Sunday, March 29, 2009

Fast Sunday


Today I had the opportunity to go to a Deaf slash Spanish ward. And since it’s the first Sunday of the month, that means Fast and Testimony meeting. Amazing. Not that I always completely understood what was going on (my Spanish is very limited. And my ASL is far from perfect). But talk about moving.

First off, what a great way to reaffirm that the Gospel is universal, true, and beautiful. No matter the language barriers, the Spirit was felt by everyone. Even when you can’t understand what someone is saying (or signing), you can recognize the conviction in their face. You can see the passion burning in their eyes.

What an amazing cause this is, this Gospel that unites people of all races, languages, and cultures into one group of believers… believers that are motivated to live better lives and to share this happiness with each other.

Tuesday, March 24, 2009

Like pretty girls need cowboys, I need you here tonight


Ok, ok, I know every person has gone through this. Especially in Mormon culture, I think. So here’s my little spiel.

As far as dating and marriage, where is the line between having expectations that are too high and settling?

We've been told since childhood that we are precious children of God that deserve the absolute best. And I believe that. (But I think the world’s definition of “best” has severely complicated and damaged that idea.) We shouldn’t have to settle for less than we deserve. Conversely, if our expectations are unrealistic, they will never be met and we are setting ourselves up for unhappiness.

So what to do? If we shack up with the first person that we have a little compatibility with, we may never know what greater happiness is out there. But if we hold out for perfection, we will most likely never find it.

In the past, whenever I would get serious with a guy, I would start to evaluate him. Of course, being human beings, I would always find imperfections and flaws. So then I would become stuck between 1) can I do better? Or 2) is this the best there is?

No one wants to miss out on someone amazing because they are holding out for something “better” that doesn’t actually exist. But no one wants to regret their decision and realize that there really was something “better” out there.

I guess the answer just has to be – when that decision comes, you make sure you feel really good about it and then stick to it, never looking back.

But still, it’s a fine line to walk.

Live Accordingly

“Live like you believe.” “Fake it till you make it.” “Smile and grit your teeth.”

We’ve all heard them, and they all essentially mean the same thing. Even when you don’t necessarily have confidence in your decision or a strong desire to act a certain way, you force yourself, for the time being, to go along anyway.

Is this a good or bad thing?

If you don’t fully agree with what you’re doing, does it undermine the action? Or is it a good tool to get you where you need to be?

I tend to lean towards the act of living without full conviction sometimes. Even if I don’t care about my grades, it’s still a good idea to do well in school. Even if I’m not sure I’m going to buy a certain new car or whatever, it’s smarter to save my money towards it.

Maybe I like it because it’s safer. If I decide not to buy that car, I may have gone without a few things during the saving process, but now I have a little extra money and no harm done. But if I decide to buy the car last minute and I hadn’t been saving towards it, then I may not have enough money… and stress and debt may accompany my purchase. If I’m prepared and change my mind, there are far less negative consequences than if I hadn’t been prepared at all.