Hello readers.
I'm sure that if this were paper and I were to be using a pen you'd hardly be able to read what I write. I just watched the cutest chick flick in my life and I simply had to write about it.
For those of you who don't know, there is a movie out on DVD and Blu Ray called "Letters for Juliet." When I first saw the previews for it, I thought it looked cute but pretty much like every other romantic comedy I'd ever seen/heard of. Well, while shopping with my mom today, she happened to mention that that was one of her new favorite movies. When I said I hadn't seen it yet, she marched right over to the movie counter and bought it. (That tells you how highly she regards that movie.)
I just finished watching it. How can I even describe it? It was possibly the most romantic movie I have ever seen! The storyline was perfect. The characters were well portrayed. The scenery was gorgeous! All I was missing was a plate of my favorite mushroom tortellini on my lap to munch on. I'll have to remember that for next time.
The best thing about the movie was the message of hope. The woman, Claire, is searching for her Lorenzo after receiving a letter from Juliet, written by Sophie. They search and they search all over the Tuscany area trying to find Lorenzo. As predicted, Sophie falls out of love with her side-tracked fiancée and into love with Claire's grandson, Charlie. Oh yeah, did I mention Claire hasn't seen her Lorenzo for fifty years?
What makes this film great is that no matter how many disappointments they run into, Sophie manages to keep up hope for Claire and Lorenzo. Now I'm sure you can guess that Claire eventually finds Lorenzo but then Sophie goes back to New York with her fiancée! Now how is Charlie supposed to marry Sophie if she isn't even on the same continent! (Claire and Charlie are from London btw.)
Because it's a romantic comedy, you know everything turns out alright but the constant suspense and surprise problems make this movie and truly delicious film. I'm so glad I got to watch it.
Of course, now that I've given you the storyline, let me tell you how I really feel about it. I. Love. It! It taught me that to live life with a bunch of "What if"s on your back is no way to live life at all! You can't keep thinking what if I had tried to make that work? What if I had actually done what I wanted to do? Granted, you can't be totally rid of EVERY "what if" but you certainly can pick and choose.
For instance, I have made the choice to serve a mission. Now I can wonder what if I hadn't served a mission as much as I please, but if I were to stay, then I'd always wonder. What if I had served a mission? Where would I be? Who would I know?
It is these thoughts I want to share today. Thanks for reading!
Tuesday, January 25, 2011
Thursday, January 13, 2011
Question to the Reader!!
Alrighty folks!
You hear so much from me, now I wanna hear from you.
I want to conduct research in the area of dating and attraction. Why? Because I'm a single woman with a curious mind, that's why.
So, here's the question:
What makes a member of the opposite sex attractive to you?
This is for guys and girls so don't be shy! I'll be posting my thoughts after I read yours.
You hear so much from me, now I wanna hear from you.
I want to conduct research in the area of dating and attraction. Why? Because I'm a single woman with a curious mind, that's why.
So, here's the question:
What makes a member of the opposite sex attractive to you?
This is for guys and girls so don't be shy! I'll be posting my thoughts after I read yours.
Sunday, January 9, 2011
There is Peace
It never ceases to amaze me the constant awareness our Father in Heaven has for each and every one of His children. Tonight we had a fireside that greatly helped put my mind and spirit at ease. The past few days have been a bit of a trial for me. It seems that as the time draws closer for me to report, the Adversary sends more of his forces to try and stop me. Day by day I found myself more and more in a constant state of indolence and impatience. After all, there is simply too much for me to do to get ready for this mission thing. Why did I ever think I could possibly do it all in one month?
Well, my friends, let me tell you what I learned today. Elder D. Todd Christofferson, member of the quorum of the Twelve Apostles gave the lesson in the fireside tonight. He spoke on living our lives day to day as opposed to getting caught up in the terrifying possibilities of the future. My dad put it well when he said, "Why spend all our time worrying about a future that may or may not actually happen?" I cannot describe here all the things I heard and felt. I'm still trying to digest it all. Needless to say, it has changed my perspective on my current state of living. Sure, I'm back with my parents again, but that doesn't mean I can't still progress. It's just a different way of progressing.
I know it's short but there were a lot of very personal things that I learned. I tried to put them down here and they just wouldn't come out. Therefore, you're getting the CliffNotes version instead. Happy week everyone!
Well, my friends, let me tell you what I learned today. Elder D. Todd Christofferson, member of the quorum of the Twelve Apostles gave the lesson in the fireside tonight. He spoke on living our lives day to day as opposed to getting caught up in the terrifying possibilities of the future. My dad put it well when he said, "Why spend all our time worrying about a future that may or may not actually happen?" I cannot describe here all the things I heard and felt. I'm still trying to digest it all. Needless to say, it has changed my perspective on my current state of living. Sure, I'm back with my parents again, but that doesn't mean I can't still progress. It's just a different way of progressing.
I know it's short but there were a lot of very personal things that I learned. I tried to put them down here and they just wouldn't come out. Therefore, you're getting the CliffNotes version instead. Happy week everyone!
Friday, January 7, 2011
Celebrate
Now what kind of blogger would I be if I didn't blog about the coming of the New Year? I'll admit, I was a little apprehensive about the party this year. It seems the longer I am away from here, the less and less I feel like I fit. Nonetheless, Heavenly Father constantly shows me examples of love and kindness in ALL of His children. My family has made some wonderful friends out here.
Now that that has been said, allow me to fill you in on all my adventures for this new year!! (Don't worry, it'll be brief...or it should be)
I have learned so much already I'm pretty sure I could burst. First lesson, obsession that causes you to look back longingly is NOT healthy. I don't actually have a detailed story to share with you but suffice it to say that once your obsession creeps into your dreams and taints treasured memories, something has got to change.
Another lesson learned is the importance of patience, tolerance and love. If we are not patient when things don't go our way, we make ourselves and those around us miserable. At least I know I do. Perhaps it's just the way I handle impatience but I'm kind of annoying when I get that way. I can only imagine how I sound to/affect the people around me.
In other news, I have 25 days left in the "real world." That means 25 more days to get myself to the level I need to be to serve to the best of my ability. Sometimes, that seems like tomorrow. Other times, it seems like an eternity. How can I possibly pass that much time away productively? I'll just have to get creative I guess.
Anywho, thank you for reading today. I'm sorry there isn't much depth but then again, this blog IS just the ramblings of a girl lost in thought. I hope you all enjoy your first Friday of the new year!
Now that that has been said, allow me to fill you in on all my adventures for this new year!! (Don't worry, it'll be brief...or it should be)
I have learned so much already I'm pretty sure I could burst. First lesson, obsession that causes you to look back longingly is NOT healthy. I don't actually have a detailed story to share with you but suffice it to say that once your obsession creeps into your dreams and taints treasured memories, something has got to change.
Another lesson learned is the importance of patience, tolerance and love. If we are not patient when things don't go our way, we make ourselves and those around us miserable. At least I know I do. Perhaps it's just the way I handle impatience but I'm kind of annoying when I get that way. I can only imagine how I sound to/affect the people around me.
In other news, I have 25 days left in the "real world." That means 25 more days to get myself to the level I need to be to serve to the best of my ability. Sometimes, that seems like tomorrow. Other times, it seems like an eternity. How can I possibly pass that much time away productively? I'll just have to get creative I guess.
Anywho, thank you for reading today. I'm sorry there isn't much depth but then again, this blog IS just the ramblings of a girl lost in thought. I hope you all enjoy your first Friday of the new year!
Thursday, December 30, 2010
You're the Inspiration
Coming home after college is always an interesting transition. Some visits are easier to make than others. However, when all is said and done, I'm always glad I made it. For those of you who don't know, I am staying in Indiana until February 1st. (I might have mentioned that in a previous post but since it was so long, you might not have made it that far down.) This means that I get an extra month to spend with some of the best people I know.
Something I've learned in the past couple of days is sometimes the people you love the most push your temper buttons the easiest. While I'm not positive as to why this is I have a couple of theories.
Theory #1:
It is my belief that the basic fundamental element to pure happiness is love. The greatest love is found in the family. Therefore, if one is determined to ruin one's happiness, ruin the family first. That decreases the chances of happiness and increases the chances of contention. Now, if you don't know already, contention is NOT a good thing. In fact, I believe it to be evil. I know when I feel contentious, I lose sight of anything else and become consumed by the reason for my contention, whether it be self-imposed or someone else's action. When you inject that contention into a family, it causes one to forget the ties that bind a family together. They don't disappear per say, they just get hidden.
That was a very round about way to say that I have had my fair share of contentious encounters with family and friends the past few days. Some had pretty minor effects, others were not so minor. It had me very confused. How could I possibly have this much contention in my life while I am home? Sure I had a very few arguments with roommates and friends while away at school but nothing so heated as being home. What happened? Do you want to know what I've decided? Well good! Cause I'm gonna tell ya. ;)
I decided that there has been some extra pushing of those temper buttons in my life. Someone obviously knows that my fuse is pretty short. (I know. For those school friends who are reading this and think I'm the most tolerant person in the world, talk to my parents/siblings/room roomies. They'll tell you all about my temper issues.) But that doesn't mean I have to let it be lit in the first place right? I mean, all the experts say that we choose to get angry or sad or happy or whatever. While I don't always believe that, I DO believe we can decided whether or not to let those emotions continue or not. We choose which emotions to hold on to, if you catch my drift. So that is theory #1
Theory #2
Family members have known you either your whole life or their's. With that length of experience comes knowledge of your weaknesses, strengths, annoyances, passions and so on. If you're a private person, this list may not be all that complete but it is my belief that you can only watch someone so long in life without learning a thing or two about them, whether you want to or not. So with that knowledge, your family has the power to act on that knowledge. Agency is one of the greatest gifts we have. Why we use it to purposely annoy/anger our family members? I dunno. I'm very guilty of this though. I won't deny it. Thus is my theory #2.
I propose I change in all of us. Let's try to cut down on the contention. Let's do away with undue criticism and hurtful words/actions. Let us be mindful of our fellow man as well as ourselves. We could all get along much nicer if we weren't so defensive all the time. We could be less defensive if we weren't worried about the next knife aimed for our backs. Let's be sincere in our words. Let's just love one another.
That's my request. In fact, I think I'll make that my New Year's Resolution! I don't know how I'll track it. I'll think about it some more and let you know. ;)
Good day world!
Good night.
Something I've learned in the past couple of days is sometimes the people you love the most push your temper buttons the easiest. While I'm not positive as to why this is I have a couple of theories.
Theory #1:
It is my belief that the basic fundamental element to pure happiness is love. The greatest love is found in the family. Therefore, if one is determined to ruin one's happiness, ruin the family first. That decreases the chances of happiness and increases the chances of contention. Now, if you don't know already, contention is NOT a good thing. In fact, I believe it to be evil. I know when I feel contentious, I lose sight of anything else and become consumed by the reason for my contention, whether it be self-imposed or someone else's action. When you inject that contention into a family, it causes one to forget the ties that bind a family together. They don't disappear per say, they just get hidden.
That was a very round about way to say that I have had my fair share of contentious encounters with family and friends the past few days. Some had pretty minor effects, others were not so minor. It had me very confused. How could I possibly have this much contention in my life while I am home? Sure I had a very few arguments with roommates and friends while away at school but nothing so heated as being home. What happened? Do you want to know what I've decided? Well good! Cause I'm gonna tell ya. ;)
I decided that there has been some extra pushing of those temper buttons in my life. Someone obviously knows that my fuse is pretty short. (I know. For those school friends who are reading this and think I'm the most tolerant person in the world, talk to my parents/siblings/room roomies. They'll tell you all about my temper issues.) But that doesn't mean I have to let it be lit in the first place right? I mean, all the experts say that we choose to get angry or sad or happy or whatever. While I don't always believe that, I DO believe we can decided whether or not to let those emotions continue or not. We choose which emotions to hold on to, if you catch my drift. So that is theory #1
Theory #2
Family members have known you either your whole life or their's. With that length of experience comes knowledge of your weaknesses, strengths, annoyances, passions and so on. If you're a private person, this list may not be all that complete but it is my belief that you can only watch someone so long in life without learning a thing or two about them, whether you want to or not. So with that knowledge, your family has the power to act on that knowledge. Agency is one of the greatest gifts we have. Why we use it to purposely annoy/anger our family members? I dunno. I'm very guilty of this though. I won't deny it. Thus is my theory #2.
I propose I change in all of us. Let's try to cut down on the contention. Let's do away with undue criticism and hurtful words/actions. Let us be mindful of our fellow man as well as ourselves. We could all get along much nicer if we weren't so defensive all the time. We could be less defensive if we weren't worried about the next knife aimed for our backs. Let's be sincere in our words. Let's just love one another.
That's my request. In fact, I think I'll make that my New Year's Resolution! I don't know how I'll track it. I'll think about it some more and let you know. ;)
Good day world!
Good night.
Monday, December 27, 2010
Music Box Dancer
The holiday season is always a great chance to catch up with family and old friends, sharing experiences from the past year and enjoying the company of the ones we love.
In my family, we have a tradition of music. I think the piano stayed silent while we opened presents, other than that, there was always someone plunking around. It never ceases to amaze me the talents my family has. Music Box Dancer has become this year's piece of choice. My sister in particular loves to figure this one out. Little does she know that she could easily read the piece out of my binder which lays in my box.
So it's been a while since I have posted on this here blog of mine. I suppose I should catch you up on my life now eh? I have finished my third Fall semester of college. This absolutely amazes me! I'm getting so old! (yeah, I know. Twenty-one is certainly NOT old but I'm starting to feel the affects of maturity sinking into my brain. How can I be childish when maturity keeps taking over? ;) )
I received my call to serve a mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints a week before yesterday! Before I tell you where I'm going, let me tell you the story surrounding this call.
I got a call on Friday, December 17th telling me there was a big white envelope waiting for me on the mantle at home. There was just one problem with that, home is Indiana while my location was Provo, UT!! Now how am I supposed to open that beautiful envelope in Indiana when I'm still in Utah? And to top it all off? I was at work!! So I couldn't even leave right then and there to begin my journey home!!
When I finally got off work, I had to go home and figure out where I was going to put all of my stuff! I was taking whatever I could pack into my car back to Indiana and then the rest I would have to leave with various willing hosts. By the time all that was sorted out and several trips made, my friend Rachel and I were ready to hit the road.
Now, for your information, yes we drove from Utah to Indiana. What was it like, you might ask? Well let me tell you. Once we finally made it out of Colorado, the trip was actually really nice! I mean, we stunk really badly and the car was a mess of snacks and the like, but all in all, it was fun! What was in Colorado? SNOW!!! Lots and lots of snow. When we stopped to get gas, the trunk latch decided it didn't want to work. So we sat out there, in the cold (the snow had taken a break for a few minutes) trying to figure out how to fix the latch. While this wouldn't have been too bad, a truck pulls up bearing two guys. For two girls no where near anyone we know, this was quite terrifying. Perhaps if they had just gone into the gas station and made their purchases, we wouldn't have thought anything of their presence. The problem was, they stayed in their truck watching us. Every time we walked by their truck to go inside, they would roll down their window and ask us how the progress was coming on our trunk. Now, if you can see that someone is having a problem, wouldn't the polite thing to do be to get out and...oh I dunno...help the person? Or politely turn away and pretend you didn't see anything. I don't know. Maybe that's just me.
We finally bungeed the trunk down and made our way in to the mountain pass. Someone obviously knew something we didn't because the roads became super slick. To the point that we hit a guard rail while going 30mph. That was a bit terrifying. I called my dad, not knowing what else to do.
Can I just take a minute to shout out to all the dad's reading this? Thank you so much for being a person of stability in your children's lives. My dad told me that I could do it. I could continue through the snow and ice. Why? Because I was a Fielding. I was born in Idaho! I had all the genetic makeup to survive an icy blizzard.
While I still don't think genetics has anything to do with my skill at driving through snow and ice, I appreciated the confidence. We did, eventually, make it out of the mountains with just a little scratch on the side of the car and very grateful hearts. (Note: when I got home, we took the car into the shop to have them fix the alignment. They told us that there was a lot more wrong than just the alignment. The damages totaling up to a very large sum. Basically, my friend and I could have died if the car didn't hold out as long as it did. More blessings from above.)
I finally made it home. Halleluiah!!! We made arrived about an hour before we had to leave for church so I had just enough time to shower, take a grand tour of the newly-remodeled house and get ready for church. When church was over, I went home and waited ever impatiently for the family to arrive for the nativity pageant thing we do every year. We had decided that I would open my call then so everyone could be there to see.
Now, for the moment you've been patiently reading for. I have been called to labor in the California Long Beach mission. I report to the MTC (Missionary Training Center) on February 2nd. I will be speaking English for sure and any other language they may ask me to learn.
I am so excited to serve a mission! For those of you to don't know, I have wanted to serve a mission for as long as I can remember. My whole life has gathered to this grand moment in my life. If I ever had a goal for my life, this was it. Now that it's here, I don't know what to do with myself! Haha It's been quite the adventure getting to this point but I finally made it.
Later I'll share with you a link to my mission blog. My mom will be posting my mass emails/letters there, hopefully so you can keep up on what is happening in my life. Thanks for being such a patient crowd! Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!!!
In my family, we have a tradition of music. I think the piano stayed silent while we opened presents, other than that, there was always someone plunking around. It never ceases to amaze me the talents my family has. Music Box Dancer has become this year's piece of choice. My sister in particular loves to figure this one out. Little does she know that she could easily read the piece out of my binder which lays in my box.
So it's been a while since I have posted on this here blog of mine. I suppose I should catch you up on my life now eh? I have finished my third Fall semester of college. This absolutely amazes me! I'm getting so old! (yeah, I know. Twenty-one is certainly NOT old but I'm starting to feel the affects of maturity sinking into my brain. How can I be childish when maturity keeps taking over? ;) )
I received my call to serve a mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints a week before yesterday! Before I tell you where I'm going, let me tell you the story surrounding this call.
I got a call on Friday, December 17th telling me there was a big white envelope waiting for me on the mantle at home. There was just one problem with that, home is Indiana while my location was Provo, UT!! Now how am I supposed to open that beautiful envelope in Indiana when I'm still in Utah? And to top it all off? I was at work!! So I couldn't even leave right then and there to begin my journey home!!
When I finally got off work, I had to go home and figure out where I was going to put all of my stuff! I was taking whatever I could pack into my car back to Indiana and then the rest I would have to leave with various willing hosts. By the time all that was sorted out and several trips made, my friend Rachel and I were ready to hit the road.
Now, for your information, yes we drove from Utah to Indiana. What was it like, you might ask? Well let me tell you. Once we finally made it out of Colorado, the trip was actually really nice! I mean, we stunk really badly and the car was a mess of snacks and the like, but all in all, it was fun! What was in Colorado? SNOW!!! Lots and lots of snow. When we stopped to get gas, the trunk latch decided it didn't want to work. So we sat out there, in the cold (the snow had taken a break for a few minutes) trying to figure out how to fix the latch. While this wouldn't have been too bad, a truck pulls up bearing two guys. For two girls no where near anyone we know, this was quite terrifying. Perhaps if they had just gone into the gas station and made their purchases, we wouldn't have thought anything of their presence. The problem was, they stayed in their truck watching us. Every time we walked by their truck to go inside, they would roll down their window and ask us how the progress was coming on our trunk. Now, if you can see that someone is having a problem, wouldn't the polite thing to do be to get out and...oh I dunno...help the person? Or politely turn away and pretend you didn't see anything. I don't know. Maybe that's just me.
We finally bungeed the trunk down and made our way in to the mountain pass. Someone obviously knew something we didn't because the roads became super slick. To the point that we hit a guard rail while going 30mph. That was a bit terrifying. I called my dad, not knowing what else to do.
Can I just take a minute to shout out to all the dad's reading this? Thank you so much for being a person of stability in your children's lives. My dad told me that I could do it. I could continue through the snow and ice. Why? Because I was a Fielding. I was born in Idaho! I had all the genetic makeup to survive an icy blizzard.
While I still don't think genetics has anything to do with my skill at driving through snow and ice, I appreciated the confidence. We did, eventually, make it out of the mountains with just a little scratch on the side of the car and very grateful hearts. (Note: when I got home, we took the car into the shop to have them fix the alignment. They told us that there was a lot more wrong than just the alignment. The damages totaling up to a very large sum. Basically, my friend and I could have died if the car didn't hold out as long as it did. More blessings from above.)
I finally made it home. Halleluiah!!! We made arrived about an hour before we had to leave for church so I had just enough time to shower, take a grand tour of the newly-remodeled house and get ready for church. When church was over, I went home and waited ever impatiently for the family to arrive for the nativity pageant thing we do every year. We had decided that I would open my call then so everyone could be there to see.
Now, for the moment you've been patiently reading for. I have been called to labor in the California Long Beach mission. I report to the MTC (Missionary Training Center) on February 2nd. I will be speaking English for sure and any other language they may ask me to learn.
I am so excited to serve a mission! For those of you to don't know, I have wanted to serve a mission for as long as I can remember. My whole life has gathered to this grand moment in my life. If I ever had a goal for my life, this was it. Now that it's here, I don't know what to do with myself! Haha It's been quite the adventure getting to this point but I finally made it.
Later I'll share with you a link to my mission blog. My mom will be posting my mass emails/letters there, hopefully so you can keep up on what is happening in my life. Thanks for being such a patient crowd! Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!!!
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