Taking Your Requests
I've been thinking for a while now that it would be fun to take "your requests" and add some new tunes to my Playlist. I've been listening to the same old stuff for a while now and I'm ready to mix things up a bit. So, here's what I want you to do. In a comment, give me at least one favorite song (or several, if you want). Don't worry about matching my genre -- just tell me what YOU like! My only request is keep it clean (no swearing, vulgarity, or suggestive lyrics). But beyond that, sky's the limit -- introduce me to something new and fun or tell me your all-time favorite! I really do like most anything, even if you've tagged me as an "easy listener" by what's currently on my playlist! In my concert-going days I saw bands like Counting Crows, John Mayer, U2, Boingo, The Cure (yes, me!), Indigo Girls, Sting, ska bands, etc. ... so really, I'm game for just about anything! If you're a reader of my blog but never comment, don't be shy ... I'd love to get a request from as many people as possible! I'm excited to assemble a fun mix of songs liked by the people I like!
It's Autumn Time ...
Which, at our house, means it's time to bundle up, grab KFC to go, and head to the Riverfront Park for a cozy picnic and stroll. It was a gloomy day, but still fun to carry on this little tradition. And for tradition's sake, we also took plenty of pictures. We got some great shots, except for the fact that Eliot's a stinker when it comes to looking at, let alone smiling for the camera these days. One thing we'll miss about Oregon is how friendly and willing people are to take pictures. The nicest people offered to take pictures for us which resulted in some really nice candid pics of our fam. Here are several of our favorites ...
Fantastic of all of us, don't you think? That's my boy!
Almost picture perfect. "Stare at the camera blankly, Eliot."
This tree was unbelievable. As much as I really like how this picture turned out, I wish it had better captured the bright orange color of the leaves ... a digital SLR is calling me (from a few years away, but still calling ...)
A little fuzzy, but a fantastic shot. Again, thanks to a kind stranger!
Love the boys' faces in this one. Now I know where Eliot gets his devilish grin.
Cheesy boys. I love this photo.
Eliot and me. It's tricky to get him to smile (or look at the camera) these days.
"A kiss, Mama?" Me and my little smoocher.
The sweet woman whose husband took our family shots got Eliot to smile so sweetly for her (don't mind the grape skin in his teeth!). She reminded me a bit of my own mom and made me miss home ...
I dream of someday taking a dinner cruise on the "Willamette Queen" ...
And just because I was feeling artsy ...
"To Every Thing There Is a Season"
--Ecclesiastes 3:1-8, 11
I'm not a big fan of change. No, let me state that differently. I hate change. I hate being uprooted from what's comfortable and predictable. Which is kind of funny because you'd think I'd be used to it by now. I, of my own choosing, went away to college. I, of my own choosing, served a mission halfway across the world. Grant and I, of our own choosing (mostly), have moved four times in our seven years of marriage and will probably move another few times before we reach year 10. You'd think I'd be able to roll with the punches by now. But I am not.
So it shouldn't come as any surprise that my recent change in callings at church hit me hard. Like I have done with so many other changes in my life, I have dragged my feet on this one. I did not readily accept this change when it happened. It came a little sooner than expected, which caught me off guard, and I have felt more upset about it than even I, the change-hater, expected I would. I'm a big girl and have served in enough callings by now to know how it works -- you serve for a period of time, and you get released and someone else takes over. Which is perfectly fine. It's how it's always worked, it's how it's meant to work, it's a blessing to everyone involved that we don't stay stagnant in callings forever. But, for a change-hater, it rocked my world too much for my liking. I knew and loved the sisters I served with. My responsibilities conveniently "worked" with my schedule as a mom and law student's wife. I've been in a Relief Society presidency for almost five years now, so I knew my responsibilities. I was comfortable. That's the dangerous part. I was too comfortable.
Which the Lord knew perfectly well. So, He knew it was time for a change. And it doesn't matter how much I dragged my heels or resisted or fought this change; it's here, and it's time to move forward. And I'm sure Heavenly Father, knowing that I'm stubborn and resistant, knew that I'd fight it. So He lovingly provided me with needed reminders and counsel through the words of His prophets and the wonders of His creation.
The first loving answer I received regarding all this change came from a talk given by President Henry B. Eyring at the general Relief Society Broadcast. Because I was feeling a little low about the change in calling, which had happened only a week prior to the broadcast, I skipped out on the luncheon and missed my last opportunity to attend that special event with friends. I even missed getting to sit with my dearest friends at the broadcast because I purposefully came just in time for the meeting and slipped in the back. Ornery little one, aren't I. Even with all my stubbornness, the words of that great and gentle leader of the Church pierced my closed-off heart and began a series of inspirations that have brought me to my answer about this change in my life. President Eyring, in talking to the sisters of the Church about their legacy, told about the early leaders in the Church, those who served in the first season of service after the Restoration of the gospel. Here's some of what President Eyring said:
"It is clear from the record they left that those women of the first period of Relief Society felt the joy the Lord promised [them]. He was in the work with them. He prospered it, and they felt joy and light.
"But the Prophet Joseph foresaw that another season would follow. He saw the grand works they would build in the first season. But he also said that they were to serve, bless, and care for those close to them, known personally by them.
"After a joyful time of service for the Relief Society, the Lord led them into another season, away from the fields they had planted so magnificently. It was hard for the faithful men who inherited, for instance, the hospital system they had expanded on the foundation the Relief Society had built. The Lord, through His prophets, made clear that His priesthood servants could hand the trust of maintaining and building that powerful instrument for good to others. And so the Church gave away its marvelous hospital system.
"I know and admire the men who had felt the joy of service in that hospital system. And I saw their recognition that the joy had come from being at work with the Lord, not from their own accomplishments. So they smiled and gave away gladly what they had built. They had faith that the Lord saw a greater need for their service elsewhere, in other fields in another season."
So it shouldn't come as any surprise that my recent change in callings at church hit me hard. Like I have done with so many other changes in my life, I have dragged my feet on this one. I did not readily accept this change when it happened. It came a little sooner than expected, which caught me off guard, and I have felt more upset about it than even I, the change-hater, expected I would. I'm a big girl and have served in enough callings by now to know how it works -- you serve for a period of time, and you get released and someone else takes over. Which is perfectly fine. It's how it's always worked, it's how it's meant to work, it's a blessing to everyone involved that we don't stay stagnant in callings forever. But, for a change-hater, it rocked my world too much for my liking. I knew and loved the sisters I served with. My responsibilities conveniently "worked" with my schedule as a mom and law student's wife. I've been in a Relief Society presidency for almost five years now, so I knew my responsibilities. I was comfortable. That's the dangerous part. I was too comfortable.
Which the Lord knew perfectly well. So, He knew it was time for a change. And it doesn't matter how much I dragged my heels or resisted or fought this change; it's here, and it's time to move forward. And I'm sure Heavenly Father, knowing that I'm stubborn and resistant, knew that I'd fight it. So He lovingly provided me with needed reminders and counsel through the words of His prophets and the wonders of His creation.
The first loving answer I received regarding all this change came from a talk given by President Henry B. Eyring at the general Relief Society Broadcast. Because I was feeling a little low about the change in calling, which had happened only a week prior to the broadcast, I skipped out on the luncheon and missed my last opportunity to attend that special event with friends. I even missed getting to sit with my dearest friends at the broadcast because I purposefully came just in time for the meeting and slipped in the back. Ornery little one, aren't I. Even with all my stubbornness, the words of that great and gentle leader of the Church pierced my closed-off heart and began a series of inspirations that have brought me to my answer about this change in my life. President Eyring, in talking to the sisters of the Church about their legacy, told about the early leaders in the Church, those who served in the first season of service after the Restoration of the gospel. Here's some of what President Eyring said:
"It is clear from the record they left that those women of the first period of Relief Society felt the joy the Lord promised [them]. He was in the work with them. He prospered it, and they felt joy and light.
"But the Prophet Joseph foresaw that another season would follow. He saw the grand works they would build in the first season. But he also said that they were to serve, bless, and care for those close to them, known personally by them.
"After a joyful time of service for the Relief Society, the Lord led them into another season, away from the fields they had planted so magnificently. It was hard for the faithful men who inherited, for instance, the hospital system they had expanded on the foundation the Relief Society had built. The Lord, through His prophets, made clear that His priesthood servants could hand the trust of maintaining and building that powerful instrument for good to others. And so the Church gave away its marvelous hospital system.
"I know and admire the men who had felt the joy of service in that hospital system. And I saw their recognition that the joy had come from being at work with the Lord, not from their own accomplishments. So they smiled and gave away gladly what they had built. They had faith that the Lord saw a greater need for their service elsewhere, in other fields in another season."
And there was my answer. The Lord was leading me into a new season, into a new field of labor. It was my turn to "smile and [give] away gladly what [I] had built." The Lord, as He did for His early saints, "saw a greater need for [my] service elsewhere, in other fields in another season."
As I contemplated this answer, I realized that I was released from my calling on September 27, days after the literal change of seasons -- a physical symbol of this time of change in my life. Each day as I'm out on walks or running errands and see literally strewn about me the evidence that all of God's creations are subject to change, I am gently reminded that I can't resist what God intends for me. He knows why I am needed to teach His young women in this ward at this period of time. He knows what I can share with them that will touch them, and maybe more importantly, He knows what they can share with me.
I'm off to get ready for church, to teach my lesson to and learn from the amazing Laurels I get to serve. I'm off to find out what the Lord now needs me to know, to feel and to experience. I'm off to a new field and a new season of service.
"I Come to the Beach to Breathe ..."
... That saying was written all over cards and notebooks in one of the shops we looked at in Seaside, and I think it perfectly describes why I love the beach so much ... I feel like I can breathe! There's something about having the ocean in view that automatically calms me. I feel peaceful there, relaxed. Here are some pictures (in no particular order) of our recent trip to the coast. Enjoy a little moment to breathe ... I won't say anything about the photos except the one of the seagull swooping right into the shot of me and Eliot on the pier. It was a total coincidence, but Grant was a pretty lucky shot!
Love These Ladies
Last night I enjoyed a fantastic night out with the ladies, courtesy of Ruth, the Relief Society President I served under, who was generous enough to take all of the women who served in her presidency out to dinner. We enjoyed an amazing meal (I had a Cordon Bleu sandwich that makes me drool just thinking about it!), out-of-this-world dessert (tuxedo chocolate torte, anyone?), and entertainment that made me hurt from laughing so hard. Ruth and Martha had cooked up a surprise performance for us, which they presented in the parking lot just outside the restaurant. It was beyond hysterical, and I'm sure our waitresses and any patrons who could see us through the window were totally baffled at the fact that we had not had a sip of alcohol but were totally punchy regardless. Needless to say, I will MISS seeing these women on a regular basis. Not only did they provide regular and much-needed comic relief, but they were among my greatest support system here in Salem and became true and cherished friends. How grateful I am for the opportunity to have served with them and to have met such incredible, talented women. I treasure our friendships. My new calling is the Laurel Advisor in Young Women, which is a completely new realm for me. I'm nervous about this calling but excited for the fun and growth that it will bring. Because of the amazing experience I had while serving in Relief Society, I am confident that the Lord will bless me with additional growth opportunities and cherished new friendships as I move on to a new season of service. Here's to wonderful women.
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