It is simply always there.

The weather here is so unpredictable. They say things are usually covered in snow until April, and even then it will still snow randomly. My roommate says it even snowed in June once. 

These past seven days have brought with them the most wonderful weather. High forties, low fifties. Sun shining. Birds chirping. Limited clouds (which is a miracle considering the air is usually inverted and no blue is visible). 

It's still February. 

Life and people are a lot like the weather. Unpredictable. But that's okay. 

God's love remains the same. 

It is simply always there.

The Myth of Inadequacy (and the Power of God)

I had a great idea for this post, but couldn't seem to get my thoughts to flow. After talking to a good friend about it, I decided to take a completely different path. I am grateful for insightful friends.

Inadequacy is a common feeling, but it isn't even a real thing. It is easy to feel as though we "aren't good enough." The truth of the matter is that God provides a way for His children to do anything so long as it is for a righteous cause. 

The great prophet Moses, at the beginning of his ministry, felt as though he wasn't fit for the job. He even told the Lord upon his calling, "I am not eloquent . . . but I am slow of speech, and of a slow tongue." The Lord responds, "Who had made man's mouth? . . . Now therefore go, and I will be thy mouth, and teach thee what thou shalt say" (Exodus 4:10-12). The Lord reminds Moses that He created us and is omnipotent. We may feel inadequate, but with the Lord's aid we are not. 

A similar thing happened right after Moses passed and Joshua was called on by the Lord. He told Joshua three times to "be strong and of a good courage" because "the Lord thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest" (Joshua 1:5-9). Doing what is required of us can be scary at times, but it shouldn't be because God is always with us. 

We can do anything, so long as we trust in God. Our "inadequacies" are made up for by the Lord's loving mercy. Robert D. Hales said ". . . we need not be afraid or feel inadequate. The Savior has promised that He will make us equal to His work" (Being a More Christian Christian, October 2012). The Lord does not require anything of us that we can not accomplish with His help. He provides a way.

An excerpt from my most recent religion class paper.

To me, the Atonement is a sacred and a wonderful succession of acts that were performed in order to allow each of us to obtain eternal happiness through exaltation. How wonderful it is that we have this opportunity! How grateful I am that the Lord Jesus Christ allowed us a path to repent of our sins and to be comforted in our sorrows. Russel M. Nelson in a talk titled “Decisions forEternity” in October 2013 stated that “True change—permanent change—can come only through the healing, cleansing, and enabling power of the Atonement of Jesus Christ.” This means that the only way to get rid of sin and to become a changed and a better person is to apply the Atonement to our lives and to repent and seek forgiveness through it. Christ has already performed the Atonement, why should we not use it? Wouldn’t it be a mockery to not repent, and to not ask for help? Doing so would signify that we think that our sins or our pains are above what the Lord has already handled for us, which is certainly not true. He says, “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light” (Matthew 11:28-30). How grateful I am that all of my sins, doubts, insecurities, heartbreaks, frustrations, disappointments, and so on that create a hole can be taken away from me and can be replaced. I can be filled with the love of the Savior. Let us not forget that the Lord Jesus Christ carried the pains of the world in the garden, gave up his life on the hill, and was risen again at the third day, and it was all for us.

Carpe diem.

That phrase used to bother me. A lot. For some reason, I have always thought it was a phrase used by hippies to justify whatever stupid thing they were doing.

But lately I've been contemplating more what it means to "seize the day."

It means making the most of things. It means doing something in spite of your fears. It means being brave. It means taking control of your life.

Carpe diem, y'all.

new

new room

new bed

new desk

new dishes

new couches

new friends

new hopes

new goals

new dreams

The light at the end of the tunnel.

Finals are next week, and with that comes studying, stress, a lack of sleep, and unfixed hair. 

But next week means so much more than just finals.

Next week means moving to my new apartment-style dorm.

and

Next week means going HOME. 

I should probably get back to writing this anthropology paper, as this short blog post was merely another form of procrastination.

A series of fortunate events.

It's been a long time since I posted on here, but I assume all will be well with you because you probably also follow me on Instagram/Twitter/Facebook! Since I've posted last, I've made a few very important decisions that I should make you aware of. But before you get to read about those, I'm gonna bore you with a few fun things that have been going on!

In October I went home for homecoming,

In the fall my friends and I took pictures in the canyon,

I went home for Thanksgiving and also got to see my best friends,

And it's been snowing and we have been freezing but are having a blast! (that's my cool roommate)

And scattered between: football games, basketball games, shopping trips, and etcetera!

And now for the serious stuff.

The first big decision I made was to change majors. Originally I was a pre-nursing major hoping to get accepted into the extremely competitive and prestigious College of Nursing here at BYU. Honestly it sounded like a great idea to me, but I think the biggest driving force behind it was that I would get medical training, still have interaction with people, and not have to go to medical school. Which are all very beautiful things. But after sitting through my intro to nursing course, I began feeling uneasy about my decision. I thought and prayed very hard for several weeks and came to the conclusion that I was not going down the right career path. I realized that I didn't really want to be the one doing the dirty work (although I never planned on being a bedside nurse, I wanted to be a nurse anesthetist), and I realized I wanted a career path that would allow me to be my own boss. Nursing did not allow for both of these criteria. I was searching for a career that would allow the following:

• one-on-one interaction with patients
• the ability to improve lives and feel fulfilled
• the possibility of specializing in pediatric "fill-in-the-blank"
• the possibility and probability of one day being my own boss
• being able to have the job described above without attending medical school
• flexible so I can be a mom

After making a list of every possible job I could think of that met all six of these criteria, I narrowed it down to a select three careers. I then went on a hunt to discover what major I should actually be in by thoroughly investigating the majors offered at BYU, as well as looking into graduate programs at esteemed universities that specialize in training for the careers I am interested in.

I am now an Exercise Science major pursuing Occupational Therapy graduate school and hoping to specialize in Pediatric Occupational Therapy.

The second big decision was to move from Helaman Halls into New Heritage Halls next semester. It was a long and hard process to come to the conclusion that I should move, and I will only share a few of the details. For one, my original plan was to live in New Heritage because I have some friends from home over there. The dorms are basically apartments with full kitchens and living rooms. Unfortunately, I got a pretty stinky housing registration date and it was all filled up, so here I am in Helaman Halls, where I live in a jail cell and eat at a cafeteria. I have already changed contracts and have been in contact with my new roommate. There are people here in Helaman I will miss, but I am looking forward to the Winter semester!

Right now I am about to pass out via Nyquil, so it's time to tie things up (it's been a long post anyway). I have one week of classes left and then finals (ahhhhhhh!!!!!!!) and then CHRISTMAS BREAK.

Things just seem to be lining up for me right now.