Well, I guess I'll start with last night.
Gretel's 8th birthday was last night, and we had a good time eating cupcakes and watching Toy Story 3. I love that movie; it's the best animated film I've ever seen. Gretel will be baptized around Thanksgiving when all of the family gets together for it. Oh, I love Thanksgiving. I always look forward to it, because I know that the family party most always means 1. Tons of yummy food to snack on all night long, 2. Board games all night long, 3. Most likely a sleepover at grandmas and 4. Football in the morning! Julie Jarvis came over last night to join our family birthday party. She's a good girl; her parents raise her well. How old is she now, 10? She must be.
Everybody in the family is dying this week. Kids are sick and vomiting and irritated at everything. I'm glad I got it first so that I could help them get through it. Even mom had to shut down and take a couple of naps today. I hope tomorrow they'll be feeling better.
Today, I was priveleged with the opportunity to hang out with the ward missionaries, which I took. It was like job shadowing, and it was AWESOME! We didn't do any tracting, but we drove around to some of the less active members of the church and visited them. Elder Hill and Elder Mendel (dang it, I know I am getting his name wrong) are also the Spanish speaking Elders in our district, so we visited a couple of Spanish speaking people too. It was fun, even though I had a hard time understanding what was being said. Elder M (I'll just call him that) turned to me and said, "So, do you know anyone that we could meet?" at one point of our drive as we listened to Disney music, that's right. Disney music. Like, Hurcules, Mulan, Pochohantus soundtrack. The only family that I could come up with after a bit of thought was the Church family. They are a family of 6, and Henry just loves to come over to their house to play with guns and video games with his best bud Westley. A very very friendly family. I don't know them as well as Henry does, but I have met them a couple of times.
I directed the missionaries to their house, it being in the newer suburb area of town.
Mr. Church, with his friendly, metallic (he has braces) smile, met us at the door. I introduced the elders, and instead of saying some chiche variation of rejection, they had a funny conversation. Not about religion, about some salesmen that had just come by who were selling salad spinners! XD Mr. Church was expecting some guests to come soon, but he planned a time that the missionaries could come by again.
HE WANTED THE MISSIONARIES TO COME.
I am really excited for their large family. Mom later told me that they had been looking for a church to go to. I'll have to wait and see how things turn out...
After all of that, we returned to the Elder's apartment right on the top of this really big hill. It was, a cool looking spot to me, kind of symbolic to missionary work too, eh? Green grass, leafless trees scattered everywhere, and some cool archetecture right in the middle: their apartment.
The interior of the apartment was, I admit, cluttered. Though the room was filled with leftover snacks, books, planners, charts, and cutouts from church magazines, I could feel a unique, strong spirit in the musty room. I was kept well entertained just by studying the whole room. My two most favorite things that I noticed were a poem about refinement using a statue symbolcally and a quote by President Hinkley which went like so: "You are good. But being good is not enough. You need to be good for something. You need to contribute to the good of the church and society." I think I paraphrased it okay.
We just chatted about life while I was there. Elder Hill was a member of a student leadership group in his high school and had tried many different things in his life before his mission. He suggested that the best thing for me to do now is to just try everything out and see what I like to do. He sounded to me like one of those overachieving, organized, awesome kind of people. I love people like that; the more people like them I know, the closer I feel I get towards their levels of excellence. They are... inspiring. Elder M was still not too sure what he wanted to do in life, but that was exactly the reason he went on his mission. To figure things out, and to learn.
Even after just one day of working with the missionaries, I feel that my communication skills, thought patterns, and spirituality have improved. I love serving the Lord, and I love helping out the missionaries! They are so service oriented. They've got connections, and ya know what? I think that is one of the keys to success. To know people. The more friends you know, the more connections you have and the more work you can get done for the good of the world.
I am so so so excited for my mission. Now I can see why a mission turns a boy into a man.
Wednesday, November 3, 2010
Saturday, October 30, 2010
Chaotic Halloween Weekend
Oh, I am so tired. I am out of control, and need to restore balance to life ASAP.
Last night Anthony, Jefferson, Keith, JJ, and the rest of the Hidden Valley football team beat their rival North Valley. It was the first time they had beaten them in seven years! They were feeling pretty good about that, and I was very happy for them too. Unfortunately, I had eaten 1/4th of a stuffed pizza before going to the game, and felt pretty rotten by the end of the game. Lack of sleep+malnourishment +sickness+mental illness+working out+huge slice of greasy, stuffed, meaty pizza= vomiting. I threw up on the ride home, and stayed up all night, tormented by my uneasy stomach.
I awoke the next morning at around 8. I had to get to the church quickly to help Sis. Dastrup set up the big Halloween party. It is such a hassle, really. This was the third time that she was in charge of it, and third time was apparently the charm, so to speak. This was her final party; someone else will have to do it next year!
Anyways, I got there and started helping with webs and other decorations. My good buddy Jared Pearson was going to be designing one of the rooms, and had told me to get some dry ice for a mist effect. I told Sis. Dastrup about the need for dry ice and she said that there were a lot of others who would need some too. And so, after she gave me $20, I went on an epic quest to go find dry ice. And it turned out to be a much larger quest than intended.
Before I tell you of the adventure, let me tell you what I brought with me to the Stake Center. I, being a pack rat, brought way too much stuff. I brought two guitars (I was planning on teaching Carmen a bit of guitar before the party), a phantom mask (my original idea for a costume), an elf costume (for Jared's room. He wanted me to be some kind of mythical creature), a laptop (to present some music to some of my musician friends who I hoped would show up for a little organization meeting before the party), a board game (in case there was time for one), and finally, a notebook, my scriptures, and Rich Dad/Poor Dad. I know, way too much stuff.
Anyways, concerning the quest: Wearing my elf costume, I first ran to a nearby Safeway to find some dry ice. They didn't have any. However, they pointed me towards Albertsons, which sells the icy, misty stuff. So I ran over to Albertsons on the other side of town, only to find that they do not sell dry ice to minors! It's dangerous stuff, so, they made against the law for kids to buy it and make ice bombs and stuff out of it. I felt stupid and foolish. Why didn't I tell Sis. Dastrup to go and get the dry ice herself? She would've done it, and a lot faster too, being in a car and all. I think I've identified a lacking in my character: a lack of wisdom. I need to stop being so mentally lazy and think things out before doing them. I feel so weak.
I walked all the way back to the stake center and told Sis. Dastrup about the whole predicament. She left to go get the ice and some other things while I continued to decorate. At one point I stopped and spent some time reading Rich Dad/Poor Dad. That book is so amazing. I haven't read much of it yet, but it is so good. Fear controls most people's lives. Learning how to face fear, desire, and greed are the first steps to being truly wealthy. It went in to so much more detail than that, but it'd take awhile to make it understandable. I am excited to learn, to be refined. To gain more wisdom: my goal!
Some of the single adults were there helping set up that day. One of them, oh, I can't remember her name! She was playing some beautiful new age music on the piano in the chapel. It really soothed my tormented mind, and made my day. I am so grateful for the sacred gift of music.
I hadn't eaten anything that day, except for a few chips and some candy by noon. I was having a hard time keeping things down the night before, and didn't want to eat anything really. When Jared got to the church eventually, he shared with me a Subway sandwich that he happened to have. I love that guy! Well, no one showed up except for him for the musician meeting that I had planned. Ah well; it was too short notice. It wasn't well planned out. I'll try it again some other time, and give everyone an earlier heads up. Oh that reminds me, last night I talked to Clark from choir. He sung the National Anthem at the football game. He's actually trying to set up a quartet, and I gave him my name and number. I WANT TO SING IN A GROUP SO BAD. I am sick of my constant solos. There is an undefinable energy found in a group when it comes to singing.
Anyways, we set up his room after a lot of frustration and tape. We had vines and skeletons and webs and a bunch of other things like that cluttering the room. I never used the elf thing for the room, but instead was a scarecrow in the corner. Jared would say to the kids, "Hey, if you want more candy, go touch that scarecrow in the corner." When the braver kids did so , I would say, "Boo!", or "That's a cute outfit you're wearing, Ivy!", or "I AM IRON MAN, dunnanunnanunana iron man!" or something else like that. It depended on who would come. There were these two teenage girls who were saying to each other, "You touch it." "No, you touch it!" and it went on for the longest time. They were both jittery and scared, and I thought, "ya know what? These two deserve it." I arose from my seat and ran at them, howling "HAPPY HALLOWEEN!" They screamed. It was awesome. That happened a couple of times.
Fa and Carmen are two exchange students who are living with the Wrights: a family in our ward. Fa has a long and complicated name that I can't even spell, so she prefers everyone just call her Fa. She is from Thailand and loves music. Jared has a huge crush on her. Carmen is from Spain, and wants me to teach her guitar. They are both such sweethearts, and look so pretty! We had fun playing with guitars, cleaning, and just hanging out in general tonight, even though I was feeling under the weather. I hid my under-the-weatherness well, I think. Tonight was a great social thing for me. Most all of my friends from the stake showed up! And I learned a bit of awesome information too: Hayley is moving into the Murphy Creek ward! That's my ward! Yay! It'll be nice to have another friend in the ward. It's really kind of sad, my situation. There aren't really any guys my age who are interested in anything that I am interested in in my ward. Same problem with the girls, with the exception of Truli and the foreign exchange students. The more friends the merrier! I try to be friendly to everyone, but I still feel distant to so many people.
Anthony dressed up as Pac-Man for his costume tonight; how clever! It was a huge, round, 2-D thing made out of cardboard and yellow paint. What a great idea; that guy sure knows how to use his mind.
When it was all over, I was bushed, and ready to go home. After helping clean up a bit, we left at 9:30. Right now I feel so physically, mentally, and spiritually weak. I haven't studied my scriptures today, I have not been taking care of myself physically, and my mind is just, like, *fizzled noise*. Fried. I hope to use the day of rest to rejuvenate myself to get back on my feet! Good night.
Last night Anthony, Jefferson, Keith, JJ, and the rest of the Hidden Valley football team beat their rival North Valley. It was the first time they had beaten them in seven years! They were feeling pretty good about that, and I was very happy for them too. Unfortunately, I had eaten 1/4th of a stuffed pizza before going to the game, and felt pretty rotten by the end of the game. Lack of sleep+malnourishment +sickness+mental illness+working out+huge slice of greasy, stuffed, meaty pizza= vomiting. I threw up on the ride home, and stayed up all night, tormented by my uneasy stomach.
I awoke the next morning at around 8. I had to get to the church quickly to help Sis. Dastrup set up the big Halloween party. It is such a hassle, really. This was the third time that she was in charge of it, and third time was apparently the charm, so to speak. This was her final party; someone else will have to do it next year!
Anyways, I got there and started helping with webs and other decorations. My good buddy Jared Pearson was going to be designing one of the rooms, and had told me to get some dry ice for a mist effect. I told Sis. Dastrup about the need for dry ice and she said that there were a lot of others who would need some too. And so, after she gave me $20, I went on an epic quest to go find dry ice. And it turned out to be a much larger quest than intended.
Before I tell you of the adventure, let me tell you what I brought with me to the Stake Center. I, being a pack rat, brought way too much stuff. I brought two guitars (I was planning on teaching Carmen a bit of guitar before the party), a phantom mask (my original idea for a costume), an elf costume (for Jared's room. He wanted me to be some kind of mythical creature), a laptop (to present some music to some of my musician friends who I hoped would show up for a little organization meeting before the party), a board game (in case there was time for one), and finally, a notebook, my scriptures, and Rich Dad/Poor Dad. I know, way too much stuff.
Anyways, concerning the quest: Wearing my elf costume, I first ran to a nearby Safeway to find some dry ice. They didn't have any. However, they pointed me towards Albertsons, which sells the icy, misty stuff. So I ran over to Albertsons on the other side of town, only to find that they do not sell dry ice to minors! It's dangerous stuff, so, they made against the law for kids to buy it and make ice bombs and stuff out of it. I felt stupid and foolish. Why didn't I tell Sis. Dastrup to go and get the dry ice herself? She would've done it, and a lot faster too, being in a car and all. I think I've identified a lacking in my character: a lack of wisdom. I need to stop being so mentally lazy and think things out before doing them. I feel so weak.
I walked all the way back to the stake center and told Sis. Dastrup about the whole predicament. She left to go get the ice and some other things while I continued to decorate. At one point I stopped and spent some time reading Rich Dad/Poor Dad. That book is so amazing. I haven't read much of it yet, but it is so good. Fear controls most people's lives. Learning how to face fear, desire, and greed are the first steps to being truly wealthy. It went in to so much more detail than that, but it'd take awhile to make it understandable. I am excited to learn, to be refined. To gain more wisdom: my goal!
Some of the single adults were there helping set up that day. One of them, oh, I can't remember her name! She was playing some beautiful new age music on the piano in the chapel. It really soothed my tormented mind, and made my day. I am so grateful for the sacred gift of music.
I hadn't eaten anything that day, except for a few chips and some candy by noon. I was having a hard time keeping things down the night before, and didn't want to eat anything really. When Jared got to the church eventually, he shared with me a Subway sandwich that he happened to have. I love that guy! Well, no one showed up except for him for the musician meeting that I had planned. Ah well; it was too short notice. It wasn't well planned out. I'll try it again some other time, and give everyone an earlier heads up. Oh that reminds me, last night I talked to Clark from choir. He sung the National Anthem at the football game. He's actually trying to set up a quartet, and I gave him my name and number. I WANT TO SING IN A GROUP SO BAD. I am sick of my constant solos. There is an undefinable energy found in a group when it comes to singing.
Anyways, we set up his room after a lot of frustration and tape. We had vines and skeletons and webs and a bunch of other things like that cluttering the room. I never used the elf thing for the room, but instead was a scarecrow in the corner. Jared would say to the kids, "Hey, if you want more candy, go touch that scarecrow in the corner." When the braver kids did so , I would say, "Boo!", or "That's a cute outfit you're wearing, Ivy!", or "I AM IRON MAN, dunnanunnanunana iron man!" or something else like that. It depended on who would come. There were these two teenage girls who were saying to each other, "You touch it." "No, you touch it!" and it went on for the longest time. They were both jittery and scared, and I thought, "ya know what? These two deserve it." I arose from my seat and ran at them, howling "HAPPY HALLOWEEN!" They screamed. It was awesome. That happened a couple of times.
Fa and Carmen are two exchange students who are living with the Wrights: a family in our ward. Fa has a long and complicated name that I can't even spell, so she prefers everyone just call her Fa. She is from Thailand and loves music. Jared has a huge crush on her. Carmen is from Spain, and wants me to teach her guitar. They are both such sweethearts, and look so pretty! We had fun playing with guitars, cleaning, and just hanging out in general tonight, even though I was feeling under the weather. I hid my under-the-weatherness well, I think. Tonight was a great social thing for me. Most all of my friends from the stake showed up! And I learned a bit of awesome information too: Hayley is moving into the Murphy Creek ward! That's my ward! Yay! It'll be nice to have another friend in the ward. It's really kind of sad, my situation. There aren't really any guys my age who are interested in anything that I am interested in in my ward. Same problem with the girls, with the exception of Truli and the foreign exchange students. The more friends the merrier! I try to be friendly to everyone, but I still feel distant to so many people.
Anthony dressed up as Pac-Man for his costume tonight; how clever! It was a huge, round, 2-D thing made out of cardboard and yellow paint. What a great idea; that guy sure knows how to use his mind.
When it was all over, I was bushed, and ready to go home. After helping clean up a bit, we left at 9:30. Right now I feel so physically, mentally, and spiritually weak. I haven't studied my scriptures today, I have not been taking care of myself physically, and my mind is just, like, *fizzled noise*. Fried. I hope to use the day of rest to rejuvenate myself to get back on my feet! Good night.
Friday, October 29, 2010
Sick day :P
Our family has fallen ill, unfortunately. Today after seminary I slept in 'till 1. XP Ah well, at least I'm all caught up and won't get behind much for taking a day off.
The concert last night was a lot of fun! Oh, it made me want to go back to choir again. Just looking at all of those pretty and handsome faces singing up there made me want to get up and sing along, especially when one group sang "Bridge O'er Troubled Water". Not only was Hayley there, but a bunch of other kids from the stake too. It was really cool! The acapella group that sung that night was totally awesome. I've invited a ton of people to go to our singing group gathering tomorrow; I hope a lot of them can make it.
That reminds me, tonight is Anthony's last football game of the season! I am excited to see my ol' buddy play out in the mud.
Yesterday's piano lesson was so fun! My piano teacher showed me how Solfeggietto was played up to speed. It was MESMERIZING. I haven't had a clear goal in piano other than being able to play all of the popular hymns, but now I do: to be able to play Solfeggietto like a master. I love music from the Classical period; it is just so sophisticated and pleasing to the ears. Compared to all of the popular recent music today, the work of the masters is utterly superior, in my opinion.
The concert last night was a lot of fun! Oh, it made me want to go back to choir again. Just looking at all of those pretty and handsome faces singing up there made me want to get up and sing along, especially when one group sang "Bridge O'er Troubled Water". Not only was Hayley there, but a bunch of other kids from the stake too. It was really cool! The acapella group that sung that night was totally awesome. I've invited a ton of people to go to our singing group gathering tomorrow; I hope a lot of them can make it.
That reminds me, tonight is Anthony's last football game of the season! I am excited to see my ol' buddy play out in the mud.
Yesterday's piano lesson was so fun! My piano teacher showed me how Solfeggietto was played up to speed. It was MESMERIZING. I haven't had a clear goal in piano other than being able to play all of the popular hymns, but now I do: to be able to play Solfeggietto like a master. I love music from the Classical period; it is just so sophisticated and pleasing to the ears. Compared to all of the popular recent music today, the work of the masters is utterly superior, in my opinion.
Wednesday, October 27, 2010
10-27-10
The last few days have been full of productivity, and I have been feeling great. I've been working on school and seminary, and am happy to say that I am on top of all of my work. Today Henry and I went on a house rampage and cleaned all of the rooms in the house, which was fun. You can feel the spirit so much more easily in a clean house; I'm totally lovin' it. Seminary has been great, and I had an awesome find in the church a couple of days ago.
I was walking through the hall with Sis. Brinkerhoff, and I saw on the ground a pile of stuff. There was a pair of shoes and a hoodie and some hats and some other things like that. But what i found most interesting were the casettes that were in the pile. There were a bunch of sermons by John Bytheway in there! And even better, there was a book on tape by Brad Wilcox directed to fighting teenage troubles! It was so good to find the spiritual jackpot, but then I wondered who could possibly own this pile of stuff. I had to think of some kind of an idea. Well, maybe it was a "free stuff" pile. But there was also the possibility that the stuff belonged to some irresponsible soul too... And so, I left an note on the pile with my name and number, saying that if the owner of the pile ever wanted to see the casettes again, to give me a ring.
I haven't gotten into them too much yet, but what I have leared so far has been awesome. The tape by Bro. Wilcox is LIFE CHANGING. I swear to anyone who reads this blog, that any mental illness can be cured by Service. Go out and give people some Cool-Aid (what you give or do to people to make them feel cool, accepted, and/or loved). After forgetting yourself and going to work, you'll find that focusing on other's thirst for Cool-Aid quenches you own thirst for it. There is a bunch of other great stuff on that book recording too.
Hayley is going to have a choir performance tomorrow night, and I am going to go see her sing at GPHS. That'll be fun. Hatmen 4 is 2/3rds complete in filming, and I am struggling to find time to get it all done before Halloween. I just need to plan and hope things go my way. But something I have found that I need to work on is to not get fed up when things don't go according to the plan. I need more patience...
Mutual tonight will be a court of honor, nothing too exciting. At least I'll be able to see my singing buddies! That reminds me, this Saturday I plan on helping Sis. Dastrup to set up for the halloween party. I told Jared to come sometime during the day and to bring an instrument, an mp3 player, and ideas. Lots of ideas. I am so excited!
I was walking through the hall with Sis. Brinkerhoff, and I saw on the ground a pile of stuff. There was a pair of shoes and a hoodie and some hats and some other things like that. But what i found most interesting were the casettes that were in the pile. There were a bunch of sermons by John Bytheway in there! And even better, there was a book on tape by Brad Wilcox directed to fighting teenage troubles! It was so good to find the spiritual jackpot, but then I wondered who could possibly own this pile of stuff. I had to think of some kind of an idea. Well, maybe it was a "free stuff" pile. But there was also the possibility that the stuff belonged to some irresponsible soul too... And so, I left an note on the pile with my name and number, saying that if the owner of the pile ever wanted to see the casettes again, to give me a ring.
I haven't gotten into them too much yet, but what I have leared so far has been awesome. The tape by Bro. Wilcox is LIFE CHANGING. I swear to anyone who reads this blog, that any mental illness can be cured by Service. Go out and give people some Cool-Aid (what you give or do to people to make them feel cool, accepted, and/or loved). After forgetting yourself and going to work, you'll find that focusing on other's thirst for Cool-Aid quenches you own thirst for it. There is a bunch of other great stuff on that book recording too.
Hayley is going to have a choir performance tomorrow night, and I am going to go see her sing at GPHS. That'll be fun. Hatmen 4 is 2/3rds complete in filming, and I am struggling to find time to get it all done before Halloween. I just need to plan and hope things go my way. But something I have found that I need to work on is to not get fed up when things don't go according to the plan. I need more patience...
Mutual tonight will be a court of honor, nothing too exciting. At least I'll be able to see my singing buddies! That reminds me, this Saturday I plan on helping Sis. Dastrup to set up for the halloween party. I told Jared to come sometime during the day and to bring an instrument, an mp3 player, and ideas. Lots of ideas. I am so excited!
Sunday, October 24, 2010
Fishing/Hiking Campout
Today I just got back from a scout campout that I went to to get some requirements done. It was an even bigger adventure than originally intended! The pictures of it are on facebook; it takes longer to put them on here and only one person I know looks at this blog anyways.
So we started Friday evening by driving to Cave Junction. We got some meat there from Taylor's Sausage, listened to some live music that happened to be playing there, and then drove off to our spot. We were going to camp at Lake Tanner, but due to harsh weather, we decided to camp at Bolen Lake and go to Lake Tanner in the morning to fish. Earlier that day I had prepared some foil foods that Bro. Evans suggested. One was an apple with the core taken out and filled with cinnamon gummy bears dipped in chocolate (he originally suggested just normal, hard, cinnamon candy, but he also suggested to experiment with gummy bears!), another was yellow cake batter in an orange peel (which Jacob ate), and then the hobo dinner, with hamburger, onions, carrots, and potatoes.
That whole night was pretty crazy. The 12 year old scout that I shared a tent with went out in the middle of the night just to explore. It's some kind of insomnia thing he has, I guess. I didn't know this then though; he left while I was asleep. But when he came back in from the rain and got in his sleeping bag, it got wet on the inside and he started to make shivering noises which woke me up. I was quite confused as to how he got so wet. After a change of clothes and a new sleeping bag, he was just fine. My coat was warm enough to keep me happy sleeping on my mat for the rest of the night. So I dosed off some more, and then I was awoken by him talking. He just kept on talking about a bunch of random stuff ranging from Lord of the Rings to some scary girl in his class named Danielle. Although it was all interesting and all that jazz, it kept me up for the last few hours of the night. Ah well; you never get much sleep when camping anyways.
When it was time to wake up and leave, we threw all of the equipment in the cars and went off to the lake to fish. The fishing trip was pretty successful; my dad and Josh Haack both caught 10 fish or so each. I even caught one! The unprepared scout was moaning and shivering again, and didn't want to fish. He was feeling sick, cold, and miserable. Poor guy, I hope he learned his lesson. Hopefully his parents will prepare him with the stuff the leaders told us to bring next time.
Eventually everyone left in Bro. Black's car, except for me and my dad. We were going to go and go a 10 mile hike for one of the Hiking Merit Badge's requirements, and so we did. We went on a trail called Tanner Peak, and it was an inspirational experience for me, while also being challenging in the icy weather. The fog and mist covered everything. The wind and rain made the experience all the more epic and adventurous. The leaves of some of the trees had turned yellow while the evergreens retained their dark green shades. It was pretty... hm, a word to describe the area... mystical.
The long and monotonous march in the quiet place of nature gave me a lot of time to think. That's what I love about hikes; it's good meditation time. My last few days have been out of control. I have lacked the personal leadership that I need to feel successful, to have inner peace, and I've been spinning my wheels in the mud, so to speak. But while I walked my mind came upon Proverbs 3:3-5: "Trust in the Lord with all thine heart, and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him and he shall direct thy paths."
This is currently my most favorite scripture. I personally don't perform very well unless my spirit is strong. I forget things, I don't plan well, I lack the energy to follow through. I am weak without the Spirit of God. It comforts me that all I need to do to become better is to trust the Lord with all of my heart. Thinking that you can be happy in any other way is false. My new most favorite hymn is "I Feel My Savior's Love". That song brings such joy to my heart.
Anyways, our 10 mile hike turned out to be longer than expected. We made a wrong turn somewhere, short-cutted a bit, and eventually found ourselves quite lost in the wilderness, me and my dad. It was scary. We said a prayer, looked at the compass, and started moving west: the direction Tanner Lake was in. We found ourselves on another trail, but didn't recognize anything on it from when we walked in. Answer to prayer #1: Two people show up on the trail: a father and his teenage daughter. They were both wearing orange caps, and the father had a gun in his hands. We asked them for directions, and he had no idea what trail we were talking about. We had walked onto a completely different trail than the one we started on! He said to keep going until you found the trail head. Then he said that there might be cars that you could wave down to help you get a ride back to our vehicle which was parked at the parking spot near Tanner Lake. We thanked him and moved along. It felt so good to know that we were actually getting somewhere, even though it wasn't our original spot. I'm so glad we didn't get lost and die out there because of our foolishness. God is so gracious. And seeing that teenage girl's beautiful face totally made my day; girls are so awesome! There's a reason why scout camp isn't as likable as civilization: the lack of the young women! A smile from a female on any day makes that day worth living. Well, I guess all days are worth living, but, ya know. Sure makes me feel glad all the same.
ANYWAYS, we got to the trail head and waited for a car to pass by. None did. Eventually, dad gives me a walkie talkie and tells me to go down the road a ways and see if there might be a highway or something where cars would be more abundant. And so I did, but I found nothing. After almost losing reception with the walkie talkies, dad told me to come back. And so I did, and we waited some more. Two old guys who were driving a pickup truck rode by, but didn't pick us up. Dad thought that they thought that we were terrorists who wanted to kill them and steal their car or something like that. We kept on praying in the wind and rain for some merciful soul to come and help us. Answer to Prayer #2: This big green truck drives by and stops. The window rolled down, and dad explained our situation to a kind, pretty woman and a friendly looking and sounding older man. Out of the pureness of their hearts, they gave us a ride back to our rig, out of their way too. It is funny how much we take for granted things like heating and lighting and food and moms. I like trips like these that humble a body and show you how life would be like without most modern conveniences. Our saviors even gave us some water, chips, and jerky and let dad use their phone (which miraculously had service at one point!) as we drove to where dad's red Grand AM was. It was a huge answer to our prayers that these two showed up. May God bless them both forever for their Christ-like deeds.
After getting some poles, other equipment, and fishes that we left at the river, dad and I were off to home! We got there after about an hour's drive or so, I would guess.
I am so glad that I went. It was a challenge, but that was what made it so good. I love doing hard things; they refine me! That is what I seek: refinement. Maturity. Leadership skills. Initiative. Diligence. I know that if I just trust God and love him, "he shall direct my paths". I will keep this scripture in mind and learn myself to follow it good.
(btw, studying Huck Finn appears to be affecting my writing style. I'll write about him later.)
So we started Friday evening by driving to Cave Junction. We got some meat there from Taylor's Sausage, listened to some live music that happened to be playing there, and then drove off to our spot. We were going to camp at Lake Tanner, but due to harsh weather, we decided to camp at Bolen Lake and go to Lake Tanner in the morning to fish. Earlier that day I had prepared some foil foods that Bro. Evans suggested. One was an apple with the core taken out and filled with cinnamon gummy bears dipped in chocolate (he originally suggested just normal, hard, cinnamon candy, but he also suggested to experiment with gummy bears!), another was yellow cake batter in an orange peel (which Jacob ate), and then the hobo dinner, with hamburger, onions, carrots, and potatoes.
That whole night was pretty crazy. The 12 year old scout that I shared a tent with went out in the middle of the night just to explore. It's some kind of insomnia thing he has, I guess. I didn't know this then though; he left while I was asleep. But when he came back in from the rain and got in his sleeping bag, it got wet on the inside and he started to make shivering noises which woke me up. I was quite confused as to how he got so wet. After a change of clothes and a new sleeping bag, he was just fine. My coat was warm enough to keep me happy sleeping on my mat for the rest of the night. So I dosed off some more, and then I was awoken by him talking. He just kept on talking about a bunch of random stuff ranging from Lord of the Rings to some scary girl in his class named Danielle. Although it was all interesting and all that jazz, it kept me up for the last few hours of the night. Ah well; you never get much sleep when camping anyways.
When it was time to wake up and leave, we threw all of the equipment in the cars and went off to the lake to fish. The fishing trip was pretty successful; my dad and Josh Haack both caught 10 fish or so each. I even caught one! The unprepared scout was moaning and shivering again, and didn't want to fish. He was feeling sick, cold, and miserable. Poor guy, I hope he learned his lesson. Hopefully his parents will prepare him with the stuff the leaders told us to bring next time.
Eventually everyone left in Bro. Black's car, except for me and my dad. We were going to go and go a 10 mile hike for one of the Hiking Merit Badge's requirements, and so we did. We went on a trail called Tanner Peak, and it was an inspirational experience for me, while also being challenging in the icy weather. The fog and mist covered everything. The wind and rain made the experience all the more epic and adventurous. The leaves of some of the trees had turned yellow while the evergreens retained their dark green shades. It was pretty... hm, a word to describe the area... mystical.
The long and monotonous march in the quiet place of nature gave me a lot of time to think. That's what I love about hikes; it's good meditation time. My last few days have been out of control. I have lacked the personal leadership that I need to feel successful, to have inner peace, and I've been spinning my wheels in the mud, so to speak. But while I walked my mind came upon Proverbs 3:3-5: "Trust in the Lord with all thine heart, and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him and he shall direct thy paths."
This is currently my most favorite scripture. I personally don't perform very well unless my spirit is strong. I forget things, I don't plan well, I lack the energy to follow through. I am weak without the Spirit of God. It comforts me that all I need to do to become better is to trust the Lord with all of my heart. Thinking that you can be happy in any other way is false. My new most favorite hymn is "I Feel My Savior's Love". That song brings such joy to my heart.
Anyways, our 10 mile hike turned out to be longer than expected. We made a wrong turn somewhere, short-cutted a bit, and eventually found ourselves quite lost in the wilderness, me and my dad. It was scary. We said a prayer, looked at the compass, and started moving west: the direction Tanner Lake was in. We found ourselves on another trail, but didn't recognize anything on it from when we walked in. Answer to prayer #1: Two people show up on the trail: a father and his teenage daughter. They were both wearing orange caps, and the father had a gun in his hands. We asked them for directions, and he had no idea what trail we were talking about. We had walked onto a completely different trail than the one we started on! He said to keep going until you found the trail head. Then he said that there might be cars that you could wave down to help you get a ride back to our vehicle which was parked at the parking spot near Tanner Lake. We thanked him and moved along. It felt so good to know that we were actually getting somewhere, even though it wasn't our original spot. I'm so glad we didn't get lost and die out there because of our foolishness. God is so gracious. And seeing that teenage girl's beautiful face totally made my day; girls are so awesome! There's a reason why scout camp isn't as likable as civilization: the lack of the young women! A smile from a female on any day makes that day worth living. Well, I guess all days are worth living, but, ya know. Sure makes me feel glad all the same.
ANYWAYS, we got to the trail head and waited for a car to pass by. None did. Eventually, dad gives me a walkie talkie and tells me to go down the road a ways and see if there might be a highway or something where cars would be more abundant. And so I did, but I found nothing. After almost losing reception with the walkie talkies, dad told me to come back. And so I did, and we waited some more. Two old guys who were driving a pickup truck rode by, but didn't pick us up. Dad thought that they thought that we were terrorists who wanted to kill them and steal their car or something like that. We kept on praying in the wind and rain for some merciful soul to come and help us. Answer to Prayer #2: This big green truck drives by and stops. The window rolled down, and dad explained our situation to a kind, pretty woman and a friendly looking and sounding older man. Out of the pureness of their hearts, they gave us a ride back to our rig, out of their way too. It is funny how much we take for granted things like heating and lighting and food and moms. I like trips like these that humble a body and show you how life would be like without most modern conveniences. Our saviors even gave us some water, chips, and jerky and let dad use their phone (which miraculously had service at one point!) as we drove to where dad's red Grand AM was. It was a huge answer to our prayers that these two showed up. May God bless them both forever for their Christ-like deeds.
After getting some poles, other equipment, and fishes that we left at the river, dad and I were off to home! We got there after about an hour's drive or so, I would guess.
I am so glad that I went. It was a challenge, but that was what made it so good. I love doing hard things; they refine me! That is what I seek: refinement. Maturity. Leadership skills. Initiative. Diligence. I know that if I just trust God and love him, "he shall direct my paths". I will keep this scripture in mind and learn myself to follow it good.
(btw, studying Huck Finn appears to be affecting my writing style. I'll write about him later.)
Thursday, October 21, 2010
Get ready for a (close up to mouth) perilous adventure. DUN DUN DUN!
Okay, last night we talked a little bit about the scouting trip that we are going to do this weekend. The area that we hoped to go to do an overnight fishing trip is going to be rainy, stormy, and crazy. But we're going to go anyways! I plan on getting ready for the madness tomorrow... I think I have all I need. I just need to fit it all in the pack and find it.
I also got to talk to Jared, Jayden, and Laraine Pearson that night. They are in a different ward, but we got to sing and chat in the hall after out activities. I think our ideas for an acapella band are getting more and more developed. Mwahahaha....
The young women did a purple party that night! I guess the young women value of the night was Integrity. The YW values are so cool! Colors, YAY! Sis. Tripp (another super-mom I know) made purple food, dressed in purple, and even did her fingernails in purple! She didn't like the dark color for her fingernails she admitted afterwards though. All of the girls dressed in purple in some way. My sister Sabrina is so beautiful; she looked really cute when she wore all purple and her stylish glasses (she's nearsighted, I think). I told her, "Hey Sabrina, do you get told often enough how pretty you look?"
She said, not really understanding the question, "Uhh, no?"
I turned and yelled to my buddy, "Hey Jayden! Get over here!" and she ran right out of those glass doors! I thought it was kind of funny the way she reacted to that.
Today mom unexpectedly had to work in the morning, so instead of getting a bunch of schoolwork done like I had originally intended for today, I got to spend some quality time with my sisters. Faidra is so cute, and is such a talkative little girl! I would say "Hey Faidra, can you say _____?" And she would cutely try to say whatever I said. Or she would pick up something like a leaf in the yard and hold it up. I'd give her the name of it, and then she'd try to say it. It was so fun! I also attempted to practice piano while holding her on my lap today. She wanted her own solo apparantly; she kept grabbing my hands away from the keys so that she could pound out her own masterpieces. Oh, she's so precious.
Well, I got to get a little over half of the things that I wanted to in school today. But hey, it'll all get done eventually. Prioritize! Event control! I picked up this new book from the free spot at the church library today. It's title is something like "10 Principles that Control Life and Time and bring Inner Peace". I know, I am a self-help book addict. It's just so fun to read them and try to apply what's in them in yorur life. Still haven't finished 7 Habits yet though. I have so much to read... I've got this political book that I'm STILL borrowing from Bro. Evans that I should finish soon and I've now got a couple of Tennis Shoes adventure novels that I borrowed from Ceana that I must finish before *remembers date* OH MAN! I need to finish those books quick!
Ah, tomorrow is going to be a good one! I hope. The trip will hopefully be a good story to tell!
I also got to talk to Jared, Jayden, and Laraine Pearson that night. They are in a different ward, but we got to sing and chat in the hall after out activities. I think our ideas for an acapella band are getting more and more developed. Mwahahaha....
The young women did a purple party that night! I guess the young women value of the night was Integrity. The YW values are so cool! Colors, YAY! Sis. Tripp (another super-mom I know) made purple food, dressed in purple, and even did her fingernails in purple! She didn't like the dark color for her fingernails she admitted afterwards though. All of the girls dressed in purple in some way. My sister Sabrina is so beautiful; she looked really cute when she wore all purple and her stylish glasses (she's nearsighted, I think). I told her, "Hey Sabrina, do you get told often enough how pretty you look?"
She said, not really understanding the question, "Uhh, no?"
I turned and yelled to my buddy, "Hey Jayden! Get over here!" and she ran right out of those glass doors! I thought it was kind of funny the way she reacted to that.
Today mom unexpectedly had to work in the morning, so instead of getting a bunch of schoolwork done like I had originally intended for today, I got to spend some quality time with my sisters. Faidra is so cute, and is such a talkative little girl! I would say "Hey Faidra, can you say _____?" And she would cutely try to say whatever I said. Or she would pick up something like a leaf in the yard and hold it up. I'd give her the name of it, and then she'd try to say it. It was so fun! I also attempted to practice piano while holding her on my lap today. She wanted her own solo apparantly; she kept grabbing my hands away from the keys so that she could pound out her own masterpieces. Oh, she's so precious.
Well, I got to get a little over half of the things that I wanted to in school today. But hey, it'll all get done eventually. Prioritize! Event control! I picked up this new book from the free spot at the church library today. It's title is something like "10 Principles that Control Life and Time and bring Inner Peace". I know, I am a self-help book addict. It's just so fun to read them and try to apply what's in them in yorur life. Still haven't finished 7 Habits yet though. I have so much to read... I've got this political book that I'm STILL borrowing from Bro. Evans that I should finish soon and I've now got a couple of Tennis Shoes adventure novels that I borrowed from Ceana that I must finish before *remembers date* OH MAN! I need to finish those books quick!
Ah, tomorrow is going to be a good one! I hope. The trip will hopefully be a good story to tell!
Tuesday, October 19, 2010
Church Schools Seminar
Alright, today was simply another day of schoolwork. :)
THIS evening, however, I was privileged to go to a BYU seminar about all of the schools that the church supports. Compared to other schools, the tuition is VERY CHEAP. That can be thanks to all of those good tithe payers out there. But still, I'll have to raise some sum of money to get me where I want to go...
I have to say that the very best church school out there is Provo BYU. It is the largest, most state-of-the-art one that's there. I have sentimental reasons for choosing it over the others too: my highlight of the year happens here: Education Week. I think I have decided what I want to do in life, profession-wise. Almost. I am torn between two decisions: to major in Psychology, or to major in Religious Studies. I'd love to be a psychiatrist, but I am also attracted to the spiritual benefits of being an Institute teacher. My Heavenly Father will prompt me which one to focus on. But for now, I'm going to study both of them. I'd like to minor in a lot of things: Vocals, guitar, piano (well, maybe I'll be better at those two by the end of high school!), and business management. There is so much opportunity!
I'm glad that they don't focus completely on the SAT and ACT scores. Hey, I'm workin' to boost that grade! It's just calming for me to know that the church schools also put into consideration your background, talents, church and seminary attendance, service, and leadership skills. I need to work on all of these things too! There is so much to do in life; I am so excited!
I'm feeling really confident right now.
THIS evening, however, I was privileged to go to a BYU seminar about all of the schools that the church supports. Compared to other schools, the tuition is VERY CHEAP. That can be thanks to all of those good tithe payers out there. But still, I'll have to raise some sum of money to get me where I want to go...
I have to say that the very best church school out there is Provo BYU. It is the largest, most state-of-the-art one that's there. I have sentimental reasons for choosing it over the others too: my highlight of the year happens here: Education Week. I think I have decided what I want to do in life, profession-wise. Almost. I am torn between two decisions: to major in Psychology, or to major in Religious Studies. I'd love to be a psychiatrist, but I am also attracted to the spiritual benefits of being an Institute teacher. My Heavenly Father will prompt me which one to focus on. But for now, I'm going to study both of them. I'd like to minor in a lot of things: Vocals, guitar, piano (well, maybe I'll be better at those two by the end of high school!), and business management. There is so much opportunity!
I'm glad that they don't focus completely on the SAT and ACT scores. Hey, I'm workin' to boost that grade! It's just calming for me to know that the church schools also put into consideration your background, talents, church and seminary attendance, service, and leadership skills. I need to work on all of these things too! There is so much to do in life; I am so excited!
I'm feeling really confident right now.
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