Smile

I was just listening to Dia Frampton's song, Inventing Shadows. The line I love most from this song is "Don't you know the world shines every time you smile? Why can't you just smile?" So answer me. Why can't you just smile? There is so much around you to be grateful for! There are several people who are much worse off than you are.

Looking around, sometimes I feel like I can't keep going on and feel like there are so many things going wrong in my life, but then I stop and truly see the world around me. I am at BYU. That alone is reason enough to keep me smiling for quite some time. I live with 5 other wonderful people. Each of them have amazing personalities that keep me motivated in my schoolwork. I just ate a wonderful homemade dinner consisting on breaded chicken and mashed potatoes. The fact that I have food is something that hundreds of thousands of people cannot say. I have socks, I have a bed, I have a shower, clean running water, I have a blanket, a TV, a cell phone, a loving family back home, and most importantly, I have the gospel of Jesus Christ in my life. If that can't make me smile, I don't know what can.

Now, I'm not saying that you should always be smiling, although that would be a great work out for the muscles in your face. There are times that should be serious, times that are hard on the soul. In these times, we should always have a smiling heart. A heart full of gratitude and unconditional love for our Savior. Never forget to count your blessings, name them one by one.

Smile at your friends. Smile at nature. Smile at the fact the fact that you have the technology to view this blog post. Smile in the face of temptation. Smile in times of adversity. Smile.

Scripture Power

Scriptures are truly an amazing thing to have in our lives. It can bring amazing realizations and comfort if we study them on a daily basis. Today in my scripture study I happened upon this scripture found in Alma 34:41 which says

"But that ye have patience, and bear with those afflictions, with a firm hope that ye shall one day rest from all your afflictions."

What a beautiful scripture to come across. No, I'm not passing through some great affliction or trial, but little things in life do add up and become a heavy weight in my life and I have not dealt with them very patiently. This scripture helps me remember that I need patience because I know the Lord will help me through trials.

If you are down, passing through an affliction, having a disagreement with someone, find yourself impatient, or are just stressed out, please remember this scripture. It will help you so very much in life.

Ice Is NOT My Stage

Today was great! I got my calculus homework done early and then we went ice skating for family home evening. I already knew I was going to embarrass myself because I've only been ice skating once and that was when I was 9...but I only fell once! But I was holding on to the wall when I fell...So ice is clearly not my stage. It was tons of fun though!

Random thought: appreciate what you have. Do NOT take it for granted. The people and things you have were placed in your life for a reason. Everyone has a purpose, they are not here by coincidence. When you're mad at someone, just try to imagine what your life would be like without them.

A Random Thought

Oh. Can I say that I LOVE the Hunger Games? I'm on Book 3: Mockingbird. Also, can I say that I LOVE Peeta Mellark? Can we just bring him to life? And I'll keep him all to myself? Yes. That sounds good.

Well, Hello there!

So today, I was reading through Audrey's blog and she inspired me to start my own. And since she was the inspiration, why not name my blog the name that Audrey calls me: Hoolietta! I've always wanted to keep a consistent journal, but it's never worked out for me very well. Soo I guess now I'll try a different approach. Fitting, since my lovely roommate Katelyn is giving a relief society lesson tomorrow about keeping a journal. Now I won't feel guilty while she's talking about it!

Well, now I'm sitting here after a long day watching Despicable Me. What have I done today? Woke up, went apartment shopping, drew on car windows (because there's finally snow!) read, read some more, and some more. Then, the FHE brothers came over because we were supposedly going to meet our new brother...which didn't happen. After they left, Natalie fittingly pulled out the awkward turtle sign. And now, here I am, watching Vector shoot a squid out of his squid gun. And methinks that is it for today!