Birthdays

The celebration of the day one is born is a big deal to some people in some cultures. I know that my family has used it as a time to celebrate the person, celebrate the good they have done in our lives and let them know how much we love them. I've always thought this was just the way things went; for my siblings birthdays I would compliment them, give gifts to them, do some of their chores, etc. On my birthday, I'd enjoy the displays of love that I'd receive. I think this is a rather standard view on birthdays, a day of self indulgence and joy.

A birthday cake, the universal symbol of growing older and having fun

One December birthday, while celebrating my father's birthday, my dad did something that changed how I think about birthdays. It was my dad's day; we kids were trying to be nice to each other, by good to our mother, and making my dad's day worthy of being called as such. Then, at the birthday party where everybody was gathered (including my grandma, his mom), my dad produced a bouquet of flowers to give to my grandma. He then proceeded to thank her for all the things she had done in his life, not the least of which was giving him life. After all, we didn't do all that much on our first birthday; it was almost all our mother's work.

This act of humility, of taking something I had been taking for granted and looking at the source of the blessing, will forever make me think of the things my mom has done for me. My birthday, while certainly a fun time to hear well wishes, is a time to thank those around me, to thank my mom, but to also thank my God. I am thankful for my life, both its basic existence and also for the bountiful blessings I've experienced. I am grateful for the many reminders I have of my own inadequacies, and the chance I have, through Christ and His Atonement, to perfect myself and become a better person. My birthday was yesterday, but every day I have the chance to be thankful, be humble, and be faithful. I hope you use your time to look for the good things, and then your life will be filled with them.

For the Beauty of the Earth

Hymn 92 in our hymnbook is For the Beauty of the Earth, a lovely song that reminds us of being thankful, of how beautiful the world we live in is, and of the universe as well. Today I wanted to talk about that beauty, and the many different kinds I've seen already in my life.

A view in Utah

My brother, fishing in a local river

I grew up in Maryland, living in three different towns over the course of about 18 years. I've also gone to school in Utah, and I've served in two different towns in Montana and Wyoming for the past 6 or so months. I can say that I've enjoyed being in every single one of those places. Each town, city, or area has beauty that makes me appreciate this wonderful earth a little more. For example, living in Havre de Grace, MD allowed me to enjoy being around trees and water almost constantly. Moving to Forest Hill gave me a chance to see the more rural area of the same county, as well as enjoying the close effect that hills and trees combined create. While Utah wasn't nearly as green, it did have mountains and views that lasted more than 2 or 3 miles. It was amazing, and something I hadn't seen before.

A Montana sunset I captured

Now I'm serving in Montana and Wyoming. When people hear I'm from Maryland, I often hear "You're a long way from home!" or "Oh, it's beautiful out there!" or something else. To these, I say that it's only a few thousand miles from home or I say that it's beautiful here, too. I've seen gorgeous sunsets, beautiful mountains, and my first double rainbow. I am so thankful for the beauty that surrounds us every day. I love this earth, and I'm happy to be on a mission. Please, take some time to enjoy the sites around you. If you have time afterwards, ask me about what else helps me to see beauty all around me, and I'll gladly talk about the truths that provide me with an eternal perspective.

What I Am Thankful For: Big Things

This last week (since Tuesday, up to Today) I've been saying things I'm grateful for. I've mentioned silly things, such as celery, and serious things, such as modern technology. I am thankful for each of the things I've mentioned, as well as many other things, but today I'd like to be thankful for the truly life changing things that come from my membership in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

I am thankful for the prophet Joseph Smith Jr. I am grateful for the faith and endurance that he showed and that God used to restore the true church again on the earth. I am also grateful for the early Church members, that suffered at the hands of others and that endured anyway and so built the foundation for the Church that I am a member of. I am grateful for the prophets and leaders that have since led us under Christ's direction. I am grateful for the history that has led up to me being here today.

I am grateful for the truths that I know. I am grateful for the revelations given to the living prophets and prophets of the past that help me understand my place in the universe, and tell me how I can best fulfill my purpose in life. I'm grateful for the knowledge of what my purpose in life is, and that it is good! I'm grateful for a religion that makes logical sense as well as spiritual sense.

I am grateful for a Brother that loves me perfectly. I am grateful that I have the opportunity to follow Him, and that He has opened a way that I can return to Heavenly Father. In the end, this is the truest thing to be grateful for. This I know, that I am eternally grateful to Christ for his infinite atonement. I hope you want to feel this joy as much as I love feeling it, and that you'll give the gospel, which has brought me so much joy, a chance in your life. Talk with missionaries, and start an amazing change in your life!

Try the links I've included. Most will take you to a place that will explain my word choice. Also, Mormon.org is a great website for explaining mormon related questions!

What I Am Thankful For: Modern Conveniences

Today is not Thanksgiving, and by some counts it is simply Christmas season. That's fine with me and my current blog series of thanks, for what greater thing do we have to be thankful for than Christ? Granted, I have only a limited ability to continue the same subject, but for a few days at least I'll be able to continue writing.

Something I've alluded to previously is that I'm thankful for the Internet, the vast series of connections between computers that allows me to write a blog entry and be read within moments by somebody days (walking distance) away. This is only one aspect of a world with incredible advancements in technology; not only can I share my testimony with you (who almost certainly isn't standing behind me) but we also have better materials, better education, and better entertainment than we did decades ago. I am grateful that I have the chance to grow up with pictures of the earth at night to enjoy as a youth and not just gazes at the stars.

About 11 years old, and still amazing to see. Source

I have grown up with conveniences that pioneers never could have imagined. Also, I have grown up with conveniences that pioneers made possible. It is impossible to be truly grateful with what I have today without being grateful for those that made it possible. I'm not a history buff, but I know that looking to our yesterdays allows us to appreciate our todays. I am also thankful for my God, who loves his children and has a plan in place to best help them. Remember as you go through your week, to "give thanksgiving daily" (Alma 34:38) for He really does send us blessings. This I know, and I am grateful for the idea a relative gave me to blog about being grateful.

What I Am Thankful For: Fun Activities

Every family has different things that they love to do with each other. I've heard of massive football games that come from family reunions around the holidays, and I've heard of board games, puzzle adventures, book reading, and many others. I may have mentioned my parents' love of certain geeky subjects, and that has affected what we do as well. My personal love of computers comes largely from my dad, and how he'd share his time with us in the form of either playing with us or letting us watch him as he played the games. We'd also play video games with each other; we hardly had a video-game in the house that we couldn't split screen with each other. Sometimes we'd get into conflicts over the games, but because that was against the goal of having games we would then lose gaming privileges and do something else instead.

Some people that put their picture on a Wiki site,
enjoying some good split screen fun.

A piece of modern revelation that we have received is the Family Proclamation. One of my dad's favorite line involves the fact that "wholesome recreational activities" are important for family unity. However, he points out that "work" comes before fun. It is good to have fun, to enjoy the time we have with our family, as long as we remember to not focus on the fun more than the work. I'm grateful for parents that love me, and for their example of work and fun that they have been to me.

What I Am Thankful For: Food

I remember having many family activities around the time of Thanksgiving where the goal was to get the kids to be grateful for something. We'd say many things, such as a home, family, the restored church, prophets, and other absolutely important things that affected our lives so deeply and for so much good. Eventually it would be my turn to say something I'm grateful for, and all the important things were taken so I would say I was grateful for something not too important at all, and, I'll admit, is rather silly to be thankful for. That something would always be celery.

This simple, sometimes disliked, sometimes bitter vegetable was my goofy addition to the pile of thanks. It reminded me of the simple things I'm thankful for, such as Old Bay spice (which includes celery seed), health (as celery is supposed to be a great diet), good tasting food (which celery sometimes falls under, and other times reminds me of how good other things are) and the simple beauty of green scenery. It also brought up comments directed at my love of eating that came from being a teenager, and a hungry one at that. And so, while I am thankful for important things and celery, I am also thankful for food and the great chance Thanksgiving is to enjoy good food with good people.

What Am I Grateful For?

In a few days I (and many others) will be celebrating Thanksgiving, a time of family, food, and festivities. It is also a time that can be used for what its name sounds like: giving thanks. This idea is nothing new, but I'd like to embrace it for this week (and perhaps longer).

To kick off this week of thanks, I'd like to share a talk by President Eyring. Found in the embedded video, he talks about taking time to be grateful, and how the simple act of trying to find something to be grateful for allowed him to see blessings that he had already received. I know I especially like the idea of writing down the blessings he noticed; I am not great at remembering specifics. I can only imagine what things I might realize have been happening to me if I simply started writing them down. Now, this week I will be writing down those blessings, counting what I can find, and sharing with the Internet.

 

Now here's one thing I'm grateful for; an Internet that allows me and many others to interact so quickly, and currently share my testimony across the world! Think a little about what you are grateful for.