A Summer of Blessings

People say that time flys when you're having fun. For me I have found that time flys even faster when working; but regretfully not in the hour to hour sense but the week to week and month to month sense. It feels like just yesterday I came home from Idaho and now in less then an hour I will make my way up campus to the first class of the Fall 2009 semester. So before the school year offically starts and b/c I am soo bad at posting when Im at home I want to update on my summer.

Its funny to look back and think about how scared I was for this summer. I'd lost my regular summer job at the movie theater, I had no money, and all of my friends were moving out and on which meant finding new ones (a task that frightens me more then almost anything). But, as He always does, Heavenly Father provided the way for me.


By about two weeks into the summer and after TONS of applications Heavenly Father saw fit to bless me with two wonderful jobs. One at the Borders Express in the Lakewood Mall and the other as cashier at our local community pool down the street. At first I am a little ashamed to say that I wasnt really happy about these jobs. I was happy of course to have them and to be getting an income but I was missing the theater and the fimiliarity that it brought. But what I didnt know in the beginning was the real blessing that these jobs would bring (besides the fact that I'd be able to return to Rexburg) was friends.


In previous summers I had pretty much kept to myself and the family ward b/c essentially all I did was work and sleep. But this summer b/c both my jobs only gave me about 20 hours a week and ended at a reasonable hour each night I decided that it was time to make myself enjoy life in California again rather then just endure it. So I forced myself to go to the local El Dorado singles ward and all of their activities. Im definitly not going to lie and say that it was easy, or that everyone was super friendly right from the start. In the beginning it was exactly as I thought it would be. People of course said hi and wanted to know all about me but I could tell I was just the "new meat" to them. It was all I could do to force myself to keep going to the activities that I didnt need an invitation to. But soon there were a select few who became real friends, who made sure I was invited to everything, and that I felt welcome wherever I went. I will forever be greatful to those people and their kindness. I dont think they will ever really know the difference they have made in my life.

The next blessing that came from these jobs was being able to attend the whole of the California YSA confrence. It would be a lie to say that I was excited to attend this two day confrence in Irvine b/c I wasnt but I am so glad that I was able to go. It was probably one of the best parts of the whole summer. It happened the weekend of August 8th & 9th. We had spirtual classes and tons of fun activities including a country line dancing class that was SUPER fun! What I got most out of the weekend though was about out will and alligning our will with the Lords. One of the speakers quoted an apostle (i cant remember which one) who said that our will is really the only truly personal thing that we can give the Lord, everything else we think we are giving Him was already His to begin with and we were just borrowing it. I thought about that a lot over the past month & have come to have a strong testimony of it. I know that I need to better in this area & have been trying very very hard to allign my will with the Lord's and to want what He wants instead of just accepting it.


The third blessing that I want to talk about came late in the summer (but only due to my own stubborness I might add). I met Dan Brown. I first met Dan at a bonfire that the ward had for an FHE. I had brought along a couple friends so that I wouldnt have to go to my very first activity alone one of those friends was Lori. So naturally Dan and his friend John were both flirting away with Lori & not really giving anyone in the circle a second glance. (Im used to this, its really nothing anymore) So even though I thought he was cute I wrote him off as being just like John (who I cant stand). Lori then started dating John & Dan tried to start talking to me. I pretty much blew him off and wanted nothing to do with him by then. Fast forward to the first weekend in August. The church held a state wide YSA confrence (which was SOOO much fun and a whole different story) and during the humanitarian project I kinda got cornered by Dan while I was holding the corner of a quilt and we started to talk. Let me tell you right now...NEVER judge a book by its cover. He was so different then I thought he was going to be and I found myself wanting to be his friend. So for the next week when we were at church we talked and flirted and I found myself liking him more and more. Finnally he asked me out on a date and for the last three weeks of summer we saw eachother everyday, and have talked everyday since I've been here. I dont want anyone jumping to conclusions I am not thinking marraige or anything close to that but I just wanted to thank my Heavenly Father for this wonderful blessing in my life to have a friend like Dan. It is truly an example to me of Heavenly Father knowing exactly what I need when I dont even know what I need.

Caitlyn & Lori: Because of these new jobs I was able to see these girls almost every weekend this summer and I dont know what i would've done if I hadnt been able to. They are my best friends and I am sooo glad that I was able to spend soo much time with them! I learned this summer that I'd forgotten soo many of the blessings Heavenly Father had already given me while I was busy complaining for new ones. I had so much fun with these girls that I can't even begin to write about it! Dances and parties and staying up late just talking about life! Words will never be able to describe how I love them!

The best of all though was that I was able to get so much closer to my family this summer. Usually between work and sleep I barely ever see half of my family all summer but this year I was not only able to spend the time I would have been sleeping with them but even more time b/c of my wonderful brother Matthew who we sent off on his mission to Ghana Africa! We had so many people in & out of our house that its not even funny! Both my mom and dad's side of our family were able to come when Matthew went through the temple and during dinner at our house later that night I felt like I was able to have a glimpse of what the Celestial Kingdom will be like. Everyone happy and laughing and completely surrounded by those who matter most. If everynight in heaven can be just like that one (with the family members that havent arrived yet of course) then i dont think that there's anything I wouldnt do to get there.

So there it is. My summer of blessings. The Lord was very generious and words cant tell how thankful I am to Him for knowing better then I what is the right path and where I need to be.