.

Day #42: Jerucrew!!!!!

Here's a couple of pictures just so you can at least begin to put a few faces with a few names! (:
Also, my computer is in a weird Hebrew mode.... so I'm feeling a little confused about some of the weird punctuation.... but oh well.... love you lots! hope this keeps you happy!!!!!!

 This is me at the Dome of the Rock!!!!!!! I get to looks at it everyday.... just not this close.

 On the way up to the Pergamum Acropolis in Turkey! Kimmy, Cameron, and Paul Bradshaw(Nathan's cousin

 Some of the boys: from left to right: Taylor, Scott, Paul, Mike, Stephen, and Dallin is at the top of the little pyramid

 Roomi Date in the city!!!! from left to right: Vic, Corny, Sammie! k

 Just some of the awesome members of the Schade bus nbd (you'll read about this event in this weeks coming installment (;

McKay, Me, and Dallin (from left to right

Day #41: Tart and Tangy.

"Life.

Life is like a lime.

Ooo, it's tart and tangy.

Sweet, oh so sublime.

Quiet.

Speechless like a mime.

Bold and noisy like a crime.

So don't you dare waste my time,

'Cause life can stop...

On a dime."

~Walt Disney's An Extremely Goofy Movie

This poem has a lot of truth in it.

And it's always stuck with me.

Partially because this girl is just AWESOME.

Srsly though. Check her out.

Day #40: January.

So today, I started thinking of all the reasons I have to hate January:
1) I have to walk through temperatures that range from -4 to 14 degrees at 7:45 in the morning to go to class.
2) Inversion. Makes Utah County to where it has the worst air quality in the nation (that is NOT an exaggeration. it's a fact.). Makes it to where I can't see my beautiful mountains even though they are only two feet away from me (that IS an exaggeration).  Makes it that much colder.
3) I can't play outside. Well I could I suppose... but I run the risk of getting frostbite or slipping on the black ice that is everywhere and becoming permanently paralyzed... which frankly would be no bueno.
4) Trying to learn a new schedule.
5) Having to leave my family after an amazing break.
6) Having to find a new place to live next year.
7) Having to pay money.
8) Having to apply to my program.


But then, as I have found is typical in my life, as soon as I started coming up with the reasons I should be miserable, I knew I was having a rotten attitude and that I really have a whole awful lot to be thankful for.  Heavenly Father has been SO good to me, and sometimes I get so caught up in the mundane (like anyone I think) that I fail to keep in the forefront of my mind the truly remarkable and incredible aspects of my life that I fail to recognize.

Hence a list of just a few reasons that I have to love January... most of which occurred just within this past week:
1) My family comes and visits me. My dad came all the way to provo to give me a blessing.  My mom came and took me shopping last Monday and out to eat and we had SO much fun! I love my mom a million red icees.
2) I have the most amazing roommates.  Seriously.  They are so amazing and I love living with them.  They are some of my really good friends and I love how much time I've had recently to spend with them: talking, watching movies, laughing, eating, painting toes, going to volleyball games, etc. etc.
3) I have the best friends from home.  The angels came and we went on an adventure. During break Bekah and I did so much together! Spencalicious came and took me to dinner!
4) Travis (the 7th brother) made Rosie and I dinner on Saturday! And played cards with us.
5) Ritchard, Ashtyn, and I made civil rights cookies! (Nikki Manaj (spelling?) took best of show)
6) I get to study something that I am SO passionate about! I love what I am going into and I am learning so much about life, how to be a better teacher, and how to be a better mom!
7) I get to walk through the cold in warm clothes to go to the preschool where I get to see the loving smiles and learn from the mouths of precious children and an amazing mentor!
8) I have the chance to listen to the Spirit and find out what I need to be doing next year.
9) I have the opportunity and the resources to be able to fulfill a dream and go to Jerusalem.  It may be a lot of money, and some extra work, but in a way, this is one of the things that I have worked for my whole life... and I am so blessed to actually see it be fulfilled.
10) I see people I know on campus and I have friends in classes and on the way to and from class that I get to talk to!
11) The frozen snow and ice is sparkly!!!
12) I could go on... but I won't.

Sometimes, it is the times that you shouldn't be able to see happiness, the times when it is hardest to muster up the strength to smile.... in these times when you turn to the Lord in prayer and with a thankful heart, you are most blessed.  If you allow yourself to open your eyes to the incredible blessings that our Father nearly SURROUNDS you with, you will grow closer to Him AND be happier.  I know that because I have seen it in my own life.

Forum today was really incredible. One of the things he talked about was going about life as a quest, with our eyes wide open to the wonder and beauty all around us; becoming passionate and purposeful in our daily learning and reaching out to others. (i'll add a link to it when it comes out, because it really was pretty phenomenal)

I challenge each of you to go about life looking for ways that the Lord has blessed you each day.
Find His hand in your life....
And pretty soon, you'll be hard-pressed to find a place where His hand is not in your life.

And that is why the good outweighs the bad for the month of January.
And why all I can say at this point is:

I LOVE JANUARY!!!!!! <3

Day #39: Happy MLKJ Day!!!

Today is Martin Luther King Jr. Day.
Dr. King was an amazing man.
Really.

I just read a book called "Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry." (it was phenomenal btw. if you've never read it i strongly recommend it). Anywho, it's about a black family in the 1930s and it was really eye-opening to me.

I can't even imagine living with that kind of constant fear.
The fear of someone burning your house down.
The fear of someone coming in to lynch your daddy in the middle of the night.
Of a white man pushing you off the sidewalk to make way for his own daughter.
The fear of someone just wanting to take away your land.

And if you stood up to it for someone else, the fear that they'd do the exact same thing to you.

That is why Dr. King is an amazing man.
As well as all of those people who were courageous enough to fight for equality.
And not just during Dr. Kind's era either, but the founding fathers, those who have stood up for themselves in religious equality, women's rights, and racial equality.

That is what today is about.

Today is about equality and all of those men and women from our country who have dared to stand up for what they believe in, which was right, no matter who or what stood in the way.

And I am so grateful for all of those people.

Happy day (:

Day #38: The King.

Today is The King's birthday.
THE King's birthday.
Elvis Presley.

My obsession with Elvis started when I was in a musical with all Elvis music.
And then extended as my grandparents took me to Pigeon Forge Tennessee the summer after.
It might have even started in my childhood with my parents Elvis cds and listening to the soothing and powerful "American Trilogy" at Stone Mountain as the generals rode through the battle. (which, if you haven't heard that song and want to know what the South sounds like... that's pretty much it.... i LOVE that song)
And I haven't looked back.
I have seen 3 Elvis impersonators, own 41 Elvis songs, have 2 Elvis lunchboxes, a pack of Elvis playing cards, and a blue suede shoes Elvis ornament.

I guess you could say I just like Elvis.

So happy birthday Elvis!!!! Thank you for keeping me entertained.
And thank you to my grandparents who helped to kindle my love of Elvis.

Also, my grandpa and I used to imitate this video.... and we think we're pretty funny when we do that (: Enjoy.

Also shout out to my friend Cody who's birthday is also today. (:

Day #37: Speak Life.

What is friendship?
Better yet, what is love?

I've been really blessed to have friends who have taught me about so much about friendship, love, life, and relationships in general.  And I am still learning things all the time about myself through the interactions I have with them and other people.

I realized recently that part of true love, true friendship, involves wanting to be around someone: simply loving each other's companionship and what they individually bring to the table.

Activities become less and less about what you do... and more and more about who you do it with.



And through this love and companionship (or lack thereof at times), I've discovered the principle of speaking life:

Speaking life is more than just talking to someone.  If you've ever done it, you'd know the difference.  It's feeling for someone.  Feeling their pain and joy and really caring about what they're doing and what is going on in their life.

It's a connection.
It's when you know you are both helping each other to make it through on this journey that we're all on.  It's serving.  It's loving. It's listening. It's talking. It's being the hug the person needs.  The person you cry with.

It's making a discovery about who you are and about living life while talking with another person.

And it can be so simple sometimes.  How hard is it to just care? Care about what others have to say and what they are going through. Everyone needs someone to care.

So speak life.
Speak life with everyone around you.

Not only will it bless their life and lighten their burden, but it will lighten yours as well.
Trust me.
I have seen it in my own life and with the people I know and love. <3

Day #36: A deep thought I felt really great about...

One of my friends had a facebook status talking about how he hates it when people order food and say "I need a Big Mac and a large fry." because they don't actually need it.  He said that we need water and air, but that we just want those things.  I understand the point that he was trying to make... but I don't think I completely agree.

So this is what I said:
"not to play devil's advocate or anything... but i think it all depends on the context of how you are using the word "need". Because honestly, you don't "need" water or air to die... but you do "need" them to live. You may not "need" a big mac and a large fry to live... but you might "need" them to satisfy a craving that you're having at the time. Catch my drift? (:
just a little food for thought. (;
{pun intended. pun achieved.}"
I mean am I right?
What we need is really determined by what we need said object FOR.

I'm just sayin'.

Just let that simmer for a while.

Day #35: Living the Dream.

...... did i really just send in my byu jerusalem application...............

i've been thinking about this for months. and now i actually did it.

it almost gives me chills.

my mom always told us we had big dreams, but that we had to actually make them happen. whether or not i actually get to go is still to be decided, but it still feels amazing to at least be making the effort to do something i've dreamed of doing and been working towards. ♥

life's pretty amazing you know?

Day #34: Human Orbits.

"The same God that placed that star in a precise orbit millenia before it appeared over Bethlehem in celebration of the birth of the Babe has given at least equal attention to placement of each of us in precise human orbits so that we may, if we will, illuminate the landscape of our individual lives, so that our light may not only lead others but warm them as well." ~ Neal A. Maxwell

Perfect <3

At the end of an era.

Makes me step back and take a look back.

I'm so grateful for all of these people and the influence they had on me.

I'm so grateful for the blessings, the joys, the tears, and the heartache that they brought into my life.

No matter where life takes us, I will always remember them and the impact they had on my life.

My children WILL know their names.

And I feel so blessed to have had them in the orbits of my life.

And I'm excited to see where this next era takes me.

And the people that I am blessed enough to be included in their human orbitals.

WE WILL BE REMEMBERED <3

Day #33: Meet the Room-ee-z

Considering we're over half-way through the semester, I figured it was about time to introduce you to the room-ee-z. <3

Pretty much... I just love these girls and living with them a whole awful bunch.

Really though.

They make me laugh.

They talk to me and ask me how my day and dates go.

It's nice to know when you come home that someone cares about how your day went.

And are adequately distracting when they need to be.

They listen to me vent and are protective.

We pray together, play together, and live together.

Meet Krista: She is our outdoors woman. Seriously though. She is awesome. Triathalon? No problem. Dutch oven cooking? no problem! Save your parking space? NO problem. She also goes a little crazy when given caffeine....

Meet Melissa: Melissa is almost done with school and is so sweet. She also loves game nights and is always willing to go out and have fun if something's going on.

Meet Rosie: She is the best whistler I've ever met. Srsly. It sounds like a princess (as does her voice). She also is in the marching band. We really like to laugh and talk and sing together. We also like to greet each other when we come home (;

Meet Allison: We are going to co-host a talk show. And she is one of the greatest traffic sources of my blog. She also loves "Children of Eden" which made us automatic friends. Also obsessed with BYU sports.

Meet Robyn: My room-roommate. She is such a great example to me.  She is so good at listening to and I love when she tells me her stories.  Robyn's enthusiasm for life is awesome and I just love her lots.

Meet Me: Kacy Jae. I'll let you decide what I'm like for yourself (;

Pretty much I'm just really blessed to have these girls in my life and as my roommates.  I love them lots and lots and I'm so excited to get to spend the rest of the year with them!

Day #32: Perpetually Allergic.

This is a post dedicated to my allergies.
Why?
Cause I looked like this today:

But I felt I like this:

You see, at some point I developed really awful allergies....
It used to be where I could just take medication that the doctor prescribed when they started acting up and it solved my problem
But then they came.

And wouldn't go away.

And then I went and worked at a daycare.
And got a sinus infection.
And had to go to the doctor's office about once a month over the summer.

Then he gave me a shot to help my allergies calm down.
And it worked. Seriously one of the best medical choices I've ever made.

Only problem is it is a temporary shot.

And now they're back.

The end.
Blech.

Day #31: The red pants.

I just feel really good about the fact that I had these red pants before it was the "in" thing to do...
I'm just sayin'.

However, I have since retired these pants.
And I am without colored pants now.



But they made me feel really awesome while they lasted. (: <3

Can you tell?

Day #30: The Difference.

Have you ever had a crummy day where you're just a little short of miserable?

I've found that there's usually only one thing that can make me feel better on such days (aside from just going to vegging in sweats, watching byu approved soap operas, and sleep anyway) and that is people.

Maybe it's just because I'm an extrovert and therefore naturally energized by other people.

Or maybe it's because there is something in each of us that hungers for love and interaction with others.

Sometimes all it takes is a long phone call and just knowing that someone cares.
Sometimes it just takes a little bit of laughing a lot with your roommates.
Sometimes it just takes a walk and an hour and a half of getting something off your chest that you've had weighing on you for too long.
Sometimes it's a milkshake run, an ICEE run, and snickers bar/visit, or a Krispy Kreme doughnut.
Or one of your best friends and his family taking you out to dinner and buying you chips? Not even just because you're a poor, starving college student, but because they love you and just take the best care of you.
Or going to Pizza Pie Cafe with some friends even though you don't feel like spending money.

There is something to be said for spending time with the people you love.  There is something to be said for feeling a connection with someone (or multiple people).

And I think the most interesting thing is... the more and more I think about it....... everyone needs someone.
I don't mean a romantic someone... I just mean that person that cares that you exist. The person that makes a difference.

I don't think I'm the only person who's been afraid of being creepy or someone taking something the wrong way, but we should probably get over those feelings.
Because our efforts towards someone else could mean the world to that person.
No one dislikes being told nice things or getting letters/notes.  No one doesn't need to know that they are loved or be told that they're being thought about.

Everyone needs to be checked on and given a hug.  Everyone deserves to be told when they look nice.  Everyone needs to know that someone cares about them.

Everyone needs a someone.

And the thing is... we can be that someone.

We can be the difference.

And I am so incredibly thankful for all of the people in my life who have been that difference.  From people who have been in my life as long as I remember, to Brian, the kid I met on the bus once that was only in my life for three hours, to the new friends that I've just made recently..... This is dedicated to all of you who have touched my life.

And you may not even realize the impact you've had.....

This is for you <3

Day #29: Srsly though...

Look at this baby!

Look.
At.
This.
Baby.

Srsly though. LOOK AT THIS BABY!!!! AND TELL ME IT'S NOT THE CUTEST THING YOU HAVE EVER SEEN!!!!!!!!!

Also, today i had another one of those beautiful moments.
A moment when everything just aligned.
A moment when I re-realized that I am going into the right field.
When I remembered just how much I am going to love it.

Because I already love it.

And it is only beginning <3

Day #28: The grand adventure.

Becoming.

I am becoming.

This past year has been such a journey for me. It's been like taking a journey through an undiscovered mountain range. I am the explorer.

Like any mountain range, there have been ups and there have been downs, but unlike other mountain ranges, mine is unending. There is no definite number of slopes, and a peak can turn to a cliff within an instant.

Or sometimes, I am lifted up on the wings of deity and carried to the highest summit.

At times on my journey I have been struck with awe at the breathtaking beauty of the moments that surround me. The vibrant colors and jagged rough edges of life touch my heart as I acknowledge the diversity of experience.

At other times, the sharp pains and darkened paths have caused me to fall to my knees and beg for guidance.

And for a light.

Occasionally I am struck with the light in an instant, like lightening, and I am unable to deny what I am supposed to do.

Other times I gain the light gradually. Slowly. One color at a time.

Like a sunrise.

And sometimes that leaves me questioning, until I can see the full splendor and magnificence that lay before me.

The journey at times has broken me down.

It has brought me to my lowest levels.

At times, like the mountains around me, I have felt as though I were crumbling.... and I have had to question who I am. I have had to find who I am.

Without the security of everything you know. Without the confidence from everything you love, you become vulnerable.

You become moldable.

Your raw potential becomes exposed. And yet you must realize that without an artist, you will never become a masterpiece. When you recognize this... and you work with the Artist, together, you can become beautiful.

But it is not always easy.

He never promised that it would be easy. Just that it would be possible.

As you are broken down, you begin to wonder if you are ever going to be able to stand again. You wonder if you are doomed to be as the broken pile of rubble at the base of the mountain.

If you are wise, however, you realize that in reality, this is seldom the fate of anything that is broken down.

Our muscles for example. When you exercise, your muscles break down, but your body uses this as a tool. It takes the opportunity to rebuild, renew, and become stronger. You gain muscle.

After an earthquake, architects and builders take the opportunity to learn, rethink, and rebuild even bigger, even better structures. The building becomes stronger.

After a tragedy. After a heartbreak. After we feel so broken down that we do not think we can make it any longer, our soul must do this too. It rebuilds. It renews. Our soul relearns. Heavenly Father uses this as a means for our soul to become stronger.

We gain character.

And we continue on.

As we walk, as we experience, we learn what we like and don't like. What makes us happy. We learn what we want. We learn what we want to be. We start to discover what we need to be.

And as we begin to discover and explore these new facets of our personality and who we are, a field opens before us and we begin to gain focus.

We find what is important.

We start to gain confidence:

Confidence in relying on the Savior, because by this point, you realize that it is Him who guided you to this point.

You recognize the field as one of endless possibilities.

And you find yourself full of hope.

You find the love restored that once you lost.

You find that love in your interaction with others.

You find that love for life.

You find that you are loved and worth being loved....

Not because you weren't before.

But because you might have been temporarily blinded to these realities.

Everyone deserves to be loved.

And everyone deserves to know that they are loved.

And everyone deserves to find themselves and to find God.

And guess what?

He's right there waiting.....

He has already found you. You were never lost to Him. You were never below his reach.

He was there the whole time.

So let yourself take his hand.

Let Him lead you on a journey.

A beautiful journey.

A strengthening journey.

A journey which you will never forget:

A journey to find yourself.

Day #27: The P.E. teacher.

That awkward moment when you really think the attractive P.E. teacher at the elementary school you volunteer at is flirting with you.....

and then he mentions his fiancee's little sister............. and then you wonder why he was being so friendly................

................................oh utah county........

Boys: It would be most helpful to girls if you would wear an engagement ring of some sort... just sayin'.

..........

Day #26: Names

Kacy Jae Carr.
Stephen and Kathy's Daughter. Sydni, Scott, and Kelley's sister.
Kay-Raw. Kace. Kacy-jae-cee.
Miss Lady. Red Chip. Cake-y.

Names.
Names are important to us.
They are specific to each person, typically stay with us for a period of time, and give us an identity.  It is how we come to recognize ourselves.
It makes us feel good when those with whom we come in contact remember our names and call us by name.
My young women's leader once told us that our name is our integrity.
What do people think about when they hear our name?
Do they think good things, or negative things?
Or perhaps more importantly, what do we think when we hear our own name?
Elder Dallin H. Oaks once said this in an interview,

"There are also people who consider the defining fact of their existence that they are from Texas or that they were in the United States Marines. Or they are red-headed, or they are the best basketball player that ever played for such-and-such a high school. People can adopt a characteristic as the defining example of their existence and often those characteristics are physical.

We have the agency to choose which characteristics will define us; those choices are not thrust upon us.

The ultimate defining fact for all of us is that we are children of Heavenly Parents, born on this earth for a purpose, and born with a divine destiny. Whenever any of those other notions, whatever they may be, gets in the way of that ultimate defining fact, then it is destructive and it leads us down the wrong path."

So why this tangent on names?
And what realization did I make? Well I'm getting there.

I flipped open to Mosiah chapter 5 today for my scripture study and this is what I read:

"And under this head ye are made free, and there is no other head whereby ye can be made free.  There is no other name given whereby salvation cometh; therefore, I would that ye should take upon you the name of Christ, all you that have entered into the covenant with God that ye should be obedient unto the end of your lives.  And it shall come to pass that whosoever doeth this shall be found at the right hand of God, for he shall know the name by which he is called; for he shall be called by the name of Christ." (Mosiah 5:8-9)

This is what got me thinking about names, their implications, and how important they are.
Shouldn't the most important defining characteristic by which we are known be that of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.  That IS what we covenant to do every time we partake of the sacrament. He is the Light, the Life, and the Way.
As Elder Oaks said, we often get so wrapped up in the "I am a theater kid." "I am a jock." "I am a ballerina."
Yet as I make this list, I cannot help but be reminded of another name by which the Savior is known.
Is it not the Savior who is known as the great I AM?
And we are to take upon us His name.

Let being His disciple and being a child of God be our defining quality. Let us serve Him and always strive to live worthy of His name and become comfortable with being called by His name.

"...that ye hear and know the voice by which ye shall be called, and also, the name by which ye shall be called, and also, the name by which he shall call you.  For how knoweth a man the master whom he has not served, and who is a stranger unto him, and is far from the thoughts and intents of his heart?" (Mosiah 5:12-13)

What does our Savior and our Father in Heaven think when they hear our name?
I certainly hope that they look on us and see our greatest potentials.  I envision they are probably sitting there cheering for us and hoping that we will live up to our capabilities and gifts.
I also hope that I am honoring their names.
I hope I am doing with their name what they would want me to be doing.
I hope I am living worthy enough and close enough to His spirit that I will recognize when He calls me.
I hope we ALL are.

May we come to know the Savior enough and strive to live in such a way that those who know us will want to know Him more by the way we choose to live.

I know that Jesus is the Christ and that he did indeed die for us. I know that He lives.  I know that the atonement is real.  It empowers, it strengthens, and it eases our pains.  And I know that it is through Him that we can live again and return home to our Father in Heaven.  We do not have to do this alone.
The Lord is here.
He is waiting.
We cannot make it back without Him.
Turn to Him.
This is my testimony, and I close this message in His name,the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.

Day #25: A tribute...

This post is a tribute to my friend who gives amazing birthday gifts.
Why?
No it's not my birthday, but I wore the latest gift he gave me to school today (:

This is for you Zac Cooper.

One of the reasons his gifts are SO perfect is because he just thinks, "Kacy will LOVE this."
And he is always right.
Are the gifts elaborate? No.
Are they expensive? Probably not.
But they are SO thoughtful! They are things that he just knows that I'll love. Which is just as good in my book.

That is why Zac Cooper is the reigning world champion for best birthday gift giver three years running.

"I'd never eat your brain."
He MADE me this shirt based on "The Zombie Song" by Stephanie Mabey and the artwork of Maddy Ashton.

Zac and I also LOVE doing Richard Simmons.

Cousin Ed came in a tank with two frogs that I named Sonny and Cher... then I released them to fend for themselves in Stansbury Lake.

This is exactly what it looks like: a bedazzled stapler with colored staples. When I see that pink staple in my papers... I just love it.