spiritually saturated

February was a bit of a tough month for me. I started working two jobs and tried to figure out how to juggle those plus full time school as well as keeping myself spiritually uplifted. This past weekend was exactly what I needed. I got to go to my YSA stake women's conference and guess who was the keynote speaker. Sister Julie B. Beck, General Relief Society President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. What a great experience! Do you remember when I served her bread and water back in January? I still feel really cool about that.

Hearing Sister Beck speak was seriously an unbelievable experience. She is so funny and genuine and kind and she really portrayed the love that she, and the Presidency of the Church have for us. She took 6 questions from the congregation and built her talk around those questions. I have never been to a meeting that was so directed by the spirit. It was amazing. She taught such important truths about our purpose as women on this earth, she taught about the temple and about recognizing the spirit in our lives.

As I've mentioned, February was kind of a hard month and I came into this conference with a lot of unspoken questions in my heart and a lot of things kind of weighing on me. By the end of the hour that Sister Beck spoke to us, I had answers to all of my questions and a feeling of peace and love from above.

Isn't God great?

And that was just in the hour between 9 and 10:00 on Saturday morning! The rest of the morning was filled with break out classes and a wonderful musical program that had me bawling. Women of this church are just amazing.

Since the conference was held at the Stake Center right across from the Mt. Timpanogos Temple, I decided to mosey across the parking lot and do some baptisms. What an amazing blessing the temple is. I eagerly look forward to the time when I can get more than a limited use recommend and make more covenants with my Heavenly Father.

And if this great day wasn't enough, the next day was fast Sunday which is always a day that has a special spirit associated with it. My church meetings were hard core incredible. I haven't talked much about my YSA ward since I've been in it these last couple of months. Goodness. It is one of the best wards I've been in since graduating from high school. There is always a great spirit there and I think it was magnified by fasting yesterday.

But the spiritual experiences weren't even over yet. Last night I got to watch a broadcast of a CES fireside with Elder Quinton L. Cook speaking from BYU-Idaho! You should have seen my reaction when I realized that the choir that was singing was MY choir with my friends and old teachers! I kept nudging the guy next to me and saying "That was my old FHE brother!" "He was my mentor!" "I taught her in basic musicianship!", on and on. What a good sport. :) Elder Cook's talk was really good too, he spoke about avoiding wearing "masks" and how detrimental they can be. The night culminated in ice cream. Win.

Basically I had a fantastic weekend. I am so grateful for a Father in Heaven who is always there to bless us and show us His love for us. He surely poured out His love and spirit on me this weekend!

better late than never!

A month and a half later...

I finally have a college diploma.

Dear BYU-Idaho. You were so good to me. You were there for me when I moved out for the first time, you saw me through three different living situations. You saw me through my first (and hopefully only) long distance relationship, and shaped my perspectives on many subjects. You brought me to amazing people who have becomes some of my closest friends. The lessons I learned while being a part of your institution will stay with me forever.

I love you and miss you BYU-I! But I'm very grateful and excited for where I am now. Thank you for preparing me for this new stage of life, and all those that will follow!

i open at the close

What to say about the last few days??

It's been a whirlwind. It's been crazy, awesome, fun, happy, sad, scary, all of the above.
Yesterday I graduated from BYU-Idaho! My sweet family came up and sat through hours of speakers and musical numbers to watch me walk across a stage and get a diploma. We drove home right after the ceremony and got back to PG at 2am.

I have so many mixed emotions about this graduation and this upcoming chapter of my life. Obviously, I'm super excited and happy, I'm happy to be close to my family again, I'm so excited to start at BYU, I have such an exciting future and it's all just very exciting! I'm also really glad to be through with Rexburg weather! No more frozen hair when walking home from the temple!

On the other hand, I do feel a lot of sadness and nostalgia when I think that I won't be going back up to BYU-Idaho. I truly had a wonderful experience there for the three semesters that I attended. I met amazing people, especially new roommates every semester that made my days a total adventure. My classes were fabulous, my professors were so amazing. The spirit at BYU-Idaho is truly incredible. I know that BYU is a church school and well and it's set up in a similar way, but there is definitely a different spirit in Rexburg. I believe that "The Spirit of Ricks" is holding strong!

It's so funny being back in the home that I grew up in and feeling the potential of my future and the pure openness before me. This past week, whenever I thought about graduation, it honestly felt like everything was ending. Which it has I guess, a really big part of my life has ended. But when I was still in Idaho, I couldn't get past the ending and I couldn't see farther than it. But now that it's over, ended and finished, all I can see is the beginning. My future is so exciting. I feel very blessed right now.

I'm officially a BYU-Idaho Alumni, and I love that feeling!

Today I attended my last class ever at BYU-Idaho! Huzzah for no more classes! The rest of my week consists of sorting through three finals, as well as administering a test for my basic kids, cleaning like a fiend, packing everything up and PARTYING as much as possible! The last two and a half days of my time in Rexburg are going to be AWESOME!

and isn't life a splendid thing?

Three months ago I did not want to be here. I had decided on transferring to BYU and the thought of coming back to Rexburg was painful. The thought of meeting new people was stressful. The thought of building new friendships was inconceivable. The thought of dating was repulsive.

Three months later, I'm feeling a teeny bit sad to be saying goodbye forever. This semester has been hands down the best of my college career. Rexburg was never so sweet. I met tons of new people and loved it. I built amazing new friendships that I'm dreading leaving behind. My dating life increased exponentially compared to semesters in the past...and with it brought awkward situations and important lessons to be learned.

Remember how I got addicted to The Drowsy Chaperone this semester? There's a line in the show, it's the culmination of the plot and something that I've been thinking about a lot:
"But in the larger sense, in the broader sense, it's better to have lived, then left right?"
I think about this because it seems to encompass how I've been feeling lately. The thought of leaving some of these amazing people that I've only known for a few short months (Amanda, Savannah, TJ, Chris, Nichole, Moom), makes me wonder why it is that we have people placed in our lives if they are only going to be taken from us. True, they are being taken from me because of my own actions and choices. It makes you wonder if it would be better to become a recluse and not develop friendships because it saves so much pain in the end.

But no. It's better to have lived, then left. It's better to have loved than left. It's better to have made these friendships and relationships, to develop these bonds.

I am SO grateful for the things I have learned in the past three months. I am so grateful for my sweet roommates, especially for Merrie, who has made sharing a room with her such a delight.

In one week from today I'll be back in Utah for good! So many mixed emotions. To all of my friends in Utah, let's party. To all my friends in Rexburg, whenever you come to Utah, look me up so we can get Cafe Rio. Ok? Deal. :)

disciple in training

I've been having some thoughts about the BYU-Idaho Honor Code lately.
When I would tell people that I was going to BYU-Idaho, I got a lot of negative comments about the Honor Code, specifically the dress standard that on this campus we are not to wear shorts or flip flops. I heard (and still do hear) over and over again, "I could never go to BYU-Idaho because I love shorts too much or I love flip flops too much." It seems that there were many people who felt that this dress code commitment was just too much to bear.

Did you know that my calling this semester was FHE instructor? It's been a really great calling, to get to plan FHE and teach a lesson to my group every three weeks. Most of the lessons that they ask us to teach are about the Honor Code so I've gotten to do a lot of learning and pondering and studying the reasoning behind the Honor Code.

This code of conduct has been given to we students attending private, LDS schools for a really incredible purpose. The Honor Code gives us the opportunity to prove our commitment to Heavenly Father by agreeing to live by "small" principles such as not wearing flip flops, and (for boys) shaving every day. When we prove that we can commit to living this "small" principles, the Lord can trust us to live "greater" principles. The way that I see it is that the Honor Code is helping me prepare to live sacred covenants. I might not always know why I can't do something or why I am required to do something else, but when I live those small principles, I can be blessed with greater responsibility and understanding. It's a wonderful blessing.

I have a testimony of the Honor Code. I know that living by every aspect of it is for a wise purpose. I know that living the spirit of this law brings great blessings and I strive every day to commit to these codes with a happy heart and without the spirit of murmuring. I know that living the Honor Code is preparing me to be able to fully commit myself to the Lord and make sacred covenants in the temple. If you are a student who is being asked to live the Honor Code, I hope that you will take inventory and ask yourself if you are truly living the Honor Code with gratitude or if you find yourself grumbling about the little parts that you don't like. This Code was given to us from the Lord and I love it.

That's all I have to say about that. :)
(PS, I'm sorry for all the long/rambling posts lately. I know that some people aren't the biggest fan of reading lots of words. *coughcammiecough*)

that flighty temptress, adventure

My Thanksgiving break was spent watching a lot of Bones. An exorbitant amount actually. I feel kind of pathetic about it actually.

And now I'm back in Rexburg for three more weeks of chill and school. And I have some goals:
1) Continue my Facebook fast and limit media to a negligible amount.
2) Avoid the grocery store by eating all of the rest of my food. And perhaps going without a little bit.
3) Do away with procrastination. Get homework done early and with a chipper attitude.
4) Pass all of my seven classes.

I'm ready to truck through til the end. And then, starting January 4th, I become an official Cougar. I feel great about that.

Oh also, fun fact for the day. I'm thinking about becoming a humanities major and doing study abroad in London next year. And I'm going to Harry Potter world over spring break. Way to the yeah.

december 16th, here i come.

It was brought to my attention that the semester ends in exactly one month from today.
That means graduation baby.
Yeah, I'm doing the whole cap and gown, commencement, ceremony thing.

And I couldn't be more excited.

Don't get me wrong, I have honestly loved my time here at BYU-Idaho. So so much. It's been a wonderful year and a half here. But I know that this transfer is what is in store for me. I'm so excited to live at home just for one more semester to spend time with my wonderful family (and not have to worry about paying for food for a minute. I'm currently living off of saltine crackers and peanut butter), I'm so excited to be able to have a job while going to school so that I can fully become financially independent. I'm excited to by a car and be mobiley independent!

As we bumble along on life's crazy journey. It's so interesting to see where God takes us isn't it?

another great day at BYU-Idaho

Dear Sister Dalton,
I am such an enormous fan of yours.
Especially now after your devotional talk up here at BYU-I.
You are so sweet and funny and inspirational.
Also, you peeled a potato right on the podium.
It was so funny and poignant.
You have inspired me to hang out less and date more.
To return to virtue.
To dream big, get outside of my comfort zone and go forward with full confidence.
I thank you for your wonderful example and your beautiful spirit.

Much love,
Amberly