This is Me

(I found this scribbled on a piece of paper and shoved in a random place, and when I re-read it I liked it a lot. It's short and sweet and to the point so... enjoy!)

This is Me

Awkward, quirky, imperfect to the max, emotional, sometimes silly, and often scared, but that's me. I believe in loving people for who they are, but more importantly for who they have the ultimate potential to become (if this wasn't the case my younger brother would be dead ten million times over- well I guess that and the whole against the law thing, but whichever haha). I ask for forgiveness, but only as freely as I give it. I work for what I want, which is always what I love and I work to be my best.

It's just like riding a bike

I like this phrase. For some things it's true, you just don't forget how to do them. Riding a bike is definitely one of them. However, I think the phrase "It's just like playing the piano" should also be a phrase, but it should be for things that are not easily remembered. I've found that going two plus years without a piano has really limited my piano playing abilities. I can't remember a lot of the theory and the actually execution for me has become nearly painful. Now, don't take this the wrong way, I was never proficient in playing the piano, but I could definitely hold my own. Sadly, I have tried my hand at the piano this summer and it hasn't gone over too well (I think my little brother is close to issuing a written plea for me to cease and desist).

That's why I think there should be the phrase "It's just like playing the piano" for things that are easily forgotten, or I suppose things that need to be constantly practiced.

I found myself relating this to the gospel. I think the gospel is just like playing the piano. It is easily forgotten without the hours of practice that parents may at first have forced us to complete. It's far too easy to forget how to pray without actually praying, or fall further from the scriptures without actually picking them up on a regular basis. This was just a tidbit that I had in my head.

The gospel is just like playing the piano. Who would think you'd have to practice and persist?

Dear Jackson Hole, Wyoming...

I forgot how much I miss you!

So this past weekend was pretty great. I took a trip with 20 people, only two of which I really knew. I think one of the biggest reasons I had so much fun was because I was out of my comfort zone. I went and had a blast with a bunch of people that I didn't know at all, and I loved it. Usually I don't like being in a group with people I don't know, but this was different. I feel like I met people that I could be friends with, and not just for that one weekend of whitewater adventures.

Anyway, I love Wyoming and I think this was a growing experience for me (which is always a good thing) and Wyoming is never a disappointment. A fantastic weekend all around :)

Today...

I am going to have a great day even if it kills me. So far I don't know what is on the agenda but I am bound and determined to have an awesome day. Just thought I would let all two of you know.

New and Improved!

Last summer I wrote a list of things that I wanted. I think for this summer it's a fairly similar list, with a couple things added and a few alterations. So...

I want...
-To find new and improved ways of being happy.
-To find fun ways to exercise.
-To quickly find a second job.
-To not be too nervous to teach little kids how to swim.
-To sing, let others hear it, and love it :)
-To learn new hymns on the piano (cause hymns really are the only thing I can play, and I'm ok with that.)
-To smile, even when I want to frown (or even when I'm really tired).
-To learn how to run without hurting myself and without looking ridiculous.
-To write until I can't feel my my hands.
-To use my chacos and maintain the outdoorsy-ish status... haha.
-To go to the temple once a week.
-To read all 63 books on my summer reading list that I wrote for myself.
-To live in Boston one day.
-To be published, whether thats a book, an article or even a poem.
-To have kids and pets :)
-To love as much as I can.

These are things that I want :)

Hey, Me Too Marilyn

"I'm selfish, impatient, a little insecure, I make mistakes, I am out of control and at times, I'm hard to handle. But, if you can't handle me at my worst, you sure as hell don't deserve me at my best."

-Marilyn Monroe

Kudos to Kirena Allen, I stole this from her.

Fear

Ok, don't judge me, but I've recently finished reading the Fablehaven series... for the second time. Yes, your ten to twelve year old sibling is probably reading that too. Good for them, because it is an excellent book. So don't judge.

Anyway, an aspect of this book has been nagging at my brain for a while now and so I figured I'd get it out of my brain and onto the web. I guess it works out, sorta. In this series the main characters are nine year old Seth, and fourteen year old Kendra. They face random and fantastical challenges (which I will not give away at this time, just in case you decide you want a diversion from the everyday) but at one point Seth faces a demon which incapacitates him with a debilitating fear. Quite literally he can't move. When he finds the will to move, however each movement he makes takes a thousand times more energy to do than it normally would. This "magical fear" stops every character in their tracks- literally.

You might scoff and say "Psh, what a kids book Megan- magical fear that makes it so you can't move at all? Duh." But I couldn't help but make a connection. In all honesty I don't think anyone that reads this can say that they haven't felt something like this. Fear creeps into every aspect of life, even things that should be wonderful and exciting; you feel your stomach begin to sink and your heart races, and you can't move. You don't act.

I feel like everyone has something very similar to this fear. Sometimes it really does make one physically unable to move. For others it is the fear to move forward in the less literal sense. To make progress for better. Far too often we stay stagnant because of a debilitating fear that courses through the human body. I've been thinking about it and I no longer want fear to govern my actions. It has in the past, and I can recognize that it has created problems and made things more difficult. Today, however, I want nothing to do with this fear. If you still feel like this kids book is just for kids, I dare you to read it. The undercurrents of this book are amazing and tell a story all it's own. I want to diminish this fear. I figure if a fictional nine year old boy can overcome magical fear and progress forward into an unknown fate, so can I (probably with less demons though). I want to move forward with my life, with courage and purpose. So, that's just what has been on my mind. Continue to judge if you must, but I'm ok with reading kids books. More often than not it's simple things that teach us the most profound lessons, and I found one here.