I've always had a hard time bearing my testimony of tithing. It's not that I don't have one it's just that it's hard for me to share something that I can't prove. I want to say that I've received this blessing or that blessing from paying my tithing, but the thing is that it's hard to know which blessing is a result of what action. After all, obedience brings blessings, as President Monson taught in the April 2013 General Conference. Heavenly Father loves to bless us. He blesses us for every little bit of obedience that we show. It's easy to bear my testimony about tithing and point to monetary blessings. For example, when my husband and I were first married, we decided that we would always pay our tithing and that we would take it out when we deposited our money into the bank account; that is what we have done ever since. When we moved to Rexburg, we were somehow able to get by on $900 a month with $575 going to rent and another $200 going to bills, not including food. Mathematically, it doesn't make sense and looking back I can't say how we made it except that $90 every month went straight back to the Lord.
However, I have a hard time seeing blessings from tithing that aren't related to money. And in fact, any of the blessings that ARE monetary may not be a result of tithing either. In the end I suppose it doesn't really matter anyways. As long as we are faithful and obedient we will be blessed with the things that we need (though not the things we only THINK we need).
My tabs expired on my car in September and we were really bad about collecting the money to pay for the tabs and a new license plate (thank you Washington state). So we finally sent in the paperwork (including an out-of-state form for our smog test) late last Friday night. With Thanksgiving less than two weeks after we sent in the papers, we fully expected to receive multiple tickets upon our return to our home state for expired tabs. But today, only 5 business days later, we received the new license plates. I wish I could adequately express my gratitude for such a blessing! Despite my stupidity and my procrastination, Heavenly Father helped us out. I'd like to say that it is because we paid our tithing but I can't know for sure. And really, it doesn't matter. :)
Friday, November 22, 2013
Wednesday, September 11, 2013
Yoga Plug
I've just gotta put in my little plug for yoga so bear with me here. I took my first yoga class in 2011 during my sophomore year of college (yeesh! That makes me feel old to say that) I didn't really know what I was doing but yoga was supposed to be relaxing and heaven knows I needed to relax! Also, it was supposed to be the cool thing that all the sophisticated people were doing so I just HAD to see what the hype was about. Needless to say, I really enjoyed it! Obviously not enough to stick with it hardcore or become a yoga instructor or anything awesome like that but I loved the way I felt afterwards. Well I recently started up again just a couple days a week following some YouTube classes (<3 Yoga With Adriene. She's awesome!) and it's been great. But I was doing some meta-cognition (yay for being able to use a word they taught you in high school English but that you never thought you would be able to actually use) and trying to figure out why I enjoy yoga so much. And here's what I came up with... Oh and for those of you who aren't weirdos about words like me, meta-cognition, put simply, means "thinking about your thinking" or "thinking about the way you think" Something along those lines.
There's a quote floating around and I've seen it attributed to several people but since I don't know who actually coined it I'm just going to go with the masses and say that it came from C.S. Lewis. The quote is;
There's a quote floating around and I've seen it attributed to several people but since I don't know who actually coined it I'm just going to go with the masses and say that it came from C.S. Lewis. The quote is;
I like this quote because it points out the fact that who I am is my soul. My consciousness, my awareness, my identity originates not from the body but from the soul. Kinda weird to think. But don't worry, your body isn't just like a car that you drive around while you're alive. You'll get it back after you die (feel free to ask me about it if that sounds totally loony to you ;)). Back to the topic though. The point of introducing -or reintroducing- this quote is that I feel like most of the time we just use our bodies. We go about our day and through our routine without really being aware of the awesome bodies we have! Unless we are experiencing some pain in one section or another. That's what yoga does for me. It helps bring awareness to my body. The things I don't really think about. The tips of my fingers and toes. The tension in the backs of my knees. The position of my shoulder blades. Ya know... the weird stuff that most normal people don't think about. But that's why I LOVE it! I ran on the cross country and track teams in high school and I had a little bit of body awareness (usually of my knees or muscles) but nothing like with yoga. I'm not very good at many of the poses and I'm nowhere near yogi status but I would definitely recommend yoga to anyone who is kind of curious to know what it means to be aware of your body. Just try it... like 3 or 4 times before you decide to hate it. But just remember that yoga is more about finding what feels good (with correct alignment of course) than being perfect at every- or in my case, any- pose :)
Tuesday, September 10, 2013
My Little Testimony
Hello! It's been a long time. WAY too long. But I just really felt the need to write this post.
I have recently (meaning in the past few years) had several experiences that have shown me how individually our Heavenly Father loves us and how individually He knows us.
The first experience I remember was several years ago when I finished my first triathlon. It was just a sprint triathlon- not even close to Iron Man status. I don't remember much of the actual race but after I crossed the finish line I was so excited to have accomplished that goal and I remember a thought coming into my mind that my Father in Heaven was excited for me because I was excited. It seemed odd at first because it wasn't something very spiritual like going on a mission or even reading my scriptures every day for a year or anything like that. It was just a silly triathlon but He still cared. That was when I first began to understand the way the Lord loves us.
I have also come to understand that the Lord knows us. Sometimes even better that we know ourselves. He especially knows that I hate making decisions. The ones between good and bad aren't terrible but He likes to present me with decisions between two great things! (Thanks a lot!) I'm not sure how much growing I've done from that so I'm sure I'll have a lot more decisions like that ahead of me... maybe someday I'll get something from it. ;)
Another thing that He is very aware of is our problems. Whether they be large or small. Just a few weeks ago we were moving into a different apartment (WHOOT less rent! lol) and our lovely couch just happens to be 7ft long and 3ft deep. Not exactly a doorway-friendly couch. Well I got to our new apartment (after work) right as Brenn and two brothers from our old ward were trying to get the monstrosity through the door without much success. A picture came into my mind in that moment of exactly how they needed to get the couch through. And it worked! We don't have to be on the verge of disaster for Heavenly Father to care about and help us solve our problems. He even helps with getting a couch through a doorway.
So there you have it. The Father of our Spirits knows ME and he knows YOU. He is aware of each of us in every moment of every day. But you don't have to take my word for it... (Reading Rainbow flashback!) Elder D. Todd Christofferson's testimony of this truth is definitely worth the few minutes it takes to watch this video:
I have recently (meaning in the past few years) had several experiences that have shown me how individually our Heavenly Father loves us and how individually He knows us.
The first experience I remember was several years ago when I finished my first triathlon. It was just a sprint triathlon- not even close to Iron Man status. I don't remember much of the actual race but after I crossed the finish line I was so excited to have accomplished that goal and I remember a thought coming into my mind that my Father in Heaven was excited for me because I was excited. It seemed odd at first because it wasn't something very spiritual like going on a mission or even reading my scriptures every day for a year or anything like that. It was just a silly triathlon but He still cared. That was when I first began to understand the way the Lord loves us.
I have also come to understand that the Lord knows us. Sometimes even better that we know ourselves. He especially knows that I hate making decisions. The ones between good and bad aren't terrible but He likes to present me with decisions between two great things! (Thanks a lot!) I'm not sure how much growing I've done from that so I'm sure I'll have a lot more decisions like that ahead of me... maybe someday I'll get something from it. ;)
Another thing that He is very aware of is our problems. Whether they be large or small. Just a few weeks ago we were moving into a different apartment (WHOOT less rent! lol) and our lovely couch just happens to be 7ft long and 3ft deep. Not exactly a doorway-friendly couch. Well I got to our new apartment (after work) right as Brenn and two brothers from our old ward were trying to get the monstrosity through the door without much success. A picture came into my mind in that moment of exactly how they needed to get the couch through. And it worked! We don't have to be on the verge of disaster for Heavenly Father to care about and help us solve our problems. He even helps with getting a couch through a doorway.
So there you have it. The Father of our Spirits knows ME and he knows YOU. He is aware of each of us in every moment of every day. But you don't have to take my word for it... (Reading Rainbow flashback!) Elder D. Todd Christofferson's testimony of this truth is definitely worth the few minutes it takes to watch this video:
Wednesday, January 25, 2012
What is a Woman?
Recently I've been pondering the idea of womanhood. Seeing as how half of the Earth's population (actually, I heard it was a bit more than half but we'll just keep it simple) is female, you'd think that there'd be a definition of womanhood or a globally-recognized guidebook, "How To Be A Woman." But alas, tis not so simple. I don't know about anywhere else but as an American and as a member of the LDS Church I'm definitely given two slightly conflicting views on how to be the "perfect woman." It's kind of scary, really. Neither are easy and both promise a reward, though I'm not sure how much happiness the one delivers. To be the perfect woman, according to our culture, we need to have 34-24-34 measurements, be perfectly groomed at all times, fit, gorgeous, always wearing heels. Not that that's a bad thing! But I think the priorities are a bit messed up.
The worldly man wants women to be objects. He says women should be seen and not heard and that we are only here for the entertainment of the male species. He says women ought need to be sexy and beyond that, nothing else really matters. It is very common for women to be objectified in the entertainment business by synecdoche.
The worldly woman, on the other hand, says that the perfect woman will be career-driven and successful in their line of work. She says that we still need to be beautiful and sexy but that we need not be cumbered with a husband and that children will just ruin our potential.
The worst thing about all this is that it's so loud and so subtle. Daily, we're being bombarded with these messages and we may not even notice it!
That is why, it times such as these, I'm grateful to have stalwart examples of real women! Obviously, my Mother is the first that I will cite. She's been there to lead me all of my life. I've never heard her once complain that if it weren't for us kids, she'd be a famous chef in a big, fancy restaurant (though I'm sure it's true). I've never even heard her complain about how hard it is to be a mother and to try to raise four unruly and stubborn children! She's always been gentle and loving. In fact, the best word I can think of to describe my Mom is soft. I'm pretty sure the number of times she has raised her voice in my 20 years of existence can be counted on one hand. She's always been a fantastic example of love. I've never heard her speak ill of anyone. I've always hoped (and still hope) to someday be a mother like her.
The second example is my Grandmother. I don't remember spending a whole lot of time with her when I was a child because she and my Grandfather were off serving several missions for our Church, but I always loved the things I've learned from her. Probably, most notably, I learned to love baking. She was always so patient and kind, even when I got the eggshells in the cookie dough. I have come to find that grandparents have an ability to teach their grandchildren in a way that parents cannot. Since they are not so familiar as a mom or dad, they can teach bigger lessons than just the day-to-day things that parents have to go through. But I digress. Like her daughter (my Mom), my Grandmother has always been soft. She's probably the kindest and gentlest woman I know and I'm grateful for her example of service.
Since I cannot name them all, I'll just have to do a blanket statement and say that my third example is a conglomeration of all the righteous women in the scriptures, my wards, my stakes, and the General Authorities. Possibly one of my favorite quotes regarding the difference between a woman of the world and a woman of God is from Sister Margaret D. Nadauld, former Young Woman General President. In the October 2000 General Conference, she gave a talk in which she said,
The worldly man wants women to be objects. He says women should be seen and not heard and that we are only here for the entertainment of the male species. He says women ought need to be sexy and beyond that, nothing else really matters. It is very common for women to be objectified in the entertainment business by synecdoche.
The worldly woman, on the other hand, says that the perfect woman will be career-driven and successful in their line of work. She says that we still need to be beautiful and sexy but that we need not be cumbered with a husband and that children will just ruin our potential.
The worst thing about all this is that it's so loud and so subtle. Daily, we're being bombarded with these messages and we may not even notice it!
That is why, it times such as these, I'm grateful to have stalwart examples of real women! Obviously, my Mother is the first that I will cite. She's been there to lead me all of my life. I've never heard her once complain that if it weren't for us kids, she'd be a famous chef in a big, fancy restaurant (though I'm sure it's true). I've never even heard her complain about how hard it is to be a mother and to try to raise four unruly and stubborn children! She's always been gentle and loving. In fact, the best word I can think of to describe my Mom is soft. I'm pretty sure the number of times she has raised her voice in my 20 years of existence can be counted on one hand. She's always been a fantastic example of love. I've never heard her speak ill of anyone. I've always hoped (and still hope) to someday be a mother like her.
The second example is my Grandmother. I don't remember spending a whole lot of time with her when I was a child because she and my Grandfather were off serving several missions for our Church, but I always loved the things I've learned from her. Probably, most notably, I learned to love baking. She was always so patient and kind, even when I got the eggshells in the cookie dough. I have come to find that grandparents have an ability to teach their grandchildren in a way that parents cannot. Since they are not so familiar as a mom or dad, they can teach bigger lessons than just the day-to-day things that parents have to go through. But I digress. Like her daughter (my Mom), my Grandmother has always been soft. She's probably the kindest and gentlest woman I know and I'm grateful for her example of service.
Since I cannot name them all, I'll just have to do a blanket statement and say that my third example is a conglomeration of all the righteous women in the scriptures, my wards, my stakes, and the General Authorities. Possibly one of my favorite quotes regarding the difference between a woman of the world and a woman of God is from Sister Margaret D. Nadauld, former Young Woman General President. In the October 2000 General Conference, she gave a talk in which she said,
"Women of God can never be like women of the world. The world has enough women who are tough; we need women who are tender. There are enough women who are coarse; we need women who are kind. There are enough women who are rude; we need women who are refined. We have enough women of fame and fortune; we need more women of faith. We have enough greed; we need more goodness. We have enough vanity; we need more virtue. We have enough popularity; we need more purity."
I'm so thankful that in this world which shouts lies and blinds us with deceit, I've had righteous examples to lead me and show me how to be a real woman.
Monday, January 2, 2012
Gotta Start Somewhere
Facebook is all well and good but I have to say that I find it doesn't quite do everything I would like it to. So here I am trying blogging for myself. I've started (and neglected a bit) a blog for my best friend, Brian Hart, who is currently serving a 2-year mission for the LDS church but I've decided that I want to talk about myself a little more. I mean what girl doesn't? Also, I really enjoy writing but since I'm not currently attending any classes I don't have an outlet for any compositions.
Hopefully my blogging efforts will save my family's ears from incessant rambling since I seem to be a tad more concise when it comes to the written language as opposed to the spoken language. I'm excited to share my thoughts, challenges, discoveries and excitements with you!
I just wanted to start off by explaining why I chose my blog title. I'm not really cute or clever when it comes to naming things. In general I'd rather just call things what they are but "Alita's Blog" felt unoriginal and while I lack talent in the art of whimsical titling, I do not lack desire. In fact, a title is probably the biggest reason why I didn't create a blog 6 months ago. I mean, it's so hard to keep up with the cute young bloggers nowadays! And besides, my title needed to fit my criteria which was
1. Something I feel strongly about
2. Something slightly clever
3. (not actually a requirement but a desire) Something alluding to one of my favorite qoutes
So here I am trying to find something to appease all of my own demands, searching through some of my old favorite quotes for inspiration and finding nothing. Finally I remembered the sign that hangs in our entryway
I thought, "Well I like to laugh and I like to love and I like to live well, although that sounds a bit silly... I can just change it to learn."
So there you have it. My title. My life in three words (four if you count the "and"). Loving, Laughing and Learning. So simple and yet so fulfilling. :)
I look forward to sharing my adventures as I learn, laugh and love, and I hope you do too!
Ta ta for now!
Hopefully my blogging efforts will save my family's ears from incessant rambling since I seem to be a tad more concise when it comes to the written language as opposed to the spoken language. I'm excited to share my thoughts, challenges, discoveries and excitements with you!
I just wanted to start off by explaining why I chose my blog title. I'm not really cute or clever when it comes to naming things. In general I'd rather just call things what they are but "Alita's Blog" felt unoriginal and while I lack talent in the art of whimsical titling, I do not lack desire. In fact, a title is probably the biggest reason why I didn't create a blog 6 months ago. I mean, it's so hard to keep up with the cute young bloggers nowadays! And besides, my title needed to fit my criteria which was
1. Something I feel strongly about
2. Something slightly clever
3. (not actually a requirement but a desire) Something alluding to one of my favorite qoutes
So here I am trying to find something to appease all of my own demands, searching through some of my old favorite quotes for inspiration and finding nothing. Finally I remembered the sign that hangs in our entryway
 | |||||||||||
| "Live Well * Laugh Often * Love Much" |
I thought, "Well I like to laugh and I like to love and I like to live well, although that sounds a bit silly... I can just change it to learn."
So there you have it. My title. My life in three words (four if you count the "and"). Loving, Laughing and Learning. So simple and yet so fulfilling. :)
I look forward to sharing my adventures as I learn, laugh and love, and I hope you do too!
Ta ta for now!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)