The Little Things.

This week I decided to write down all of the little things that made me smile - you know, all of the little things that make up my LIFE. 

Do you know how many happy moments we miss? 

My list consists of little things that not only made me smile, but made me think,made me laugh, made me patient, and over all made me more thankful.

Here it is - The Master List of Little Things that made me smile, think, laugh, have patience, and be more thankful-

• Seeing "conclusion" after reading 10+ pages of hw
• Night drives through the mountains with roommates
• Helping old people with directions
• Falling leaves
• Free food
• How Mormon girls make clothes modest
• A guy wearing pattern print pants
• Over hearing people talk about their mission calls
• Someone quoting Lion King in my Book of Mormon class
• A grateful attitude
• My family
• Being overly happy, to the point where people just smile because of how insanely happy you are
• Happy music
• When people smell really good...
• People who know the answer to my question
• Seeing teachers on campus
• Cute surprises
• Words that are fun to say, like Rubric
• My Bio teacher, who talks like a suffer dude, but is actually a genius
• Prepared individuals
• Prayer
• Wonderful roommates
• Wonderful roommates #2 (aka Jefferson 17)
• People
• Peppermint hot chocolate
• Meeting people in the laundry room
• Birch trees
• Ducks at the duck pond, that quack at you when you climb the south campus stairs. (I swear they're laughing at me)  
• The ridged mountains
• Empty campus on a Saturday afternoon
• Tweeting birds
• Christmas earrings
• Quiet time
• Singing
• Playing the Piano
• Happy people
• Making it through the work shift alive
• Not passing out while talking to attractive men
• Pizza late at night
• The Bomb.com FHE group 
• Sleeping in on Saturday

These are just a few of the little things that are going on around us each day. Aren't they wonderful? :) 

I'm so grateful for my life. No matter how glum it can be, I love life. I LOVE being alive! I'm truly thankful for all the experiences I've had. 

I am blessed. I know who I am, I know why I am here on earth. I know where I'm going after this life. I know I can be with my family forever. I know Heavenly Father speaks to His children. I know I am one of those children, and so are you! So much to be thankful for.

I'm thankful for YOU. For all of the little things you do that may go unnoticed, thank you. 

Yay for Thanksgiving. Yay for Thanksgiving break. Yay, Yay, Yay! Enjoy you're day, and especially enjoy all of the Little Things going on all around you. 

Liz

P.S. I'd like to recognize that my mother is an exceptionally talented writer and takes the time to review my blog posts. She gives me feedback before I post in the cyber world. She is the greatest and I'm thankful for her expertise and love. 

So You Think You Can -Walk-

Running.  BANG! The gun goes off and 145 runners sprint onto the course. With little starting room, and a vicious pace, these runners still manage not to run into each other. What a wonderful thing!

How is it that at the starting line of a race the flood of determined runners in a contained area maintain their space, by staying up-right, and not crashing into another runner, but little ol’ ME tries to walk across campus, and crashes into more people than can be counted on one hand??

Walking. This my friends is no ordinary task; this is an art that must be mastered.

I love running. I've been a die hard runner now for about 2 1/2 years. When I run, I'm free. My path is clear. I dodge people like bullets. No big deal. It doesn't even phase me. Walking, however, complicates everything. There are many things to consider- if I pass someone, will I clip their heel because they aren't going fast enough? When someone is directly in my path do I move right, left, continue going straight, or turn around and run the other way? You tell me.

All I know, from my observation, most people walk like this:

Moving from point A to point B 

                                        

I walk like this:

It’s the funniest thing. I've tried so hard to master walking. When I run with other people I can feel which direction they are  planning on going, before they turn. It must be a runners vibe. I've decided that the ‘vibe’ does not work with walking. For example, while walking I may consciously believe my company and I are turning, but instead of turning as a group, I just walk directly into someone. This... is awkward. Doing this once isn't too bad, it’s the third time it happens when an explanation is needed.

A following conversation might sound like this:  "Sorry I crashed into you three times.  I’m really not blind.  I know how to walk. I promise I'm not trying to crash into you on purpose.”   Mmmhmmm - that goes over well. 

So. You think you can walk? Probably. You are probably very capable of walking without running into people. Good for you. :) In all honesty, I may have dramatized this a little. I don't crash into people that often, but still, it happens. I do the ‘left- right- left- right-stand still-walking dance’ until the other person walks around me. It always makes me chuckle inside. 

For all my fellow inhibited walking friends, don't worry! People think it's funny we can't walk in a straight line -so should you. :)

For all my perfectly normal walking friends- please be patient with those of us who could run your socks off, but can't walk in a straight line. 

Enjoy your ridiculous day!

Liz

Kindness Begins With Me.

What a long week- 

Have you ever had a long week? Of course you have! 

I can't pinpoint what made this specific week so long... it may have had something to do with the fact that I've had a desire to blog a new post since 10 minutes after I posted my first one. I resisted. 

      

All week I've tried to correlate my experiences so I could put together a "master piece" blog. To no one's great surprise every day this week has been completely different and abstract. Pulling together one cohesive blog would turn into a book of random experiences.

      

What I've decided to post today, the significant point that you should take away from all of this jabber, is this- 

Just because someone is kind does not mean: 

• that they are ditsy
• that they don't have an opinion
• that they can't stand up for themselves
• that they can't be mean  

 Kindness does not indicate weakness in an individual, it reflects strength and understanding. 

       

Maybe you knew that, it took me sometime to realize this. As I worked on trying to be kind to those around me, I felt others found my kindness to be naive. It was a frustrating time; however, I found that being kind is worth it. 

 As I strove for kindness, other valuable traits fell into place.

• People appreciate a listening ear 
• People respect a positive voice of encouragement 
• People desire a kind heart 

I have been blessed numerous times in my life with kind people who so often give me the benefit of the doubt. I will forever be grateful for the kindness shown to me. The world is not a completely terrible place. :) 

    

 To finish up, here is a poem that Elder D. Todd Christofferson mentioned in his fall 2013 conference talk. It is directed towards women, but men these tips can definitely benefit you, too. 

"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." 

Have a fantastic day, and remember - Kindness begins with me - 

Liz

It Is Possible.

Oh my goodness, the excitement of starting a blog. Do people read blogs? Do blogs follow the trend set by Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook - I'll read your blog if you read mine? Well, regardless of who reads my mundane blog posts, I couldn't hold back any longer.

Is it possible to find life so enchanting, so enthralling, so incredible and awe-some that the joy and pain excite every fiber of your being? I do believe it's possible. This fall I embarked on my first real adventure. Not that I grew up without adventures, but when I was taken from every affiliation I'd grown up with and moved 849 miles from rainy lush Washington to dry mountainous Utah, life unfolded before me. Everything became possible in my eyes.

I know the first, "away from home-college experience" varies among individuals. My experience thus far is what fueled me to start this blog, to express my deep delight for life, even when it's tough. It has been a little over two months and I feel like a new person. When you are taken from every material object and affiliation that once defined you, as I mentioned above, life becomes quite the wild ride. At home I danced in the rain, letting my hair drip, frizz, and curl. Now I'm bracing myself for the snow, while the air is crisp and dry and the mountains tower over me. Once I lived in a small town, when going to the store resulted in seeing half the people I knew.  Now I walk on campus and if I see one person I recognize my day is complete. I used to eat ice cream out of the carton for breakfast...Oh wait, I still do that one! The point being, when I moved away to attend college, I had to adjust and take in all of life's possibilities.

I pinpointed what I want out of life and who I want to become. I realized every single experience I have been through in my life has led me to this point, and I love it! Did you know you can love something so much it hurts? My family, the gospel of Jesus Christ, serving, learning, growing, changing, becoming, expanding, experiencing, enduring, rejoicing, it is all possible.

That's all for now. Is it common to end blog posts in a cordial goodbye? Maybe an abrupt end and nothing more? Does it depend on the blogger? Is that what I am to become, a "blogger"? It's possible!

Anything is possible when you put your mind to it - go for it,

Liz