and so it has come... i am FINISHED with my last semester at byu-idaho. the Lord has definitely been with me there! he has strengthened me and changed me for the better. it's truly a "discipleship preparation center" there! and of COURSE i have had my share of adventures!!!
best. FHE group. ever.
a little reunion! last winter's roomies and home teachers :) can't beat that!
an adventure to west yellowstone for the weekend!
i felt like katniss....
blacklight volleyball team!
riding the gondola... $89 a plate at the restaurant at the top.
you better believe i won that showdown
big juds! someday i will beat the one pound challenge...someday
swingin with my bestie :)
could i have asked for better roommates??
harmon... why are you so awesome? who else would go to denny's at midnight?
but now it's over... it's a thought that brings conflicting emotions. i am so grateful for what i have been able to learn and experience up in rexburg, but i am so excited for this new adventure! two new adventures in fact... one begins april 24.... 14 days. 14 days until i climb aboard a plane destined for tel aviv! it's too soon! i'm not ready! and yet...i feel like i've been ready for a while now. i have been wanting and preparing for this for much too long.
my only hope is that i never forget. never forget to keep exploring
yup. you heard me! its rexburg and i am LOVING IT HERE! compared to last year's frozen tundra, rexburg is a tropical paradise! i walk to class in 32 degree weather, and that's SO WARM compared to last year's -10! it snowed for the first time a little over a week ago.... i'm ok with that. although i know how much the farming community depends on the snow for crops. that's a bummer. but anyways, jess and i party as usual....
sammy's.... again. miss you cole! and ben!
thanks jason and brady for the sunday morning present. appreciate that!
i have such a friggin HAWT sister!!!!
she is also a decent photographer :)
and i got my first email from my jerusalem cousin!!! YAYYYYYY!!!! and yes. i chewed her out for not emailing me sooner. i just love her so much! as jess is well....busy... on many nights, i am responsible for entertaining myself. this has included eating junk food, going to concerts at sammy's, playing basketball, wallyball, and futsal, and NOT training for my half marathon because me FRIGGIN KNEE has been hurting me! butt. i did talk to my beloved sister whitney today, she is presh. and i am starting to apply to boise state's radiologic science program! WOO HOOOO!!! i am finally feeling like i'm on the right track!!! i have to keep moving forward. KEEP MOVING FORWARD!
It's now been exactly 17 days since I came back to the arctic part of the state... And I must say, it has been a FAN-freakin-TASTIC few weeks! For one, I have the greatest roommates. I know people say that all the time...but this time it's TRUE! I have already connected with each of them, and I love them so! Here's the gorgeous gang!
Yeah. We is adorable.... :)
And life is well....stressful as always! I don't know what I am doing with my life, and it doesn't help that I keep hearing, "During these next few years you will make important decisions that will impact the rest of your life." Thanks for turning up the heat! I KNOW that these next few years are important, and I am TRYING to make the best decisions! I have decided something though. I can only do so much. After all I can do, I need to turn my life over to the Lord. I will act in faith, and know that He will lead me. I may not know it at the time, but by acting in faith I allow Him to influence my life.
I am taking a vocal class, and we are required to sing 2 songs: I'll Go Where You Want Me To Go and I Know My Father Lives. So powerful.... Lord, I really will go where you want me to go. I will go because I know that you live! I have no better place to go than where you would have me.
These lyrics truly testify of a lesson that I am continually re-learning. I really will be what you want me to be, dear Lord!!
ALSO!
I have learned the power that comes from true meditation.... from PONDERING. My religion teacher had us read some very inspiring words of modern day prophets:
"I think we pay too little attention to the value of meditation, a principle of devotion. Meditation is one of the most secret, most sacred doors through which we pass into the presence of the Lord."
President David O. McKay
"Let that be something to remember-you do likewise. Take time to meditate. Many times you will be wrestling with problems, the solution of which can be spiritually discerned. Don't get so busy that you don't have time to meditate. Take the time."
President Harold B. Lee
heck.
even i have found time!!!
so take my advice, and do a bit of meditating today. it's good for the soul :)
OK. and i made this map of the world...
of my travels: past, present, and future!
Red = Where i have LIVED Blue = Where i have BEEN Green = Where i WANT to GO Where do YOU want to go??
I have made it! Three semesters at BYU-Idaho have been trounced, and one remains. Jess and I both have one semester left...one semester to really make the most of our Rexburg experience. I plan on never stopping--never slowing down. We have no time to stop and sight see! Whether it's really learning and growing secularly, physically, spiritually, or emotionally...we plan on doing it 100%. Even though Rexburg may be brutally cold this winter, we can still have fun with a little creativity! I have always found wisdom in Dr. Seuss. Despite the ridiculousness of his writing, it always carries with it a profound message.
"I like nonsense, it wakes up the brain cells. Fantasy is a necessary ingredient in living, it's a way of looking at life through the wrong end of a telescope. Which is what I do, and that enables you to laugh at life's realities."
Don't stop. I have decided that I never want to stop. I never want to stop laughing, discovering, and moving. I want to be 75 and run in a marathon. I want to take a tour of Greece for my 80th birthday. I want to literally die laughing. So much to do, so little time!
After April, I am finished at BYU-I. I have NO IDEA where I will be for Fall 2012... scary? YES! But I know I'll make it!
OH. and ps. I GOT ACCEPTED TO BYU JERUSALEM!!! I will be leaving the fair state of Idaho to experience Israel next summer!! 3 and a half months.....I do believe they will be the best of my life. :)
I am now currently over half-way through my 3rd semester up here at good ol' BYU-Idaho, located in the ever-pleasant Rexburg oasis. Here, the sun is always shining, and the birds are always singing. "When the sun hits that ridge just right, these hills sing." Oh wait. That's Pacha's little hillside, not the Rexburg ice cube... Here in Rexburg we enjoy blizzards in September, winds that cut through your bones like knives, and winter coats all year round! It's basically Antarctica.
Luckily we have the Spirit of Ricks to warm our souls, right? That really is what makes living in Rexburg worth every minute. That Spirit. I feel it every day in my classes, it strengthens me each week as I attend devotional. It helps me realize who I am: a daughter of God. A woman loved by my family, and cared about by my friends. The Spirit strengthens us as students in our academic and personal lives.... I'm sorry to be leaving it so soon....
Yup. That's right.... I'm transferring come next fall! Do I know where yet? Absolutely not! But I know that wherever I end up will take me on a new journey involving new adventures!
Yes, it stresses me out not knowing exactly what I am doing with my life, but I know things will work out! I am trusting Heavenly Father to lead me.
Because I mean really.... If God is with me, who can be against me? :) --Romans 8:31
Now on with life. To much has happened in the past few months to be summed up in one blog post. Fall is pretty much my FAVORITE time of year! I cannot even begin to describe its awesomeness. I'm rooming with my sister Jess and my beautiful cousin Annalise! Our adventures are too many to even count. Yet I shall try...
Adventure 1: Temple to Temple Relay
Adventure 2: Masquerade Ball
Adventure 3: Exploring
Part 1: Mesa Falls
Part 2: Cave Falls
Yes. I'm quite happy we found it! :)
Adventure 4: Halloween.
Flappers are HOT. Especially ones that look like this!
Other adventures occur on a daily basis. How can we NOT, what with awesome roommates and FHE brothers, amazing friends, and QUITE the imagination! Rexburg Rodeo, Straw maze, dancing in the rain the Haunted Mill, pumpkin carving, Dance Central and Just Dance, , cook-offs, plays, country dancing, volleyball and basketball games, concerts, Sammy's shakes, the list goes on and on! I plan on continuing to explore new possibilities and TRY to endure this frigid weather! Peace!
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