WELCOME! ~ A LITTLE ABOUT THIS BLOG...

For many years, I have collected and continue to collect quotes, thoughts, & stories. It gives me the opportunity to ponder, to meditate, and be inspired to greater heights. I have a passion for life, for my religion, for the goodness of life. Through all this, it has uplifted my soul, & made me stronger emotionally & spiritually.

I thought I would share with you, as well as my own random thoughts, testimony builders, a few funnies and so forth to also give you the same opportunity.

I do hope that you enjoy this blog... and feel free to comment ~ preferably positive thoughts, as this is what this blog is all about.

23 November 2009

The Lifeline of Prayer

"No earthly authority can separate us from direct access to our Creator. There can never be a mechanical or electronic failure when we pray. There is no limit on the number of times or how long we can pray each day. There is no quota of how many needs we wish to pray for in each prayer. We do not need to go through secretaries or make an appointment to reach the throne of grace. He is reachable at any time and any place."
--James E. Faust, “The Lifeline of Prayer,” Ensign, May 2002, 59

16 November 2009

Give Thanks in All Things

"When we give thanks in all things, we see hardships and adversities in the context of the purpose of life... We are meant to learn and grow through opposition, through meeting our challenges, and through teaching others to do the same... the Lord will not only consecrate our afflictions for our gain, but He will use them to bless the lives of countless others."

--Dallin H. Oaks, "Give Thanks in All Things," Ensign, May 2003, 95

11 November 2009

Peace Offering --- Accepted

On November 9th, I shared some thoughts on "Taking the Higher Road" -- you may want to read this, so you understand what I am talking about here.

It's been three days after my peace offering to our neighbors, and today I got a knock on our door. It was the neighbor who I quarreled with, she had a plate of rice krispie treats, and this is what she said to me "This is my peace offering with you. We won't knock on your door anymore, we understand, as we also have kids. And we'll take care of the bikes. We want to not have contention between us either. We understand."

I can honestly say I was surprised. But through this experience, I have gained a testimony that when we follow in the footsteps of the teachings Jesus, the outcome in some way will be a good one. The response from our neighbor shows that she was touched by my act of kindness to her. She didn't have to make a plate of rice krispie treats, and take the courage to knock on our door, apologize and hand them to me, but she did. The outcome could have been good in so many different ways, the very fact that I had a spiritual renewal was a blessing. I always think about how we might plant seeds in people's lives. You can't choose the outcome, but you can plant the seed and they can choose to make that seed blossom now or in the future. The important part, is that you took the step, you took the higher road, you planted the seed. God is watching over us, and I know that He is pleased with us when we make good choices. It truly is simple, sometimes it feels hard, but it is simple. I am grateful for this experience, and I am grateful for the opportunity of planting a seed that blossomed. I would encourage you, if you're frustrated with someone, or something – take the higher road and you will be blessed for your efforts.

09 November 2009

Taking the Higher Road

In the last several months we have been frustrated with some bad neighbors. We currently live in the top unit of a condo, and the neighbors below us, who are renting from the owners recently moved in, about 4 months ago. Wow, it seems like a lot longer than that. Anyway, there has been one issue after another with them. It all started on the day they moved in. First it was smoking on the balcony, which is against the covenants here, as well as a city law. I went outside and politely let him know that it was against the covenants. He apologized and said he did not know. Within a couple of weeks they left their kids' toys and bikes out where it was a hazard - at the bottom of the stairs, in the breezeways, etc. Of note, there is a regulation regarding this as it is against the Disabilities Act. The second issue is, is that I was not seeing them at the bottom of the stairway and tripping on them with my infant in my arms. I really did not want to have anything broken, nor did I want my child to be hurt from a potential fall. And this is where it all started. I gave them a simple note, letting them be aware of the regulation and also mentioning my tripping on them. How I wish they could have just said "sorry, we'll take care of the problem" and leave it there. Not more than 5 minutes had passed and I got a fist hammering on my door. I honestly should not have opened it, yes, in hindsight, I should not have at all. The man yelled at me for the letter. He was angry, because I believe he felt he was being singled out in the letter, though all the other neighbors here already know the CC&Rs to the condo community. He also could not believe that in the 3 weeks time that they had lived there that I could have tripped on any of their bikes or toys. I so wanted to walk him outside and show him, but I knew that he knew better, he just didn't want to take responsibility and he tried to put the blame on my shoulders. I would have been fine with the last of that, but ever since then, we have gotten hammering knocks from these neighbors almost daily telling us that our kids are being too loud, jumping too much, or their crying is bothering them etc. We teach our children to have soft feet, to respect those that live around us, and they do. However, there will be times that they will have some noisy play, not throughout the day of course, but it would be unrealistic to keep them quiet 100% of the time. These are daily living noises. We are not loud during the city noise ordinances, unless of course, one of them is crying for one reason or another - but that is part of having children. There are other issues that are excessive noise issues from their unit, but we have not complained to them, although after the hours, have been tempted to call the police. The issues are ones that have affected our entire condo building, as well as other issues that I will not discuss here that have affected others in our condo community as well.

My frustrations levels went through the roof, and it was affecting how I felt, my overall feeling about how life currently felt, how I was as a wife and a mother, and probably a friend too.

Over a period of time, I started to be more aware of God reaching out to me during this frustration, and trying to help me take the "higher road." I will be perfectly honest in saying that I was feeling like I was not about to take the higher road because I was angry with them, because I was sick and tired of what we were dealing with on a daily basis, because I just didn't at the time feel it was in me to do it, I just didn't want to.

But, I noticed that my patience levels on a daily basis was dwindling into nothing. I noticed that I felt like a dark cloud every day followed me where ever I went. I was starting to more and more look at the negative vs. the many positive things in my life. I was being dragged down into a hole that I knew if I didn't do something about it soon, I would maybe be hiding in there for some time.

One of my favorite quotes, and I'm not sure who it is by is that when we listen and then follow God, we will always be right. How comforting that is to me. We can't go wrong.

I talked to my friend on my On Wings of Faith group and they encouraged me to take this step. I was totally feeling out of my comfort zone, but I don't think it really was out of my comfort zone, but that Satan simply did not want me to climb into the hole that I had chosen to get myself in. The moment I decided to take the higher road with these neighbors, is when I could literally feel my spirit lift to heights I hadn't been at in awhile. Like a spiritual bandaid. I knew that what I was doing was right. A member on On Wings of Faith (Melissa) told me that I could not choose how they responded, but that I would be blessed. All of the members on On Wings of Faith encouraged me to do this, and that God would make note of my efforts to make some peace.

So, I made some chocolate chip oatmeal cookies and also wrote a little note. In this note, I explained where we were coming from, where our frustrations stemmed from. I also apologized for a bit of an argument I got in with one of the neighbors. And I asked them if there was a better time for my children to have their louder playtime during the day. I have not yet heard back from them. But, it is much better than the almost daily hammering of our door for noises that are daily living noises. We'll see what comes of this. For now, however, my spirit has been renewed, a breath of fresh air has made life more sweet and less bitter.

For the Beauty of the Earth - TOTW

For the Beauty of the Earth

Hymns, For the Beauty of the Earth, no. 92

1. For the beauty of the earth,
For the beauty of the skies,
For the love which from our birth
Over and around us lies,

[Chorus]
Lord of all, to thee we raise
This our hymn of grateful praise.

2. For the beauty of each hour
Of the day and of the night,
Hill and vale, and tree and flow’r,
Sun and moon, and stars of light,

3. For the joy of human love,
Brother, sister, parent, child,
Friends on earth, and friends above,
For all gentle thoughts and mild,

Text: Folliott S. Pierpoint, 1835-1917
Music: Conrad Kocher, 1786–1872

Psalm 95:1–6
Psalm 33:1–6

02 November 2009

The Profound Power of Gratitude - TOTW

"Gracias, danke, merci whatever language is spoken, 'thank you' frequently expressed will cheer your spirit, broaden your friendships, and lift your lives to a higher pathway as you journey toward perfection. There is a simplicity even a sincerity when 'thank you' is spoken."

--Thomas S. Monson, “The Profound Power of Gratitude,” Ensign, Sept. 2005, 3