Monday, July 28, 2014

followers of my faith [Mormon Monday 50]

#7daysofinspiration Day Three:Share a quote or scripture that has inspired you.

Monday night I went over to my grandparents' house. I mentioned that I'm not much of a downtown SLC girl and my grandmother told me how much she used to love being downtown. When her mother was at UEA, her dad would take the kids to ZCMI and other places to play hide and seek, or just have fun downtown. She has happy memories there.

I don't really have anything to say about preparing for the future. I am trying to come up with a menu for an upcoming bridal shower, and figure out a time to make things, so that's as far into the future as I am preparing!

But boy did I do a great job living in the present on Monday! It's so easy with children (when they're pleasant) to just experience things with them. I spent several minutes at a puddle with my nephew, just splashing, watching the water slide up the concrete, discussing the dirtiness of the water. Sometimes in my day-to-day life it's hard for me to remember that every moment of my life is blessed if I will just see it. But I try.

(Not the Mormoniest MM I've ever posted. Not the Mormoniest thing President Monson has ever said, either.)

Monday, July 21, 2014

something keeps you faithful [Scripture Mastery Times: Genesis 39:9]

Last night I suddenly remembered that I went through a phase in my childhood where I would turn on "Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat" every night and sing/dance along to the whole CD. (Except for "Close Every Door." I usually skipped that one.)



Not only that, but I self-inserted like a pro. I settled on my favorite as Joseph's future girlfriend that followed him to Egypt (after I was so appalled by "One More Angel in Heaven" that I was like peace out, Canaanites and got myself to Egypt and Potiphar's household somehow) and was his secret support the whole show and I was so sympathetic and tried to get him not to be mean to his brothers (who, by the way, I had traveled to Canaan to get during the famine).

Pretty sure it ended with us getting married. And the Megamix was our reception party.

(My roommate was making fun of me for this story last night and I just had to say, "Listen, I am not ashamed of this. Plus I knew all the words to Joseph's Coat which was convenient for being a chorus member in our stake play.")

ANYWAY. Guess which character I totally hated? Potiphar's wife. Trying to steal my man? Not okay. (When I occasionally played as Benjamin's girlfriend and was more of a sister to Joseph, she was still bad news. Breaking of marriage contracts is a SERIOUS sin. I was so not on board with her agenda.)

In real life, or at least in the Bible, Joseph is a little more eloquent than in the play when rebuffing Potiphar's wife:
There is none greater in this house than I; neither hath he kept back any thing from me but thee, because thou art his wife: how then can I do this great wickedness, and sin against God? (Genesis 39:9)
I've been thinking a little bit lately about why this is still a scripture mastery verse. The related Basic Doctrine is Commandments. And as far as commandments go, the one that Joseph is keeping in this verse is a big one: I'm a big proponent of fidelity. And chastity. And so is God.

I'm glad that we have this story and that Joseph was a good example of what to do when temptation comes (get out of there). It's a worthwhile scripture mastery.

Monday, July 14, 2014

followers of my faith [Mormon Monday 49]

Here's our new Monthly Health Tip:

Benefits of Staying Hydrated:
  • Helps prevent daytime fatigue and headaches
  • Promotes a healthier digestive system
  • Lubricates joints; cushions organs and tissues
  • Improves skin; strengthens bones and teeth
  • Helps in weight loss; reduces fluid retention
"As water is essential to sustain physical life, the Savior and his teachings (living water) are essential for eternal life." (Guide to the Scriptures, "Living Water"; scriptures.lds.org)

So drink up!

Monday, July 7, 2014

followers of my faith [Mormon Monday 48]

"Trust in Him to keep moving, keep living, keep rejoicing." —Jeffrey R. Holland


Once again I would like to thank the Mormon Channel for coming up with graphics that I shamelessly use on my blog.


Things that are hard for me: trusting anybody. Let alone someone I've never met (in this life)! But on days like today, I just have to keep telling myself to put it all in the Lord's hands. He is someone to trust. Even if the outcome is not what I would have desired, He's got it covered. He's got everything covered.

And I'm working on truly believing that.

Thursday, July 3, 2014

I can trace all my books [2014 pt.1]

I've gotten into a really, really bad habit lately. I check out more books than I can conceivably read, so I don't even read them all. I start them, and then often will say "Hey, this book is really good" and skip to the end.

(Sometimes I say, "This book is not keeping my interest" and skip to the end, but the result is the same.)

My new standard of whether a book is actually really good is when I actually read the whole thing (even if I skipped to the end first). I thought, since the year is half over, I'd share with you some of these books. Probably all of them. Which means this is going to be a long list.

I'd like to take this opportunity to thank Salt Lake County Library Services for introducing "Reading History" at the end of January so I wouldn't have to remember what I read. It's all there on the website for my perusal. However, when I summarize the book for you, I'll just be going off what I remember and not what the library says. More fun that way.

Here we go.

Red by Allison Cherry -- In a town where having red hair is key to everything, the main girl has a secret. She's also in high school. I have a soft spot for high school stories.

Across a Star-Swept sea by Diana Peterfruend -- It's a retelling of The Scarlet Pimpernel and that should be enough. (Set in the same dystopian world as For Darkness Shows the Stars which I also loved.)

Slayers: Friends and Traitors by C.J. Hill -- dragons? Also teenagers. Teenagers are so great.

Women and the Priesthood: What One Mormon Woman Believes by Sheri Dew -- It was an excellent perspective.

I Will Lead You Along: The Life of Henry B. Eyring -- I had to check this book out twice in order to finish it, but it was so worth it to see how a man of God has lived his life.

Palace of Spies by Sarah Zettel -- most of what I remember about this book was that I had it on hold for four months and was starting to think it was never coming (I was #1 in line). Also that I was pleasantly surprised by how much I liked it. Court intrigue and stuff.

The Shadow Throne by Jennifer A. Nielsen -- finishes up the trilogy begun in The False Prince.

The Vanishing Thief by Kate Parker -- It's a Victorian Bookshop mystery! I'm not sure I'll remember to ever check back later for sequels, but I did like this first one.

Cress by Marissa Meyer -- I really like the direction these are taking. It's a retelling of Rapunzel, sequel to Cinder and Scarlet.

These Broken Stars by Amie Kaufman -- He's a common soldier risen above his station due to heroism. She is heiress to the entire world, basically. When their spaceship crashes on an unknown world or something, they must figure things out.

Doon by Carey Corp & Lorie Langdon -- These two girls end up on Brigadoon and they have really hot guys chasing after them or something. I loved the review on the library website ("The main characters used a lot of slang words and were always talking about how 'gorgeous' these guys were. Would not recommend.")

Roomies by Sara Zarr and Tara Altebrando -- teenager stories are my weakness. These two girls end up being assigned as college roommates and strike up an email conversation to get to know each other before the school year. What a summer!

The Shadow Prince by Bree Despain -- Um, a son of Hades or something gets sent to the real world to pick up a "Persephone" but the one he's assigned is not going to come easily. Also some end-of-the-world plots probably.

Doomed by Tracy Deebs -- Okay first off her dad names her Pandora, then he tricks her into uploading a virus that basically destroys the world. Good going, dad.

Death Sworn by Leah Cypress -- This sorceress gets sent to the assassins (after her previous predecessors mysteriously disappeared). There's some plotty conspiracies and magic and stuff.

Rebel Belle by Rachel Hawkins -- This girl ended up becoming some protector or something right before Cotillion. Protecting this guy that she's always had sparks with (the bad kind, totally the bad kind). I laughed out loud like 20 pages in.

The Winner's Curse by Marie Rutkoski -- The general's daughter bids more than she meant to on a slave, who is not the most slave-like slave ever. Do they fall in love? Does he totally ruin her life?

Dangerous by Shannon Hale -- teenagers + superheroes. Plus diversity, which is important. If you haven't read this book yet I don't know why.

The Cracks in the Kingdom by Jaclyn Moriarty -- I only just read this (the library website goes by checkout date, and I renewed this a couple times). I loved it so much. Sometimes I skimmed a little of the world-building/philosophy stuff to get to the story, but when the third one comes out I will definitely read A Corner of White and this one again, slowly, to appreciate them. Um, this girl that lives in Cambridge notices a letter stuck in a parking meter. It's from a boy from The Kingdom of Cello, which is totally a different dimension! (Thats's the summary of the first book.) They each have major issues on their sides of the crack, which puts a strain on their developing friendship.

Deep Blue by Jennifer Connelly -- It is a Disney Hyperion book and it reads kind of like a movie. It is mermaids.

The House at Rose Creek by Jenny Proctor -- a Whitney award finalist for 2013, so I thought I'd check it out. This girl has a high-powered job but then she inherits her childhood home. And (spoiler) converts to Mormonism.

Mile 21 by Sarah Dunster -- a Whitney award finalist for 2013 (actually it might have won). She's at BYUI and a widow, but she has to live in approved housing and go to the singles ward.

Plus One by Elizabeth Fama -- The world is divided into people that live in the daytime, Rays, and those that must live in the nighttime, Smudges. Sol, a Smudge, is determined to kidnap her new niece, a Ray, so her grandfather can meet her before he dies. It doesn't go all that well (no thanks to a Ray boy who keeps saving her). This is my kind of book.

Also Known As by Robin Benway -- She is an international spy (a good guy spy) that on her first solo mission gets to go to high school for the first time. Her target: a really hot guy. Things happen. Probably even explosions. I have the sequel checked out right now but haven't read it yet. I have hopes for it, though.

Pivot Point by Kasie West -- Confession: I didn't read this one. This is one that I said "This is really good!" and skipped to the end and then said, "That was really good!" But you guys should read it. I think it won the Whitney Award for 2013 (at least it was a finalist). This girl lives in a place where they have certain abilities. Hers is to live out two diverging timelines from one choice, to see what happens. (Then she comes back to 'the present' and makes her choice based on what she learned in her 'future-seeing'.)

Oh, I guess that's it. The other ten or so books on my reading history I haven't quite read yet. I'll have to hit them at the end of the year.

floral