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My little sisters… Aren’t so little anymore

There are a few things I am very passionate about. One is of course music, because it is essentially my life right now. Another is The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, another is Chocolate Haupia pie from Ted’s Bakery, and another is my three little sisters– Kristen, Lauren and Sophie. I’d like to think that I’m not a very prideful person, but if there’s one thing I take incredible pride in, it’s these three young ladies. Please let me brag about them to you.

KRISTEN is my oldest friend, and by that I mean I’ve been friends with her for 18 years of my life. She just turned 18, and she is one of the most spiritually in-tune, selfless, compassionate individuals I know. Whenever I go home, she’s usually not home about 60% of the time, and about 90% of that is visiting other people and giving them cookies she made or something. And let me tell you, that girl can cook! She also just got accepted to the extremely competitive BYU School of Music (round of applause, please) after impressing much of Western Europe with her cello skills. She should commence her world-tour sometime within the next five years. Ticket prices to be announced at a later date. And if her cello skills weren’t enough, she can also sing the socks off of any Broadway musical or Italian opera or what have you. Seriously.

LAUREN is not only the most popular girl at Timpview, she is also

"Old" Age

I’ve kind of been thinking about how age perspective really changes as you get older. For example, until I was no longer a high school senior, I thought high school seniors were old and awesome. I also felt that way about my age in 9th grade, and 8th grade, and 7th grade, and 6th grade…. I guess every year you feel kind of like you’re on top of the world. 


But then you go to college, and you find yourself at the bottom of the food chain again, and you realize that you are but a small child. And people that age are getting married! And the Elders, those old, mature Elders I used to see coming out of the MTC and playing on the missionary field, are but children as well. 


I don’t feel like I can even sound sophisticated enough about my age until I’m 23 at the youngest. Before that is just embarrassing. 

So, sixteen was always old. (And twenty was ancient.) But I found these movie quotes that make sixteen sound… You know. The way it felt at that age. 


The Little Mermaid:
Triton: They’re dangerous. Do you think I want to see my youngest daughter snared by some fish eater’s hook? 
Ariel: I’m sixteen years old – I’m not a child anymore… 
Triton: Don’t you take that tone of voice with me young lady. As long as you live under my ocean, you’ll obey my rules! 

The Sound of Music:
Liesl: I’m Liesl. I’m sixteen years old and I don’t need a governess.





So yeah. But then there comes a time when you realize that you aren’t exactly a child, per say, even if you’re comparatively young, as the general population goes. That’s for times like this:

Sorry if you can’t read that. It’s funny. And I get that I’m still way young, which is the point of this whole thing.


Also this:

Ha!


I also feel this way:

I really do still think that the ’90s is the “current” decade. 


Remember this?

Ah, good times.



The point is, I don’t feel like I’m getting old. Quite the opposite. But I am starting to realize that time has flown on. Here’s to 80 more years of awesomeness, and never feeling old.

Beautiful Music

Last night, I went to one of the most incredible concerts I’ve ever been to. It was the Honolulu Symphony, performing the Eroica Symphony, Rhapsody on a theme of Paganini, Rhapsody in Blue, and Pictures At an Exhibition. Let me say that when I saw the program, I almost died.

We studied the Eroica in Music History this past semester, so I already knew quite a bit about it, and it just happens to be one of my all-time favorite symphonies. Very fine performance. Then the Rachmaninov. Oh my word. I am going to make the biggest statement of my life, and say that I think the 18th Variation of Rachmaninov’s Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini is the most glorious piece ever written. I will qualify that there are thousands of other beautiful songs, some of which I blogged about last March, linked here for your viewing/ listening convenience. Nonetheless, it has been one of my favorite pieces for almost as long as I can remember, and the stunning performance nearly brought me to tears.

http://youtu.be/bNrVFkBDte8

Two Years!

I have an exciting announcement to make: it has been exactly two years (730 days) since my brain surgery, and I haven’t had a seizure since then. This is the longest I’ve gone without having a seizure in my entire life, so it’s kind of a huge deal for me.

Primary Children’s Hospital. This is the place where the miracles happen, mine specifically, along with SO MANY others. I can say with complete confidence that I could not have gone to a better hospital, or had better surgeons or doctors or nurses.

There are angels in this building, ranging in age from newborns to however old the oldest worker is, and including both living and dead. I think I’d like to spend some time over there after I die, as odd as that sounds. I absolutely know I was watched over during my surgery. I don’t really know how that whole deal works, but if it’s possible, I’m doing it.

Prayers are answered. The priesthood is real. Heavenly Father loves His children.

Sister Hickman

One of the absolute greatest members of the Oaks Hills First ward passed away last Saturday. I was her favorite Primary kid, so I feel like I should write a tribute to her, out of duty.

I think every neighborhood has at least one “crazy lady”. (I’m totally gonna be the one in my ward.) Well, Sister Hickman was our’s. And when I say crazy, I also mean hilarious, energetic, loving, friendly, and pretty much awesome. (Hoping for some of those qualities as well.) She was the fire in our ward, as well as the neighborhood “gossip”, if you will. I mean that in a very kind way. She just liked to be in on everything, not unlike myself. (That will unquestionably be me.) I remember one time she opposed a calling, and I have respected her for that ever since.

She was the Primary pianist when I was in Primary, and I remember her spouting out different things during the lessons, and I just always thought she was incredibly cool. As evidenced by that calling, she was obviously a pianist, which means she had a piano, which means Lucy and I made our monthly rounds of pre-Master Class performances to her every month. And she always seemed happy to hear us! How cool is that? I got to play for her when the cancer started to get bad, and that was really special.

For some reason, Bishop Holcombe called Lucy and me to be co-choir presidents, which means we had to call EVERY SINGLE CHOIR MEMBER, EVERY SINGLE WEEK. And you know how I love talking on the phone…. Yeah. But I always did members A-L, which included Sister Hickman, so she got the “Hi Sister Hickman, I’m just calling to remind you–” “I’ll be there.” Every week? Seriously? Baffles me. (I still love Bishop Holcombe, though.) So she was a rock in the alto section, and I think we were really blessed to have her. She and Sister Christiansen and the Monsons and Brother Marlowe were the constants. Oh boy.

She was and is a wonderful example to me, and when I say I want to be like her when I’m old, I absolutely mean it. Her husband died like 30 years ago, and although I’m definitely not planning on that, (please no) I admire her attitude of service and compassion and love, even when she had experienced such a tremendous loss. I think I’ll recognize Brother Hickman when I get to the next life, because she talked so much about him. I hope to have that kind of love for everyone.

Sister Hickman was so great. And she made everyone feel loved. I guess that’s why I think I was her favorite Primary kid.

This is her real and very well-written obituary.

My Single Most Defining Feature

“You wore your hair down!”
Well, this is my very own hair. And to be quite honest, I had a rather terrible relationship with it for several years of my life. (This was of course after my bald phase, which lasted approximately two years.) I am well aware than many girls would die to have hair like mine, and they spend large amounts of money to artificially curl it, as I’ve been told multiple times. But it’s just not the same if wild and crazy hair is forced upon you. I used to tie it up EVERY SINGLE DAY, and then I’d randomly wear it down, and I’d get, “You wore your hair down!” all day. Still do. Because I still tie it up EVERY SINGLE DAY. —See pictured:
“How did you do that?”

This I could not do in high school. Somehow I discovered in Hawaii that my hair would stay tied in a knot without an elastic, and there was no going back from there. I don’t know if there’s been a day that my hair hasn’t ended up in a knot, even with all the friendly comments I get about how they love that I wore my hair down. I have, however, been asked about fifty times how I do that cool style. But then there’s the fancier way, which is a combination of my two signature styles: 
“I really like how you did your hair.” [Why, thank you!]

That’s the very kind comment I always get when I do this. And it’s kind of weird that you can tell my hair only occasionally goes up like that, because it’s not bleached in the middle.
“Did you straighten your hair?/ Did you get extensions?/ Your hair is SO LONG!”

Well surprise, surprise. My hair is much longer than anyone ever knew. That’s all. This task takes roughly 40 minutes, or a large portion of a movie, to accomplish. I can’t keep my hands out of it, because I don’t know how to deal with that much hair! And it just doesn’t tie up like it should!
“uhhhhhhhh” 
Finals Week tradition. Please choose to be impressed. That’s all.

Sumer 2012 Quotes

I can never remember quotes. Like ever. So this is probably about 15% of the funny things that were said this term, even with all my “remind me to write that down! Don’t forget!”s. So yeah. Behold.

“I can’t believe you didn’t pay for any of your music! I’m so scandalized.” “Well, someone paid for it. And I did pay for some of it, like when someone gave me an itunes gift card.” -M

“Vienna is wine.” -L

“Clayton, do you know ‘He Lives in You’?” “Well yeah. I sing it in the shower like everyday!”

“Ah, do we have to sit by a vegetarian?” -Marie

“Us singing at the same time is a tender moment? If that’s a tender moment, then every moment is a tender moment for us.” “Yeah, our lives are tender moments.” -A and M

“If the Jazz were playing the Red Sox, I would be biased towards the Jazz.” -M

“Conlan has turned a new tree!” -Leen

“His last name’s Karate? I want to marry him, so I can have that last name.” “No you don’t. He has webbed feet.” -Clayton and Chelsea

“My whole life is based on Hook and Fantasia.” -Dan

“I wonder if facebook supports polygamy?” -Clayton [It doesn’t. We found out.]

“May the 5th be with you!” -Matthew

“Due to my current physiological state, I will not be swimming today.” -A

“I will be Alpha! Just wait and see.” -A

“There are two things I know for sure: I’m going to die, and the gospel is true.” -ward member, in Sac. Mtg. talk

“If I wasn’t in the show, I’d probably go once, then be disgusted with myself and go home and take a shower and watch Lord of the Rings while I cry myself to sleep.” -Clayton

“Don’t count your grandkids before they hatch.” -Dell

“I have to marry a trombone player.” -Lug [Freudian slip! Freudian slip!]

“Married life is awesome. My wife hasn’t elbowed me in the eye for like a month!” -Michael

“Often I look at the armies of EFY kids, and the first word that comes to mind is ‘WHY?’, and right after ‘Lord of the Rings orks’.” -Lug

“You are good. But it is not enough just to be good. You must be good for something. You must contribute good to the world. The world myst be a better plance for our presence.” -Pres. Hinckley

“I’ve ordered some Confucius Family Liquor for us all.” -Bro. Lane

“Don’t worry that people won’t recognize your merits. Worry that you won’t recognize theirs.” 

-Confucius

“Every time I go to bed at night, I remind myself how cool I am because I sleep with a stuffed animal.” -M

“Until FoodFest, I didn’t realize how popular I was!” -Brooke

“I only got two cold wings and a meatball. But it’s okay. I need to watch my figure anyway.” -Dan

“When I finish eating something, my wife takes the plate immediately and puts it in the dishwasher, whereas I would like to just put it in the sink and let it enjoy life for a while.” -Bro. Lane

“When the best rulers achieve their purpose, their subjects claim the achievement as their own.” 

-Taoist teaching

“I really love men’s choirs. They’re pretty much my favorite thing in the world.” -A

“I just really like men in general. They’re up there with my favorite things.” -Suzie

“I haven’t seen The Little Mermaid in forever!” -A

“I try to watch it about once a week.” -Chelsea

“Oh blast! I forgot to write my tithing check!” -A

“You can borrow one of my checks, if you’d like.” -M

 “So, I was preparing the roast pig for Luau a few years ago, and a took a bite of it, and I turned to my co-worker, and I was like, ‘Hey! This tastes just like bacon!’ and he thought I was an idiot.” -Shaun

“The only things I love are Canadians.” -Lug

“I am sad that my phone, I mean my car, I mean my house…I mean my fan…!!” -Amber
                                                          

Recipe #1

I had this idea to occasionally blog about the food I make, since I don’t really make food. If all goes well, there will hopefully be more of these someday, because that means that I’m cooking a bit more. This potential series will cater to college students like unto myself, who may have small means with which to create the nutrients necessary to live that sort of life. 

Behold the first installment: my signature meal. My friends really like to tease me about my food tastes, but they just don’t try them, so they don’t know what they’re missing.

Are you searching for a simple, healthy, low-budget meal? Try the peanut butter and jelly and cheese sandwich! Sound weird?  Go ahead and try it, and send it back to me if you aren’t satisfied. I dare you. [The pictured brands are the best, in my humble opinion.]

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Semester/ Life Conclusion

·      “Our faith must be alive. It cannot be just a set of ridged beliefs and notions. Our faith must evolve every day and bring us joy, peace, freedom, and love. Faith implies practice, living our daily life in mindfulness. Some people think that prayer or meditation involves only our minds or our hearts. But we also have to pray with our bodies, with our actions in the world. And our actions must be modeled after those of the living Buddha or the living Christ. If we live as they did, we will have deep understanding and pure actions, and we will do our share to help create a more peaceful world for our children and all of the children of God” –The Living Buddha, the Living Christ, p. 136

It’s true.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nLO0DrlvLX4&feature=colike

I wrote earlier about how I’ve been studying world religions, specifically Buddhism. I just read What the Buddha Taught and Living Buddha, Living Christ, which are excellent, and it’s really got me thinking about our church. I know I already wrote about this, but these are further thoughts.

Joseph Smith saw Heavenly Father and Jesus. No question. It’s been really interesting to learn about when Suddharta Guatama became was visited and became enlightened, or when Guru Nanak had his vision before founding the Jain religion, or when the Holy Spirit appeared to Mahavira, but when Heavenly Father and Jesus appeared to the boy Joseph Smith, they brought him the true and living gospel that has the FULLNESS of truth that we need to return to them, and there is life after death.

Jesus Christ is our Lord and Savior, and He really lived and died for us, and He knows each of us personally, and is the head of our church today. He loves us. He is real.

We have all this knowledge that so many don’t have! We have a prophet that speaks to us directly from Him! We don’t have dozens of break-offs of our religion because of various doctrinal discrepancies, because there is nothing missing. I’ve found many truths in these other religions I’ve studied, and it really has been very educational.

There is truth everywhere, and we can most definitely learn and benefit from those of other faiths, and by seeking truth everywhere, but we have the only complete and full truth. And we need to share it! AND I GET TO DO THAT IN 7 MONTHS!!!!!

Our church is perfect, and it is perfect because Jesus is the head of it. I’ve loved reading about the structures of other churches, and the different ideas they had for proper order and hierarchy, but everything about our church is exactly right. The people are imperfect, but the church is perfect.

There is no doubt in my mind that ours is the true church. I know it with all my heart. I have a lot to learn, and I’ve learned a lot from these other religions, and gained respect for each of them, but I would love to be able to add to their beliefs in the same way they’ve added to mine. Eternal life in the Celestial Kingdom with our Heavenly Father is a lot more exciting that Nirvana, which is essentially a state of simple existence/ nothingness. I’m down with Celestial glory. And we know how to get there!

I’m starting my papers as soon as I get home, which is in 2 weeks. Oh yes. Here I come. I hope I get to interact with some Buddhists, because I owe them a lot. I’d like to talk to some Jains and Sikhs as well. They are really wonderful people.